"Life had broken her,
but she was still there,
persisting
in the shards
of her
broken
pieces."
~ Atticus
Isabella Hammond laughed uproariously as she hugged Scarlett again, probably for the fifth time that night. There were tears in the corners of her eyes as she laughed.
"Oh, I absolutely love you, Sky," she told Scarlett.
The events of the night had made them very close.
Isabella wiped the corners of her eyes and Jenna leaned into her, laughing silently into her shoulder.
"Did you see the look on Brad's face?" she asked, shaking with laughter.
Isabella nodded and Scarlett couldn't help, but laugh with them as she looked around the table at everyone else. They all seemed to be in very good humour. Even Ace had traded in his small smile for a broader one as he smiled at Scarlett approvingly.
"It's been about three hours," Scarlett told the girls who were laughing.
Elliot chuckled. "If you think anyone of us is getting over the fact that you punched Brad Windom right in the nose in this lifetime, you're sorely mistaken," he told Scarlett.
Ace looked over at his assistant. He wanted to tell her that he completely approved what she had done and tell her that she had his full permission to do it again, whenever she wanted – not that she needed it. He didn't , though, because he didn't want to share that with so many people around.
Ace hadn't been watching the exchange when it happened because he was in conversation with Aiden, but no one missed Brad's loud grunt of pain when Scarlett had punched him square in the middle of his smug face.
"Tell us what happened again," Rosalie urged, also laughing.
Scarlett shrugged. "I wasn't really expecting him, but I was standing near the refreshments table trying to eat something and the guy put a hand on my back and moved it down. He whispered something in my ear, but I really wasn't about to have that, so I turned and punched him. I didn't even think. It just happened. I didn't realize that I had hit so hard. Not until I saw the blood."
By this time, Isabella, Jenna, Erica and Rosalie were laughing again and the boys seemed equally tickled. Ace's knuckles, however, were white as he gripped his glass.
"My favorite part is when the sissy ran out crying about his nose," Isabella laughed.
"Was that before or after he made those horrified noises?" Jenna asked.
Rosalie thought. "I think it was between the whimpering and the "my nose, my nose"."
Scarlett laughed.
Ace leaned into her. "He deserved it, Ambrose. I'm glad you did it."
She turned and smiled at him, watching his eyes.
"Well, I just hope he learned his lesson," Rosalie sighed.
"Are you kidding, Rosa?" Elliot asked, "It's Brad. He never learns anything."
"I just can't believe he's gone this long without getting punched by one of us," Isabella commented, "We must be such nice people."
Scarlett smiled and Rosalie stifled a yawn.
Jenna pushed her chair back, "Come on, girls. Let's get our mama bear to bed."
Rosalie smiled. "Eliana is great, but she, like her Dad, has no respect for my sleep." She shot Aiden a look and Aiden smiled at her before placing a soft kiss on her cheek.
"Shall I come with you, Ro?"
Rosalie shook her head, getting up. "Apparently, the girls are coming with me. You boys have fun."
Scarlett watched as Rosalie leaned down and pressed a kiss to Aiden's temple. She felt a pang, but it was shaken when Isabella leaned over to her.
"Come on, Sky," she said, "Let's all get to bed, or at least out of here. It's about to become a boys' club."
"Boys' club never bothers you, Isa," Elliot commented.
"True, but I'd prefer my girls today," she said.
The girls got up and said goodnight.
Scarlett looked down at Ace and gave him one of her smiles and he nodded at her and watched as they all walked away.
Aiden cleared his throat, shaking him from his thoughts. "So..."
Ace straightened. "So?"
Aiden and Elliot exchanged glances.
"Anything you want to tell us, man?" Elliot asked, nodding in the direction of the door.
Ace shrugged. "I told you, Elliot. She's just my PA."
"Right," he nodded, dubiously, "I believe that."
"When did you become the love doctor?" Ace asked and they all laughed.
The three men sat there, talking amongst themselves for a while, before they, too began to move out of the ballroom and into the hall. One of the older men hailed them.
"Ace, Aiden, Elliot, are you all heading out?" asked Frank Holloway.
The three friends nodded.
"Well, let me introduce you to someone who just happened to be here," he said, waving them over to himself and the man standing near him.
The man had a hooded smile as he nodded at the three men who approached. He had light grey eyes, thick stubble and dark blond wavy hair. Everything about him was light, even the light ash-coloured suit he was wearing.
"This is Ace Hardwood, Aiden Carlisle and Doctor Elliot Kingsley," Frank told the man, "Boys, this is Kaius Wickham."
The men shook hands.
"Please, call me Kai," he said, as he looked at Ace, Aiden and Elliot in turn.
They nodded. There was a silence.
"So, Kai, are you in the business of business, as well?" Aiden asked.
Kai smiled and nodded. "Aren't we all?"
"How come you're not at the conference?" Ace asked.
"Had some other business I needed to attend to. Maybe next time, huh?"
Ace nodded. "What business are you in the business of, Mr. Wickham?"
"Kai, please," he grinned, "I run a digital marketing and consultancy company."
"Huh, I'd like to pick your brain some time," Ace told him.
Kai's eyebrows raised. "Coming from Ace Hardwood, that's an honour. I'd be happy to meet with you and discuss something. I was just here for a dinner and I ran into Frank," he clapped the older man on the shoulder, "I think I'll get going now. But I do look forward to doing business with you gentlemen in future."
The four men watched Kai walk away.
"Nice boy, isn't he?" Frank asked, before patting Elliot on the shoulder and walking back into the room.
"Is that Frank being gullible or is that Kai guy actually good?" Aiden asked, dubiously.
Ace sighed. "Well, I guess we'll find out if he actually wants to do business with us. Come on, Aiden, you look like you need some sleep."
Aiden smiled and the three of them walked in the direction of their rooms.
Eleven-thirty that night found Scarlett standing on the rooftop of the hotel, leaning over the railing and looking down towards the lake.
Sleep hadn't taken her and her restless body had wanted to move.
She found herself climbing staircase after staircase until she breathlessly came out on to the rooftop, where the empty bar stood and the hot tub glistened.
She wrapped her cardigan tightly around herself and sighed into the night sky as the wind waltzed with the tendrils of her hair that had come loose.
Her eyes were squeezed shut and she was thinking over how she had punched Brad in the face.
She hugged herself, trailing her hands down her waistline, unable to touch the place that Brad's hand had stopped at.
Her fingers gripped the railing as her flashes of Kai Wickham touching her flooded her mind. Somehow, Brad had managed to touch her in the exact same spot, the exact same way that Kai used to, making her relive her trauma.
There were tears that threatened to fall, but she cleared her throat.
She looked over at the chair that sat next to her.
Atop it, she could see the pack of cigarettes that she had managed to keep hidden from Ace, glistening in the moonlight. She was tempted to take one out and smoke; Ace would never know.
Then, her mind told her that if she was getting upset, that meant Kai would win.
So, Scarlett refused to give into her vice.
She stared at the pack, daring it to defy her.
The wind picked up and Scarlett's fingers on the railing tightened.
That's when it happened.
Oops! That's a bit of a cliffhanger, isn't it?
What happened???
I wanted to give you two updates today in lieu of my absence.
I hope you enjoyed it.
Quite a few things happened this chapter, didn't it?
Do you think Brad learned his lesson?
Don't forget to let me know what you think.
Much love ❤