Chapter 15 Your Shirt Has Her Lipstick Stain
When Gabriel arrived at Midnight Glow, Emily was indeed heavily intoxicated, slumped over the bar counter.
After thanking the bartender, Gabriel swept Emily up in his arms and carried her toward the exit.
Emily, who had been passed out drunk, slowly stirred awake. Seeing the man carrying her, her eyes became unfocused as she smiled dreamily, "Gabriel... I knew it... I knew you'd come for me... Gabriel, Dominic is such a bastard, he... he yelled at me... and then ignored me!"
Gabriel wanted to comfort her, but remembering Dominic's harsh words from earlier, he held back.
"You're drunk. Let me get you to the car first. When Dominic gets here, you'll go home with him." His expression was cold, his tone flat.
Emily became agitated, "I won't... I won't go home with him. I want to divorce him... divorce! Someone with such a terrible temper shouldn't... shouldn't be married!"
Gabriel didn't want to argue with someone drunk, so he ignored her complaints and didn't respond.
But Emily started crying, sobbing pitifully as she rambled, "Growing up sucks... you got married... you have kids now... you gradually only care about your family, about your wife... we can never be like when we were kids anymore... carefree, just... playing together."
Hearing this, Gabriel felt waves of emotion stirring in his chest.
He missed those days, too, when the three of them were as close as siblings.
"Gabriel, do you hate me now too... you have someone else in your heart... did you fall in love with that woman... just because she gave you children?"
Fall in love with Arabella?
Gabriel frowned. Where was this coming from?
"I... I want to have children for Dominic, too, but he keeps making excuses. Always saying I'm just a child myself... he must be afraid I'll use a baby to trap him. He doesn't want to... build a life together with me."
She rambled on and on, crying and complaining, blaming this person one moment and resenting that person the next.
Gabriel's heart felt like it was soaking in ice water during a harsh winter, dense waves of pain occupying every cell, leaving him unable to respond.
He settled Emily in the back seat, leaning her against the door, and handed her a bottle of water.
After waiting about ten minutes, Dominic's Porsche arrived.
He got out from the rear door and walked over to Gabriel's car. Seeing his wife completely wasted, he rubbed his forehead in exasperation.
Gabriel noticed his frustrated, irritated expression and said quietly, "She's drunk. Don't get angry with her. Wait until she sobers up, then you two can talk things through properly."
Dominic nodded, bent down, and reached into the car to lift Emily out.
Emily, half-drunk and half-awake, let her arrogant temper run wild.
She slapped Dominic across the face and angrily accused him, "Dominic, don't touch me! I'm not going home with you!"
Dominic's face turned cold. "Are you done making a scene? Gabriel abandoned his children and wife in the middle of the night to come find you. Are you satisfied now? You've been throwing tantrums since childhood. Do you think we can't all see right through you?"
Gabriel's expression twitched. He never expected Dominic to say something so harsh.
"Dominic..." He started to intervene, but Dominic wasn't listening.
He grabbed Emily's phone and fiddled with it, then held it up angrily, "You blocked me again? Facebook too? Emily, can you stop being so childish? You're in your twenties, not a little kid!"
Gabriel was taken aback, finally understanding why the bartender had called him instead of Dominic.
He sighed helplessly, beginning to wonder if their years of spoiling Emily had completely ruined her.
While he was lost in thought, Dominic used brute force to hoist Emily over his shoulder from the back seat.
"Gabriel, go home. My wife and I will handle our own problems." Without even looking at him, Dominic carried the struggling, flailing Emily toward his Porsche.
Watching the woman he'd loved for years being treated so roughly by Dominic, Gabriel couldn't help but feel hurt.
But after what happened today, their relationship had already become awkward. If he continued interfering, they might not even be able to remain friends.
It was late, and the early autumn night carried a hint of chill that quickly cleared his head.
He got back in his car, not caring how the other two sorted out their mess, and drove away quickly.
When he arrived home, it was already 2:30 AM, and Arabella was nursing the baby.
The moment their eyes met, the air obviously stiffened.
Gabriel pressed his lips together, walked closer, and said quietly, "We found Emily. Dominic took her home."
Arabella said nothing, only murmuring, "Let's get some sleep."
After speaking, she looked down at the baby in her arms again.
Her heart had long since gone numb.
————
The next morning.
When Gabriel got up for work, Arabella woke up, too.
But not wanting to face him, she remained perfectly still, continuing to pretend she was asleep.
Only after hearing his car drive away downstairs did she slowly sit up, staring blankly into space.
The sound of crying babies came from downstairs, bringing her back to reality as she got up to wash and dress.
In the bathroom, she spotted the shirt her husband had changed out of when he returned home in the middle of the night.
On the shoulder of the white dress shirt were obvious lipstick marks and foundation stains.
This meant they had at least embraced.
As for whether there had been any more intimate contact, like kissing, that was anyone's guess.
She couldn't help but smile coldly, wondering if he had hugged Dominic's wife right in front of Dominic.
It really was a miracle he hadn't gotten punched.
Or maybe this was just how chaotic the world of the wealthy was?
Sudden rage flared up inside her. She grabbed the shirt, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it in the trash can.
Even though any random piece of his clothing cost upwards of ten thousand dollars, in her eyes it was just garbage—no! It was dirtier than garbage!
After getting ready and going downstairs, Arabella saw the bouquet still sitting in the living room and found it utterly mocking.
Just last night, for a brief moment, she had actually entertained the illusion that maybe she and Gabriel could create something miraculous together, that their home could become truly happy and complete. But reality had quickly delivered a crushing reversal.
"Mike, have someone throw these flowers away," she instructed the butler as she sat down to breakfast.
The conscientious old butler Mike hesitated, torn.
These were the flowers Gabriel had personally brought home yesterday.
Seeing Mike's hesitation, Arabella looked at him and said, "What, don't I even have the right to throw out garbage in this house?"
"No, no, that's not what I meant." Hearing the seriousness in her tone, Mike quickly gestured to one of the staff.
A servant stepped forward, gathered up the enormous bouquet, and carried it outside.
This news would naturally reach Gabriel's ears.
Learning that Arabella had ordered the flowers thrown out the moment she got up, even calling them garbage, he immediately understood that she was still bothered by what had happened last night.
Not just bothered. She was furious!
He remembered Dominic's words about women being petty. Apparently, the one he'd married was no different.
Evelyn knocked and entered to report on the day's schedule.
He listened absentmindedly, and even after she finished her briefing, he remained unresponsive.
Being as sharp as she was, Evelyn observed her boss's expression and immediately understood, "Mr. Sterling, you still haven't managed to smooth things over with Mrs. Sterling?"
Gabriel looked up at her, his pent-up frustration finally finding an outlet, "What kind of brilliant advice was that? She's allergic to pollen—she threw them out!"