"Go into the hotel, I'll be back later." I said, opening the passenger door from my seat. My mother looked confused, but she got out of the car without saying a word.
I drove back to Doinel Company at full speed. I didn't want to lose hope that she could see me, this time with peace, without my mother, and I hoped she wouldn't be accompanied by the Dubois and Mr. Lefevbre, so I could talk to her alone without interruptions.
I dodged every car that crossed my path, not being able to get the image of Sarah the last time I saw her out of my head when she returned unexpectedly from her trip to Orlando. My heart tightened, and the speed of the car slightly decreased, but I still arrived at the impressive building in record time, parking as close as possible to the elevator.
Not much time had passed since I left Sarah's office, so it didn't seem like a good idea to go back to the office. Instead, I decided to wait here until she appeared because she had to appear at any moment, either to arrive in her executive car, to go to lunch, or to leave.
I didn't care how long I had to wait; I wouldn't move from here until she showed up.One hour, two hours, four hours, and I was already starting to feel uncomfortable in my seat. The clock showed two ten in the afternoon when the elevator doors opened and a group of four people came out, chatting animatedly.
I recognized them immediately. They were the Dubois family. Vincent walked arm in arm with a woman who seemed strangely familiar.
I followed them with my gaze as the Dubois family approached their respective cars. Vincent opened the passenger door of the Mercedes Benz for the woman in the black dress with her hair tied back. It wasn't until Vincent got into the driver's seat that something clicked in my mind.
That woman, the fourth member of the group, was Sarah. Of course it was Sarah. I recognized her legs and her walk, even though I had seen her from a distance without being able to distinguish her face because of Vincent's body blocking her. It was her. I felt inexplicably upset.
Why was she hugging him? Why did she go with him? I started the car's engine when the Mercedes started moving, and I followed them at a safe distance, gripping the steering wheel tightly. My anger was consuming me.
I didn't exactly know where they were going, or what I was going to do when they reached their destination. I was letting anger guide me. The car stopped in the parking lot of an exclusive restaurant, and Vincent quickly got out to open the passenger door and take Sarah's hand as she got out of the car. That was when I could examine her closely.
The black dress fitted her body, accentuating her fair skin, and her long and delicate neck was exposed with her hair pulled back into a high ponytail. She smiled playfully at the idiot in front of her, who chivalrously took her bag and walked with his arm interlaced with hers towards the entrance of the restaurant, where the Dubois siblings were waiting.
My breathing was irregular, the heat rushed to my head, and internally I struggled with the decision of whether to enter the restaurant and separate Sarah from her companion to talk, or to drive back to the hotel, pack my bags, and return to New York, leaving the issue with Sarah behind.
Then, my body moved automatically. I got out of the car and walked to the entrance of the restaurant, determined to intercept Sarah. But a man stopped me.
"Good afternoon, welcome. Do you have a reservation?" Asked the uniformed man, wearing a white shirt and a red vest.
I looked at him, raising an eyebrow at being stopped in such a way, and took a deep breath to calm my frustration. I wasn't going to take it out on the man who was not at fault and was just doing his job.
"Good afternoon. I don't have a reservation. Can you assign me a table near the people who just walked in?" I asked when the man opened his mouth to speak, my gaze fixed on Sarah's back as she climbed the stairs with Vincent.
I didn't like this at all.
"I'm sorry, but due to the restaurant's policies, you cannot enter without a reservation." The man said, and I looked at him with an unfriendly expression.
No, the stupid restaurant policies were not going to prevent me from meeting Sarah.
"Look, Mr. Richard." I said, looking at his name on his uniform as I pulled out my wallet.
"I'm Alexander Lancaster, does that ring a bell? I'll give you a good tip if you let me in and assign me a table near Ms. Sarah Petit. How about a thousand dollars?" I asked as I counted the bills, and I heard the man cough uncomfortably upon hearing my offer.
"Uh, Mr. Lancaster, I'm sorry, I can't..." He said.
"If you're right, it's too little. How about five thousand dollars?"
The man coughed uncontrollably at the sound of my offer, and I took out the five thousand dollars intended for Richard, so that he could help me enter without the damn reservation.
"Uh, I'm sorry..." He said after recovering from his sudden cough, and he looked at the bills as if he had never seen that amount in his life.
"Yes, Mr. Lancaster, your reservation is available, but I'm afraid it can't be in the VIP area." He said apologetically, and I knew there was nothing else he could do to assign me a table on the second floor.
Nevertheless, I would be in the same place as Sarah and could sneak away at any moment or wait until she was close.
"You are very kind, Mr. Richard, here’s the tip." I handed him the bills and he put them in his pocket without even counting them before guiding me inside the restaurant and assigning me a table at a safe distance from the stairs.
I sat down while looking at the second floor, searching for Sarah's face, and I saw her conversing animatedly with Ms. Dubois, who was showing her a small set of black and yellow striped baby clothes resembling a bee.
"Good afternoon, would you like an appetizer?" A waitress made me look away from the people on the second floor and I looked at the menu with the different appetizers and main courses they offered me.
"For now, just a glass of Pinot Blanc wine. Thank you." I told the waitress, who walked away leaving the menu on the table.
I turned my gaze to the second floor and got angry seeing Vincent's arm on Sarah's shoulders.
This was enough, I would go to the VIP floor even if I had to pay all the restaurant workers.
I stood up from my seat, swallowing my frustration, and calmly and firmly climbed each step that would lead me to my ex-wife.
It was now or never.