inessa
Later that day,Jaxon brought me downstairs to each lunch with the rest of the family. “Finally going to join us?” James asked as we walked toward their table, looking up from his plate of food.
I flushed. Jaxon just shrugged, not at all bothered by James’s snark. “Decided it was selfish of me to keep my wife all to myself,” he retorted, pulling out my chair for me.
My cheeks were on fire. I quickly took a seat, allowing him to push my chair in for me before he sat next to me. Darren winked at me. “Nice to finally see you out here with the rest of the family,” he told me.
I smiled a little. “Thank you. I’m happy to be here.”
A man with brown hair and eyes the same shade as his locks snorted and rolled his eyes. “You don’t have to lie,” he told me, making me frown. “No one wants to see Darren’s ugly mug.”
I laughed a little. Jaxon sighed. “You two act like children,” my husband muttered.
“You and James are grumpy enough for the entire family,” Darren retorted.
Emmaline laughed as James scowled at his brother. Their little boy crunched loudly on his carrot, drawing my eyes to him. He just beamed at me before continuing to eat. I smiled. This family was very tight-knit, something mine had never been. And I was honored to become a part of it.
At first, this marriage had felt like just another prison sentence, but in a lot of ways, I was freer than ever. And I didn’t know what to do anymore. I was used to every move being dictated, and yet, for the majority of each day, I had free reign to basically do as I pleased within the bounds of reason.
And I had my husband to thank for that, though I didn’t know how to thank him besides giving him my body whenever he wanted it. And hell, that felt just as much of a treat for me as it was for him.
An older woman walked up to the table, smiling at me and Jaxon. “So happy to see you back down here with everyone again,” she told Jaxon. She pressed a warm kiss to my cheek, surprising me. “And I’m very happy to finally meet you, Inessa. Welcome to the family.”
“Thank you,” I said, a dark blush staining my cheeks. God, they had just cooled down!
Jaxon gently squeezed my thigh, turning my attention to him. He brushed his thumb across my jeans, his eyes boring into mine for a moment before he looked back at the older woman. “We’ll have whatever Darren is eating,” he told her. “Oh, and Mrs. Judy, do you mind serving cranberry juice with her dinner?”
She smiled at him. “Of course, Jaxon. I’ll be right back.”
Chatter resumed around the table, and Emmaline smiled at me, giving me her attention. “You’re glowing, Inessa.”
I shook my head, shyly tucking my hair behind my ear. She laughed, dragging James’s eyes to her for a moment before he looked away again. It was so beautiful seeing how in sync he was to her moods. “You look just like Juliana and I did when our husbands showed us a world of freedom.” My chest clenched. They knew what it was like? “You look freer.”
She wasn’t wrong. I felt freer.
Our food was served a moment later, and I began to eat, chiming in every once in a while when Emmaline engaged me in a conversation. Juliana was still very quiet, but Emmaline wasn’t deterred in the slightest. She just kept the chatter going between us three ladies. And I noticed every time Juliana opened her mouth, Darren shot her a look that was full of pride.
Their dynamic made my chest squeeze. He was perfect for her. That much was obvious. I wasn’t even alarmed that Darren fed Juliana every bite of her food. And he was so patient with her.
He was obviously her caregiver as well as her husband. But there was so much love and tenderness between them that you could never look at them in disgust.
It honestly made me jealous that she had a man that loved her that much.
I jumped in shock when Jaxon suddenly shoved back from the table and stormed over to a table two rows back. My eyes widened in horror, and I slammed my hands to my mouth to contain my scream when Jaxon gripped a man’s hair and yanked his head back, slitting his throat with the dinner knife. Blood sprayed across their table.
Darren barked out a laugh. My gut churned. I was almost completely sure I was going to throw up. I’d never witnessed something like that before.
Jaxon strode back to the table as if nothing had happened, and he used his napkin to clean his hands. “Feel better?” James asked as if Jaxon hadn’t just ruined just about everyone’s dinner.
“Much,” Jaxon replied.
My hands shook so badly that when I tried to pick up my fork to feign interest in eating, I dropped it, making it clatter to my plate. Jaxon grabbed my hand in his, and I slowly looked up at him.
“He was talking shit about you,” Jaxon explained without me even having to ask. My heart clenched in my chest. I’d never had someone care this much about me.
I nervously licked my lips, my hand still shaking in his grasp. “He was just talking, Jaxon.”
Jaxon’s eyes darkened. I swallowed nervously. “I don’t care, Inessa. You are my wife. It’s that simple.” My lips softly parted, drawing his eyes to them for a moment before our eyes connected again. “Even if you weren’t, a man willing to talk about this family so close to our ears cannot be trusted to keep his mouth shut around anyone else.”
Dinner continued all while some men got rid of the body and others began to clean the floor and table, getting rid of all evidence. I glanced down at my plate, but I knew I still couldn’t bring myself to eat.
Jaxon grabbed my fork and speared a piece of meat, holding it up to my lips. “Open, Inessa.”
Obediently, I opened my mouth, letting him feed me. I slowly chewed, and with him watching me, my hunger suddenly returned, along with another, more primal hunger that had my pussy weeping for his cock.
He finished his food all while continuing to feed me mine just as Darren fed Juliana hers. After we were done eating, he abruptly dismissed us from the table and led me from the room, heading towards the garage.
“Where are we going?” I asked him, wincing when I remembered I shouldn’t ask so many questions.
My mouth always got me in trouble. They said curiosity killed the cat, and if I wasn’t careful, I was going to find out how true that was.
He turned me to face him next to a black SUV. “Do you trust me?”
Frowning at him, I nodded. I trusted this man more than I’d ever trusted anyone in my life. He hadn’t given me a reason not to. Instead, he just kept proving how much I could put my trust in him.
“Good. I want to take you somewhere.” A small smile tugged at his lips that had my heart flip-flopping in my chest. God, he was gorgeous when he smiled. “I think you’ll enjoy it.”
With that, he opened the passenger door and let me in, strapping in my seatbelt before he got in on the driver’s side and pulled out of the garage.
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