Edric pursed his lips together and nodded. “Technically she’s the head maid now, but she doesn’t really work.”
“I didn’t know that she brought you up.” Ellie said.
He nodded his head. “Yeah.” The mention of their nanny seemed to bring an awkwardness to the room. After a quick pause, Edric broke the silence. “So.” He clapped his hands together. “What board games should we play?”
“Nothing too competitive.” Ellie and Violet responded, simultaneously. When they both realized that they said that the same thing and the same time, they giggled.
“Why do you say that?” Ellie asked.
“My brother gets competitive over stupid things. Why do you say that?”
“My sister is the same way.” Ellie giggled.
“Well, I wouldn’t say that. I mean, I don’t think I’m too competitive. I just like to win and I usually do.” Cassie then raised a finger and pointed it across the couch, passed Ellie, towards Edric. “I can totally outplay Scrooge in any game.”
“Is that a challenge?”
Ellie and Violet exchanged glances and smiled sheepishly.
“Oh boy.”
“I’m sorry my crude brother is going to ruin your nice dinner party.”
“Yeah, he will.” Cassie added.
“Cassie!”
“Look, I just think I’ll win.” Cassie said.
“Respectfully, I think you’re wrong.”
“What games are you good at, Scrooge?”
“Baseball. Football. Chess. Backgammon. You?”
“Hockey. Basketball. Chess. Checkers. Backgammon. Although Ellie usually beats me at Chess.” Cassie folded her arms and leaned back in the couch.
“Probably because you have no patien—” Edric stopped himself from finishing that sentence. He looked over at Ellie and smiled weakly.
“Oh, she could beat you in those games hands down.” Cassie retorted.
“You’re probably right. Eleonore is the smartest person I know.”
“I-I don’t know about that.”
Edric quickly gave her a peck on the cheek.
“I vote we play this game tonight.” Cassie pointed to a thin, long box. “It’s great for multiple players and I think I’ll kick Scrooge’s ass.”
“Seconded.” Violet said.
“Ellie, what do you think?”
“Sounds good to me.”
***
“Oh, bullshit!” Cassie threw her cards on the table.
“You lost. Fair and square.”
“Not only did I lose, I got second-to-last place. I only beat one person. That sucks. No offense, Violet.”
“None taken. I’m better at building things than winning at board games anyways.”
“Yes, you are.” Edric mumbled half-hardy, as if his mouth was in auto-pilot. He wasn’t thinking much about the conversation—he was more concerned with winning. The CEO scanned the board. Ellie seemed to have backed him into a corner. She was ahead but he still could win if he played right. He already edged two people out of the game, he just needed to beat this one, last person.
He looked up at his sweet girlfriend. Her intelligent, violet eyes looked down at the board. He thought that she looked incredibly sexy when she was deep in thought. And winning at board games. If Violet and Cassie weren’t around, he would grab her, pull her onto his lap, and shove his tongue down her throat. His mind began to wander, fantasizing about all the things that he wanted to do to her, if she would only let him.
Ellie bit her lip and moved her piece two spaces ahead. Her slender fingers rested on the piece for a split second, and then she moved it over another space.
“Your move.”
He nodded his head.
After about twenty minutes, Cassie lost interest in observing the game. She and Violet chatted animatedly and snacked on leftover lasagna and carrot cake.
The couple managed to block out the chatter and play their game. They were in their own little world, looking at each other and the board.
Ellie had a habit of looking up at Edric, blushing, and then returning her gaze to the board. He thought that it was cute. He liked the subtle sign that she liked him.
Finally, through a series of lucky and well-played moves, Ellie wiped out her boyfriend’s last piece. He leaned back in his chair and smirked.
“Congratulations.” Edric said.
“Thank you.”
“Hah! You lost, Scrooge.”
“I did better than you.”
“But you still lost.”
“That’s fine.” He looked over at Ellie and smiled. “I lost to quite the opponent.”
“Well, it’s about midnight. We should probably go, Rick.”
He nodded his head. “Yeah.”
I wish I could stay here with Ellie.
“This was actually fun.” Cassie said.
“Even though you lost?” He had been good all night but that subtle dig was too much for him to resist.
“Don’t push it, Scrooge.”
“Thank you both for coming.” Ellie gave Violet a gentle hug and then turned her attention to Edric. She gave him a hug too, although his was more intimate. During the embrace, Ellie stood up on the tips of her toes whispered to Edric, “I really want to kiss you right now.”
Edric was taken aback by Ellie’s comment. He never heard her say anything so forward to him before, even though the words she uttered were tame compared to what past flings whispered in his ear. He took a step back and cleared his throat.
“Violet, I’m going to help Ellie do the dishes and clean up. I’ll see you back at the penthouse?”
“Yeah, sure. See you.”
Edric and Ellie wandered off into the kitchen. As soon as they got inside the small kitchen area, Edric shoved Ellie in a small corner of the room, away from any prying eyes, and placed his lips on hers. Usually his kisses started with a gentle and patient pretext, but not this time. This time, he kissed her passionately and pinned her against the wall with his pelvis and trapped her there with his arms. She returned the passionate kiss and wrapped her arms around his strong back.
After thirty seconds, Edric broke apart from Ellie and walked over to the sink and began to scrub a dish pan as if that torrid kiss never happened. His girlfriend giggled and began to scrub a plate. She looked up at Edric and he looked down at Ellie. The two smiled at each other.
“I love you, Ellie.”
She giggled and rested her head on his shoulder.
Chapter Seventeen
Cassie triumphantly waltzed into Edric’s office. She was grinning from ear to ear. “Hah! I beat you because you suck!”
Ellie gasped.
Edric looked at Cassie and burst out laughing. He knew that she was kidding. She knew that she was kidding. The only one who never caught on was Ellie.
Finally, the CEO stopped laughing. “All right, Cassie, I’ll bite: how do I suck?”
“I beat you at your own game.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your game. The game you designed. I out leveled you, even though you rigged your character to be the best.”
He smirked and shook his head. “So, you’re telling me that you spent hours upon hours of your life playing the game I designed, just so you could beat me at it?”
“Well, when you put it like that…”
“I have to say, Cassie, I’m a little flattered that you’d devote so much time to me.”
“W-what?”
He laughed again. “You must have spent at least a hundred hours to impress me like that. Be careful, you don’t want to make your sister jealous.”
Cassie’s face turned as red as her hair. “W-what? Oh, fuck you, Scrooge.”
Ellie giggled. Edric walked over to her desk and perched himself at the edge of it. She reached up and lightly touched his hand. They locked eyes for a moment and smiled before Edric turned his attention back to her irate sister.
“All right, Cassie. I concede defeat. I suppose that
makes us tied. For now.”
“Oh, don’t be petty like that. I beat you at your own game and you’re being petty about it.”
“What did you expect?”
“For you to acknowledge that I won.”
“But Cassie, I am acknowledging you. You did win.”
“But you’re saying it in such a condescending tone.”
“What tone would you like me to use?”
Cassie rolled her eyes and looked at her sister. “I don’t know how you put up with this fool.”
Ellie giggled. “I manage.”
“You manage? You wound me, madam.”
She giggled again. “All right, I do more than that.” She looked up at Edric lovingly. He looked down at her and stroked her hair, smiling.
“I’ll leave you two love birds alone. See you both for dinner on Wednesday?”
Ellie nodded her head.
“And Scrooge, I’ll kick your ass at basketball before then.”
He shrugged. He didn’t stop looking at Ellie. “You do that, Cassie.”
***
Cassie made her way over down from Edric’s office to Violet’s suite—a habit that she had every Thursday. Cassie smiled to herself, she never thought in a million years that she would be so close to the Kensington family. She’s even gotten to know the young Owen better, although Edric insisted that she was a terrible influence on his younger brother.
Cassie jogged into the mechanic’s suite. The room was unusually quiet. And dark.
“Hello?”
No response.
“Violet?”
Again, no response.
Cassie slowly wandered through the lab. She was starting to get worried.
Maybe she went out to lunch or something. But it’s three o’clock. And she knew I was coming.
“Violet?”
Cassie heard a clanking sound at the far corner of the room.
That must be Violet.
The private investigator jogged to the corner of the room. Violet was lying on the floor, holding her chest.
“Violet? Oh God, you’re having a heart attack!”
She shook her head profusely.
“Panic attack?”
She nodded her head.
“It’s okay; it’ll pass.” Cassie patted the Kensington sister on the back. “I’ll stay here with you until it passes.”
After about a minute, Violet gasped for air. Her hands were shaking and her body was drenched in sweat.”
“See? You’re okay.”
“Yeah…” She breathed out. “Tired, but okay.”
“Do you get them often?”
Violet nodded her head. “Since I was fourteen. I don’t know what triggers them. They happen randomly. When I was about twenty-five I had a bit of a breakdown, when my father died. I had to go to an…institution for a bit. My brother kept the whole thing under wraps. I got better, but I get these panic attacks. Call it a souvenir, if you will.”
“Well, they always pass though. The panic attacks, I mean.”
“That’s what my brother says too.”
“It must be hard, being in the spotlight and all.”
“I try to avoid it as much as possible. I should be used to it, but I’m not.”
“It must be hard being in a famous family.”
“It has its perks. I’ve never wanted for anything.”
“Except peace.”
“Except peace.” Violet repeated somberly. After a second, she chuckled bitterly. “I guess you know my biggest secret.”
Cassie raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
“My panic attacks, and being institutionalized.”
Cassie let out a loud, boisterous, laugh. “Bitch, please. I’m a private investigator. If that’s your biggest secret, then you’re doing pretty good.”
“Really?”
Cassie nodded her head. “Oh yeah, really. You’ve heard some of my stories. I’ve committed felonies before.”
“Oh yeah.” The way Violet responded made it seem like she overlooked some of Cassie’s seedier elements.
“It’s not like you’ve actually done something bad. Your body produces a lot of adrenaline or whatever.”
“I guess I’ve always been embarrassed about it. Viewed it as the one aspect of my personality that I can’t fix.”
“Why bother?”
The mechanic shrugged. “I just wish I was perfect.”
“If you change one aspect of your personality, you might be a different person. On a scale from one-to-ten of weird shit I’ve heard, this is about a two.”
“Seriously?
Cassie nodded her head.
“Then what’s a ten?”
“It’s best discussed over a cold beer. You free?”
The mechanic pushed herself into a sitting position. “I’m free.”
“Do you want to go to that mechanic bar?”
Violet laughed out loud. “Um. No. I don’t feel like throwing up cheap tequila.”
“Do you know of a better bar?”
“I think any bar would be an improvement.”
“I’ll let you pick the place this time.”
“Deal.”
Chapter Eighteen
“You stupid piece of shit!” Cassie shouted as she marched her way over to Edric Kensington’s desk. Her hands were balled into fists.
Ellie gasped. Edric was unfazed. He blinked and looked up from his office desk at the angry private detective. Cassie was dressed in a black turtleneck sweater dress with red tights and a red scarf.
“Cassie!” Ellie cried out from her desk. “What brought this on?”
The red-haired woman pulled out her cell phone and handed it to Edric. He took the phone from her and then looked at the contents on the screen: a tabloid article entitled ‘Kensington’s New Flame’. Below was a picture of Edric with Ellie. The two of them were at the local carnival together. Ellie was holding his hand and looking up at him, smiling.
“Fuck.” Edric thrusted the phone back into her hand.
“Do you know what this means for my sister?”
“W-What’s going on?” Ellie stammered.
Edric sighed. “Eleonore.” He sighed again. “The paparazzi caught us together. I’m sorry. I should have been more careful. Shit.”
“Edric, I don’t mind. At least now we don’t have to hide our relationship.”
Cassie and Edric both exchanged glances. “El, sweetie. Paparazzi are going to make your life a living hell.” Cassie said in the sweetest voice she could muster. She turned to face her sister’s boyfriend. “I blame you for this.”
“I know, I know. I was careless and I screwed up…” He massaged his temples. For the first time in a long time, he felt a migraine coming on. “I’ll handle it.”
“I don’t trust you to handle my sister’s affairs. You already fucked up majorly.”
“Cassie. Edric. I’ll be fine. I promise.”
“I’ll hire security for both you and Ellie. You two are also free to stay at my penthouse for as long as need be.”
“I think you two are overreacting...”
“Eleonore. My brother, Owen, was kidnapped because someone tried to extort money from me. I’m not going to subject you to anything like that. All right?”
“I don’t think anything like that is going to happen to me.”
Cassie walked over to the door and then pointed at Edric. “I’m doing some damage control. You hire security guards and you make sure Ellie gets home safely tonight.”
“I will. I promise.”
Cassie slammed the door shut. It’d been a long while since she slammed Edric’s office door like that. Ever since their board game night at Ellie’s three months ago, they’ve been on relatively decent terms. Beneath all the teasing and the bantering, the two had some sort of a friendship and rivalry.
Edric turned his attention to Ellie. Sweet Ellie with her white hair pulled up in a bun, dressed in an orange suit that reflected the fall season.
> “I’m sorry, Ellie.”
She lightly laughed. “Everything’s all right, Edric.”
“It’s really not.”
The young woman stood up walked over from her desk to her boyfriend’s. She leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. “It is okay. I’m okay. Don’t worry about something that may never happen. I’m here now.”
Edric half-smiled at her and reached up and ran his fingers through her hair. “Yes, you are here, my dear.”
“Everything will be all right. I’m not worried. I can handle this.”
“I have a word of advice for you.”
“What is it?”
“Don’t read the comments section.”
***
What a freak. #EllieKent
Girl doesn’t even have eyebrows. I wonder what that hottie Kensington sees in her. #EllieKent
Can’t believe this flat-chested bitch snagged a billionaire. Maybe there’s hope for me. #EllieKent
I, for one, am happy for #EllieKent and @EdricKensington. Can’t resist a 21st century Cinderalla story.
I think #EllieKent is hot. Totally would fuck that bitch.
I’m glad to see someone with albinism in the media. Shame the way people are treating #EllieKent though.
I hope someone rapes #EllieKent. I’d love to hear that bitch scream.
Question: why doesn’t Edric Kensington pay for his girlfriend’s plastic surgery? He has the money. She needs it. #EllieKent
Ellie tearfully closed her laptop. Even though Edric warned her that afternoon to stay off social media and not to read the paparazzi articles, the young woman’s curiosity got the better of her. When she was lying in bed at night, she decided to pull out her laptop and check the internet. There, she found out that she was a trending topic and decided to see what people were saying about her. A decision that she soon regretted after reading page-after-page of awful, degrading comments about her.
The comments about her body were hurtful. Even though she half-expected them, they still hurt her feelings and added to her insecurities. She started to grow a little bit more confident over the last few months, until she read the comments. Those weren’t even the worst things about her on the internet; the comments from strange men declaring that they wanted to fuck her and rape her filled her with terror. Those comments bothered her the most.
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