If the disarray wasn't enough for her, the heat of the next thing she was about to say would have destroyed the last string of respect those women had for themselves.
Mrs Hernandez choked on nothing as she looked at Valeria and the rest women had their lips sealed as they watched things play out.
"Did you just call me a goat?" She asked, her brows arched up in surprise.
"Yes, and I would call you a cow if needed." Valeria spat and the women gasped.
"You see these animals even got a functioning brain, but you? You act like your brain has rottenness and filth mixed together as honey and used to salivate your salivary gland. You spew rubbish and I take no nonsense. So the next fuçkin time you all gossip and try to tarnish my image..." She paused, her lips curling slowly as she transferred her gaze from one woman to the other, before finally setting her gaze back on Mrs Hernandez.
"You don't wanna know." She whispered, softly in their faces.
"Valeria!"
"Let's go." The two women said at once, pushing away Mrs Hernandez and Valeria turned to see who called her with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Evelina?
She held her long wedding dress up as she did a short run to Valeria.
"Congratulations on your wedding, my love." Valeria said and Evelina rolled her eyes.
"Who were those women and why were you talking to them?" She said, looking at the direction in which the women went.
"Male centered women who I put in their place. Forget it, they are gone now. Why are you here anyways? Aren't you supposed to be with your husband?" Valeria asked.
"I sneaked out when he was taking pictures with family."
"You know...the pictures we snapped are so cool, you looked gorgeous in all of them. Sometimes I envy you, you're so photogenic that you don't even have to smile for the pictures to come out well." Evelina said and Valeria frowned.
"You came here to tell me this?" She questioned and Evelina's face dropped.
"Fine! You got me....I saw you leaving and I just wanted to say goodbye before you left." She muttered.
"I was actually taking a walk, but yeah, I guess I'll be leaving now. I'm mentally drained as it is, so I'll just bury myself into work."
"By the way, I wish you a happy marriage even though I'm not in support of whatever dad has arranged and if Asher ever treats you wrongly, at all, you know who to call. Understand?" Valeria asked and she nodded.
"A hug?" Evelina requested.
"Of course." Valeria spread out her arms to accommodate her as their hands encircled each other. She had a thoughtful expression on her face as she caressed Evelina's back.
"You know..." Evelina began. "You have always had my back, better than anyone else and for that I'm grateful. You're the only rebel in the family that still has conscience."
"What about Landon?" Valeria asked as they broke the hug.
"Landon is in between. He's selfish when he wants to be and selfless at some point. I don't want an unstable elder brother. Maverick is the eldest and the dumbest, but after those two.... It's you, you are spectacular, well except your hatred for men." Evelina said and Valeria chuckled.
"Evie, I want to let you know that I'm not a mentally ill patient just because I hate the vast majority of men. I have had first-hand experience with those creatures and I ain't even gonna justify myself, cause I know what I want and who I am, I don't necessarily need a man to define me."
"Also, about Landon, he's facing his own hell of a predicament and as who he is, he bottles up and doesn't let a life know what he's facing." Valeria said.
"True. But, I actually thought everyone would put their differences aside and celebrate my big day with me. It's my wedding for crying out loud and everyone's still keeping enemies?!" Evelina replied as a tear ran down her eyes and Valeria sighed.
"Look, I may not be a good person for constantly telling you men are scum or because I kept fighting dad to stop the arranged marriage shit between you and Asher, but since you said you loved him and he cares about you. I stopped fighting it. I won't let my beliefs come in between us, again, I promise-" Valeria's eyes widened as Evelina sobbed.
"Stop crying, Evie. You'll ruin your makeup." She took a napkin from the table and cleaned the streaked mascara.
"There, this should do. I'll be going now and please, don't cry again." With a flick of her wrist, Valeria tossed the napkin.
"Okay, just call me when you get home." Evelina said as they did a quick hug.
They broke it and her eyes teared up again as she watched Valeria leave.
"I wish I could tell her.." She whispered.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Why haven't you told her your plans yet?" Nadia nudged Magnus as they watched Valeria leave the event, hiding behind a palm tree.
"I know her too well. If she knows now, she would find a way to cancel it off." Magnus murmured, bringing out a flash drive from his pocket, his fingers clasped around it, tightly.
"So, you're going to wait till there is no time left before telling her. She would hate you for life." Nadia murmured back and Magnus sighed, before facing her.
"I'm doing this for the family. Evelina is already married, she would get the protection of Asher's family. I just have to plan out things, then I'll reveal the secret-"
"What secret?"
They froze at the familiar voice and Magnus quickly handed the flash drive to Nadia, then stepped away from the tree. She hid it in her purse.
"Maverick! What brings you here?" Magnus said, dragging Maverick away, by his shoulder.
"What secret are you two talking about and why were you hiding behind a tree, speaking in hushed voices?" Maverick asked.
"We were not hiding, we needed space from all the noise." Nadia said, following them.
"Yeah, that's right. Let's go bid the guests farewell." Magnus nodded in agreement and Maverick stared at both of them, smirking secretly.
[ The Hamptons, long Island ]
Valeria's apartment ~
7pm,
The car drive from the event to her apartment took more hours than she scheduled, cause of the damn traffic. She probably now needs to stay up late at night and finish lengthy manuscripts.
She pulled into the driveway of her home, the tires crunching softly over the gravel. She stepped out of the car, taking her handbag out and banging the door, carelessly.
"Gawd! My head is a mess right now." She muttered low under her breath, walking to her apartment door.
She scanned her fingerprint over the biometric panel, beside the door handle, the soft beep confirming access.
She entered the house, closing the door behind her and tapped the light switch...
The lights didn't come on.
She did it again and the light bulb fell to the ground instead, with a loud crash. She heard her room door open and she gripped her bag, tightly, eyes widening, before tiptoeing to the kitchen. She took a pan and dropped her bag on the counter.
The house was dark, but the light from outside peeked through the windows, so sight wasn't an issue.
"Who's there?" She asked, loudly and heard light footsteps coming towards the kitchen.
Her heart beat skipped and raced fast at the same time, sweat trickled a line down her forehead as she held the pan, firmly, ready to swing it at the intruder's face at any minute.
After a while, she heard nothing, so she moved forward, going out of the kitchen and moving towards her room, cautiously.
The slow ticks of the clock only made things worse, plus the stubborn headache she was feeling.
Tick...
Tock...
Tick...
Tock...
She opened her bedroom door and looked inside, then felt a light tap on her shoulder.
"Ahhh!!"
A shriek escaped her lips and she turned around, automatically swinging the pan onto the person's face.
"Shìt!" A painful, male groan sounded and her eyes widened in shock.
"You!"
