Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem



But let me tell you-

Tarquin's demeanor towards Bobby was polar opposite to how he treated Clayton and the Patel brothers!

The warmth he showed Clayton was replaced by sheer animosity towards Bobby!

With eyes dark and voice as cold as frost, Tarquin demanded,

"What in the world did my family ever do to make the Murphys so livid, storming into the Hawkins' place like some cowboy roundup?!"

Bobby was in a panic, lowering his pride yet finding no solace.

Grinding his teeth in frustration, he kept up his forced smile,

"This is all one big misunderstanding, really, just a mix-up. Someone's out to frame the Murphys, and it's got nothing to do with Mrs. Bradford or the young Bradford lad. We made an error, and I'm here on behalf of the Murphys to apologize for the scare. Sorry about that."

Evan scoffed, "Apology not accepted, buddy!"

The kid was nearly fuming; if not for holding himself back, he'd have thrown a punch already!

He was in no mood to accept their so-called apology.

Elysia, too, glared at Bobby, dripping with sarcasm,

"The Murphys sure know how to play their cards, switching tunes from threats to apologies in a heartbeat! If my child's father was just any regular Joe, my son and I would probably be at the mercy of the Murphys by now!"

Bobby's face turned fifty shades of red from embarrassment!

Humiliated and enraged, he wondered, at his age, how he could stand being mocked in front of everyone. But what could he do? The Murphys couldn't afford to make an enemy out of Tarquin!

"Mrs. Bradford, I understand your frustration, and it was indeed the Murphys' fault. I'll make sure to send over a generous apology later." Elysia snorted and ignored him, turning to Tarquin to tattle,

"And Helen, hiring hitmen, trying to pin the blame on Mrs. Hawkins after plotting to harm Evan! The culprits confessed it was all to target him... Their family's cruelty knows no bounds!"

Roger hastily interjected,

"That was all Helen's doing, nothing to do with the Murphys at large. Let's not paint everyone with the same brush. You got beef, take it up with her, not the entire Murphy clan."

Bobby, infuriated, whacked him with his cane, signaling him to zip it!

With Helen plotting against Tarquin's own son, Tarquin's wrath could spell disaster for the Murphys, idiot!

The Murphys needed to distance themselves from Helen first and foremost!

Bobby quickly turned to Tarquin,

"This was the doing of a maid close to Helen, not Helen herself, let alone the Murphys! Mr. Bradford, if you doubt me, feel free to investigate it yourself."

Tarquin, with a furrowed brow and eyes seething with anger,

"Of course, I'll investigate. Whoever dares to target my son must be out of their minds! Until this is resolved, both Larry and Helen are suspects. If the Murphys wanna clear their name, best keep your distance!"

Tarquin's implication was clear: until the matter was resolved, the Murphys couldn't take Larry with them.

Clayton and the Patel brothers couldn't hide their excitement at this turn of events!

The faces of the Murphy men darkened.

Larry held secrets critical to the Murphy family's fortunes!noveldrama

If they couldn't get him out now, and he spilled those secrets, it'd be the end of the Murphys!

Bobby, swallowing his pride, insisted,

"Mr. Bradford, I can assure you Larry had no part in this. Let me take him with me for now. If you need him for the investigation later, feel free to summon him from the Murphys any time.

Should it turn out he was involved in plotting against your family, I'll personally deliver him to you, tied up bow and all!

To be frank, Mr. Bradford, my urgency in taking him today stems from a personal vendetta between him and Clayton. I fear the Hawkins might mistreat him in retaliation."