AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Elise goes red, but she’s interrupted in her diatribe by her brother, who is looking at Roxanne with stars in his eyes. “You are so fucking hot, damn. Are we really getting married?”
She lets out an amused laugh that sounds oddly relieved, going to Johan’s side and taking Andries’s arm onto her shoulder instead. With the love of his life so close, Andries tries to stand under his own power, and she’s able to start to lead him away without too much trouble. “I think so. Now come inside, lover-boy, and we’ll get you some water and Advil.”
“That’s not all I want you to get me,” he replies, trying to sound seductive while sliding a hand over her ass. She slaps his arm, but the expression on her face is full of nothing but affection.
Once the couple is inside fully, I have to face Elise, who is so annoyed that she’s almost vibrating with it. Her eyes are fixed on me, so full of fire, that even Johan senses the tension in the air. There is a crash from inside, and he takes the opportunity to flee.
“I’m going to go make sure Roxanne doesn’t need help!” he proclaims, pushing past me and into the dimly lit villa. I sigh, rubbing my temples, not looking forward to the lecture I’m about to get. Making Elise angry is fun, but dealing with the aftermath is less so.
“Why did he get drunk?” she demands, crossing her arms over her chest. “What the hell happened?”
“You’re not going to like the answer, so why don’t we just go in and call it a night.”
She puts her hands on her hips, refusing to move. “Absolutely not. Tell me what is happening.”
I look at her a little more closely. I think there is something else she isn’t telling me, because the amount of tension in her body is way more than is necessary for something as small as her brother getting drunk. I wonder what secrets little Elise is hiding from me? If I want to figure it out, I guess I’ll have to give her a bit of information, too.
“He’s still really pissed off about the both of us. I guess he’s been trying to fake it for the sake of the vacation.”
Elise cringes. “Ugh. It’s his vacation!”
“I know. But we can’t control how ridiculous his reactions to things are.”
She nibbles at her bottom lip, and I have to shake my head so I don’t get distracted by it. Elise is thinking hard about something, but I’m positive she’s only going to give me bits and pieces about what is on her mind. “Did… did he mention anything about Roxanne or the cabaret?”
There it is. This is what Elise is worried about, something related to Bar Rouge. Her hesitation gives it away. Now I just have to get to the bottom of it. “He was ranting about how everyone he loves betrays him and how he’s expecting Roxanne to disappoint him sooner or later. That boy has some sort of sixth sense about those sorts of things, I’ll tell you that much.”
Elise rolls her eyes to the sky and exhales. The wind picks up the hem of her dress, exposing even more of her perfect, glowing skin, and my pulse starts to pick up despite everything. “My brother is very intuitive,” she points out. “He knows when something is up. Always has.”
I take a step closer to her, clenching my fists to fight off the urge to touch her. “Elise, what exactly are you getting at here? Is there something I should know about Roxanne or the cabaret?”
“I didn’t say there was,” she replies stubbornly. “You’re reading too much into things.”
One more step forward, and there is less than a foot separating us. “Spill it, El. I’m not stupid. I’m your ally here, at least in regards to all of this.”
Crossing her arms, Elise considers my words. I know she feels alone here with everyone else, and I think that’s why she gives in so quickly to me. “Fine.” She heaves a long sigh, measuring carefully her next sentences. “Dad messaged me this article from a tabloid when we got back from the Blue Grotto. There is a huge scandal back home with Bar Rouge and it’s all going viral.”
“Shit. What kind of scandal?”
She looks over her shoulder and around us, to make sure no one else is close enough to listen in. “There is a video of one of Roxie’s cabaret workers giving someone a blowjob on stage. The girl is claiming it was staged and she didn’t actually do it, but it doesn’t matter, the video is already everywhere. All these news outlets have been trying desperately to get into contact with Roxanne but obviously, she’s here and not responding to them.”
Elise is shaken by all this, which surprises me. I take her by the arm and walk her to the garden on the side of the villa so she can sit and we can have some privacy to talk. To my surprise, she comes without a fight, and it strikes me that she’s probably been overwhelmed with all of this.
Once we sit on the stone bench, Elise lets out a long breath, her body relaxing. I wish she would lean on me, but I can’t initiate anything. Not with how much she’s been messing with my feelings. “I’m assuming Roxanne is now aware of the video too?”
She nods. “We found out at exactly the same time. I found her out here in the garden talking to someone on the phone. She was pissed at them, so I think it was the worker she was speaking to, not the media.”
Oh, this is going to be trouble. It’s already gotten out of hand, and it’s only a matter of time before the storm that this situation is causing reaches us here in Capri. “She has to tell him.” My tone comes off as more serious and worried than I aimed for. “There’s no way she can hide this anymore. He’s going to be irate, but––”
“You’re wasting your breath,” she cuts me off. “I’ve already told Roxie the same thing, about how he needs to hear it from her and not someone else, but she is refusing. I think she wants to try and keep it under wraps until we get back home so she can enjoy the rest of the vacation with him, but she’s delusional if she thinks people aren’t going to send that article to him.”
“I agree with you. She’s in denial, this is all about to blow up in her face.”
Elise clasps her hands in her lap, looking down at them, the sheet of her golden hair partially covering her face. “There’s more. Dad wants me to deliver the news to Andries before Roxanne can make it as dramatic and scandalous as possible, but…”
I pivot my body towards her, all my attention now on the woman beside me. This will be a telling moment; has Elise really started to change for the better, or will she still backstab anyone to get ahead in the world and please her father? She looks up at me with big eyes, and she’s so beautiful it almost hurts.
“But what, Elise?”
