A blond, blue-eyed man waved Bowen’s phone teasingly and joked in a crisp London accent, “Bowen, your phone’s ringing; it’s from your home country. Could it be your sweetheart missing you already?”
Bowen took the phone, saw it was Carol calling, and explained to him, “It’s just our housekeeper.”
The dashing foreigner before him was Aidan Matthews, scion of the prestigious Matthews family in Odionland. Their diversified business empire spanned multiple industries, with digital media and the internet as their crown jewel, fields in which they reigned as undisputed leaders.
"I was just feeling sorry for my hopelessly unvetted little sister, but thankfully it was just a misunderstanding,” Aidan shrugged with a teasing grin and pointed to the golden-haired girl nearby, dressed up like a doll under her dainty parasol. “Bowen, are you really not going to give my sister a chance? I promise, she’s the most sought-after debutante in all of Odionland’s high society.”
Bowen didn’t even spare a glance in that direction, though that burning gaze, so frank and full of affection, had been fixed on him from the moment he set foot on the golf course.
“Compared to pampered flowers, I think I prefer the tenacious grass that defies the harsh winds on a cliff,” Bowen said with a wry, apologetic smile, “Now, if you’ll excuse me…”
Bowen stepped away with his phone and called Carol back.
No sooner had Bowen walked away than Isla, the doll-like girl under her dainty parasol, glided over to her brother and pouted coquettishly, “Brother, what did Bowen say?” she asked, her tone full of playful curiosity.
Aidan let out a helpless sigh; he’d already tried his damnedest for his little sister’s happiness.
“Isla, I think something intriguing happened to Bowen during his trip back to Lumanon,” Aidan remarked. As a fellow man, he noticed the subtle shift in Bowen’s expression when he jokingly brought up the sweetheart.
Bowen called Carol back. She asked if he’d be returning soon and briefly explained what had happened to Aubree recently.
Bowen said, “I don’t need to go back just for this; she’s already handled it perfectly well, hasn’t she?”
“I won’t be coming back just yet. Do keep an eye on things over there for me,” He had to admit to himself that, in a way, he was running away.
Coward
Bowen’s mind drifted back to that kiss. He knew full well it had been an accident, yet that night, his dreams kept replaying it over and over.
I’m not going back until I sort out my feelings for Bree! Bowen thought to himself.
“But Bree’s moving out of Ellis Heights; she’s upstairs packing right now, and I just can’t stop her,” Carol lingered downstairs, stealing anxious glances upward as dusk fell. Bree had come home insisting she’d already found a new place, and no amount of pleading could change her mind.
Before Bowen left, he repeatedly reminded Carol to take good care of Aubree. Now, frantic with worry and at her wits' end, Carol had no choice but to call him.
Hearing that Aubree was moving out of Ellis Heights, Bowen’s mind went completely blank. She’s leaving, he thought in shock.
Even though I knew she couldn’t stay at Ellis Heights forever, this is way too sudden. Is it because of that drunken night? Bowen thought.
"She's trying to avoid me too."
That was the only reason Bowen could think of.
Bowen was instantly restless. Less than a minute after insisting he wouldn’t return, he hung up on Carol and immediately messaged Kelvin: Book me the earliest flight back home tomorrow.
Chapter 51
Bowen’s frustration shifted to Zachary Tammit; he didn’t tell him to keep an eye on her now that she’s about to leave, and he didn’t even give me a heads-
If Zachary could read his boss’s mind right now, he’d surely protest his innocence. His orders were just to keep her safe; moving house clearly wasn’t part of the job description.
Carol still couldn’t stop Aubree from leaving. The base of her departure made it clear that she was deliberately trying to avoid Bowen.
Bowen just gave me such a strange feeling, Aubree thought to herself.
There was never any real connection between her and him. Even their first meeting was so random; she still couldn’t figure out how it happened.
Aubree thought to herself, Now that I’ve achieved what I needed, since Turner Group has invested and taken an equity stake, there’s no way Bowen, as the head of such a large corporation, would personally oversee this project. There must be other executives handling it.
“Keeping my distance from Bowen shouldn’t cause any problems.”
The rented apartment was a fully furnished luxury unit, move-in ready.
The issue with Carmen was basically resolved. When the tournament officials sensed something was off, they promptly issued a statement confirming that, after investigation, God’s Fury had not violated any rules during the Autumn Championship.
Furious, Carmen trashed her room in a fit of rage.
That evening, the Wilson family dinner table was devoid of its usual cheerful harmony.
A heavy silence fell over the table.
Daxton and Ronald had all gathered for the family dinner.
Trevor kept his head down, fidgeting with his phone. He thought, What a miscalculation. Never expected Aubree to actually have some real chops.
“The online backlash doesn’t worry me much. It’s a bit annoying but hardly a real threat. What really surprises me is discovering that Aubree has become rather intriguing. There’s clearly more to her than I realized.”
Bryan was working late at the office when he got dragged back home. Emery was still on his way home.
Alice was the first to break the heavy silence, directing her anger at Bryan. “You really are such a wonderful big brother to Carmen, aren’t you? This is how you handle things? Now the whole internet’s bashing her; how’s she supposed to show her face at school after this?”
In the past, Bryan would have blamed himself for his mistakes, but now all he felt was annoyance. The only reason he was still cleaning up her mess was out of lingering sibling loyalty after all these years.
Nothing is ever absolute. Once you’ve acted, you must be ready for your mistakes to be held against you, he thought.
“Does the whole world have to revolve around Carmen?”
Not only was Alice upset, but Daxton was also seething with resentment toward Bryan. He’d just pulled two all-nighters finishing critical lab work and hadn’t even caught his breath when he saw the online backlash. He could scarcely believe this disaster was what Bryan called “damage control.”
Daxton glared at Bryan. “Did you do this on purpose?
“I’ve thought this through. When Aubree refused to come home, you hired someone unreliable, and their betrayal set off everything that followed. The real problem was your poor choice. Bryan, Aubree used to be terrified of you. She obeyed you more than anyone else in this family, even more than Mom and Dad.”
With their parents often busy or away from home, the other three brothers mostly took a hands-off approach toward Aubree. As long as she stayed out of trouble, they wouldn’t bother with her. Bryan, however, was always the one who disciplined her the most.
Chapter 51
“Honestly, if you’d really put your foot down the first time you went to see Auline, do you seriously think you couldn’t have brought her back? Let alone all those other times after that!” Daxton’s implication wasn’t lost on Bryan, and his mood darkened even farther.
What does Daxton even mean by that? Does he seriously think I deliberately didn’t bring Aubree back, and then just carelessly found someone to be a stand-in for Carmen? Like I have nothing better to do? Bryan thought angrily.
What Bryan found even more unbelievable was that everyone else actually bought it. His father eyed him with a skeptical glare and demanded, “Bryan, is it because you still feel guilty about what happened back then that you keep defending Aubree?"
"You haven’t been treating Carmen very well lately."
Bryan snapped, “These are two completely different matters!”
I’ve just seen through Carmen’s true nature, that’s all, Bryan thought, fuming.
“Isn’t it only natural for me to feel guilty about Aubree?” he blurted out. The disapproving stares around the table intensified.
I’m exhausted, by who I was then, and by what I’m facing now! Bryan thought.
He didn’t feel like explaining anymore. Suddenly, it dawned on him; maybe this was exactly how Aubree used to feel at home. She always did what the family asked, looked after Carmen as best she could, and did everything she could to help. But when things didn’t work out, even when it was clearly Carmen’s fault, Aubree was always the one who got blamed.
“Fine, think whatever you want. Since you’re all dissatisfied with how I handled things, don’t come to me about Carmen ever again.” With that final remark, Bryan angrily slammed his chopsticks down and stormed out of the dining room.
As Bryan shoved the door open and came face-to-face with Emery, he shot him a look that screamed, “You’re on your own,” then brushed past him and disappeared into the night.