Chapter 86

Melanie returned home in a surprisingly good mood, a complete opposite of how she had left this morning.
It had been a productive day where where everything seemed to fall into place, which of course helped her mood..
The bank had finally approved her loan, giving her the funds she desperately needed to stabilize things. She’d managed to fix a meeting with Peter who could help her turn LuxeArt around, and, as a cherry on top, she had sold off all the so-called ‘art’ that Madam Collins had proudly displayed in the showroom. That one had been a true eye sore!
Melanie shuddered at the thought of that but then walked into the house with a lightness in her step.
For once, she didn’t even care that Adam was lounging on the sofa, watching her with that irritating smirk of his. Normally, she would have braced herself for whatever battle she would have to finght with him, but not today. Today, her good mood was bulletproof. Or so she thought…
Ignoring him completely, she walked past him and headed straight to her room. But as her hand reached for the door handle, her fingers paused mid-turn. Something was off. The handle refused to budge.
She frowned and tried again, twisting the knob firmly. Nothing. The stubborn thing wouldn’t move. What the heck!
“You want to go inside?” Adam’s voice drawled lazily from behind her, laced with unmistakable amusement.
Melanie gritted her teeth and refused to look at him. A single line from him and already her mood was going down! “No,” she snapped. “I’m just giving the door a workout.”
He chuckled. “It’s stuck?”
“Obviously,” she muttered, shooting a glare over her shoulder. “And I don’t remember asking for your input.”
“It’s stuck because I locked it,” Adam said casually, as though it was the most normal thing in the world.
Melanie spun to face him, eyes narrowed as she stared at the man who was immersed in his phone. “You what?”
“Are you getting hard of hearing in your old age Melon? Or did you get dunked so many times that now there is water in your head?” Dam* it! He had to go and remind her of the weekend. Of how he had made it super fun and then ruined it. And now he had ruined her mood as well. Before she could ask him why he did that, he contiuned with a shrug,”I locked it. You locked me out. So we’re even now.”
“I did no such thing!” she shot back. With a single turn of her head, she saw that the door to his room was wide open. She pointed at that, “Forget my ears! Are your eyes faulty? Your door is wide open!”
“I didn’t mean out of my room,” Adam corrected smugly. “You locked me out after I confessed everything. You’ve been ignoring me since yesterday.” He crossed his arms, placing his phone on his stomach. “So, I figured I’d return the favor… until we reach a resolution.”
Melanie’s mouth opened and closed before she found her voice. “Are you five?”
“Hey! If I was five, I would’ve superglued the door, instead of locking it,” Adam quipped. “Now, are you ready to talk or would you like to make yourself comfortable out here?”
Melanie shot him a furious look, then turned sharply on her heel, unwilling to ‘forgive’ him or talk about his betrayal. “Fine! I’ll just sleep at a hotel tonight.”
“Sure,” Adam called after her. “Feel free to give the main door a workout too.”
Melanie froze mid-step, slowly turning her head to glare at him as she narrowed her eyes, “What does that mean?”
“Out of security concerns,” Adam said with exaggerated innocence, “I asked the renovation guys to add some upgrades. Remote locks, for example. So, unless you’re planning to camp outside, you’re stuck.” He finished that sentence by waving his phone in front of him.
Melanie groaned and stomped back, throwing herself onto the couch opposite his with a huff, “Fine then. Let’s see how long you can keep me hostage.” With that, she mimicked his pose, lay down on the couch and started surfing on her phone.
She heard him chuckle and watched from the corner of her eyes as he stretched and stood up. She watched him warily. What was he upto now? Was he going to come closer to her?
But instead, he walked right past her and headed toward the kitchen, leaving her to stew in her own irritation.
Moments later, his voice called out, “What do you want to eat?” Melanie stared at the kitchen in disbelief.
He was asking her what she wanted to eat as if they were having a date! She was being held hostage. Did he really think she would like to eat something?
“Something tasteless enough to remind me of this conversation,” she shot back sarcastically. ” And if I could, I’d like to order something poisonous for you.”
“Got it,” Adam shouted back easily making her grimace.
A few minutes later, he returned carrying a tray covered with a cloche and placed it on the coffee table.
Melanie eyed it warily. “What’s this?”
“It’s called an apology,” Adam said with a grin. “Just like revenge is best served cold… an apology is best served hot.” He met her gaze with unexpected sincerity. “So, I’d like to apologize. Again.”
Melanie sat up as he picked up the cloche, revealing some type of soup and bread from under the covering and continued,” I know I should not have used you, Melon? Okay? I realized that and it is why I came clean. I can promise to not do this in the future, okay? Could you please stop ignoring me? Hmm? Let’s call it a truce?”
Melanie stared at the man in front of her and blinked. She had not expected him to be so sincere in his apology…But should he be forgiven just because he apologized? As she was lost in thought, Adam poured the soup in a bowl and extended it to her.