Chapter 36 - Ben
I almost felt guilty for dropping it on her the way I did when Melanie's face paled and she looked unsteady on her feet.
Almost.
Until Griffin came to her rescue, and I was again reminded that my wife had brought another man with her to try and divorce me, while also hiding my child from me.
“H-how?” she stammered and looked between her lawyer and Griffin with panic in her eyes.
“The nurses,” I admitted with a shrug. I could feel Frank glaring at me, but I chose to ignore him.
Ms. Yang sat back down and clapped her hands together slowly. Melanie jumped at the sound and then slowly slid back into her own seat. Griffin stayed stationed behind her seat with a scowl on his face.
“Bravo Mr. Landon. That was quite the performance. Now what do you want?”
“My wife.” I said before Frank could speak.
“No—“He started and glared at me, “Given that both Mr. and Mrs. Landon’s have been dishonest in this marriage, we believe that a fifty-fifty division of assets is more than fair.”
“We aren’t getting a divorce,” I said firmly, and Melanie's jaw dropped.
“You can’t be serious?” She whispered.
“I am.” I leaned forward, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I knew you’d use it to try and make me stay!” She snapped.
“A child is a reason to save a marriage!” I argued. “We owe it to our child to try and fix our marriage, instead of giving up on it.”
“Ben…” she shook her head and her eyes filled with tears, “I can’t be with you anymore. There is nothing left to fix.”
“You’re being stubborn!” I roared. I felt my own eyes prickle with tears.
“That’s enough.” Ms. Yang’s assertive voice cut through the tension. “Mr. Landon, my client is not going to change her mind about a divorce. The only thing that is up for discussion today is if we are going to do this the easy way or the hard way.”
“We want the prenup declared invalid and for your client to sign the very fair agreement I have with me today.” Frank slid the papers forward this time, and I could hear the blood pumping in my ears.
“I won’t sign it.” I snarled, and Frank gave me an exasperated look.
“Ben… what is wrong with you?” He whispered. I glanced at Melanie and Griffin, who were watching me with matching concern.
“A pregnancy is an opportunity—a sign—that we should be together.” I whispered back. “You’re my lawyer, make it happen!”
“It’s not—” Frank growled and spun back to address Ms. Yang. “My client won’t sign any agreement until paternity has been established.”
“What?!” Melanie gasped and jumped to her feet. “How dare you!”
“That’s not—” I lunged across the table to grab her wrist.
“Don’t touch me!” she shrieked, and Griffin pulled her out of my reach.
“I don’t need a fucking paternity test.” I snarled at Frank.
“There is no other—reasonable—reason to delay signing.” Frank said, through gritted teeth.
“I need…” Melanie darted out of the room and ran for the women’s bathroom. Before anyone could stop me, I chased after her.
“Wait!” I pushed my foot into the doorway before she could finish closing it, and pushed my way into the small room with her. I locked the door behind me just as Griffin started to pound on it.
“Open the fucking door, Ben.” He demanded, and I rolled my eyes.
“Fuck off.” I yelled back and then leaned against the door with my hands up.
Melanie was glaring at me from her position on the floor, where she had just finished dry heaving into the toilet.
“Morning sickness?” I asked, cautiously.
“Yes.” She snapped.
I could hear Frank and Griffin arguing on the other side of the door and knew that it wouldn’t be long before they forced him to find the bathroom key.
“I’m sorry that he said I wanted a paternity test. I never thought you cheated on me.” I assured her.
“Of course not, I was the na?ve, good little wifey.” Her self-deprecating tone startled me.
“Being a good wife isn’t a bad thing.” I said softly and took a tentative step towards her. I offered my hand to help her to her feet, and she glared at it. “It doesn’t bite.” I joked and then recoiled when I saw the disgust in her eyes.
“You should open the door.” She slowly pulled herself to her feet and flushed the toilet. “I want a divorce. You get to decide how ugly it’s going to be… but you don’t get to decide I can’t leave.”
My head started to spin with panic. Once we left this room, my marriage was over.
“Melanie—” I choked out and felt a tear roll down my cheek.
“I wish you had cared this much when we were married.” She shook her head, “I don’t like hurting you, I thought I would— but it turns out I don’t.”
“I did care. I was just, I was just stupid. And I swear I can be better.” I pleaded.
“I hope you will be… for the next woman.” Melanie finished washing her hands and turned to face me with her arms crossed. “Open the door.”
I could still hear Frank and Griffin arguing and knew that I had a few more seconds before they destroyed the fragile bubble Melanie and I were in.
Before I realized what I was doing, I had placed both hands on either side of Melanie's face and crushed my lips to hers.
What am I doing?!
Reminding her of how good we are together.
For a second, Mel’s lips softened against mine. I brushed my tongue against them and breathed in her familiar scent. Then I felt a sharp sting on my tongue, followed by crushing pain in my balls.
Melanie had bitten me and then kneed me in the nuts. As I sank to my knees and gasped for air, I tried to make out what she was screaming at me.
“Lost your fucking mind!”
The bathroom door swung open at that moment, and Griffin charged in with wild eyes. He took in the scene before him and then, to my horror, started to laugh.
“Guess you didn’t need saving after all.” He chuckled and pulled my wife into his arms, “That’s the last time you’ll touch her.” All the warmth that had been in his voice when he spoke to my wife had frozen over when he turned his attention to me.
“This meeting is obviously over.” Ms. Yang added. “We are going to let a judge decide on this. And we will be filing for a restraining order.” She sounded oddly excited.
I tried to find words as I stared up at my beautiful wife and couldn’t.
I had lost her.
· · ─ ·?· ─ · ·
“You said it was an emergency?” Kellie asked as I sat down on her couch.
After Frank finished screaming at me for ruining everything, I called my therapist and begged her for an emergency appointment. She had given me her home address and told me she would see me.
“I fucked up.” I admitted, my voice sounded ragged.
“How so?” She sat on the coffee table in front of me and placed her tiny hand on my knee.
“I attacked Melanie…”
She pulled her hand back with an apprehensive look.
“Can you elaborate?” she asked slowly.
“We had a meeting today with the lawyers, and it didn’t go well…
she’s pregnant and was hiding it. I thought I’d be able to use that to make her stay—I was wrong.
Anyway, I followed her into the bathroom to beg her to give us another chance.
I don’t know what I was thinking, but when she told me it was over, that there wasn’t anything I could do about it, I panicked.
” I looked away, feeling pathetic. “I kissed her.”
Her shoulders relaxed and she gave a wry laugh, “I wouldn’t call that an attack, Ben. Inappropriate and stupid, perhaps, but not violent.”
“They’re going to get a restraining order against me,” I mumbled.
“It’ll be temporary.” She shrugged. "You'll have a chance to fight it later. Nothing that you can do about it tonight." She paused and ran her eyes down my body. “I’m more interested in what I can do to help you feel better.” She put her hand back on my knee with a flirty smile. “I’d like to distract you--silence the chaos in your mind-- give you back some control.”
I thought about what she was offering for a moment. I did not doubt that Melanie was done with me, and if what Frank said was true… There was a good chance I could end up in jail.
Kellie was right, I needed to take back some control.
“Get undressed.” I snarled the command with more disgust than I had intended. I wasn’t disgusted by her, but by myself.
Kellie froze for half a beat—just long enough for me to register the sharpness in my voice.
Then she rose, her expression unreadable, and pulled her shirt off.
The air seemed to change with every quiet motion she made, heavier, humming with something I wasn’t sure I wanted but couldn’t stop wanting.
I watched with growing nausea as she slipped her fingers into her waistband and shimmied her pants down.
She was completely bare underneath, no panties, no hair, just the gleam of her arousal on smooth skin.
I reminded myself it wasn’t about her—it was about control. About reclaiming something I’d lost long before tonight. She stepped closer, close enough that her perfume and arousal reached me—warm, expensive, deliberate, a little musky.
Her fingers brushed my collar, a light, testing touch. “This what you wanted?” she asked softly.
No.
“On your knees.”
The words came out rough, almost broken, nothing like the man I’d been pretending to be. She tilted her head and ran a finger down my cheek.
“Yes, Sir.” Her voice was husky, and she sank to her knees without looking away. “Anything that helps you forget.” She added, and I sucked in a breath.
I want to forget.
I slowly unclasped my belt, and she helped me slide my pants down my legs until they hit my shoes. My erection strained against my boxers as I watched her pull my feet out of my shoes and carelessly throw them to the side. Then she ran one nail along the band of my boxers with a gleam in her eyes.
“Can I taste you, Sir?” She licked her lips suggestively.
“Yes.” I said gruffly and shoved my hand into her hair. “Impress me.”
She freed my throbbing length from my boxers and licked off the drop of precum that had formed on the tip. Then she wrapped her lips around me and swirled her tongue around the head. I groaned at the sensation and felt my cock twitch.
“More.”
Her moan vibrated down my length as she slid her lips down until I could feel the heat from her nose on my pelvis.
“Fuckkk,” I stared down and took note of how her lips had stretched thin around me. Her eyes were filled with tears, and a trail of drool followed her lips as she bobbed up and down. “I’m going to fuck your mouth now.” I growled and waited for her to nod.
It was clear that it wasn’t her first time surrendering control to a dom. She relaxed her throat just before my tip pushed past her tonsils and held perfectly still as I tested her reaction to a little air play.
She likes it. I realized when she didn’t make a sound. I felt the familiar tingle in my lower back and the tightening in my balls.
It had only been a few weeks since the last time I had been with someone, but I was so wound up from the day’s events, so in need of a release, that I was going to bust before we even got started if I let her keep going.
“Where’s the bedroom?” I demanded as I yanked her off by her hair. She took a deep breath and pointed to the hallway.
“On the left side.” She rose to her feet and turned to lead me. Her ass bounced just a little with every step she took, and her hips started to swing a little harder as she threw a saucy look over her shoulder at me. I smacked her cheek hard, and she squealed.
“Ouch! Sorry, Sir.” She rubbed her ass but picked up the pace.
Definitely not new to this.