Chapter 4

"When all the dust is settled and all the crowds are gone, the things that matter are faith, family and friends."

-Barbara Bush-

***

"Xenia, do not touch it, that's for your brother." Scarlett was putting some icing on the rest of  cupcakes in the kitchen when her eldest daughter decided to sneaked her way in, making an attempt to steal another cupcake from the counter. Of course, Scarlett could tell without looking since she had developed sharper senses since giving birth.

When she turned her body around to place the tray on the counter, the little girl looked up at her mother with a pout on her face, her big hazel eyes gleamed in anger when her tiny arms retreated in defeat.

In her toddler mind, she thought her mother was being unfair, why did her brother get to have it when she could not? Yes, Scarlett had given her one earlier, but one was not enough. The cupcake was so tiny she was able to finish it in four bites. 

She was about to protest when she heard a sound of footsteps coming from the front door. Her  eyes lit up in an instant. She abandoned her mother and ran all the way to the living room. Her little feet were a few steps away from the door when it slammed open revealing Carter who had just returned back from work.

He looked tired but delicious in his navy suit. He had a rather long day, leading a meeting with the board members, dealing with investors and many more, he planned to take a quick nap after taking a shower before dinner but he changed his mind when he saw Xenia.

Upon the sight of his beloved daughter, his face brightened up as any fatigue he felt  disappeared in an instant. The little girl's ponytail bounced in the air as she marched toward him.

"Daddy!" she squealed as she jumped into his arms, he picked her up and carried her in his arms with a joyous expression. He could smell her sweet baby powder scent, she was always looking adorable his heart could not take it, having his little girl greeting him every day after work truly acted as his support system. He wondered how many more years it would take until she was embarrassed to be seen with her daddy?

"Hello, little princess, how are you?" he caressed her wavy brunette hair before kissing her on  her red cheek. In return, she placed her hands on his cheek, tapping them playfully as a small glee escaped her tiny lips.

He was so busy playing with her he had not realized that Scarlett had come out of the dining  room with a jealous look on her face for the past three minutes. He caught a whiff of her scent in the air.

For the first time in a while, she smelt like sweet burnt sugar and vanilla, a nice switch from  he usual Amber and Tonka trails which always seemed to linger around her. Yet it did not match her sour expression because he did not pay enough attention to her.

"So, she gets a kiss and I don't?" she raised her eyebrow. Carter laughed at her remark before  putting their daughter down and went over to Scarlett to give her a kiss on the lips. The four years old girl crossed her arms as she watched  her parents making out right in front of her. They did not seem to care that their four years old daughter was watching.

Great parenting.

No longer wanting to be the third wheel, she slapped her father's pants and pulled him away from her with a nagging look.

"Daddy, mommy won't let me eat the cupcake, she said only Grayson can have it, it is not fair!" She pouted once more as she looked up to her father. She was holding on the leg part of his pants while shaking him continuously in a begging  mode. Her big eyes got even bigger when she stared up at him with glassy eyes.

"Please daddy, I want the cupcake." She begged with her sweet high pitched voice.

That damn look.

There was no way he could resist that cute face, he had a weakness for her, yet at the same  time, Scarlett was glaring at him with her hands on her hips, silently testing him who he was going to listen to. He hated those times when she made him choose between her and their daughter, but he needed to come up with a solution.

"You know she has a sweet tooth, but she had eaten her share of the cupcake, too much sugar is not good for her and you know it." Scarlett stated firmly while crossing her arms, she was not even trying to convince him to listen to her, she was making him listen.

He knew at this point he needed to pick a side. He lowered himself to better match the little girl's height before softly wrapping his shoulder around hers with an apologetic smile on his face.

"Mommy is right, you had your part didn't you? That's enough, okay?" Her pout turned into an  angry frown as she pressed her lips together into one thin line.

Scarlett smiled in victory, she had known her husband would listen to her, she turned her back and walked back to the dining room feeling proud of herself, she was clueless that once she was out of the sight, he went back to his daughter and said in a very low voice that almost sounded like a whisper.

"Don't worry princess, daddy will buy you some chocolate ice cream later, okay?" In an instant, her frown turned into a bright smile, she showed her array of tiny teeth, letting out a giggle before hugging him tightly, her body was tiny in comparison to his, which made the whole situation even more adorable. She thanked him and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before  running inside the house.

He watched her as she disappeared through the door, sighing to himself before taking a seat on the couch while thinking about what he just promised her earlier, he knew she should not have too much sweets since it might cause diabetes, but at the same time, he could never say no to his little girl and it made him question his credibility as a father.

Just then, another one of his child, the youngest son, Grayson Roman walked into the living  room after waking up from his nap. The little boy was rubbing his eyes as he walked toward him before having both of his arms stretched out to balance himself as he marched toward his father.

He possessed slightly curly, dark brown hair just like his daddy, beside having the cutest reddish nose and hazel eyes. Definitely a child who would grow up to be a dashing man, quite like his father.

Contrary to his older sister, who was a bit attention seeking, loud and bratty in the most adorable way, the boy was literally the perfect angel, he was quiet in a good way and rarely ever cried, full of curiosity and had the most affectionate gesture ever, he had no idea whose genetic the boy took but it certainly did not come from his side of the family.

"Dad-dy?" he muttered as he stood before Carter. He could not help but picked him up and hugged  him, gently patting his back with a soft smile on his lips. He giggled a little at the ticklish sensation.

Scarlett watched in awe at the father and son bonding moment, she had to admit that he looked good with a child. She was about to approach them when she heard a sound coming from the front door.

Carter was signaling her to pick it up since he was having the boy in his arms, she rolled her  eyes before getting the door, revealing Enrique and little Evan, his eldest son from his marriage with Alanna.

"Enrique, I did not  expect you to come at this hour, what a delight." she made the sarcastic  remark with the sweetest fake smile on her face before paying attention to the little boy who was so much shorter in comparison to his father.

Before Enrique could say anything, the boy briefly greeted Scarlett and rushed inside like he owned the place. Watching his rude behavior which was partially his fault, Enrique had to apologize, she sighed but  allowed him in anyway. She did not have to guide him because Enrique  knew the place so well already, he was practically an insider.

When they reached the living room, Carter and Grayson was staring at the young reign who spun around in confusion, his eyes were observing each corners as if he was looking for something.

"What are you doing, E?" Carter called him by his pet name.

"Where is Xenia?" he asked with an upset face when he could not find her anywhere. As if  they were linked, she suddenly ran out of her room to meet him, stretching out her little hands to give the boy a hug. The two of them  had been acting that way since they met each other for the first time around a year ago, and had they not known better, they would assume the kids were a mini couple.

A little background.

Evan Dominique Reign was the eldest son of Enrique Reign, he was fair with dirty blonde hair and  blue eyes, unlike the other kids, he seemed to be the amplified version of Enrique, at five years old, he had been showing innocent flirting toward Xenia. Everyone could not forget the one time when they found him kissing her, and when asked why, he casually replied,

"Daddy did it to mommy, he said you can do it to someone you love, I love Xenia, so I'm doing it to her." hearing those words coming from the boy's mouth made them  question whether they should laugh or felt concerned.

"Let's go to my room, I have some cool things to show you." Xenia said as she grabbed his hand, dragging him to her room, and the boy was not even protesting, instead,  he seemed happy.

"I sense those two are  going to have something between them in the future." Enrique casually  blurted out, Scarlett had her own opinion on it but decided to remain silent. It was probably just one of those "in the moment" remark.

They still had long years ahead of them and things could very much change. Keeping the topic aside, Carter jumped into the conversation and asked  him what he was doing in his house. The man casually sat down on the couch with both of his arms on the back of his head while his right leg was crossing over his left one.

"Can't I visit a friend? Beside it has been a while since the last time we met, how long has it  been? Two weeks? I can't even remember anymore." He picked up some sweets  from the table and placed it in his mouth.

"Oh, yeah, speaking of which, how is your brother doing? I haven't seen him in four years."  Scarlett took a seat on the side couch while sipping on her white tea. She was not expecting Enrique to mention her brother, as they were never close except for the one time when both worked together to fix her relationship with Carter. She placed her cup and leaned back on the  couch.

"Yes, he has been traveling a lot lately, I don't know what has gotten into him but it seems for the past three years he has come out of his shell and starts to explore more of the world around him, I heard he is currently in Moscow."

Enrique raised his eyebrow in suspicion, though he had often see Scarlett since the incident, her brother always seemed to be missing, he eventually knew the reason why, but he found it somewhat odd that  someone could change so much in such short period of time. In his case, it was for the better, but still, it felt weird for someone like him.

What had gotten into him?