by R. G. Angel
I sighed, adjusting the cufflinks Esmeralda had bought me. They were not really my style. I was more into clean lines and abstract concepts, but they’d come from her. I knew what the wings meant. The fact that she’d given them to me meant a lot. I wanted her to know that.
A soft knock at my door brought me back to reality. I knew who it was before opening it. Everything about her was gentle, even her knocking.
I was as awestruck as I usually was whenever I looked at her. She was dressed simply in a knee-length, purple dress. There was just enough cleavage to entice me and show the wings necklace I’d given her in Port Harbor. Her hair was up, revealing her slender, delicate neck. I wanted to kiss, bite, lick…own it. I let my eyes trail down her shapely legs to her stiletto-clad feet.
“You look absolutely stunning, Esmeralda.” If only she knew the effect she had on me. Controlling my cock was almost an impossible job, although maybe it was better she didn’t know. She already had so much power over me. I should just be grateful she didn’t know the extent.
She blushed and fuck me! When I didn’t think she could get more enticing, she went and did that.
“You scrub up well, too.” She took a step closer and rearranged my tie knot before patting me gently on the chest.
“How domestic of you.” I jested before raising my arm to take hers.
She took my arm. Noticing the cufflinks, her smile turned so vibrant, wearing them suddenly became worth it. Fuck, I was a sucker for this girl.
“You really like them?”
“Of course I do.” I walked her down and helped her to the car, acting as if it was a date and not a dinner in Doomland that was waiting at the end of the road.
“You know we can always pretend I’m sick if you don’t want to go,” I offered as she chewed on her bottom lip in an obvious sign of anxiety.
She shook her head. “No. Well–” She cocked her head to the side. “I can’t say I’m thrilled to spend time with my father, but I haven't seen Sophia for so long. She was always nice to me and–” She shrugged.
“You know you could have spent time with her whenever you wanted. You are not a prisoner.”
“No, I know, but I don't think my father would have seen that too kindly.”
“Ah.”” I nodded. She was worried and protective of Sophia. Was Sophia’s life how she imagined how her life with me would be? “No matter what, that would never have been you.”
“What?”
“Sophia. If you marry me or anyone else, you would never become her.”
“And how do you know that?”
I chuckled. “You’re so much stronger than anyone I’ve met, my little hellfire. You can be bent, but not broken.”
“I came close to being broken. Too close,” she whispered.
I glanced her way, but she was looking out of the window.
“Is that why you left?”
She sighed. “You know why I left.”
“Not all, not everything.”
“No, that’s true,” she admitted. I was surprised by such an easy acknowledgement. “But you will. I’ll tell you everything”.
“When?”
She sighed again. “I’m not sure.”
This evasive answer angered me, but I took a deep breath, trying to rein it in. Now was not the time nor place for a discussion that was bound to end in our usual fight.
As soon as we parked in the driveway, the door opened. Sophia Forbes stood by the door, beaming at Esmeralda.
It was quite a lack of decorum she was showing. I was sure she would be told off for it by her husband, but I didn’t think she really cared. There was much more life in her face than I’d ever seen before.
I couldn’t help but look at Esmeralda with fondness as she looked at her stepmother with a kind smile of her own. She really was impossible not to care for.
Esmeralda exited the car before I even had the chance to round the car and let her out. Then she ran up the stairs to meet and hug the other woman. They whispered things to each other, but they stopped as soon as I reached Esmeralda’s side.
Sophia looked at me. She’d always regarded me with her robotic emotionless smile and dead eyes; this time was different. It seemed Esmeralda had brought some life into her as she had in me.
“Please come. Archibald and William are already waiting in the dining room.”
As she walked a couple of steps ahead of us, I reached for Esmeralda’s hand as if it was second nature. I could lie to myself and say it was all for show, but it wasn’t. Touching her was becoming something of a reflex. And the way she immediately intertwined our fingers, squeezing my hand... I dared to hope it was the same for her.
“What did she tell you?” I whispered, leaning toward her.
“She said I looked happy and that she’d been right - you weren’t a terrible match after all.”
“Oh, did she, now? And what did you reply?”
She shrugged, but I could see the little teasing smile tucked at the side of her face. “I said you were not bad and hot enough to forgo your shortcomings.”
I chuckled. “Good to know that my hotness is giving me–”
“Isn’t that adorable?!” William exclaimed as we entered the room. Any joy Esmeralda might have felt, drained in a second. Her face turned paler, guarded, and wary. I didn’t like this look on her face, not when I couldn't control it at least.
She was just frozen, her hand gripping mine as if I was a lifeline.
“William, thank you for inviting us,” I offered when I realized she was not going to talk.
Archibald, who was standing behind William, threw Esmeralda a small smile before sending me a worried look. You and I both, brother.
I nudged her. “Isn’t that what you said before, sweetheart?” I leaned down and kissed the side of her face.
She looked at me, the worry fading a little. “Ah, yes, very nice.”
William looked at our hands. “Ah, are you worried she’ll escape again?” He laughed, but it was not humorous. It was cold and calculating as if he was trying to make me angry.
I chuckled. “She is free to go wherever she wants. She is my fiancée, not my prisoner. Although I presume that is a concept still mixed together for some people.”
William’s nostrils flared. Archie turned his head to hide his grin. One for Caleb. Zero for William.
“Very well.” He gestured to the table. “Let's take our seats.”
The starters were eaten in a very uncomfortable silence. The more it went on, the more Esmeralda tensed.
“So, Esmeralda, how is life in Brentwood?” Sophia started.
I felt grateful for her attempt to ease the atmosphere. It was not something I could do. I couldn't show that the tension bothered me and most of all, not on Esmeralda’s behalf. If I showed I cared more than what I was supposed to, William, and consequently my father, would have a new pressure point against me.
Esmeralda sighed with relief. “It’s okay. I like this school. The classes are really challenging.”
William snorted. “Anything would be better than the popper school you used to attend. It was a simulacrum of education, set to create failures. Why don’t you two speak about dresses and make-up. It’s what you’re experts on, aren’t you?”
“Actually, Esmeralda is doing very well. She is in the top percentile of the class,” Archie intervened. It was his first mistake of the night, although I suspected not his last.
“Oh, is she?” William concentrated all his attention on his son. “And why would you care what her grades are? She is a woman, a wife-to-be. How does it matter?”
I cringed internally, only imagining what Esmeralda could think right now. A glance at her face told me everything I needed to know. The way she glowered at the chicken on her plate, she looked as if it had personally offended her.
“I don’t care. I just want to make sure that she is still far enough away from me that people know who the smart one is.”
Don’t pull at your ear! Don’
t pull at your ear! I winced as Archie reached up and pulled his earlobe, a gesture that William didn’t miss either.
I should tell him about his tell. I really should, but I’d never claimed to be a good man and keeping this edge on him had seemed more important than coming clean.
“Uh-huh…” William kept his eyes on his son for a few seconds more before turning toward me. “So.” He wiped his mouth and rested his napkin on the side of his plate, eyeing me silently. I hated the calculation there. It was something I knew very well. Dinner had been a set-up and we’d fallen for it.
He smiled. “I’ve got news for you.”
“For me?” I asked, pointing at myself.
“Both of you.” He gestured toward Esmeralda and I. “I had a discussion with James and it seems you two are happy together.”
I felt Esmeralda's eyes on me. I looked down at her to see wariness and even a little fear. She was looking at me like I was her hero, like I could ease her worries, but I couldn't. Not with William, not yet anyway.
I rested my hand on her leg and squeezed. It was a feeble attempt at comfort, but the only one I could really give her.
“What is it?” I asked. I was better than her at pretending, at faking. It would be for the best if I took the lead and avoided falling into William’s trap.
“James and I talked and we believe it would be for the best if we moved your wedding to the Cherry Blossoms festival. The Country Club has an opening and it will be a stunning occasion for a wedding.”
I froze, my hand tightening around Esmeralda’s knee.
“The Cherry Blossoms Festival is in five weeks,” I reminded him.
Esmeralda tensed beside me. Even if I knew better, it stung to notice once more how strongly she rejected the idea of a marriage with me.
“So?” William shrugged. “It’s plenty of time.”
“But.” I shook my head.
“Father, you can’t be serious. Nobody can throw a wedding in five weeks, I–”
“I don’t remember asking for your opinion, Archibald. Remember your place,” William snapped.
I frowned at this. William rarely mocked Archibald in public. Based on Archibald's shocked face, he hadn’t expected that either.
“But William, we haven’t even looked for a dress!” Sophia gasped with a good humor I suspected was as fake as her cleavage.
“Really, Sophia?” He glared at her. When she recoiled as if his eyes could physically hurt her, I suspected she would pay for this tonight.
I turned to Esmeralda who was paler than usual. Tiny beads of sweat pearled her forehead. She was having a full-blown panic attack. Did she think a marriage with me would be like Sophia’s marriage to her father? Was that why she was so reluctant to the idea?
I knew she cared for me on some level. I knew she was attracted to me. I saw that whenever she looked at me. Her body reacted to mine when I touched her, kissed her. That was not something one could easily fake, especially not someone as inexperienced as she. Maybe if she knew that marrying me was not marrying her father, or God forbid, mine, then maybe we wouldn’t end up miserable.
“Sir, you know how much I value your input, but this wedding is mine and incidentally, Esmeralda’s. After graduation, was ideal for me. I could then take her to Italy and spend all day, every day trying to make you a grandfather. That is not something that can easily be done in my parents’ house.”
Esmeralda blushed furiously as Archibald growled… So much for the poker face, asshole!
I laughed along with William. Wrapping my arm around Esmeralda, I pulled her against me in a possessive gesture.
William nodded. “I understand that, son, but everybody knows that ship has already sailed.”
He raised his hand to stop me from talking. “But–” He sighed, shaking his head. “Ah, I'm going to ruin the surprise. James is going to kill me. We decided, as a wedding present, to buy you the Wagner’s mansion.”
“You– what?” The Wagner’s mansion was probably the smallest mansion on Mount Hill. All things considered, it still had twelve bedrooms, two tennis courts, and a heated swimming pool, but it was way too close to both our parents' places and much too real.
“Surprise!” William beamed, but the fakeness of his tone didn’t manage to convince me.
“Sir -”
William stood. “Caleb, I would like to talk to you in my office now.”
“I– Sure.”
Esmeralda threw me a look full of alarm as I stood, but I gave her a small smile, hoping to convey some reassurance. I was going to make it all okay. I wasn’t sure how, but I would.
“Where are you going?” William asked Archibald as he stood up to come with us.
“I was thinking I’d come with you for a bourbon and let the women discuss wedding dresses.”
William's smile turned predatory. “No, you’re not welcome in this instance. Stay with your dear sister. We both know how devoted to her you are,” he added before swirling on his heel and leaving the room with commanding steps.
Esmeralda and Archibald looked at each other, both sickening pale as they realized that they’d been played.
I could have told them. William and James were still the masters. They should have been more careful, more refined. This was also the reason why I was always a step closer to the crown than Archibald was. I never made the grave mistake he’d clearly made – to underestimate our fathers.
I sighed and followed William to his office. Maybe I could fix whatever had caused this.
As soon as we walked in, William strode over to his bar. After helping himself to some bourbon, he looked at me with the crystal decanter still in his hand.
“Please.” I nodded.
“Your father informed me you wished to delay the wedding. I can't help but wonder why?” he started. Extending me the glass, he gestured me toward the chair across from his desk.
I shook my head. “No, this is not an issue. I want as grand a wedding as I can get. St-Vincent told me about Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte in France and I believe it will be a perfect venue. It’ll give our union the grandeur it deserves.”
It was also the only venue which was famous enough not to be bullied by our families and didn’t have an opening for the next eighteen months. I had promised Esmeralda, against my better judgement, to set her free. I needed time to secure this.
William leaned back in his seat. “Don’t you want to marry Esmeralda? I knew it took some convincing at first.”
I wanted to laugh, but kept my face blank. That was an understatement. Threats, that’s what it had taken to make me come to heel. My father was a piece of shit and he’d known Theo had always been my weakness. He’d spent most of his time threatening to send him to horrible centers far away if I didn't keep in line and I’d known the man was cruel enough to act on it.
“No offense, sir, but you were not that thrilled at the idea of a match between your daughter and myself.”
“A Forbes-Astor union is as powerful as it can get. There’s no reason for me not to be happy about it.”
I cocked my head to the side. My father admitted he had exchanged this union against a favor, but William Forbes would rather die than admit having been bested. This much I knew.
“So, Esmeralda?”
“What I want is not relevant. To be honest with you though, I believe your daughter is actually a wise choice.” I gave him a suggestive smile.
It was not a lie. Physically she was perfect for me. The sex with her had been mind-blowing in ways I’d never thought possible. She was also funny and sweet and unbelievably kind. So unlike anybody I knew. Maybe that was why I was reluctant to marry her – to condemn her and myself to a loveless, miserable life.
I would not be my parents. I used not to care. A wife was only a body to produce an heir and look good. To be honest I’d never thought I had it in me to care for anyone other than Theo, but I'd been wrong.
“We’ve done you a favor, Caleb. Esmeralda and her brother, they are betray
ing us.”
I kept my face blank. “They wouldn’t dare.”
He chuckled. “Or so I thought, at least about Archibald. But don't worry, he will be sent to rehabilitation camp this summer. He needs to reassess his priorities in life.”
I nodded with a smile. “If he is against us? Yes, absolutely.” I frowned. “I can’t believe he would dare come against you. He should know better.”
I needed to thank my family for breaking me and making me an emotionless robot most of the time, making me into someone who could ignore what he felt so well that he became a master manipulator.
William sighed. “I know. I’m disappointed by his lack of judgement and frankly, his stupidity.”
I gave him a half-smile. “Archibald has always been easy to toy with.”
William's own smile widened. He was just as sick as my father, enjoying the hurt and downfall of his own child. “And you’ve always been so good at it.”
I tilted my glass to him.
“And this is why I want to help you,” he said, sliding a folder toward me.
“These were taken last week.” He raised his hand. “I know you’ve told me you’d handle Esmeralda, but she is still carrying my name and this -” he leaned over the desk, tapping his forefinger on the file - “can cause damage to both of us.”
I opened the file. The photo was of Archie, Esmeralda, Antoine, and Taylor in front of a store in Port Harbor.
I looked up at William. “Yes, they were in Port Harbor last week. I'm aware.”
He jerked his head toward the folder. “Keep going.”
I looked at the second photo. The pain and betrayal I felt were so overwhelming I was not certain that my mask of indifference was still in place.
Esmeralda was exiting the store by the back door with Ben Deluca. In the next photo, he was leaning against his bike and she was standing too close to him for my comfort. In the next one she was hugging him and in the last, he had his arms around her and looking at her lips as if he wanted to eat her alive. I didn't need to be familiar with the man to recognize that look. It was the one I always had when Esmeralda was close to me.
