Queen in Lingerie (Lingerie 4)

“Conway—”

“Do you regret taking me back? Do you want to go back to New York?”

“Of course not.”

“Then what?” I took a breath of relief, but I was still pissed.

She turned quiet again.

We pulled into the roundabout at the house, and I handed the car over to the valet. We walked inside the house, and her continued silence only pissed me off more.

“Muse, why won’t you tell me? It’s me.”

She kept walking. “Just give me a little more—”

I grabbed her by the elbow and yanked her back toward me. “I love you. You love me. What the fuck is it that you can’t tell me? I treat you like a goddamn queen. I kiss the ground you walk on. But you’re refusing to share your life with me, and I think that’s a bunch of bullshit.”

She twisted out of my grasp then walked toward the stairs, shutting down the conversation with her silence.

No matter how hard I pushed, she resisted. She said she was okay and she wasn’t leaving me, so what was so difficult to talk about? How could she not trust me? How could she not confide in me? I watched her walk to the top floor and disappear down the hallway.

Maybe it was best she walked away. My anger was making my nostrils flare, and I couldn’t see straight. I’d never been very patient, but when it came to my woman keeping a secret from me, I was even less patient. I’d asked her about it three times, and she still refused to open up to me.

“Hello, sir.” Dante stepped into the hallway and took my coat.

I ignored him, my eyes still on the stairs where I’d last seen her. I moved my arms so he could get the coat off me, but I was barely aware that he was there.

“I don’t mean to intrude…” He lowered his voice to a whisper, even though Muse was so far away she couldn’t overhear us anyway. “But be a little more patient with her, Conway. She’s just scared right now. Comfort her and make her feel safe…and she’ll open up.”

My eyes flashed to his face, the suspicion entering my gaze. “You know?”

“No…but I have a hunch.”

“Why don’t you just tell me, Dante? You work for me, not her.”

He folded my jacket then draped it over his arm. “Trust me, it would be much better coming from her instead of me.”

Before I stepped inside our bedroom, I dropped my insufferable attitude and tried to adopt a new demeanor. Sometimes I was suffocating because I needed to be in control of everything. I knew how overwhelming I could be. She was the object of my fascination, so naturally, I was obsessed with every thought that came across her mind.

I stepped inside and found her sitting on the couch. She was still in the same clothes she’d been wearing, and her legs were crossed, as well as her arms. The TV was off, so she sat in silence, her thoughts her only entertainment.

I stripped off my tie and draped my suit jacket over the back of the chair at the desk. I was tempted to pour myself a scotch to calm my nerves, but alcohol didn’t seem appropriate in that moment.

I came around the couch and sat beside her, doing my best not to stare at her so openly. My hand moved to her thigh, and she didn’t flinch at my touch. “Muse, I didn’t mean to come off so aggressively. You’re my whole world, and I’m just worried. I want you to know there’s nothing you could say to me—to change us. There’s nothing you could do to change my love for you.” She could even tell me that she’d slept with Nox, and it still wouldn’t change where we stood. I loved this woman more than I could ever fathom, and there was no way I was ever letting her go again. Maybe this was forever, but the idea of a lifetime didn’t scare me—not when it came to Muse. “Whatever you’re keeping inside is obviously bothering you. It’s killing you. Tell me what the problem is, and we can get through it together.” I squeezed her thigh.

She was unresponsive, staring at the coffee table.

My jaw clenched and I wanted to start screaming again, but I took Dante’s advice and remained calm, understanding that quiet confidence was preferable to hostility. My fingers moved gently over her thigh, touching her lightly. I stared at the blank TV screen and waited.

And waited.

Finally, Muse took a deep breath. “I’ve been scared to tell you because…I’m not sure how you’re going to react.”

“I’ll tell you how I’m going to react, Muse. I’m going to be right here—no matter what you say.”

“You say that now…”

I kept massaging her, doing my best to be calm. “You have to tell me anyway, Muse. You may as well get it over with. All I know is, I love you. No matter what comes our way, we’ll make it work. I didn’t treat you right in the beginning, but the last three months has taught me how terrifying my life is without you. I don’t want to feel that way again…”