Chapter 26
Vienna
Putting the Pieces Together, But There Are Two Pieces Missing
“You’re still married?” Rhonan is pacing back and forth across the floor of the same wine cellar he dragged me to a few weeks ago, but the energy in the room is much different than it was that day.
After I blurted out my confession to him on the dance floor, he made sure Ellis was occupied and being looked after, then he brought me down here so we could talk privately.
“Legally? Yes. But Rhonan, my marriage has been over for a very long time.”
“So, the man you told me about last week on our date is still your husband?”
“Yes,” I say, my reply direct and my eyes locked on his.
I’m not trying to make excuses. This is my fault for letting our relationship get this far without telling him the truth.
But after hearing his words on the dance floor, the life he envisions for us and his daughter?
I couldn’t hold my truth back any longer.
He shakes his head, trying to put the pieces together.
“Vienna…”
“I hired Elliot to draw up a petition of divorce for me, Rhonan—because when I left Cole, I did it without telling him. Well, I kind of told him, but he wouldn’t listen.”
“What do you mean?”
I take a steadying breath. “I told you that I got married fast, but as soon as we became husband and wife, something shifted in Cole. I told myself it was normal, that wedded bliss was a fairy tale, but Lydia picked up on it and slowly started trying to get me to see what was right in front of my face.”
“Which was?”
“That my husband was a selfish asshole who didn’t deserve me.
” Rhonan’s jaw ticks, but I continue. “I made excuses for his behavior all the time, and then when he approached me about having a baby, I thought maybe he was starting to change. Starting a family was something I’ve always wanted, but after months of trying to get pregnant with no success, he started to get mean. ”
“What the fuck?”
I nod. “Yeah. I can’t begin to express how frustrating it is to want something so badly and fear that it will never happen.
Even though looking back now, I’m grateful that I never got pregnant with Cole’s child, I’m not sure if I ever will.
The second I suggested going to see a doctor, he flipped out and grabbed me—hard.
Lydia saw the bruises that he left and she flipped out on me.
That’s when I think I finally started to realize he was not a good person and things between us were never going to change. ”
His eyes find the ground as he thinks. “Wow, this is a lot to take in.”
“There’s more.” When he looks back up at me, I continue.
“Right after Cole grabbed me the first time, Lydia told me about her diagnosis. She begged me to leave him, but I couldn’t fathom dealing with him and losing my best friend at the same time, so I dealt with his mentally, emotionally, and verbally abusive behavior for a few more months. ”
He finally closes the distance between us, cupping the side of my face. “You are so fucking strong, do you know that?”
I shake my head. “No, I’m not, Rhonan. I’m a coward, and I’m so mad at myself for not being strong enough to leave him earlier when I knew things were wrong, but I didn’t want to believe it.
I didn’t want my marriage to be a failure.
Plus, when you’re married to a U.S. senator, divorce isn’t an easy choice. ”
His eyes widen. “Wait, what did you just say?”
Sighing, I close my eyes and mentally kick myself. “Shit. I—I was getting to that part.”
“Cole… Cole…” I can almost see the moment that everything clicks in his mind. “Fuck. So your husband is…”
“Cole Cassidy,” I finish for him. “A senator for West Virginia and a horrible human being.”
His eyebrows draw together again. “But your last name…”
“Lydia created a new identity for me before she died. It was delivered to me a few weeks after her funeral. She wanted to protect me and give me a shot at a new life, so she thought of everything—my license, passport, teaching certificate, birth certificate…” Shaking my head, I say, “She wasn’t just looking out for me when she was alive, but she gave me the means to leave even after she was gone.
And I figured the farther I got from West Virginia, the less risk of being recognized.
” I hold onto the lapels of his suit jacket a little tighter.
“I’m so sorry that I hid all of this from you, but as soon as I met you, I just wanted to be me—the real me.
Not Vienna Cassidy, not Cole Cassidy’s wife, and not the shell of a woman I was when I was with him.
You allowed me to be the person I forgot was hiding underneath all of the baggage I collected during my marriage. ”
“What about your parents? Couldn’t your family have helped you?”
“My father is a judge in the court system, and my mother spends her days drinking at the country club to avoid the fact that my dad has two mistresses. Trust me, I would not have gotten any sympathy from them.”
Rhonan blows out a breath before cupping the back of my head and holding me to his chest. “I’m so fucking sorry, Vienna.”
“What are you sorry for?”
His head moves back and forth against mine. “For everything that you’ve gone through.”
“Me? You’ve gone through so much more than I have, and yet…” I cut myself off. “Thank you, but I should have been honest from the beginning.”
He cups my jaw and forces me to look at him. “I understand why you weren’t.”
“You deserve honesty, and I promise going forward that you’ll have it from me. My past is messy, but I’m trying to move on. It’s the only thing left to do.”
“I understand that more than you know, but also? I really want to beat the shit out of your soon-to-be ex-husband.”
Laughter bubbles out of me as the adrenaline running through my veins finally starts to subside. “Trust me, I would love to see that.”
Framing my face in his hands, he says, “You’re safe with me. You know that, right?”
“I do.”
“You’ve changed my life, Vienna. And even though we’ve both suffered, it’s time for us to have someone to handle the shitty parts of life with.”
“Rhonan Hart… I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to explain just how much you mean to me.”
Our lips meet and a wave of relief rushes through me. “Fuck, I need you.” Rhonan mumbles against my lips. “I want…”
“Yes…”
Rhonan backs us up against the stacks of wine barrels and spins me so my back is to his chest. “Lift your dress.” I do as I’m told as I hear the sound of him unbuttoning his slacks and pulling down his zipper.
“Jesus, your ass is so fucking perfect.” His hand connects with my skin, leaving a sting behind before he pulls at the strings of my thong on each hip, snapping it from my body.
I glance over my shoulder to find him tucking my useless underwear into the pocket of his pants as he pumps his cock. “Will you stop ruining my underwear?”
“Just stop wearing them.” Dragging the head of his cock through my pussy to test my readiness, he finds me soaking already.
“Fuck, your pussy is already wet for me.” He lines himself up and pushes in, the sensation so tight from the angle we’re at, but the heels I’m wearing are making our height difference work.
I use the barrels in front of me for leverage as he pumps in and out of me.
“God, I don’t think I will ever get enough of the way your pussy squeezes my cock. ”
“Don’t stop, Rhonan.”
His hand travels over my shoulder and up the back of my neck, burying in my hair and tightening around the strands just hard enough that he can pull me back to him. Our mouths meet as he continues to slide in and out of me, over and over, letting me feel every silky inch of him.
I can feel my wetness drip down the inside of my thighs. My chest is heaving as I struggle to take in air. And Rhonan’s eyes are locked on mine as he holds me to his chest.
His other hand grips my hip possessively as he thrusts, over and over, taking us both higher. I reach behind his neck and pull his mouth to mine over my shoulder again, mumbling, “I’m close.”
“Rub that perfect little clit and get there so I can fill you with my cum.”
His words ignite a spark in me as I bring my hand back and reach beneath my dress, finding my clit and rubbing in circles, building the friction I need to come.
“Fuck, Vienna. You’re dripping.”
“I’m almost there.”
“Shit. Fuuuuck…”
“Rhonan!”
We shatter at the same time, gasping for air as pleasure rushes through both of us. He holds me to his chest, still buried inside of me as we let every tremor run its course. “You’re mine now, Vienna. And I promise, I won’t let anything happen to you.”
It’s as if he was testing the universe—because I had no idea just how wrong he could be, and neither did he.
***
“I want to paint a really big rock!” Ellis nearly tips the water cup over on the table as she leaps from her chair at Rhonan’s dining room table.
“Well, let’s find one in the basket.”
She shakes her head as she moves from the dining room to the kitchen where I’m standing at the sink. We just finished eating spaghetti that I made, and Ellis naturally wanted to paint rocks with me after dinner.
It’s Monday night, and as Rhonan asked me, I’m looking after Ellis for him while he’s on shift.
After Laney and Fletcher’s wedding Saturday night, where I finally confessed everything to him, I wish I could say that I felt better about our future.
On some levels, I do—the man accepted everything I had to tell him with such understanding that I became emotional when we lay in bed together that night.
He held me as I let months of pain, grief, and anger pass through me.
He assured me that he wanted to be responsible for keeping me safe now.