CHAPTER 20: THIRSTY

When Margaret and Patricia left, silence lingered between them. It was not uncomfortable but charged in a way that neither of them could quite name.

Evelyn adjusted her bag, unsure what to say. The chaos from earlier had finally settled and yet her heart hadn’t caught up.

"Thank you," she said finally in a low voice. "For stepping in earlier."

Alexander looked at her with an unreadable expression. "You don’t have to thank me."

"I do," she insisted softly. "It could have gotten worse."

He shook his head. "It shouldn’t have happened at all." His tone was calm but beneath it he sounded very protective and a little pissed.

Evelyn lowered her gaze, unsure how to respond. She had never known him to lose his composure.

Alexander wasn’t someone who would get into an argument with someone in public. He often ignored it and yet he had for her.

Before either could speak again, Patricia’s voice broke the stillness. "I am sorry to interrupt but—" Looking at Evelyn, she added. "I was going to the billing counter—" she gestured toward the display near the entrance. "Do you still want those sunglasses you were looking at before all the drama began?"

Evelyn blinked, momentarily thrown off by the sudden shift in tone. "Oh, right. No, that’s okay," she said, smiling faintly.

Patricia nodded and turned to Alexander. "Since you are here Mr. Reid, would you mind helping me with these?" She said, holding the shopping bags up.

"Patricia—" Evelyn widened her eyes in shock and tried to stop her friend.

But Alexander interrupted her. "That’s alright." Without hesitation, he reached out but his confidence faltered the second she handed him the bags. His brows rose almost imperceptibly as he realized how many there actually were.

Patricia grinned. "What? Don’t look so surprised. It’s called therapy."

Evelyn couldn’t help the quiet chuckle that escaped her. "She is a shopaholic," she said with eyes gleaming with amusement.

Alexander shot her a sideways glance and his lips tugged at the corner. "I can see that."

"You don’t have to—" Evelyn began but he shook his head.

"It’s fine," he said simply. "If you both are done, I will walk you both out."

.....

[Parking lot]

When the driver brought the car around, Patricia rushed ahead to arrange the bags in the back seat, giving them an unintended moment of quiet.

Evelyn turned slightly toward him. "I really am sorry you had to see all that inside," she murmured. "It must have been—awkward."

Alexander’s gaze softened. "Don’t worry about it." When she looked up at him, surprised, he added quietly, "You handled it with grace, most people would have made a scene."

She smiled faintly. "I think with Jack silence works better."

And he couldn’t agree more. "It actually does."

For a fleeting second, their eyes met and the rest of the world faded into the soft hum of the street. There was nothing said but the silence between them carried more warmth than any words could.

Patricia’s voice broke through the spell. "Alright, bags are in. Let’s go before I start shopping again."

Evelyn blinked and stepped back. "Thank you, Alexander, for everything."

He nodded once. "Anytime."

As she slid into the car beside Patricia, she glanced through the window.

Alexander was still standing there with one hand in his pocket, watching as their car pulled away. His expression was calm but his eyes quietly followed her until she was gone.

....

[Inside Alexander’s Car]

The hum of the engine filled the quiet between them as Alexander steered the car out of the parking lot.

Margaret sat comfortably in the passenger seat with her shopping bags tucked neatly in the back.

She didn’t speak for a moment but the amused glint in her eyes said enough. Finally, she turned toward him with a teasing smile.

"You have been awfully quiet, my dear boy," she said. "I was beginning to think you lost your tongue back there."

Alexander exhaled softly as his grip tightened slightly on the steering wheel. "I am driving, Grandma."

"Oh, please," Margaret scoffed. "You were looking at that girl as though she were a glass of water and you have been in a desert for days."

Alexander shot her a sidelong glance with half a smile tugging at his lips. "You have quite the imagination."

"Imagination? My eyesight is perfectly fine, mind you. I saw that sparkle in your eyes. Haven’t seen that since you were a boy trying to charm your way out of trouble."

He chuckled under his breath as he tried to steer the conversation elsewhere. "You are reading too much into it."

Margaret leaned back in her seat and looked clearly unconvinced. "Hmm—perhaps, but that young woman has a certain calm about her. Not many women do these days."

Alexander’s jaw tightened ever so slightly. It wasn’t from denial but in a quiet acknowledgment.

Margaret smirked knowingly. "Ah, that silence confirms it."

He shook his head with a soft sigh. "You are impossible."

"I am your grandmother, it’s my job."

.....

[Pauline’s Residence]

The car rolled into a quiet estate tucked behind rows of flowering trees. The place was serene and nothing like the main Reid mansion’s grand and cold expanse.

Here, the air felt lighter, the walls warmer and touched by a woman’s grace rather than wealth’s weight.

Pauline was already in the garden when they arrived, pruning roses in her wide-brimmed hat.

She turned when she heard the car pull up and a smile immediately lightened her face.

"Well, if it isn’t my favorite mother-in-law," Pauline said warmly as Margaret stepped out.

"Favorite? I am your only mother-in-law, dear," Margaret replied with a laugh as she made her way towards her. "And you still manage to make me feel like a queen every time I visit."

Pauline wiped her hands and embraced her gently. "That’s because you are one."

Alexander followed, setting down the few shopping bags in hand. "Good afternoon, Mother."

Pauline’s eyes softened the moment they met his. "Alexander," she said with a fond smile, brushing her gloved hand along his cheek. "You look tired. Overworking again?"

He offered a faint smile. "Comes with the title, I suppose."

Pauline chuckled softly. "Still my serious boy."

Margaret, ever the observer, chimed in, "Serious until a pretty girl shows up, apparently."

.....