Wife Unwanted (Corrupt Vows #2)

Chapter 22

Thalia

I WOKE UP in a plush cream bed. The room was bright and unfamiliar. Where am I? I felt a prickling sensation on my wrist. My gaze went to the clear cable that went from my wrist to an IV drip. Three faces were staring down at me. A middle-aged blond woman with a tight ponytail wearing a white coat over pants and a silk blouse and a stethoscope around her neck. Darcy, who was biting her fingernails, looking anxious, in contrast to the shimmering gold and black dress she wore, and Carey who sat beside me, his face drained of color. He was the first to speak.

"Hi." He cracked a smile that faltered almost immediately.

"Wha—" my voice was groggy. I cleared my throat. "What happened?"

"You had an adverse reaction to some… substances," the woman in the white coat said, her gaze going to Darcy when she said substances.

"I'm so sorry," Darcy winced. "He must have put too muchboltorol in your drink. I should have told him to only put a drop."

"Boltorol? What's that?" My gaze darted from Darcy to Carey, who had gone dark, and the woman.

Carey took my hand in his, "It's a…" he glanced at Darcy and then back to me, "It's a fairly new drug—"

"Ingredient!" Darcy shout out.

" Ingredient , that makes alcoholic drinks taste less bitter, but obviously has some dangerous side effects."

"I wanted this party to go great. Now I have multiple medical emergencies," she slapped her forehead, "Stupid Darcy!"

"Multiple?" I turned to Carey.

"You're not the only one lying on a bed with an IV drip. A couple of people who drank Darcy's 29th have had reactions. One threw up and four other people, including you, passed out. All after taking one drink."

I straightened so I could get into a sitting position. "You roofied people?"

"No. No. I didn't roofie people. At least not intentionally. I didn't think boltorol would make people pass out. I had the same drink."

Carey glared at her.

"You know what, you're right. Please forgive me." she clasped her hands together. She looked so worried and apologetic that I simply nodded.

"You could have killed her," Carey said. His eyes were on me. His face harsh with anger.

"I know. You told me multiple times."

"You put my wife's life in danger."

"I didn't mea— I'm sorry. But at least she's fine. You know what you're right. So sorry. I'm going to go check on the other guests." Darcy waved weakly at me. "Sorry." And promptly left the room soon after. I took a better look at my surroundings and realized that I was in quite a large bedroom with a three-sixty view of the city. It was feminine and styled with a peach plush carpet, white floors, and peach walls. I didn't need anyone to tell me that this was Darcy and Hugh's bedroom. I watched as the woman in the white coat come to the side of my bed, her face bright with a disarming smile.

"I'm doctor Miller. I need to check your vitals one more time, before I attend to other patients."

I nodded as Carey gave her space to sit beside me. She brought her stethoscope to my chest and began her checks. After a few minutes of being probed and answering a few questions, she was satisfied and said, "boltorol, has been shown to be that harmful, at least not yet, but we can never be too careful. If you're adamant about not going to a hospital…"

My gaze went to Carey who was now standing behind Dr. Miller. I didn't want to go to a hospital? He nodded as though he heard my question.

"I don't want to go to a hospital."

She looked like she expected the answer. "Then all you need to do is let me make some calls at your place to monitor your progress." She took out a card and handed it to me. It had her name on it as well the name of her private practice. "You need at least three days' rest. Drink lots of water and stay off alcohol during that time. Can you do that for me?"

I nodded.

She flashed a smile. "Great." She got up, shook Carey's hand, and left the room. I turned my gaze to Carey now that we were alone. His brow was furrowed. "Every time something bad happens to you, Darcy is at the scene of the crime. Quite literally."

"I am not going to the hospital?" I cocked an eyebrow.

"It's not as severe that you need your stomach pumped, the doctor said, and it would be just a precautionary measure. But if we do, father will find out somehow and you know how he is."

"Oh, right." Nolan Sr was next level insane when it came to his precious golden boy. If he were to find out I had to have my stomach pumped to remove some exotic drug out of my system, he would freak out. He might kill me and erase any record of my existence. "Is that why you called the doctor to the rich?"

"Darcy called her. But yes, Dr. Miller is a concierge doctor and she's pretty good at keeping secrets."

I rolled my eyes. "You people live in a world of your own."

Carey smirked. "We? You're one of us now."

"It doesn't feel like it sometimes."

His gaze raked my entire body. "The evidence says otherwise."

"If you think I am going to stop talking to Darcy because of this, you're fooling yourself."

He shook his head. "I don't know why you keep her around. How many times will you let her skid close to ruining your reputation? Or dare I say life?"

"Darcy is the only person who doesn't make me feel like I don't belong."

He looked like he was about to object, but then stopped himself. His features hardened. "People tend to not like people who sell themselves to the highest bidder."

My phone dinged from somewhere on the nightstand beside me. Instead of responding to him, I chose to pick my battles and reached for the phone. It was Darcy.

Darcy: I think your man might be into you way more than you think.

My heart skipped a beat. I glanced at Carey. Another message from Darcy came in.

Darcy: You should have seen the way he acted when you fainted in his arms.

Yeah. The same man who was just now calling me a prostitute without calling me a prostitute. I typed back a response.

Me: It's all for show.

Darcy: I don't know about that. You kinda had to be there. He went feral.

She added a heart eyes emoji. I looked at Carey again. Carey going 'feral' over me, was an incomprehensible image. He was way too cool to act like that for anyone, let alone me.

The quiet and emptiness of our apartment was comforting after coming back from Darcy's. Our apartment?Strike that. His apartment. His . I was quickly forgetting who I was and what my role was. He had been so caring I had temporarily fooled myself into believing what Darcy said. Instead of letting me walk, which I was fairly capable of doing, he carried me in his arms from the car right to my bed and laid me there and removed my shoes.

"Thank you," I said to him after he finished removing the second shoe.

"Do you want a shower? Or I could run a bath for you."

I shook my head. "The show is over. You don't have to keep pretending."

He picked up my shoes and put them in my closet. When he returned, his brow was furrowed. He looked pained. "I wasn't pretending."

I rolled my eyes.

"Do you ever wonder where our relationship would have gone if— "

"If I didn't take your father's deal."

He nodded slightly.

I sighed. I thought about it all the time. Whether he would have eventually fallen in love with me. If our marriage would be as cold as it was now. If we would still maintain the passion we had for each other during that blissful period.

"I came to you because of him, remember? Let's face it Carey, if I didn't take his money, you'd have forgotten all about me."

He didn't even try to rebut me. He knew I was right. Someone like him would never have cared about me after I was no longer in his life. The only reason he ever felt something for me after we were older was because his father put me in front of him. The realization depressed me and whether it was that or the excess drugs in my system, I no longer felt like sleeping. I was feeling restless, so I got up.

"What are you doing?" Carey started coming over to help me up, but I pushed him away.

"I don't want to sleep anymore."

"You need to rest. You heard what the doctor said."

I shrugged as I went to the closet and slid my feet into a pair of slippers. "Sue me," I said when I came back.

"If you want something, I can go get it for you."

That made me pause. Carey has never shown any ounce of affection towards me, let alone my health. He even looked worried. "It's just a coke." I strolled past him on my way to the kitchen.

"Coke!"

I could hear him tracing my steps behind me, and I rolled my eyes. The kitchen was dark, and I didn't bother turning the light on as I let muscle memory lead me to the fridge. "A coke,"I said as I pulled out the red and white can out of the fridge. He stared, dumbfounded, his face illuminated by the fridge light.

"What did you think I was going to do? Grab a bag of coke from my dealer waiting for me outside?"

"I've never seen you drink one of those."

I closed the fridge. "It could be the drug. I'm craving soda drinks so bad." I cracked open the can and marched past him. Not only was I craving a drink, but I was also feeling really hot. Or was it the apartment? It was well conditioned, but it didn't feel enough. I made my way to the terrace and sat on the bench swing. The cool air and city noise somehow calmed me down. I took a sip of the sweet drink and let it cool my parched throat. This tasted better than it ought to and I wondered if it was because of the drink being better than I remember it, or was it the drug?The bench swung back, and I turned to see Carey take a seat next to me with a drink of his own in his hand. "I wonder if the makers of this drug work for soda company. This stuff has never tasted this good."

"Are you okay?" Carey asked.

"I am not feeling like attempting to jump over the building, so don't worry, your career will be fine. I am not going to 'chappaquiddick'it."

Carey rolled his eyes, and I had to admit, it made him more handsome. He looked down at his drink as though contemplating whether to take a sip or not. "Somehow, I know my father would find a way to make something like that disappear from the media. He's better at this than Joseph P Kennedy."

"Do you want it?"

Carey took time to answer. And just when I thought he was not going to, he said, "Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. Sometimes I want to leave my life and become someone else."

"A sailor?"

His smile was sad. "That sounds nice. But we can't all have what we want, can't we?"

"You could. You don't have to do everything your father tells you to."

He took a sip of his drink and looked out at the gold and black skyline. "It's not like I hate my job. I like it. Sometimes it's all I want to do."

"And politics?"

The terrace went silent. Even the sounds of the city felt distant. A breeze wafted by and I clutched my chest. Carey slid over to my side and embraced me.

"It's what I should do." He said behind my ear. I ignored the little tendrils of electricity running down my spine as spoke. His voice was doing something to me. It sounded melodic.

"Should or coerced into doing?"

"I choose my own path, Thalia."

"Do you?"

He glared at me and then went back to staring into blank space. "You're an exception."

"I don't know. I think I am the rule."

Carey put down his drink onto the floor and took mine out of my hand to do the same. He brushed my hair away, his hand slowly grazing my cheek. "My life isn't so bad, all things considered. At least I get some pleasure out of it."

Heat traveled from my cheeks down to every part of my body. Was it the drugs or Carey? Pretty sure it was Carey. Carey rubbed my cheek. My heart beat a little faster. "You know," he mused, his gaze locked with mine. "You're the first person to ever ask me that."

I inhaled sharply. The air felt thinner suddenly. "That can't be true. What about your exes?"

He frowned. "I've never been with anyone long enough to have a serious conversation."

What about Gemma? The question was on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn't say it out loud. She would be intruding and I didn't want her spoiling this. Whatever this is. My hand went to his face. He didn't resist when I caressed him. It was smooth except where there's stubble. "I never thought you would see me like that." He twisted his head and kissed my palm. Fuck.

"See you how?" His voice vibrated against my skin. I dropped my hand, afraid of what else he might make me feel.

"Like someone you could confide in."

He sighed. "It can be hard to be open to people. It's easier with you."Carey took my hand and placed it back on his cheek. Then he placed his hand on my cheek.

"Carey. What are we doing?"

"I just want this moment to last longer."

"Sounds like you are the one who took the drug."

He chuckled. "Maybe I did. Who the fuck knows if Darcy only limitedboltorolto your drink?"

We stayed like that for what must have been minutes. He held my stare while I held his. We listened to the shrubs that decorated the terrace as they danced to the wind's song. To the cool breeze as it passed between us. It did little to cool my body. At some point, one of us moved. Maybe both of us. Maybe just me. But at one point we were only staring at each other and then the next we were kissing.

It felt like the most natural thing to do. His lips were soft and his tongue tasted of sweet carbonated sugar water. I wanted to drink my fill of him. Both of my hands went to his head, and I pulled him closer. He groaned. I deepened the kiss. Our tongues danced. His hands clasped my breasts through my dress. He pulled me closer. I rubbed myself against his leg, trying to gain a better position. My hand slid down his neck. To his chest. To his groin.

"Stop." Carey pushed me away, and I slid along the bench until I felt the bench arm on my back. "You're high."

"I am lucid. I know what I am doing." I leaned forward, and he leaned back. Clear rejection that made me stop.

"Fuck. Darcy shouldn't have given you that."

"Stop overreacting, Carey. I am fine."

Carey shook his head. "You almost died!" His voice was laced with bitterness.

"Okay, now you're really taking things too seriously."

"When you fainted. You almost fell over. If I handed held you in time… If I hadn't… You almost fucking died in front of me."

I went silent. Carey looked shaken. It was only now that I was realizing how drained he was. "I'm sorry."

"You're not at fault. It's your friend you insist on hanging with." He shook his head. "Whatever the case, I can't sleep with you. I would be taking advantage."

I slid my hand to his groin. A ridge of cock was all the sign I needed to know he wanted me. He groaned even as he pushed my hand away. "Thalia. Don't."

"I know you want me. Let's just do it and forget about tomorrow."

For a moment, he looked like he was about to lean in and kiss me, but the moment came as quickly as it went. He got up and scooped me up into his arms. "Let's get you to bed."

He marched down the terrace and opened the doors on the far end. The ones that led to his bedroom. Instead of marching further down to my bedroom, he laid me down on his bed. Slowly he removed my dress, then he went to his closet, where he came back with a shirt. I let him put on the shirt and let him put me under the covers. He removed his own clothes down to his trunks and joined me in bed.

"Sleep," he said.

"Here?"

He nodded. "I don't think I can sleep without knowing you're safe."