42. Delilah
Chapter forty-two
Delilah
A Few Months Later
“ I can’t believe you’re going on a honeymoon! I want pictures and details of everything when you get back! Use protection! Remember, this is your first honeymoon. You can start giving me those little bundles of joy when you’re married and have your second honeymoon—” my mother said happily into the phone.
I cut her off as I zipped up my first suitcase. “Mom, I’m going to pretend that all you’re saying is gibberish, because you seem to be forgetting that the only person calling this a honeymoon is Archer.”
I walked out of Archer’s guest room in his penthouse, and she sighed into the phone.
“Why won’t you just let me celebrate?” she asked, and I rolled my eyes.
“Mother, you’re celebrating the thought of Archer and me having a child. This is not something that should be celebrated,” I said.
She continued ranting as if I didn’t just reprimand her.
Groaning, I placed the phone on speaker and I walked into the kitchen. Other than my mother being rather unhinged thinking about me giving her grandchildren, things seemed relatively calmer, but it was hard to tell in some aspects.
Uncle Eugene had mostly disappeared from our lives, and Calvin was more on edge as well. Uncle Blaine was still speculating that Eugene was working for Calvin, and it was getting much more difficult for me to disagree with him.
After grabbing a bottle of water, I picked the phone back up, and my mother sighed.
“Killian’s right. I think I get too overly excited.” She laughed, and I chuckled at her small revelation and leaned on the counter.
“You think?” I asked her, and she shushed me as we went silent for a moment.
I sighed softly and spoke again. “You really haven’t heard from him?” I asked, and she replied nonchalantly.
“I could care less where your uncle is or whatever the hell he’s doing. He dug his grave, so he can do us all a favor and lay down six feet under,” she finished, progressively getting angrier. I didn’t say anything.
She sighed heavily for a moment before mumbling her next words, but I could still understand her.
“I’m sorry, my love… you shouldn’t hear me speaking like this. You’re about to enjoy yourself on vacation, and I’m just overwhelmed with everything.”
I bit my lip as I tried to calm her with my next words.
“I don’t know what to say, Mom… I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about, sweetheart. I’m just feeling a bit moody, as your father puts it.”
“Speaking of him. He doesn’t know, right?” I asked her hesitantly, and she scoffed.
“Delilah. Do you not trust in my abilities to lie to your father? I’ve been doing this for years. He thinks you’re spending the holiday with Kimi in Fiji, and let him believe it. I told him to leave you girls alone, and it’s about time he did just that,” she said. I could only imagine her rolling her eyes as she said the last sentence.
Archer walked into the kitchen, and I gazed over to him before going back to the phone.
“All right, Mom, I’m going to go. I’ll call you when we land,” I said, and before she could ask any questions, I ended the call.
Archer smirked as he leaned against the kitchen island. “That was a bit rude.”
I shook my head. “It wasn’t. We’ve been on the phone for the last two hours, and I’ve been trying to cut it short ever since we reached the ten-minute mark.”
He didn’t say anything for a moment before he walked towards me and wrapped his arms around me from the back. I giggled as he placed a kiss on my neck.
“You know, Archer, my contract for working for you is up in a few days. I was only supposed to help you get back on your feet after the incident between our fathers.”
“Hmmm... That’s interesting. In that case, I was actually making my way over to let you know you’re not going anywhere,” he decided, and I held back a smile as I fake pouted as I looked over my shoulder to him.
“Is that so? Well, that’s a bummer. I was actually thinking about going back to working for my father or taking another class at the academy.”
He narrowed his eyes as he pushed his body against my back, caging me between him and the counter as he placed his hands onto the edge.
“Who do you belong to?” he asked, staring down at me, and I rolled my eyes.
“The obvious answer is no one, but in your mind, I’m assuming it’s you,” I answered, and he raised one of his eyebrows.
“You’re damn right it’s me. We already established I don’t particularly like to share...”
I deadpanned as I sighed dramatically. “What does that have to do with my contract being over?” I questioned him, though I knew he didn’t have an answer that made sense. Well, an answer that made sense to anyone but himself.
I gasped in surprise as he grabbed my hands and placed them behind my back. Holding both of them in one of his arms, he pushed me flat against the countertop, and I gulped softly as he leaned down to my ear and chuckled.
“The simple answer again, Princess, is that I don’t like to share. And if this contract is going to stop me from seeing you whenever I please... then I guess we’ll need a new contract, won’t we?” he asked me, and I huffed as my blush grew on my face, and I struggled in his grip. My knees buckled slightly as his hands barely budged, showing me just how strong he was and how easy it was for him to pin me down.
“You’re so annoying,” I muttered with a blush, and he let go of me. He turned me around and picked me up with ease as he placed me on the counter.
“And you’re so adorable, trying to test my patience,” he said as his hands rested on my thighs.
“In the words of my uncle Blaine, I don’t appreciate being manhandled,” I practically lied.
His hands traveled up my thigh as he gave a knowing look. “First off, don’t bring up your family when we’re... busy, and second, it’s not my fault you’re so small.”
I crossed my arms as I narrowed my eyes at him. “Now you’re making fun of my height, Mr. Lockwood? That’s a low blow, even for you,” I sassily remarked, and he bit his lip as he looked me up and down.
“Well, Mrs. Lockwood, I’m sorry if I offended you. Can I pretty please be forgiven?” he asked sarcastically.
I chose to ignore the name he gave me as I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss.
Trying to argue with him about it would be pointless… I mean, we are going on a honeymoon, so I’ll let it slide.
Archer’s hands grabbed my legs as he pulled me closer, and I tried my best to stifle a moan.
His hands traveled up to my waist, and I let out a small gasp as he abruptly pulled me, getting rather dangerously close. I pulled away momentarily as the look in his eyes had changed. I could tell he was feeling a bit… excited.
“Here’s an idea, champ. Let’s maybe not do anything too crazy on your kitchen counter,” I suggested, and he pulled away, nodding.
“You’re right. That’s what our honeymoon is for.”
I slapped his shoulder as I hopped off the counter. “You’re so crude,” I said, walking out of the kitchen and into the guest room with him following.
“How’s Kimiko? We haven’t been interrupted yet, and for some reason, a part of me wants to know where the lunatic you call a friend is,” he asked after a moment.
I shrugged as I opened the drawers to grab more of my clothes. Over the past few months, I gradually brought clothes over to Archer’s penthouse for this very occasion and if I ever needed to spend the night. I didn’t think I had much over here, but I was proven wrong because the drawers were beginning to overflow.
“She’s been busy. I mostly moved all my classes online to, unfortunately, spend time in your office, which left us only a few hours out of the week to talk to one another. She’s busy running the student body, and I’m busy running around for you,” I muttered, grabbing some more of my clothes and putting them in my suitcase.
Archer took a seat on the edge of the bed and watched me. “You haven’t talked to her recently?” he asked me, and I shook my head.
“No, not for the last few days. I did hear she was going to be busy, but I didn’t know with what… Come to think of it, I think she’s been avoiding me,” I pondered, and he tilted his head.
“Really?” he asked with fake concern, and I glared at him as I realized he was trying his best to hold in a smile. I crossed my arms as I approached him slowly.
“What do you know, Archer?” I asked him, and he chuckled as he brought me over to sit on his lap.
“If I told you… then it would just ruin the fun of being a secret ,” he whispered.
I groaned as I pushed him away, and he smiled as I walked away from him to go into the closet.
Soon enough, I would have to call Kimiko to find out what this secret was, but I let it go as I continued packing.
“I’m so excited!” I squealed as Nathan grabbed my bags, loaded them off of the plane. After a moment, he came back to the plane, and I watched as he and Archer both shared a look of disgust for each other. I rolled my eyes at their childish behavior as I grabbed Archer and pulled him away.
“Why does he have to be here again?” he asked me, and I sighed.
“Because this is the compromise between my mom and dad: he comes on all my trips, like the one Dad believes I’m on with Kimi right now. So either Nathan comes and watches over us, or my father pops up in the next few days, finds out where I really am and who I’ve really gone on vacation with, and strangles you,” I explained, and he gave Nathan another side glance.
“I’m beginning to think I would enjoy the latter...”
I ignored him once again as I walked over to the car and got inside.
Eventually, we reached the shore and got onto the boat that was waiting.
I watched the animals in the ocean as we passed them by and basked in the scent of the fresh air as Archer came beside me. I looked over at him, and he placed his hands on the side of my face as he caressed my cheeks with his thumbs.
“You seem happy.” I smiled, and he shrugged.
“I’m going on a trip with my dream girl… Do you know how much my ten-year-old self would literally beg for this? He’d be punching the air if I went back in time and told him to give it ten more years.”
I laughed at his joke.
Eventually, we reached our bungalow over the water. Upon entering the beautiful room with an open ocean view, I plopped down on the bed and sighed happily.
I heard a few footsteps, and Archer lay down beside me.
Gazing around the room, I sighed. “I’m guessing the sofa over there doesn’t have a pullout bed?” I asked.
He smirked, his hand finding my hip as he rubbed it softly. “No, Princess… just one bed.”
“And you did that on purpose, didn’t you?” I asked him, already knowing the truth.
He shrugged. “I may or may not have.”
Turning my head away from him, I jumped as he brought me over to him with one hand.
“What did I say about manhandling?” I said, narrowing my eyes at him, to which he replied with just a kiss on my temple.
“We’re going to dinner. Be ready by seven,” he ordered, and I grinned.
“Fine. You better have something fun planned.”
He smiled, and I did my best to etch in my mind the sight of how happy he looked and how much his eyes lit up as he watched me.
“Don’t you worry, Princess… this is going to be one of the best nights of your life.”