Four Brothers and a Bride

Chapter 185: Chapter 185

DEMI

For five minutes, I let my body be battered under Ashton’s shower. The steam from the hot spray rises in the air like a mist, fogging the bathroom glass. My mind whirls with disconcerting thoughts.

I’ve tried to stop myself from constantly reliving the embarrassment and the pain I felt when Skylar claimed to be distrustful of me. It wasn’t the words she said or the way she had said. No. For me, the most painful aspect of that hellish two minutes was the timing.

Under the circumstance of her accidental fall and hospitalization, coupled with the presence of her anxious brothers, her words had been no less than a dagger to my heart. One stabbed from the back for that matter. Very unexpected. Very painful. Very damaging.

I went through hell because the Rollins family didn’t trust me. They married me off to the wrong brother, killed my baby, threatened my life on several occasions. The list goes on. After everything, I managed to redeem myself and win over some hearts, especially after saving Ashal’s life. Now, with Skylar’s outburst, I feel like I just got knocked back a hundred steps behind. I distinctly recall the doubt on Asher’s face, the shock on Ashal’s and the accusation in Ashley’s while I hopelessly tried to defend myself.

Tears mingle with the water sluicing down my body. I smoothen my hair down the back of my head and continue to let myself be battered by the spray. Crying won’t do. Anna had asked me if I was sure of the consequences that will follow me if I chose to reinsert myself into the Rollins family drama. More than before, I am starting to understand it now. There will always be an endless cycle of pain for me. I will always battle to earn their trust and I will continue to suffer for as long as I don’t have it.

Another hurtful memory of the hospital flashes in my head.

While we kissed, I had shoved Ashton back, breaking the kiss when I sensed someone watching us.

"What’s wrong?" He asked me with an arched brow.

"I think there’s someone there." I whisper to him. He glances at the direction leading away from the restroom, then takes brisk steps to check the hallway.

"There you are. I need to talk to you." Asher calls him from the far end of the hallway. Hesitantly, Ashton turns to me and from my hidden spot, I urge him to go on. With a heave of breath, he rejoins his brother.

When I peep from the corner, Asher is too far to have been the one I felt watching Ashton and I kiss intensely. Was my hunch wrong? Was I just being paranoid after Skylar’s accusations? I shrugged off the eerie feeling and decided to head home.

But I didn’t just want to leave rudely. I thought it’d be better to inform at least one brother of my departure. I walk over to Skylar’s room where I am certain I’d find one of them but my pace grinds to a halt when I spot Asher talking to Ashton in muted tones (not so muted due to his deep voice) at the waiting area. I thought they had gone somewhere else to talk.

"I just wanted to make sure you also heard what Skylar said. Yes, she might be a little disoriented from her fall and I don’t necessarily think Demi meant to push her but Ashton, what I am most interested in is that Skylar’s experience lends more credence to my theory that Demi might not be a good omen for our family. Something terrible always happens when she’s in the picture. Don’t tell me you don’t see it too."

before? The quads thought I brought them ill luck? I shook my head at the irony but my heart tightened with pain as I continued to

just an accident, Asher. I thought you were all about logic? This theory

to nurse the same suspicion if you weren’t blindly in love with Demi." He added, poking

thought the facts didn’t add up, I’d have done my findings or asked her. That’s not the case here. I just think everyone’s on edge and it’s easy to blame the girl who was always branded the enemy of our family." He lurches forward and poked Asher’s chest in return. "Do you know how many times she’s given

fairness;

out there but we know less about our baby sister than we do about Demi. Demi saved Ashal’s life despite everything and your security footage shows that both women simply got into a heated argument and Demi slapped Skylar. The fall was accidental, not premeditated. Demi DESERVES the benefit of doubt here as well, don’t you

My heart palpitated in my chest. Now, the brothers were fighting over

noose. Why must my happiness always be short-lived? I’ve literally managed to unite with the man that I love after so many hurdles stood in our way. It’s not even been up to a week and problems have begun to rear their heads. Could Asher be right? Am I jinxed or

the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of a shadow hovering outside the bathroom. Though the steam is yet

from visiting his sister? He left barely fifteen minutes ago. When I don’t get a response, a cold shiver runs down my spine. "Ashton? Say something if

from the foggy glass in a flash. Hastily, I shrug into a robe and dash out of the bathroom. There are no footprints on the floor except the wet poodle left by me. Tying the sash of my robe tighter, I take cautious steps all around, checking for any signs of entry. The chef is stir-frying food in the kitchen. She’s

was standing

living room, the door is unlocked. The I feel cold hands rest firmly on my shoulder. Startled, I

in the air. Forgot some keys Gris needs at work

my breath. "Why do you brothers have individual houses on

hotels, and since we rent it out to a handful of rich folks when we’re not using it, it’s still a sweet deal." He winks at me. "But

You look like you’ve

I kept calling out for you? If you want to watch me shower, do it inside the bathroom not outside like a freak." I pat down my wet hair

about?" He tugs me close by the sash of my robe, teasing me. "You know I don’t do creepy. Why would I watch you when I can just join you?" I turn away when he leans down to kiss

arms as my eyes dart around the room. "Ashton, someone was definitely standing right outside the bathroom. I saw a silhouette and I

am. "Maybe it was the chef or one of the guards. You’ve

I press my eyes shut and stifle

still check

Easing back, he presses a kiss to my forehead. "Will you be here when