Chapter 4
BENEDETTA · AN HOUR AGO
Ireach my bedroom and close the door behind me, plaster my body against it, and breathe rapidly, trying to calm down my racing heart. I’ve been preparing for my husband’s arrival for three weeks, and his presence in the otherwise empty home still hit me like a semitruck.
Maybe because I expected him tomorrow?
Maybe because I wasn’t dressed to receive him and instead I showed up in my pajamas? Which sounds stupid, but I don’t know him, and I don’t want him to see me in the morning all bug-eyed, and oh my God, I haven’t even brushed my teeth.
I scurry to the bathroom and do that, and wash my face too, then glance at the shower.
About three weeks ago, my dad (much like my husband) tackled me first thing in the morning and told me I was getting married. If I had a choice, I would have refused, but Mom raised me to accept anything the man of the house decided, and I knew from a very young age he would use me for family gain.
It isn’t a burden for me. I also want my family secure and safe, and I’ll do whatever it takes in the same fashion my sister has done before me. I just hope I don’t end up like her, grieving over what she’ll never have, namely a healthy marriage.
I already built up my walls and squashed those stupid girly dreams as I watched my sister miscarry alone while her husband went out on “business” trips.
And while he was away, one of his mistresses gave birth to his child, an event that broke my sister.
Mentally, she would have survived the miscarriage had that woman not showed up at her house with a baby in her arms.
This is why I told Hudson that he’s free to do what he wants.
I can’t imagine completely giving myself to a man and then having him destroy me. No, thank you. I learned from mistakes that weren’t mine.
In the closet, I sift through the dresses I brought and find three that I know make me feel and look great.
I pick a pretty turquoise sundress and pair it with black cowboy boots.
After showering and dressing, I put highlighter over my nose and cheeks, light mascara on my lashes, and peach lip gloss on my mouth.
Before I leave, I double-check the mirror. I think I look nice.
Leaving my room, I’m wondering how we’re gonna get the dog out of the house, when Hudson’s piercing gray-green eyes arrest my steps midway down the stairs. Shirtless, he’s sitting on the couch, glaring at me like he wants to kill me.
I recognize this look. My older cousin stares at me the same way, like he wants to kill me, but I know he also wants to fuck me. He’s scared of my dad, though, not my husband, or he wouldn’t have come here and threatened the staff while Hudson was gone.
“Is everything okay?” I ask.
“Peachy.”
It’s bad. I descend the stairs and head for the front door, but Hudson gets up from the couch. He’s not wearing a shirt, and my heart starts doing flips while butterflies stir in my belly.
I’m shorter than him by a lot, so my face is at his chest. The scent of his cologne draws me in, and like a moth to a flame, I take a step closer, only inches from his chest. I inhale. He smells good. Really good. I look up.
Cold gray eyes and a firm jaw meet my gaze, which drops to the dimple on his chin. It’s prominent and the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen on a man’s face. I want to poke it with my finger. When my arm lifts, though, I fist my hand. “Ready?” I ask.
“I was born ready, wife.”
“I bet.”
“You, on the other hand, have trouble telling time. A second and an hour aren’t the same thing.”
I frown. “What?”
“You took an hour upstairs.”
“I had to get dressed.”
“I thought you would use the bathroom and return swiftly.”
“Why would you think that?”
He opens the front door and motions with his hand. “Because you said, and I quote, I’ll be a sec.”
Chuckling, I nod. “Sorry. It’s just something I say. I presumed you’d understand. My bad.”
The dog’s sitting by the couch and after we both call him several times, Hudson picks him up and strides outside. I walk beside him, but can’t see his face through the dog’s big body. Rounding Hudson, I walk on his left. There, that’s better. He’s got a handsome nose and a nice profile.
He’s not strolling, though. Hudson is marching toward the gates. I double my speed to catch up with him.
Down the hill, the gates are closed, so everything seems fine. Not sure what happened that put him in this terrible mood. “Did something happen?” I ask.
“When?”
“While I was in the shower?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Why are you in a hurry?”
Hudson slows down to a normal walking pace.
He’s breathing a bit harder now. I mean, he’s carrying seventy pounds of dog and marching, which is all kinds of sexy because I bet this man could prop me against the wall or door or shower and fuck me the way I’ve seen in the movies.
That’s such a lovely image that I sigh blissfully just as we make it to the gates.
Hudson puts the dog down. “Gimme a sec,” he says.
Inside the unattended security booth, Hudson grabs the laptop and exits. “There. That took a sec.”
“Got it, Boss.”
He narrows his eyes. “Do you have a problem pronouncing my name?”
“I was joking.”
“I’m not in the mood for jokes.”
I pat his hard biceps. “Got it, Hudson. Are you—”
He fists my hair and yanks it back, then presses his mouth over mine, growling at me like some sort of animal. The butterflies in my belly unfurl and fly everywhere as if my body is the sky. I open my mouth, and he thrusts his tongue inside and tilts my head so he can deepen the kiss.
I remember this kiss. This is how he kissed me on our wedding day.
Just once, after they announced us husband and wife.
The room hooted. I blushed profusely and fumbled like an inexperienced idiot while he kissed me in front of hundreds of people, completely oblivious that perhaps such a kiss belonged in the bedroom, between the sheets, and, you know, maybe also as he thrust into me.
My knees threaten to fold, and I grip his shoulders and hold on to them. He takes my arms and yanks them higher and around his neck, then he lifts my leg and sneaks a hand under my dress. His fingers graze my panties, then touch under them, lightly grazing my entrance.
I gasp and open my eyes to his gray ones. He didn’t even close his while kissing me. I don’t know why that bothers me, but it does. I feel stupid for closing mine and getting all emotional over the kiss. I feel even dumber when he steps back, leaving me hot and bothered on the lawn.
He rubs my wetness between his fingertips and says, “The dog will walk back, I presume. Let’s go.” Then he takes off up the driveway. The dog and I stare after him.
He does have a nice ass.
“Are you two coming?”
“We are,” I shout. “Though I don’t mind the view.”
Hudson stops and turns. “What?”
“Let’s go, Prince,” I say and stride toward my strange husband. When I reach him, I lift onto my toes and kiss the dimple on his chin. “I don’t mind the view, I said.”
“What view?”
He’s oblivious, and I’m blushing because he’s making me say it.
“The one of your ass as you’re walking away.
” I stroll past him and lift my dress, make sure I put one foot in front of the other so my ass sashays and gives him a nice perspective.
I don’t know what makes me so bold, but something about this man does.
He won’t hurt me, that’s one. Two, he’s mine to have if I want him. And I want him. I wanted him from the second I saw him. There’s something dirty and decadent about a man with gray around his ears and one with a penchant for protecting the weak.
Me, the dog, Mika, even the maid. The staff told me the circumstances of their hiring.
I’m another stray he’s picked up, one of many he’s taken home over the years. He doesn’t have to love me, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like him or don’t want to have sex with him.
Because I do.