Seducing The Ice Queen

Adam returned to the hotel tired to his bones. He took off his dirty clothes and went towards the bathroom, not expecting Alice to be back yet. She had messaged him about having some work. But instead of going into the bathroom, he paused midway and turned back to sniff the air. His eyes widening, he walked into the small pantry and his stomach which had been silent until now, growled loudly like a lion. The smell of garlic and soya sauce permeated the air and Adam could only shake his head. Alice had prepared her signature soup which was now simmering on the induction! The first time he had tasted the soup, he had thought that he had died and gone to heaven! 

A mixture of all kinds of meat, it was just the right amount of filling and nutritious. But more than everything it was the taste of home. The two of them led high profile and busy lives and would rather spend time with each other than slogging in the kitchen. Usually Adam took over the cooking but the rare times Alice did, he could hardly believe the woman's skills. Of course she had told him how she had worked in the kitchen with the chef in the earlier days when she had established the Mad Hatter's Tea Party Cafes. However, her awesomeness never failed to amaze him.

Home.. Alice had managed to transform this impersonal suite into a home for him. Adam thought back to the many times when he had returned from the practice bone tired and the silence in the rooms would eat at him. He would usually just fall asleep or go on air and chat with his fans for a while. But that too had started feeling like a chore at one point and he would simply black out. But now, everything was different. Despite the amount of money he had earned over the years, he often found it to be of no interest and considered himself poor as he had no one to share it with. But with Alice around, he felt like the richest man in the world. 

But where was his girl? The thought had just entered his head when a pair of slender arms slid around him and her head rested against his back. Holding him tight, she placed a kiss on his back and asked, " You must be tired.."

Adam smiled and turned back to hold her. "You chased away the tiredness."

Alice shook her head at his cheesiness and tsked, " You need some original lines!"

But Adam was not discouraged and to show her how much he was still not tired, he spread his hand over her back but before he could do more, Alice pushed him away! 

"Go and take a bath! And I have prepared a special tub with medicated water. You need to soak your feet there. You cannot hide the fact that they are swollen." Adam was surprised that she had noticed. This was the side effect of being a dancer. His feet would often swell if the practice was too hard and the shoes too uncomfortable. 

Touched by her care and feeling even more emotional at having found a home, Adam turned back towards his original destination of the shower already salivating at the food that he was going to have. 

Alice watched his back as he went to the bathroom, clenching her hands as she realized that she would have to consult him before she did this. But he deserved to know what she was about to do.

Soon, the couple had a leisurely dinner as they discussed their next travel itinerary while telling him excitedly about the new chef that she had won over. The man named Mike, had just called to tell her that he was willing to accept the offer and move back to the country.

Adam, who had been quietly listening to everything that Alice was saying and finally held her hand, "What is on your mind?" 

Alice sighed and getting up, picked up the file and placed it in front of Adam..

Raising his eyebrows, Adam looked at the list of properties and the many details marked on it. At first his face set in a frown making him wonder what this was about but soon, he came across a few properties that he was familiar with and looked up sharply, " Adken Parry."

Alice nodded at the harsh tone and proceeded to repeat the foul words that he had uttered. She had hesitated as she had wondered if she should directly tell Adam that she was going to destroy his father but finally decided against it. She wanted him to know and she wanted him to support her. Even though she was now sure that he would always stand by her, her voice pleaded with him to understand as she repeated the foul words the man had uttered as well as how the new chef had saved her.

Adam felt his ire rise at the man but he kept calm and then asked her, "What is this?", raising the file in his hand.

"He offered me these to leave you. I had to choose which ones I want for the price of letting you reconcile with him and leave you."

Adam snorted at this. Did the man think this was some kind of a TV drama where Alice leaving him would make him go back to that man out of loneliness?

Getting up, he walked to the side table where the hotel's pen and a notepad were kept. Alice wanted to call him back and tell him that she had brought the list not because she was considering this offer but because she was going to use the list to catch the mistakes or frauds Adken Parry had committed in the past. Because before everything was digitalized, she had heard that Adken PArry had been involved in many under the table deals with mafia's. The government had already stated that even past links with the mafia were enough to punish a person. Added to that, she was going to use the rest of the properties to create trouble for the man. But before she could explain this, Adam had walked away. 

Grabbing a pen, Adam walked back to the table and started crossing off many places. Alice frowned and wanted to ask him what he was doing but she was too shocked. After crossing out a few, he rechecked the list and then pulled out his phone, clicked a picture and proceeded to type out something at full speed before putting away the file. The burning anger in his eyes was visible but his expression was otherwise steady. After sending the information, he placed the file in front of Alice and said," You can use these. The ones that I have not crossed out. I and Ben will finish off the rest."

Alice felt her jaw drop as she looked down at the file again. More than half had been cancelled by him. For a moment she wondered if Adam was trying to save her father but she knew that was not the case. She had thought that Adam would try to dissuade her from going after his father or be lenient atleast. She had already thought of many arguments and theories to convince him. Knowing him, she had been aware that he had a soft heart and would someday forgive the man. But she could not have guessed that he would not only agree to it but also offer to help her with it! 

Smiling at Alice's shocked look, Adam shook his head and remarked, "You are a softie, my wife. And you have too much of filial piety. To me, that man is nothing but the reason that my mother lost her life and my grandmother had to suffer in the old age. And he showed me by example on how not to show filial piety be ignoring his own mother when she needed help the most. The man is not worth giving another chance. Even if I were to reconcile with him today, he would not be satisfied until he was the only one in my life controlling it the way he wanted. Me and Ben have worked hard to get out hands on these properties and the way they were acquired. While the others, we had not yet found. But the man has handed his death warrant to you himself and I am not going to stop you from it. But I do have a request.."

Alice looked at her husband wide eyed but nodded her head, agreeing to any request he had but was once again shocked when he said," Let me deliver the final blow."

Adam, her Adam, she had never seen him so ruthless.....All her carefully prepared explanations, her willingness to give some concessions to that man for being related to Adam, were all thrown out to the wind!