The Marvelous Elijah's Return novel Chapter 92

Chapter 92: The last laugh 

Even though she was hesitant, Natalie pushed the huge wooden door open, and then looked back at Elijah and Peach, mumbling, “This is it.” 

Calmly Peach walked past her, entering the office, and Elijah let out a soft sigh before following her into the room, then Natalie closed the door, leaving the two alone. 

There was this long pause between them as they both stood awkwardly in the center of the room while she stared at him. 

“You knew you weren‘t going to go to jail, didn‘t you?” Peach asked, her voice calm but not exactly pleasant. 

“I had an idea,” Elijah replied, not looking at her. “I just... wasn‘t quite sure if I could pull it off. But I am glad I did.” 

A look of hesitation crossed her face for a second before she seemed to settle down and took a deep breath before speaking again, “I‘m just glad you and Matt don‘t get to go to jail.” 

‘But there are more your lips are refusing to say,‘ Elijah thought to himself, watching as Peach fidgeted slightly with her hands. 

It was no secret to her, at this point, that her husband was not a simple man and the fact that he could challenge the Hayes in such a way by what he did to Elmer made her realize that she wanted him by her side more than ever, not only in love but in every aspect of her life. 

Calmly, Peach darted her gaze around the huge office, feeling a sense of uneasiness rise up within her. 

“I can‘t believe I own this place… Thanks to you.” Peach muttered under her breath, taking another deep breath, before looking at him once more, “But I am scared and nervous... A bit shaken up, and... I don‘t know where to start.” 

Running her hands through her hair, she took one last steadying breath, mumbling, ‘This place has been operated by the Hayes for years, and everyone in here is loyal to them. Can I even be able to handle this position without running afoul of them?” 

For a moment, Elijah stared at the look of sheer panic on her face, and he slowly took his hands out of his pockets, closing the distance between them to grab her hand gently, asking, “You want this company, right?” 

“Well... yeah, yes. Of course.” Peach said, watching his eyes for a second, and then a small smile graced her face. “But I want to run it with someone I can trust... someone that has my back, umm... someone who‘s really smart, handsome, strong...” 

Even though he knew where she was going with this, Elijah couldn‘t help teasing her as he mumbled, “I am getting a bit jealous here. Like how can you describe someone else in front of your husband like that? Take pity on my poor heart, woman.” 

A wide laugh erupted from Peach, and she shook her head lightly as she gave his hand a quick squeeze, letting out, “You know what I mean.” 

When Elijah raised a brow, his expression blank, she chuckled, leaned closer, and said, “I want you as my partner, not only in marriage but in business.” 

Silent moments passed between them after those words as Peach stared at him, waiting for a response. When none came, she glanced down at her hand which still held onto his before lifting her head to look back at him and mumbled, “I know you have other plans, but-” 

“I would love nothing more than to be your business partner,” Elijah replied with a smirk, leaning his body towards hers as his free hand reached up to stroke his fingers against her cheek. 

Her eyes locked on his, staring deeply into them before she finally smiled, closing her eyes briefly as she let herself enjoy the moment, and then opened them once more, gazing at him fondly as she whispered.” Good. Because I was thinking about changing my name on the will from Peach Hayes, to Darius, so this place can have no ties to that family.” 

The mood grew more affectionate, and they were so wrapped up in each other‘s gazes as the silence stretched between them, that it felt as though time itself stopped. 

And when Elijah finally leaned in, brushing his thumb over her lower lip to part them, the door suddenly swung open, causing Elijah to swing his gaze away from Peach and onto an elderly man, storming into the room with a glare directed straight at Peach. 

She instinctively stepped backward, pulling her hand from Elijah‘s grip as she turned her body to face the old man, saying calmly, “Excuse me?” 

A scowl etched itself across the old man‘s wrinkled face as he growled, “You must be Peach Hay-” 

“Darius,” Peach interrupted firmly, stepping forward. 

Her tone made him shut his mouth instantly, and he cleared his throat, turning away from her just to meet Elijah‘s icy stare. 

“You are?” Elijah prompted, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice. 

Immediately, Matthew, Cora, Amelia, Tommy, Eli, and Dean stopped, staring wide–eyed at Elmer‘s bruised 

Shaking their heads as they looked at one another, Cora sighed, “Elmer, don‘t even try to downplay this shit...” 

“Yeah, we aren‘t buying it,” Eli added, glaring directly at Elmer. 

But his brother simply narrowed his eyes and walked off, leaving them all with a bewildered look on their faces. 

“This is unacceptable!” Mathew uttered firmly, looking over at Dean and the others 

“Whoever that asshole is... He better be praying for nine lives because he‘s going to be needing them pretty damn badly for this shit he did.” Dean muttered darkly. 

Reaching for her teacup, Madam Jewel raised it to her lips and took a long sip just at the moment Elmer marched through the doorway, and she immediately spat the tea out as she choked on the liquid, coughing furiously, clutching her chest, and tried desperately to catch her breath. 

“Elmer!!” Madam Jewel gasped out as she set the cup on the table and stood up. 

With a frown, Elmer moved forward towards his mother, and soon the others walked into the living room and Madam Jewel darted her eyes toward them before looking at Elmer. 

“What happened to your face!” She exclaimed, trying to keep her voice under control as she took a step forward toward him. 

When silence met her question, she frowned, and then asked again in a slightly raised voice, “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FACE, ELMER!” 

A weak sigh escaped Elmer‘s lips as he averted his gaze and murmured, “Elijah,” 1 

The room immediately went cold at that name, like everyone had been frozen solid and couldn‘t move from the sheer shock they felt.