Chapter 72

[Evelyn’s POV]

Something was clearly going on with Alexander.

After such an amazing party where he and I were actually able to exchange real talk and share in each other’s emotions, I’d picked up on a strange sudden change in him.

Considering we were in the middle of a conversation, I could have sworn that after Alexander was finished taking care of whatever business he had he would have found me again. But no. He’d spent the rest of the evening locked away in his office.

At one point, I came across Oliver who seemed somewhat uneasy. I tried to ask him what was wrong but he brushed me off. When I tried to head over to Alexander's office, he stopped me even then.

He gently laid a hand on my shoulder and spoke.

“Alexander is not in the best frame of mind at the moment,” he said. “I highly suggest that you give him space at this time. I’ll be heading the staff quarters and passing on the same information to them.”

My stomach churned.

What the hell happened?

What was so horrible that it caused him to close himself off like that? Unfortunately, I already knew that Oliver wasn’t someone to divulge answers, knowing that they weren’t his to give.

But, once more, I grew annoyed at the notion that Alexander was choosing to keep me at a distance. For now, I was willing to accept the fact that business was still going to come before me. But, why couldn't he see that, as his wife, he could share his troubles with me?

The days that followed my birthday were filled with me tending solely to the plants in the greenhouse. Not much was ever spoken or exchanged between Alexander and me. The longer this whole matter went on without a reasonable explanation, the more my patience was wearing thin.

Something had to give. I couldn't take this hot and cold behavior for much longer. That morning, I’d made a promise to myself that I was going to confront Alexander about this sudden shift in his behavior and the treatment that was completely uncalled for.

All this silence and avoidance, I feel like I’m being punished for something that I didn’t even know I’d done.

It was a rather daring thing to commit to. I’d never actually interrupted Alexander during his work hours—at least not on purpose.

When I could no longer take the dirt and solitary confinement in the greenhouse, I made my way back to the house. Right as I walked in through the back doors, I was nearly run over by a small cluster of staff members who were moving frantically around with piles of clean dishware in their hands.

My brows pinched together in total confusion. “What the hell?”

But the longer I glanced around, the more I noticed that everyone was acting tensely like they'd been given strict orders. Shockingly enough, I spotted Nina amongst numerous staff all holding different flower arrangements in their hands. The poor woman looked as lost and tense as everyone else.

I calmly approached her and tossed my opinion out to the group.

“I would go with the Hellebores,” I said. “They’re resilient to the cold air, even after they’ve been cut. They’ll brighten up the space perfectly.”

Everyone visibly relaxed. Nina turned to glance at me with a grateful look that I could have sworn was accompanied by tears. Oh, God.

“Okay, I demand to know what the hell is going on here,” I said pointedly.

I took Nina by the hand and led us into the kitchens where I began prepping us a pot of tea. Gesturing for Nina to take a seat at one of the bar stools, I placed the kettle over the burner and turned back to give her an expected look.

“Well?”

Nina rubbed the circles under her eyes and leaned forward into her hands. She let out an exhausted groan.

“We were informed that Alexander's brother would be visiting.”

I refrained myself from scowling. Was that it?

For crying out loud, based on the way everyone had been acting, I would have guessed that we were hosting the Royal Family.

“Really? All this insanity because Alexander’s brother is coming?” I questioned. I slowly shook my head. “I’m sorry, I just don’t see what the big deal is.”

“It’s understandable for you,” Nina began. “You’ve never met the other Kingston son. Needless to say, for as long as I worked for the family, there’s always been an incredible tension between the two. Alexander has always possessed an incredible stoic disposition. He’s not someone who lets his emotions get the better of him while around others. However...”

“His brother has the ability to bring out the so-called worst in him?”

Nina nodded her head. I couldn’t help but feel a drastic bout of sympathy for Alexander. He, of all people, knew about my hellish experience living in my house with Samantha as a Stepsister.

Most of the time, she was just annoying. I could handle her immature comments and irritating behavior. But there were moments when she’d found a way to be beyond cruel, making it feel like I was being branded.

Hearing about Alexander’s difficulties with his own sibling gave me a mix of troubling feelings. The man knew a lot about my family and upbringing, yet I still knew so little of his. He was aware of my issues with my sibling, and yet he never shared any of his own.

It felt like he’d placed another barrier between us.

Once the tea was ready and prepared each of our mugs and handed Nina hers. I took a few decent sips, hoping that the warmth would settle my icy nerves.

“Surely, all of this preparation isn’t meant to impress his brother,” I pointed out.

Nina shook her head. “All of what you see out there is purely because of Caroline. She’s the one who demanded that Alexander host a dinner to welcome his brother back from his ongoing studies at school.”

I raised a single brow. “I see. And, will she also be in attendance for this dinner?” I asked stiffly.

“It’s possible. Normally, Caroline acts as a sort of mediator between the two of them.”

Now I had a particularly hard time believing that Caroline, of all people, had the ability to keep the peace when she was so readily capable of causing such damaging chaos.

“Why do I have a feeling that Caroline has a tendency to take her son’s side rather than Alexander’s?”

Nina snorted. “You’d be right again.”

“You know, now that I’m thinking about it, I don’t think I even know what his brother’s name is,” I stated.

“Oh, it’s—”

One of the staff members came rushing through the doorway, huffing out of breath. “Nina! Nina, please come out here! We need your help, we don’t know what to do about the seating arrangements in the dining room!”

Before I got my answer, Nina was being pulled out of the kitchen. My mind was still so wrapped up in Alexander and the things I realized he’d been keeping to himself.

Why was it that he literally demanded to know what went on in my family as I was growing up when he gets to keep his life a secret from me? Why is he guaranteed that privilege of privacy?

I glanced at the clock above the oven and decided that I needed to get ready for the surprise dinner party that I knew nothing about. Grabbing my tea, I headed out of the kitchen and tried to imagine what I needed to wear.