I had tried my darn hardest to stay as far away from Tyler as I could, but at the end of the day, I had to communicate with him to help him with Maya's birthday surprise as I had promised and for that reason alone I was forced to accompany him to different stores all over town. He could have easily put one of his staff to the task, but instead he was driving around with me everywhere.

I wasn't stupid. I knew that he was making excuses to have conversations with me.

"You look like a nun wearing that." Hazel had commented when she'd seen the dress I'd picked for the birthday party.

"I don't mind looking like one, considering that I'm not exactly trying to attract someone's attention."

"By someone you mean Tyler." She gave me a knowing smile.

"Whatever..."

"Well, you don't have to worry about wearing an unattractive dress. You already look seventy with all those wrinkles all over your forehead, there's no way Ty's going to be attracted to that." Hazel commented picking up a shiny pair of earrings from my drawer.

She was a certified accessory and outfit thief. When I usually found my stuff missing, like my favorite t-shirt, charm bracelets, makeup, etc, it was mostly because the things magically appeared in Hazel's room. She implied that there was a supernatural entity present in the house.

And that comment, she was baiting me with it, hoping to conjure a reaction out of me which she wasn't getting.

She skimmed through my closet and tossed a dress towards me that landed over my face. "You're wearing that because I'm not going to accompany a nun to a birthday party, and if you really wish to be a nun than you can try auditioning for the next James Wan movie."

"Hazel..." I said.

"Come on, Vicky. You're not playing the game."

"Because I don't want to," I said firmly.

"Do you know what excites him more than anything? A challenge. And by acting like you don't care, he's going to get the message but if you keep giving him importance by wearing wrong outfits to a party, he's going to find it fun. He's going to think that you actually give a bloody damn."

"I don't care what Tyler thinks."

"You say that but you actually do." She said literally poking the mascara wand into her eye-balls.

In the end, she convinced me to wear a really sexy bright satin red dress that was mid-thigh, low neck, and strings at the back. The look was completed with a pair of red heels and a clutch bag. Hazel always told me that my platinum hair looked so much better when I wore bright colors.

"I haven't seen Archer all day. Where is he?" she asked.

My brother was back in town. He'd done everything maintaining silence and never posting anything relevant on his social media. He'd gone a few extra miles by posting a status that clearly said he was still in France. And then I'd received a call from Maya asking me if Archer had any plans to come back to Cold-Bay. I'd naturally toyed with her and told her I didn't know anything about his plans since he never mentioned them.

"It's a secret." I grinned.

"Ugh, I hate it when you and Archer keep secrets from me," She said.

"It's for the best."

Hazel's mouth was big, and chances were if I included her in one of my secrets, she would spill the beans to Maya. I couldn't risk it.

The birthday party was going to be held in their family-owned Club "Lucifer's Den" which was run by Max Lockhart, Tyler's cousin.

A part of the lounge was decorated with golden helium balloons, a huge twenty-three numbered balloon was suspended in the air and her name 'Maya' spelled out in single letter balloons. Tyler had gone an extra mile by putting one big sized balloon right in the center and I noticed that it was filled with glitter, it was the game where you hit it hard enough to burst it and receive a price.

What did he think she was?

Three?

There were four tables in the lounge, all perfectly set and decorated with a little box of return gifts for all the guests. If there was something outrageous inside like a diamond-studded cat or a lion figure, I wouldn't be surprised. Tyler was known for his bizarre actions and even more bizarre gifts.

And I mean why not? He was crazy, and he had a disturbing amount of wealth to his disposal. He could gift people ten new Bentleys and never feel like he'd spent much at all. It would still be equivalent to taking a drop of water from the ocean.

What Tyler hated was boredom. Boredom led him to do everything in extravagance. I kind of felt sorry for him sometimes. When you had so much wealth since childhood, you're often told that nothing is unattainable. Money bought everything, and that left him with no possible aspirations. He'd pushed through so far only because he didn't know what to do with all the time.

So he played games and manipulated people cunningly. For fun.

My eyes drifted around the room, searching for him. I spotted him at the bar, talking to Alec, the bartender. Tyler was dressed in a black t-shirt over ripped jeans, the fabric framed his biceps deliciously and he was sporting a relaxed smile on his face, the kind that would get a woman pregnant. Personally, my ovaries exploded. At one point in time, I was literally the meme that said "Tyler could destroy my life and I wouldn't even care." And guess what, Tyler had gone ahead and did just that. No man was worth that much attention or worship, surely not someone as toxic as him. Unfortunately some lessons came later in life when it was too late.

Hazel went to greet Tyler and it was like one of those scenes you see on TV. She ran right into his arms and he scooped her up and hugged her tightly, and she was giggling and laughing, probably teasing. I tried not to feel the burning sensation of jealousy in my chest, this was nothing more than a little sister greeting her favorite brother which was what Ty and Hazel had always been. She looked up to him, and it didn't stop even after he and I had parted ways. Ty and Hazel shared a fierce bond that was far better than what he and I had shared, it was of pure friendship. While he and I had been best friends as well, it had all been ruined by our true feelings for each other.

And that's what love did to people, it changed everything.

When Hazel left, another woman slipped up beside him and started getting cozy and it was getting on my nerves because clearly, they were flirting with each other. She was getting really comfortable as she put her arm around his shoulder. I looked away. He was trying to get a reaction out of me, for sure. Tyler played stupid games.

I wasn't going to give him what he wanted.

I wish I had some darts so I could practice my dart throwing on Tyler's forehead.

"Need some company?"

I turned to the voice and smiled when Phoenix slipped into a seat beside me. Like all the other Lockharts, Phoenix was also undoubtedly as handsome as a devil. He was Ty's cousin, and a lead member of a Goth metal band called 'Black Aesthetic'. Everyone mistook Phoenix as Ty's actual brother because the two had similar dark hair and azure eyes, the facial structure and full lips. Phoenix also had tattoos over his ripped body, a ring curled around the corner of his bottom lip. He looked like Ty's doppelganger, but they also had stark differences. Phoenix looked dangerous, but he was sweet as compared to Ty who had literally zero tats and piercing yet yielded a lot of power.

There had been rumors in the past that Ty's father, Jasper Lockhart had had an affair with his sister-in-law and that Phoenix was his kid but the family had decided to keep the truth buried. Ty said the rumors were bullshit, and I believed him.

They were Lockhart boys, after all, each boy had a screw loose somewhere.

"I could use the company, actually." I smiled.

So many women would kill to be in my place.

Phoenix crossed his legs and stared forward. "So how's life Vicky-Mickey? Honestly, I'm surprised to see you here."

"And why is that?"

"You've spent the better part of your life avoiding Ty. What makes you want to test the demon?"

"I don't know, Phoenix, boredom, I guess."

He chuckled, "Looks like you tore a page out of Ty's book." He pushed his chair closer to me and added. "He's looking here right now. Don't look, and don't react. Act natural."

"I'm not playing any games." I clarified. "I'm only here because it's Maya's birthday and she will be disappointed if I didn't show up."

"Humor me, Vicky. I'm bored as well." He grinned, downing a tequila shot. "Want to see a magic trick?"

"What?" I laughed.

"Want to see Ty power-walking to our table?"

"You literally live for drama," I said rolling my eyes. "If he doesn't come to the table..."

"I owe you a hundred dollars," Phoenix said. "If he does come, you owe me hundred."

"Deal."

Before I could say anything, he slipped his arm around my waist and pulled me into his lap and I was instantly welcomed by the scent of his exotic cologne. His hands were splayed on my waist, it was a possessive grip. He sniffed into my hair, "Hmm...strawberry."

"Stop it. What are you doing?" I laughed.

I sneaked a glance in Tyler's direction and he wasn't even looking at us. The person who was actually looking was Alec. The freakin bartender and I wondered why. His eyes were dead set on us. There was a sound of a loud crash and then the bartender apologized.

A second later, Alec was making his way to us. He thumped the glass of a ladies drink on the table, glared at Phoenix and stormed away. I saw Phoenix smirk but I wasn't sure why.

Did I miss something here?

Phoenix placed me back on the seat and said, "Hey, I'll see you around, just going to look for Max."

"By the way, you owe me a hundred." I flashed him a smile.

Phoenix rolled his eyes. He loved bets but he always lost them with me but this time I was actually surprised he'd lost. There had been no reaction from Tyler whatsoever. He dug his hand in his wallet and placed the money on the table.

When I looked for Tyler again, he was gone.

"Happy Birthday, Maya!" I hugged her when she walked towards me.

Honestly, she resembled a princess of some country. She was wearing a sleeveless shimmering Rose Gold grown with a long slit that started from her upper thigh. Her dark hair was curled and pulled up in a high ponytail, a few loose tendrils framing her face and her makeup was on point. The highlighter was literally popping.

"I'm so happy you could come." She gushed, pulling me into a hug. She looked behind me and I knew who she was trying to look for.

"Archer is not here," I told her.

Her face fell. "Of course he isn't. He just sent me a text last night, before everyone else. A simple "Happy Birthday". I wish he could have at least called me."

I shrugged.

The birthday song started playing in the background and Maya made a face. "Someone please tell my brother I'm not four."

Two of my staff from the bakery wheeled in with a three-story fondant cake. The cake was golden and white, the topmost level holding a pair of heels made of fondant as well. A Pearl necklace was flowing from the topmost level to the last which was also made of cake; there was also a little designer bag on the corner of it. I'd made the cake myself as a birthday present for Maya, and Hazel had helped with it. I knew that giving her any other gift was really pointless. She had everything she wanted. I couldn't possibly give her something that she didn't have. When Tyler had offered to pay for the cake, I'd refused. This was from Hazel and me. He'd then generously tipped the bakers who had helped me.

Maya covered her mouth with her hands and then she looked at me with awe. "Best birthday cake, ever. Thank you so much, Vicky!"

"I'm glad you like it."

Maya blew the candles, made a wish and then all her friends started crowding her, coming over to wish her happy birthday. Gifts began piling up on the table behind her.

"Where's my gift, Tyler?" Maya asked him, putting her hands on her waist.

"Would you forgive me if I told you that I forgot?"

"You can't be serious."

The lights went out suddenly and there were a few collective groans from everyone. 'Someone fix the lights', a person yelled. Seconds later, the lights came on. On the center of the stage was a life-size gift box wrapped in glitter and tied with a huge ribbon on it.

Maya glared at her brother. "If this is some joke, I'm going to kill you."

Suddenly the box opened and a familiar voice began singing the birthday song calling out to Maya.

People had taken out their phones and were filming it as Maya stared at the box, frozen in place.

Archer was standing inside the opened box looking like a Ken doll with his platinum blonde hair and his silver eyes trailed on Maya. It's like the entire world didn't exist for the two of them as they stared at each other, spell-bound.

He grinned at her. "Happy Birthday, Princess!"