Chapter 43
Dax
Something’s shifted with my wife in the past week, but it’s subtle. She doesn’t realize how well I know her.
On the surface, everything appears to be the same.
She’s working on the business, finalizing her school application, and planning her bridal shop.
She’s still affectionate and rarely does a night or morning pass without making love.
I was half asleep last night when she climbed on top of me and rode me until we both cried out.
Maybe I’m a fool, but I want to buy what my wife is selling.
She’s always been a little liar. The woman is many things, but she’s not docile.
She’s never tried to be, and I never want her to be anything but herself.
It would be like putting a bull in a China shop and expecting it to behave.
I love all sides of her, even the duplicitous side.
The woman I married is a fighter, and she’s savage. That’s why I married her. The only thing I can trust without reservation is that she wants me, and that everything that happens in the bedroom is real.
The chemistry is there, and it intensifies each time we’re together. But, as much as I want to believe she’s forgiven all my transgressions and is giving this marriage a real try, I can’t fully trust it. There’s been a shift, and I can’t put my finger on what could have happened.
Each time we’re together, she appears happy. She lets me take care of her. I can’t get enough when she cuddles next to me in bed and opens up to me about her family and her feelings.
And she’s been doing that a lot more in the past few days.
In a perfect world, she’d be like that all the time, but reality is far from perfect. Something is off, and I need to figure out what it is.
I watched on the security camera when she found the highchair and playpen I bought for Ruby. She even found the bag of clothes and toys, and I waited for a confrontation. I longed for it so I could convince her that Ruby needs us, and that it’s not about Devin, but she never said a word.
She acted like she didn’t know. Moments after finding the hidden items, she found me in my office.
She walked behind my chair, hugged me from behind, kissed my cheek, and told me to sit in the kitchen with her while she made us dinner.
Like a fool, I followed, and while she cooked, I did some final edits on her personal statement for fashion school.
Another thing that’s put me off is that she still hasn’t said a word about Ruby spending the night two weeks ago. At that time, I was relieved not to have that fight in front of the baby, so I accepted it. I’ve been ready for her to confront me about it for weeks, and it hasn’t happened.
My phone beeps, pulling me out of my thoughts. My eyes bug out when I see the alert on my phone about a six-figure payment to a mortgage company.
“Did she buy a house behind my back?” The words are uttered into my empty office. Does she think she’s going to move out? I’ll burn that fucking house to the ground and not think twice about it.
I don’t care what little game she’s playing or what money she spends, but she’s not moving out of this house.
This expense is the biggest, but it’s not the first. For the past week, she’s moved large sums of money from my account to her business account, but a house? I look through my contacts and dial Sam Armstrong, the local lawyer I use, who happens to know everything that goes on in this town.
“Sam,” I say, irritated that it took three rings for him to answer my call. “My wife just made a six-figure payment to a mortgage lender. Find out what the fuck’s that’s about.” I give him the lender's name and all the information I have. After putting me on hold, he returns to the phone.
“She paid off her cousin’s mortgage,” Sam’s rough voice says. “I knew the lender sounded familiar. You’re an investor, remember?”
“What?” I scratch my head, unsure of what the hell he’s talking about.
“You invested in the company that built the community of townhouses off Cider Road.” He lets out a laugh. “You’re getting some of that money back from the sale. Don’t you and your wife talk about these things?”
“Don’t question me about my wife.” I end the call and toss the phone on the couch. While I decide on what to do about this latest development, my phone buzzes again.
“Hunt.” I rub my hands over my face.
“It’s Steel, and we need to talk. In person.” This man is nothing if not direct.
“About what? I’m not taking on any additional business other than what we agreed to.”
“You’ll take on what the fuck I need you to take on.” The asshole dares to scoff.
“Take your orders and shove them up your ass. You need me, motherfucker, not the other way around. Remember that.”
“You sound testy. You got wife problems already? I was disappointed not to get an invitation, but I hope you got my gift.”
I sigh. “What the fuck do you want?”
“Tomorrow. I’ll meet you at the convenience store. Two o’clock.” The asshole ends the call before I can utter a word.
I text King and Preacher to meet me at one tomorrow, and just as my finger hovers over Cori’s contact, the alarm App beeps.
I open it to see my wife walking up the front steps.
I get to the door and swing it open for her.
She gasps when she sees me, then she smiles.
I could forgive her for anything just with that smile.
I take her shopping bags from her and put them on the table before I pull her into my arms and kiss her.
“Sweetheart, do you have something you want to tell me?” Those big, brown lying eyes find mine, and she does her best to appear confused. I can tell she knows what I’m talking about. The woman has a lot going for her, but a good poker face isn't one of them.
She gives me her back and rummages through the fridge for a bottle of white wine. She pours a glass for each of us.
“What do you mean?” Her voice is much too high. I take her hand and put two fingers to her wrist and check her pulse. It’s rapid. Her nostrils flare, and she inhales, pushing her perfect breasts forward.
“Did you spend hundreds of thousands of dollars today, Bella?” She picks up her glass and sips it. “Did you buy a house?”
She puts her glass to my lips and offers me a sip.
“For Selene.” She walks back to the fridge as if buying a house for her cousin is normal.
“I can’t stand Selene. I wouldn’t buy her a—"
“Why? Because she kicked your ass?” There’s a lightness in her voice, and normally I would love that, but not when it comes to that rabid cousin. “It was for her birthday.”
“Her birthday? You and Eden took her to New York City to see Hamilton.” My wife rented a suite at the Crowne Plaza, went only to the best restaurants, and had a driver on call. “How many damn presents does she need?”
“What? Can you not afford it?” She bats her eyelashes while doing her best to look innocent. She’s about as innocent as a rattlesnake.
It’s a challenge. I can afford it, and she knows it. What she doesn’t know is that she only has access to one of my accounts.
“Not the point. I don’t like Selene, and I don’t want to spend any of my money on her. That’s the point.”
She sighs and rubs the bridge of her nose. “But you said it was my money. She’s my cousin, best friend, and I love her. And the ass kicking she gave you was because she was defending—”
“She did not kick my ass!” My nostrils flare, and I take a deep breath. She’s baiting me, and I won’t let her.
“Calm down. Damn.” She looks me over the brim of her wine glass. “Anyway.” She flicks her perfect wrist, and I note the diamond bracelet. “Selene and Eden are the only two people in this world who have always had my back.”
I walk behind her and put both hands on her shoulders.
“I have your back now.”
She doesn’t answer, and my heart sinks a little bit. She doesn’t believe me, and she’s not in this like she pretends to be. If she were, she’d lean into me and let me have some of her pain.
“But if you can’t afford it—”
She lets the sentence hang.
“Sweetheart, I can afford it. You can buy her a house a day, and that won’t make a dent.” I turn her to face me. “But I don’t care if that cousin of yours lives in a hut. I. Don’t. Like. Her.”
She shrugs and walks away from me.
“Well, I already paid for the house. No refunds. Sorry.”
“Does your wife spend money like it grows on trees?”
“I don’t have a wife,” Preacher says from across the room.
“Or a girlfriend, Preach, but I’m talking to King. Maybe you should get yourself a bird or something.”
“The fuck am I gonna do with a bird?” Preacher mumbles.
King gives me the side-eye, and I can tell he’s contemplating whether or not to answer. The man has always been private, and he doesn’t like to give any details about his wife or home life. It’s like he wants to keep her all to himself.
“I don’t worry about what my wife spends.” King waves me off. Typical answer.
“I didn’t ask if you worry about it. I asked if Eden spends money like it’s nothing.”
“Not really, no. She buys whatever she wants or needs, and I don’t worry about it. She can have whatever the fuck she wants, and she knows that.”
“Cori paid off her cousin’s mortgage,” I announce to the group.
“The cousin who kicked your ass?” Preacher lets out a loud bark of laughter. “Talk about adding insult to injury.”
“She didn’t kick my ass. You think I was going to fight a woman?” I snap.
“They had you on the floor and beating the shit out of you, Hunt.”
I huff and look away from Preacher, who is grinning like getting jumped by two women is funny.
“She’s only doing that to get back at you,” King says the obvious.
“Back at me for what? I worship that woman. I’d carry her on my back everywhere if I could.”
“You trapped her. She ain’t forgotten.” King looks at his watch. “And what the fuck is taking the Titans so long?”
“Why is she still holding on to that old shit?” My question isn’t to anyone in particular, and no one answers, but I hear King scoff. “Have you heard anything? Since you’re friends.” I roll my eyes.
“How the fuck does King have the good marriage and friendships? Are we in some weird twilight zone?” Preacher shakes his head in confusion.
“My marriage is fine,” I snap.
“Then why are you asking me for intel?” King asks. “I ain’t heard shit.” There’s a part of me that wonders if that’s true. “You can just ask her if something is wrong.”
After my talk with Cori last night, she made dinner, and we sat down together like a normal couple. During the meal, I had her on my lap, and we fed each other. We kissed throughout, and made love twice before showering together and falling asleep wrapped in each other’s arms.
The only reason why I left the bed as early as I did was that Finch needed to be walked. When I returned, I slid back into bed with my wife, and she sighed in contentment. I kissed her naked shoulder and cupped one of her breasts before lulling myself back to sleep.
There’s no way she can fake all of that, but I’m not a man who wrings his hands and waits for answers. I’ll find out, and it will be soon. If my duplicitous wife is conning me, she’s going to live to regret it.
“So, Eden hasn’t told you anything?”
King furrows his brows at me before he leans back in his chair and stares at the ceiling.
“No. We don’t spend our time talking about you and the situation you created.” He has the nerve to point at me.
“I can’t imagine the dirty shit you did to get your wife,” I counter.
“My wife didn’t buy an entire house behind my back, did she?” He smirks.
The loud banging on the door saves him from my sharp rebuke.
Preacher opens it, and the Titan brothers enter the room.
Steel and his salt and pepper dreads lead the way.
Stone, dressed in expensive yet casual clothes, follows behind his brother almost as if he’s bored by the entire situation.
The youngest, Rock, is the last in the room.
I can’t stand that little prick, so I hope he shuts the fuck up for the remainder of this meeting.
“Gentlemen.” Steel gestures at us, but we don’t reply. “Well, hello to you, too. I have news.”
I point to the long couch, and all three of them sit.
“The Brennans are ready to strike.” Nothing Steel says surprises me. I’ve been watching the Brennans since before Jack was found hanging in his cell. I know every move they make, maybe even more.
“What makes you say that?” King knows everything, so his question is only to get the Titans to reveal more of their hand.
“Let’s not play games.” Unlike Steel, Stone doesn’t do pleasantries.
“We know you’ve been following them. Hell, we know you’ve bugged their office.
We found your bug.” The bastard is smug while he looks around.
“Don’t waste our time and bullshit us. We have a common interest, or it’s going to be all our asses. Stop the games.”
“They need to be dealt with once and for all.” Steel stands.
“And they will be,” I announce.
“Dax, you don’t do violence.” Steel waves around my office. “That’s why your operation is so successful. We don’t have those hangups.”
I tilt my head in Preacher’s direction. He gets a folder from his desk and drops it on the coffee table in front of the Titans.
“That’s a list of everyone who works for the Brennans. The ones in yellow are the easiest to flip. We have video of their shipments. We have to figure out a way for them to be arrested,” I announce.
“We’ll take care of the rest.” Steel licks his thumb as he flips through the pictures.
“Page six. Paul Wolzski. He served eight years for drug trafficking. I suggest we set him up.” Preacher looks at our guests.
“I’m sure the three of you can cough up some product to put in Wolzki’s car.
Get one of your cop buddies to pull him over and find it on him.
After some pressure, he’ll give them up to save his ass.
Once the Brennans are behind bars, they will meet a very unfortunate demise.
Steel, you bribe the judge to deny him bail. ”
All three men on the couch nod in agreement. I hate that it has to come to that. I don’t do violence, but I will do what I need to do to save my own ass.
“Not behind bars,” I announce. “Their brother already went out that way. You know how weird those two brothers are.” Everyone in the room nods.
I catch King’s eye, and he grins. The Titans are a weird fucking bunch, too.
“I think once they get arrested, the walls will start closing in, and they won’t be able to handle it.
” Everyone stares at me, waiting to hear more.
“A murder suicide. One weirdo shoots his weirdo brother before turning the gun on himself.”
Steel Titan arches his brows and leans back in his seat. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was impressed.
“Well, God damn, Hunt. Who knew you were so fucking diabolical? I like the way you think, and I have the perfect guy to do it.”