Entering the lobby to Scarlett's apartment building, Lucian stopped in his tracks when he noticed the guy who Michael showed him in his little research about Scarlett. The guy known as Elliot was arguing with security, demanding to be let in because he was here to see his girlfriend.
She was not his girlfriend anymore, Elliot was delusional.
Lucian approached the desk, catching the attention of both the security guard and Elliot. The man eyed him up and down as if trying to see if he was worthy of his time or not.
"Good afternoon, Mister Starr." The guard greeted him, already familiar with him after he paid Scarlett a visit or two, "I'll let you through." The guard avoided using Scarlett's name, knowing the guy he was arguing with would latch onto that and probably cause more drama.
"Thank you."
Walking past Elliot he was about to enter the hallway to grab an elevator but Elliot stopped him.
"Lucian Starr?" He asked.
Lucian turned and eyed Elliot the same way he had, "Yes."
Elliot approached him with careful steps, "The CEO of Starr's hotel business?"
"That would be me." He answered calmly yet inside he was boiling over.
Elliot nodded, "I see." It was clear the man was contemplating his next move. The smile which spread across the man's face worried Lucian, "How was the Christmas party?" He asked.
The photos which spread of him and Scarlett probably caught this man's eye. He was obsessed with Scarlett, still calling himself her boyfriend when it was clear that Scarlett wanted nothing to do with him.
"It was memorable considering the company I had."
Lucian was aware that would set off the man completely, but he needed to know when to back off. He was the one in Scarlett's life now and he wouldn't tolerate Elliot claiming a person like an object.
The man nodded, "You here to see her?" He asked.
"Sir?" The security guard tried to catch his attention, "You can go up, we've got this handled."
He was referring to the situation, Lucian was aware that security had it handled. Elliot tried to harass Scarlett before but he didn't get to see her then either. Scarlett was safe for now but he knew he needed to make things clear to Elliot for him to actually back off.
"Elliot." Lucian could tell the security guard was getting nervous, he heard him calling for backup but he focused entirely on Elliot, "It's best that you leave her alone now. She moved on, so should you." He approached the man who was glaring at him but kept his words to himself knowing it was bad to start a fight with someone who had more influence than him, "If you hurt her in any way, I'll come after you with everything I've got. You don't want that, do you?"
Elliot looked torn between punching him and walking away. The man did make a career for himself so he knew Elliot was smarter than he seemed in this situation. He scowled but didn't make a move.
"Threatening me, Starr?" He asked.
Lucian nodded, "I didn't try to hide it, did I?"
If looks could kill he'd be dead by now. For a minute it seemed like Elliot would throw his career away, letting his anger get the best of him. The man, however, changed his mind and turned around. He walked away which was something Lucian didn't think the guy would do.
Lucian stepped to the desk of the security guard and took out his card from his inner jacket pocket. He flipped the card over and nodded to the pen. The guard handed the pen to him which Lucian took and to scribble down the number of his head of security.
"If that man comes around again I want you to call this number. Miss Archer isn't safe when he's around."
The guard reached for the guard, "I asked of Miss Archer to file a complaint but she refuses."
"She's scared." Lucian let him know, "But I'll try and persuade her. A restraining order should do the trick. Hopefully." He mumbled the last part and thanked the guard for his service.
He took the elevator to Scarlett's floor. He straightened his clothes, trying to shrug off the irritation he felt when dealing with Elliot the arrogant asshole. He took in a deep breath and released it, feeling better already. He knocked on the woman's door and smiled at her when she opened the door, greeting him with a massive grin.
"Lucy."
He chuckled, "Scarlett." He greeted back, "Ready to face my family?"
She didn't look as terrified about facing his family as yesterday. If anything her bright look and wide smile indicated that she was looking forward to it. He loved how cheerful she looked, excitement gleaming in her eyes.
He wouldn't ruin that by telling her about Elliot.
Hopefully, Elliot would stay smart and leave Scarlett in his past. She wouldn't have to deal with the emotional torture anymore.
"I'm almost done." She admitted to him, "Just need to finish off my look." She gestured to her face.
He scanned her face, "You look beautiful already."
She giggled, "Well, yeah but it's not finished yet. I need to do my eyebrows and spray on some all-nighter spray."
He motioned to her to head inside, "I'll wait for you in the living room."
She walked inside, nearly skipping due to her cheerfulness. He shook his head at her, finding it highly amusing to see her like that. Last night she had been shy around his family. Tonight she'd blow them all away with her charm.
***
"Uncle Lucy!" The high-pitched little voice made him grin as he watched Lily, the second daughter of Noah run up to him. He held out his arms and caught her, lifting her up and holding her close to protect her from the cold, "Silly girl, it's cold outside."
She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, "I missed you."
He carefully hugged her back as he walked inside the house, followed by Scarlett who quietly walked behind him. Lily pointed at her and then looked at him expectantly.
He glanced over his shoulder, "This is Scarlett." He wanted to put her down on her feet once they were inside the house but Lily refused to let go which made him chuckle.
"Lily, let uncle Lucy settle in first." Noah told his daughter, using his firm tone, "Welcome, Scarlett." Noah greeted her.
Lucian put Lily down and focused his attention on Scarlett. The cheerful woman was gone, threatened by the presence of a three-year-old who looked at her suspiciously. He assumed Scarlett would have felt comfortable after last night, but the girls would probably intimidate her a little.
"This one is Lily." Noah gestured to his daughter who now clung to his leg, "My second baby." He laughed when Lily sternly looked up at him, "Rose is the baby." She said matter of factly.
Noah placed his hand on top of her little cute head, "You'll always be my baby too."
"I'm not!" She pouted.
Noah flickered his eyes back to the curious looking Scarlett, "Rose is our baby and Olivia the big sister and demander of Lucian's attention is in the kitchen helping her grandmother bake sugar cookies."
Scarlett laughed, "I see. Nice to meet you, Lily."
Lily looked shy when Scarlett addressed her. Suspicion left her face, she smiled shyly at Scarlett and let go of Noah. She grabbed at her skirt and swayed from side to side.
"You look pretty." She stumbled, shyly smiling at Scarlett.
Lucian reached for his niece and lifted her up again, holding her close, "You look pretty too." He kissed her cheek which earned him a big smile and a cute giggle.
"I'll put your coat away," Noah told Scarlett, taking care of her while Lucian listened to Lily chat away about the presents she received from Santa.
Lucian turned to look at his brother and tossed his car keys at him, "You take care of the thing in the car." He knew Noah understood what he was saying.
"Letting me do the heavy lifting." Noah teased.
"Well, the princess demanded my attention."
Scarlett nodded, "True, I was there."
Noah chuckled, amused by Scarlett having my back like that, "Of course you're siding up with him."
"Dad, just get the thing," Lily ordered, pointing at him with her little finger.
He couldn't help but laugh, his brother thankfully thought it was hilarious too.
"Told off by a three-year-old." Noah sighed.
"Kids these days." Scarlett quietly laughed.
Noah was going to take care of the presents he left in his car while he walked into the living room together with Scarlett and Lily. Michael and his parents were there too. Uncle Xander was holding Rose on his lap while his wife Jessica was feeding the little girl pieces of what appeared to be some kind of fruit.
Lucian put Lily back down and watched as the little girl ran up to her sister. Giving her chubby cheek an almost harsh kiss. Jessica gently warned her to be a little more gentle and then flickered her eyes to Scarlett.
"Nice to see you again." Jessica greeted.
While Scarlett sat next to Jessica having small talk with her, Lucian pulled Michael aside. Jessica knew something was up when she glanced at them. She smiled at him and then flickered her eyes back to Scarlett, probably distracting her so they could have their quiet conversation.
"He was there again." Lucian whispered, "I told him to leave her alone, but you never know."
Michael's eyes flickered to Scarlett, his lips curled up to a small smile, "I'll keep an eye on him." He promised, "Your girl looks good with a baby in her arms." He chuckled when Lucian turned to look at Scarlett holding Rose.
It was cute but they weren't even officially a thing. They agreed more or less to only see each other but they never stated it in so many words. Getting past their weird awkward stage was the first step. Babies were not happening any time soon.
"You first." Lucian gave his cousin a pat against the back and then walked away, "I'm greeting mom."
"Can't wait for Liv to meet Scarlett." Michael gave him a look, "That would be fun."
Lily warmed up to Scarlett, talking to her about Rose. He wasn't worried about Oliva. She was the one who demanded most of his attention but if Lily accepted Scarlett without much effort so would Olivia.
He assumed.
"Mom." He greeted as he walked into the kitchen, "Liv." He smiled when the little girl greeted him with a bright look on her little face, "Baking some cookies, I see."
"Uncle Lucy!" She cheered, "Grandma is helping me bake cookies. They're going to be really good."
"Yeah?" He asked, amused at how confident she looked.
She told him about her day while following her grandmother's orders. She looked like a busy young lady and he couldn't help but laugh. Olivia stopped what she was doing to look at him in question. The girls were all so curious, always having an opinion ready.
They were definitely Kim's daughters.
"I can't wait to try them, Liv."
She didn't smile, still a very serious look on her cute little face. He left Olivia and his mother to it and joined the others in the living room. Noah brought out the presents and sternly told Lily to wait. She was impatient considering the number of gifts which were now surrounding the tree.
It was torture for the little ones seeing the presents stalled out like that.
Lucian sat down beside Scarlett, the couch now crowded which made his uncle get up.
"Fine, I'll join your father in his study then."
His uncle didn't sound unhappy about that. Surely the brothers were going to share a drink. Focusing his attention on Rose he made funny faces at her. His niece looked at him funnily and then latched onto Scarlett's hair.
He grabbed onto her little fist and tried to make her release Scarlett's hair, "Come on, princess, let go of her hair." He smiled when Rose listened, "That's a sweet girl." He kissed her chubby cheek and smiled when she made a giggling noise.
He met Scarlett's eyes, noticing the very bright and cheerful look in her eyes. No matter how cute it was it was definitely not baby time yet.
Michael covered up a laugh which told him his cousin's thoughts were going there too. He threw his cousin a glare, hoping Scarlett didn't notice.
When he glanced at her again he covered up a laugh himself seeing how occupied she was. Rose won her over.
He was glad she enjoyed being around his family, the night would turn out great after all.
***
Dinner had been filled with chatter and laughter. The girls were excited to open their presents. They might have gone a little overboard with the presents this year. Kim's look said it all. He wouldn't apologize for it though.
He couldn't spend as much time with the girls as he liked to so the presents were his way of making up for it.
There was also the little fact of him still needing to babysit them while Noah and Kim went away for a weekend. The couple needed it.
"I had fun." Scarlett told him as they walked to her apartment, "Rose is the cutest baby ever."
He smiled, "You're only saying that because she was being cute today. You should see her on a bad day. I'm sure you'll change your mind then."
She eyed him suspiciously, "You're just saying that."
He totally was.
Rose was Noah and Kim's third baby, they weren't as overprotective of her as when they had Olivia. They were in luck that Rose was also a cheerful baby. She was the cutest but he also adored Olivia and Lily.
He was a proud uncle and he wouldn't apologize for that either.
"Thank you for inviting me." She reached into her bag and grabbed her keys, unlocking the door. She stepped inside and turned to look at him, "That was really-"
"Fun?" He asked jokingly, watching her face lit up with his teasing.
They fell silent, neither one of them moving away. He noticed the way her eyes darkened and the way her breathing picked up. He could be wrong about this, reading her expression wrong but he wouldn't know until he made a move.
Closing the distance between them he leaned in and kissed her. The minute his lips landed on hers she grabbed onto the lapels of his jacket and pulled him inside. He kicked the door closed behind him and let her devour him.
Family dinner was fun sure, but this was better.