Chapter 9 #2
The group dissolved into laughter once more, and it was during that easy, familiar moment that Amara's gaze drifted back to Elise.
She had admired the younger woman when she'd first stepped onto the yacht, but standing this close only made her beauty more striking.
The soft pink dress suited her perfectly, the delicate shimmer stretching from the corners of her eyes caught the lights dancing across the water, and every time she smiled, her entire face seemed to brighten with it.
Amara sighed dramatically.
"I still can't get over how pretty you are."
Elise blinked in surprise before letting out a shy laugh.
"What?"
"I'm serious." Amara looked genuinely exasperated. "You have the sweetest face I've ever seen."
Juliet nodded immediately.
"I've been thinking the same thing all evening."
Amara rested one elbow against the railing, smiling warmly at Elise. "You must have been the cutest little girl. I bet your parents couldn't stop fussing over you. They probably thought you were so adorable they wanted to keep you hidden from the rest of the world."
For a brief moment, Elise simply looked down at the champagne flute in her hands.
Her thumb slowly traced the cool crystal stem before she smiled again, softer this time.
"I don't think they did."
Neither woman noticed the change immediately.
Then Elise quietly added, "I was abandoned when I was eight."
The words weren't bitter.
If anything, they were spoken with remarkable peace.
"My adoptive parents found me and raised me, so..." She let out a small, self-deprecating laugh. "I don't think my biological parents found me nearly as adorable as you imagine."
Amara's entire expression crumpled.
"Oh, Elise..."
Without thinking, she reached across the small distance between them and took Elise's hand, squeezing it gently. "I'm so sorry."
Juliet looked equally stricken.
"I shouldn't have said that."
"It's alright."
Elise's smile returned almost immediately, warm enough to reassure both of them.
"It happened a long time ago."
She glanced out toward the endless ocean before looking back at them.
"I love my new parents more," she declared.
That earned a genuine laugh from Elise, easing the heaviness between them.
A few minutes later, the conversation naturally split apart as more guests began recognizing the men.
"Elias!"
Someone across the deck raised a hand, beckoning him over.
Almost at the same time another businessman clapped Cassian on the shoulder, laughing as he pulled him into another discussion about investments. With quiet apologies to the women, both men excused themselves and disappeared into the growing clusters of billionaires scattered across the yacht.
Xavier didn't remain long either.
One of the senior executives hosting the evening approached him, speaking quietly enough that Elise couldn't hear the conversation.
Xavier listened without interrupting, his silver glasses catching the sunlight as he turned his head toward the man.
After a brief nod, his gaze instinctively found Elise.
"I'll only be a minute."
His hand brushed lightly against the small of her back as he walked past her before following the executive toward another group gathered near the upper deck.
Elise watched him disappear into the crowd.
When she turned back, she found Juliet still staring after Xavier, her expression slowly changing. The amusement that had filled her face moments ago disappeared, replaced by a noticeable frown.
"...By the way."
Juliet looked back at Elise, her voice unexpectedly serious.
"I've been meaning to say this all evening."
She let out a long sigh before taking a sip of champagne.
"I'm really sorry about that prank Cassian pulled on you."
Elise blinked.
Juliet shook her head, still unable to believe it herself.
"The whole thing was unbelievably stupid."
Her free hand sliced through the air in frustration.
"Asking you to take the blame for a murder Xavier supposedly committed?" She scoffed. "When Cassian finally told me what they had done to you, I was so angry I could barely look at him."
Beside her, Amara nodded immediately.
"Same."
She reached toward a passing waiter carrying a silver tray of cocktails, effortlessly picking up a Bloody Mary before gently placing it into Elise's hand.
"Here."
Elise accepted it with a quiet smile.
"Thank you."
Amara leaned one hip against the railing, folding her arms loosely.
"I honestly couldn't believe they'd put you through something like that."
Juliet laughed under her breath, though there wasn't much humor in it.
"Cassian got the biggest lecture of his life. And deserved every second of it."
A satisfied smile tugged at her lips.
"And Ellias spent the next three nights sleeping on the couch." Amara smirked.
As if hearing his name from halfway across the yacht, Elias suddenly paused in the middle of his conversation and glanced over his shoulder.
His eyes landed directly on Amara. She was still looking at him. Still frowning.
He frowned back in complete confusion, lifting his brows as if silently asking what he'd done now.
Amara answered by narrowing her eyes another fraction.
Elias wisely decided not to investigate further.
He simply turned back to the businessmen around him.
Juliet watched the exchange with a grin.
"He still looks terrified."
"He should be," Amara replied without missing a beat.
The comment drew a quiet laugh from Elise.
"It's really okay."
She lowered her eyes to the cocktail in her hands, absentmindedly tracing her thumb around the rim of the glass before taking a small sip.
"I know they were genuinely sorry, and I know they never meant to hurt me."
Almost without thinking, her eyes wandered across the deck until they found Xavier among the clusters of businessmen.
He stood slightly apart from the group, one hand tucked into the pocket of his tailored trousers while the other adjusted the silver glasses resting on the bridge of his nose.
The setting sun caught the edges of his dark hair as he listened to one of the executives speaking, every inch the composed billionaire everyone admired.
Even surrounded by dozens of influential people, he somehow remained the person everyone's attention naturally gravitated toward.
He wasn't looking at her. His attention was completely on the discussion before him.
Yet simply seeing him made the smile on her lips soften.
"I'm happy with him," she admitted quietly. "If that ridiculous prank was his unusual way of finding out whether I'd stay beside him when life became difficult..." She let out a small laugh and shook her head. "Then I suppose he has his answer."
Juliet looked at her for a long moment before letting out a quiet sigh.
"I really don't know whether to admire you or shake some sense into you."
She took a sip of her champagne before pointing her glass toward Xavier.
"Because, honestly? That man keeps crossing lines normal people don't even know exist."
Amara nodded in complete agreement.
Elise couldn't help laughing.
Her laughter gradually faded as her gaze dropped back to the crimson liquid swirling inside her glass. She watched it for a few quiet moments, gently turning the stem between her fingers as though the answer she was searching for might be waiting there.
"There is one thing..." she said at last.
Juliet and Amara both looked at her.
"...one thing I don't think I could ever forgive."
The smile disappeared from Juliet's face.
"What is it?" Amara asked softly.
Elise slowly lifted her eyes to meet theirs.
"Cheating."
Neither woman spoke.
"I can forgive misunderstandings," Elise continued calmly.
"People make mistakes. Sometimes they say things they don't mean or make decisions they later regret.
Those things can be worked through." She paused for a moment before quietly shaking her head.
"But if the man I love willingly chose another woman...
" Her fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around her glass. "I would leave."
She smiled faintly, though there wasn't the slightest trace of hesitation in it.
"There wouldn't be a second chance."
Neither Juliet nor Amara noticed Xavier approaching.
His conversation with the executives had ended moments earlier, and he had been making his way back across the deck when the evening breeze carried Elise's words to him.
His steps slowed.
The words settled heavily in his chest.
An unfamiliar feeling tightened there, leaving him strangely restless.
Not because he had ever been unfaithful.
The thought alone disgusted him.
But because he knew Elise wasn't speaking out of anger or making an empty threat.
Juliet was the first to notice him.
"Oh, there you are." She smiled before slipping her arm through Elise's. "We're stealing her for the rest of the evening."
Xavier's gaze dropped to Juliet's hand where it rested around Elise's arm.
His expression didn't change.
But something about it bothered him.
Without a word, he stepped forward, his hand closing around Elise's wrist. His thumb brushed lightly over her skin as he eased Juliet's hand away with quiet insistence, reclaiming her.
Juliet blinked.
"...Seriously?"
"She's coming with me."
His tone was calm, leaving no room for negotiation.
Amara folded her arms, unable to hide her amusement.
"We were in the middle of a conversation."
"You can continue it later."
Juliet narrowed her eyes.
"You're unbelievable."
Xavier ignored the comment entirely.
Keeping hold of Elise's hand, he guided her away from the two women and back into the crowd.
Elise looked up at him, unable to hide her curiosity.
"Where are we going?"
"Nowhere."
He didn't slow until they had put enough distance between themselves and the others, the lively chatter behind them gradually fading beneath the music and laughter drifting across the yacht.
Only then did Xavier stop.