Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Micah
I rest my hands on the table and listen to Scarlett talking heartily about her meeting with Adrian. She’s so excited she’s barely touched her food.
She met with him earlier today and did her audition. I thought it would be nice to take her out to dinner so we could celebrate her win although she hasn’t had confirmation of the part yet. I feel she’ll get it. Not because I know Adrian Domachenkov and, unknown to Scarlett, we come from the same world.
Adrian is from the Knights, a secret society like the Enclave, but they have more alliances with the Creed and other organizations.
Regardless, Scarlett’s achievement will be solely based on her talent.
Her melodious voice drowns out the sounds in the restaurant—the chatter from the nearby tables, the waitress going over the orders she’s taking, the clatter of cutlery on plates as people eat. But it’s not enough to completely subdue my worries.
I’ve been trying to balance my thoughts, but it’s hard to concentrate when I have so many loose ends to tie up and it feels like nothing is being done.
Nothing new has happened since well before the wedding. Jaxon set up his system, but the hackers haven’t made a move. Brahm has kept a track on Anton’s men and their conversations, but nothing more has been said about Anton’s return to the States or getting Scarlett back.
More than a whole fucking month has passed since then. On top of all that shit, my father and I are barely speaking. He’ll be cordial when he’s around me and Scarlett, but I know he’s still pissed that I didn’t marry Eloise.
I’m thankful that my mother is the way she is, because I can’t worry about my father now.
It’s never good when things go quiet. It’s like the calm before the storm, the silence before a war, the heartbeat before death.
No one is ever equipped to do anything in either of those situations until they know what’s coming next.
I’m a man who likes to be in control and right now I have none. I’m walking on cracked ice trying to keep a smile on my face because if I look worried, Scarlett will be worried, too.
I don’t want her to be scared of Anton. I don’t want her to even think his name. But I don’t have that power. Not yet.
I will get it, though. Nothing can describe the rage I felt when she told me what Anton did to her. I’d known about her mother and knew it was a given that Scarlett would still be affected by her departure. But Anton…
He was a whole other realm of fucked up. Her records gave a lot of details that made me think he had something to do with her rehab stay because he’s into drugs of every kind. But there’s only so much paperwork can tell you. The truth hits harder coming from a person’s lips.
Most of the drugs Scarlett was given were prescribed, so it looked like it was her fault. Anton knew what he was doing and made her look like a junkie. He left nothing to tie him in, which worked to his benefit during the investigation.
I stare at Scarlett and take in her vibrant beauty and the infectious happiness radiating from her. She may as well be glowing like the star she is.
I like her like this.
She deserves to be like this. Not the way that saw her fretful and fearful.
I think back to the night we met and how she stood out in the bar amongst everyone, a beacon of light cutting through the smoke-hazed darkness. Then she stood out in my world, becoming the axis everything else revolved around.
Now, she's my wife.
My chest tightens with possessive pride every time I think those words.
I married her and I'm being selfish again. She thinks she's only going to be with me for a year, but I have no plans to let her go. The thought of her leaving makes my blood run cold, my fingers instinctively curling into fists beneath the table.
I'm not Anton. I won't keep her captive and loathing me. I want her to love me as much as I love her. The depth of my feelings terrifies me sometimes, like drowning in an endless ocean.
That means I can't fail her and protecting her is imperative. We always have guards with us, but I need to protect her. Every shadow makes my muscles tense, every unexpected sound has me scanning for threats.
Terrible things have happened in the family before, and all sorts of threats have come our way where we've lost loved ones, but for me, this is different.
It's about her. Only her.
She giggles and reaches across the table to rest her hand on mine. The sound breaks through my dark thoughts like sunshine through storm clouds. Her skin is soft against my callused palm, her touch spreading warmth through my entire body.
"I've talked your ear off, haven't I?" She touches her cheeks and smiles.
I feel bad that I've only heard bits and pieces of what she's had to tell me. "No, I want to hear everything." I cover her hand with mine, savoring the delicate bones beneath my fingers.
"We may be here until tomorrow if I talk about everything ." The light from the crystal chandelier above catches in her hair, creating a halo effect that makes my breath catch.
"I'm not complaining." I smirk and give her a wink, drinking in the slight blush that colors her cheeks. "It sounds like you had a great day."
"It was fantastic, Micah. And I was in my element. I was so glad Adrian allowed Lucy to be there because it was my best audition ever, and I wanted her to see it." She laughs, the sound dancing through the air between us like music. "Lucy said I had pop."
I smile back at her and raise my brows, memorizing the way excitement makes her whole face glow. "Pop?"
"Yeah, pop." She laughs some more. "There's no solid definition. It's just that thing people have when they got it." She snaps her fingers, the sharp sound punctuating her words. "Like that."
I nod, understanding, watching how her enthusiasm makes her lean forward, closer to me. "Yeah, I get it. When do you hear back from him?"
"He said he wouldn't keep me waiting. So, hopefully soon. But, of course, I'm going to keep checking my phone every half second to make sure I haven't missed a message or call from him." She laughs again.
"I don't think you need to worry." The certainty in my voice reflects the faith I have in her talent.
"I just want this part so badly. It will be the biggest role I've ever had. The last movie Adrian produced made several million in the first week of release and stayed in the box office charts for two months. He said he's looking for the same sort of success again with a fresh face. I pray I could be that fresh face." She clasps her hands and gazes up heavenward as if she's really praying, the gesture so purely her that my heart constricts. Then she laughs, the sound echoing off the restaurant's exposed brick walls.
I smile, too, and cup her face, my thumb brushing across her cheekbone, feeling the silk of her skin. "Hey, you said he loved your audition, so I think everything will be fine."
"Thank you. And thanks for everything, Micah. I can't believe I'm here in this moment with so many changes." A wistful look enters her eyes, making them shimmer. The vulnerability in her expression makes my protective instincts surge, even as my heart swells with love for her.
“Believe it, bellezza.”
She nods with acceptance and I feel like I’ve cracked another piece of the wall that’s still guarding her heart.
“It just feels so strange. Weeks ago, I was at the diner working so hard I couldn’t see straight. Now I’m married to you.”
“You’ve changed my life, too, Scarlett.”
She gives me a skeptical stare. “Oh, please. I didn’t do anything.”
If only she knew. “You did everything.”
“It’s not the same thing. All I did was be here.”
“And that’s everything for me.”
Her phone rings in her bag, the sound cutting into our conversation. She gasps and grabs her bag. “That could be Adrian.”
When she retrieves her phone, she gasps again.
“Is it him?” I ask.
“Yes.” She can barely talk but manages to answer the phone. She even manages to sound cordial with her best professional voice until I’m guessing he offers the part and she screams. The glow in her face increases a hundred times over as she tries to get herself together. “Thank you so much, Adrian. Sure, I can be there Friday. Thank you. See you then.”
She hangs up and flies over to me, throwing her arms around me.
“I told you you’d be fine,” I whisper in her ear.
She pulls back to look at me with tears in her eyes. “I just can’t believe it. He picked me. He said I was perfect.”
“I agree with him. Now I can tell people my wife is going to be a big movie star.”
We both laugh, and then she cups my face, running her delicate fingers over the scruff of my beard. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“No, bellezza, it’s you for me. You are my something good.”
Tears run down her cheeks, and she leans in to kiss me, her jasmine perfume filling my nose with the scent of her. “And you are mine, Micah.”
I hold her against me, savoring the magical moment many men like me don’t often get. I want this for us always, so I have to keep fighting.
Keep trying. Always.