by Iona Rose
I smiled at her automatically.
This seemed to reassure her and she went back to her toys.
Another message came in.
What do you say to us getting back together?
I couldn’t ignore the messages any longer. My finger flew as I typed a response
Please leave me alone.
Thirty seconds later, a new one came in.
I’m trying to be really nice here. After what you did, I should be mad, but I’m giving you another chance.
Nausea rose up my throat. He was mad. Insane, if he thought we could ever get back together. The next time my phone vibrated, I contemplated not picking it up to read the message. But that wouldn't make them go away.
You had me locked up.
My fingers flew into action. I didn’t want to get into a conversation with him but I simply couldn’t let this go.
You got locked up because you got into a fight with someone in a bar. NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!
I stared at the screen. Sure enough an answer came right back.
If you hadn’t left me, I wouldn’t have been at that bar. I blame you.
I was trembling again. I couldn’t do it. I shouldn’t have given in to the temptation to try and justify myself or communicate with him in any way. He was criminally insane. I switched off my phone.
Then I sat down and I held on to the rational side of my brain. His aim was to torment me. He was probably far away, living his life and if I completely ignored him from now on, he would go away.
He had to.
I contemplated calling Ruby, then changed my mind. I didn’t want to burden her with my problems and besides, she would urge me to go to the police.
I didn’t want to. Not yet, anyway. I didn't want to cause a fuss when I hoped it would blow over with time. Stan had a tendency to grow bored quickly and I knew he would eventually tire of texting me when something more exciting came up. In the meantime, I just needed to keep my cool.
But I kept remembering the murderous look in his eyes the night when he’d kicked me again and again, in the ribs while I was on the floor. I’d felt alone and scared.
An hour later, Luke came home. "I'm home!" he announced, in his usual loud fashion.
It always got Molly giggling. She jumped to her feet.
I followed her.
Downstairs, Molly ran to him and threw her arms around his legs. She held him tighter than she usually did and for longer.
Luke kissed her head and murmured loving words to her.
I could have hugged him. She needed this so much. A reassurance telling her someone loved her and had been thinking about her. Penelope was a bitch. And that was me being kind.
My turn came next to say hello. Still holding Molly, Luke pulled me in with his other arm and held me tight against his body.
I inhaled his scent and when I leaned on his chest, it felt like I was home. And safe. With Luke home, my fears ebbed away. I was safe from Stan and his threats.
"How was your day?" Luke asked while shepherding us all to the living room.
"It was good,” I said cheerfully. "We played a lot with Bean, and we ordered a sleeping basket for him. He’s chewed his until it looks like a rug now."
Molly and Luke both laughed.
"That sounds like a fun day. I have meetings all day tomorrow. Otherwise, I’d have loved to spend the day with both of you. You have all the fun."
We spent a pleasant evening catching up before Luke excused himself to take a shower.
Molly and I went out to the backyard to play with Bean.
A bit later, Luke joined us and got down on the grass to play with Molly and Bean. "He’s growing so big. You’re really good at taking care of a puppy," he said to Molly.
The smile she gave him could have split her face.
"Has she forgotten about being let down by her mother?" he whispered to me later, when Molly was engrossed in Bean.
“I think so, but she took it hard. She almost didn’t want to have her nap."
A hard look came over Luke's features, but he didn’t say anything.
My heart went out to him. Penelope was putting him in an impossible situation. It was important for Molly to see her mom, but at the same time, Penelope had shown herself to be unreliable and uninterested in Molly.
I leaned in and kissed Luke on the mouth.
He looked at me, pleasantly surprised. “Not complaining, but what was that for?"
I laughed. "Just because you’re a wonderful man."
Luke didn’t say anything, but he looked pleased.
Luke
Hi, sweetheart… missing you.
I'd never been one to text before but Ella had converted me. I had never thought of texting as fun, but with Ella, it was.
I miss you too. Last night was awesome.
My body heated up at the reminder of the night and suddenly, I couldn’t wait to go home. I felt like the luckiest man on earth to sleep next to a sexy gorgeous woman every night.
How’s Molly?
Her response was instant.
Crushed. Penelope didn’t show up.
Hot searing anger washed through me. What was the matter with Penelope? Didn’t she know she held a little girl’s heart in the palm of her hands? I typed a quick reply.
See you soon and give her a kiss from me.
I turned off my laptop, packed it and several minutes later, I headed out to the parking lot. Penelope wasn’t going to get away with such behavior, I thought as I drove towards The Sheraton hotel.
My mind worked out a plan as I drove. If I announced myself at the reception, Penelope would bolt. I needed to catch her by surprise. Except, I didn’t have her room number. I drove my car to the underground parking of the hotel. I fished out my phone and searched for the phone number then hit call. "Good evening, my name is Luke Meyers and I'd like to be put through to my wife's room. Her name is Penelope Meyers and she’s in room..." I let my voice trail off as though I was trying to remember.
As I’d thought, the clerk put me out of my misery, "Room 204, Sir. I've put you through. Have a nice day."
When the phone rang in Penelope’s room, I disconnected the call and got out of the car. I walked through the lobby to the elevators. Room 204 was on the second floor and seconds later, I strode down the heavily carpeted hallway.
Penelope’s room was at the very end. I put my ear to the door and heard muted voices coming from inside. One voice sounded deeper, like a man's voice. My insides clenched. I raised my hand and knocked as softly as I could, not wanting to alert her that it could be anyone else other than the hotel staff.
I heard soft steps and then the door swung open.
Penelope emerged wrapped in a white towel. Her hair was messed up and she had the just-fucked look that was hard to miss. Her mouth fell open when she saw me.
I didn't give her time to react and pushed my way in.
I stepped into the room and stared at the blond-haired young-looking man in the bed.
He looked back at me, his mouth falling open with dismay.
Silly boy! He probably thought I was a husband who had caught his wife cheating. And he was in for it.
"What are you doing here?" Penelope hissed, coming to my side.
"Why didn't you come and visit Molly? You promised her you would." I could barely control my anger.
She shrugged and looked away.
"I thought so!" I snapped. "You chose a man over your daughter, yet again!"
"It’s not like that, Luke," she said. "Why do you always have to make such a big deal of things? I was going to come tomorrow."
I shifted my glance to the man again. He didn’t look old enough to have a job or the ability to keep Penelope in the lifestyle she liked. She was probably just using him to satisfy her itch until something better came along. It meant that he wouldn’t be around for long. I raked my fingers through my hair in frustration. Why was she lying to Molly then? Even a half hour visit would have pleased Molly.
&
nbsp; "Get dressed!" I barked. "You're going to see Molly now, if you ever want to see her again, that is."
She opened her mouth to protest and then shut it. "Can you excuse me?"
I didn’t intend to leave the room. I walked to the window and stared out. Behind me, Penelope clicked her tongue and I heard the rustle of clothes.
"Are you just going to leave me here and go with him?" the young man in bed asked a petulant note in his voice.
I snorted in disgust. He was just a kid. How could Penelope stand to be with such a young person? Didn’t she get irritated by the child like behavior? Then I remembered how Penelope herself behaved like a child.
There were two words she hated. Responsibility and Commitment. Why hadn’t I seen it before I married her? Had I been so infatuated with her good looks to see the real person underneath? And yet, I couldn’t regret marrying her. She had caused me a lot of pain but she had also enriched it by giving me Molly. For my daughter alone, I refused to think of Penelope as a mistake.
"Well, you can wait for me," Penelope said to the kid in a cajoling tone. "I'll have something good for you when I come back. I promise."
That seemed to satisfy him and he didn’t say another word.
I shook my head. They deserved each other.
"Okay, I'm ready," Penelope announced minutes later.
When I turned, the young man was engrossed with his phone. When he wasn’t looking at me, I could truly see how young he was.
Penelope and I walked to the car wordlessly.
"I don’t understand you," I said to her when we got into the car.
She let out a dramatic sigh. "You're going to start on the lectures again."
"You sound like a child!" I snapped. "And you’re a grown woman with a five-year-old child."
Penelope sniffed.
Even if she cried, her tears wouldn’t move me. "Molly waits for you every day and you keep disappointing her. Can’t you make time for her when you say you will?”
She didn’t respond and stared outside the window instead.
I hadn't expected her to respond but I had a plan B. I intended to resort to threats. I'd do anything I had to do to get her to do the right thing.
Clearly, Penelope wasn’t wired like other parents. She saw no big deal in disappointing her daughter over and over again.
I waited until we got home and parked the car.
She made to open the door.
"Wait!" I said.
She turned her head to glare at me.
"I'm giving you one last chance to do right by Molly. If you tell her you'll be here tomorrow, you damn well better be."
She thrust out her chin. "That sounds like a threat."
I nodded. "Well done for catching on so fast. It is a threat. If you disappoint her one more time, I’ll get my lawyer to work out a new settlement seeing as you won’t need all that extra money I deposit into your account that the judge had felt you would need to take care of Molly, since you claimed you wanted joint custody. I can show the judge two years’ worth of evidence proving that you have no intention of ever taking care of her. I’m sure he’ll have no hesitation in deciding that you have no need for all the extra money I pay into your account for childcare. If you look carefully, that comes to almost half of what you get."
Her eyes widened in shock. Now, we were speaking a language that Penelope understood clearly. Money. "You can't do that!" she cried.
"Try me!" I replied grimly.
She searched my face, and then nodded resentfully. "Okay, but this is not necessary."
"One more time, Penelope. You do it one more time," I warned as I walked behind her to the front door.
It swung open before I inserted my key.
"Mom!" Molly cried and threw herself against her mother.
My chest squeezed painfully. I really hated Penelope sometimes.
Ella stood behind Molly and we exchanged a look.
Penelope took Molly’s hand and they walked into the house. Molly led her up the stairs.
I pulled Ella into my arms and held her close.
"How did you get her to come?" she whispered.
“I forced her," I admitted grimly, and told Ella about going to the hotel.
"She hasn't been coming to see Molly because she has a new man?" Ella asked, her voice coated with disgust.
"Yes," I said. "I could do with a coffee."
"I'll make some," Ella said and left me in the living room.
I did feel pleased that Penelope and I had reached an understanding. With her monthly stipend at risk, she wouldn’t play around with Molly’s heart again. It was a shame that I had to coerce her into seeing her own daughter.
Ella returned moments later with two mugs of coffee.
Staring at her, I couldn’t believe that I could now introduce her as my girlfriend. It felt good to call her my woman.
"You look happy," she said as she sat down next to me on the couch.
I shifted close to her, draped my hand around her shoulder, and pulled her to me. "That's because I am. Have I told you today how beautiful you are?" I asked and slid my other hand under her jaw. I brought my mouth to hers and kissed her soft lips. "I’ve been thinking of doing this all day," I said to her, our eyes boring into each other.
"Me too,” Ella murmured.
I nibbled on her upper lip and then swept my tongue into her mouth. She tasted like she smelled. Vanilla and spice. I cupped her breast and squeezed tenderly.
Ella let out a groan.
Her sounds of arousal turned me into a beast and I pulled her into my lap in one movement, without breaking the kiss. My hands were everywhere. On her ass, breasts and creamy thighs. I stopped short of sliding my hand under her dress to feel her pussy.
Her fingers threaded through my hair as she moaned my name repeatedly. Ella peeled her mouth from mine and we stared at each other as our breaths came out fast.
Ella then slid off my lap just as we heard Penelope's voice coming our way.
She and Molly walked into the living room, a huge smile on my girl’s face.
"I was just telling Molly that I won’t make it tomorrow, but I'll be here the day after," Penelope said, all the while staring at me.
I nodded. That was all I needed. For her to be truthful to Molly about when she would be able to visit and when she couldn't. It wasn’t a lot to ask.
She left shortly after, so Molly and I went out to the back to play with Bean while Ella excused herself to make a call.
"Were you happy to see your mom?" I asked Molly when we were outside.
She nodded happily.
"Good. She loves you very much," I said. "And so do I, and so does Ella." I wanted Molly to know she was loved by everyone.
It felt like my life had a semblance of order now and we were back to our normal routine.
After dinner, I went up with Molly to the playroom. I picked up one of her notebooks and scrolled through it. To my surprise, Molly came to where I was and sat down on my lap. She wasn’t given to impromptu displays of affection. The exception to this had been in the evenings when I came home from work.
We looked at her drawings together.
"You're really good at drawing," I said to her.
"Ella taught me," Molly said.
I smiled. “It’s good she came to live with us, isn’t it?”
Ella nodded happily. “Yeah, it’s very, very good.”
Ella
"Molly is so happy," I said as I scrubbed Luke's wide shoulders and expansive back. "You did well to blackmail Penelope."
Muscles rippled underneath his skin as I spread shower gel all over his back. I made circles on his skin and then dipped my hands to his tight, gorgeous ass. It was pure muscle.
"It was worth it just to see Molly's joy," Luke said.
"Turn around," I said and stood up.
He turned and as I washed his chest and front, his fingers idly played with my nipples. I could feel myself getting thoroughly turned on. I wasn’t the on
ly one. Luke’s cock stood erect and bobbed against my hand when I gripped it.
The idea had been to shower together and then slip into bed for a night of sweet lovemaking. But my pussy throbbed with an ache that couldn’t wait until after the shower. I raised my right leg and wrapped it around Luke’s waist.
Seeing the look in my eyes, he gripped my thigh and with the other hand, held the base of his cock then brought it to my entrance. We were always in sync that way. He knew when I needed him pronto, when my pussy urgently needed something to clench around.
"I want you. I’ve always wanted you," I whispered.
He pushed into me with the blunt head of his cock.
When he plunged all the way in, I threw my head back and let out a cry, "Yes, please," I said as his cock traveled deeper into me.
His thrusts were powerful, making a storm rage through me. I became a wild woman, screaming and demanding for more and more of him.
Luke stopped thrusting and withdrew but before I could protest, he turned me around. “Bend over," he ordered.
I leaned forward and I pressed my palms against the wall. Panting, I waited for his cock to fill me up again. When he did, I pushed my ass back against him and with one lunge‒he drove all the way in‒stealing my breath away.
Luke then held me in place by gripping my hips with his large hands. He alternated between slow thrusts and fast, hard thrusts. Every time I was at the edge, he’d pull back. Until I was so desperate to come, I clawed at the bathroom wall.
“Do you want to come?” he growled.
“Yes, oh God, yes,” I whimpered.
This time he was merciful. He thrust hard until my body exploded into a thousand splinters and for a brief while, all I saw was stars. Beautiful stars.
Luke growled and pumped faster, emptying his hot cum deep inside me.
Afterwards, we rinsed off and Luke turned off the shower. He held the towel for me and when I walked into it, he wrapped it around me. I padded into the master bedroom and finished drying myself off as he brought the hairdryer and dried my head. It all just seemed to be so perfect and I felt wonderful too. When he switched off the hairdryer, I slipped into the bed naked.
The sheets were crisp and cool and I let out a sigh of satisfaction. Just then, my phone vibrated and I reached for it.
