He was tardy. She hated tardiness and her husband was definitely running late. She was in the middle of the airport with nothing but her luggage and a half eaten empanada which she had purchased on the flight, she was starving and the stale snack wasn't enough to satisfy her appetite.

She glanced around hoping to see a greeting banner of some sort all to her disappointment, looking down at her vintage watch she'd gotten from an antique store it was already an hour since she had landed and stuck in the middle of an airport. He wasn't going to come, she sadly sunk into her moment of realization—he didn't care.

A disgruntled sigh left her looking down at the file in her left hand, it was more important to her than anything else at the moment..except for wanting to leave this darned chilly airport. She was here so long that she knew every word count present in the pages of her new work file.

"fucking bastard". She cursed under her breath as she pulled her luggage closer, it was gearing towards the fall season which meant it was pretty cold and she only had an old shawl from an antique store to keep her warm which wasn't enough. Her teeth started to gnash, she wanted to leave.

Uncle Ferdinand probably had his hopes high thinking a man whom she'd never met would give two hoots about her or want to cultivate a healthy relationship , he was the only reason she was propelled to return to the states and finding a job suited to her skills. Unlike many other normal marriages hers was a marriage of convenience, a ploy to keep her uncle happy and be in his good graces but she was starting to regret that decision now.

Half an hour passed, looking down at her watch she finally let out a sigh of relentment and proceeded to calling her uncle. He was probably going to curse her out and give an earful as to how she was the most impatient being he'd ever known, the thought of that happening made her smile for a moment as she realized how much she missed that grungy voice of his.

She was taken straight to voicemail, tried again and yielded the same result which sent her into a state of anger and regret, Damn him, she thought. He could never pick up the damn phone and now she was stuck in an airport with no money to grab a taxi, an almost dead phone and most of all— no husband in sight.

"Are you okay ma'am??". She felt a hand over her shoulder.

She turned around with a scowl on her face seeing a short and plump man with gingery hair smiling at her, he had a piece of broccoli stuck in his teeth which she found disgusting, "Can I help you??".

"Oh I was just wondering why a beautiful woman like you—"

"Is alone in the airport?", she cut him off abruptly, "I'm fine thank you".

"Surely you don't look—"

"I said I'm okay you bastard!!", she yelled garnering attention from some of the passersby in the building, "God forbid a woman sits alone in the fucking airport! I'm not a damsel in distress so please shoo".

He grimaced as embarrassment washed over him, "You don't have to be a fucking c*nt about a man trying to help. That's why women like you are single".

She chuckled, rolling her eyes, "I'm married but thanks for asking".

"Oh yeah?", his brows arched tauntingly, "Where's your husband then? What kind of a husband leaves his wife in an airport for an hour?".

"He's on his way thank you and I'm very sure he wouldn't appreciate a midget leprechaun like you bothering his wife". She lied through her teeth, returning a smile at the man who cursed under his breath as he walked away.

Her smile disappeared as soon as he was out of sight and she let out a sigh, of course she was married but her husband didn't care. She looked down at her watch again and an extra twenty minutes had gone which made her curse out loud again, she rose to her feet and grabbed her luggage— if he wasn't going to pick her up then she might as well handle herself since he was proving to be incompetent.

In a long stride seething of rage and disappointment she got out of the airport to the main road where she waved for a cab, she didn't have any money but she was going to make it work somehow— after all she was Evelyn Warner, she always found a solution even in the tightest of spots and will always get out of a scuffle.

"Evelyn Warner??". She heard from the black car which parked in front of the airport a minute ago and turned her head sharply ready to snap, but the her eyes widened as soon as the windows rolled down and saw the manly figure inside.

"Oscar?"

"Yep it's me", he laughed softly, "Fancy seeing you here. Welcome back to LA".

She frowned, "Please don't tell me Uncle Ferdinand sent you here to pick me up".

"No", he shook his head and her eyes lit up thinking he came on his own accord, "I'm here to help Maya run a couple of errands that's all".

Maya was his fiance, she remembered and pressed her lips tightly together in embarrassment. Oscar was her uncle's most trusted assistant for over ten years now, she'd always had a crush on him and ever since the news of his engagement was announced right after her marriage she knew there was no hope of getting together....although the possibility of him feeling the same way was still a mystery.

"Ohh...well carry on then", She smirked trying to act indifferent, "You don't want to keep your fiance waiting do you?".

His brows arched, "Aren't you coming? I can drive you to my home if you—"

"No!", she blurted out loud, "I...I'm actually...I..."

He laughed softly, "Come on Eve. I can take you to my place till you get yourself sorted out Maya won't mind at all. We're practically siblings at this point'.

Evelyn gulped hard, sure he saw her as a sibling but she didn't see him as such. Maya would not be okay with her presence, no woman in their right mind would be okay with their fiancee harboring a childhood friend that had a measly crush on them. She was just too principled and had enough dignity in her to refuse his offer,

"No", she shook her head, although she had nowhere else to go, "I...I think I'll rather book a hotel instead...I just hope my card still works'.

He frowned for a moment, wondering what the sudden fuss was about but shrugged nonetheless. Evelyn was stubborn and ten years of knowing her has proven that fact, "Okay I'll drive you to a hotel".

"Oh thank you Os—"

"Unless.....", he cut her off in a drawl, "You let me pay for your room"

"Oscar?!"

He shook his head, "I know you're a proud woman Eve but you're my person. Take it from me as a welcome gift".

She made a grunting sound under her breath, she wasn't a sucker for gifts, "I owe you".

"You owe me nothing", he opened the door to the front seat, "Now will you keep that mouth of yours shut and let me help you".

She smiled at her uncle's assistant, why couldn't her husband be the perfect gentleman like Oscar. He was sweet, charming and most of all cared for her unlike any other man she'd ever met, the annoyance and anger she felt left her the moment the moment she got in,

"Cool ride"

A sense of manly pride filled him, "You like? It's an early wedding present from Maya's parents".

Evelyn opted to frown at the mention of his fiance but smiled instead, her sudden sense of envy was immature and foolish, "I'm happy for the both of you Oscar. I really am".

.

.

Aiden Pearce got out of the car with a scowl on his face as he black Corvette stingray a few feet away from him finally drove off with his wife. He watched everything from his car, saw the vibrance of her aura and the twinkle in her eyes talking to the other man he had no clue of.

This wasn't the agreement he thought with a sense of envy and resentment seething through him, they barely knew each other but there was an obvious clause in their contract— to not have extramarital affairs irregardless of how unconventional their matrimony was, and she broke that pact.

He frowned deeply looking at the wedding band nestled in his ring bearing finger and in the brink of day pulled it out with apathy, there was no use being loyal to a woman who broke the tenets of their contract with indifference. A minute passed and he broke his moment of brooding to grab his phone and make a phonecall, a distinct voice could be heard seconds later.

"Yes....", he nodded, "I need you to track someone for me".