All Chapters of Beautiful Disaster: Chapter 161 - Chapter 170

"How do we get in?" Marybeth mumbled to herself when she noticed there was no intercom."Daddy keeps the gate remote in his drawer," said Orlando as she wedged herself in the small space between the two front seats."Drawer?" Scarlett asked, her eyebrows fusing together in confusion."She means the glove compartment," replied Marybeth as she pulled it open and fiddled around."Yes, the glove compartment! That's what I wanted to say!" Orlando chimed in. "Press the green button, Marybeth, and the gate should open."Marybeth followed the instructions to the tee, and a moment later, the gate slid open, barely making a sound despite its humongous size.They drove up a long winding driveway and stopped near the colossal fountain facing the front door. When Orlando removed her seatbelt and tried to jump out of the car, Marybeth nicely asked her to stay put. She didn't know the situation inside the house, and the last thing she needed was to lead her into a minefield."But I want to see Gramps

Marybeth drove a kilometre or so before pulling up on the roadside when she noticed Austin's hands trembling violently on his lap. She killed the engine and turned her entire body to look at him, taking both his hands in hers."What happened back there," she began as she gently kneaded his hands to soothe him. "Should never happen to anyone. And I'm sorry it happened to you, of all people. I know how much the family means to you—""I'm okay," Austin cut in, but Marybeth quickly hushed him up as she held his face in her hands, gazing into his eyes, "you are not okay. And no one can fault you for it. But whatever your feelings are about Iris and the stuff with your father, I need you to put a firm lid on them because there's a little girl who loves you with her heart and soul, waiting for you at home. Can you do that? Can you do that for me, please?""I'm sorry, I don't know if I can," Austin said, pulling away from her, adding as he stared off into the distance, "how do I look at Orly w

As soon as Orlando conked out while they read Beauty and the Beast for the millionth time, Austin headed to his study and jumped on the phone.He was exhausted and emotionally spent, but too many pots were burning, and they all needed his attention.The first order of business for the night was a call to Blake.As brief as their chat was, Austin couldn't help but wish he could jump into the phone and strangle him. There really was a fine line between love and hate, and he couldn't believe how quickly it could blur. But furious as he was, Austin was glad Blake was out of town when he confronted their father. He was way too emotional earlier, and if he wanted to destroy his brother, Austin knew he needed a cooler head and enough time to work on his plan."Why are you pulling me off Nadia?" Blake demanded on his end, interrupting Austin's thoughts of revenge. "I thought we agreed—""I'll handle it!" Austin cut in, praying he didn't sound as enraged as he felt. "Your fiancée is pregnant. Y

Austin's rage hit him like a ton of bricks when he stepped into the living room, and his eyes fell on all the numerous photographs of Iris covering every corner and crevice. He didn't mind when Orlando brought them back last week, figuring she missed her mom. But now…knowing everything he knew, he couldn't stand seeing Iris' face, and he was so terrified that if he continued to stand there like his feet were stuck in a block of concrete, he'd trash his living room. So he forced himself to move along and get Orlando's pancakes ready. Austin knew how to cook, but it wasn't something he enjoyed. Today, though, he was grateful for the distraction. It kept his mind from wandering into dangerous territory. The first batch of pancakes was done forty-five minutes later when Orlando bounded into the room, dressed in her school uniform and her hair tied in lopsided pigtails."Where's Marybeth?" she asked as she jumped onto the barstool and watched him pour a thin stream of batter into the non

As soon as Austin saw his capos off, he returned to his study to check his emails, irritated as fuck when he didn't see anything from Laura Stone and Sienna. They'd clearly not taken the bait. Maybe he should have tried harder to sell them the dream. But now wasn't the time for regrets. Lionel would be arriving in exactly half an hour if he was as punctual as his daughter. So Austin got his ass in gear and rounded up his and Orlando's toothbrushes, hairbrushes, and combs. He bagged and sealed each item in its ziplock bag, labelled everything clearly, and shoved them in a black envelope. At 11:59 AM, the front doorbell rang, and Austin was damn relieved to find Lionel alone when he went to get the door. He'd worried he'd bring Danica along. "Son-in-law," Lionel effused, and Austin ignored his outstretched arms and shook his hand instead. "I must admit I was quite surprised to hear from you," Lionel said as Austin shut the door. "This is swanky," Lionel continued as he moved deeper i