Chapter 5: Alex Sterling
Alex Sterling paced around his living room, the faint light of the early morning sun barely creeping through the windows.
His footsteps were soft against the hardwood floor, the silence of the house making them echo louder in his mind even as various thoughts ran through his mind.
He ran a hand through his hair, disheveled from a restless night of thinking. The conversation with his sister, Claire, still swirled in his head like a fog he couldn't shake. How could he when the discussion had been quite intense and serious?
"Marriage?" Alex muttered under his breath, his brow furrowing in confusion.
As he replayed everything in his head, he stopped pacing for a moment, standing in front of the large window that overlooked the still-sleeping city of Sweliss.
His thoughts raced. Why would Claire, of all people, be pushing this now? At this moment and upon his arrival? He had just returned from Paris after years of being away, and the first thing she talked about was a woman he barely knew.
Who was this Vanessa King and what did she have on his sister?
He replayed the conversation in his mind again, trying to make sense of it as he had tried to over the night.
"She's good for you, Alex," Claire had said last night, her voice full of conviction. "You need someone stable, someone who will ground you. Vanessa can be that for you, I'm sure of it."
It had been a bizarre and unexpected topic to be greeted with after his long journey. He had barely set foot in the door when Claire dropped the suggestion like a bomb to him.
Alex had spent the night trying to make sense of it, but it didn't add up no matter how hard he thought about it. He wasn't a man easily swayed by others' opinions, not even Claire's.