Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
FYNN
THE SKY OUTSIDE my bedroom window is barely beginning to lighten when I finally drag myself away from the warmth of my wife's body. As much as I don't want to leave her side, I have things to do that can’t wait.
The most important, ensuring her safety.
My new wife is many things, and na?ve is one of them. And that naivety could get her killed.
After tucking the blankets around her sleeping form, I quietly make my way through the dark apartment, going straight to the kitchen. After making myself a cup of tea, I bring it with me into my office, quietly closing the door so I won't disturb her.
Sliding behind the desk, I switch on my laptop and run through my new emails. By the time those have all been handled, it’s nearly eight. Plenty late enough to start making phone calls.
And there is only one place to begin.
Scrolling through my phone, I select the contact I'm hoping will throw me a lifeline, and tap the number, pressing the phone to my ear as the line begins to ring. It's answered surprisingly fast and I relax a little as the voice on the other end greets me.
"Fynn Hadaway. Not the name I expected to see on my screen this morning." Elaine Cervantes’ voice carries a smile. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
I've crossed paths with Elaine a number of times since coming to Sweet Side. She and my mother are similar in age and wealth. They run in the same social circles and even use the same hairstylist.
However, while my mother tends to dabble in more eccentric business pursuits, Elaine leans toward the slightly less upstanding sort. "I wish I could pretend this was a social call, but I'm afraid I have a problem."
"Outside of the shit Jessica’s been throwing at you for the past six months?"
I blink, because, for a while, I'd all but forgotten about Jessica. "Besides that, yes." I tap one finger against the surface of my desk, choosing my words carefully.
Or at least attempting to. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to say what needs to be said, so I simply lay it out. "I believe my new wife may be in some trouble."
"Wife?" There's surprise in her voice—unsurprisingly. "I had no idea you were engaged."
I'm not ready to give up all Valerie's secrets just yet, so I keep my explanation vague. "It happened rather quickly, and we decided to go to a justice of the peace rather than host an extravagant event."
"That's smart considering the circumstances. Who knows what could have happened if you'd had a large wedding. That woman is an idiot with no sense of self preservation. She likely would have shown up and thrown a fit." Elaine’s tone carries a hint of irritation at the possibility Jessica could have ruined yet another thing for me, making me even more grateful she’s in my corner. "I suppose congratulations are in order then."
"They would be, if a strange man hadn’t been in my apartment last night when we got home, warning me someone put a hit out on my new bride." My hand clenches into a fist at the memory, and it takes a few seconds to calm myself.
"That does sound like a problem." Elaine's calm reaction is exactly what I need. That's why I called her first. I need someone to help me navigate the situation with a level head.
Otherwise I'm afraid I'll begin making very bad choices.
Bad choices like whisking Valerie away to London. Putting an entire ocean between her and the men who would rather see her dead than going against their wishes.
But it wouldn’t stop them, it would only buy me a little time. It would also put an ocean between myself and my ill mother, and that's not an option.
"Did he leave you his name?" Elaine asks.
I pick up the card the man handed me before leaving last night, looking over the single line pressed across the card stock. "No name. Just a phone number. "
"Would you be willing to share that number with me?"
I answer by rattling off the ten digits. I called her for help. As much as I'd like to believe I have enough money to make this go away, I’ve dealt with enough people in that world to understand money and honor are two different things. And one holds significantly more value.
"I am familiar with that number."
I sit up straighter in my seat. "You are?"
"I am." Elaine pauses as I hear another woman in the background, her voice sounding slightly more aged than the smooth one on the other end of my line. Elaine sighs into the phone. "Fynn, could you hold on for just a second? My mother is apparently in desperate need of assistance."
In spite of the topic of conversation, I smile. This is another reason I trust Elaine. She and I have discussed our similar relationships with our mothers a number of times, and while I haven't met her mother, I suspect I'd like her based on what I know. She seems to be full of piss and vinegar, and I find that decidedly charming.
After a few muffled minutes of conversation, the line clears again. "This wife of yours. Does she have a name?"
Of course she has a name, that's not what she's asking. She’s asking if I'm willing to give it to her. But I have to. I have to trust someone, and she is who I'm choosing. "Valerie," I pause running my tongue across the front of my teeth because what I have to say next irritates me a surprising amount, "it was, up until yesterday, Berdard."
"Oh. "
I don't like the way she said that. "Am I to assume you have heard the name?"
"I am familiar with the last name Berdard, yes." She says it carefully, which has me growing more concerned.
Tension coils in my stomach as I ask, "Are you familiar with it because you are aware of the hit, or for other reasons?"
"I'm familiar with the last name because her father is a well-known, arrogant, pompous piece of shit." She snorts. "And if I were you, I would rest assured he will not be the one coming here to find her."
I’m not sure if that makes me feel better or worse. "Why not?"
"Because the single time our paths crossed it ended with me telling him if I ever saw his face in any of my territories I would cut it off his skull and feed it to my son’s snake."
That trips my brain up. Not the brutality—I expected and appreciate that—but the technical aspects of the threat. “I thought snakes ate rodents.”
“They do.” Elaine retorts. “He’s a rat.”
I’m feeling better and better about this conversation. “That’s a little insulting.” I take a sip of my tea, wincing at the cooled temperature. “To rats.”
"It's true." Elaine sounds disgusted. "And I would never really do that to Grant’s pet. I would just dump him in the ocean and get on with it. Let the fish have him."
It's good to know I don't have to worry about coming face-to-face with Valerie's father, however, that means I now have to worry about another, unidentified threat. "He’s not the only one involved."
"That's unsurprising considering he doesn't have two brain cells to rub together." Elaine sighs, like she’s already as tired of the situation as I am. "Tell me everything."
That isn't going to happen, but I do offer up all relevant information. From Valerie's arranged marriage, to her father's belief that it would secure him a position he covets. I also explain her flight from Minneapolis and her fears about being dragged back, leveraging the other reason I chose to call Elaine instead of one of my other contacts.
If there is anyone who will help me ensure Valerie is able to live the life of her choosing, it's Elaine. She enjoys women finding their power, and that’s what this will be. Has already been.
Valerie taking back her power.
"You have found yourself quite an intriguing wife, Fynn." Elaine sounds impressed, convincing me further she was the right one to call. "I can't wait to meet her."
"I am happy to introduce you any time." I pause, because this is the important part. "Provided I can allow her in public."
Taking my lovely wife out around Sweet Side to show her off was a large portion of the agreement between us, but it is not something I can confidently do now. It's simply not safe.
After last night, I'm not sure my apartment is safe either, but it's the best option I have .
I pause, because that might not be as true as I initially thought.
"At this point I'm not sure I would want to have her in the public eye." Elaine's recommendation is expected. "Give me a few days. I’ll ask around. See what I can find out and what sort of arrangements I can make." There's a smile in her voice for the last bit, and it brings a smile to my own face, because, from her earlier description, I’m fully on board with the sort of arrangements Elaine likes to make. And I would be all too happy to hear she'd made them for Valerie's father and her ex-fiancé. There's nowhere I think they're more deserving to visit than the bottom of the ocean.
"Until then, I assume your home is secure?"
"Before last night, I would've said yes,” my eyes roam my office, “but seeing as how a strange man was able to find his way in, I’m not sure I can still say that."
"The man who visited you last night is an exception. He is in a completely different class than the ones who will be coming to find your wife." There's a brief pause. "That being said, if you are able to take her somewhere with even more security, that would probably be preferable."
There is somewhere I can take Valerie, however it's not a perfect solution by any means. "I'll look into it. Is there anything else I can do?"
"Enjoy married life. I hope it treats you as well as it treated me." The line disconnects, leaving me a set of well wishes that I wish applied.
However, my marriage is nothing like the one she shared with her late husband. It’s an arrangement instead of a love match, for starters. One intended to save us both. It also has an expiration date, though we haven’t really discussed the specifics of its shelf life, and I find myself dreading that date in spite of the events of the past twenty-four hours.
There’s a quiet knock at my door. It’s the first time this particular door has been knocked upon, but instead of startling me, the sound has my eyes lifting with a sense of eagerness. “Yes?”
Valerie slowly opens the barrier between us. Her dark hair is a mess and I love knowing it’s because of me. The drape of my T-shirt on her curvy form brings me almost as much joy. But it’s the sight of her here, in my home, in my private space, looking so sweet and soft and vulnerable that has my heart stuttering to a stop.
Because, in spite of all the omissions and half-truths she’s told me, I think I’ve accidentally started to fall in love with my wife. And I can’t find it in me to be mad about it.
Everything she did was out of self-preservation. After years of yielding to men who never saw her as more than an asset to be utilized, she finally dug deep and tried to find a way out.
I respect the hell out of that.
Add in that nothing gets me harder than a strong woman, and I should have seen this coming. Should have known exactly how this would play out.
Now all I have to do is make her fall in love with me .
I reach one hand out as I push away from the desk. “Come here.”
Valerie’s steps are silent as her bare feet move across the wood. As soon as she’s close enough I reel her in, dragging her onto my lap. “Did you sleep well, my wife?”
Her cheeks flush and her eyes won't meet mine. "I did. You have a really comfortable bed."
I slide one hand up her spine, curving my palm around the back of her neck. "And you're sure it was the mattress that made you sleep well and it’s not because you plastered yourself against me and drooled on my chest?"
Her eyes jump to my face. "I did not do that."
I lean in, unable to resist her parted lips a second longer. I intend to simply brush a quick kiss across them, but as with everything in regard to this woman, things get out of hand very quickly. The second she melts into me, I'm gone, losing all sense and focus as I tug her closer. One small hand moves up the center of my chest to curve around my neck before sliding into my hair, gripping tight. Her mouth is soft and pliant, opening for me readily as she lets out one of those soft little whimpers that shoots straight to my cock.
I'm not sure I could have created a woman more perfectly suited for me. Every inch of Valerie could have been custom made to my specifications. From the ample curve of her hips to the heavy fullness of her tits, her body is sheer perfection, making it impossible to keep my hands off her.
My mouth is still claiming hers as my fingers work between the softness of her thighs, sliding against her heated and already slick flesh. I swallow down the sweet sound she makes as I tease against her clit, desperate to feel her come undone again. Desperate for anything she’ll give me.
This woman has held me in the palm of her hand from that first night. I’m aware my feelings toward her should have soured any number of times as more and more of her motives came to light, but they only made me understand her more. Made me resent her even less. Made me want her to be the same sort of putty in my hands as I am in hers, and there is no better way to accomplish that than by reminding her exactly what my hands are capable of.
I suck her lower lip, teasing it with my teeth as I sink a finger into her heat, careful not to be too rough just in case she’s still feeling the lingering effects of last night.
When she sucks in a breath, I drag my mouth to her hair, slowing the slide of my finger. "Are you sore?"
Valerie shakes her head, the movement jerky. "No."
I pull in a deep breath, savoring the scent of her skin. "Good." I curl the digit buried in her body, dragging it against her front wall as my thumb settles onto her clit. "Tell me, wife, what would I have to do to get rid of those condoms in our nightstand?"
I don't mind using them. Have relied on them on every sexual interaction I've had up to this point. But there is nothing I want more than to feel my wife’s skin against mine. To watch her face as I fill her. To then fuck her a second time, the slick of our joined spend easing the way.
Valerie's thighs twitch against my wrist. "I'm not on the pill."
I drag my nose along her neck, working a second finger inside her. "I wish that was something I could bear the brunt of, Darling, but alas, pharmaceutical companies know there's more money to be made ensuring eighty-year-old men can sustain an erection than young men being able to carry the weight of procreation."
Valerie's eyes meet mine, pupils dilated. "I can't believe you just said that."
I lift a brow, watching her face as I continue working her closer to the edge. "No?"
She shakes her head, nostrils flaring. "It was really fucking hot though."
I'm unsurprised, and plan to use my new little wife’s love of female empowerment to my full benefit. I'm not going to feel bad about it either, because there's nothing I love more than a woman in her power.
Especially when she chooses to go to her knees for me.
"What if I promise to make your sacrifice worth it?" Her body begins to tremble, and I know she's close. "What if I offer you two orgasms for my one?" I nip at the line of her jaw. "Do my part to close the climax gap."
Valerie's cunt clenches around my fingers as her back arches, shoving her tits toward my face, making me regret that I didn't relieve her of this T-shirt before we started. She comes, gasping my name as her hand yanks my hair so hard I'm sure a few strands now belong to her. I don't stop my steady stroke against her clit, dragging her pleasure out as long as I possibly can until she shoves at my hand, thighs clenching together as she sags against my chest. Her breath is still coming in short pants when her eyes lift to mine, lids heavy.
"I think we have another deal, husband."