The Wolf and His Wife

by Penelope Sky

  She gripped my wrists and moaned, her head rolling back with her plump lips wide apart.

  I lowered my body on top of hers so I could kiss her again, feel her lips while my dick treasured her cunt. Even through the condom, I could feel her so intimately, feel how wet and tight she was.

  Her fingers moved into my hair, and she gasped against my mouth, “Yes…I was jealous.”

  I rested my forehead against hers and felt my dick twitch.

  “Very jealous.”

  7

  Arwen

  “More coffee?” Abigail stood with the stainless-steel pitcher.

  My fingertips rested against my temple as I tried to combat the migraine that throbbed in my head. The pulse was so powerful, and the strongest cup of coffee in the world couldn’t change that. I pushed my mug closer to her anyway. “Please.”

  She poured the coffee, the liquid the same color as Maverick’s eyes.

  “Thank you.”

  “Long night, huh?”

  “Yeah…something like that.”

  Abigail gave me a non-judgmental smile. “A big meal always gets me back on my feet.”

  I’d already thrown up, so my stomach was empty. I should probably put some food in it. “Good advice.”

  She walked away.

  I grabbed my fork and dug into my salad, my eyes squinting in the afternoon sunlight. Fall had reached Tuscany, but it would still be warm for a few months. When the cold arrived, the charm would disappear.

  Minutes later, Maverick joined me. In a t-shirt and jeans, he looked thoroughly rested, like he’d slept better than he ever had. He skipped the coffee because he’d already had some that morning and poured himself a glass of iced tea instead.

  Jealous, I stared at him.

  He grabbed his fork and dug into his salad, eating across from me like it was a normal day. He felt amazing, and I felt like shit. “Don’t drink so much next time.”

  “I can’t turn down good champagne…”

  “You drank more than just champagne,” he teased. “You were downing wine and hard liquor throughout the night.”

  I couldn’t remember that. “No wonder I feel like shit…”

  He drank his iced tea and looked at me. “Remember much of it?”

  “I remember playing the piano. Was I any good?” I remembered singing one of my songs. That was the last clear memory I possessed. Everything turned dark after that.

  He rolled his eyes like it was a stupid question. “You were phenomenal. Everyone fell in love with you…like they always do.”

  “No wonder I drank so much. I hope I didn’t embarrass you.”

  “No. In fact, you make me look good.” He kept eating his lunch, stabbing the tomatoes and mozzarella with his fork before placing them into his mouth. The meals Abigail gave him were always low in carbs and high in protein. It was the only way he could keep a fit body like that. He suddenly stopped eating and rolled his left shoulder like it was sore. He released a quiet sigh as he rubbed the area.

  “Are you alright?”

  “Yeah.” He dropped his hand and kept eating. “It hasn’t healed all the way. Gets sore from time to time.”

  I left my chair and walked around the table behind him. My hands pressed into the back of his shoulder, and I dug into the area, gently massaging the area until I located the tightness. His muscles were full of knots, and I gently rolled them until they were smooth.

  Maverick was tense at first, but his muscles slowly relaxed, and he gave in to the goodness of the massage. He stopped eating and just sat there, enjoying the way my fingers relieved the unwanted pressure.

  I rubbed his back for a few minutes, letting him relax completely before I pulled my fingers away. When I returned to my chair, I saw the relaxed look in his eyes, like he could fall asleep right at the table. “Thanks…”

  “Sure.”

  He leaned forward again and dug his fork into his lunch. “I was going to visit my sister tonight. Would you like to come?”

  I’d asked to see her before, but it didn’t seem like he was interested in connecting us. He’d obviously had a change of heart. “Yeah, I’d love to.” I didn’t know anything about his sister, but if she was a kind person, unlike his father, I definitely wanted to meet her. I was sick of the darkness that surrounded the DeVille family members.

  “Alright. Hopefully, you have enough time to sober up before that happens.”

  “I just need another cup of coffee…and maybe a nap.”

  The rehab center was in Florence. In a large building just a couple blocks from the opera house, the facility was a spacious and luxurious space that allowed its residents to have a safe place to heal. It felt like a resort more than a place to keep people confined. The staff was extremely helpful. The floors were a beautiful hardwood, and the walls were warm gray with white trim. We entered the dining area that more closely resembled a five-star restaurant than a cafeteria.

  When we approached the booth, she was already sitting there. With the same dark hair, brown eyes, and olive-colored skin of my husband, she looked exactly like a DeVille. But one thing set her apart from Maverick and her father.

  This girl could actually smile.

  Her eyes lit up when she saw her brother. They became even brighter when she saw me. “You actually brought her. Good, I was afraid you would lock her in a closet and never let her see the sky.”

  “I’m not a monster.” Maverick scooted into the booth without embracing her with affection.

  I took the seat beside him. “It’s nice to meet you, Lily. Maverick has mentioned you a few times. I didn’t even know he had a sister until I asked him directly.”

  “He’s embarrassed of me.” She admitted. “But that’s okay. I’m embarrassed of him too.”

  I definitely liked her more than Caspian. She was in rehab because she was struggling, but she knew how to take a joke and be cheerful. Maverick and his father were brooding all the time, day and night.

  “You have any siblings?” she asked.

  “No.” I shook my head. “Only child.” As a result, I was the only living person left of my family lineage. Maybe having a sibling would have made losing my father a little easier.

  “You’re super pretty,” she blurted. “Maverick showed me a picture, but it didn’t do you justice, not that you don’t photograph well, of course.”

  “Oh…thanks. You are too.”

  “So, what’s new with you guys?”

  Maverick wasn’t talkative, so he barely said a few sentences. “Just working a lot.”

  “And Father?” she asked. “How’s he?”

  Maverick only gave a shrug.

  Lily watched him for a long time before she looked at me. “You probably know that our father is an asshole, right?”

  “Yeah…he’s a little cold.”

  “A little?” she asked with a laugh. “That guy is something else. Maverick told me you saved those two girls. I know it’s not my place to give an opinion, but I think you did the right thing.”

  That meant the world to me. “Thanks…”

  “It’s easy to hate my father because of his behavior, but it’s hard for me to forget how he used to be. As difficult as it is to believe, he used to be a great father. He would take us to the park, swim with us in the backyard, and spend a lot of time with us. But as time goes on, Maverick and I understand he’s not that man anymore…and he probably never will be again.”

  That must be the hardest part, hating someone when they used to be so good. “I’m sorry. I can’t imagine how hard it is for both of you.” I saw the way Maverick carried the weight every single day. It always bothered him, always haunted him.

  Maverick spoke up again. “He told me to kill Arwen.”

  Lily cocked an eyebrow. “What?”

  “He told me to kill her since she released those girls. I refused. Now we’re enemies…”

  Lily dragged her hands down her face then looked at the table. “Jesus, this is a nightmare.”

/>   “I’m sorry.” I hadn’t meant for this to happen, but I felt like I should apologize.

  “It’s not your fault,” she said with a sigh. “He’s lost his mind… He lost it a long time ago.”

  “I’m still sorry…” I saw the way it affected both of them. They were grown adults, but having an unhinged father was devastating to both of them. “You guys don’t deserve this. I wish there were a way to make him see reason.” He threatened to hurt his own son all the time and hadn’t visited his daughter once in rehab. The man clearly didn’t care. Now he wanted to kill me…which was enough burden for Maverick to carry.

  “He can’t see reason,” Maverick said coldly. “And he never will.”

  When we finished dinner, Maverick excused himself to wash his hands in the bathroom.

  That left Lily and me alone at the table.

  “Is my brother treating you right? And don’t worry, you can answer honestly. I won’t tell him anything you say.”

  Sometimes he could be a dick, but for the most part, he was wonderful. “Yes…he’s a good man.” He made sure I got home after a night of drinking, and when some guy didn’t know when to back off, he took care of it. He took care of me in so many ways. “He’s rough around the edges, a little heartless at times, but I wouldn’t change anything about him.”

  She kept her fingers around her glass as she watched me. “He told me he asked for a divorce when everything went down. Said you betrayed his trust. But the fact that he trusted you to begin with was interesting. That was how I knew you were special…because you are special.”

  She was definitely the kinder sibling, the observant one who could see past the hostility to the goodness underneath. “He and I have a good relationship. In the beginning, it was hard for us because neither one of us wanted to get married…especially to someone we didn’t know. But we’ve become friends…started to trust each other. I lost my father and have felt so low, but he’s always there for me. Sometimes, he pisses me off, but he always makes up for it.”

  She smiled. “It seems like my brother is more than just a friend to you.”

  “Of course. He’s my husband.” Now I used that term literally because it was the best way to describe our relationship. That was exactly what we were—husband and wife. We were friends; we were lovers. We worked together and supported each other.

  She continued to smile. “I know he cares about you. He doesn’t actually say those words or give anything away…but he does.”

  I’d known that for a long time. “I know this is a lot to ask, but do you think you could help me with something?”

  “With Maverick?” she asked with a slight laugh. “That guy is so stubborn… I don’t think there’s anything I can do. You’re the only one who has any effect on him.”

  She had a lot more effect than she realized. “The reason why Maverick and your father are at odds is because of me…and I want to fix that.”

  “I don’t see how you can.”

  “Maybe if I could get him alone, we could talk about it…and I could make him understand how he’s treating Maverick, how he’s lost sight of the things that matter. I don’t just want to convince him to drop his vendetta against me. I also want him to be better to both of you.”

  Lily stared at me like I was crazy. “The second you’re in a room with him, he’ll kill you. That plan is a terrible idea. Stay away from him.”

  “The same thought crossed my mind. If I showed up on his doorstep, he’d probably shoot me.”

  “Good…I’m glad you aren’t being stupid.”

  “But if you asked him to come down here to see you…I would be safe.” He wouldn’t bring a gun into the building, and there would be too many witnesses around. He couldn’t sit across the table from me then choke me with his bare hands. It would give us plenty of time to talk, under the banner of truce.

  Now Lily was even more shocked. “I don’t know…”

  “It’s harmless. What could possibly go wrong?”

  “I don’t know, but Maverick says nothing but bad things about him now.”

  “They’re all true.” Every single one of them. “But I have to try. Maverick can’t reason with him…you can’t reason with him. Maybe if I talked about my relationship with my father, it would help him understand how he’s acting.”

  She shook her head. “Maverick would be pissed at me…”

  “But you’re his sister, so he’ll forgive you. Besides, what if this works? What if this chips at his armor a little bit? What if this helps repair the relationship? If we don’t start to reverse the damage now, it’ll just get worse and worse until it’s beyond fixing. Please help me, Lily. It’s just one conversation.”

  She glanced at the bathroom, checking for her brother. “I don’t want to put you in danger.”

  “What’s he going to do to me here?” I challenged.

  “I don’t know…but I like you. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

  “It won’t. And this means a lot to me. If I could fix this, Maverick would have what he wants most in this world…his family.” It was all I wanted for him, for him to feel loved. He was unable to take a compliment, to accept any kind of goodness because he didn’t feel like he deserved it. He was a giver—not a receiver. But I didn’t want him to live his entire life that way. “He’s coming back… Please say yes.”

  Lily relaxed her shoulders as she gave in. “Alright…I’ll do it.”

  8

  Maverick

  Arwen was at the opera for the evening, so I went out for a drink with Kent. The bar was quiet on a Wednesday night, a few girls standing at the bar, while the booths were full of people catching up.

  With a scotch in my hand and shoulders full of fatigue after a long day at the office, I stared into the amber liquid and remembered the conversation I’d had with my sister last night. On the surface, she seemed perfectly normal, as if she didn’t struggle to keep her hands off booze and more sinister substances. But she wouldn’t still be there if she felt well enough to walk away. She had an empty apartment waiting for her, a whole life that needed to be lived.

  Kent rambled on about shit that happened at work. “The guy wouldn’t pay, and I nearly pulled my knife on him…but then sense hit him hard in the skull.” He drank from his glass then glanced at the two women in the corner. He was in a gray blazer with black jeans, his hair dark like mine. He was easy to pick up women with because he had a lot to offer.

  I kept looking into my glass, my mind a million miles away.

  Kent kept looking at the women. “I wouldn’t mind a blow job from one of them, but that’s about it.”

  I hadn’t even looked at them.

  Kent turned back to me when I didn’t say anything. “Something on your mind?”

  “My sister is still in rehab, and my father wants to kill me… I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

  “Then kill him first. There’s your solution.”

  I despised my father for a lot of reasons, but the idea of killing him didn’t sit right with me. In my twisted brain, I still believed he could come back from this dark place…somehow. Even if he really would kill me if he had the chance, I wasn’t sure if I could do the same to him. I didn’t possess much compassion, but it felt inherently wrong to murder my own kin. “That’s not the solution I want.”

  “Then try talking to him.”

  “He won’t listen.”

  “Then we’re back to square one…kill him.”

  That seemed to be my only alternative.

  “And he wants to kill your wife too?”

  He wasn’t the only one. “He mainly wants her dead… He’d probably spare me if I didn’t get in his way.”

  “Dude, your dad is a psychopath.”

  “I know.”

  He shook his head and took another drink. “I understand he lost his wife, but how does someone flip a switch like that?”

  That was the reason my finger didn’t squeeze the trigger. I still remembered the kind ma
n he used to be like it was yesterday…because it really wasn’t that long ago. Lily and I used to come over every Sunday for dinner. My father and I would talk about work or sports, and Lily and my mother would bake cookies in the kitchen after work. I never really appreciated it until it was gone. Now, all the members of my family had disappeared…and I only had Arwen. She carried my last name and seemed loyal to me, so I guess she was family.

  “I don’t know what to tell you, Maverick. There’s no easy solution. But letting it continue until he makes a move is no solution either…unless you don’t care if he kills your wife.”

  Killing my wife would solve all of my problems—every single one. But she was the one thing that was worth protecting. She’d become my friend, my ally. She was the star of every party I took her to…and the bigger star in my bed. She was a good person and didn’t deserve the wrath of those evil men, and that meant I had to protect her. “I do care.”

  Kent ran his fingers along the rim of his glass. “How’s that going?”

  “What?”

  “You know what.”

  I didn’t share any details about our relationship because it felt wrong. I wanted to protect her privacy. She was also my wife…and I didn’t want to talk about fucking her to someone else. “It’s fine.”

  “Fine?” he asked. “I figured it would be more than fine with a woman like that.”

  I took a long drink. “Let’s talk about something else.”

  Kent smiled slightly. “Alright.” He turned back to the women at the bar. “You want the brunette, and I get the blonde?” He’d just said he didn’t find them that attractive, but we weren’t picky on nights like this. It was obviously a test, to see exactly where I stood.

  I glanced at them, thoroughly unimpressed. The more my eyes wandered to the tail in this city, the more I realized how special my wife was. She had legs for days, tits perfect for sucking, and she was an incredible lover. Made everyone seem plain by comparison.