After a long three-hour flight, plagued by the worst turbulence Austin had ever experienced, he was a little confused, not to mention annoyed, when instead of his bodyguards, he found Mirko and Henry waiting for him at the heliport in the Bay."Who's looking after my wife when you're both here?" he asked Marybeth's handlers as they took his and Elizabeth's bags and placed them in the boot of their car."She's playing at the Back Of The Moon with Arno and Benji," replied Mirko.Austin wasn't exactly thrilled that his handlers had shirked off their responsibilities, but he nodded anyway, recalling a conversation he had with them some time back about inviting Marybeth to join their band. He never brought it up with her because he didn't think playing in a small has-been venue with very little foot traffic was her cup of tea. But, after dropping Elizabeth off at her apartment a few blocks from the pub, he was genuinely surprised to find his wife having the time of her life on stage with

The walk back to the pub was sombre and very different from earlier when they'd run to the beach like silly kids without a care in the world.Marybeth didn't understand how things could change so drastically in so little time. An hour ago, she was excited to have Austin home. But now, she couldn't help but worry and fear for their future. "What's on your mind?" Austin asked, giving her a sidelong glance when she sighed for the millionth time since they left their rendezvous spot."I'm just so terrified, that's all," she replied, admitting she feared for their safety, especially his. "Beth," Austin gently shook her out of her thoughts. "Do you trust me?"Of course, she did. But she didn't trust the people in his world. She didn't trust his father and Nikolai and Vishal. And she sure as hell didn't trust her mom. "Do you trust me?" Austin prompted, holding her by the shoulders as he stared straight into her eyes."Of course I do," Marybeth replied. "But I don't trust The Corporatio

They spent the rest of their afternoon locked up in their suite, avoiding the worst of humanity. Marybeth was doing most of the avoiding while Austin immersed himself in his work. By the time 5:00 PM rolled around, Marybeth was a hot mess, anxious out of her wits about meeting the Hawthornes' business associates. If she wasn't pregnant, she would have finished an entire bottle of whiskey to still her nerves. But since she was expecting, she had to settle for sparkling water instead. "How do I look?" she asked Austin for the hundredth time. And for the hundredth time, he told her she looked like a dream come true. "Are you sure?" she said, picking up a small figurine from a side table beside the fireplace. They were in the Old Cellar, waiting to receive their guests, and she couldn't sit still to save her life. The place used to be a barn but had since been converted into an event venue perfect for parties and conferences. "Relax," Austin said, taking the figurine from her. He pl

Vivienne took a long time to respond, and just when Marybeth began to think they'd spend the entire night on the veranda eyeballing each other in silence, she finally spoke, stating simply, "I had to see you.""Why?""Why not?" Vivienne threw the question back at her and, in a classic manipulator move, pulled out her victim card, smiling coyly, "I must confess, I was so disappointed when my name was removed from the guest list. But, it helps to know people. Nikolai Ivanov—I'm sure you've met him, seeing how close he is with the Hawthornes.""I have," said Marybeth, choosing to keep her feelings about Nikolai vague. She liked Andrei and could almost see herself growing closer to him if he and Austin ever fixed their relationship. He was a decent human being, making it even harder for her to understand how he was even remotely related to Nikolai. But then again, Austin was a decent human being, and his father was worse than scum—"—He needed a plus one," Vivienne continued, breaking thro

Marybeth had every intention of returning inside and finding Austin, but after her heart-to-heart with her mom, she couldn't bring herself to head to the reception room, where the crowd had doubled since she was there.She quickly found an exit, breathing a sigh of relief when she stumbled into the hotel's famed garden. She'd read about it on their website and had seen raving reviews on social media. Sometimes, the fantasy influencers wanted to portray was far from reality, so she was pleasantly surprised to see that all the internet stars weren't wrong about the garden. With a wide variety of flowers and vegetables, it really was a little paradise, a small piece of heaven on earth.For a little while, Marybeth strolled through the maze, stopping occasionally to smell the flowers or touch their petals. But there was only so much aimless wandering she could. Eventually, she found a wrought iron bench and sat down, loosening the straps of her stiletto sandals.She pulled out the pair of