MainNovelChapter 64: Chapter 64
DEMI
| can’t believe what a pile of shit he is. When he leans down and tries to kiss me, my knee slices upwards,
connecting with his groin. William buckles and yelps in pain. Immediately, | whip out the cutlery knife | had
slipped between my hands when no one was looking and brandish it in front of him.
"You cunt!"
"Did you really think | wouldn't expect you to try something like this, you dipshit? You are so damn lucky there
are cameras in this room or | would have cut that thing off and watched you bleed out." | spit in front of him
before grabbing a lamp stand as an extra layer of protection as he starts to regain his composure.
"LILY, | KNOW YOU'RE STANDING BEHIND THAT DOOR. YOU BETTER UNLOCK IT OR | SWEAR TO GOD, | WILL MAKE
SURE THE WHOLE OF DANVARR KNOWS WHAT YOU JUST DID...." The door unlocks and Ashal enters. He looks
confused at the scene in front of him.
"Demi, what's going on? Are you guys okay? We're about to start the games." | throw down my weapons and
glare at him.
"What's going on is that your evil house manager just intentionally locked William and | in this room! Did you ask
her to do that?"
"What? Lily?"
"DID YOU, ASHAL?" | push back the tears shimmering in my eyes. | can’t believe he would go that far just to
throwoff Olivia's scent.
"Of course not, Demi. How could you think so little of me? And Lily didn’t lock the door, it gets jammed
sometimes, especially when it is slammed shut. Look." He opens the door and slams it shut. When he tries to
open it again, it wouldn't budge. "You just have to give it a minute or two before it will pop."
He turns back to see my face flushed with embarrassment. "I heard your voice and rushed up here. Ashley
already put on noise canceling headphones downstairs so he couldn’t hear the ruckus. What's going on? Will,
why are you also in here?"
"Lily sent him here. After | left to use the bathroom, she lied to Will that | wanted to speak with him and sent hm
up to the sroom she directedto."
"Why would she do something like that? I'll go ask her."
"Wait."
We all turn to face William who has a film of sweat on his forehead. "I must have misconstrued what Lily was
trying to say. She didn’t exactly say you asked to seeprivately, Demi. After she witnessed what happened at
lunch, she politely toldthat | shouldn't bleed onto others because of the hurt | am feeling. She advised that |
try to speak with you privately to gain closure rather than ruining good relationships. | thought I should get on
with it and chere to talk to you since Ashley and Ashal were occupied."
"And that’s what you call talking?" | snap at him with blazing eyes. Ashal puts a hand between us and William
backs away.
"I was only messing with you. C'mon, you're too uptight."
"Ok Will, I think we should call it a day. Demi, we're leaving."
"I'm sorry man."
Ashal holds up a hand to cut off William's apology. "I think you should leave, Will. You've made it abundantly
clear that you harbor ill-will against Demi and you have no respect whatsoever for my brother or his relationship
with her. This way, Demi."
| follow him out and find Lily downstairs clearing the dishes. Something about her doesn't sit right with me. Ashal
tells her we are not having dessert and goes to alert Ashley of our abrupt change of plans. | walk up to Lily. Her
cheery smile seems to sickennow.
"Which way to guest bathroom downstairs?"
"Oh, they're out of order ma'am..."
"Which way???" Reluctantly, she pointsto the direction. I tell Ashal | forgot something and leave to check out
the bathrooms. When | get there, | shove open each of the doors. There seems to be mild renovations going on.
Sof them lack a wash hand basin. There are broken tiles on the floor and sof the toilets don’t work
properly. Sighing, | shut the door and return. Something about today doesn’t feel right but | can’t place my
thumb on it.
"What's with the cell reception here? | can’t get a call through. How do you communicate with your staff here if
you can’t call them?" | ask Ashal as he shrugs into his jacket. Ashley is already at the car. Outside, William
appears to be tendering apologies to him but Ashley is not having it.
"Oh, it’s bad up here but it’s not always like this. We get reception sometimes. Since | frequent this place, | keep
putting off the plan to get a signal booster up here. We've not had any serious emergencies here. However, I'll
eventually get around to executing that plan but, in the meantime, | am enjoying the mini digital detox this place
gives me." | mirror the smile he gives me.
"Hey, Demi, | am deeply sorry today was another shit show. | should have known better than to expect your ex to
be civil around you and your new life partner."
"It's okay. | knew this day didn’t feel right when Anna canceled on me. We'll just hang out at the mansion and
play games. You still owe me, though." | pat his shoulder as we leave together.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt
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My visit might have been a disaster and | may not have achieved my aim but at least, the awkwardness of
having William around is over. With the way things went down, | doubt any of the quads will be entertaining
William soon. His relationship with Ashley is as good as over from what | can tell. Phew, good riddance.
Ashley is still stewing however. When we get home, mother notices because he barely gives her a proper
greeting before heading up to his room. Ashal excuses his brother's behavior and claims we all had a rough day
but he doesn’t clarify. After he leaves, mother pullsto the sofa.
"What happened? Why is he mad?"
"He had a tiff with a friend. He'll get over it."
"You'll see to it that he does?"
"I'll try my best."
The sound of a car pulling in draws our attention to the door. | instantly recognize him when he enters with the
signature frown on his face; Ashton.
"Asher?"
"| think it’s Ashton." | whisper to mother. Ashton is dressed a little more formally than he is used to which gets
been a while since he and | talked properly.
"Hello mother." He kisses her cheek.
"Hi, son. How was your day?"
"Interesting." | dip my eyes and feign a smile. Did he spend it with Mila? | bet that’s why he bailed on us at the
penthouse.
"We missed you at the penthouse today."
He quirks a brow at me, slightly confused. "What?" Mom also seems startled by my words. | glance between
them, astonished by their reactions.
"You went to the penthouse?" Mother asks, surprised.
"Yeah, Ashal tookthere today." | retain the smile on my face as theirs wilt and pretend to miss the look
exchanged by mother and son. ‘Is there a problem?"
"No dear. The boys rarely ever take a woman over there. | am just genuinely surprised and even happy that
Ashal took you over there. Nothing says you've been fully accepted into this hlike the quads sharing their
haven with you. I'm glad you've earned it." Mom squeezes my cheek. When I look up at Ashton, his face is no
longer distorted by a frown.
"I'll just be upstairs." He says before leaving.
"Mom, I'll just go check on Ashley." | lie before dashing for the elevator. By the t| arrive on the first floor,
Ashton is a few steps ahead ofon the hallway. He slows his pace like | expect him to and waits forto
catch up. | could tell from his eyes that he had questions.
"Hey, stranger. Been a while."
"Yeah, I'm sorry. Been busy." He smiles thinly. "How was uh..."
"Gnight?"
"Yeah, that."
"It was a wreck."
"Why?"
| suddenly feel embarrassed sharing the details of Ashely’s annoyance with William and the fact that William
tried to get too close toin a locked room. I moisten my lips instead and chuckle softly.
"Anna canceled on me. That's where it started going downhill. Ashley had a fallout with his friend, William and
tempers frayed. We botched the agenda for the visit and cback htwo hours earlier than planned." |
shrug my shoulders. "How interesting was your day?"
He shakes his head. "Nothing as shocking as yours."
"Shocking?"
"I mean, eventful. | just had drinks with a friend and talked. Nothing too serious, except the conversation was
really eye opening."
| wish he would tellif his drinking buddy was a guy or a girl. At the thought, | chastise myself for my
immaturity. What right do | have to be bothered about things like that?
When | look up at him, Ashton is gauging me. With a little smile, he bidsgoodnight and continues to his
room.
| want to head into my room and freshen up but | feel guilty letting the night pass without talking to Ashley about
William. Tonight was a lot. | know he didn’t get into it the whole ride back because of Ashal. We have to talk
about it so it doesn’t keep eating at us.
"Ashley?"
He looks up from his work desk as | poke my head into his room. He's already changed into comfy casuals with
blue light blocking glasses perched on his face, as he speaks with one of his suppliers on video call.
He wraps up his conversation as | walk in and turns to me. The glasses give him a sexy nerd look with his golden
mane shagged around his ears.
"What's up?"
"l...I wanted to apologize for William's behavior back at the penthouse. | had no idea he was going to be there
until Ashal and | were almost at the house."
He takes off his glasses and drops them carefully on his desk. "You can’t blyourself for William being a
jealous ex. | just wish | didn’t hear it from him first that you two dated in the past. Why didn’t you tell me? It's
not a big deal even though Will tried to turn it into one."
"I'm sorry. | didn’t expect to see him here after many years and when I did, | just decided to bury that part of my
life because it isn’t important toanymore."
"You know you can share anything with me, right? | don’t have the prerogative to judge you. I'm not perfect
myself. You don’t have to feel embarrassed about sharing your past with me." My eyes slant up as he gets up
and places a warm hand on my cheek. "I'm sorry about Nicci. | have no excuse."
"It’s okay, really. It’s all in the past." His hand still lingers and my breath warms when they start trailing.
"I can’t believe | know nothing about your life before Danvarr or your parents. What have we been doing on our
dates?"
"Eating expensive food and posing for the cameras? | think it’s not so bad. We don’t need to bug ourselves down
with unnecessary details." | don’t like the idea of sharing personal details with him. Hence, my move to shut
down the idea.
"They are not unnecessary..."
| run a hand over his hair and trap his gaze on my face with a dainty smile. "Aunt and Kira are the only family |
know now. They're my present. We might not always see eye to eye but that’s family for you. I live in the present
Ashley, and right now that consists of Aunt, Kira and your family."
"Is that a No to date night?"
"| didn’t realize you were asking." | cast my eyes downward like a shy teenager.
"Well, | am. | want to get to know you a little better, Demi. We might not share a bed but we could be really good
friends you know. I'll admit it hurt my feelings when William appeared to know so much more about you than |
do. | don’t even know what you like or the type of games you're into. It's embarrassing." His laughter is low and
pleased. "Can we change that? If not your past, we can surely discuss your present. | want to know all about
Demi Branson in Danvarr before and after we got married."
He eyes me. "Will you go on a date withtomorrow night after work?"
His puppy eyes makelaugh. "It’s a Yes."
ork
"Hey, Demi."
| look up from the expresso machine to find Josh Randall behind me. | don’t know why he giveschills despite
the warm smile on his face.
"Hi." Seeing him so meek and affable now, | am almost about to doubt he was the sraging bull that stormed
into my office days earlier to chidefor the accident in father’s office.
"| just wanted to apologize for the last time. | overstepped my boundaries and yelled at you over a personal
matter that was purely an accident. | shouldn’t have. We are all family after all. If we don’t have each other's
backs, who will?" His laughter ebbs as | fail to join him.
"Family?" | reiterate, squinting at him.
"I mean, we're all a family here at Rollins HQ. We shouldn't be holding grudges. I just wanted to apologize for
upsetting you the last time."
"Thank you for your apology."
"| hope we can go back to being friends and possibly have lunch together soon. It could be a great way to cozy
up to the chairman too."
| think one brownnoser is enough for the HQ but | don’t share this with him. Instead, | nod with a bright smile and
wave him goodbye as | bring my coffee to my lips and slurp it. The expresso slides warm into my system,
awakening my tired bones.
Remembering to update Liam on my visit to the penthouse, | whip out my phone to send him a quick text.
[There was nothing at the house. Let's meet up later for details]
Nessa pokes her head in. "Asher’s calling for you. Brace up." Just as | rush after her, Liam replies me.
[Was that meant for someone else?]
My eyes bulge in shock as | stare at the message from Ashley.
[Sorry. | meant to text Anna. She's been buggingabout gnight. | was trying to lower her expectations.]
[Understood. Are we still on for tonight?}]
[Yes. 7pm sharp.]
[See you then.]
[See you.]
| gasp in relief. Hopefully he won't think much of it or bring it up with his brothers. At Asher’s call, | scurry off to
attend to him.
After work, Ashley shows up on twith a bouquet of white roses. | am glad that he saves his grand gesture for
when | hop into the car next to him, rather than making a show by waiting outside the revolving doors where
everyone can see. | accept the flowers and sniff them.
"They smell great. Thanks."
"Just tellspecifically what you want and I'll get it. | don’t want to keep assuming anymore."
"Works for me."
Few minutes later, we are seated in a fancy restaurant unlike any | have been to. The ambience is calming. The
décor is picturesque. The service is top notch. The food is so good | would eat the pattern off the plate if | could
and didn’t care about my self-respect.
But the best part is that the customers here are all elites so nobody is freaking out over Ashley's presence. No
phones are secretly taking photos of us. It feels like | am having dinner with a regular guy.
"Ok, next question. It's my turn." | tell him. "Who's your least favorite brother. Don't lie. You might love them all
but you can’t like them all the time."
"Oh shit, you're going to getin trouble with this one." He tosses his head back and laughs. "I'm going to need
alcohol for this." He downs his glass and stares atwith his deep blues eyes. "Promise you won't misconstrue
this."
"I won't. I'll throw this one in for free. Asher’'s my least favorite. He is a mean boss and is most unfriendly to me."
We both laugh.
"I could have guessed that. Ok, my least favorite has to be...Ashton. Don’t givethat look before you hear me
out. | love that man to bits but sometimes, his confidence in being unapologetically himself can be intimidating.
Asher and Ashal are great guys but like me, they are considerate and can bend their will if father wishes it.
Ashton doesn’t care about being liked. | think that’s why he’s so cool. No one can make him do anything he
doesn’t want to do. Anyone who manages to force his hand will have to threaten him with something he holds
dear to make Ashton budge."
He pours himself another glass of wine. "Being around someone like that who looks exactly like you can remind
you of how much cooler you can be if you wanted to, make you feel like you're being less than and that can be
annoying. That's why he’s my least favorite."
"My favorite has to Ashal for the fact that he doesn’t intimidatehalf as much as Ashton does. Asher is at the
middle. | am not interested in his career goals so | don’t give a fuck how many deals he closes." He inhales
sharply. "Who's your favorite?"
"What?"
"Who's your favorite brother? You only mentioned your least favorite."
How can he askthat and make everything awkward?
"It's okay. | can’t be more jealous of that guy. Just tellwhat you like about him?"
This time, | drink my wine. "It’s like you said, he doesn’t care about being liked. He didn’t cozy up tobecause
he was expected to. He was real withfrom the start so when he compliments me, | know he means every
word. Swhen he scolds me. He was also the first brother | could recognize from all four of you because of
the aura around him. | started off thinking he was the most complicated of the four. Now, he’s the easiest to
read."
Ashley smiles as | sip my wine again.
"You said you wouldn't be jealous."
"Nope. | said | couldn't be more jealous but now, | think | spoke too soon." Our desserts arrive.
"I need to use the restroom. Savescake."
"It’s a bad idea to leavealone with a slice of yummy, red velvet cake. | could get really ravenous so you
better hurry up."
| pull his hair before shambling across the room to the convenience. Inside, there's a beautiful lady in a short
black dress retouching her lipstick in front of the mirror. She has dark shades on with full head of hair. Her
forehead is fully framed by dark fringes. There is a medium sized gift box next to her on the sink with a bow on
i)
I quickly use the restroom. When | step out to wash my hands, she’s gone. The gift box is all that’s left. How
could she have forgotten something right in front of her? | proceed to wash my hand so | can call the attention of
a waiter to the forgotten property before rejoining Ashal.
While drying my hands, | notice a note stuck on the box in fine print.
[For Demi Rollins]
Intrigued and a little scared, | sample the box to ensure there's no explosive inside. It literally feels empty when |
pick it up. Gently, | open it. There's a single note inside that baffles me.
[You married a murderer. Ask your husband about Tobias Woodley]
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