Four Brothers and a Bride-Chapter 177 - 176

ASHER

"Thank you for coming." I say to Mrs. Olga, a youthful looking CEO in her forties, just before kissing her cheeks. "It was a pleasure to have you." She palms my cheek with a naughty look glistening in her eyes.

"It’s Ms. Olga. My divorce was recently finalized." She clarifies, fluttering her thick lashes. "You’re a very good-looking man, Asher Rollins. Why don’t you pay me a visit at my vacation home on Kingston Avenue? I assume you’d be interested in discussing Rollins Group and how we can do business together." Her eyes are literally undressing me at this point.

"That’s very sweet of you, Ms. Olga..."

"Oh, please, just call me Olga. No formality needed." A seductive wink follows as she skims my shoulder with her hand. "That’s a strong arm you’ve got under there. Can’t wait to see everything under these clothes. Call me?"

I just nod my head. Thankfully, her chauffeur steers her away to her car.

"Was that the last one?" Anna asks, coming up behind me.

"I hope so because I am done with seeing these guests off! I need a shower and a shut eye for at least four hours. "Then after a brief glance at my watch, "Make that three. I have an early meeting tomorrow..." I trail off when I note her demeanor. "Oh, you’ve got something on your face."

"What?" She reaches for her cheek and starts wiping. "What is it? Is my makeup running? Is it a food stain?"

"Yeah, looks like a stain all right." I lean close to have a better look. "What did you eat? Your face is all GREEN." Then I burst out laughing at her. She gives my shoulder an impressive punch and scowls at me. "Careful, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you’re being jealous right now."

"You wish, Asher Rollins." Rolling her eyes, she fluffs her hair. "I’m just a very good actress if you haven’t noticed." Her eyes dart around the mansion, over the thinning guests and the uniformed cleaners taking down decorations and transforming the mansion back to it’s original look. "Tonight was...interesting."

I join her to peer at the view. "That’s one way to put it." I draw in a sharp breath. "Thank you for showing up. I would have lost my marbles if I had some pompous and cocky heiress tethered to my hip all night."

"Wow, never thought the day would come when Asher Rollins would loathe the attention of gorgeous women from affluent families jostling for him." She chuckles at me. "Seriously, you went to town with our performance. I can only imagine the headlines tomorrow. I know you’re used to it but I am not. What if people criticize my looks, height, weight and so on? Will I be able to have a normal day at the work next week?"

"Hey, hey, calm down." I take her hands in mine. "I’m sure those reporters present tonight will have more than enough fodder to write clickbait articles about my family to be bothered by our little display. If at all they happen to mention us, it definitely won’t be a cover story. You have nothing to worry about."

"Are you sure?"

I squeeze her cheeks. "I’ll make sure."

She grins at that and I mirror the same expression, hoping to mask the slight sting I feel over her concern. Frankly, I’m not sure if I am more disappointed in myself for not having the courage to admit and embrace my strong feelings for her or the fact that she seems ostensibly unbothered by my indecision.

There’s definitely something between us, a connection that I never thought would survive the strain on our unlabeled relationship caused by our differing views on Demi’s revenge. The break was a real struggle for me. It opened my eyes to the fact that a single woman can cloud my brain so much there were days I couldn’t sleep. Was this what my brothers went through over one woman?

I don’t know what to call it or if I want to have that conversation, but whatever it is, it’s gaining ground in my head, cluttering up my mind. So, instead of asking Anna to be my date tonight like a sensible and confident young man, I played it safe.

I sent her a beautiful dress, jewelry and shoes. Since she was already used to such gestures from me, I didn’t expect it to raise any alarms in her head. After she arrived tonight, I asked her to pretend to be my date just to get other ogling women off my back. Lame excuse but if she clocked it, she didn’t show it.

I’m looking forward to the pictures tomorrow because I want to gauge how I handle the media pressure of our alleged romance without worrying about any commitment to Anna. Maybe this will help me be clear on my feelings and whether or not I want to pursue this officially.

I steal a glance at Anna. Is she really unbothered? Doesn’t it hurt her just a teeny-weeny bit that I am not taking her as seriously as she would hope or is she truly over me? My insecurity kicks in as I wonder if she also loathes my family after learning all Demi must have shared with her. Anxious, I scan the room for a drink, but then decide against it.

"Did you see that?"

"What?" I ask Anna who’s subtly pointing at Monaco lounging near her car.

"That lady, Monaco. Isn’t the woman she’s talking to one of your staff here?"

"That’s Halle." I admit. "What could they be talking about?"

"Halle is one of your family’s victims and she was helping Liam. Demi told me but that’s not the point. I just saw Halle take Monaco’s business card. I think she’s not interested in the peace talk."

My eyes stray to Monaco and Halle as they bid each other farewell.

"It’s late. Ask any of our drivers to take you home. Tell them I said so. Thanks for the party favors." Absentmindedly, I give Anna a kiss on her temple before heading towards Monaco who’s sliding into the driver’s seat of her car. She intentionally keeps the window down at the sight of me.

"Which one is it?"

"Asher Rollins." I reply.

Her eyes dim with something unclear before she steps down and folds her arms across her chest.

"You’re the one who avoided me all night but never took his eyes off me though. I recognize that suspicious glint in your eyes."

"Well, you made quite an entrance at my party and even went further to steal the spotlight a number of times during the event. I’m not sure what that was about but it didn’t look like you needed the five minutes of fame." She scoffs at my choice of language. "As distracting as that pretty face of yours is, I can’t get past the hunch in my gut that your attendance today was more than just filling in for senator Ackerman."

"Wow, you live up to my expectations, Asher Rollins."

"What was that?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "Nothing. Does this have to do with Halle or the four other victims that have come asking for my business card? Does it bother you that not all of them are buying into your peace campaign?"

There were four others? I silently wonder. But we had six victims who attended tonight. Does that mean only one of them hasn’t approached Monaco for legal assistance? Who? I keep a straight face to mask my growing anxiety.

"I never expected a full cooperation. It’s their choice at the end of the day and my family will respect it no matter what they decide. I am not here because of your potential clients. I just want to make sense of the unexpected stranger that appeared at my party and made several scenes on national TV. I am curious to know why and whenever I have this hunch, there’s always a reason for it." I edge close to her. "I have a feeling this isn’t goodbye, Ms. Vaughn."

"Oh, definitely not." She gets into her car. "I sincerely hope the next we meet isn’t in a courtroom. That face wasn’t built for a mugshot."

I watch her slide her tinted windows up and pull out of the driveway like an expert driver.

Who the hell is she? While I watch her car leave, I notice some chaos outside the main gate. I signal one of the security personnel.

"What’s the ruckus about? I thought you cleared the gate."

"There’s a young man out there that won’t leave. He demands to see Mr. Ashton. Claims his sister was abducted by your brother. He’s threatening to go to the media if he isn’t given audience."

The hell? Could that be Skylar’s foster brother that Ashton spoke about? My fingers ball into fists by my side. He had the nerve to come here and put on a show?

I let out a long sigh and knead the kinks in my neck. "Take him to our Sky Lounge Hotel. Tell him Ashton will meet him there in an hour with his sister. If he tries anything funny, it’ll be to his detriment."

Turning to head back inside, I whip out my phone and call Ashton but his phone is switched off. "Damn it, Ash. Not now." My head is already starting to ache. I need some fucking sleep. I can’t go handle this right now or entertain that erratic fellow.

I drop a message in our group chat for all my brothers and ask if anyone is up for the challenge. No response. Apparently, none of them kept their phones handy.

I guess I have no choice but to clean up this mess myself, as usual.

***

His eyes darken when I walk in.

"You’re not Ashton." He says, springing to his feet with eyes narrowed to slits.

"And you’re not my comfy bed so how about we deal with this and get back to our lives, huh?"

He growls silently as he drops back in his chair. "Why exactly is she here?"

I slide a glance at Kayla, the fake sister he foisted on us. "What do you mean, Keith? You came to make a fuss about your sister at my property only for you to not recognize her? Is this a joke?" The vein jutting out of his head gives me sterling pleasure. I bet he is wondering if Ashton never disclosed to us that Kayla is a fake. I turn to Kayla.

"As you can see, Adriana is perfectly fine. I don’t understand why you would think she had been kidnapped by none other than her own loving brother! Do you care to elaborate on that, Mr. Keith?"

He grinds his teeth. "She’s not your sister if you don’t already know it!" His eyes flash at me. "Where is Skylar? What have you done with her? The second Ashton learnt of her true identity; she goes completely off grid? Very convenient, don’t you think? Listen here mate, I’m not letting this go. If you and your brothers don’t tell me where I can find my sister, I’ll burst the tiny bubble of peace you think you have right now. You better hope I don’t find as much as a scratch on her!" He finishes, heaving with breath.

My silence only makes his patience run thin.

"Are you quite finished, farm boy?"

"SHE’S NOT YOUR SISTER!" He yells in my face. "She could never be your sister. She’s nothing like you corrupt quads. I won’t let you poison her with your evil traits!"

I clench my fist to stifle the urge to punch his face. "Are you done now?" But before he can say another word, my fist goes flying into his face. He topples down on his seat, his hands closed over his face as blood dribbles from his broken nose. Beside me, Kayla flinches. It’s a good thing that the VIP bar was reserved for this meeting.

I flex my neck and lean close to him with a deep frown etched on my face. "You want to try raising your voice at me one more time? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Now, YOU listen up, mate. Be a good son and go take care of the family you already have, not the one you’re trying to force. Skylar is MY sister. She’s got the same blood as me, running through her veins. Nothing you say will ever change that." I draw in a sharp breath as I recall the result of the DNA test I secretly had done between Skylar and I. She’s indeed my sister.

"She’s MY responsibility now, Keith, and I suggest you BACK THE FUCK OFF if you can’t accept her true family. Tell the world about her and see if she thanks you for blowing up the identity she’s spent her whole life keeping a secret. Selfish Prick."

I walk away, leaving Kayla to tend to him and hopefully talk some sense into him. What a shitty evening.

But as I swing open the door to the hallway, my fingers go numb on the door knob. Standing right outside the door is father.