Reject My Alpha President (Iris and Arthur) novel Chapter 94

Chapter 94

Chapter 94

Iris

I step into the living room as Arthur moves to the home bar to pour me a drink. “What’s your drink of choice?” he calls from the dining room, which is adjacent to where I’m standing. “Still red wine?”

“Yeah,” I reply, glancing around before I tentatively take a seat in one of the soft armchairs by the fireplace. There’s no fire flickering now, the room instead lit by a couple of small lamps and the city lights outside.

I hear Arthur banging around for a moment, his movements clumsy and slow. A few moments later, he returns with my wine and his glass refilled with whiskey.

“For the lady,” he says, handing me my glass.

I take it, sipping slowly as I watch him flop into the chair across from me. He looks messier than usual, his typical polished appearance replaced by something foreign. But even then, he doesn’t look relaxed like he once did five years ago. And that damn curl is still nowhere to be found.

After a few moments of silence, he looks up at me, “Are you okay?” he asks. “You’re staring.”

My cheeks warm, and I look away, shaking my head. “I’m fine.”

“How was your day at the gallery?”

I take a deep breath, considering how much to tell him, but finally decide to tell him everything–excluding the residency, only because I still don’t know much about it. Arthur sips his whiskey as he listens, and when I’m finished, he nods and leans back in his chair.

“That all sounds promising,” he says, his words ever so slightly slurred. “I’d like to attend your lecture.”

“It’s open to the public,” I reply simply.

Arthur nods, and we fall into another silence. I watch as he polishes off his whiskey, then reaches for the nearby bottle, which he brought with him when he poured my wine. My brow furrows as he refills his glass.

“How much have you had tonight?” I ask.

He shrugs. “Three glasses? Four? Not sure. Why?”