A CHANGE OF HEART

Evelyn stalled in her room pacing and biting down on the impatience in her heart as she waited for her father to leave home. She had been waiting all morning, planning to avoid them at all cost as she did the day before, but for some reason, her father, though he was up and ready early, had refused to leave home. Now the time was past ten and he was still in the living room chatting with her mother.

Can you believe it? He was chatting. The cold heartless CEO of Noosa Inc. was sitting around chatting early in the morning when he should be working, he was chatting like a jobless man. Evelyn huffed in annoyance as she continued to pace around the room in the dark blue knee-length dress she wore on an ebony black scarpin heels.

If he wasn't busy, she was, but she couldn't just go down because if she did, he would ask her to ride with him and that was what she wanted to avoid the most.

She heard a knock on the door and she smiled slightly, it must be the maid. She told her to inform her when her father was gone. He must have gone to work already. She thought as she rushed to pick up her bag from the bed, then headed for the door.

She opened it with a smile but was surprised to find her mother standing there, returning her smile.

"Hello, darling."

"Mom?" Evelyn called, as if in disbelief. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Your dad wanted me to call you down, he's been waiting for you for a very long time. When did you start taking so long to dress up? You didn't even come down for breakfast", Sharon said as she pushed her way into the room, leaving her daughter looking at her with surprise as her brain took in the information.

Her dad had been sitting around chatting because he was waiting for her? Evelyn asked herself, her leg weakening as she realized she was never going to be able to avoid him. She sighed and summoned courage.

"Okay. I will go downstairs to see him." Evelyn said as she looked at her mother who was still looking around her room.

"I also wanted to have a word with you." Sharon said, as she turned to her daughter.

"Oh?"

"Yes. Come and sit beside me." Sharon said as she walked to sit on the bed, then patted the empty spot beside her.

Evelyn frowned and went to sit beside her. If they wanted to have a discussion, why didn't they sit on the chairs in the room? Sitting on the bed with her mother was showing a kind of warmth that she had never shown before, and this kind of warmth her parents were bent on showing, was not something she was used to. She thought.

"How have you been?" Sharon asked calmly, but Evelyn raised a brow.

"How have I been?" She asked her mother in confusion.

"Yes, so much change has happened in our family this week and I know it wouldn't have been easy for you, so I need to..."

"Wow, wow, wow, hold on mom," Evelyn said as she turned to her mother, "So much has been happening? I have no idea what you're talking about." Evelyn said, feigning ignorance, and Sharon smiled.

"You've been avoiding your father and I." Sharon deadpanned ever so gently.

"No, I haven't! I have been busy mom! I have a job, remember? I can't just sit around and chat with you guys!" Evelyn said with agitation as she raised her voice.

Sharon smiled sadly as she looked at her angry daughter, "You sound just the way your father used to sound."

"What!" Evelyn flared up as she stood up, "Don't you compare me to dad, I am nothing like him!" she shouted. When Sharon didn't reply, she continued, "You know what, I don't think I'm interested in this conversation, let's talk about this later." she said and walked towards the bed and picked up her bag.

"I'm happy Evelyn," Sharon suddenly said, and Evelyn froze, then slowly looked at her. That was the first time in her life that she had heard her mother say something like that. Her mother was happy? She has never seen her happy.

"I am so happy and grateful," Sharon said, looking at Evelyn with a beautiful smile that made Evelyn feel unsettled.

What was going on?

"I know how my relationship with your father has shaped your character," Sharon began again and Evelyn frowned. "It has made you angry, cold, unforgiven, and vengeful, just like your father and I." Sharon said and Evelyn folded her hand around her chest.

"What exactly are you trying to tell me, mom?"

"Don't ruin her wedding Eve. I know you are trying to." Sharon said, looking Evelyn in the eye.

Evelyn swallowed and looked away, "I don't know who or what you're talking about."

"The Blooms' girl, I know you are trying to ruin her wedding. Don't, Evelyn." Sharon said and Evelyn shot her a glare.

"Since when have you been so interested in matters that concern me, mom?" She asked with distaste.

"Her father did us a favor, he did this family a favor. Your father….. I have never seen him like this. We can't repay good with evil Evelyn, we can't. Please!" Sharon pleaded, ignoring the sarcasm in Evelyn's voice. Evelyn looked away.

"You've always been mad at your dad for making me cry, this family's involvement has brought love to our home. Your father wants to go on a month's vacation with us." She declared and Evelyn looked at her with disbelief, but Sharon continued, "he wants to abandon the one thing that had always appeared precious to him for us. They have given us happiness. Evelyn don't ruin theirs." Sharon said, and Evelyn shifted uncomfortably,

"I need to go, dad must be tired of waiting for me already." she awkwardly and walked out of the room. Sharon sighed helplessly as she watched her daughter's retreating back.

Evelyn walked down the stairs and saw her father smiling when he saw her.

"Ready to go my dear?" Steve asked with a smile, as if he wasn't the one who had been waiting for his daughter for the past two hours.

Evelyn nodded and said, "Good morning, dad." drily.

Steve nodded and stood up, walking out of the house toward the car. The moment they got in, Evelyn looked out of the window away from her father as she thought about her mother's words.

Should she just let an opportunity as good as this go, just because Allman helped her parents reconcile? She wasn't even planning on ruining the wedding? Why would she ruin a sham of a wedding? Wasn't it better to see the shame Nancy would bring to herself when she finds the truth? She actually wanted to see Nancy's face. When the truth came out, was she just going to give it up? She wondered.

"Allman sent me an invitation to his daughter's wedding yesterday." Evelyn suddenly heard her father say and she turned to him with surprise.

"What?"

"I said we got an invite to the Blooms' wedding." Her father said with a smile.

"Are we friends with the Blooms now, dad?" she asked him, still staring at his satisfied smile. He laughed slightly at her words.

"We were never really enemies with the Blooms. Allman was just someone I envied, he has the perfect life, the perfect family, and his business is thriving. I saw him as a rival I wanted to best, not an enemy." Steve said with a smile.

Evelyn looked away from him and back to the window again.

Her father was right, her relationship with Nancy was pretty much the same, she didn't really hate her, she just envied the perfection of her life, she just wanted to be better than her and show the others that Nancy was just as miserable as every other person.

She looked at the picture of Nancy which was on a billboard as they drove past and sighed.

Was it okay to let this girl ruin her life? If she let the wedding hold, it would be a mess that the Blooms' family can never clean up. Apart from that, a cunny bastard like Richmond would be CEO of Bloom's wealth and their new rival.

She couldn't allow that to happen. Perhaps her mother is right, they shouldn't repay evil with evil, so just this once. She would help Nancy bloom just this once, but she wasn't doing it for her, she was doing it because she didn't want a vile man like Richmond to be their new rival.

She pulled out her phone, and calmly sent a message, then threw it back into her bag with a sigh.

The only help she could offer Nancy was to ruin her wedding.