Chapter Twenty-Three
Posey
Silas and I don’t leave the bedroom for the rest of the weekend except to make coffee or food. We slept through the brunch, but I don’t think anyone noticed. I’ll have time to see Landen and Ellie this week since they’re staying in one of the treehouses for their honeymoon.
Now that I’ve experienced what that man can do to my body and the many ways he can make me come, I’m addicted.
In the best way possible.
Getting out of bed Monday morning is the worst because sleeping next to a human oven has made my bed even cozier.
“I don’t wanna get up,” I whine, nuzzling my face against his hard chest. “Let’s call in sick.”
He bellows out a laugh. “Not sure that’d fly with Ian. And wouldn’t look suspicious at all if we’re both gone.”
“We’ll tell ’em you got me sick and I’m forcin’ you to take care of me. Totally believable.”
“The funny thing is it actually would be. You’d blame me, then make me nurse you back to health.”
“Duh. And you’d love every minute of it.”
He rolls me onto my back, burying his head in my neck and grinding his erection against me.
“You know I would.” Pressing a gentle kiss to my jaw, he climbs over me and gets to his feet.
I stare at him, appreciating every naked inch of his body—tattoos and piercings that I want to lick and suck. Goddamn, he’s too hot.
“You keep lookin’ at me like that and we will be late.”
He slides his boxer briefs on, and I pout at him obstructing my view.
“C’mon, I’ll get breakfast started.” He flattens his hand on my bare ass. “You get dressed.”
“Oh my God,” I wince at the burn. “I hate you.”
“That’s not what you said a few hours ago…” he taunts, walking into the hallway.
He’s right. I very much enjoyed him spanking my ass.
Begrudgingly, I get ready for the day and find coffee and food waiting for me in the kitchen.
“A girl could get used to this.” I beam, leaning across the counter to kiss him.
“Me too.” He winks, pulling me in for another peck. “Except every time you touch me, I get hard, which is gonna make for a gruelin’ day.”
“You poor baby,” I tease.
We manage to get out of the house and to work on time but we have to actively work on our poker faces.
“Good mornin’!” I greet Amaya when she strolls in. “You look pretty today.”
I set bars of soap underneath shrink wrap so I can seal them for shipping.
“Wow, you’re cheerful this morn—” Her eyes widen. “You had sex! Didn’t you?”
“What? Me? No. Of course not.” I laugh nervously. “No.”
“Good God, Posey. You suck at lyin’.”
My shoulders sag in defeat. “Shut up, okay? I don’t need anyone else hearin’ your loud ass.”
“Tell me everythin’!” she whisper-hisses.
And because I have no self-restraint, I do.
“You’re tellin’ me, not only is he tatted, but he has piercings too?” She playfully fans herself. “I can’t believe you even came to work.”
“Me neither. I can barely walk.”
“So he’s big, huh?” She waggles her brows, making me blush.
“The best and biggest I’ve ever had,” I admit shamelessly, then hold out my hands to emphasize his size.
“Damn, girl. Should’ve taken a sick day to ice your pussy after that.”
“That’s what I said!” I bark out a laugh. “Silas wouldn’t let me ’cause it’d be too obvious if we were both out.”
“When are y’all gonna tell your family?”
“Hopefully soon. He has a job interview this week, and if he gets it, he can put in his notice and we can finally announce it.”
“How do you think they’ll take it?”
“Warren, I’m not sure. Bellamy already knows. Bodie and Colton probably won’t care. My parents? Also not sure. Aunt JoJo will probably offer to throw a party.”
“They all seem to love Silas, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t support y’all. It’s not like he’s a criminal or has ten baby mamas.” She shrugs, grabbing more supplies off the racks. “Way better than being on those damn datin’ apps, let me tell ya.”
“I definitely do not miss that,” I agree. They’ve been deleted from my phone for a while now but I hope I never need them again.
“Can I be there when you tell Ian?”
“What, why?”
“’Cause he has an obvious crush on you, Posey.”
“No, he doesn’t!” I balk at the idea. “We’ve been friends for years. He’s never hit on me.”
“That’s ’cause of your employee relations policy,” she insists. “But trust me, he has heart eyes for you. We’ve been placin’ bets when he’d finally admit it and quit.”
“There’s no way. I haven’t noticed any signs he’s into me.”
“That’s ’cause you’re as aware as a rock when it comes to men.”
“And yet, I’m the one gettin’ my back cracked out of the two of us,” I quip, stacking more bars of soap after they’ve been wrapped.
Her mouth pops open and she smacks a palm to her chest. “That was right in the jugular.”
“Oh, stop actin’ like you aren’t hot. Maybe I should introduce you to Jackson…assumin’ he’s not datin’ his sister by now.”
“Hold up…he wants who?”
Chuckling, I tell her the whole story and how Silas insists Jackson’s in love with Jamie, and then I remember I never texted her back. I’ll have to get back to her later.
Amaya and I work tirelessly through lunch, wanting to get ahead and pack more orders before we leave. By five, I’m beat and ready for a six-hour nap.
“Hey…” Silas peeks inside the room. “You ready?”
“Yep, just cleanin’ up,” I tell him.
“Hello, Mr. Mathiesen,” Amaya says seductively.
“Uh, hi.”
I snort, smacking her in the arm. “Stop flirtin’.”
“Just admirin’.”
“Do I even wanna know?” Silas asks, crossing his arms cautiously.
“Nope,” I quickly say at the same time Amaya says, “Nine inches, huh?”
“Oh my God, Amaya! I could write you up for sexual harassment.”
“Yeah, but you won’t. You’re too happy and high with lust.”
I roll my eyes, then grab Silas’s arm. “Let’s get outta here before she asks you to whip it out.”
“Wait, is that an option? Just for research purposes!” she calls out behind us.
“Did she—”
“Nope, ignore her.”
When I glance over my shoulder, he smirks.
“Told her ‘bout my cock, did ya?” he asks once we’re in the truck.
“She forced it outta me.”
“Mm-hmm. I bet.” He puts one hand on the steering wheel, arching a brow. “What else did ya tell her?”
“Nothin’.”
He shifts the gear stick and drives out of the lot. “You’re an awful liar, baby.”
“Why does everyone say that?”
He chuckles. “’Cause you’re too honest and sweet for your own good.”
Once Silas removes his clothing and we walk into the house, I immediately notice something’s off.
“What is it?” he asks when I don’t move.
“I dunno…” I glance around for anything out of place. “The energy is off.”
“Is it Marjorie?”
“I’m not sure.” I walk into the living room and notice the TV is on, but it’s all static.
“Let me look. Stay here.”
I wait, trying to gauge this weird feeling inside me. It’s a mix of unease and weariness. Marjorie’s never made me feel this way before but it’s almost as if she’s sending me a warning.
“There’s nothin’ weird or out of place in the bedrooms,” Silas calls out, so I follow the sound of his voice and find him in my bathroom.
“My vanity,” I point out. “Some of my creams and serums have been moved. I never leave ’em like that.” They were organized before work this morning and now they’re scattered over the counter.
“That’s strange…” He scratches over his scruff. “Why would she do that?”
Before I can respond, a loud, muffled scream echoes from the walk-in closet.
“Teddy!” I squeal, rushing toward him, but Silas stands in front of me before I can open the door.
It whips open to a frantic Aundrea.
“What the fuck?” Silas’s voice booms in a way I’ve never heard before.
“It’s not what it looks like, I swear.”
My blood boils with anger at her in my house.
“I’m callin’ the sheriff,” Silas says.
I rush past her and go into my closet.
“What’d you do to Teddy?” I snarl when I notice how stressed he is.
“That thing has a name? It tried to attack me!”
“Behind wire?” I open his cage to calm him down.
“It’s possessed! He was runnin’ around and his red glowy eyes kept starin’ at me. As soon as he heard y’all come in, he spooked me.”
“Why were you hidin’ in my closet?” I demand, bringing Teddy to my chest.
Silas’s on his phone, speaking to the operator and asking them to send an officer to the resort.
“Something’s wrong with your house. The lights started flickerin’, the TV turned on, and then the cabinets and drawers all opened and closed. Either there’s a demon in here or I’ve officially lost it.”
“Well, considerin’ you broke into my house…”
“Someone will be here in ten minutes,” Silas announces.
“Oh come on, please don’t do this.”
“I warned you, Aundrea.”
“I just wanted one more chance to talk to you.”
“Don’t ya think he’s suffered enough from your emotional abuse?” I snap. “First, he’s not good enough so you try to change him, then you call off your wedding two weeks beforehand, and now, you can’t stand seein’ him happy with someone else. I think you’re the possessed one.”
She huffs, glaring. “I knew it was you. As soon as those videos of you two doing yoga surfaced and the comments speculated y’all were datin’, I had to find out for myself.”
A loud crash makes us jump.
“What the fuck was that?” she asks.
“Probably a glass. Marjorie’s pissed you’re here.”
“W-who’s Marjorie?” She spins, wrapping her arms around herself as if she’s been hit with a sudden chill. “What’s goin’ on?”
“We’re long over, Aundrea. I told you this,” Silas says, neither of us openly admitting she’s right.
If she finds out we’re breaking the employee policy, she’ll threaten to rat us out.
“But we were engaged to be married! Surely that means more than this bimbo you’ve been with for a few weeks.”
“Actually—”
Silas steps closer, cutting me off. “Posey and I have history, long before you entered the picture, so before you try guilt trippin’ me into givin’ you another chance, you should know you were my second choice.”
“You don’t mean that.” She sniffles, her nose turning red.
“I do,” he states firmly. “Why do you think I’m not that upset you broke off our engagement? You did me a favor.”
Tears well in her eyes at the words she doesn’t want to hear, and I’d feel sorry for her if she hadn’t just broken into my house, angered my house ghost, and scared my rat.
A knock on the door makes my heart jump. “Jesus.” I hold Teddy tighter to my chest. “I’ll get it. Silas, maybe you should get some clothes on.”
“Oh, shit. Right.”
“Are you seriously gonna have me arrested? I just wanted to talk.” I hear her pleas as I walk out of the room and answer the door.
“Hi, Sheriff Brown. C’mon in.”
I lead him to my bedroom where Silas finishes putting on his shirt and Aundrea sits on the edge of my bed, looking pitiful. Perhaps she’ll tell a sob story to get her out of going to jail or paying a fine, but it won’t win back Silas’s heart.
“What’s goin’ on?” the sheriff asks.
Silas and I tell him everything before giving Aundrea a chance to speak. Eventually he arrests her for aggravated burglary and when he walks her outside, we follow.
“I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t expect this to hit me so hard,” she admits.
Sheriff Brown puts her in the backseat of his car and then tells Silas she’ll go in front of a judge to determine her bail. In the meantime, he suggested we get temporary restraining orders.
“Will do, thanks a lot.”
Once we’re back inside, the bad energy lifts and it feels right again.
“Well, that was weird…” I sit on the couch, holding Teddy in my lap.
“You’re tellin’ me.” He lifts my body up and steals my spot before pushing me down on him. “Hopefully she gets some help.”
“Guess we don’t need to worry about your lightsaber defendin’ us, after all,” I tease. “Marjorie took matters into her own hands.”
He chuckles, wrapping his arms tighter. “She sure did. Who knew she was so badass?”
“She’s the best.”