Betrayed

The day after, Alex was drinking her milk, sitting on a counter in the kitchen, when Sean climbed down.
“Good morning!” she smiled, amused by his sleepy face.
“Did you sleep well?”
"Aye, I certainly did." he mumbled, smiling sleepily while rubbing his eyes. Once inside the wide room he stopped in front of the window to yawn and stretch sinuously, all the while peeping outside through the curtains.
"And you, sweetheart?" he asked then, turning to look at her. "Did you sleep well too?"
“Considering that I managed to sleep just a couple of hours, because someone here...” she chuckled, eyeing him through her mug. “Yes, I slept very well...”
"You're lucky I let you sleep that couple of hours." he grinned, flashing her a wicked glance and then turning to open the fridge. "Mmmm, I guess we should buy something to eat." he mumbled, closing the door and eyeing Alex again. "What are you drinkin' there? Fancy some tea, love?"
“No, thaou.”ou.” she smiled. “Today we’re going to see that old furniture, remember?”
"Of course, I remember." Sean replied while bustling around the kettle, and flashing her a quick glance. "I just fear that you'll find nothing really usable up there. Anyway, there are also some books and knick-knacks which I think I'll keep, I don't know."
“Books?” she asked, trying to control the turmoil of emotion going on inside of her, hoping that he would find her curiosity kind of a professional one.
"Yeah, books." Sean nodded, smiling, while pouring his tea into a large mug. "Old books. Come, I'll show you."
“Sure.” she smiled back, taking his hand and following him upstairs.
She stopped outside the door, looking as Sean opened it.
The room was dark and she had to wait until he had turned on the light.
The attic was large, but indeed quite dusty and unkempt. Battered furnishings were amassed on the farther side of the room while at their right stood a wide table, on which many old books were piled. Opposite the table, a wooden trunk. There were also two windows, and Sean opened the shutters before looking at Alex again.
"There. Look around as you please."
Without thinking twice, Alex reached the books, opening them one by one, checking to see if there was something written by her grandparents.
Apart from some signatures, there was nothing in there, so she turned to look at the furniture.
The diary was nowhere to be found. It had to be into the trunk.
“Where’s the key?” she asked to Sean, kneeling in front of the object.
"I don't know, Alex. There was no key." the man replied, sitting on the table and quietly sipping his tea. "There must be something inside, though, for it's quite heavy. We could call a blacksmith or something."
“Yeah, I think it could be interesting to find out what there’s inside. The other pieces are too ruined...” she answered, nearing him with a wicked smile.
At such a sight, Sean raised an eyebrow, and took another gulp of his tea without averting his gaze.
"Mmmm?" he grinned then. "What's that devilish look for?"
“Nothing...” she grinned back. “I was just thinking that I’d love to have that vacation with you...it would be wonderful to be allowed to walk around as a normal couple, without all those photographers and journalists..."
"Oh, well. Surely no one will bother us there, in Italy." Sean agreed. "We can leave as soon as the workmen have cleared this room, and think about the rest of the house when we get back."
“Will you try and open that trunk, honey?” she asked then, gently caressing his thighs, leaning to kiss his cheek.
"Oh, but I've tried already. I can't do it by myself, we'll have to call a blacksmith." he sighed, and placed a soft kiss on her lips before standing to walk to the door.
"Get dressed, love. We're goin' out."
Alex looked at him in disbelief.
“Where are we going?” she asked when she had reached the bedroom, while Sean had grabbed a t-shirt and was wearing it.
"First, I have to bring some papers to your friend, that guy from the estate agency." he replied, while slipping on his jeans. "Then we need to buy some food, so we could also shop a bit. Is there something you need?"
“Oh well...” she smiled wickedly while dressing herself. “You can chose my dresses by yourself, ‘cause you like to rip all of them…”
Once he was finished with the belt, Sean approached the girl and considerately helped her to dress up, smiling. "That's exactly why you need more, my dearest." he chuckled while adjusting her top, and then looked straight into her eyes. "There you go."
“Thank you...” she whispered, walking hand in hand with him towards his car.
“I’m ready to come wherever you want to go…”
"All right, then we'll see Nichols first." Sean said, while driving along the avenue leading to the gates. "After that, you're allowed to choose what the next stop will be."
About half an hour later, they were entering Mark's agency, and one of the secretaries promptly received them.
"Nice to see you again, Mr. Bean. Mr. Nichol's waiting for you." she said courteously while shaking his hand, and then smiled at the other girl. "Oh, Alex, it's been a while! How are you?"
“I’m fine, thank you!” she smiled back, embracing the girl.
At that moment, Mark opened the door of his studio and smiled at his friend.
“Alex! I’ve missed you, little one! Did you forget about friends?”
The girl flung into his arms, hugging him tightly, a content smile on his face.
“How could I forget about you?”
Sean watched the scene from aside, and smiled when the other man approached him to shake his hand.
"I brought the papers you asked for, Mr. Nichols." he said politely while following him into his studio, at Alex's side. He was about to take her hand, but restrained himself. He didn't know if she had told her friends about their relationship, and after all, there was nothing official yet. Maybe she didn't want them to know.
“Just call me Mark.” he told to the older man, sitting onto his leather chair.
“Well, how are the works at the house going?” Mark asked after a while, putting down the papers. “Are you happy with our interior decorator?”
"Absolutely." Sean nodded, trying to hold back a smile and flashing a glance to Alex. "We're almost finished, and I'm indeed quite happy with the results."
Mark studied the two for a while, trying to stifle a smile.
“And...please, tell me...are you two a couple?”
“Mark!” Alex almost shouted, raising her eyes to the sky and shaking her head in an exasperated gesture.
“Yes...we-we are a couple...”
Sean couldn't help but chuckle at the sight, and leaned closer to Alex to affectionately pinch her cheek before turning his attentions back to Mark.
"Not officially yet, but we are."
“Yet?” he asked, amused by the whole situation.
“That would mean that you two...” he smiled knowingly, looking at Sean. “Well, I’m so happy for you...why don’t you come by my place one of these nights? We could have a dinner together...Alex promised me Italian food when she arrived here...”
"Oh, of course." Sean nodded, smiling. "She's a wonderful cook, isn't she? And by the way...both you and your girlfriend are welcome at our place. Why don't you pay us a visit tonight? You could stay over for dinner."
Mark smiled when Sean mentioned their place, and nodded.
“Will you cook me the Bolognese?” he asked Alex. “You know I love it...please little one...”
“Okay, okay...” Alex grinned at him. “And as I know that you will eat a lot, I think I’ll have to cook for the whole afternoon...but I’ll be glad to do it...”
"Oh, but I'll help you!" Sean nodded solemnly, glancing at Alex, and then stood.
"Well, see you tonight, then." he smiled at the other man, and shook his hand. "At... say...eight?"
“Okay, see you tonight!” he answered, shaking his hand and hugging Alex.

When they climbed the car again, Alex looked at Sean, smiling.
“Where are you taking me, love?”
At those words a bewildered Sean instantly turned to look at her, a strange light blazing from the depths of his green eyes. "...love?" he repeated after a few moments, a small smile slowly curving his lips. "You've never called me that before."
“There’s always a first time for everything.” she smiled, gently brushing the tips of her fingers on his cheek and forehead, her eyes never leaving his.
It was true, indeed. She had never called him that way, but the word had escaped her lips before she could prevent it and now she just hoped that the damage wasn’t too much.
Still smiling, Sean said nothing in return, but just stared steadily at her for some moments. Then he turned the key and started the engine, shifting his gaze to the road in front of them. "What about a trip to Finchley Road? It's not too far from home, there’s a huge shopping centre and some nice stores as well, we should find anything we need. Ever been there?"
”No.” she smiled, putting on her seat belt and looking at the road outside, trying to remember if Gwen and Mark had ever taken her there. ”No, I’ve never been there, but I’d like to go and see it. It would be nice to have a quiet walk hand in hand with you.”
"Finchley Road it is, then."
Said shopping centre was indeed huge. There was anything you could imagine, from restaurants to cinemas, a lot of varied stores and also a leisure complex. When they walked down the wide entrance hall, Sean was still holding Alex's hand into his, and wasn't certainly willing to let it go. It felt just too good to stop it, and he didn't care if someone would recognize him and see him in company of such a beautiful creature. Let 'em gossip, he thought. Let the buggers know that I'm truly happy for the first time in my life. He smiled helplessly at the thought, and flashed her a quick sidelong glance before stopping in front of the stairways.
"Shall we buy you some clothes, my dearest?" he asked then with a smirk.
“I will buy my clothes, Sean...” she grinned at him, playfully tugging at his hand.
While they were walking, Alex couldn’t help but wonder on what had happened earlier.
The situation didn’t seem too serious. Maybe that word hadn’t affected him so much. After all it was just a word, and nothing between them had said anything about the real nature of their story.
It was just too soon, and they had both suffered in past, so it seemed too soon to fancy about something that could last less than expected.
"Hey, what 'bout that?" Sean chuckled suddenly, pointing at the colourful window of the clothing store in front of them. "I swear I'll buy the fancy pink miniskirt if you swear you'll find the courage to put it on at least once. Or would you rather choose the feathery yellow jacket, love?"
Love.
That simple word was as the most wonderful thing in the world to her.
To know that maybe he could love her was more than she had ever dreamed of.
“I’m not that weird, you know that, don’t you?” she chuckled, eyeing an underwear shop.
“What do you think of some underwear? I hope you’re not one of those men who like us just with white cotton slips…I hate them…Sometimes I need to feel…aggressive. And sexy. Really sexy…”
"Oh, but you always are, trust me." Sean replied with a smirk, raising an eyebrow and grabbing her by the waist to drag her closer. "And I'm definitely not a white cotton kind of guy myself, I thought you noticed that. So I totally agree about the underwear business, on one condition. I'm the one who rips nice panties off, so I'm the one who'll pay for them. Agreed?"
Alex was quite amazed from this man.
He was all that she needed, and even more.
“Sounds good...” she chuckled, gently nibbling at his earlobe, just to tease him.
“Do you think that the girls in there would be shocked if you look at me while I try something?”
"I have no idea." he shrugged, while slowly sliding down with his hands to place them on the small of her back to drawn the girl even closer, all the while smiling mischievously. "I'm the one who'll have problems anyway, no doubt." he whispered then, grinning. "I don't know if I'll be able to restrain myself."
“Okay, in that case you’ll have to wait until we reach home...I’ll go and cook for our friends and then, after a good shower, while we’ll wait for them, I’ll show you everything we buy.” she grinned back, taking his hands and stepping back to avoid the temptation. “What do ya think about it?”
"I think it'll be well worth the wait." Sean chuckled, squeezing Alex's hands into his. "I promise I'll behave, then. For now."
“Well. Let’s go.” she smiled, taking his hand into hers, walking towards the shop.
She asked for some thongs, panties and a bra from the girl, and grinned to Sean, raising an eyebrow.
There was a huge collection of stuff on the counter, of many cos, es, even if black and dark red were the prominent ones.
The girl had left them alone and Alex looked curiously at Sean, to know which ones would he choose.
He browsed attentively through the lingerie for a while, until his gaze fell on a nearby rack. He flashed a wicked glance at Alex and then neared it, picking up an azure lace babydoll and then another one, mof bof black tulle.
"I like these." Sean grinned, giving her the garments. "And these." he added, also handing Alex a burgundy bra with matching tanga. "What would you choose instead, sweetheart?"
Alex took a couple of things and the girl packed everything and gave them a big smile.

Once at home, they put the food into the fridge and Alex climbed the stairs to go into their bedroom.
Sean had told her that she could have all the space she needed for her stuff and she had decided to put all of her underwear into a big wooden box that was in a corner of the room.
Before she turned to go out, she gazed at the room. It was beautiful, indeed.
They had done a really good job.
Some moments later, she was into the kitchen, preparing the Bolognese sauce for their guests. Her hair was combed to the back of her head, but there were some rebel locks that continued to fell on her face, giving her an aspect almost similar to a baby.
In the meantime, a starving Sean was looking in the fridge for something to eat. He didn't feel like cooking nor did he want to wait for the sauce to be ready, so he just grabbed a carrot and sat on a counter next to where Alex was busying herself, while watching her attentively and nibbling at the vegetable.
"Aren’t you hungry?"
“Yes, a little bit,” she admitted, turning to look at him. “But there should be a pack of biscuits on the counter next to you, if you want some...”

When she had finished, she sighed deeply, turning to near him, embracing him tightly, closing her eyes and smiling. “You know something? All of this seems to be a dream...”
"A good one, I hope?" Sean joked, placing a loud kiss on Alex' cheek and smiling brightly at her. "In that case, I won't wake you up, I promise..."
“Thank you.” she whispered, gently caressing his back with both her hands.
They parted some moments later, and Alex checked her sauce again, the bread she was making and the apple cake. Everything was fine, so she climbed up the stairs and took off all of her clothes, starting the hot water and stepping into the shower, sighing deeply with a content smile on her face, due to the relaxing sensation she was feeling.
"I bet you're desperately needing someone to wash your back." Sean grinned wickedly, peering into the shower cubicle and sliding the glass door open. He was wearing a t-shirt and shorts, but he didn't even bother to take them off. Even if he was fully dressed, he entered the shower, grinning all the while, and clung to Alex, pinning her against the wall.
Laughing, she gave him a quick kiss on the tip of his nose, looping her arms around his neck.
“You’re soaking all of your clothes, you bad boy. You know that, don’t you?”
"Aye, I know." Sean nodded, raising an eyebrow. "I can definitely feel it, but I couldn't care less, as long as you hold me tight like this."
He propped his chin on Alex' shoulder and just held her into his arms for a while, without searching for a more intimate contact, content just with her closeness.
"You know that I adore you an awful lot?" he whispered in her ear, smiling, and then closed his eyes while he tenderly rubbed his cheek against hers, still holding her tight.
“I adore you, too, my love.” she whispered back, caressing his hair, her eyes closed, a small smile on her face.
He was the most important thing in all her life.
It was a dream come true to be loved like this and it was painful to think to what would happen when she would have told the truth.
Banishing the thoughts from her mind, Alex just stayed him for a while, gently kissing his temple now and then.
“You should wipe yourself and put on dry clothes, love,” she murmured after a while, worried for him.
“I’m afraid that you’ll be sick after that…”
"I don't care." Sean whispered, drawing back to look into her eyes. Suddenly he was almost frightened by the depth of his feelings towards Alex.
He wasn't supposed to feel that way. No, indeed he wasn't.
She was there to work. After that, she was going to leave him and come back home; she was going to live her life without him.
It's just a fling.
Isn't it?
Sean abruptly averted his gaze and backed away, finding that the closeness he'd relished so dearly until mere moments before was almost discomforting, now.
"I...think we should check on the dinner." he muttered, slipping off the shower and then yanking off the dripping clothes.
He didn't sound convincing even to his own ears. How was she supposed to believe that everything was fine?
Alex looked at him for a moment, trying to understand what had just happened.
A moment before he was there all smiles and honey, and a moment later she felt him distant and cold.
And it hurt her seeing him like this.
Will it be like this when I tell him the truth?
Shaking her head, she didn’t answer, but stopped the water, taking a pair of towels and her clothes, walking towards her bedroom and locking the door behind her.
She would have slept there, alone that night. Because of all things, she couldn’t bear with his coldness. Not that night.
While she was drying herself, she could only blame herself.
She had accepted Gwen and Mark’s plan, and now all that shit was happening.
No, this story would not have a happy end. That was for sure.
About half an hour later, Sean knocked at her door. He knew fully well that she was resenting him for his odd behaviour, and he couldn't certainly blame her for that. Deciding to make it up to her somehow, he patiently waited for an answer. It didn't come.
"Alex, honey?" he eventually called from behind the door. "They'll be here shortly. I've already set the table, won't you come downstairs?"
“Yeah.” she just answered, opening the door and walking away, deciding to ignore him.
Once in the kitchen, she put the pasta onto a big plate.
Everything was ready to be served, and she sat on a counter, worrying her lower lip, her eyes focused on nothing in particular.
Sean sighed, trying to decide what to do. At last he neared her, and gently turned her face towards him.
"Don't be mad at me." he murmured. "I'm sorry..."
“I’m not mad at you.” she just answered, avoiding his gaze.
She wasn’t mad at him. She was hurt. And quite badly.
"I didn't mean to be that...that harsh." he continued, drooping and tilting his head in a vain attempt to meet her gaze.
"Alex, look at me." he said softly, cupping her face with both hands and then staring steadily into her eyes. "Will you let me explain, love? Please?"
Sighing, without any word, the girl looked at him, weakly nodding.
What was she supposed to do now?
At that moment the dinner with their friends was the last thing she wanted.
"Thank you." Sean said, and, for a few moments, he just caressed her cheeks, looking at her, as if gathering his thoughts. Then he sighed and cleared his throat, ready to tell her the truth and possibly to face her reaction.
"I am becoming very fond of you, Alex," he eventually murmured. "And I don't know whether that's a good thing or not. Mostly because you'll probably go home after you've finished your job here, and forget anyg abg about me within a week or two. I thought it was right, that it was the way it had to be, but now I'm not so sure anymore. Now I'm just..." he sighed then, trying to find the right word, that came almost in a whisper after a long moment. "Frightened."
From her side, Alex looked at him in disbelief, tears threatening.
I love you, Sean. I love you from the first moment I lay my eyes on you...
She would have told him everything, but until she could find the courage to tell him, she couldn’t confess her love to him.
“Sean, I...I’m not planning to go anywhere.” she whispered after a long pause. “I’ll stay with you for as long as you want me…”
"Is forever available as an option?" Sean whispered in response, smiling brightly at his Alex now that the apprehension was gone. "You're the most beautiful thing that ever happened to me. And I'm dying to kiss you."
“So why don’t you do it?” she smiled, nearing him and raising her hands to gently caress has hair and neck.
"I was waiting for your assent." he smiled back, settling in between Alex's legs and clinging to her so that their lips were almost touching. "I'm a good boy, you know..." he whispered, his green eyes half closed and a sly smile curving his lips. Then he bent his head and finally claimed her mouth to kiss her roughly, clutching at the fabric of her shirt as if afraid that she would change her mind and leave him.
Alex matched his intensity, entwining her legs at the small of his back, and moaned when their groins touched through their clothes.
It was something amazing how he had rejected her just an half hour before, but now they where together again, and he had confessed all of his fears about their future.
She was about to say how much she loved him when the doorbell rang, breaking the magic.
"Punctuality ain't always a good thing..." Sean chuckled when he drew back, and gave Alex another quick kiss before heading for the door, trying to adjust his clothes along the way. He smiled brightly at Mark and Gwen when he opened, and bid them to enter.
Even before coming to embrace her, Mark smiled knowingly at Alex.
“You prepared your bread...and Bolognese sauce!” he exclaimed, putting both of his hands on his tummy. “I’m starving!”
“Oh, Mark!” she laughed, hugging him for a moment before to turn her attention to Gwen.
"It’s beautiful here, Alex!" the girl smiled, embracing her friend. "You did a great job indeed."
"You bet she did. And there's more on the upper floor." Sean smirked then, glancing at Alex. "Would you show them the rest of the house, love?"
“Sure.” she smiled at him, taking Gwen’s arm and guiding her towards the stairs.
When they where alone, Mark suddenly grinned, and forgetting all that Gwen had told him before about mind his own business, he looked with the outmost curiosity their bedroom.
“So, how are things going between you two, love?” he asked after a while, sitting on the huge bed.
“We’re fine but...I’m frightened. I have to tell him the truth; I can’t live like this. I know he’ll hate me, but it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have told him all that bullshit…” she answered, looking at the floor.
At those words, Gwen neared her, and embraced her for a moment. "I'm more than sure that he'll understand." she said softly, smiling. "You didn't know him at that time...and you certainly didn't know that you two would have ended up together. It seems to me that things have changed a great deal since then, and I can see that you really care about each other. Isn’t that true?"
“I-I love him Gwen.” she said simply, not willing to lie to her best friend.
He would hate her. She was betraying him, for he trusted her and all she could do was lie to him.
She felt horrible for that, especially at night, while watching his sleep, gently caressing his beautiful and relaxed face.
It had been a bad idea to start all of this.
"That's why you should tell him the truth," Gwen sighed. "And start anew. Together. But what does the bad guy here think? Being a man, what would you suggest?" she asked then with a smirk, turning around to face Mark.
Mark sighed deeply, avoiding their gaze and standing up, walking towards the window to look outside.
“He’ll be mad at you, Alex.” he finally confessed. “It’s hard to understand those things...”
At his words, the girl’s face became white and tense, but she tried to hide it when she saw Sean coming.
"Dinner's ready." he said, peering into the room. "Have you finished your tour?"
"Just now. Everything is wonderful here, Sean." Gwen said, looking around with wonder and then smiling at Alex.
The girl managed somehow to smile at her, and stood up, nearing Sean and taking hold of his hand, looking at her two friends that were going downstairs.
“Sean...about what you told before...”
"Shhhh..." the man hushed her, smiling, and placed a finger upon her lips. "I know. Don’t worry now, we have plenty of time to talk about that. And dinner's getting cold."
He kissed her on the lips and led her downstairs, towards the dining room, where Mark and Gwen were waiting for them.
Mark was worried for his friend. Alex deserved to be happy, and this man could be the perfect match for her.
If only things were different, they could be a wonderful couple.
But he knew well how a man could react in such a situation, and knew how Alex would be affected.
He looked at them for the entire evening; and when they were parting, the man was even more convinced that they were really happy.
"Thank you for coming." Sean said gently, shaking Mark's hand then stepping aside to allow Alex to say goodbye.
"Take care, Alex," Gwen smiled, kissing her friend on the cheek. "And call me at any hour if you need me."
“Take care.” she smiled, hugging both of her friends.
When they were in the car, Mark looked at his beloved Gwen and sighed, without any word.
He knew all too well that she could understand why he was so upset.
Gwen silently placed a hand on his thigh in response, and leaned back on the seat with a pensive expression, looking at the road.
"We could explain him that we convinced Alex to do it," she said after a while, looking at him. "Which is true. Oh, Mark, I feel so bad for her..."
“He’ll never understand...” he murmured, starting the car and driving towards home. “I don’t know what to do...”
"Neither do I," Gwen sighed. "But what if we're underestimating him? Probably he'll just get mad at her and then think about the whole thing...you know, get her back. They look like they’re very much in love."
“No, I’m sure he’ll never do such a thing,” he murmured sadly. “Men are just too stubborn on those things...What if I call him and tell him the truth?”
"No, Mark." she said resolutely, shaking her head. "It's better not to meddle between them. She has to tell him...when she feels like doing it. We could talk to him afterwards and try to settle things down."
“Okay...whatever you say...” he told her, even if he wasn’t too sure of what they were doing.