Till the End of Time

Chapter Nine: Expert at Groveling

On Monday morning, I sneaked into Alex's house when he was at work. I had a photoshoot scheduled in an hour and I needed to grab my make-up kit.

I climbed up the stairs and rushed into the bedroom. I didn't want to risk Alex coming back home for any reason and finding me. I was about to enter the closet when I spotted a photo on my pillow and stopped in my tracks. I walked up to the unmade bed and picked up the frame. It was our engagement photo taken exactly one year after the day we met at the downtown restaurant. We were on a yacht off the coast of Athens. I was smiling brightly at the camera with Alex kneeling before me. One of the crew members had snapped our photo and texted it to Alex. We printed it and had it framed the day we got back to LA.

I was about to place the photo back when I heard a door slam shut and footsteps approaching me. Oh shit! Was Alex home? I didn't see his car parked in the driveway. Did he park it in the garage?

I panicked and slid down to hide under the bed frame. Alex entered the room and walked straight into the en-suite bathroom, and turned the shower on.

Just great! I couldn't be late for the photoshoot; I was booked to do make-up for five models.

A few minutes later, Alex came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his hips. Water dripped down his abs causing his body to glisten. Damn it! Why did the jerk have to be so sexy? Whatever! Don't look, Athena! Don't look!

Alex walked into the closet, dressed quickly and rushed out of the bedroom. I scrambled out of my hiding spot and dashed to the closet to grab my make-up kit. I was focused on devising my escape plan when I heard the doorbell ringing.

What the hell? Who would visit Alex early Monday morning? I tip-toed my way to the top of the staircase and saw Alex facing Virginia by the front entrance.

"Why are you here, Virginia?" he asked.

Well, that's interesting he called her Virginia and not Vivi.

"I went to your office Alex and your secretary said you were working from home," she replied.

"Yes, but that still doesn't answer my question," he snapped.

"Well, Alex, you've been ignoring all my calls and texts. I had to come see you."

"Yeah, and that didn't clue you in?" he asked.

"Alex, Lottie misread the situation. I didn't do anything wrong," she pleaded. "Athena was the one at fault. She stole my watch because she was jealous you bought it for me."

"Did she?"

"Yes, you were the one who found it, remember. It was inside her nightstand."

"Don't remind me of what a fool I was," he yelled. "I can't believe I fell for your bullshit."

"Alex, you have to believe me," she begged.

"Why should I? Why should I believe you over my fiancée?" he asked, fisting his hands.

"Alex, you've known me all my life."

"Yes, and that's the only reason why I fell for your immature games. Tell me, how did you know the watch was inside her nightstand?" he questioned.

She cleared her throat and didn't respond.

"I never told you where I found the watch, Virginia. You're a manipulative and vile woman, and I'm so ashamed I got caught in your trap. I thought of you as family but you didn't deserve that. I don't want to see you again. If you see me at an event, you walk away. If my parents invite you anywhere, you decline. I'm not someone you want to mess with Virginia. Don't push me to go public with your schemes. I'll ruin you," he warned.

Virginia stared up at him in open-mouthed shock.

"Do you understand me?" he asked

She nodded.

He walked to the door and opened it. "Now get the hell out and don't ever come back here again," he barked.

She rushed out of the door and left. Alex shut the door, locked it, and walked into the living room. When I heard his home office door open and shut, I made my escape.

I had a long day at the photoshoot and finally made it home later that evening. I parked in my parents driveway and made the walk around the house to the backyard. I was grabbing my keys out of my purse when I looked up and saw flowers covering the pathway of the entrance to the guest house.

Geez! What did Alex do? Did he buy an entire flower shop? There were vases full of roses, dahlias, peonies, hydrangeas and so on. Did he buy every flower that was in season?

I approached the arrangement closest to me and grabbed the card tucked into the flowers. The note read: A flower for each time I thought of you today. There had to be over a thousand flowers.

I grabbed a few more note cards and read the messages:
A flower for each kiss I wish I could've given you today.
A flower for each time my hands reached for you today.
A flower for each time I craved your scent today.

I continued to read the rest of the notes and each message caused a new tear to fall down my cheeks. What was Alex up to? Was this groveling?

I was walking out of the main house where I'd dropped off some of the flower arrangements when I came face to face with Alex in the backyard.

"We have to stop meeting like this," I joked.

He smiled at me and lifted a takeout bag. "I brought you some dinner. It's sushi, your favorite."

"Alex, what are you doing? Why are you buying me dinner and sending me hundreds of flowers?" I asked.

"I wanted to send you a flower for every minute of the day, Athena. You deserve a flower per minute."

"Alex, seriously, it's too much."

"Never baby, it'll never be too much. I know I promised to give you time, but Athena I'm going to spend every single moment of that time showing you how much I love you, how much you mean to me, and how sorry I am. Take all the time you need, baby, because all my time is yours. Till the end of time," he promised.

"Okay Alex," I yielded. "But please no more flowers."

"Okay angel, no more flowers. Now, are you hungry?"

Shaking my head I led him inside. "Come on Alex, let's eat some sushi."

The next day, Alex sent over my favorite Lebanese chocolates —which dad and Nico devoured— and brought me pizza for dinner. The following day, I received new top of the line make-up brushes, and we had Thai for dinner. And so, the days passed with gifts sent over every afternoon and Alex bringing me dinner every evening.

A week after I first arrived at my parents' house, I was just returning from an appointment with a client when I found a wrapped package leaning against my door. I excitedly grabbed my gift and went inside looking forward to seeing what he sent, but what I found inside made me cry my heart out. Alex had sent me an acrylic frame with song lyrics printed in the shape of a vinyl record. The name of the song was 'Till the End of Time.'

I was overwhelmed with emotions. I didn't know what to do. How could I handle Alex and his groveling?

After all, Alex had become an expert at groveling.