Cruel Beloved

“Because my ex is here. With your parents. So, get dressed and make her believe you love me.” His words stun me, so I quickly pull on my silk shirt, tucking it into my skirt, before I slide on my heels as I walk over to him.

“You owe me new clothes.”

Whiskey leans in close. “You owe me a whole new wardrobe. I had to send for things from my apartment,” he replies, clearly not happy.

And just that fact alone makes me smile.

“Let’s play happy,” I say, clapping my hands. Standing in front of him, I lean in close, so our lips almost touch. “Games are my favorite thing.” I wink at him as we walk out.

Whiskey stays behind me, and I can feel his eyes on my ass as we walk into his living room. His hand comes to the small of my back, and when it does, I see Serena standing at the door with her purse clutched in her hands as my father sits on one of the sofas.

Standing, my father looks to me then to Serena. “I wasn’t aware you had company,” he says as his eyes come back to me. “And Corton’s ex as well,” he states, looking to Whiskey.

I reach for Whiskey’s hand, pulling it from my back and lacing my fingers with his. “Neither was I.”

Serena looks at our hands, her eyes narrowing. “You want her?” she spits from across the room, but her eyes never leave ours.

“It’s best you leave, Serena.”

She folds her arms over her chest. “I don’t think I will.” Her hip pops out to the side in defiance.

My father looks back to us, our hands glued together. “I have security out front,” he says, offering them to us.

Looking to Serena, her eyes go wide.

Whiskey goes to step toward her, dropping my hand.

I pull him back, so he stands next to me. “Yes, please, escort her out of my home.”

“Your home?” she scoffs. “I was fucking him in his bed only a month ago. Where were you then?” she screams. “Does she have her own room, too, Corton? Or is she the lucky one?”

My father’s bodyguard walks in and makes his way to where Serena is standing. Her hands fly up in the air. “I can escort myself out. I just came to tell you I got an abortion, not that you care.”

Well, damn. You can hear the sound of a pin drop. What the fuck!

Serena walks past us, and no one moves. I’m not even sure we’re breathing. His hand squeezes mine hard, almost to the point of breaking, and I have to pull my hand free from his grasp.

“I’ll be back,” he says, following where she’s just left, and I watch him go knowing he’s going to speak to her.

“You should go and stop that before he leaves you for her. Don’t want to have to send a cancelation out,” my father says, sitting back down. And with a wave of his hand he instructs me to go after my fiancé.

I do. I was going to anyway.

“To think you could move on so easily,” she says at the front door.

I stop, waiting to hear what he has to say.

“You couldn’t have been pregnant, Serena. I always used protection.”

“It worked, though, right? Got you to come talk to me,” she says sweetly.

When he speaks next, I can tell that he’s angry. Seething, actually. “To use that. To say that. It just proves you aren’t meant for me.”

I step around the corner, then walk over to him, sliding my hand in his in front of her.

“Leave, you aren’t wanted here.”

Her eyes fall to my hand in his and she straightens. When she looks back to him, I can tell she is hurt. “You were meant to love me. We had something. You know that you’ve made me this way. I’m not this type of woman, Corton. It’s unfair. Especially, now that you have moved on so fast.” Her fists close up, and she shakes her head, her eyes beginning to water before she turns and walks out the front door.

The minute she’s gone our hands don’t separate, we just stand there not sure what to say or do. My father is in the other room, so words need to be carefully spoken.

“You didn’t have to get involved,” he finally says, turning to face me.

Our hands stay joined, and when those words leave his mouth, I try to pull my hand away but he doesn’t let it go.

“And look like a fiancée who doesn’t care? No, thanks.” This time I pull harder to get my hand free and his grip loosens. Before I can walk away, though, his hand comes out and catches my waist before I can get any farther away. Pulling me back to his front, so now he’s behind me but our bodies are touching, he leans down and whispers in my ear, “We could make this arrangement fun for both of us. Care to add a sex clause into the contract?”