Lemira watched as Asher lunged forward and slapped Evelina so hard she went flying.
Evelina spun around twice, trying to grab onto someone to steady herself, but everyone scrambled back, afraid of getting hit.
She ended up crashing onto the lawn, half her face already swelling up.
Lemira clicked her tongue. It was a good thing this was an outdoor garden party. If they had been indoors, Evelina would have split her head open.
At this, the entire crowd was stunned.
Evander quickly wheeled himself over and grabbed Asher's arm. "Asher, what are you doing? Are you trying to kill her?"
"If I could, I would kill this shameless woman."
Asher was furious enough to commit murder. He couldn't believe Evelina had caused such a disaster at such a crucial moment, completely disgracing the Langston family.
Seeing her chance, Lemira interjected, "Asher, that's not right. You're all family, after all. Can't you just let it go?"
After she spoke, she saw the murderous look in Asher's eyes and couldn't help but smile.
This boomerang she'd thrown was definitely going to hurt.
Evelina struggled to sit up, her cheek numb with pain. She looked at Asher with an innocent expression. "Asher, what did I do wrong? Why did you hit me?"
She felt deeply wronged. With so many high-society figures watching, how could she ever show her face in public again?
Asher pointed a trembling finger at her and yelled, "Where were you just now?"
"I... I just went to the restroom."
Evelina stammered, feeling a pang of guilt. Of course, she wasn't going to admit she'd been with Dorian in a private suite.
Everyone was outside at the party; surely no one had noticed what she was doing.
As soon as she said that, someone in the crowd sneered, "From what we saw, it didn't look much like a restroom. More like a private suite."
"Tsk, tsk. I never knew that Dorian kid was into such kinky stuff."
"And I never thought a girl from the Langston family would be so forward. Getting it on in a suite like that? How cheap can you get?"
Hearing these comments, Evelina's heart sank. What was going on?
How could they possibly know? It was impossible!
Evander was practically exploding with rage after seeing another man with Evelina.
Evelina tugged at Evander's sleeve. "Evander, I... I want to go home. Please, take me away."
She had to get out of there immediately, or she'd never be able to explain her way out of this.
"Hey Dorian, still enjoying your post-coital smoke over there? Someone over here is calling you a bastard and wants to kill you."
Dorian, who had been blissfully smoking, heard this and sauntered over, cigarette dangling from his lips. He was shocked to see Evelina's swollen face.
Dorian rushed to her side. "Eve, what happened to your face? Which son of a bitch dared to hit you? I'll beat the hell out of them for you."
After all, he was quite fond of Evelina; she was pure, innocent, and knew how to please a man.
When Evelina saw Dorian, she started trembling in fear. Damn it, what was she going to do now?
It was over. Completely over.
Evander grabbed Dorian by the collar, his eyes blazing with fury. "You bastard, you're the one who raped Eve, aren't you? The Langston family will never let you get away with this!"

Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: When They Beg I Rise (Lemira)