Chapter 6
Riley
Oh my God, I could die right now. Like literally let the world swallow me up whole as I stand here. Was that my voice that just came out all nervous and wobbly?? My tongue feels swollen and I feel like I can barely talk.
How am I supposed to work for this man? Scratch that. He's not a man, no man from the town I came from looks like him. When I first walked in and he was sitting behind the desk all broad-shouldered, I could tell he was big. He probably works out. But when he stood up, holy shit it was like being under the scrutinizing gaze of God.
He has to be at least 6’2” if not taller. Short, dark hair and hazel eyes. At first I couldn’t tell if they were gold or green or something of a mixture in between. Now I’m standing here in some kind of nervous trance while he towers over me, and just a slight smirk on his lips that I swear, feels like sin incarnate. And was that a hint of a tattoo peeking out from his sleeve onto his hand I just saw? I wonder where else he has ink ?
‘Pull it together Riley!’ I tell myself internally. This man may be a God, but he’s an egotistical maniac.
I heard the rumors when I applied for this internship. Bolt Corporation practically prides itself on hiring the least amount of women in the whole US. It's not like they hire zero females, they just don't seem to place them in many positions of importance and the turnover rate is ridiculous.
As a matter of fact, I got a great look at the one that was hovering over him, looking like she was about to fall to her knees any minute when we walked through the door. I grimace. That must be his MO. Of course he wouldn’t want someone with actual brains working around him. Just under him or below him.
I wonder what it’s like to be below him…
‘Stop stop!’ I chastise myself. Fuck I don’t remember feeling like this since high school. As a matter of fact, I don’t think I ever felt like this with my husband. Of course, Nate’s a good looking guy, but more of an all-around pretty boy jock type. But he’s definitely let himself go over the few years that we’ve been together. And this God, standing in front of me, he's no boy, he's a man man. And the problem is he knows it. The look on his face says without question that he’s here to conquer, that he has demands and is used to getting them met and he already knows the answer .
Thankfully, Kaz breaks the awkward silence between us. “Riley will be back tomorrow, Mr. Bolt. For her first day with you. I’m gonna take her and show her a little bit more around the building if that’s OK.” He nods once at her and turns around, heading towards his desk.
Before I know what’s happening Kaz is grabbing my arm and yanking me back through his door. Suddenly I can breathe again. It’s like all of the oxygen was being sucked out of me in that office.
“Holy shit Riley!” Kaz exclaims, "Mr. Bolt looked like he was about to eat you alive. And from the look on your face right now I know what you’re thinking,” she warns.
“You might like him but be careful girl. He’s definitely the playboy type and he doesn’t keep anybody around for long. You don’t wanna mess with that, especially working here as an intern. I know all the stories and most women who get hired here end up quitting within months because they inevitably sleep with one of the partners and get their heart broken. I saw your résumé. I’m the one who slid it through. You definitely deserve to be here so don’t let any of that big dick energy get in your way.”
I cut her off before she keeps blabbering on. “No need to worry, Kaz, I'm married. And besides that, did you see his assistant? I don't think I have to worry about him at all. He probably has girls falling all over him all the time. Why would he even look in my direction?”
“Do you mean that bleach blonde bimbo? Yeah, she definitely falls at her feet for him that’s for sure! She’s made it a bit longer than most of his assistants. Rumor is, she's trying to get the boss to wife her up eventually. I say good luck to her, the day that man puts a ring on someone's finger is the day pigs fly. But I don’t know if you’ve looked in the mirror lately. You are gorgeous and smart to top it off. I wouldn’t be surprised if you had way more than just Mr. Bolt looking in your direction. Like I said, just be careful.” She gives my hand a squeeze, and then proceeds to jerk me towards the elevator so she can show me the rest of the building.
The rest of my day flies by in a blur and before I know it, I’m walking through my door at home. The house is quiet and empty-feeling and I don’t know what else I was expecting. Maybe somebody to greet me when I’m home for my first day at work? I should know better.
It’s 5:30 PM and my stomach is growling. I haven’t eaten anything since lunch so I head through the living room to the kitchen to see about food. Nate’s voice stops me in my tracks.
“About time you got home Riley. I’m starving. What’s for dinner?”
He already has beer in his hand. I’m sure it’s probably his 10th one of the day. I don't even know if he’s moved from the couch at all since this morning. Heat flares in my neck. I can’t even help myself before I fire back.
“What do you mean, ‘what’s for dinner’?” I grit my teeth and reply. “I’ve been at work all day long. You didn’t think maybe you could figure out something to make?” His face is bright red and I know I’ve made a mistake before my sentence is finished.
“Do you think you’re better than me Riley? Who do you think took care of you all these years while you were in school? Who put food on the table to make sure you could buy all those stupid outfits for your new stupid job? I’ve been out of work for a few months and all of a sudden you think this changes things!? This changes nothing, you are still my wife and I am still the husband, the head of the household.”
He stalks towards me and grabs me by my chin, digging his nails in.
“Know your fucking place,” he shouts. Tears spring to my eyes, but I’m tired and I don’t have the energy, so I just nod my head and look down, hoping his anger is quick and he’ll return back to his comfy place on the couch.
Thankfully, this time he does, so I herd myself in the kitchen, where I fix a quick meal and prepare myself to spend the next few hours in silence with my husband, while he watches whatever sports game is on and drinks himself into another oblivion .
I wake up at 2 AM to rough hands groping me and the smell of alcohol filling my nostrils.
“Come on baby, wake up and give your husband what he needs,” Nate says as he harshly pulls up my clothes.
“No Nate,” I say and strain to get away from him. “Not tonight please. I'm tired. I worked all day long.”
Nate’s grip tightens on me. “What did I tell you earlier? Don’t bring up that stupid job again. A good wife never says no to pleasing her husband”
He pins both my wrists up in one hand and tears my panties completely down, leaving me in just my T-shirt.I can hear the sound of him, spitting on his hand and rubbing his dick. I just grit my teeth, close my eyes, and hope that it will be over quickly.
His grip on my wrists is so tight I can barely feel my fingers but I don’t dare say anything else. I know if I do it’ll just take him longer anyways. So I lay there limp, and thankfully, after just a few minutes, he empties himself and pulls out, turns over, and falls asleep.
I’m not even sad, I'm just angry. When did our marriage become this? I used to enjoy making love to my husband, but now it just feels like it’s a chore, one of my wifely duties as he has so politely told me.
I clean myself up and go back to bed, dreaming of the better times we had before our marriage turned into a shit show.