Chapter 24
twenty-four
EDEN
What is this witchcraft I’ve just come downstairs to? – Eden
I hit the send button on my phone, looking around the kitchen.
It’s almost nine, and the house is empty except for me.
I have no idea what time West and Bennett left – I didn’t hear him get up or shower or even the rumble of the car engine when they left for the resort.
I was too busy sleeping off a night of debauchery for that.
My cheeks pink up when I think about all the things he did to me.
After that first time, he woke me up twice more.
Once with his mouth, taking me to the edge until I was begging for him to take me again.
And he did, by flipping me over, pulling my hips up to his, putting my face on my pillow, and filling me until I felt completely boneless and replete.
The next time was softer. Like he was trying to imprint my body on his brain.
He sat on the bed, and I sat on top of him, softly rolling my hips, our mouths moving together until we were breathless, and he was spilling inside of me as I came for what I think might have been the fifth time. Or the sixth.
I appear to have lost the ability to count along with the ability to walk without gritting my teeth because, oh my God, my body aches.
I think it’s what we call breakfast. A novel idea I know. How are you feeling? – West x
I press my lips together, trying not to smile, even though he’s not here to see it. This man is infuriatingly sweet. I shouldn’t like him. I shouldn’t like the way he runs his business or his life.
He’s everything I’ve fought against for years, yet here he is, the only man who’s ever checked in with me after sex and made sure I’m fed even though he can’t be here.
How did you get this all here? – Eden
I look at the pastries and breakfast buns, the coffee and the freshly squeezed juice, all in Grand Liberty Hotel branded packaging. Sometime between leaving and me getting up, he arranged for all of this to be waiting for me.
I called the hotel and sent Bennett to drop it off. Told him it was our one month anniversary. – West x
Is it? – Eden
I frown. Has it been that long? I should have been keeping track of this.
You don’t remember the date? Remind me to get it tattooed on your ass. – West xx
That sounds painful. And I don’t do pain. – Eden
Pain can be very pleasurable. You just have to do it right. – West
Is that a threat? Because it feels kind of… threatening. – Eden
Baby if I really let myself go, you’d be begging me to hurt you. – West xx
I stare at his message. I’m not going to lie, those words send a shiver down my spine. A delicious one, full of desire and anticipation.
I knew it! I knew you had a dungeon in this place. Is that where you keep all the bodies of your other wives? – Eden
You caught me. The door is behind the wine rack. The secret code is WESTABBOTTISASEXGOD37. Be waiting there for me tonight on your hands and knees. – West xx
I’m sure Bennett will love that. – Eden
Let’s get him a babysitter. Mommy and Daddy need some alone time. - West xx
If I ever hear you call us that again, I’ll be the one inflicting pain. – Eden
Promises promises. Gotta go. Meetings. You have the day off, enjoy it. I promise not to ruin the ecology of the island in the next twenty-four hours. – West xx
Have a good day. See you later. – Eden
No kiss? – West xx
What? – Eden
I’m over here giving you anniversary breakfast, sexting you during meetings, planning to rail you into next week... and you can’t even put one little x at the end of your message? – West xx
I laugh out loud.
Are you sulking? – Eden
No. I’m making a mental list of ways to punish you tonight. So far it includes my hands, my mouth, and a belt I haven’t used in a while. See you later. – West xxx
Okay. So now I’m blushing. And feeling more than a little overheated. I take a mouthful of the still-hot coffee from the insulated mug, then pick up a pastry, carrying them both upstairs. If I’m taking the day off, then it’s starting with breakfast in bed.
The bedroom is a mess, the sheets twisted into a ball at the end of the bed from our late night activities. I put my coffee and pastry down on the dresser and pull open West’s drawer.
And that’s when I see it. A glint of silver that catches the sunlight flooding in from the window.
I lift up the pile of his perfectly folded t-shirts, to see the frame there.
The photograph within. And my stomach tightens as the pretty woman smiles up at me like she’s delighted I’ve discovered her secret.
I’d forgotten all about this picture. He must have put it away the night I moved into his bedroom. Hidden it, really. Under all his clothes, like he didn’t want her discovered but couldn’t bear to get rid of her image.
She doesn’t look like West’s normal type. She’s not in a designer gown. She’s not tall, blonde, and taking Hollywood by storm.
Then again, I’m not his usual type either. And that didn’t stop him from making me forget my own name last night.
I blink the thought away, but the ache in my stomach remains. I think about texting him to ask who she is, but I can’t. I’ll look like a psycho, going through his drawers.
And he didn’t make me any promises. Apart from the lies we said at the chapel, he’s never once said this is anything other than an arrangement. In fact, he made it clear that after he gets the payments from Vin, we’re done.
Am I nothing more than a convenient body for him to use while he’s here? God, I hate feeling so insecure. But he planned breakfast and got annoyed because I didn’t text him a kiss… and still, I’m wondering where I fit. And if he does this for all the women he has sex with.
“I don’t know who you are,” I murmur to the woman, sliding the photo back where I found it. “But he’s mine now.”
I close the drawer a little harder than I mean to, and catch a glimpse of my reflection in the mirror. My lips are swollen, my face is pink from the way his beard kept rubbing against my skin, and my hair looks like I was caught in a tornado and enjoyed it.
And yet I still feel insecure. And that I hate.
Luckily, before my mind can go down any rabbit holes, my phone starts to ring. And even though it’s Autumn and I’ve been avoiding her calls, I decide to pick it up.
“Hey,” I murmur.
Autumn squeals. “Hallelujah. She’s alive. Listen, we’re having lunch. I’ll pick something up and bring it to the resort.”
“No need,” I tell her. “I’ve got the day off.”
“Even better. I’ll come pick you up. I’ll make us a picnic. We can eat at the beach.”
That simple suggestion makes my heart clench. We used to do that when we were younger, when we wanted to escape the tensions of our dad, the tears of our mom, or the general testosterone that always came when our four brothers were together.
Just the two of us against the world. I miss that. I miss confiding in her. These past few weeks have been a whirlwind and she’s the reason I came back after all. I shouldn’t be avoiding her
“That sounds perfect,” I whisper, trying to keep the emotion from my voice.
“Are you okay?” she asks, like I’ve capitulated too easily.
“I’m fine.” Or I will be.
She pauses for a beat. “I’ll pick you up in an hour,” she says softly. “And honey?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you for letting me in. I’ve missed you.”
I press my hand to my heart. “I’ve missed you, too,” I tell her, the truth of it hitting me like a mack truck.
And although I haven’t really let her in. Haven’t told her what’s going on, maybe for the first time in weeks I’m ready to stop hiding from her.
Even if the truth wrecks everything.
“Who do you think the baby looks like?” Autumn asks, her face glowing as she shows me the black and white image on her phone. “Me or Parker?”
I squint at the screen, my nose wrinkling. “Which one of you looks the most like a jellybean?” I ask her.
“I’m gonna say Parker,” she says, her eyes meeting mine. “Especially since he found out he’s gonna be a dad. He’s eating his emotions. And he’s been too busy making sure I put my feet up to go to the gym.”
I grin and pick up one of the crusty sourdough sandwiches she’s made. With her homemade bread, because at some point since she moved to the island my sister seems to have become a domestic goddess. The woman who used to burn water now has a sourdough starter called Dough-Lene.
I take a big bite, moaning softly at the warm vegan cheese, grilled vegetables, and whatever magic she sprinkled on top. Lemon? Basil? A kiss from the domestic gods?
We’re sitting on a patchwork blanket on the east side of the island, not far from the clifftop lighthouse that’s my big sister’s home, tucked into a quiet curve of the beach where the dunes rise high and the sea rolls by in lazy waves.
It’s peaceful here – just the hush of the tide and the occasional call from a gull overhead.
“Whoever they look like, this baby is going to be beautiful,” I tell her. “And so loved.”
“I hope so.” She looks suddenly vulnerable. “But isn’t that what everybody thinks about their baby? That they’ll do it all right. They won’t make the same mistakes their parents made.” She pulls her lip between her teeth. “But what if I do it all wrong?”
“You won’t.” I don’t even hesitate. “You’re going to be the best mom. And Parker is going to be an amazing dad. It’s not like you don’t have experience. You pretty much mothered me for most of my life.”
Autumn lets out a soft laugh, but her eyes stay fixed on the horizon. “Is that why you keep avoiding me? Am I too much?”
Oof. “No. It’s not you.” I let out a long breath. “The last few weeks have been…”
“I don’t mean the last few weeks. I mean the last few years. You’ve done your best to be anywhere but here. The way Asher has to practically send out an army of mercenaries to track you down. It’s like you only show up when we force you. And even then, you’re halfway out the door.”
Her voice isn’t accusing. It’s soft. Sad. And somehow that makes it worse.