Empress in Lingerie (Lingerie 5)

I watched him until he turned the corner.

Then I finally got in my car and drove away.

8

Vanessa

Conway drove the SUV with Carter in the passenger seat.

Sapphire and I sat in the back so we could talk. I hadn’t talked to her much over the past two weeks because I’d been busy.

Busy with Bones.

“How’s the baby?” I asked. “I know you’re only six weeks along, but do you feel differently?”

Sapphire was in a long-sleeved sweater dress with a dark blue scarf. Her diamond ring sparkled anytime she moved her hand. She wasn’t just glowing with her pregnancy but also with her happiness. “We went to the doctor the other day and everything is going well. I’m taking vitamins now.”

“That’s great.”

“Conway and I are working on the nursery.”

“What about the wedding?”

“Well, I want to get married as soon as possible because I don’t want to be huge in my wedding dress, but it’s been so cold this winter. Once spring arrives, we’ll do something small. I’ll only be a few months along by then.”

Conway looked at her in the rearview mirror. “A little baby bump will make you look sexier, if you ask me.”

Sapphire smiled, a slight tint coming into her cheeks.

Seeing my brother act affectionate with someone was gross, but I shut my mouth and let it go. When I brought my husband around someday, I suspected he’d be just as affectionate with me.

The way Bones was.

Fuck, it was the twentieth time I thought of him since I left.

His come was sitting inside me that very moment.

“What’s new with you?” Sapphire asked, changing the subject before Conway could say something else inappropriate.

“Nothing,” I said quickly.

“Nothing?” she asked with a laugh. “You’re always so busy all the time. I find that hard to believe.”

I’d witnessed Bones kill a man in an alleyway, and he held a knife to my throat and almost murdered me in his home. Now I was fucking him all the time. My life wasn’t the same, and it was pure chaos. No, I wasn’t doing nothing. “I’ve been painting a lot. School was hectic at the end of the semester. I’m glad it’s finally over. I went out to the bars with a few friends once finals were over, but nothing interesting happened.”

“Are you seeing anyone?”

Bones popped into my mind, six-three and buck naked. His package lay against his stomach as he waited for me to get on top of him and ride him hard. My neck felt warm, and I hoped the arousal wasn’t written all over my face. “No. I’ve been too busy and haven’t met anyone worthwhile.”

“You could always be a painter at a nunnery,” Conway said. “They’re always looking for new followers.”

I would definitely not fit in at a nunnery. Bones and I were fucking more aggressively than animals. We had the kind of passion and ferocity that I’d only heard about in stories. I’d never had a relationship so intense and volatile. He could threaten my family one moment and then fuck me so hard the next. “I’ll pass…”

They wouldn’t take me anyway.

On Christmas Eve, we had hot cocoa around the fire and talked about the wonderful things that had happened over the past year. It always happened after a feast, and we sat near the tree and admired all the ornaments that we’d collected together throughout the years.

My mom was always exceptionally happy around Christmas time. When we were all together, laughing in front of the fire, she lit up brighter than the tree. I always caught my father staring at her, affection in his eyes.

Conway had Sapphire sitting across his lap, his hand moving to her stomach from time to time even though she didn’t look pregnant at all. Carter sat with his mom and talked to her about his car business. Uncle Cane drank more wine than anyone else, and usually got particularly loud at the end of the night.

I thought about what Bones had said.

That my uncle used to be a Skull King, a hitman.

I shook the thought away.

I didn’t participate in the conversation as much as I usually did because my thoughts were clouded by the recent events in my life. When I saw my entire family gathered around to enjoy the holidays, I realized I could never tell them what was really going on with Bones. I couldn’t risk their safety, not when my family had already been through so much.

I had to kill Bones myself. That was the only way out of this.

He knew it was coming, knew I would make my move eventually.

That meant I had to be clever. I only had one shot to take him out. Poisoning seemed like the best option, but that seemed too obvious. I could shoot him again, but this time, I had to shoot him in the skull or the heart. If I hit him anywhere else, it wouldn’t stop him.