The Royal Contract

Chapter 800: Grow up fast

The fuss and the buzz behind the death of a legend like Ethan created chaos in the business industry. The stock market had plummeted because of unsubstantial rumors spread by shrewd minds who wanted to take advantage of the situation.

Evan barely had time for himself since he had returned. He was out the door of his apartment at the break of dawn and then came home by midnight only to sleep on his bed.

“Aren’t you joining me for breakfast?” Her Grandmama called to him before he was out the door. He did not notice that she was already up and waiting for him.

Suddenly, he felt guilty that he had brought her along with him to live with him. Then, he just had to leave her to attend to herself because he was always busy with something else.

“I am sorry, Grandmama, but I have to leave early. I promise I will make it up to you this weekend.” Evan felt horrible that he had been neglecting her, but it was just temporary until everything returned to normal.

He had to assist their biggest client, Dani, who was taking over the Empire her father left her. Then, Alex also required assistance with his company, returning to the business he had built from the ground up.

“Ok,” Angela responded with a smile, as usual, full of understanding. “Just drive safely.” She added before leaving him to go to the kitchen alone.

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It broke his heart to see her in this way, but he had no choice at the moment. He also felt guilty that he had left David for a long time to deal with the current situation. He was trying to make up to him, too.

He rushed to his office, knowing that several files of cases would be waiting for him on his desk. It did not help that Dani resigned from her position in the company. Therefore, many of her pending cases landed on his lap.

“Are you even sleeping?” David asked when he walked into his room, carrying two cups of coffee. He placed one on his desk while he took the empty chair before him.

Compared to him, David looked much better. Actually, way better than him. His partner did not have eyes that drooped on the corner or a single hair out of place.

But in his defense, he was the managing partner. He had fewer responsibilities than him. Besides, he took most of the load from him as he said he was guilty of leaving him for quite a while.

“Of course, but there are just too many backlogs that I needed to catch up with, and of course, the new business I need to check.” Evan pointed to the files piling up on top of his desk.

He started rotating his neck, untying the muscles that had gone stiff from his position earlier. Then, he leaned on his chair, slightly loosening his tie and unbuttoning the top of his shirt, feeling the suffocating air around him.

“You did not have to do all of this.” David pointed at the stacks of files. “I can also do my share of the load. Besides, I don’t take it against you if you need to care for your grandmother.”

His friend looked at him with concern as if he was studying him for a crisis that did not exist. He had no problem. He was just busy trying to finish all the issues of the company.

“Don’t worry. It is not that. I can handle all of this.” He assured him that nothing was wrong. He had everything under his control.

In all honesty, it did not feel that way. He was drowning in his work because he needed it to distract his mind from another issue that kept flooding his consciousness.

He did not want to deal with the other issue, so he created a barrier that would prevent him from thinking about it. But it was barely working.

“Come on, man. I know you.” David put down his coffee and walked toward the window. “You are hardly yourself since you returned. I don’t know what happened to you, but something did.”

David seemed determined to find out the truth as he paced the floor in front of him. But he was not about anything because this was not a problem he could not fix. He just needed a few more days to expel her from his mind.

“I am tired from the trip. You don’t know how exhausting my grandmother could be.” Remembering all the antics she had done to bring him there. “But I will bounce back in a few days.” He assured him.

“I hope so. Last night, you barely looked at the woman who kept blinking her eyelashes at you.” David stopped in front of his desk to make his point. “Did you even notice her?” He continued.

Last night, David and a few friends invited him to a new club not far from his place. He never passed up the chance of a good night out. But once inside, all he wanted to do was leave.

Weird, that was what he felt when he walked out the door earlier than usual. To answer David’s question, he did not notice the girl.

“As I said, I am tired from working my ass off. But once I am through with this, I am bouncing back. I promise.” He did not know if he sounded convincing, but like the look on David’s face, Evan was also not confident about what he said.

He felt something had changed in him. He could not figure it out yet. Was it for the better, or was it something that he would regret later on? Googlᴇ search Novᴇ(l)Fɪre.net

“Ok. But if you need any help. You know I am just in the other room.” David offered even though he knew that he would not seek his help.

Unlike David, he was not the kind of man who liked sharing his feelings. He always looked at it as a weakness. Though, he was not judging his friend for being a bit emotional.

He only believed in dealing with his problems, thinking no one else could help him but himself. Although his grandmother had been there for him, he still had learned to fend for himself.

Learning at a very early age, he could not burden his grandmother, who was also aging quickly, with all his needs. Suddenly, he had to grow up fast.