Opposite 15_The Rogue King's Surrogate

“Brother, that woman is really something… she actually–wah–Ma–what should I do now?” ire wailed from the couch, dabbing her eyes with ace handkerchief she’d obviously stolen from Vanessa’s drawer. She sniffled loudly, shifted positions, and then threw herself across the armrest in a dramatic sprawl. “I’ve never been this humiliated in my life!”

 Samuel sat in the armchair across from her, a coldpress in one hand, his phone in the other. The bill from the bakery had already been handled. ss disy case. Custom pastries. Floor tiles. Two antique chairs. A broken ceramic figurine that had apparently been hand–painted by a local artist. It had been ridiculous.

 Still, not as ridiculous as this. 

 ire rolled over and looked at him like she’d just survived a civil war. “You need to bring her here,” she said. “I’m serious. Bring her here and make her apologize properly. Let Mom teach her some manners.”

 Samuel rubbed his temple. “ire, she’s noting here.”

 “She has to! I’m your sister! I deserve respect! If she wanted to be in our family she should respect me!”

 “You shoved your own mother into the floor,” Samuel muttered.

 ire gasped. “That wasn’t my fault! She got in the way! And don’t turn this on me! That woman tried to destroy our reputation! Do you know how many people were recording? I saw a girl with pink hair live streaming the whole thing on Gossips & res!”

 Samuel nced at his phone. He’d already received three emails from PR and one from legal. They had seen the videos. Damage control was in progress. He didn’t need to hear ire’s version of events for the tenth time.

 “She called me a rabid dog,” ire said with a whine. “A rabid dog, Brother. That’s defamation! We should sue her for defamation!”

 He shook his head. How did it be like this? His mother and sister had been reduced to mere clowns just because of that vindictive Emery! Slowly, he turned his attention toward his mother.

 Across the room, Vanessa had been pacing back and forth like a general on the verge of dering war. She stopped in front of a framed painting of their great–grandfather and pointed at it like it was Emery’s fault he looked disappointed.

 “If that vixen steps foot in this house again, I swear, I’ll burn her alive,” Vanessa snapped. “She grabbed me like some gangster. She could’ve broken my wrist!”

 “You’re fine,” Samuel said. “The doctor already checked. It’s a bruise.”

 “A bruise on a woman of my status is a scandal! Do you know how hard it is to wear Dior gloves with a wrist like this?!” Vanessa shoved her arm out for emphasis, dramatically wrapped in a designer scarf instead of an actual bandage.

 ire sniffled again and looked up from the couch. “She didn’t even say sorry! She just smirked. Like she was proud of it!”

 Samuel leaned back in the chair and tossed the coldpress on the table. “You tried to attack her ire. And you missed.” Clearly, he too had seen that chaotic video and knew what happened.

 “She dodged it on purpose!”

 “That’s what dodging is.” 

 “You’re defending her again! You always do this. She could strangle me in public, and you’d probably ask if I provoked her!”

 “You need to end this foolishness right now, Samuel!” Vanessa spun toward him, hair slightly out of ce from all the pacing. “That woman has embarrassed this family more times than I can count. First, she seduces you. Then she throws tantrums in public. Now she’s threatening me in front of strangers? Does she think we are mere pushovers!?” 

 “Ma-

 “Don’t “Ma‘ me!” Vanessa yelled. “Don’t you dare protect that woman again! You are about to marry Talia Arden! That woman is nothing, but a discarded vixen! You should teach her a lesson she will never forget! Do you understand me?”

 Samuel clenched his jaw. He recalled what just happened with Emery and that man. Seeing her clung to that man like her life depended on it only soured his mood. He needed to talk to her! 

 He got up. 

 12:35 AM P P

 “Where are you going?” Vanessa asked.

 “I already fixed the videos online,” Samuel said. “However, it’s still better if you stay here and let the news die down.”

 “What do you mean? I just received an invitation and I-” ire’s eyes widened. “What do you mean stay here? Do you think a mere video is going to ruin my name?”

 ire suddenly turned toward their mother like something just clicked in her empty head. Her eyes went wide, then her face crumpled.

 “Mom,” she said, voice cracking. “My reputation. It’s ruined now. People are going tough at me.”

 She grabbed her phone with shaking hands and began frantically scrolling. “They’re making memes! Oh my God–they’re posting my face on cake ads. Someone said I look like a ‘defective macaron.”

 Vanessa looked stunned for a moment, then recovered fast. “What? Let me see–give me that.”

 ire pulled the phone away and kept scrolling, her face pale. “I’m not in the influencer group anymore. They kicked me out of the cake–tasting event! I was supposed to go next week!”

 Vanessa turned sharply toward Samuel. “Do you see what she did? Look at your sister! Look what that wretched woman caused! She humiliated this family–again! You need to teach Emery a lesson or I swear, I will. I don’t care how much it costs. If you let her get away with this, she’ll think she’s untouchable.”

 ”

 Samuel didn’t respond right away. He just watched ire on the floor, now mumbling about hashtags and filter fails. He exhaled and shook his head.

 Without a word, he turned and walked out of the room.

 =

 The front door was already open. Roni stood there waiting by the car, holding the door.

 Samuel stepped inside and sat down. Roni shut the door and got in the front passenger seat.

 Samuel leaned back and closed his eyes. The image of Emery dodging ire’s with that same infuriating smirk was still fresh in his head. Watching that video had given him a headache. And the man–beside her. Always there. Always in the way.

 Roni nced at him through the rearview mirror. “I got news about Miss Vaughn and I don’t think you will like it.”

 2/2

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Opposite 15