The Royal Contract

He was expecting that Dani would be the first to go home. A late meeting with Marcus and his legal team prevented him from leaving the office sooner.

But when she texted him that she was still working by the time he left the office. Instead of going home, he decided to check on Dani at her office.

He would wait for her for how long it would take him as long as he was sure of her safety. "Is Dani still upstairs?" He checked on Ben. When he got the confirmation, he proceeded to the building.

After inquiries at the lobby, he quickly rode the elevator to the said floor. He did notice that the building was almost empty of its employees. He could only guess that Dani and her colleagues might be the few left in the building.

The lift seemed to climb up slowly to the said floor as he watched the numbers change on every floor. He was not worried about her safety, knowing that she was working with a group.

He was just anxious to see her after an entire day of missing her. He looked at his watch, hoping that she would soon finish up. He was planning to take her to a late-night dinner.

Where to take her? He thought, searching his brain for a nice quiet restaurant. A ding reverberated inside, bringing him back to the present. It finally indicated that the door was about to open. 

When the doors did open, Alex looked straight ahead, only to be surprised to see Dani standing in the hallway. He was a bit taken aback, seeing her holding hands with Gerald. 

He did see her look up when she noticed the elevator opened. He saw how her eyes enlarged upon seeing his presence. He also watched her pull her hands away from his as if electrocuted.

"Alex, what are you doing here?" Dani could not believe the impeccable timing of Alex to find her in a compromising position again.

But she did not want to feel guilty since she had done nothing wrong. She was also confident that Alex would listen to reason, just like the time with Troy. She had nothing to worry about because they trusted each other completely.

"I finish early, so when I learn that you are still here, I decided to fetch you and invite you for a late dinner." He answered her question calmly, not wanting his inner turmoil to show.

He was not sure what to feel about what he saw, but he wanted to give her a chance to explain. He guaranteed to himself that she had a valid reason for what he witnessed a few seconds ago.

"Alex, nice to see you again." Gerald quickly realized her sudden reaction, learning of their unexpected visitor.

He recovered from the sudden awkward situation, welcoming Alex into their company. He could not help but think of what he might have thought of what he saw.

Was he able to make him feel jealous? He could not tell. His face maintained an impassive expression as if it did not affect him at all. But his instinct was telling him to be careful.

"Gerald," Alex acknowledged him with a nod, nothing more. "Are you two already on your way out?" He looked from Gerald to Dani, directing his question to both of them.

He kept reminding himself that he could trust Dani. Just like what happened with Troy, he just saw a misunderstanding. It was nothing that he should be concerned about Dani.

But now, he was starting to doubt if he could trust Gerald with her. All those late nights of working together. He looked around and did not see anyone else. 

"Yes, we just finished," Dani answered him as she moved to his side and gave him a quick peck on the cheeks. "Shall we go?" She hooked her hand on his arm.

"If you are sure you are through here?" Alex looked at Gerald when he asked the question. He knew he wanted to see his reaction.

Gerald had his back on him when he arrived. He was not able to observe his expression when he was holding her hand. He had to know if he had any ill intentions with his fiance.

But so far, he could not find any fault in his movements. His face remained calm as if he had not done anything wrong. He maintained a friendly smile as he looked him in the eye.

"I'm sorry if it took us this late, but I am sure we are good for the night. I'll see you tomorrow." Gerald nodded at Dani, walked towards the open elevator, and waved goodbye before the door closed.

He left them, not waiting for them to ride with him in the small box. He believed it was for the best. He did not want Alex to sniff something that might stink.

He still was not sure of what he had planned for Dani. If pursuing her was even a good idea. But every day he was around her, it was getting harder and harder to stay away.

She tilted her head until she was facing Alex face to face. "Hey, about what you saw." She started, seeing that they were alone again.

She was aware that even though he appeared calm and collected, the thought of her and Gerald was still running in his mind. She had to correct that before it pestered and made him doubt their relationship.

She did not want him to presume that something was going on between her or her boss. Or if not that, he did not want him to think that her boss had a thing for her.

She still wanted to continue working with Gerald on this case without Alex constantly questioning her working relationship with Gerald.

"Can we talk about this over dinner? I am sure that you are tired and hungry." He stared at her eyes, reading the slight hesitation in her eyes. 

He wondered what the reason was behind it. As if Dani was feeling guilty about something.. He tried to scratch the thought away, not wanting to doubt her loyalty and love.