Chapter 35 Asher
ASHER
“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” I say to Robert, knocking back the last of my drink. “This night has been a waste.” Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t get Senator Sanders alone. He’s clearly avoiding me, and if I can’t speak to him, there’s no reason to stay.
I set my glass on a passing waiter’s tray as Robert speaks into his cuff to alert Andrew to pull the car around. I nod at Jenkins across the room, and he mirrors Robert, speaking into his own comms to alert the rest of the security officers that we’re ready to go.
“You’re exhausting so many resources on something so fleeting,” a female voice says behind me. A voice I unfortunately know too well.
I turn. “Charlotte,” I say in a clipped tone.
Charlotte Fucking Edwards. One of the last people I want to see tonight. Especially when all I want to do is get out of here.
She brushes her hair back from her ear, tilting her head and smiling at me.
“It’s good to see you, Asher.”
It’s good to see me? Is this woman for real?
“I was just headed out.”
“So soon?” Her hand darts out, grabbing me by the wrist. “The event organizer still needs to give a speech.”
“I’m not interested in staying for it.”
As I yank my arm away from her, her eyes move away from my face and scan to the corner of the room before she squares her attention back on me.
“I’d love to catch up.”
“Catch up? Are you fucking kidding me, Charlotte?”
“So much has changed in such a short amount of time.” She nods her head in Ella’s direction. “Rumor has it there’s a dozen security officers here tonight. You don’t think that’s a little excessive?”
Ella is speaking to Declan and my mother, and they’re surrounded by four security guards while seven others are scattered throughout the ballroom, patrolling.
“I’m sure you’re privy to what happened to Ella, so no, it’s not even close to excessive.”
Her brows rise, but she quickly hides her surprise behind a smirk. “You’d spend that kind of money and attention on someone who’s merely a PR stunt?”
“Shut your fucking mouth,” I growl.
Now Charlotte can’t hide her surprise. Her eyes widen, and she sucks in a breath.
“I should bring down my legal team and crucify your husband for breaking his NDA. You shouldn’t know a damn thing about Ella except what you read in gossip magazines.”
“You know what pillow talk can wring from someone.” She winks.
I almost shudder. What the fuck did I ever see in this woman? “Then you had better keep it all to yourself if you value your luxurious life. Because if you don’t, I’ll come for both you and Henry, and I won’t hesitate to burn your lives to the ground.”
After a breath of what seems like worry on her face, her coy smile fights for a reappearance. “So threatening, Asher. One would think you actually have feelings for your little employee.”
“Ella is no longer my employee. She’s my girlfriend, and I plan to make her my fiancée soon. And then my wife—as quickly as she and my mother will allow it. Our wedding will be expected to be a big affair, after all.”
She blinks at me. “I thought you weren’t the marrying type.”
“What do you care? You’re married, not that you divulged that little detail with me when we were together. Nor who your husband was.”
Her annoying coy smile is back fully now. I want to tell her it’s nowhere nearly as effective as she thinks it is. How did I ever fall for it? I was an idiot, that’s how. Thank god those days are behind me and that I have Ella now.
“If I had told you, we wouldn’t have had our fun.”
“Then I guess I should thank you.”
She puffs up her breasts and steps closer to me, a glint of victory shining in her eyes.
How wrong her assumption is.
“Not for the fun. That was fine.” I shrug. “Something to pass the time. I should thank you because it’s what brought me to Ella. Without our affair, the board wouldn’t have forced my hand. And in . . . a twist of fate, shall we say, that forced situation brought me true happiness.”
Charlotte’s eyes narrow. “So the board gets its happily ever after story, how sweet. I’ll give you this, you’re much better at pretending now, Asher.”
I let out a humorless laugh. “I’m not pretending, and this isn’t a story for the fucking board.
The PR contract was terminated, or didn’t your husband divulge that to you with his pillow talk?
I am with Ella because I want to be and because she’s the only woman who’s ever made me happy.
The only woman worthy of being the future Mrs. Langford.
Good night, Charlotte. Have the life you deserve. ”
I brush past her shocked face and head straight for Ella. I’ve pledged my money, and I’ve made my appearance. I had to force my way through a conversation with Charlotte. I’m done. I just want to get Ella home and in our bed so that I can worship her like the future Mrs. Langford she is.
“Hey, you, what’s wrong?” Ella asks as I march up to her. She’s getting good at reading me; she can clearly see the tension I feel after my conversation with Charlotte.
I tug her to me and surprise her with a kiss. Declan chuckles beside us and my mom clears her throat after a moment.
“We’re in public, Asher,” my mom reminds me under her breath.
“I don’t give a fuck,” I mumble as I reluctantly pull away from Ella’s lips.
It’s probably becoming unhealthy, but I feel like Ella is the only thing that grounds me anymore.
She’s the only person and place that truly makes me feel at ease.
I need her like a drug, and I have no intention of getting clean. “We’re leaving.”
“There’s still two hours left,” my mom admonishes.
“Asher needs some downtime,” Ella says, curling up to my side. “I’d better get him home before he starts a riot.”
My mom sighs. “You’re probably right. Goodnight, darling.” She gives me a peck on my cheek. “And goodnight, Ella.”
We say the rest of our quick goodbyes as we make our way outside.
The relief I feel when we’re in the car is palpable.
I don’t like being exposed like this with Yegor on the loose and with the wildcard of Sergei.
His feelings toward me must be beyond volatile.
His son is dead, his daughter was publicly humiliated, he was brought in by the NYPD and questioned about Alan’s murder, and his company is failing by the minute.
It’s only a matter of time before he strikes back.
But I want to forget about all of that tonight. I want to get Ella home and just spend time with her. I want to pretend we’re normal for one goddamn minute.
“Do you picture yourself having kids?” I blurt out to Ella just after the car pulls away from the event. “I know I’ve mentioned it, but we haven’t actually talked about it.”
She flashes me a quizzical look and a half smile as she buckles her seatbelt. “What’s brought on that question?”
I take her hand in mine. “Because I’m curious what our future looks like.”
“And . . . you want to have kids with me?” Her voice is low and cautious.
“Of course I do—if you’re willing. I sure as fuck don’t want to have them with anyone else.”
She bites her lip, hiding a smile. “Yes, I want to have kids. I can’t say how many, though. I don’t think I’ll know that until I start having them. You seem even more upset than you were earlier, is everything okay, Asher?”
“I just ran into Charlotte Edwards, and it got me thinking.” Ella seems to curl in on herself.
“Not anything like that. Stop thinking so little of yourself.” I lift her hand to my lips and give it a little chastising nip, then a kiss.
I hate that she immediately assumes that my seeing Charlotte means I want anything to do with her.
“There’s no other woman on this planet, or any other, who holds any interest for me.
You’re it, Ella. But seeing Charlotte got me thinking that I’m happy to leave my old life behind.
For the first time, I’m excited for the next chapter.
For marriage, children, all of it. I’m not trying to rush you, I know this is a lot to throw at you, and we’ll take things as fast or as slow as you want.
I just want . . . more. I want all the things, and I want them with you. ”
Ella’s lower lip trembles. “I want that too,” she whispers.
I lean in to kiss her, but before I can, the car swerves sharply, and I’m thrown back in my seat.
“What the fuck was that?” I demand of Andrew.
Robert, Jenkins, Flores, and Wilkins all shift to alert, looking out the windows.
“We have a tail,” Andrew says. “Fuck,” he curses a second later. “We have three tails.”
I glance out the window. The second car with the rest of our security detail trails us closely, but three large black cars just like ours flank behind and on either side of them.
The one to our right swerves toward us again.
Andrew pulls out of the way just in time, but we nearly crash into the black car to our left.
With the traffic, there’s nowhere to go and no way to lose them. And yet, there’s much less traffic than there should be. It’s normally bumper to bumper, but instead, there’s only about a third of the typical cars on the road.
“Goddammit,” Robert says, his hand at his ear, communicating with the rest of the team. “They’ve surrounded the apartment building. Eight cars full of men—waiting for us.”
“Get the fucking NYPD there, now!” I bark. I grab my phone and dial Chief Olsen.
“What do you need, Langford?” he answers in a clipped tone.
“I’m being fucking ambushed. My car is being tailed by three black SUVs, and there are another eight cars full of men waiting outside my penthouse.”
Olsen curses. “You know who it is?”
“My best guess is he Russian fucking mafia.”
“What the hell are you doing messing with them?”
The car to our right swerves for us, and Andrew barely manages to avoid the collision.
“I want air support for my vehicle, immediately,” I growl.