~ Evelyn POV ~
Even though Clara was standing perfectly still at my side, her hand hovering over the tablet she was holding for me, I could feel the microscopic tremors radiating from her body.
It annoyed me, to no end.
It wasn’t that I was angry at her.
But at the thought that Julian Sterling, that walking piece of human waste still had enough power over her to turn her into this.
I had spent weeks working on her confidence, and helping her rebuild her self esteem, yet one look at him and she was falling apart.
Deep down I wanted to be the only one who could move her, not him.
“Focus, Clara,” I murmured, my voice was low that only she could hear as I shook hands with a senator.
I felt her take a deep breath.
“I’m… I’m sorry, Miss Evelyn.”
“Don’t be sorry. You haven’t done anything wrong,” I said, my gaze finally snapping toward Julian across the room and I caught him looking at us.
Or rather, he was staring at her.
With the way he looked at her, I’m certain he didnt recognize her.
To him, the woman he had spent years abusing and had given away without much thought could never be in this room.
I watch him do that arrogant tilt of his head, the one he used when he wanted to pick up a new woman.
The nerve of him trying to brazenly flirt with her from across the room.
No shame at all
I felt a wave of anger hit me as his eyes trailed down her body.
He was eyeing the curve of her waist, the line of her neck, with the hungry eyes of a man who wanted a new toy.
“I… I need to go to the restroom,” i heard Clara whisper, her voice sounding small and choked.
I looked at her.
Her face was pale, her eyes wide with a fear she couldn’t hide.
I should have insisted that she stay.
But I saw the desperation in her eyes, so I let her go.
Atleast there she can catch her breath and be away from his line of sight.
“Go,”
But my eyes was on Julian, tracking him as he set his drink down on a passing tray.
“I’ll be right behind you.” I told her
I watched her slip away through the crowd almost in a hurry.
Two seconds later, Julian made his move.
He didn’t even try to be subtle.
He followed her instantly, a sly grin on his face, oblivious to the fact that he was walking straight into his own destruction.
Smirking I handed my glass to a waiter, then wave Francis over as i got ready to follow julian.
“Clear the hallway near the west restrooms. And get the security team ready. I have some trash that needs to be disposed of.” I said, my voice devoid of any warmth.
Julian Sterling had spent years making Clara feel small.
He was about to find out what happened when he tried to touch something that belonged to me. This story is hosted at g.com.
I rounded the corner just as Julian stepped into the rest room.
He didn’t look like the “charming socialite” he lived to portray in front of the cameras.
Up close, his face was twisted with a familiar cruelty.
I saw him reach out, and mockingly flick the sapphire earring she was wearing.
“Will you look at that,” he chuckled pinning her in between his arm on the wall.
“Seems like the little mouse found a new hole to hide in. And look at the dress she’s wearing. Do you actually think these diamonds make you look like you belong here, Clara?”
Clara was stood like a statue, fidgeting as her eyes darted everywhere but his closeup face.
She wasn’t just scared; she looked terrified.
As though trapped in whatever hell he had built for her during those years of marriage.
“I saw you tonight, standing behind Evelyn Vance like a loyal little dog,” Julian leaned in.
“Is that what you are now? A glorified servant? You always did like being told what to do anyway. Always were so desperate for a master.”
He gave a short, ugly laugh when he saw her flinch.
“Oh do you perhaps think she’s will save you from me? You must not know her at all.” He snarled
He reached out and gripped her chin, forcing her to look up at him.
His fingers dug into her skin, and I saw her eyes finally meet his—they were glassy, with unshed tears.
“You’re still that same girl, Clara,” he whispered, his face inches from hers.
“Still weak and pathetic.”
She didn’t fight him, didn’t even try to push his hand away.
She just stood there, absorbing every vitriol he threw at her and that annoyed me.
“That’s quite enough, Julian.”
My voice cutting right through his pathetic rambling.
He flinched, his hand dropping from Clara’s chin as if he’d been electrocuted.
He turned around, trying to smooth his features into that fake, socialite smile, but his eyes were darting everywhere like a thief caught in the act.
I didn’t wait for him to speak.
I stepped into the space between them, my shoulder brushing against his as I forced him back.
I could feel Clara behind me.
She didn’t move and just grabbed the back of my blazer.
“Evelyn,” he said, his voice forced and thin.
“When…when did you get here…?” He stammered
“Uhmm, Clara and I…..We were just catching up. You know She’s… she’s my wife, after all.”
“She was your wife,” I corrected him, my gaze boring into his.
“Now, she is my assistant. Which means she is currently under my roof and my protection. If you have something to say to her, you say it through my legal team. Otherwise, you don’t speak to her at all. That was the deal you signed”
“Protection?” He let out a mocking laugh,
“You’re acting like she’s some prize. She’s a broken girl, Evelyn. I’m doing you a favor by reminding her—”
“You aren’t doing anything”
“Except making a fool of yourself and harassing a woman in a restroom hallway. It’s pathetic, Julian. Even for you.”
“If you ever touch her again” I said, taking a step towards him,
“If you ever so much as look in her direction, or even breathe near her, I will not just sue you, Julian, I will make sure you spend the rest of your life wishing you had stayed back in the ballroom”
Not giving him a chance to retort.
I signaled to my security, who were already closing in into the restroom of the hallway.
“Mr. Sterling is leaving,” I said, my eyes never leaving his pale face.
“Permanently. Ensure he is escorted to the curb. And make sure the press gets a very clear photo of him being kicked out of a Vance event. I want everyone to know he is no longer welcomed in anything Vance related”
Julian’s face went from pale to a mottled, angry red.
“You can’t do this, Evelyn! My family—”
“Your family is currently looking for investors, Julian,” I said, finally looking back at him with a cold smile.
“Do you really want to find out what happens to those investors when I tell them you spent your evening accosting my person?.”
Julian’s face went white.
He opened his mouth to protest, but the guards didn’t give him the chance.
They seized him by the arms, dragging him toward the back exits.
He didn’t look like a powerful socialite anymore; he looked like exactly what he was—a pathetic excuse of a man.
Few minutes later the hallway fell into a deafening silence.
I turned around.
Clara was still pressed against the wall, her chest heaving as she finally remembered how to breathe.
Tears were streaming down her face, ruining the expensive makeup I had paid for.
“Clara,” I said, my voice softening just a fraction.
She didn’t answer.
She just lunged forward, burying her face in my shoulder and sobbing into my shoulder.
She was shaking so hard I thought she might collapse.
My first instinct was to stand still…to stay professional, to keep that distance I always insisted on.
But then I felt her tears soaking through the fabric of my suit, and my arms moved before my brain could stop them.
I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her in, and gently tapping her on the back.
“He’s gone,” I said, my voice surprisingly steady despite the way my own heart was beating.
“He can’t touch you anymore. I will make sure of it.”
She didn’t answer, just clung to me like I was the only thing keeping her world from falling apart.
I told myself I was just protecting an asset.
But as I held her, I knew I couldn’t be anymore wrong