Four Brothers and a Bride

VVIP lounge to talk.

"Thank you for the hospitable thought, Mr. Rupert but this won't take much of your time."

"If you say so, sir."

"lI want you to hire someone for my sake. It's a young woman who is in need of a job as a waitress here,

particularly at the bar on the fourth floor. She might not be refined enough for your taste but | am hoping you will

be willing to groom and train her to fit into your esteemed establishment."

Mr. Rupert givesa benign smile. "A recommendation from you, Mr. Rollins, is weighty around here. I'll look

into it. What's this woman’s name?"

"Cree Baxter, | believe. Consider it a favor for me. | gave her a hard tthe last twe met. | just want to help

her out. My accountant will be in touch with you. | want you to top her salary with my quoted amount. The extra

pay will be handled by my firm. Of course, you will be generously rewarded for your discretion, Mr. Rupert."

Now, his smile widens and a hoot of laughter ensues. "Thank you so much, Mr. Rollins. I'll personally see to it and

expedite her employment."

| pay attention and make sure Cree is contacted and hired the next day.

ork

Ever since she resumed work at the bar weeks ago, | have avoided drinking there. My other dates with the

women Elyon picked fordoesn’t pan out well because of my fixation with Cree. The ladies always keep

complaining that | don’t allow myself to be present during the date. Elyon has been frustrated as his efforts have

been going to waste.

"Is this about the woman that called you the last time?" He asksas | prepare to go on yet another date with a

stranger just to convince myself that | am trying to forget about Cree. "If you're already in love with someone..."

"I'm not. Can we just get this over and done with?" | snap impatiently at him.

I've been on edge lately. Why can’t my own love story ever have a happy ending? First, | got stuck with Olivia by

Asher’s doing. Despite falling for her, she never reciprocated my feelings genuinely. The second woman | think |

might be crushing on is a suspect in my brother's blackmail which makes our romance doomed before it can

start.

Why can’t | be happy and in love like my brothers? Olivia is head over heels in love with Asher who also has

Nessa pining for him. Ashton has Demi’s heart and Mila’s too. Ashley has Nicola and now Demi too who has been

working hard to make their marriage successful. Why am | the only brother whose love story has no happy

ending? Why can’t | find a woman that wants me, flaws and all?

| keep pondering these thoughts while | wait for my date who is running very late. | check my wrist watch. It's

been over an hour. Indifferent, | down the rest of my bourbon and wipe my lips. Oh well, | guess that marks the

end of the dating nightmare.

"You have got to be kidding me."

I look up to find Maddie staring daggers at me. What the hell is she doing here? Oh fuck. | forgot to tell Elyon to

scratch her off the list.

"Which brother do | have the displeasure of meeting right now?" Here eyes narrow atas she tries to guess.

"Well, are you going to tellwhich Ash Rollins you are???" Her voice is bitter, her face pinched with rage and

disgust. She hates my family so much she can’t even pretend.

| lurch to my feet and take in her mini dress. Did she really cout here to seduce her date in such a skimpy

outfit? When she notices my eyes accidentally lingering on her cleavage, she snaps two fingers in my face and

scoffs when I look away, embarrassed.

"I don’t expect any less from the Rollins’ quads. Your promiscuity precedes you."

Her insult hits the wrong nerve. "And you? What precedes you, Maddie? Angst? Frustration over your family’s

condition?" | let my eyes rake her exposed body. "Desperation?" Her eyes dilate in shock.

"Mr. Ashal?"

It's too late to deny it. | am the only one who calls her Maddie. My brothers always call her Madeline.

"You're my date??? Wait, you're on a date???" She plunks her bag on the table and crosses her arms. "How could

you even think of cheating on my sister after everything you've done to her? You're a heartless bastard."

"Shut up, Maddie. | wouldn't be here if | knew you were my blind date. What the hell are you even thinking going

on a blind date with strangers? Are you that desperate to throw yourself at any man that will have you? What

right do you have to judge others or call them promiscuous?"

Isn’t she like twenty-one? What's her hurry? Then | remember she’s practically Demi’s age but with a smaller

statue.

"My personal life is none of your business so don’t evade the topic. How could you think of cheating on my

sister? You're the worst! If you're tired of her, LET HER GO." Tears shimmer in her eyes as her voice wavers.

"Divorce and send her back to us. My family is not the swithout Liv. Please..." Her hands are clasped before

me.

| ignore the tug of guilt at her words and brush past her to make my way out of the bar. Long after | am back in

my car, | wait till Maddie comes out. | don’t know why | can’t let her go back hall by herself.

"Get in."

She snobsand continues walking down the busy road while | follow her closely in my car.

"Get in, Maddie. Don’t be stubborn. You can’t walk around like that. There are bad people everywhere and with

what you have on, they'll just think you're asking for it. GET IN."

She shudders at my tone, then begrudgingly gets into the back seat. We say nothing to each other even after |

drop her off at her friend's house.

ork

"Thank you so much for gettingthis job. | was really shocked to get their email." Cree says while we share

her break together. | couldn't hold back anymore. | had to see her, meet her and talk to her.

"It's the least | could do for everything you went through the last time. | am sorry about my brothers and I. We

mistook you for someone else."

It's yet to be proven that she’s completely innocent of the accusations levied against her but | don’t care about

that right now. If my brothers find out about this, I'll justify my action as a pretense to keep an eye on her and

investigate her connection to Shay, just like Ashley had proposed.

"Are you still acting?"

"Not right now. This job paysway higher than | could have imagined. | have no need to jeopardize it by

juggling an acting career that’s yet to take off." She sips her drink and slurps, just as | remember Olivia doing.

This woman is her normal self around me. She isn’t fazed by my business portfoor bank account or even my

family name. It’s refreshing to be around someone who is their real, goofy self for once. | like them with what

society will call flaws because | am not perfect myself.

"| felt like you're really passionate about acting. | have a few friends in the film industry. | could put in a good

word for you if you ever want to try again."

Her head snaps up, eyes brightening with understanding. "It was you, wasn’t it? The high salary. | know this hotel

is top tier but twenty grand is way too much to pay a rookie waitress with no real experience working in a place

like this. You did that forand now you want to helpwith my acting career. Why?"

| stare into her beautiful eyes while resisting the urge to stroke her cheek.

"Because | can. Is that good enough?"

Cree blinks back the tears in her eyes. "Even though | am totally kissing you senseless in my head right now, I'll

just say thank you out loud to preserve my job." She had meant it on a light note but my breath catches still. Her

smile wilts as she notes the look in my eyes. "Too much? Too blunt?"

"No. | am totally kissing you in my head too."

We end up kissing in my car after her shift hours later. | drop her off at her new apartment which | also got her

before heading hsmiling like a clown.

The next day, my brothers burst into my room first thing in the morning.

"What the hell are you guys doing?" | grumble as Ashton opens my blinds and bright light washes in. | was just

enjoying another kiss with Cree in my dream. Ashley yanks my blanket off my body while Asher tosses his iPad

next toon the bed.

"READ IT." He roars. They all stand around my bed, frowning.

My heart thumps in my chest before | even pick it up. It’s never a good sign when one is asked to read a new

article. What else has been written aboutthis time?

| let out an angry sigh as | see a bold picture ofkissing Cree outside the Grand Casa hotel after her shift. She

has been tagged my mystery girlfriend and details of my influence in getting her the job and even her salary

hike are all spelt out.

A couple lines of text grab my attention. Billion-Err goes on to tag it as adultery and hammers heavily about my

rumored marriage to a woman named Olivia Dunn. Olivia's picture is even splattered across the blogs. My fingers

curl into fists as only one culprit comes to mind.

Maddie!

ork

While | manage to convince my family of the lie about my relationship with Cree being a ploy to unmask Shay, |

secretly call Cree to calm her down and ensure she gets a paid leave from work to avoid the paparazzi hounding

her.

Olivia has been enraged since she heard the news.

"How could you? How could you betraylike that? You promised you would loveand giveall the

happiness | want if | gave you a chance, Ashal. I've changed myself for you so much that | don’t even recognize