My Prison Penpals (The Undertakers #1)

Chapter 1 Wren

CHAPTER ONE

WREN

“Robert?” I step out onto the back patio where he’s been pacing for the past twenty minutes. I waited until I saw him hang up his phone before coming out to speak to him. I know better than to interrupt when he’s on a call.

“Hmm?” He stares off into the large manicured yard, clearly still distracted.

“Is everything alright?”

“What do you mean?” He finally turns, giving me his full attention.

“You seem… upset. Is everything okay? Who was on the phone?”

He frowns at me in disappointment, and I instantly realize my error.

Never ask about a man’s private affairs.

Pushing his phone into his pocket, he steps up close to me. I swallow nervously as I try to maintain my posture and not cower. I know he’d never hit me, but disappointing him cuts just as deep.

“Wren, you know better than to ask a man something so personal.”

Dipping my head with a nod, I quickly agree. “You’re right. I’m sorry, Robert. You just looked upset. Is there something I can do to cheer you up?”

He gently grips my upper arm, giving me a slight squeeze of reassurance, and I glance up at him, hoping he’s not mad at me.

He offers me a small smile. “You’re such a good sister to me, Wren—so sweet and kind. I tell you what, if you want, you can get me a glass of whiskey. You remember how I like it?”

I nod eagerly, happy to do something for him since he does everything for me. He’s raised me since our parents died when I was only five. He was twenty-one at the time, so he legally adopted me and has given me a safe home to grow up in. I’d do anything for him.

“Neat, two fingers,” I tell him, proud to know the correct answer.

He smiles warmly, dropping his hand and nodding toward the back door. “Go on then. Bring it to me, then you can get started on dinner.”

“Would you still like lamb? I also have some veal in the fridge and could make Osso Buco, if you’d prefer?” I ask, eager to please him.

He smiles again, telling me I was right to ask. “Roasted lamb is perfect, Wren.”

“Okay, I’ll be right back with your drink.” I scurry away and get it as quickly as possible. After that, I work on dinner.

One of the nicest things Robert has ever done for me is hiring a professional chef to teach me how to cook.

He even told them all his favorite meals so they would incorporate those recipes into my training.

Now I can make everything he loves: Beef Wellington, Duck à l’Orange, Lobster Thermidor, Coq au Vin.

I secretly hoped he would let me taste one of them one day. Of course, I tested everything while cooking, but having a plate filled with lamb shanks for dinner or eggs Benedict for breakfast… that’s my secret dream.

I understand that type of food isn’t for women, that I need to eat a clean, vegetable-heavy diet, one that would help me stay in shape. But it didn’t mean I didn’t daydream about sinking my teeth into one of the meals I cooked for him and his friends.

Setting the lamb shank down in front of Robert, where he sits at the head of the dining room table, I see his eyes light up and release a breath of relief.

He approves.

I go back to the kitchen, grab the other two plates, and place them in front of Carlos and Theo, two of his closest friends and employees.

“Thank you, Wren,” Carlos says with a grin that makes my skin prickle with unease.

“Looks fucking fantastic,” Theo says, licking his lips.

“Theo!” Robert scolds. He hates when people swear. Although I’ve heard him cussing up a storm behind a closed door before, I wonder if it’s just that he doesn’t like them swearing around me.

“Err—Sorry, boss,” Theo says sheepishly.

I grab my plate, filled with a mixed green salad and some small pieces of lamb cut up on top, and sit down beside Robert, across from the other two.

“You’ve outdone yourself again, Wren,” Robert says after taking the first bite.

“Really? You like it?” I ask hopefully.

“Yes, it’s delicious.”

“Mmm, fantastic,” Carlos moans. I flick my eyes to his, finding him staring at me as he licks his lips. I squirm in my chair, dropping my eyes to my plate. He always makes me feel uncomfortable, his unwanted gaze sending a shiver down my spine.

Remembering my role as the woman of the house, I finish my mouthful of bland lettuce and turn to Robert. “How was your day?”

“It was actually an extremely successful one.”

“Really? Did you close a big deal?” I ask, toeing the line between appropriate conversation and overstepping into his business.

He runs a multi-million-dollar investment firm, constantly buying and selling, but that’s pretty much all I know.

I understand it’s the man’s job to bring in the money, and the woman’s job to support him at home, but sometimes I wish I could learn about the family business.

“So to speak, yes. I think our future is going to be very bright. How about you? What did you do today?”

I sit up straighter, eager to share my day with him.

“Well, I finished that cross-stitch I’ve been working on, and I practiced the song you requested on the piano.

I could play it for you later, if you’d like?

I think I’m improving.” I hear the eagerness in my request, but being alone all the time sucks.

I was dying for his company. He works too hard.

Robert had decided to get me piano lessons a couple of years ago when I started getting bored and asked about leaving the house. It helped to fill my time, even if I didn’t love it. But it was like cooking, I did it because it made him happy.

“Actually, I have a guest coming over tonight that I’d like you to meet. Perhaps you can play it for both of us?”

I perk up at the idea of meeting someone new. Being stuck in the huge house, even with all the staff and his business associates, felt incredibly lonely and boring.

“Yes, I’d love to! What should I wear?” I ask, knowing he’ll want to choose my attire.

“I had a new dress made just for you. It should be in your room now.”

“You didn’t need to buy me a new dress, Robert. I have so many already.”

“Wren…” He says my name in warning, and my back goes ramrod straight, making sure that even though I messed up, at least my posture is correct.

Apologize and thank him.

“I’m sorry, Robert. What I meant to say was, you shouldn’t have, but I appreciate the gesture. Thank you for thinking of me, and for the lovely gift.”

He watches me for a moment before nodding in approval and taking another bite of food. Theo snorts in amusement, but when I glance at him, he’s looking at his plate. There’s a thump under the table, and he grunts. Did Carlos just kick him?

After we finish eating, I clear the table and finish cleaning the kitchen before heading to my room to get ready for the evening.

The dress Robert bought for me is the prettiest thing I’ve ever owned.

It’s white, the color of fresh cream, with lace along the neckline and sleeves that make me feel like a princess from one of the old storybooks I used to read.

The skirt flares gently when I move, brushing my knees, light enough to swish like flower petals.

A satin ribbon ties around my waist, snug but soft, and somehow makes me look curvier.

The fabric is thinner than anything I usually wear, but if Robert wants me to wear it, it must be appropriate, so I try not to fuss with it.

When I check the mirror, I realize it’s somehow making me look younger than my twenty-six years. It makes me feel insecure and a little self-conscious, but that’s nothing new; nothing I wear ever feels like me.

My eyes catch onto my desk in the reflection, and I quickly turn and run over to it, yanking open the top drawer where the envelope still sits. I shoved it in there earlier today when it arrived with the rest of the mail before anybody saw it.

I run my finger over my name and take a deep breath. It’s killing me not to open it right now, but I know I won’t want to leave my room for hours after reading it. Reading letters from them always made time drift away, and I couldn’t afford to be late.

Slamming the drawer shut, I stand tall, push my shoulders back, and lift my chin, like I’ve been taught.

Alright, Wren, time to put your game face on.

I plaster a small smile on my face and head downstairs.

Approaching the parlor, I try to ignore the stares from Max and Troy, two of Robert’s guards who are always found around our home, protecting us from…

something. I wasn’t sure what, exactly, as Robert never told me.

He just said that being rich made us enemies, and his guards were there to protect us.

He told me to let them know if I was ever in danger and he wasn’t around. I wasn’t exactly sure why someone would want to hurt me, and as far as I knew, nobody ever had, so it wasn’t something I worried about… much.

I notice two unfamiliar men standing outside the parlor beside them.

I’ve never seen them before, but they stand on either side of the door, like security.

I eye them curiously as they seem to do the same to me, their eyes tracking my every step, but they don’t move, and I pass between them, trying to pretend their presence doesn’t make my skin prickle with unease.

Was it normal not to feel at home in your own house?

I wasn’t sure if it was the constant presence of guards, the expensive furnishings, the sheer size of our twenty-five-thousand-square-foot mansion, or the fact that I was never allowed to leave, but this place felt much more like a prison than a home.

I could never tell Robert that, though. He’s taken care of me like his own child, and if he says I’m not safe in the outside world, then I believe him.

Stepping into the parlor, I see Robert talking to a man with his back to me. From behind, I can see he’s wearing a tailored suit. He has brown hair that's quickly turning gray, styled perfectly away from his face. Robert notices me, and the man turns around, his eyes going wide when he sees me.