Four Brothers and a Bride

Chapter 188: Chapter 188

ASHAL

I've been having sleepless nights ever since Olivia beggedto give our relationship one more chance for the

sake of our unborn baby. | wake up earlier than usual and spend hours on the treadmill, hoping to distract myself

from the dilemma. | am yet to give her a response and frankly, | don’t know what to say.

She was right. There's still a part ofthat cherishes her and the memories we share from my penthouse, the

days before Maddi filled my thoughts and my dreams. However, those residual feelings are nothing compared to

the love which burns insidefor the first woman to accept me, flaws and all. | love Maddi now, better than |

loved Olivia before. Olivia used to be my world, but now it’s Maddi.

But Liv’s words got my wheels spinning though. Is it possible that my feelings for her sister are not as deep as |

imagine and merely a reflection of everything | wanted from Olivia? Could my feelings for Maddi be subject to

change eventually if the circumstances differ between us?

No, | could never allow that. | love Maddi through and through, but what will Liv do if | decline her plea? Will she

hurt herself and our baby? Distracted, | almost slip off the treadmill. Jumping down, | turn the machine off and

dry my face with a towel just as Ashley strolls in. From the look on his face, | can tell he hoped to have some

alone tin the gym.

"Trouble sleeping too?" | ask him before downing swater. He merely shrugs. The scene at the hospital comes

back to me, him pulling Demi by the hand to go have a talk outside and Ashton losing focus on our discussion

with Skylar afterwards.

| have no idea what is going on between the three of them but it appears to be a strong love triangle, just like

the one | am having with Liv and Maddi. A thought crosses my head. Maybe my brother and | can help each

other.

"Hey, that scene at the hospital between you and Demi seemed intense. I've noticed you getting riled up by her

presence every tshe shows up. Is it what I'm thinking?"

His face is smeared with a massive scowl as he looks at me. "And what is it that you're thinking?"

"That you might not be over her?"

He grits his teeth. "I was never into her. | just wanted to have her because we were married. That's in the past

now. We're divorced and after everything that’s been revealed about her lately, | just find it hard to stand her. |

don’t know how any of you can. Fine, maybe she did save your life but guess what? That doesn’t compensate for

the other atrocities she’s committed against us. How can you let your guards down around that manipulative,

hwrecking..."

"Wow. Ok, dude, | get it."

| can’t believe how angry he’s getting over the mention of her name. Ironically, it remindsof Ashton a couple

of weeks back and how the tides have turned now and Ashton is playing Demi’s knight in shining armor.

Sometimes, loud emotions like this can be masking a hidden truth which in this case could mean that Ashley

doesn’t totally hate Demi like he claims. Maybe he’s frustrated and hates that a part of him still fancies her

despite everything that happened between them. However, | keep these thoughts to myself.

He sits on the bench press and chugs swater. "Tell her in whatever language she understands to keep her

distance from our family. She's a bad omen. | can feel it."

"She's already very involved, it’s too late to cut her off now."

"What?"

"She's the reason we even found out about our father and grandfather. Don’t you think she wants to know how

everything plays out? Besides, | believe we are still going to need her." | edge closer to him seeing how

miserable he looks. "Ashley, is there something more to this? You can confide in me." Uncomfortable with my

hand on his shoulder, he moves away.

"There's nothing more to it. | just don’t like having Demi around. That's it."

"Are you still in love with her?"

"Excuse me?"

Sighing, | give him a meaningful stare. "C'mon, it seems like it. You don’t look like you're over her and this

agitation to stay far away from her only tellsyou don’t trust yourself around her. If that’s the case..."

"THAT IS NOT THE CASE." He yells defensively into the quiet morning. "Don’t confusefor Ashton. He's the

one who can’t get over her, not me."

"What are you talking about?"

"Don’t pretend like you haven't noticed the way he looks at her lately. The sman who swore whenever her

nwas uttered around him especially after you were kidnapped suddenly starts defending her before

everyone. Shameful. It’s not just the classic chivalry we've cto know him for. They're sleeping together."

My eyes widen in shock. "You can’t just make such accusations..."

"She spends nights in his house at the old Navy Road. I've seen them together." Ashley streaks a hand through

his hair. "Look, | am not jealous or anything. | am just highly disappointed that he didn’t deem it necessary to tell

me. If she had been his ex-wife, | wouldn't touch her with a ten-foot pole without pre-informing him first. It's

common courtesy. Instead, he goes about defending her in front of us even when it makes no sense and then

kissing her in corners of the hospital. It’s disgusting."

Crap. So, that’s where the annoyance is stemming from. Ashton and Demi are secreting seeing each other and

Ashley feels betrayed?

"Have you talked to him about it?"

"Why should 1? He didn’t bother to talk tofirst so we're just going to leave it at that. The fact that they're

sneaking around only goes to show their guilt. They know what they’re doing is wrong. Anyway, all | care about is

that Demi not get in the way of our family’s happiness ever again. | don’t believe for a second that her intentions

are pure. She's very good at getting people to believe what she wants them to believe. She cinto our family

like an innocent victim of a drunken night only for us to realize she was the mastermind of a five-years long

revenge plan aimed at our destruction. That's no longer hatred; it's an obsession and obsessions just don’t

disappear overnight. She’s still hiding something and the sooner you all realize that, the better for us all." He

abandons his planned workout and heads for the door, leavingwith my mouth hanging open.

Crap. And here | was hoping to gain sinsights from him on how to handle my own problems. | dab my face

with my towel, thinking about Ashton and Demi. | can imagine why they've kept us all in the dark about their

relationship; because the timing of it sucks.

Frankly, what we were all hoping for was for them to go back to being at least civil with each other after the

misunderstandings that occurred. | for one thought Ashton would need tto fully embrace his feelings for

Demi after everything they’ve been through but this is as sudden as sudden gets.

Hence, | understand Ashley’s pain. It must sting, terribly. Demi even spends nights at Ashton’s home? That's...a

whole other level. They're a ring away from being locked in for life.

When | finish showering and dressing up by 5am, | make a detour to Maddi’s room. She’s all snuggled up in bed,

purring softly. I'd hate to leave without letting her know. Hence, | crawl up next to her and nibble her neck. She

flips over, crushing her lips to mine almost ferociously. Feeling the massive band of her tummy, I pull away

instantly, shock splattered all over my face as Olivia sits up in bed.

Bile tickles my throat. "What the fuck is this, Olivia? Where's Maddi?"

She scratches her eyes. "We switched rooms last night, Madeline's idea not mine. She figured it'd be better for