My knee-jerk reaction is to call her back and put her straight on a few things. But, somehow, I stop myself. I breathe in and relax in my chair, closing my eyes. She’s checked in. She’s fine, and she’s picking up the kids. I should let her do that. I must let her do that. She needs to do that. I’m just forcing myself to put my phone away when someone walks in – Cherry with my water. Took her long enough.
She smiles, all bright and willing, as she paces towards me, a definite, deliberate sway to her hips. And if I’m not mistaken, she’s undone an extra button on her shirt since she left to fetch my water. My suspicious eyes follow her all the way to the foot of Ava’s desk, where she perches her arse on the side, crossing one leg over the other. ‘Anything else?’ she practically purrs.
I sigh. Time to put her in her place. ‘Cherry,’ I begin, and she smiles brighter, her eyes dropping down my torso. ‘Let me explain something to you.’
‘Umm-hmmm,’ she hums, starting to nibble her bottom lip.
‘If my wife catches you looking at me like that, you’ll be choking on your high heels.’
My words seem to have zero impact, her eyes crawling up my front until she’s gazing at me. ‘And what about if you catch me looking at you like this?’
I’m staggered by her boldness. ‘I just did.’
‘And?’
I lean forward, resting my elbows on the desk. Her eyes sparkle more at my closeness. ‘And I think you’re brave,’ I answer, voice low. ‘You’re also stupid.’
She shrugs. ‘No one gets what they want by being reserved.’
‘You’re fired.’
Her eyes widen. ‘What?’
‘I said, you’re fired.’ I smile, a blazing smile, one that would knock her to her arse if she wasn’t already there from shock.
‘You can’t fire me,’ she spits indignantly.
I laugh, sitting back in my chair. ‘You just disrespected my wife, who also happens to be your boss. You think I’d forgo her for you?’ I chuckle, the sound wicked. ‘Let me give you a bit of advice to take on your way.’
She slips down from the desk, rejection making her cheeks red, but not with anger, more embarrassment. ‘What?’
‘If you wanted to learn how to be sexy and seductive, you should have spent more time admiring my wife rather than me. Goodbye.’
Outrage. It’s splashed all over her face. ‘But you owned The Manor.’
I look at her like she’s stupid, because she fucking is. ‘Leave,’ I all but growl before I flip my lid. Wisely, she takes note of my anger, quickly stomping to the door. Her parting gift is a filthy glare tossed over her shoulder before she slams the door with brute force.
Stupid woman.
My phone rings again, and I quickly snatch it up and answer as I stand and head for the door. ‘Hey, baby.’ I’m expecting high praise for leaving her to do her girlie stuff and not calling her back.
‘What the hell are you playing at, Ward?’
I stop halfway across the office, racking my brain for what I could have done. I resort to asking, since I’m fucking clueless. ‘What did I do?’
‘You didn’t call me back! All I keep getting is your voicemail!’ She’s wild, frantic, and I grin the biggest grin.
‘Aww, baby, you worried about me?’ Welcome to my world, lady.
‘A bit,’ she sniffs down the line. I can’t help the deep satisfaction.
‘My phone must have dropped its service,’ I tell her, carrying on my way. I’m thinking it’s probably not wise to tell her that I was on the phone to Sarah.
‘Where are you?’
‘At the club.’ I hear her bristling at the mention of me being here, alone, without her. I put her mind at rest. ‘I just fired Cherry.’
‘What? Why? Oh my God, did she make a pass at you? The sneaky little bitch!’
‘Well, you know. Your husband is a god among men. I can’t blame her.’
‘You’re intolerable.’
‘And I love you, too. Where are you?’
‘At home now. I’ve just seen Zara out, and the kids are on the trampoline.’
‘I’m on my way.’ I hang up and jog to my car, feeling like it’s been years instead of hours since I’ve seen them.
Chapter 53
Pulling up the driveway, I hear the kids before I see them, their shouts of delight reaching me from the garden, the springs of the trampoline going loopy. I rush to the house in search of Ava so I can soak up some of that praise she owes me. I find her sitting at the island in the kitchen staring down at something. My approaching steps don’t distract her, her focus engrossed. I realise what’s holding her rapt attention: the picture of our new baby. Her fingertip is tracing the edges of the paper. Her eyes look a little dreamy. I hate to disturb her.
‘Boo,’ I whisper in her ear, and her palm slaps on her chest as she starts.
She turns on her stool and glares at me, fisting the front of my T-shirt and yanking me forward. ‘Next time I call you, ring me back, Ward.’
‘Fuck, you’re sexy when you’re mad.’
Her scowl turns into an impish grin. ‘Then kiss me.’
‘What do you say, baby?’
There’s no hesitation. ‘Please.’
I pounce, lifting her from the stool to the island and utterly ravishing her bones. God, is there anywhere I’d rather be? Nope. Just glue my mouth to hers and let us be done with it. She is like the finest of wines, and I am an expert in that wine. ‘Spread your legs.’ They open and I move in, our mouths wild on each other. This is what happens when we’re apart too long. Starvation. I can’t get enough of her.
‘Jesse,’ she pants, her voice full of warning, though her relentless tongue doesn’t let up. ‘The kids.’
I’m about to say fuck ’em, getting a bit carried away with myself. But, instead, and very reluctantly, I prise myself from her lips before I take it a step further and push her back down onto the island. ‘Have you shown them the picture?’
‘No, of course not. I wanted to wait for you.’
‘Over dinner, or now?’ Truth be told, I want to do it now. I’m excited.
‘Now.’
I grin, knowing she read that in my eyes as I help her down. ‘Did you find shoes for your friend?’
‘Yes, a perfect match for the dress. She hung on for as long as she could to meet you, but she was going to be late for her date if she waited any longer.’
‘Another time.’ I try not to sound too casual. I know how much this new friend means to her. I need to at least pretend I care. ‘Maybe when I drop you to yoga?’
‘She’ll love you, and you her.’
‘Of course she will. I’m the fucking Lord of The Manor.’ Flipping her a cheeky wink, I find my stride and take us out to the garden. The creak of the trampoline with each jump grows louder as we walk, my smile growing with it, until it comes into view and I see my boy and girl springing up and down, laughing. And there’s another person. ‘Who’s that?’ I ask, my eyes set on the woman, her dark hair flapping in the air and around her face.
‘Oh.’ Ava sounds surprised, but not concerned. ‘That’s Zara. She was coming out to say bye to the kids. I thought she’d left already.’
I smile at the woman’s back. She’s a bit overdressed for playtime on a trampoline. ‘She’s got some energy.’
‘Why is she wearing her new dress?’ Ava asks, confusion now creeping into her tone.
I look at the black lace number, something uneasy settling over me, a weight on my shoulders that I can’t shake. My feet slow as we approach. Along with my heart.
And then it stops completely when the woman turns towards us. It’s a moment in time when I think I know what I’m seeing, but it’s so far beyond my comprehension, it takes my brain a moment to catch up. But the second I see her deep-set blue eyes, there’s no doubt. They look as troubled as I remember, and as she stares at me, they fill with hatred.
‘Oh fuck.’
She’s changed her hair colour. The blonde is gone, replaced with a harsh shade of mahogany that doesn’t suit her complexion at all. She’s always been pale, but now she looks bloodless. Heartless. Emotionless.
‘Lauren.’ Shock and fear has paralysed me.
Why didn’t I know she’d been released from the institution? We should have fucking been told! I need to get my kids off that trampoline, away from her and her murderous, fucked-up clutches, yet I can’t fucking move.