Touching the Heart of Ace
Chapter 76
I sighed as I looked into the front mirror of the car and saw the girls giggling; Windy and Little Lia. Thankfully she forgot about the prick on her forefinger covered by a unicorn Band-Aid.
Told my little trouble maker to leave that cactus alone. She had no business while the workers did their job in the greenhouse.
But Daddy and Princess never listened to me.
I had warned her one last time but she did poke at the 'fuffy thwing' and got her tiny finger pricked.
It was not a big deal but the sudden pain shocked her and the diva threw her head back and wailed.
"DWWWAVEEEY..."
There was a tiny bead of blood on the tip of her forefinger and she screamed harder.
I had a tough time trying to hold my laughter in.
It was funny, come on.
There was nothing to see or a wound per se. I wiped that bead off and she scowled not seeing the proof that the 'meanie thing' had indeed pricked her.
But she lied on my chest, still wailing and glaring at the fingertip.
"Pwicked me Davey... waaaaahhhhhhh... Pwicked me. MEANIEE"
I bit my lips hard, not to laugh out loud.
"Awww... baby, show Davey." I blew on her hand and gave a tiny lick on the finger before kissing it. "All gone now... no boo boo."
"Owiieeee.... Daveeeey... owwwiieeeee..." She opened her small mouth wider and started screaming again.
I stuck Band-Aid on the finger and the drama queen stopped ringing my ears. I gave her a small bowl of ice cream before going to the bathroom and laughed to my heart's content while slapping my thigh.
How did I live before she came into my life? She was so precious.
I did not know I was lost in thoughts until I heard my baby answering the phone.
Oh shoot!
She had scared away someone who had called us two days prior. I did not know what she told the person on the other side and Lia did not know what the other person told her.
But my Little Baby loved to attend the calls.
"Yooo... Benly resnance!" She screamed at the mouthpiece but I took it right away. "Nu... Davey... Baby taawking..." She jumped on her soles and yanked on my pants.
"Hello, Brantley's Residence... oh... hey... Uncle Andy... Wait a second... Lia, no, it is not Daddy, its Uncle Andy... Lia... stop..."
"Baby twaaak..."
I gave her a glare and she pouted but wandered off to the T.V while glaring back at me.
So spoiled.
I shook my head.
"I am sorry about that, Sir... Lia is just being a baby... no, she loves attending calls... she will be fine..." Lia could never be so mad at me for so long.
Mr. Anderson was calling for some serious matter; I could tell by his voice. He was my mom's good friend and used to be her personal assistant. But then she promoted him as the Senior Superintendent and he handled all the employees of Truscott. Co. With the merge of Truscott Co with Brantley Enterprises, he was posting both of our employees. It was not for idle chit-chat that he called me at office-hours.
My intuition was right, and that was why I was driving to Daddy's office with my girls- Windy and Lia- in tow. I smiled hearing them giggle from the back seat.
Such a small trouble maker could be so sweet if she wanted to.
"Davey... Winny say Lia gwood gal..." She giggled happily and proud of herself.
"Yes, sweetheart, you are a good girl, Lia."
She cackled again and started doing whatever Windy had told her to do.
But her Daddy was being a bad boy.
I sighed!
It was not entirely his fault either... I was accountable too.
I sighed... again.
"Everything will be fine, Davidson, Sir. He will be fine the second he sees your face." There was a slight teasing in her voice which she did not try to hide.
I narrowed my eyes and the girl giggled at my expense.
No wonder Lia and Windy got along just fine. They were both trouble makers. Adorable trouble makers but still trouble makers that made fun of me.
But she might be right.
Daddy and I had a huge fight... again... on subject of Janice. In my perspective my anger was warranted.
As usual the tabloids were on our back but this time they came as locusts because they saw me coming out of Uncle Fred's car.
Him being the big-shot film director of Hollywood and long term partner of Jack Kennedy, made all the film and music media after his back too.
Despite Robbie being a multibillionaire, he was not that famous outside the business world. He loved his privacy and all his scandals, issues and troubles that were known to public were related to his business. Honestly not many people cared about that.
But Kevin posting the 'cheating' stunt by Janice, live on Facebook and Janice crying and pleading on all known social media platforms, had taken the attention of a lot of people who were outside of business bubble.
Which was not good.
Now with Uncle Fred also involved, the dangerous kind of Paparazzi were also behind us.
So as usual I was going through some tabloid articles with our photos. The conspiracy theories were absolute bullshit and that made it even more funny.
But then an article had got almost everything correct.
'Robbie and I were in love for so long'.
There was a picture of us in an art gallery with the artist Sidney Croman, one of my favourite painters in the world. Robbie and I were standing on the either sides of him.
I remembered it, fondly. Robbie hated art but he came with me when I begged him to go.
Even bought me the painting I liked, too.
That was the next photo by the article; Robbie holding that painting while I was hugging his whole left hand with my body. It was before his marriage and the article did not forget to mention that.
'Robbie, Lia and I were a family'.
There were three images of us cuddling together. Little Lia was only two months old and I was feeding her a bottle while Daddy was sitting next to me holding me close.
Who took these pictures! This was whole another level of creepy.
I would understand if they took our pictures now, given the situation... but this was ridiculous.
But the article was right to a certain extent.
They even told my whole name and I was the heir of Truscott Co and my Uncle Fred was my dad's best friend.
If we overlooked the fact that they had a creepy collection of Robbie and I being together even before 'we' admitted we were together, the article was in our favour.
They concluded stating I was no ordinary man and surely not just an eye candy... but... still creepy.
I shivered.
How the hell did they get the photo of Lia, Robbie and I, in a carnival?
The funny fact was they called Janice a surrogate who got greedy by our wealth and trying to dig up some gold on her way to pathetic life.
The rest of pictures were from my Little Baby's events, birthday parties and outings. And they asked where the mother was.
'Robbie and I are secretly married'.
The image of us coming out of a chapel holding a bouquet. That was not our marriage, but Rupert and Ned's. I was helping Ned, by holding his bouquet while he fixed his hair before they sailed off to their honeymoon.
But Robbie had his face on my neck and it was so romantic from a third person perspective.
So, in gist everything was okay... until...
Until...
Until...
Until...
I had to read it three times before the words made sense in my brain.
'If not for the contract, this overused overplayed plastic doll, would have been thrown to streets long before. If you ask us, someone would run to the hills seeing this face. Is that even a human face? People should sign a contract begging her not to show her face to anyone, to save the whole world. Maybe that was what the contract about. Lol. Just saying. No hate.'
It was a picture of Janice without any make up on, showing the plastic surgery mistakes clearly.
I gulped; not at the very poor quality of Janice's photo or at her boobs that are practically out of her party clothes or someone's hand was on her thighs but...
But...
What contract?
Daddy and the lawyers were discussing over his table when I walked into his home office. Jason was on the couch leafing through some magazine but froze seeing my expression.
"We didn't do anything." Isaac raised both of his hands, Weston looked scared and Simon narrowed his eyes.
"Robbie..." I loved the panic in his eyes. "Baby..."
"Yes, Angel."
I laughed, ignoring the tension in my heart. "A funny thing..."
"Y... Yeah?"
"What is this contract, the stupid article talking about?" He flinched when I threw the IPad over his desk.
So, it was true. He did not have to say anything. I could read him like a book; how his face closed off of any emotions and how he surreptitiously glanced at his lawyers without lifting his face up and most importantly... I heard Jason's muffled 'crap'.
Jason knew it too. "Slave..." I called and he tried chuckling to conceal his real emotions.
would deal with
I am his everything, would not hide something that important from me, right? Of course you wouldn't. I mean... I live with
my frozen
Robbie rapidly gulped.
told me. So, there is no way I would not know about a 'contract'... I mean it had been months and you had a lot of time in your hands, so you did not tell me about this silly contract that has the power to override the divorce petition, because there is no such contract, right? Right,
was not looking at me. Why was he not
"AM I RIGHT, SWEETHEART?"
I laughed because it was too damn
all these times, he was telling nothing was standing in his way to divorce.
him to her was not at all
did I know; I was a pathetic stupid fool in love but in my idiotic mind it could be a huge problem
stupid; I will go back to my Little Baby and make her an apple pie or... you know, we are packing our stuff up and
but a soft
pained me even more. He was going
Robbie wiped his face.
"Please sit down, Angel."
'stupid' and I will go back to kitchen. It would not take much time."
winced and... "It
I thought you
"Please, Baby. Please listen."
I was listening.
me
this was going
squirmed and I pulled back a chair. "Would it make you talk if I sit? I am sitting now and listening."
for help but no one was going to
"... Angel... I uh..."
my
not leave her... or the baby... you know... I was not... very welcoming to her and... she thought I would not take the responsibility of the baby after
flinched and I heard Jason saying 'low blow'
DID NOT
me to sign a contract... Terry, my ex-lawyer pulled up a contract stating I would look after
stupid ass did not read that sentence properly and since the kid was not 'born' the contract
scoffed at the surprised look from Robbie. What, even a stupid idiot
"Yeah..."
I narrowed my eyes.
been well over a year after our Lia is
winced and rubbed the back
Nervous; he was nervous.
to my chest but... it
was only one year. I would not
jump across the desk and rub his head
session where
had the audacity to scratch
want to pound your head to
told me that it was two sessions
not tell me
want to
Big Baby, look at me and
He mumbled a yes.
"I cannot hear you!"
You look
look worried because I am fucking worried." Then I started screaming and I could not stop. "When will you learn that hiding things from me will only bring me a thousand times more pain
He nodded.
it was not hundredth of what I told
eyes filled with guilt and I wanted to poke
to spent all my lives with... from a dirty cheap article with no moral grounds whatsoever. And you have the audacity... the fucking audacity... to tell me that it was to save me from pain and worry? Are you kidding me, Asshole
"I am sorry, Angel."
Lia and I are leaving. And don't bother about divorce
stood up and
I swear to god; I will never hide anything from you... Anything... Please... Angel... I am
hugged me from my back and I had to resist the
was one
I pushed him away.
my itchy
Dammit!
sorry."
time at least he sounded genuinely
pointed to the lawyers and
tell you. We did not advice it. We had nothing to do with it..." Isaac started rambling and Weston started
and... tired and... just tired... "You work for me. I want to know what happens in the court. I want to know what your next steps are... I want to know every fucking thing.
my Angel now." Robbie wholeheartedly agreed and that was
I rubbed my face.
guys are
He was confused.
Just let her. Let her bring out all her shit; big guns, small guns... If
"We can do that."
leave for classes, Slave, but I want you all other times here, with Lia. I am going to attend all the
it, Goose." He gave me
contract should be put up in a legal
"Yes, Sir."
"Al righty then."
that fucker Terry and trapping my man
stupid man as a
"Sorry, Angel."
being stupid and then say
technically, you are also a man." Jason oh-so-kindly
a fucking angel for not shoving his figurative sorry
angel." I heard Weston saying, as I stormed out of Robbie's home office to
happened to my
mad, which made me give
frustration was showing
had already fired three employees by this
having a cheating wife onto us' warrants
saw one of the very compatible employees, sniffling
even before she got down from
Anderson in office, Lia." I snickered,
her back to look
and picking up Lia. "You call me Unca Andy all the time,
Windy
her thumb in her mouth and lied on his shoulder and when we reached the elevator he handed
head at his antics. He did not want Robbie to know that I was here because he called me. I opened the door to the conference room and my man was the king, no, the emperor, with the way he looked half-bored
"DADA!"
for giving him a
What? What are
from my hip to get down and ran to Daddy when
a kiss on her forehead, his eyes asking me
I saw Chance and Matthew taking a visible calming breath while Aaron
was sure, Aaron was enjoying Robbie's
face in her tiny hands
blew a raspberry in her neck making her squeal and laugh. "What are you doing, Pretty Princess, what are
cackled throwing her head back. Robbie took pity on my child and let her calm down by patting
knowing we had work to get back to. "Hi, Mr. Brantley." She waved her hand
"Wha? Winny?"
"Fishes!"
Lia already started running in Robbie's hands and
We will be with
from us giggling and Windy followed her equally happy. Windy would let my kid run around all she wanted; one of the hundred thousand reasons why Lia was enthralled by her. I, on the other hand, would pick her
smile Windy gave me
looking much better already. If Lia and Windy was not here, he would have
giving
Girls!
my waist. "What
Can't we come to
was leaning way too close
you are doing your work properly." I might have leaned to him a
kiss already!" Aaron huffed from his seat and I pulled
associates who were smiling at
table. There was no additional chair for
here." I jumped away; it was
"Oh. come on, Angel."
and stayed away from his hand until one of his associates,
I held it tight, not willing to let go. I was feeling so guilty at how I shouted at him that day. Many of the people around the conference table could figure out that we were holding hands under the table. I could not
long and the man was
before taking the file in front of him which
was frustrated. It was not
interrupted the man. "So, this is basically your
not." The man
that was to figure out patterns really fast. No matter how he jumbled the words, changed the fonts and added
no good in business but this was
The only change is that, your 'new' plan will bring in
a good reader and maths is
and instead of saying straight up that his plan would bring 16.4%, he gave
this business, 0.4% increase is a big
business but why are you prolonging this
not give him a chance
where, it is marked YNZ, here, wherever that is, I don't care... and the YNY is holding all of it for an additional charge of 3%... and also these new security costs... which would make... " I quickly calculated the digits in my mind. "1.42... right? yeah... 1.42% decrease in whatever we make now. So, not 16.4% profit but... 14.98% profit. Still a profit but your plan
astonished; so was
not stupid. They would not approve any of this plan without crosschecking; and a plan as good for nothing as this, would
just the same. You were given three months to bring up a plan and this is all
looked at Robbie confused. Why was
Robbie looked livid.
plan when it would have mattered but that did not mean he could make everyone a fool
all the time." I rubbed
Poor baby.
"What is your name?"
"Albert, Sir."
am going to give you an additional four days... no? A week? Okay... A week to bring up another presentation and all I
packed everything up and left; not
presentations a week, for each Project Head and they
did not get it. Was this how it