The Devil's Love For The Heiress

Chapter 64

Chapter 64: If It’s Meant To Be

“I repeat, I am not that man in the video with Hailey Mckenzie,” Carlos said at the Wimbledon press conference. He was frowning, and his face burned in anger. “And this interview was not supposed to be about my personal life. This is about tennis. I would appreciate questions about my upcoming matches.”

After Paris, Kate and Carlos left for London with his men. Kate did not want to be left behind and instead made a remote office for herself at the Diamond Hotel in London.

Resting for only a few hours, Carlos immediately jumped into his first responsibility and attended the tournament’s press conference on day one.

“He is really denying it, but what about the video?”

“I’d like to see this Carlos look alike if he really exists.”

Murmurs around the room reached Carlos’ ears, and he could see how he was being judged, silently opposed. Still, he answered the rest of the questions, avoiding those that were related to Hailey. It wasn’t the time yet. He still hoped that Gabin would come to his senses.

Plus, the whereabouts of Guillaume Bonnet remained to be a concern. Carlos did not know if it was entirely safe to reveal Kate. More than anything, he wanted the world to know about his Kate, but for her safety, he meant to keep Kate to himself, at least for now. He hoped one day, Guillaume’s body would be found soon, dead or alive.

As Carlos went about the interviews, his eyes wandered to his friend. Alexander belonged to the panel of athletes being questioned that day, and Carlos contemplated whether to tell him about Kendra’s involvement with Hailey.

After the press conference, the two friends had lunch at the same hotel where the event was held. As they ate, Carlos kept eyeing his friend.

“You are freaking me out, man. What’s with that stare?” Alexander sought, his brow raising.

Before Carlos could answer, Alexander’s phone went off. Carlos’ eyes landed on the screen and saw how it was Kendra calling. A scoff left Alexander’s lips. He said, “That’s probably the tenth time since I arrived in London.”

Alexander canceled the call and went on with his meal.

Carlos asked, “So, you haven’t spoken to Kendra?”

Shaking his head, Alexander replied, “Strangely. I thought it would be difficult. I was used to having her around. She was always at my penthouse, always calling. Even her nagging had been part of my life for the past three years. But! I’m getting through it. And it helps with you around… Every day seems better without her.” With a sigh, Alexander added, “Sometimes, I think back to our arguments and wonder how I survived our relationship.”

“Every time we fight, we end up in bed. It was weird, but it somewhat alleviated whatever issues we had,” Alexander said. “Then I’d feel guilty since she’d cry. Now that I think about it, the breakup was better. We never really solved our issues.”

“I never really liked her,” Carlos admitted.

“I know,” Alexander regretfully acknowledged. “I’m sorry I did not listen to you then.”

The two friends were exchanging words about Kendra when Carlos noticed Alexander’s gaze was fixed on a particular person a few tables away. It was Savannah Knight, and she was with her usual group of female friends. The women’s singles had their press conference at the same hotel.

“So, what happened in Dublin?” Carlos asked.

“She – um, did not want to be friends with me. I guess she hates me that much,” Alexander replied.

“And you are just going to let it be?” Carlos asked. “I thought you liked her.”

Alexander gave off a shocked expression, and Carlos responded, ‘What? I honestly thought you did. I did not have to confirm it. I saw it. Besides, you liked her once. What were the chances that those feelings came back?”

While answering Carlos, Alexander returned his regard to Savannah. “I guess I always liked her, even when we were taunting each other. My relationship with Kendra perhaps just kept my interest in her… under control.”

Just then, screams from the distant table could be heard. A man in a business suit appeared out of nowhere, giving flowers to Savannah. Carlos and Alexander saw the flush on Savannah’s cheeks and how the girls were teasing her completely. Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

Carlos’ stare panned from Savannah to Alexander. He studied how his friend gritted his teeth at watching Savannah’s potential admirer. Carlos asked, “Are you going to do anything about that?”

Leaning back, Alexander replied, “I don’t have any right to.”

“So you are just going to give up?” Carlos asked.

Alexander finished his glass of water and then answered, “I wasn’t going to jump into a new relationship right away, not after what happened with Kendra, but I was hoping to be friends with her and… start from there.”

“But since she hates me, I wanted to… give her the time she needs to forgive me. I worry that forcing myself to be with her might only push her away.”

For seconds, Alexander studied Savannah from a distance. He added, “If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. Only time will tell.”

Then, Alexander decided to look away, disliking the look of the man who was trying to charm Savannah. He said to Carlos, “So, are you going to tell me why you were looking at me that way or what?”

“Kendra and Hailey had sex with Gabin,” Carlos finally said.

“What?!” Alexander reacted, his voice strengthening.

“They drugged Gabin, and they had what they call…a… threesome,” Carlos relayed.

“Fuck! That’s so disturbing!” Alexander said before standing up. He grabbed his phone and walked away, feeling disgusted about having been in a relationship with Kendra..

Four days passed.

The first and second rounds of the Wimbledon Championships came and went. Carlos and Alexander won with ease that in the afternoon of their match, they found time to discuss with Kate the recent progress of CSK Apparel’s product launch.

They gathered up in the living room of the Diamond Hotel London’s penthouse.

“We have around two thousand elite members in just a few days, more than four thousand of the watches sold, and many more asking about it,” kate said, her eyes gleaming as she reported. “I have spoken to Kenzie and Andrew. They are willing to endorse it by buying the membership and showing off the watch, then! During your championship interview with Andrew’s TV network.”

Kate smiled, claiming Carlos’ win. She added, “Andrew said that they will allocate a few minutes to feature the watch.”

“Social media are up. Comments are flying. According to Molly, the first store will open right after the Wimbledon Championship! I’d say it is the perfect time to open our very first store!”

“Wow!” Alexander exclaimed. “We are glad to have you, Kate!”

“And we have a new sales director who will push through the sales moving forward, especially since our first store is about to open!” Kate exclaimed.

“CSK will go a long way.” Carlos remarked.

Kate chuckled and suggested, ‘Yep! With kids and grandkids.”

Carlos and Kate laughed while Alexander rolled his eyes. He said, “Get a room.”

“You are in our temporary home and office. This is technically our room,” Kate pointed out to Alexander.

The three of them continued to chat about the company’s progress when Carlos suddenly received a call. He answered it, and after a few minutes, he formed a frown. He groaned and massaged his forehead, saying, “Okay. I understand. It was my fault. I should have stopped Kate.”

“What’s going on?” Kate asked, seeing her man looking stressed out from a single call.

“That was Kyle,” Carlos revealed. “Hailey, she – she got out of bail again.”

‘What? Why? How could my dad allow -”

“She threatened to sue for assault,” Carlos said, reminding Kate of the punch. “Negotiations were made. So she got out of bail again.”

“Ahhh!” Kate screamed. Her face turned red as she claimed, “I hate Hailey to the core!”

Meanwhile, in New York. Hailey Mckenzie was in front of her laptop. She had been online finding news about Carlos, and to her satisfaction, Gabin had not owned up to being the man on the video. What was even more amusing to her was how Carlos had not yet revealed the news about Kate, his real girlfriend. He denied being in the video, which still discredited Carlos in some ways.

She downloaded recordings of their surveillance at home, and she notably edited the part where Carlos walked into their front door. Then, Hailey posted it saying: (Before Wimbledon, a visit from Carlos.)

It was short and straightforward, yet it caused another commotion over the internet.

***

From an unknown warehouse, a small local gang gathered around in front of Guillaume Bonnet. He was alive and ready to collect.

The gang leader said, “Are you sure this will work?”

Guillaume acknowledged, saying, “Trust me, she is the girlfriend. And when he finds out we have her, he will rig his own game. Let’s collaborate and bet against Carlos Ronaldo during the finals. I need your money, and I’ll place the bets. How about 50/50 profit share?”

“If you make a mistake, I will have your head!” Said the local gang leader.

“I’m sure… my plan will work,” Guillaume replied. A smirk formed on his face. “We already have her under surveillance… We will take her… a day before the finals.”