by Liz Lovelock
“What the hell are you doing here, Jase?” Lachlan claps his brother on the shoulder and gives a hard squeeze.
“I went to the game last night, and I wanted to surprise you this morning. Seems like we all got one. I, in fact, got two.” His eyes flick sideways to Levi who appears to be oblivious to the exchange.
“Levi, this is my younger brother, Jase. Jase, this is Levi. He’s living here now.”
Jase nods. “We met in the hallway after I’d announced myself in your room.” His eyes turn on me now. “And who is this?”
I step forward with my hand extended. “I’m Scarlett. It’s nice to meet you.”
“I’m Jase, as I’m sure he’s already told you. Sorry about earlier. This man doesn’t usually bring people back to his place, so I guess I wasn’t ready for you to be there.” He laughs.
“That’s okay. Just don’t do it again.”
I grab my bag from the dining table and pull my phone out. There are messages from the girls, and another from Theo, and again from Dad. This possibly has something to do with how Lachlan made our relationship public last night. Now the entire world knows.
Vivian: I heard from Craig’s lawyer this morning. Craig is going to be charged through the roof because his lawyer is working on a Sunday. But all paperwork has gone through, and he’ll be giving it to him this morning.
I type a quick reply, thanking her for dealing with it all for me, and move on to the next message.
Dylan: You’re one lucky bitch. That is all. Now, hook a girl up!
I giggle to myself.
Large hands slide around my waist. “What’s so funny?”
I twist my phone to show him.
He chuckles. “I can think of a few guys. And you are lucky to have all of this.” He tugs me closer against him. I relish his touch and presence.
“Keep it PG-13, thank you. We have little eyes around here now. Plus, I’m not sure I need a repeat of earlier,” Jase teases.
Lachlan picks up a folded shirt from the table and tosses it at his brother who fluidly brushes it aside.
“Do you play football too?” I ask.
“Yep. It’s all Dad.” Jase says the last part dryly then shovels more food into his mouth.
Lachlan releases me and goes back to his brother and Levi. I continue going through my phone.
Theo: Nice smooch on the TV last night, sis. Can I just say Dad sounded impressed when I saw him this morning. Could he be turning over a new leaf?
Scarlett: I highly doubt that. If anything, he’s looking at it and possibly thinking how he can use it to his advantage. You know Dad. It’s how his brain works. Business first, family last.
Dad: I’ve changed everything with regards to that account, and it’s currently frozen. If you need anything, please come see me. Until we sort out where this money has gone, we have to be careful.
Scarlett: Okay. Thanks for the update.
I get a mug out and fix myself a strong black coffee with a heap of sugar. Glancing at my phone on the counter as I take a sip of my hot cup of energy and wait for my emails to load.
I can’t stand a bucketload of emails going unread; I have to deal with them first thing in the morning. Jase and Lachlan seem to be arguing about something, and Levi voices his opinion. How is this my life? I couldn’t be more grateful for how things are turning out.
“You know that stuff isn’t good for you,” Lachlan says.
I hold my hand up to stop him, take a large sip, then say, “Don’t start your health nut talks with me. They won’t work. Sugar was in my life before you came into it.” I give him a pointed look and then take another sip, heat settling in the pit of my stomach. I sigh. “Just what’s needed.”
Lachlan shakes his head, and my phone pings with my incoming emails.
“Someone’s always busy.” Lachlan’s lips connect with my cheek, and then he starts getting his own stuff ready by scooping protein powder into a shaker.
I take a seat at the table and scroll through my emails. Thankfully, there aren’t many today. I pause at one from Craig. What does he want?
I open it, and my stomach turns sour. My mug slips from my fingers and shatters all over the floor. “Oh, I’m sorry,” I rush out, panicked. “I must not have put it on the table properly,” I lie.
I race to the sink and grab a dish cloth to clean up my spilled coffee and shattered mug.
Lachlan’s hand lays over mine. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s just a mug.”
“Yeah, I know. I just feel bad.” I attempt to take a deep breath, but my throat is tight, and my breaths become short and ragged. Pull yourself together, Scarlett.
Once we clean up my mess, I sit back down at the table before I collapse and shatter on the floor like the mug. Picking my phone up, I stare down at the email from Craig, and my blood runs ice cold.
FROM: [email protected]
TO: [email protected]
SUBJECT: Vegas holds your secret . . .
I’m guessing you’re wondering how I could possibly know what went on in Vegas. It seems you and your football star had some fun a couple of years back.
I want to meet.
Tomorrow night, seven o’clock, at my favorite restaurant.
Don’t tell superstar, or I’ll blast this everywhere and destroy everything he’s worked so hard for. This kind of scandal might ruin him.
Love you.
Craig
Attached is an image of Lachlan and me standing at the alter, facing the Elvis priest. An image I don’t remember ever being taken. My grinning, happy face beams up at Lachlan as he gives me a warm smile in return.
How the hell did he find this?
“Scarlett?” I’ve said her name four times, but she’s been so engrossed in whatever she’s got on her phone.
Scarlett frowns and chews at her lip. I go over and rest my hand gently on her shoulder, and she jumps a mile high.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She clutches her chest and quickly places her phone upside down on the table. Is she trying to hide something from me? “I was a little lost in an urgent email I have to deal with.” The way she stumbles over her words tells me something is clearly wrong.
“Are you okay? You seem a little shaken by something.”
She clears her throat. “I’m okay. I guess I’m just a little tired. It’s been a big weekend, and just thinking about my list of things to catch up on this week is beginning to overwhelm me. I think I’m going to go so I can get a head start with it all.”
She rises from her seat. I stand in front of her.
My hand goes to her upper arm. “I’m here if you need to talk. You’re not alone in whatever it is you’re going through with Craig or anything else. You can tell me, and I can attempt to refrain from hitting him,” I joke.
She doesn’t laugh, though.
Pulling out of my hands, she says, “It’s fine. I’m fine. Craig is, well, Craig.” Scarlett rolls up onto her tiptoes and gives me a featherlight kiss on my cheek. “I’ll talk to you later. Go have fun with your brother and Levi. I’ve got dinner with the girls later. We’ll catch up soon.” She says goodbye to the boys and is out the door quicker than I can blink my eyes.
Does she regret last night and our coming out as a couple? I thought things were moving forward nicely. Perhaps I rushed her and she’s preparing to leave again. I should have known she was unsteady, especially with everything going on with her douchebag ex-husband. I have to use some serious inner strength to not punch him. But I don’t see the point in ruining my career for that man—the worthless piece of scum he is.
“Did I scare her off?” Jase punches me in the arm. I down half of my shake before answering.
“Nothing scares her except for marriage.”
Jase stops mid-step and faces me, wide eyes and his mouth shaped in an O. “Marriage?”
“I’m not getting married. I’m just saying that’s what makes her run. Let’s go have a good day. Do Mom and Dad know you’re here?”
�
��Yeah, Dad was so pissed when he came back from his last trip. Him and Mom got into a wicked fight. Things are okay now, but it’s still like walking on eggshells at home. I needed to get out of that house.”
“Sorry. That was most likely my fault. He was Dad being Dad.” I shrug.
“I knew it would have been.”
“Anyway, let’s get ready, and we’ll go out and do something.”
“Sounds good,” Levi chimes in as he runs off toward his room.
Jase smacks me in the arm. “Who is the kid, and why is he here?”
“I’m fostering him at the moment. We met through the Big Brother and Sister Charity I’m a part of. He’s made some bad choices, so I’m trying to help him.”
“Always the one with the massive heart, bro.” He claps me on the back and goes to the sink to wash out his breakfast bowl.
“Just trying to make a small change in the world.”
If only I could get into Scarlett’s head and know what’s going on. She wasn’t herself when she rushed out of here.
I draw in a hard breath, attempting to calm the anxiety that’s slowly taking over my lungs and stomach. Entering the restaurant where Craig first proposed to me causes a rush of memories: him producing the ring in front of everyone and going down on one knee.
The fancy, white table-clothed tables and waiters wearing black and white catch my eye. Craig stands from his seat, and I straighten my back and approach him. The smile that spreads across his face makes my stomach clench, and not in a good way.
“Thank you for meeting me.”
He sits as I do and slides a scotch across to me. At least he remembers what drink I enjoy. I take a sip. It turns sour as it slides down my throat and lands like a lump of concrete.
“Did I have a choice?” I deadpan.
A waitress brings a plate of starters and places them in front of Craig. He gifts her a toothy grin, but I can see right through it.
Once she leaves, his dark and hollow eyes come back to me. “Oh, Scarlett, you always have a choice. I’ve given you that for the last couple of weeks. I’ve just had enough of the games; now I want something more.”
I swallow, not wanting to say anything I’ll regret. Lachlan still hasn’t signed the papers for his contract negotiations. Wyatt’s had a hard time managing the fallout from everything that happened with Levi. The scandal of the Vegas marriage might push that over the edge.
“You see, I want something from you.”
“What do you want?”
He shoves a mouthful of his bread into his mouth, and I have to wait for him to finish. The tension rolling around the table is smothering. He pulls his phone from his pocket, presses the screen a few times, and slides it across the table.
My eyes study the video in front of me. It’s blurry, but I can clearly make out Lachlan’s tall, solid body and mine. I’m swaying slightly as I stand beside him at the Vegas chapel we got married in.
My mouth drops open, and my hand quickly smothers my surprise. “How did you get this?”
Craig tsks me. “You underestimate me. You think because you divorced me that you can get rid of me that easily? I’ve been molded by a pack of manipulators—one of them being your father. Now I wonder what he’d think if he saw this. Better yet, I wonder what the world would think about your superstar boyfriend.”
My hands clench into fists under the table. The noose around my chest tightens at the weight of what he’s saying. I swallow the lump in my throat. “What do you want, Craig?”
He taps his chin, clearly enjoying this. There’s nothing I can do to stop him. “Well, I’m going to give you two choices, and this is very generous of me.”
I have to use all of my willpower to not roll my eyes.
“Option one, you come back to me and forget this whole divorce thing. We start a family and move forward. Option two, I want money. If you don’t choose one of these, I send this video to a news source, and the story can run like wildfire. I wonder how his career would fair after this scandal.”
I can’t give up the kind of love I have for Lachlan and go running back to Craig. Only a crazy person would do that. I love Lachlan.
“How much money do you want, Craig?”
His eyebrows shoot up at my question. Did he think I was going to give up Lachlan for him? He’s clearly mistaken. Now that I have Lachlan back in my life, I don’t intend on letting him go again.
“Are you sure that’s what you want? Wouldn’t you want to keep your fortune and come back to me instead?”
I shake my head. “No, money is nothing to me. I’d take Lachlan and what he offers me any day.”
Craig is silent for a moment. He glances behind me, and his lips spread into an evil grin.
I whirl around, sensing eyes boring into the back of my head. Lachlan stands there, but he quickly retreats when he spots me with Craig. His face is red, and it’s clear he’s caught me, and he’s pissed. Lying to him about my plans tonight has backfired, and it’s clear when I turn back to Craig that he’s set this up.
“How could you?” I lash out at Craig, tears filling my eyes. I attempt to keep my voice low and maintain some class in the restaurant in front of the other patrons.
He takes a casual sip of his drink. “My dear, you’ve done this to yourself. I want ten million or you. Make your choice, and let me know.”
“You will never get me. Never. I hate you.” Standing from my seat, I stop beside him, glare, and bring my hand back, whipping it across his face. The sting feels amazing. It releases some of the tension I’ve had building up since getting his email yesterday, but I need to talk to Lachlan and straighten out my stupid mess.
As I run from the restaurant, my eyes dart back and forth up the street, but I don’t see him. I pull my phone from my bag and hit his name. It rings out.
“Come on, Lachlan.” It goes to voicemail. “Lachlan, what you saw isn’t what you might think. Please ring me back.”
After hanging up, I shoot him a text.
Scarlett: Please answer my call. I need to explain to you. It’s not what it seems.
I pace the street as I wait for an Uber. My phone chimes with a message.
Lachlan: Why lie to me? That’s not how we do things.
Scarlett: Please let me explain. I was trying to protect you from doing something stupid like messing up your contract signing.
Lachlan: I don’t have time to talk.
Scarlett: Please. I’m begging you.
Lachlan: No.
Fresh, hot tears slide down my cheeks. I hit Vivian’s name as the Uber pulls up.
“Hey there. Dylan and I decided to surprise you; we’re waiting for you at your place. Where are you?”
“Viv, I’ve messed things up,” I cry.
The male driver looks in his mirror and then away when we make eye contact.
“What’s wrong?”
“No. I messed things up.”
When I arrive home, I’m sure it looks as though I’ve been out on the town. My face is splotchy and red. The tears haven’t stopped, and when the girls catch sight of me, they rush over, and Dylan is the first to embrace me.
“What’s happened?” Vivian asks as she stands at my door.
While there is clear concern in her voice, she’s also all business.
“Let’s get inside, and I’ll tell you.”
An hour later, they stare at me with their mouths open.
“I can’t believe that man. I’m going to tear apart his life and figure out what else he’s into. I bet he took that money from your father’s account. Did he gain access to your bank accounts?” Vivian asked.
“Now that I think about it, he did. We were looking into combining our accounts. I’m glad we didn’t, but yes, he did know the passwords for that account and used it a couple of times.”
“So, he knows how much your family is worth. He also knows how much Lachlan could be worth,” Dylan says as she takes a sip of her beer.
My phone rings in my bag. I race
to it, thinking, hoping, it’s Lachlan. When I see his name on the screen, my heart leaps. “Lachlan?”
“No, it’s Jase.”
The happiness I felt a moment ago evaporates. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s Lachlan. He’s been in a car accident.”
The room around me spins.
“What? Where is he? Is he okay?” My voice shakes, and the girls stare at me as I pace my living room floor. The world I thought I was going to have slowly crumbles around me. Piece by piece, shards drop in front of my eyes.
“He’s okay, thankfully. A car pulled out in front of him. He’s pretty bruised and battered and has a concussion, but nothing serious. They’ve just sent him for a chest x-ray to make sure he hasn’t got any broken ribs.”
“Where are you? I’ll come to you.” I grab my handbag and start slipping my shoes on, ready to hightail it out the door as soon as he gives me the name of the hospital.
“Slow down. He didn’t want me to call you. I felt like you needed to know from us before you found out through the media.”
A slice of pain cuts through me like a blade. He didn’t want me.
“I don’t care. Tell me where you are,” I demand.
Jase sighs. “Just stay put until we get results from this x-ray. He’ll probably get discharged, and I’ll take him home. Then come around. I’ll shoot you a message from my phone.”
“This doesn’t make me feel any better. I just want to be there for him.”
“I know. There’s a swarm of media outside this hospital, and if they see you, they’ll swoop in and want details. Just wait. Please, Scarlett,” he pleads. “He’s back. I’ll message you.” Jase disconnects the call before I can find out anything else.
“What’s happened?” they ask in unison.
Both girls’ worried gazes stare at me from across the living area.
“Lachlan has been in a car accident. He’s okay. He didn’t want me to come. I’ve ruined everything.” Tears fill my eyes and cascade down my face like a waterfall.
“No, it’s not your fault.” Dylan rushes to my side and guides me back to the couch. “He’s probably just trying to protect you from the media onslaught. They are going to be out for blood. Some will be saying that it was his fault. Until he releases a statement or something, we just have to sit tight. At least Jase rang you. That’s something.”
