From Ashes of Scandal to His Embrace (Laurinda) novel Chapter 125

Laurinda woke up to her phone buzzing on the nightstand, Jasper’s voice coming through the speaker sounding a little wounded.

“Laurinda, you promised you’d come with me to the piano competition today. Why didn’t you come home last night?”

For a moment, she just lay there, heavy with sleep. She cracked one eye open, checked the time, then flopped onto her other side.

“I was up way too late last night. I seriously can’t get up right now. Let the butler take you.”

Her words were muffled, barely above a whisper, but Jasper could tell she was still half asleep. He went quiet, then after a pause, asked, “Can I call Irvin? I want him to come with me.”

“Yeah, call him. If he can’t, just ask the butler to take you. I’ll come find you later, okay?”

Laurinda was barely awake, but she hated the idea of missing Jasper’s big moments. She wanted him to grow up like any other kid, with someone cheering him on when it mattered most.

“Alright. My performance isn’t until ten, so you can sleep a bit more.”

Jasper hung up, his mood instantly lifting. Deep down, he knew lots of people could go with him, but nobody mattered as much as Laurinda seeing him on stage.

About half an hour later, Laurinda finally dragged herself out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom to wash her face. Still half asleep, she wandered into the walk-in closet and bumped straight into a warm, solid chest.

Her hand landed flat against a man’s stomach. The firm muscles under her palm instantly chased away any leftover sleepiness. She jerked her hand back, cheeks burning, and spun around to leave.

She didn’t get two steps before a strong arm caught her and pulled her right back.

“Leaving already? Just gonna touch and run?”

Harden was up front, sitting next to a boy who looked about twelve. The moment he saw Laurinda and Adolphus, his eyes landed on their joined hands. His expression darkened, and he frowned. He just couldn’t understand what Laurinda saw in the school doctor.

He’d already checked the guy out. Just a regular doctor from Cabinda. Nothing special. Why did Laurinda like him so much?

“Harden, your phone’s getting crushed,” the boy beside him whispered.

Harden was acting intense, not half as friendly as Fabian used to be. He was like a different person depending on who was watching.

Lawrence’s reminder did the trick. Harden tore his gaze away from Laurinda and glanced down at his bent phone. “It’s fine. I needed a new one anyway.”

Irvin leaned over Adolphus and spoke quietly to Laurinda. “Jasper was starting to think you weren’t coming. He’s twelfth in the lineup. Make sure you text him so he knows you’re here.”