Redemption (The Bet)

by Phal, Francette

  She was beautiful now as she’d been before, the only difference being that now her beauty had him picturing a professional porn star splayed out on a bed and Nicholas had no doubt that she had photographs floating about in cyberspace somewhere.

  Doing what propriety dictated of him, he stood as she approached their table and gently settled his hand around her elbow as she presented her cheek to him. He brushed his lips against the rouged mounds of her cheeks and pulled away. His trademarked smirk, reserved only for people like her, on his lips, he began pleasantries. "Hello, Evey."

  "Goodness Nicky, always so stoic, but it is great to see you again! How have you been?"

  "Busy. You?" Nicholas knew her tricks and the one where she was now deliberately thrusting her ample chest his way wasn't something new, women like her never changed and suddenly he felt the need to laugh.

  "I've been well. You know how it is; there aren't enough hours in a day to do much." And someone like Evey had her share of people to do, rich, wealthy people who were very good at keeping their affairs very discreet.

  "Of course." it was becoming awkward and he wanted nothing more than to see her leave.

  "Oh my, Nicky, are these your kids?" Evey had other ideas it seemed.

  Nicholas did not want to introduce her to his children and would've tipped their waiter quite handsomely if he'd interrupted them with their meal in that moment. Unfortunately for him, said waiter was busy attending another table and couldn't be bothered to make his way to them anytime soon. So, with a resigned sigh, Nicholas turned back to the table and reluctantly made the introductions.

  "They are adorable; they look exactly like you, except for the older one, she looks very familiar though, is she adopted?"

  Stupid, discourteous bitch. "In a manner of speaking." He hoped she was smart enough to read the curtness in his voice.

  "I didn't even realize you'd married, your wife must be very beautiful."

  He grinned, "Yes, Ellie is that and so much more, I'll be sure to let her know you thought so." He said dismissively. He hadn't meant to lie, but seeing her reaction was worth his misleading answer and he would've laughed in her face was it not for the presence of his kids.

  "You…you," she cleared her throat, "You married Ellie Holbrook?"

  Nicholas wanted to say yes but again the presence of his children prevented him from doing anything that would send the wrong message and being deceitful about something so big would most definitely send out the wrong message. "N…"

  "Yeah it was an awesome wedding, they made me ring bearer and Bella was a flower girl. Weren't you Bella?" Dylan sweetly smiled at his sister, who stared at him as though he'd grown a second head, but quickly caught on when Dylan pinched her underneath the table.

  "Uh yeah, I was a flower girl and Mommy gave me a garland crown."

  For a brief second her pinched facial expression indicated her true age but just as quickly as it came, it disappeared and seventeen year old Evey Abrams returned and brought with her a blinding smile that was as artificial as her chest size. "How marvelous, well then, we all must do dinner and catch up," she rummaged through her gold clutch, a perfect match to her four inch heels and pulled out a mahogany red card. "This is my business card, it has my office number." She handed Nicholas the card, her kohl rimmed eyes met his, the smoldering need there evident. "My personal number is also on there, call me anytime." In a move that was far too deliberate, she raised her hand and placed it against Nicholas's cheek and seductively she smiled. "It was nice seeing you again, Nicky. I look forward to our next meeting."

  "Nice meeting you kids, tell your Mommy I said 'hello'." She walked away then with her hips swaying, leaving behind the cloying scent of her fragrance.

  "Is she your friend, Daddy?"

  Nicholas found his seat before answering his daughter's question. "She was an acquaintance."

  "Does that mean she's not your friend?"

  "Sort of, she and I knew each other in school, but I didn't consider her a friend." He took from his glass and cleared his throat. It was somewhat awkward having this conversation with his daughter.

  "So, is it okay if we don't like her? It won't hurt your feelings, right?" she looked as though the last thing she wanted to do was hurt him and it seemed as though her siblings shared her sentiments. Nicholas had never been so touched.

  "No Bella, it won't hurt my feelings and to tell you the truth," he leaned forward, a solemn expression on his face. He cupped his hand around his mouth and whispered, "I don't like her either. She reminds me of a wicked witch."

  Bella's eyes sparkled, "Like the wicked witch of the West?"

  Nicholas laughed and then winked. "Exactly, but let's keep her true identity between us, we wouldn't want her coming after us, would we?"

  "No, but if she did, I know you would protect us and Mommy too."

  "With my life." And he meant it, nothing would ever happen to them as long as there was still breath in his lungs and even then, he would form a pact with the Devil if it meant protecting his family.

  Dylan stared at his father and for the first time since meeting him, he was slowly beginning to understand why Sophie admired him so much, why having a man like Nicholas as a dad could be a cool thing. From across the table, Dylan watched and silently appraised him, discovering the small things his Mom had said he got from his biological father. Like when Nicholas actually smiled, there was a small crinkle that appeared next to his left eye that Dylan had inherited. Or that thing he did when he was thinking, unknowingly tapping his fingers against a surface and wait for the answer to come. Dylan found that he also did that. Mom had said that he had more in common with Nicholas than he wanted to believe, but looking at him now and the fierce protection he felt towards them, Dylan was becoming an avid believer.

  Nicholas turned his head and met his son's gaze, he'd felt the burden of that gaze minutes earlier but had chosen to ignore it, giving Dylan enough time to assess his old man, while he spoke to both Sophie and Bella. They shared a moment. Not only had Dylan saved his ass earlier with the whole Evey deal, but his son was smiling at him, actually giving Nicholas an authentic smile that he found himself easily returning. Had Ellie seen them in that moment, her jaw would've dropped.

  Soon after their waiter arrived and in his arms he carried their dinner, "Here is the fettuccine Alfredo for the young lady." he set the hot plate in front of Bella, with a warning to be careful of the temperature. He accepted her 'thank you' with a kind smile before he walked around to Sophie and Dylan. "For you two, the chicken Scarpariello." their plates were just as large as Bella's with enough food on each to feed at least two people. "And for you sir, we have the stuffed chicken prosciutto." Nicholas received his plate and smiled his thanks. "If that will be all, I'll leave you to your meal and be back to check on you in a little while to see how everything is."

  "Thank you."

  "You're welcome, enjoy your meal."

  Dinner, aside from the occasional question of 'how's your meal?' from Nicholas and Dylan picking at his sister's plate, remained blessedly uneventful. Evey Abrams and her ample bosom completely forgotten, the small family ate in relative peace.

  ~*~*~*~

  Their day came to a close about nine thirty that evening. Turning off the engine to the car, Nicholas pocketed the keys as he slipped out of the driver's seat. He then opened the rear left door and hefted a sleepy Bella from the backseat, gently settling her against his body. He head rested on his shoulder while her arms were securely wrapped around his neck, heedless of the world around her, she felt safe and protected in her father's loving arms. Both Dylan and Sophie exited the car from the right rear door and sedately followed behind their father.

  As though she'd been awaiting their arrival, the front door opened and Ellie appeared. To Nicholas she was a sight for sore eyes. It wasn't the clothes she wore, which consisted of a loose white T-shirt and navy blue sweatpants, her feet completely bare, or even the way her body always, silently called to Nicholas
's own. It was however the expression on her face. The adorable way her untamed hair haloed her beautiful face. It was her smile, her grace, the way she loved, the sparkle in hazel eyes when she laughed. It was Ellie...just Ellie.

  "Hi," she stepped out, smiled and folded her arms across her chest, the evening's warm breeze further tousling her straightened hair.

  Nicholas furtively returned her smile. "Evening."

  "Seems like you tired them out. It's been a while since I've seen them like this. They look zombies." She stooped down to Dylan's height and lovingly brushed back his curls. "Had a good time?"

  Dylan looked at his father and for a fleeting second shared a look that seemed to convey all, before he turned his gaze to his mother. "The best. I'm going to go up and take a shower.” At the entrance he turned once more and said, "Thanks for inviting me. I had a good time Nich…Dad." He rushed inside before Ellie could stop him.

  "Wow, must've been some day."

  Nicholas shrugged. "I think he and I are beginning to understand each other."

  "I'm happy for you, Nicholas. You're both so much alike that sometimes I wonder if he'll grow up to be just like you."

  "Would that be a bad thing?"

  "Not necessarily bad, I just hope he doesn't turn out to be an arrogant, egotistical swine." She quipped with a smile.

  "Are you saying I'm an arrogant, egotistical swine?"

  "Only on your good days."

  Nicholas chuckled. "Well, there are some who find my arrogance and ego quite charming."

  "Good thing I'm not one of them."

  Sophie quietly watched the playful banter between her mother and Nicholas and she could say, with all certainty that there was no other kid in the entire city happier than she was in that moment. They weren't fighting, there wasn't anyone to interrupt them and God willing there wouldn't be any interruption any time soon. They looked completely at ease with each other, carefree as they laughed at some weird joke only the two of them knew the punch line to. Devlin made her mother happy, but Nicholas would always outshine him when it came to making her mother smile like that. It was smile Sophie rarely saw, it made her mother look as though she was a teenager again, it made her beautiful.

  "Hey Sophie, call me next week and we'll definitely go to that exhibit, okay?" Nicholas affectionately kissed her head.

  "You're leaving?"

  "Yes he's leaving, tomorrow's a school day, Soph and you know better, now say goodnight and get inside." When Mom spoke with that 'you'd-better-do-what-I-say-or-else' voice Sophie knew arguing was futile.

  Resignedly she began her goodbye, "Alright, thanks for letting me tag along, Nicholas. It was great meeting your mother, and yeah, I'll call you Friday night about the art exhibit so we can get an early start on Saturday."

  "Great, I'm looking forward to it."

  Hearing that, Sophie smiled. "Yeah, me too, want me to bring Bella to her room, Mom?"

  "No, I'll be right up."

  Sophie sheepishly smiled when she caught a glimpse of Nicholas's knowing grin. Well, one couldn't blame a kid for trying right? "Night, Nicholas."

  "Night, Sophie."

  "Thanks again for spending…"

  "Stop that." He evenly met Ellie's bewildered gaze. "You don't have to keep thanking me every time I take them away for the day. They're my kids too, Ellie, and spending the day with them isn't a chore for me, it's something I really enjoy and look forward to every week. So please, in the spirit of this truce we have going on, I would really appreciate it if you didn't make me feel like their nanny."

  Ellie shook her head, "That wasn't my intentions at all, Nicholas, and I'm sorry if I made you feel that way. It's just that, well… I'm not used to having someone else with the kids except my family."

  "I'm not someone else, I'm their father."

  Ellie sighed. "I know, it's just weird, Nicholas. Even you have to admit that this situation is just…"

  "I only want to be with my kids, Ellie. I haven't done…"

  "Daddy?" Bella raised her head from Ellie's shoulder and groggily stared at her father.

  "Hey there, Bells," She rubbed her left eye with her fingers, further ensnaring her father into her web of cuteness. He stepped forward and brought his hand to her cheek. "I have to go now."

  She pouted. "Do you have to leave? You can stay over and we can have a sleepover! And you can stay in Mom’s room..."

  "Bella..." Ellie said in exasperation, unable to believe the things her children said or did sometimes. Her reaction brought a smile to Nicholas's face.

  "But Mom..."

  "Your father has a perfectly warm and comfortable room of his own to sleep in at his house, now let's say goodnight."

  "I'll see you next weekend, Bella."

  "Promise?"

  “Have I given you reason to doubt me?"

  She grinned. "No."

  "Well then, I guess we'll be seeing each other on Saturday wont we?"

  "Yes, I can't wait!" She gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek."I love you, Daddy."

  "Love you too, Bells."

  Ellie tried not to draw attention to herself while witnessing the touching scene between Bella and her doting father. But despite her best efforts, that inevitable pull drew her in. Nicholas raised his head, his eyes meet Ellie's own and it was crackling energy. It was there, magnetic, tangible. A gravitational pull that couldn't be helped, couldn't be stopped, it was a burning fuse that would, at any moment, burst into a grand display of heated tongues and limbs, if immediate action wasn't taken. Ellie wrenched her eyes away and took a step back, but unfortunately lost her footing and would've ended up falling backwards was it not for Nicholas's swift action.

  "You Ok?" With Nicholas's arm securely wrapped around her waist and their daughter cocooned between them, Ellie fought for breath. "Ellie?"

  Hazel eyes rose and met Nicholas's silver grey ones. "hmm?"

  "I asked if you were, Ok."

  Ellie nodded numbly, her heart racing.

  "Y---yeah, um, it's getting late, Nicholas. We'll see you next week." She retreated, completely unhinged now. "Say goodnight to you father, Bella."

  Bella said a final goodnight and the very second she entered the house, Ellie gave Nicholas a hasty goodbye of her own before rushing inside after her children.

  Nicholas chuckled. Stuffing his hands inside the pockets of his khakis, he cheerfully made his way to his parked car.

  ~*~*~*~

  "Samantha, in my office." It didn't sound as though he was asking, in fact, since arriving this morning, Nicholas had seemed particularly pissed off about something and that something was probably the reason why he was ordering her to his office now.

  Hastily running a list of things she could've forgotten to do, Samantha came up with nothing, so she figured maybe it was someone else's incompetence she would now have to clean up. The HR staff upstairs probably hadn't found their mole yet, damn lazy bastards got paid just to sit on their asses. She grabbed her iPad from her disorganized desk and proceeded to his office, slightly weary of entering, but she braced herself for the worse.

  "Yes?"

  "Close the door."

  Samantha did as instructed and quietly closed door behind her. She walked further into the room and waited. While she waited, she took in his appearance. There wasn't a day that Nicholas dressed less than what he was worth, even when in casuals, he still looked as though he spent thousands. Today being a day of business and all, he was once again bedecked in one of his tailor made suits, an off grey color that set off the silver flints in his eyes. The documents on his desk far too important to give his attention to anything else, he had Samantha wait for a stretch of an eternity before raising his head to greet her with his discontented visage. Again, Samantha desperately tried to remember whether she'd forgotten to do something he'd asked her to do over the weekend and again, nothing particularly important came to mind.

  "Were you aware that my son was scheduled to have his first baseball game this past Saturday?" S
amantha's heart struck against her ribcage and she silently screeched out a barrage of obscenities that would've had her dear old mother blushing right down to her silver roots. There was no use lying, from the way he was looking at her it appeared as though he already knew the answer, lying would be a surefire way to dig her own grave.

  Feigning ignorance, Samantha innocently peeked at her 'trusty' PDA and abashedly peered at Nicholas through the veil of her lashes. "Oh god, Nicholas! I wasn't aware that it was this past Saturday." She was embellishing, it was the only way to save face. Of course she'd known about the damn baseball game! She wasn't known as the best P.A. in the building for nothing. She'd known since last Wednesday afternoon, when Nicholas's ex had called and asked nicely that she inform Nicholas of it.

  Nicholas had been away from his desk at the time, the urgency to ferret out their mole had taken him to the 25th floor and he hadn't returned until much later. By then, Samantha had made up her mind to keep the message from her boss. There'd been a part of her that had felt horrible for deliberately being cruel to a child, who probably wanted nothing more than to have his father at his baseball game, but at the time, in that present moment, Samantha hadn't cared.

  The last thing she'd wanted was for Nicholas to spend time with his family and get closer to his 'perfect' tart of an ex-lover. "I'm so sorry, I accidentally wrote it down for this Saturday. We were so busy last week…I'm so sorry." Did she sound sheepish enough? She wished that she could blush at will; that would've added to the effect perfectly.

  She held her composure and evenly met his piercing gaze, a minute, sixty seconds of pure torture, he finally looked away. Samantha had to applaud her performance.