Chapter 269: back to reality
The restaurant doors closed behind them as they stepped back outside.
The driver was already waiting.
Damian opened Vivienne’s door and offered her his hand.
She accepted it, giving him an amused look.
"You really haven’t gotten tired of doing that."
"Doing what?"
"Being ridiculously polite."
He smiled.
"You don’t seem to mind."
Vivienne rolled her eyes, though she was smiling as she got into the car.
Damian closed the door before walking around to the other side.
Once they were settled, the car pulled back onto the road.
The driver was only a few feet away, and neither of them seemed particularly interested in having a private conversation in front of him.
So they remained relatively quiet.
Every now and then, Damian glanced at Vivienne.
She caught him once.
"What?"
"Nothing."
She smiled.
"You’re staring."
"I know."
She shook her head and turned back toward the window.
A comfortable silence settled between them again.
Damian didn’t mind.
He was still thinking about what had happened.
And, despite everything, he was happy.
They had an arrangement now.
He could see her again.
That was enough.
There were still things he needed to be careful about.
Anthony.
The fact that their families hadn’t formally announced the end of the engagement.
The inevitable gossip if anyone at Saint Albion noticed how close the two of them had suddenly become.
Damian didn’t particularly care what people thought about him.
But he didn’t want Vivienne dragged into unnecessary speculation.
She had done nothing wrong.
And he had no intention of making her life more difficult simply because he wanted to be around her.
Besides, there was no need for anyone else to know.
What happened between them belonged to them.
The rest of the journey passed quietly.
Eventually, the car turned into the Ashford Foundation grounds.
They thanked the driver before getting out.
From there, they walked toward the university.
The afternoon was already beginning to cool, though the warmth of the day still lingered in the air.
For a while, neither of them said anything.
Damian was perfectly content simply walking beside her.
He kept glancing at Vivienne.
He couldn’t seem to help it.
Everything about the afternoon felt strangely unreal.
Yesterday, he had been convinced that he needed to stay away from her.
Today, he had spent the night with her, had breakfast with her, had lunch with her, and somehow ended up with an arrangement that meant he could continue seeing her.
It wasn’t the relationship he might have secretly wanted.
But he hadn’t expected to get even this much.
And he wasn’t going to complain.
Still, there were things he needed to keep in mind.
Anthony.
The thought surfaced again.
Damian knew his cousin’s feelings now.
Anthony wanted Vivienne.
He might not love her.
He might not even know whether he wanted her back.
But he had admitted that seeing her with other men bothered him.
That was enough.
Damian had no intention of giving Anthony more reasons to reconsider simply because he happened to see Damian and Vivienne together every day.
And there was the matter of propriety.
The engagement had ended between Vivienne and Anthony, but their families still hadn’t been formally informed.
There were already rumors about Vivienne and Damian. Those had started weeks ago, after people began noticing how often Damian seemed to seek her out.
But for the past two weeks, he had deliberately stayed away from her.
After the pool party, he had stopped giving anyone anything new to talk about.
The rumors hadn’t disappeared completely. They were still there, lingering beneath the surface, but they had quieted.
Damian had no intention of stirring them up again.
Not now.
Especially not when everyone already knew that Vivienne’s engagement to Anthony had only recently ended.
If he suddenly started openly following her around again, sitting beside her everywhere, inviting her to every event, and making it obvious that he was pursuing Anthony’s former fiancée, the speculation would start all over again.
And this time, there would be considerably more for people to talk about.
He didn’t particularly care what they said about him.
But he didn’t want Vivienne dragged into unnecessary gossip either.
Besides, their arrangement didn’t require an audience.
They knew what it was.
That was enough.
He glanced at her again.
In a way, this was even better.
He could still have her.
He could still spend time with her.
And he didn’t have to make her feel as though she had suddenly entered another relationship.
He could be patient.
He could let things develop naturally.
And if Anthony eventually decided he wanted to do something about his own feelings, well...
Damian wasn’t going to surrender Vivienne simply because his cousin had finally realized he wanted her.
He had already waited long enough.
His mood lifted again.
"So," he said, "what are you doing tomorrow?"
Vivienne looked at him.
"Tomorrow?"
"Sports Fest."
"Oh."
She thought for a moment.
"I’m not participating in anything."
"I know that."
She laughed.
"Then why ask?"
"Because I want to know."
Vivienne smiled.
"I have to watch the equestrian events. It’s a requirement for one of my classes."
"Ah."
𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢
Damian considered that.
He wanted to ask her to watch polo.
He wanted her to see him play.
But then he remembered who his teammate was.
Anthony.
Perhaps not.
Not because he was afraid of Anthony.
He simply didn’t want to make things unnecessarily obvious.
Instead, he said,
"Then I’ll try to find some time to join you."
Vivienne looked at him.
"You?"
"If the schedule permits."
"You have your own events."
"I know."
She smiled.
"You really don’t have to."
"I know."
Vivienne shook her head.
He really was persistent.
But she couldn’t say she disliked it.
They continued walking.
"Anyway," Damian said, "I’ll probably see you around."
"Probably."
He glanced at her.
"Probably?"
"I don’t know what my schedule will look like."
"Then I’ll leave it to chance."
Vivienne laughed.
"That doesn’t sound like you."
"Maybe I’m trying something new."
She gave him an amused look.
"I’ll believe that when I see it."
They reached the dormitory entrance.
Vivienne slowed.
"I’ll go from here."
Damian stopped with her.
"All right."
She smiled.
"I’ll see you later."
"Later."
She turned toward the entrance.
After a few steps, Damian called after her.
"Vivienne."
She looked back.
"Walk carefully."
She laughed.
"I can walk."
"I know."
She shook her head.
"Goodbye, Damian."
"Goodbye."
Vivienne disappeared inside.
Damian remained outside for a moment.
He watched the doors close behind her.
Then he smiled.
Later.
Not tomorrow.
Not some carefully planned meeting.
Just later.
He liked the sound of that.
He finally turned away and started walking back toward his dorm.
--
Vivienne pushed open the door to her room.
The first thing she noticed was the silence.
She looked around.
Claire wasn’t there yet.
Vivienne smiled.
She had so much to tell the girls.
The thought alone made her grin.
She could already imagine their reactions.
Especially once she told them what had happened after they got stranded in East Junction.
Her cheeks warmed.
Oh, they were going to have a field day.
But then her eyes landed on the phone in her hand.
Her smile changed.
"And now to the more important matter."
Christopher.
Vivienne sat down on her bed.
She glanced at the time.
Almost five.
Then she unlocked her phone.
She hadn’t texted him that morning.
Not because she had forgotten him.
Quite the opposite.
There had simply been... considerably more immediate things occupying her attention.
She checked her messages.
Nothing.
Vivienne wasn’t worried.
Christopher was busy.
Sports Fest started tomorrow, and he had been buried in preparations for the organizing committee.
Still, she wondered whether he had finished for the day.
Maybe he was finally free.
She smiled.
Yesterday morning had been the last time they had texted.
It suddenly felt like far too long.
Vivienne opened a new message.
Her thumb hovered over the keypad.
What should she say?
She could ask about the Sports Fest preparations.
That would be easy.
Natural.
And she genuinely wanted to know how things were going.
She smiled at the screen.
There was something comforting about returning to this little routine.
Damian was one thing.
Christopher was another.
And Vivienne had no intention of giving up either.
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
Then she began typing.
--
Tbc
AN: oh Vivienne!!! You female scum! I love it. Haha