CHAPTER 92
Stuck In A Tough Spot…
Cornell
Shock rippled through me upon hearing my uncle's announcement, but that wasn't even the most distressing thing.
It's the fact that Elena was sitting next to me.
I felt so embarrassed that I couldn't even bear to look in her direction, just glaring daggers at my mother.
Was this why she wanted to host a family hangout so badly?
I let them continue talking and finish the toast but on the inside, I was boiling.
Didn't Mom see Elena sitting right beside me?!
And even if they wanted to set me up, they should have at least spoken to me first!
After the announcement, I mumbled to Elena. "I'll be right back, okay?"
Dabbing my lips with the paper towel, I threw it down angrily on the table and walked over to my uncle who had wandered over to the wet bar to grab a drink.
He was talking to someone over the phone so I stayed behind, hovering over his shoulder while I waited for him to round up.
Once he did, I swooped in.
Before I did though, I had analysed which angle to play.
This was a sensitive situation, and I didn't want to jump in, sounding all angry and upset, especially when I owed most of what I am now to the man before me.
"Hey, uncle….Can I pour you a drink?" I sidled up next to him, picking up a bottle of red wine.
"Maybe just one more. I'm trying to cut down…you know, doctor's orders…" he joked, forcing me to elicit a dry chuckle.
"Yeah, I understand that." I smiled, grabbing another glass to pour some wine. "So, um…about that announcement, you know what you said earlier is just…"
Before I could gather my thoughts into a coherent sentence, an annoying voice cut in.
"Cornelllllllllll babyyyy…." Victoria purred, using a sexy voice that might have worked for other guys but only made me want to throw up.
Twisting my head to glare at her, I spat out coldly. "What gives you the right to think you can call my name in that manner?"
She shrank back, shaken up by my acidic tone.
Luckily for her, my uncle stepped in. "Hey, Cornell, watch your tone! That's no way to talk to your fiancée."
Fiancee?!
Was this man not listening to a word I said?
"Uncle…." I ground out, watching Victoria walk off in a huff. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. You know that I appreciate everything that you've done for me but this is one part of my life that I feel you should have talked to me about. Victoria is an amazing girl, and she'll probably be an amazing wife for someone, but that person isn't me."
My uncle's brows furrowed as he set his glass down gently on the counter. "Uh, what are you trying to say, Cornell?"
I opened my mouth to reply, but my eyes strayed towards the other side of the room, spotting Victoria around Elena, who looked out of place and slightly pissed off.
As if that wasn't a terrible combination, my mother joined the team, carrying a tray of drinks with a wide smile.
Elena didn't even wait for the tray to touch the table before swiping it off and downing it all in less than a minute.
I grew worried when she swayed to the left after drinking whatever it was my Mom served. Instantly, I walked away from my uncle, my concerns about Victoria taking a backseat.
I don't know if my mom or Victoria said something to Elena but she angrily walked towards the door, a look of annoyance flashing past Mom's face as she stared at the tray.
Ignoring calls from Victoria and my Mom, I rushed towards Elena, gently grabbing her elbow before she stormed through the door.
"Elena, wait up…"
She pulled away from my grasp, but her movements were slower than they were. "I really don't want to talk to you right now. Can you please just take me home?"
I opened my mouth to say that we weren't even halfway through dinner but the look on her face made me swallow my words. "Okay," I agreed.
I took her to the car and went back in to say my goodbyes, insisting that work came up before I snuck back out again.
Throughout the car ride home, the car was as silent as a graveyard.
I felt I should say something but where do I start from?
I'm sorry that my Mom and uncle set me up with a fiancée?
I battled out the right thing to say, but nothing seemed to be good enough, so I just kept quiet, throwing nervous glances her way.
She might not have said anything, but she kept moving around in the seat, acting uncomfortable.
Finally, we got home, and I helped her out of the car, but she not so gently shoved my hands away, determined to walk on her own. I allowed her only to notice that her steps weren't so steady.
Tugging down her dress, she looked up and missed a step.
Her heel twisted in the gravel and if it weren't for my quick reflexes, she would have faceplanted in an awkward position.
My arms circled her waist, supporting her weight so she didn't trip and fall again but Elena just shrugged my touch off.
"Just leave me alone, Cornell." She mumbled under her breath.
I would have given in to her instructions, but my hands brushed her neck while I stopped her from falling, and the heightened temperature caught my attention.
Ignoring her grumbling, I touched her forehead and sure enough, I was right.
She's burning up.
Realizing I couldn't leave her in that state, I bent to cup her legs, sweeping them out from under her.
With a startled yelp, Elena grabbed the back of my neck, holding on to my jacket. "Hey! What are you doing?! Put me down!"
"I'm helping you," I tell her, tightening my grip around my body when she starts to fight her way out of my embrace.
Then suddenly, she stopped fighting and started to rub up against me, touching my chest and pulling at her dress in an effort to get naked
I was confused at first but then it occurred to me that she might have been drugged.
So I changed direction to my room, intent on drenching her with water in the bathtub to jolt her back to her senses.
Except when I finally dropped her on her feet at the threshold of my room, Elena slammed her lips against mine in a deep kiss.