When Serenity put the receiver back down, she asked, “What is it?”
“Mr. Manolis and Ms. Mendel have arrived.”
Chapter Six
He was right about her all along.
Cold contempt glinted in Stavros’ eyes as he watched Willow flirt her way around the room. She was every inch the hussy he had realized her to be, and this time, she wasn’t even doing a fucking thing to hide it.
“Stavros, stop looking at her,” Ingrid hissed while forcing herself to keep smiling. She would never live this down. The entire time they had been here on Willem de Konigh’s yacht, the Greek billionaire hadn’t been able to take his eyes off the fat blonde cow, and everyone had noticed.
She could see it in their eyes. She could see it in the way they didn’t try that hard to hide their smirks. She could practically hear their thoughts. The bitchy heiress had it coming.
Stavros was still ignoring her. If she were honest, he had started ignoring her since she had thrown herself at him this morning. He had been chillingly polite with her after that, and she knew it was only Stavros’ deeply ingrained manners that had kept him from retracting his word when he had agreed to be her date to today’s race.
Of course, right now, maybe it would have been better if she had just graciously stepped aside. At least she could have made up some excuse and saved face. But now?
“Didn’t you hear what I said?” Ingrid almost stomped her foot in frustration. But the words fell on deaf ears, the billionaire’s intense dark gaze still fixed on the big-ass whore he had an affair with.
God, what a ghastly gold-digger that cow was. It was just so irritating, the way she didn’t seem to give a damn that everyone in the room knew who she was or, rather, who she had been in Stavros Manolis’ life.
Forcing herself to study her rival, Ingrid found the woman dwarfed by her circle of admirers. She was laughing out loud, the sound grating on Ingrid’s nerves, and her teeth gnashed when the besotted fools surrounding the cow laughed with her.
Oh my God…that laugh! How could they not find it as abominably crass as she did?
Beside her, Stavros suddenly stiffened, and following his gaze, Ingrid realized that one of the men was inching too close to the cow.
Her head snapped towards Stavros. “Don’t you dare—”
But Stavros had already taken a step forward.
She tried not to be so obvious as she went after him, hissing, “I will never forgive you if you go to her.”
But he was still moving forward, practically prowling like a damn predator about to pounce on his unsuspecting prey.
Nearly tripping on her own shoes, Ingrid caught up with him and threatened, “I’m going to make a scene—”
Stavros stilled.
Ingrid started to smile, thinking the threat had worked, but then Stavros turned his head towards her.
Ingrid paled.
Everyone around them quieted, seeing the look Stavros Manolis had dealt Ingrid with.
Never had Stavros look so beautiful, but never had he looked so icily furious either.
He was so mad, and she was so turned on. But she had gone too far, Ingrid realized, and this man may never take her to bed again.
“Darling, I’m sorry.” She stammered the apology out, desperate to make amends.
But the coldness didn’t leave his face.
“Ingrid.” His voice was lethally soft. “Get lost.”
Two simple words, but the wealth of meaning behind it made Ingrid’s cheeks burn with humiliation. It was a warning, and if she dared follow him again, Stavros would cease being…polite.
When Stavros started walking away again, she knew that everyone wouldn’t have a hard time understanding what had just happened.
Ingrid Mendel had been dumped.
She spun around on her heels and fled.
****
“It appears Mr. Manolis has cut ties with Ms. Mendel.” Serenity’s lovely robotic voice came through the earpiece. The younger girl had insisted on it, telling Willow that she would do the stalking for her. It was absolutely imperative, Serenity had stressed, that Willow flirted with other men without ever looking Stavros’ way.
Of course, the last one had been easier said than done. Every second had been a struggle, and Willow had to constantly remind herself that not looking at Stavros was the only way to ensure his gaze stayed on her.
As she pretended to listen and laugh at whatever the Arab sheikh next to her was saying, her mind was whirling, unable to grasp what Serenity had just said. What the heck did cut ties mean? The term was so damn vague and precise at the same time. Why couldn’t Serenity just speak like a normal nineteen year old?
Serenity’s voice piped up again in her ear. “Mr. Manolis is heading your way.”