Chapter 13

13

WILL

Seeing Lex Edwards again is the last thing I wanted this weekend.

After his blatant warning to leave Amelia alone back when we were in London, I avoided him at all costs even though Lau had placed an enormous amount of pressure on my shoulders regarding the stipulations of the takeover.

We don’t need additional capital, and I firmly believe we can grow the platform beyond Lau’s expectations. The difficulty is trying to convince Lau. A man who owns a decent chunk of Hong Kong and Singapore will not give up easily, and to my knowledge, he is yet to be challenged or proven wrong.

Amelia left the pool area with Lex by her side. I watched as they walked out and toward the beach, disappearing for quite some time.

The weather is still warm with the sun persistent with its rays, so I choose to stay in the water for a while. That is until Ava finds me and starts babbling on about something of no interest. I kindly excuse myself, choosing to relax in the cabana, but I need to check my email truthfully.

There are emails from my lawyers, our finance team, and many from my executives. Some suggest we throw more money at Lau, but when the man is of such wealth, I don’t think money is his biggest concern. The man is all ego. He wants to be known as God. His reputation is everything, and just like he said, he only works with the best.

Our conversations become heated via email, and I put my phone down for just a moment to gain some patience only to find Gigi standing beside me.

“All work, no play?”

I half-smile at her comment. “Something like that.”

Gigi is gorgeous. I won’t deny that. And perhaps in a different lifetime, I would have had my way with her. But my head is less than interested, merely entertaining her flirtatious behavior because it seems to goad some sort of reaction from Amelia.

Perhaps it is petty of me to play such immature games, but clearly—it worked.

Gigi is anything but subtle with her intentions, inviting me back to her room. But I refuse, for now, letting her down gently. With Amelia nowhere to be seen, I laugh with Gigi as she mentions my father making some crude comment and then excuse myself when the curiosity begins to eat away at me.

It’s almost as if my mind won’t settle with unfinished business on the table or because I need to see Amelia to fuel my addiction. Either way, sitting here next to Gigi will accomplish absolutely nothing.

The property is large enough to be able to lose yourself in. I turn the corner of a large maple tree to see Amelia sitting at the wooden picnic table. Her head is bowed, buried between a book she appears to be engrossed in. My footsteps are soft against the freshly cut lawn as I walk toward her.

On closer inspection, her head is resting in her hand while she reads quietly, and unbeknown to her, there is a small pout of her lips, something I remember so fondly.

“Reading on vacation?” I question softly, not to startle her.

Amelia raises her eyes, yet her expression is unreadable. She has covered up with a cream knitted cardigan, but still wears her bikini beneath it. I beg my eyes to ignore her tits and just how sexy her body is. Yet, the fact it is exposed straight down the middle makes it hard to resist temptation.

Keep your dick in check, Romano.

“Studying, actually. I needed to clear my head.” The moment she says it, her brows draw together as if she regretted saying she needed to clear her head. It appears, just like me, we were both struggling with today no matter how we tried our best to be amicable.

I raise the book to view the title, then place it down again. Without even asking, I take a seat across from her.

“How is law school?”

“Challenging, but I love it. It’s been a real eye-opener working for Nikki. There’s still so much I need to learn. I mean, your mom is a shark. She never lets anything, or one, get to her.”

I nod with a knowing smile. “Mom is tough, so is Charlie.”

Amelia purses her lips, but I can see something else is bothering her as she is unusually quiet. I remember how hard college life was. Sure, there were parties, but the transitional aspect of those years leaves much doubt. You never really know if you’re following the right path.

“You’ll graduate with your law degree and feel like time has flown. College feels like a lifetime ago, yet I remember how much it dragged, and I just wanted to graduate already.”

“That’s how I feel now,” she admits, letting out a sigh. “I spend most of my time studying or working. Even this weekend is hard to adjust for me. I’m used to being alone most days, especially since I moved out and Liesel moved on with a boyfriend. For the first time in my life, it’s like I am forced to listen to myself because there is no one else’s noise around me to distract my own thoughts.”

“Solitude is a blessing and a curse. Honestly, you get used to it somewhat, but I will agree, it is hard to adjust to all the noise again when you’re amongst a group, especially a family as large as ours.”

Amelia raises her eyes to meet mine, the emerald-green stare stirring mixed emotions within me. “Sorry, I’m just rambling now.”

“Don’t be sorry,” I tell her, softening my expression. “I’d like to think we had more than just a sexual relationship all those years ago. I miss the conversations we used to have.”

“Yeah.” She grins, her entire face lightening up. “Me too.”

Amelia closes her book, resting her hands on top.

“So, you live on your own?”

She hesitates, then nods. “I have been, for a few months.”

“And your…” I clear my throat, debating whether to mention it but why the fuck not? I need to know just how intense this so-called engagement is. Considering Amelia is here alone, I know for a fact that if she were mine, I would never leave her side. “Fiancé?”

“Austin lives in Manhattan,” she informs me though she keeps her tone firm. “He’s studying medicine, so it’s best for him to be next to the campus.”

“And does he know I am here?”

“Will, what does it matter?” she resigns, shoulders slumping. “If I tell him, he’ll get annoyed and think I lied. So, either way, I can’t win.”

I should feel sorry for her. I’ve put her in a difficult position. But selfish me comes roaring back, and why should I even care about him? The man has taken what should have been mine all along.

This feeling of jealousy is a seed of poison, and right now, I’ve swallowed my fucking pride again and I’m reminded of Lex allowing this man to wed his daughter. Yet I am supposed to back the fuck off. The question is, who is pulling all the strings here?

“Feel like going for a walk along the beach?”

“Sure,” she agrees, grabbing her book.

We walk along the garden and through the gate toward the sand. Beneath our feet, the sand is warm and soft between our toes. The sea breeze is slightly cooler as the sun begins to set on the horizon.

As we walk along, we speak more about studying law. I’d learned a fair bit from my mother over the years, so I understand a lot of the jargon. It is nice to be able to listen to Amelia, just the sound of her voice. I never realized how much I missed something so simple.

The sky becomes a shade of pink, prompting us to turn around and back toward the house. There are still a few people on the beach, mainly families with children. As we begin our walk back, a little boy runs toward me, abandoning his sandcastle.

“Look at my sandcastle!” he says with a proud smile on his face. “It’s where the evil king lives.”

I lean down to the boy’s level. “That’s some castle, buddy. You did that all yourself?”

The boy’s mother comes running over with a smile.

“I did because I’m four. When you’re four, you can make sandcastles on your own.”

“William, I thought I told you not to talk to strangers?”

I press my lips together into a stiff smile. Unsure what to say since the mother just threw the whole ‘stranger danger’ convo into play.

“Sorry, Mommy.” The little boy lowers his head.

“You know, my name is William too. But everyone calls me Will.”

Little William’s face brightens up. “My friends call me Will too!”

“It’s a pretty cool name, right?”

He nods, and his mother returns a warm smile.

“What is your name?” the boy asks Amelia.

“Amelia,” she answers, but her smile is forced.

The little boy continues to ramble on until we say our goodbyes but not before praising him on his fantastic sandcastle efforts again.

On our walk back, Amelia has fallen dead quiet. Not a single word, nor a smile. She can’t even seem to look my way. I don’t understand what suddenly changed, all since we ran into this little boy.

When we’re back on the property, I ask the burning question.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she answers quickly.

“Well, it’s not nothing since you’ve been quiet since we spoke to the little kid.”

Amelia stops walking, still with her head bowed. Slowly, she raises her gaze to meet mine, but her eyes have glassed over. There is definitely something bothering her, a sadness in her expression as her chin begins to tremble. She pulls the sleeves of her cardigan over her hands and raises it to cover her mouth.

“I can’t do this,” her voice trembles.

“Do what?”

She points to me then to her. “This, us. I’m sorry, Will.”

Without another word, she turns back around and begins to quicken her steps to escape me. I don’t understand her sudden change in mood and run toward her to catch up, grabbing her arm to make her stop. I turn her around to see tears have fallen down her face.

“Hey,” I say softly, wiping the tear from her cheek. “What is it?”

She shakes her head, unable to speak. “I thought I was okay, but….”

I pull her into me, placing her head against my chest while I wrap my arms around her body to comfort her. “It’s going to be okay, whatever is bothering you.”

“You don’t understand, Will.”

She pulls back slightly, but her eyes continue to haunt me. The color has drained from her face, and the dull stare is portraying her sadness. I feel utterly helpless, unsure how to act or what to say, consumed by the need to protect her at all costs. Whenever Amelia was sad or upset, it was almost instinct to make her better again. I knew no different, still remembering the moment she was placed in my arms many moons ago and how Charlie told me just how precious she was. I was a kid, but I was old enough to understand that I never wanted her to feel hurt or pain. There was an urge to protect her no matter what.

And it still stands to this very moment.

But I’m terrified of the truth unraveling, of being the cause of her pain.

“Help me understand,” I beg of her.

Amelia takes a deep breath, closing her eyes momentarily. She falls silent, but I don’t push her and wait for her words to come at her own pace. Then, she finds the courage to finally open up to me as if there are no walls between us.

“It happened four years ago…” she begins with, unable to look me in the eye as she speaks. “Just before you left for London…”