AUTHORS POV
GAVIN GLANCED AT ETHAN who was glaring at him. He frowned at him. Some minutes ago, he received a concerning call from Avery that Ethan got into a fight with some kid who said he abuses Sydney
He had told Ethan his daddy, who worked in Gavin’s company, told his mommy he saw Sydney swollen-faced and crying in the elevator after storming out of Gavin’s office. Ethan got so angry and charged for him madly.
Emily gasped excitedly when she saw Gavin. She peeled off Sydney’s arm and ran to him. Gavin smiled with one corner of his lips raised and crouched to catch Emily.
Giggling, she wrapped her arm around his neck and kissed his cheek, causing him to laugh. “I missed you.” She admitted.
He kissed her back, ” I missed you too honey.” He looked at Ethan and his smile slowly fell. ” You too son.”
Ethan scoffed loudly. Sydney, who couldn’t muster the courage to look at Gavin, spoke before Ethan could, ” Ethan, go take a shower.” She smiled nervously.
Ethan ignored her and walked to Gavin. He stood defiantly in front of Gavin. He didn’t seem intimidated by his father’s six-foot height.
“Why didn’t you tell me you moved Kelly’s daddy to Berlin?” Ethan asked in a cold tone. He had heard his father use the same time on his mum and wanted to know exactly how Gavin would feel being talked to without regard.
Gavin put Emily down and looked at Sydney. He wilted slightly seeing how worn out she looked. ” Take Emily to her room.” He gestured codedly towards Ethan.
Sydney nodded knowingly and took Emily away. Gavin released a breath and squatted to look Ethan straight in the face.
He looked at Ethan’s bruised fist and frowned. In a soothing tone, he said, ” You hit a kid Ethan?”
“You didn’t answer my question, Daddy.”
Gavin sighed, knowing he was talking to a reflection of his character, ” What happens in my workplace has no business with you, Ethan.”
“And you and Mum’s issues have nothing to do with work!” Ethan challenged.
Gavin frowned his brows, ” Who told you your mum and I have issues?”
“I’m not blind, Daddy; I overheard the way you talk to her.” His eyes turned glossy but he stood rigid and stubborn, exactly like Gavin. “What did she ever do to you?”
If only you know. Gavin thought; he gritted his teeth hatefully, just remembering how he’d seen Sydney bleeding out of her the day Xavier had died. If only she had listened from the start.
Dissolving his thoughts, he replied to Ethan. “You are just a kid, you won’t understand.” He stood straight and turned to leave, but Ethan spoke, causing him to halt. “You are a bad man; you are just like Granddaddy!”
Gavin’s throat lost moisture. His flamy eyes met Ethan’s. “You don’t mean that. What has your mother told you?”
Ethan shot out his chin stubbornly, ” She didn’t tell me anything. Because of you, I can never see Kelly again, I don’t want to see you in my Hockey matches, that’s if you were planning to come-”
Gavin ran a hand through his hair. He reached for Ethan, but Ethan maneuvered him and walked to the stairs. He turned around and gazed at Gavin’s helpless state spitefully, “If anything happens to Mum, I will never call you my daddy again!”
With that said Ethan stomped his feet away. Gavin stared at his disappearing figure helplessly. Although the leaving room was exuberantly spacious, he felt clustered. He stood still for a while trying to recover from what Ethan had said.
Oh, how Sydney twisted the whole story to make him the bloody protagonist! All he could think of was thousands of ways in which Sydney was at fault.
He didn’t go to the room until a quarter of an hour later. He stood by Ethan and Emily’s door, peeking through the semi-closed door as Sydney read them to sleep.
He had changed into comfier clothes and positioned himself in front of the floor-ceiling window, outlooking the glamours Beverly Hills when Sydney came in.
Gavin didn’t tear his gaze off the city when he said contemptuously, “What Story did you read to them? Another farfetched story against me?”
Sydney ignored him and lay on the bed. She put the duvet over her and closed her eyes, hoping he wouldn’t talk again and just go away but he did the exact opposite.
He walked to her and snatched the duvet away frustratedly. She shuddered and shut her eyes tighter, afraid to look into those green eyes that once were filled with an unwavering love for her; such irony now!
“You had to create pity for yourself, didn’t you? ” His belligerent tone ringed like dumbbells in her head.
“I want to sleep, Gavin; leave me alone,” She said in a pleading tone.
He was able to see her face due to the city lights entering the room through the large window. His eyes softened for a little looking at her bereft state.
You did this to her, a voice told him. But, was it his fault for giving her what she deserved? If she was so unhappy, why didn’t she end things?!
“Did you take your medicine?” He asked in a lighter tone. A tone that once made her stomach flip like pancakes.
She gave him a nod. She had to; Avery wouldn’t let her go without taking her drugs. When Sydney was pregnant, she always brought soup on Thursdays for Sydney.
When Sydney heard Gavin snoring, her eyes flashed open. She received a message from Ashley but didn’t have time to check it.
She quietly slid out of bed and retrieved her phone from the dresser. She had been worried lately about Ashley. She thought maybe Ashley had abandoned her after hearing about the scandal. She was so glad to see a message from her.
Turking in a loose strand of hair behind her ears, Sydney clicked the message notification.
‘ I’m sorry I hvnt bin spiking to you. I’m sorry bout the news, I know you didn’t do it. Pls Syd, wat ever hapns, dnt let dis affect your marriage. I ave to go nw’ Sydney could tell Caleb must have been with her.
She rested on the wall and looked at Gavin as he slept. Nothing could be right again; someone screamed in her head to carry her kids and run away before he hurt her again.
But, she didn’t want to give up on her relationship. Maybe he didn’t cheat on her, she hoped he didn’t.
_____________
On the top floor of Beverly Hills Seven Stars restaurant, Gavin was sitting in the VIP section of the restaurant. In front of him was Avery; she looked at him, trying to suppress a smile of shock.
She had been bewildered when Gavin called earlier and asked her to meet him in front of the restaurant. Of course, she drove as quickly as he could before he changed his mind.
Avery noticed the look of dismay in Gavin and feigned concern. She wrapped her fingers over his fist on the table, ” What’s wrong, Gavin? You haven’t said anything since we got here?”
He looked at their hands together. She expected him to take his hands away, but he didn’t, ” I shouldn’t have doubted you, Avery.”
“About what?”
He looked at her. ” Sydney turning my kids against me.” A vein bulged in his cheek.
Avery wanted to laugh out loud. Finally! He was coming to his senses. Now all she had to do was take advantage of his vulnerability. “What did she do?”
He snapped, ” What hasn’t she done? I know she was the one who told Ethan about our quarrels and she managed to center all the blame towards me. My son hates me because of her.”
” Gavin, maybe Sydney played a major role in it, but you also played a part in it.”
Gavin frowned at her, ” I did nothing wrong here. I loved her more than anything in the world but she was such an insatiable woman. What didn’t I give her? Yet, she did this to me.”
She chided him abruptly, “Sydney just wanted to be independent, there’s no harm in that. If you had supported her-”
Gavin interrupted subjectively, “What? Did she tell you I didn’t support her? Sure, I didn’t accept it at first, but then we talked about it. I agreed, I was supportive but she just bore a stupid bone of contention and refused to see things outside black and white because of her conceited desires.”
Avery shook her head and caressed his fist seductively with her thumb. He leaned into the chair and fell silent.
“Before she turns Emily’s mind against you, divorce her. She isn’t good for you.” Avery cajoled calmly.
He stared at the chandelier above him. Should he wait for her to finish poisoning her children’s minds against her? God knows he’s tried to be a good husband to her, if it’s what she wanted, she would have it.
A rueful smile played on Avery’s lips, ” I remembered when we used to date in high school. It was such good days.” Although she never actually loved him and neither did he love her back.
She wanted him to feel guilty about what he did to her and it worked. He looked at her with earnest eyes.
“I know I was a brat, but I loved you, and I still do, Gavin. I only broke up with you because of what happened to my mother-”
“I did a very terrible thing too,” I was busy chasing your friend to realize your mother was dying. He added silently.
Cynical tears clouded Avery’s eyes. She said in a trembling voice, “Maybe that’s the reason I’m such a terrible person today. I mean, I slept with my best friend’s husband.” She cried softly.
He stared incredulously at her as she cried; a part of him didn’t trust her, but then again, he was also a reason she was this way. After her mother had died, Sydney came to him, offering him comfort for his breakup up and he managed to fall into her trap.
How didn’t he realize how cunning Sydney was from the start?
Gavin wrapped his fingers around hers and said earnestly, ” You aren’t completely at fault Avery. I wish I had known Sydney’s plan from the start. I’ve been such a fool.”
She looked at him with clouded eyes, ” Is it a sin to desire what was taken from me?”
He knew what she was talking about. He couldn’t give her a place in his heart because no matter how hard he tried, he still felt something for Sydney. The look in her eyes made desire spark in him.
His eyes flickered to her lips and he looked away immediately. Avery smiled when she caught him staring at her.
She got up and stood by his side, ” You desire it too, don’t you?”
He drew her to rest on his lap. Raw desire rose in him quickly. He had been too scared to touch Sydney; he didn’t want to fall in love with her all over again.
“Not by heart but by flesh, I do.” He held her cheek and pressed his lips on hers.
Avery flared with anger but she thought this was a good start. At least he was in his right senses now. She wrapped her legs around him and kissed him back hotly.
He held her waist and pushed her towards him impatiently. Their sounds of pleasure filled the large room; Avery rocked on him back and forth, causing him to let out a shameless groan.
A voice told him to back out before it was too late, but he was too high with pleasure to listen. Until…
The door was pushed open.