Alex woke up to an empty bed.  Fear rippled through him, anxious that Christian might have called her and she left, much like she used to come running to him but that was no more.

He lifted himself up and heard the shower running. He walked over to his luggage. Rummaging through it, Alex found a pair of slacks, a t-shirt and hoodie. He didn't know if Ava, the socialite, would dear step out in his gym clothes. Nonetheless, it was all he had for her.

Ava stepped out of the shower, hair up in a messy bun, covered in nothing but a small towel. Alex's pants tightened. The tiny white towel barely went over anything beyond her waist. Alex hadn't seen her thighs in a long time and his mouth dried just at the thought of kissing them.

"Eyes up here," Ava said teasingly and turned away as though she hadn't meant anything by it.

Alex laughed it off, despite every inch of him wanting to grab her and take everything that he was being teased with. "There's some clothes on the bed if you want them."

"If I want them," she asked, amused.

Alex smirked. "My clothes aren't exactly fashionable."

Ava moved past him and bent over on the bed. Alex exhaled deeply looking up her legs and turned away before he saw where they ended up.

"Are you going to give me room to change or not?" She chortled as she picked up his slacks. "You have seen it all, I suppose."

Alex licked his lips, doing his best to concentrate on her words and not the fact that she was baiting him towards something. He just didn't know what.

"Boundaries, Ava," he muttered, while he wanted to trample over every line that they had drown. "Let's at least have that. I'm going to shower."

By the time he finished she was sitting on the edge of the bed. Ava was still drop dead gorgeous in his slacks and hoodie. She smirked when she saw him. "When are you feeding me?"

"Now."

Alex pointed to the door and Ava walked ahead of him. He didn't know what he missed the most about their interactions. Despite knowing that she would leave him in the end, Alex relished their moments together, relearning how to communicate and be close. It almost felt like it was enough. But he knew that once she was gone, it would hurt.

Silence fell between them as they stepped into the empty elevator, one after the other. Her eyes, soulful and wild, stared back at him. For a long time when they looked at each other her eyes had been empty. She had forgiven him. Alex hadn't dared dream and knew it had been a long time coming but that morning was the first time that he thought she no longer had pain where they were concerned.

Ava looked at him with a smile. Alex smiled back and before he could say a word, not that he knew what to say, the elevator door opened. Ava's eyes widened and forced him to look towards the door. A reddish browned haired woman stood with her mouth opened and a suitcase in her hand.

Hannah.

"Alexander Evans," she said grinning broadly. "You got hotter."

Alex laughed. He never knew how to take a compliment from a woman. He was still the same old awkward boy that she loved. Ava had wondered how he had a reputation of being a smooth talker when they were in university. But Ava knew, he preferred one on one interactions. People who didn't know him thought he was extroverted like her, because he could blend in and pretend, but he was shy. 

"Long time no see, Hannah," Alex said just as causally.

"Ava said you might come to her engagement and when you didn't show we were all disappointed."

"I got held up with work."

Lies, Ava nearly said.

Hannah smiled, looking between them. "It's weird seeing you two together and not killing each other."

Alex opened his mouth and his words failed him. He looked away with a flat smile.

"We were young." Ava moved closer to him and slung a hand over Alex's shoulder. "Wasn't your flight early in the morning?"

Hannah laughed sheepishly. "I drank too much last night."

"With Jax?"

Hannah looked away and didn't answer Ava. Her cheeks turned a charming pink. No matter how many times she flirt with Alex, he had never seen that colour on her. Hannah looked at Alex. "He will so disappointed that he didn't get to see you. You just kind of disappeared."

"Family duties," Alex said without meeting Ava's gaze. "Tell them I said hello."

"Maybe you'll tell them yourself one of these days."

"Maybe," he said as the door to the elevator opened. He stepped out as the girls hugged each other.

Ava joined him and they continued on to the restaurant. She ordered eggs florentine and yet she spent the entire time with her fork digging into his waffles. At least some things didn't change. Alex found more joy in that fact than thinking that they were complete strangers. He enjoyed the little reminders that he still knew her. 

"Do you like what you do?"

Alex pushed his plate towards her and took hers instead. "I don't know. It was something to do."

"You say that like someone was holding a gun to your head."

But someone had the day that she told him that she never wanted to see him again. He could give her the truth without saying too much. "I missed you sometimes and I just wanted to know how you're doing. I knew you wouldn't answer so I kept busy to stop from driving myself insane. After a while, I became really good at working and ensuring that I was never idle."

"You should have called."

"Those were not the rules of the game."

"We never really found out who won that last one."

"A forfeit is still loss," Alex said with a humourless laugh. "You should call Christian. I know you, you don't listen when you're angry. Your fight was probably a miscommunication."

"Are you criticising me?"

"Tell me that I'm wrong."

"No, you are not wrong," she said with a shrug. "I think I'll let him discover for himself how much I mean to him. I'll come with you to China."

"Ava, no!"

"Fine," she let out an exasperated sigh. "I will pay for my own flight after I get one of my brothers to bring me my handbag and passport."

"You will only end up hurting yourself, Ava. Why are you so stubborn?" Alex groaned. "How can you not see that?"

Like I hurt myself before. How can you argue for another man? Not knowing that the argument was really for yourself.

Ava held his gaze, her silver eyes bore into his, wondering how long it would take to break him. His sense of control was somewhat aggravating. "I have already gone to him and there's nothing else I can do on that front. I refuse to crawl to him. If he wants me, he knows where I am."

Alex sighed, giving up. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"So you'll let me hitch a rider?"

"If that's what you want."

"It is what I want." Ava smiled, taking a last mouthful of his waffles. "I'll tell Roman to bring my passport."

More time with her, now that was an inescapable prison. Yet he wanted it too. Maybe the thing he needed most was getting comfortable with her being in his life. Ava asked for his phone and Alex reluctantly handed it to her.

She opened his phone and saw an image of herself with him staring back at her. It was from the last holding that they all went too as a family. His family and hers in diving kits, standing on the edge of a boat. She didn't want to admit it but she admired his sentimentality and perhaps even loved him for it. But Ava pretended not to notice and she messaged Roman.

"You know, someone told me that you should have already met the person that you spend the rest of your life at our age," Ava said, sliding his phone back to him.

"Is that what you are doing with Christian?"

"Naturally, my biological clock isn't  exactly waiting for me  to start acting right." Ava stopped as a waiter passed by, refilling their cups. He stepped away and left them to it. "You should have a lot of children otherwise your child will be bound to your fate and no choice in their future."

"I don't mind being the heir to my family's fortune,"Alex said. When his sister married a King, Alex was well-aware that he was the only left. Phoebe loved her career too much to ever consider coming back home and helping with the business. He could have walked away too if he wanted. He still could and not his father or grandfather would have forced him to work for their family empire. His mother's family had a business which she oversaw and they would have done the same for him if he didn't want it."As for kids, I haven't really thought about it."

"I forget that you don't date," Ava said with a dark smirk. "Be careful, if you don't use it or it will shrivel and die."

Alex scoffed. "I don't have time to date but I never said that I don't fuck!"

Ava held his gaze. Is that how you want it to be? I am not going to get upset. You'll crack before me.

"Oh?" She asked innocently. "Once a fuck-boy always a fuck-boy, I guess."

"Why are you intentionally provoking me?"

Ava giggled, lifting her hands in surrender. "If you don't want me asking about your sex life, I won't, Alex. It's not a big deal. You draw the boundary and I'll follow."

Maybe he had overreacted. He had been questioning her about Christian, why couldn't she?

"You know those girls, they chased me and not the other way around."

"And it was so painful for you to give in I'm sure."

"I was jerk. I didn't use them. We used each other and I was pretty upfront about what it is I wanted or didn't want." Alex smiled. "Isn't this like Lucifer preaching to the devil?"

"I never claimed to be innocent."

"Neither did I."

"And I was judging you. I understand what you were doing then because I was doing the same."Ava smiled. "I think I'm going to find you a lovely woman while we are in China."

"I think not."Alex laughed bearing his teeth. If anything told him that she moved on it was that. He closed his eyes momentarily, he may have been waiting for her but she wasn't waiting for him. "What made Christian different then?"

"Different?" She questioned, even though it upset him that he couldn't have her. Her happiness was at least worth it.

"From Trevor and every other guy afterwards. "

"Nothing. " They had been sitting in the restaurant for quite some time. Her hair had dried and she put her hand in her hair freeing it from the bun. It fell to one side and Alex wanted to run his hand through her hair and hold her close." I was different. I was ready to move on."

Alex's phone lit up with her brother's number. She saw her brother's copper lock of hair just like her own and stood up, going to him before he reached Alex.

"Did you bring it?" Ava asked as she hugged her brother.

Roman waved at Alex as they parted and handed her the bag. "Does this mean that I won?"

Ava leaned in and kissed her brother's cheek. "Thank you! You can go now!"

"You're wearing matching outfits, of course I've have won."

"It's his gym clothes, dummy." Ava spat. "Now go!"

"Can't I say hello?"

"No!" Ava uttered and pushed him, shoving him out of the door. Roman left, laughing at the top of his lungs.

"What happened to your brother?"

"He has an appointment."

Alex nodded. "Should we go?"

"If you insist."

He didn't have much of a choice in the matter and looked like a lamb being brought to the slaughter. Ava reached out and laced her fingers into, finishing him off. He chose his poison, didn't he?

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