Falling for my ex’s uncle novel

Chapter 37 Hanging up on Gavins call , I rubbed my temples , inexplicably uneasy .

What exactly does Alex want to announce at the birthday party ? That Im his wife ? But Austin and I just broke up not long ago .

Even though the online gossip about our love hate saga had been suppressed , it was unlikely that those who were following it would let it go so quickly .

More importantly , there was no need for me to make my marriage public .

While I did want to give Austin a bloody nose , I didnt want to become the target of everyones criticism .

Announcing being Alexs wife in public , I might face much verbal abuse .

But honestly , Alex didnt have a reason to ruin his birthday party for me , right ? I couldnt help but recall that stunningly beautiful face that took my breath away , along with those deep set eyes , seemingly gentle yet laced with laughter his gaze sent chills down my back .

Suddenly , the abrupt ringing of my phone broke the quietness of the room .

Glancing at the vibrating phone on the desk , I stood up wearily .

Just as I picked it up , the ringing abruptly stopped .

Seeing the incoming number , I frowned slightly- it was an unknown number .

Immediately after , I got a text from my cousin Maliyah : [ Laurel , are you in Nifelheim ? Javier has been taken to the police station .

] I froze for several seconds , and before I could do anything more , Maliyahs call came through .

Javier Peters and Maliyah Peters are the children of my aunt Bonnie .

Maliyah just graduated and got an internship at an ad agency this year , while Javiers still a sophomore , with so so grades , barely making it into a decent college .

But Bonnie was chill , cause with Javiers grades , just getting into uni was like a miracle .

She was not banking on him making it big and just wanted him to get that degree and land a job .

Laurel , are you in Nifelheim ? Im stuck at work , plus I dont wanna call Mom , shell freak out .

The anxious voice of Maliyah came from the phone , sounding down and all .

Where is he ? I asked , keeping it cool .

Norfield Police Department , Maliyah replied in a soft voice .

I frowned a bit , my eyes narrowing , thinking about Austins threat .

Whys he out in the burbs ? He didnt come home this weekend , hung out at a friends .

Ended up going to a restaurant , had a few drinks , and got into a fight with someone .

Maliyah sounded somewhat impatient .

He beat someone up ? Bad ? Nah , he got his ass kicked .

Maliyah cracked off a couple of laughs .

Relieved , a smile pulled at my lips .

Got it .

Ill go .

Keep on working .

Wanna grab dinner tonight ? Yeah , Im up for barbecue .

Her voice rolled with a tease of delight , her mood lightening up fast .

Before hanging up , she shot , Laurel , dont snitch to Mom , or Ill be in trouble too .

Gotcha .

Finishing the call , I texted Angela .

By the time I reached the lobby on the first floor , Angela was hurrying over to me and thrusting the car keys into my hand .

Take my ride .

Its over an hour both ways , she offered .

I paused a second , then took em .

I wont have time to join you for lunch today , so youll have to manage on your own .

Angela nodded , reminding me as she saw me out , Be careful on the road , and dont rush .

Rush ? Whats there to rush about ? 1/2 Chapter 37 +58 ) If it werent for the fact that the police cant detain people for more than 24 hours , I wish that punk would stay locked up longer , so I wouldnt have to worry about him causing more trouble outside .

Maliyah and Javier are real siblings , but theyre monumentally different .

Maliyah has always been a straight A student since she was little , never giving her mom any trouble .

Back when we lived in the countryside , Maliyahs room had a wall full of medals .

She was the kind of trophy child parents always talked about .

On the other hand , Javier has been a troublemaker since he was young .

When he was five , he actually picked a fight with a boy two years older than him .

He came back all beaten up , crying and hollering .

Bonnie was heartbroken , but still scolded him .

Ever since then , even if Javier was wronged in the worst way , he never came home crying to his mom .

After his dad passed away when Javier was eight , I saw him cry his heart out for the first and last time .

Every time I saw him now , he was all bravado .

My uncle died in the sweltering summer when Javier was in third grade .

Actually , my uncle had always been in poor health .

He was diagnosed with late stage stomach cancer when Javier was six , but he toughed it out for two more years , even hiding his illness from the family .

It wasnt until three months before he died that Bonnie found out about his illness .

When I heard about his sudden death , I was caught off guard , let alone Maliyah and Javier .

Since Uncle passed away , Bonnie poured all her energy into her career .

She needed more money to support the two kids , though she didnt really have to work herself to the bone because Uncle left them a settlement .

But she hadnt touched a single dime of that money until Javier got into a fight and smashed someones head with a beer bottle .

To smooth things over , my aunt ended up using that money .

She gave the rest to Javier without saying a word .

We all knew she was seriously mad .

After that incident , Javier stayed quiet for almost half a year , then went back to his old ways of getting into fights .

But , learning from last time , he at least knew the limits to his aggression .

Still , his visits to the police station became more frequent .

Thinking about it , I let out a long sigh .

My memories of Javier still lingered from his fathers funeral when he was eight .

I never imagined that Javier , who didnt even cry when someone broke his arm , could cry so bitterly then .

I even secretly felt fortunate at that time that I didnt have a father , and even if I did , I couldnt have shed so many tears as Javier could when I heard of his death , maybe not even a single drop .

Following the GPS , I drove to the police station .

As I parked on the side of the road , I spotted a black Mercedes parked nearby it looked somewhat familiar .

Walking into the station , I knocked on the door .

Hi , Im here to bail someone out .

i