Chapter 40

Avenging angel

“How dare you?” the anger in Ava’s voice was palpable.

Brenda sneers as if she had more important things to do. “It’s not my fault that the she can’t look where she’s going. This is a limited edition Luis Vuitton dress and the brat almost ruined it by splashing juice on it”

Brenda and Ava have never gotten along. I knew she was bullied at school and that Brenda was her biggest tormentor.

The girl I they were talking about was cowaring behind Ava. She couldn’t have been more than five years old. She was cute, with a pretty pink dress, a heart shaped face, round lips and long black hair cascading down her back.

I can imagine having a little girl with my grey eyes and Ava’s shinny brown hair.

I freeze in my seat. What the hell? Where the fuck did that thought come from? Shaking my head.

and banishing those thoughts, I focus on Ava. Looks like Ava was finally putting her in her place.

“Are you kidding me? That’s a really stupid reason to hurt a child especially given we’re here because of them” Ava admonishes, a frown marring her beautiful face.

“It’s not a stupid reason” Brenda stomps her foot like a petulant child. “I’m not going to allow an orphan child who doesn’t know the meaning of what it is to be rich ruin a dress that costs more than she’ll ever see in her life”

Shocked gasps fill the room. Brenda turns and realizes that she had an audience and that they aren’t happy with her.

“That’s not what I meant…” she rushes to save face after noticing the angry gazes that were directed at her.

“You know what? Leave. Given your attitude towards these children, I don’t see the need for your presence here” Ava says then motions for one of the many bodyguards stationed around the entrances “What? You’re kicking me out?” Brenda stammers.

Ava just rolls her eyes, “Obviously”

“You can’t do that, I’ve donated lots of money to this stupid foundation, you can’t just kick me out Ava smiles. A wicked smile. She then calls for Mary who rushes to her.

*Check how much she’s donated to the foundation” she instructs and Mary begins tapping on her tablet.

“One million dollars” Mary answers after a while.

Ava turns to Brenda, looking at her coolly. “You see, what we don’t need in this foundation is someone like you. Someone arrogant enough to think that we can’t do without their money.” She then turns back to Mary. “Transfer the exact amount back to her account”

Everyone watches in surprise. No one says anything and no one moves.

“It’s done boss” Mary says smiling.

“Now that you have your money back, get the hell out of my banquet and from now on you are banned from any event I or my foundation hosts” There was steel in her voice, a tone I have never heard Ava use.

Brenda starts cursing at Ava and the foundation. Ava nods at the bodyguard and he drags her out kicking and scream. After she’s out, Ava turns to the room.

Just like with Christine, this was going to affect Brenda’s social standing alot. This was the best fucking revenge Ava could take on her.

“Anyone else share in the same opinion as Brenda? Like I said, we are here because of these kids and I’ll go through anyone who thinks they can mistreat them” her voice rings across the room, steady and strong even without a microphone.

Right then she looked like a damn avenging angel. Ready to strike down anyone who even so much as looks at the children wrong When no one says anything, she smiles. “Well then, sorry for the interruption and I do hope you have a lovely time”

My eyes zone in on her as she turs around and walks away. She disappears outside, to the balcony Emma says something to me but I ignore her. My eyes fully focused on my ex–wife.

I stand up and push my chair back, then leave. Emma calls my name but I don’t turn back. I take long strides in Ava’s direction, Soon I’m outside the room.

She stands at the balcony. Her face facing the now darkening sky, her hair blowing in the wind Now, that I was here I didn’t know what to fucking say. I haven’t spoken to Ava since that day at her house. All my text and calls for the past two weeks have gone answered.

I step forward. My steps probably alerted her because she turns slightly. When she sees it’s just me, she tenses.

“What do you want Rowan?” she asks in a sigh.

I step further forward until I’m standing beside her.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I was puzzled. She was my wife and she never said a thing.

“Tell you what?”

“Everything… The Hope Foundation and the fact that you aren’t hurting for money. Why did you let all of us look down on you?”

She snorts before turning to fully face me. “And when was I supposed to tell you? You barely wanted to be around me and you would even go to great lengths to make sure we aren’t together for long.”

I stare at her. Looking deep in her brown eyes. There was something new in them. Something that wasn’t there before. There was also something missing.

She continues as she looks outside towards the garden. “Besides would you even have been interested? As far as I can remember, you didn’t particularly care about anything that concerned me”

My eyes drift as I watch people walking in and outside of the garden. She was right. I had been a cold bastard. I rationalized at that time that I didn’t need to care about what the woman who had destroyed my life was doing.

I resented Ava and it showed in the way I fucking treated her for years. I always prided myself in being a good person, but looking back I have to admit that I had been prick. So much so that my wife kept a whole part of her life a secret to me.

“About Emma…” I go to apologize for the words I carelessly threw at her but she cuts me off.

“Don’t worry about it, I’m not after you Rowan and I don’t plan to come between you and Emma, you can rest assured that all the love I had for you is dead. You managed to kill it She takes a steadying breath “Loving you was the biggest mistake I have ever made and I don’t plan on continuing with that mistake”

Fuck, why the hell did it feel like someone took a fucking sledge hammer to my heard at those words?!

“I will always be thankful because you gave me Noah. He’s the only good thing you’ve given me since I’ve known you. I regret falling in love with you but I will never regret our son.”

She turns around and faces the door to the room. She smiles and I swivel around to look at what she’s staring at. Her eyes were on Ethan.

“I’m sorry for the trouble I caused you” she says her eyes still on the fucking bastard. “I’m sorry that my mistake tore you from Emma, I know no one believes me especially you, but I was drunk that night.

Anyway, I wish you the best with your new relationship”

As if feeling eyes on him, Ethan turns and fucking smiles at Ava.

“I plan to stay away from your life and I ask you do the same. Don’t come to my house, don’t hire bodyguards for me, don’t call me unless it concerns Noah and even then I prefer you pass any messages to your lawyer then he can forward it to mine” Her eyes were still fixed on Ethan The way she looked at him let me know that something was going on between them. I didn’t like the uncomfortable feeling I was having inside me.

She finally faces me. “I think I’ve said all there is to say…goodbye, Rowan” she then begins walking towards the door.

My heart is screaming for her to stop and I clench my fist against the unknown need to pull her to me.

She stops and then turns around. “One more thing, please assure Emma that I don’t want anything to do with you and on that note, you might want to get the truth from her. If you want your relationship to work, then it can’t be built on lies she told just to get me into trouble”

With that she walks away.

“Ava…” her names leaves my lips in a fucking plea.

I watch as Ethan meets her half way. He then takes her hand and leads her outside. I face forward just in time to see them making their way into the garden It takes everything in me to stop myself from losing control when I see Ethan kissing her I quickly turn around to avoid seeing them. My fucking heart drumming in my chest.

This is what I wanted. That she would move on and leave me and Emma the hell alone. I got what I wanted She was stepping aside. She had a new man. So why the hell did it feel like it was one big fucking mistake? Why did it feel like something inside me was dying?

She was supposed to be the wrong woman. Yet now that she walked away, I can’t help but feel lost.