“We did call that number first, Mr. Bradford,” he hedges.
The pause makes me want to shake him, but I feel like my legs might give out at any second, so I sit instead.
“What did she say? Is she on her way here?”
“The number… it was disconnected, Mr. Bradford.”
“Disconnected?” I murmur with disbelief.
My head’s still so fuzzy. Maybe I’d remembered it incorrectly? I can feel my pulse in my throat. Why would her number be disconnected? It was her mobile. Even if she moved, she wouldn’t have gotten a new number.
Turning away, I gaze out the window into the garden. It reminds me a bit of the garden at my parents’ house. I remember the night I took Sylvie there to meet them. The whole thing was a disaster. They’d accused her of the worst kinds of manipulations.
* * *
“I know that you’re very liberal, son,” Sharon Bradford whispered. “But maybe if you prefer someone exotic you could find a nice Japanese girl, someone who plays the violin.”
Delighted by the idea, she turned to my father.
“Wouldn’t that be lovely, Bruce? A nice East Asian girl?”
“Mmm,” Bruce responded. “I think… I think my steak is overcooked.”
I’d shoved down my rage as Sylvie gaped at them in horror. I was on my feet in seconds.
“I’m ashamed of you both,” I growled before I took the woman I loved out of that cursed house.
* * *
But before dinner. Before the thinly veiled insults and the gestures and looks designed to show both of us that she wasn’t good enough, I’d shown her the grounds. She loved the garden. The sunlight had sparkled through her chestnut curls and illuminated her golden-brown skin. I remember being mesmerized by the way her white dress had billowed around her shapely legs as she admired the purple petals of the agapanthus.
I cling to the image as I search for some beauty in the here and now. The agapanthus in this garden are in full bloom, but the grass is all brown. Why don’t they water it? Why would they just let it die? I barely register the nurse speaking to me from the doorway.
“Just sit tight,” she says. “Someone will be here to see you soon.”
Chapter Four
Impossibly large hazel eyes sparkle at me as I make my way across the grounds. I crouch to catch him as he bounds at me, throwing me backward as he wraps his little arms around my neck.
“Mommy!” he exclaims as we sit together in the grass. “I climbed to the top of the big wooden ship on the playground today!”
“That’s great, sweet pea. What did you see when you were up there?”
Levi tilts his head and shrugs.
“I stood at the very top!”
“You have to keep your eyes open, sweet boy. Otherwise you’ll miss things, maybe important things. The world looks different from every angle. Tomorrow, when you’re at the top of the ship, take a look. You might be surprised by all the things you see up there.”
His wide grin sparks a cocktail of deep love and buried heartbreak. Who would have thought that my child would be a little clone of his father? His skin is darker—not the same shade of brown as mine, but Levi is a few shades more tan than his father had been. When Noah finally convinced them to meet their grandson, the Bradfords had taken one look at him and offered a tear-soaked apology for insisting that my pregnancy was a ploy to extort their money.
I never wanted anything from them. But I couldn’t keep Levi away from his only grandparents. So I suffer their company as often as they want to see him.
“You look sad, Mommy,” he says, with his little hands poking at my face.
Laughing, I wipe away a tear and smile.
“Mommy’s just thinking of a lot of old stuff today. How about we go home and have some crisp autumn apples?”
Rising, we clasp hands and walk back to the playground so I can sign him out. With a quick wave at the teacher, I start for the car and Levi twines his little fingers between mine.
“Why are autumn apples better than summer apples, Mommy?”
“Because they’re fresh and local in the autumn; at least, the ones that I buy are.”
“So things are better when they are fresh?”
“Well, most produce is. But some things get better with age, like wine, or some cheeses, or you.”
I tap his nose and he giggles. The pure sweetness of that sound makes me laugh too. While I’m buckling him into the carseat, I hear a text and I check my phone. My face falls and an involuntary sigh escapes.
“You look sad again,” says Levi.
Looking into those sparkling eyes, I debate what to say, how to explain.
“Your daddy’s working late tonight, darling. You’ll see him after school tomorrow.”
He frowns and his eyes well. An angry voice whimpers at me.
“But I didn’t see him yesterday, either. He’s always working late.”
“Just yesterday and today, Levi. I guess he has an important case. I know you miss him, but you’ll see him soon.”
Unassuaged, Levi begins to cry. I unbuckle him and give him snuggles and kisses until he giggles again. Then we buckle up and drive home.
“Can I have popcorn with my apples?” he asks as I’m helping him out of the car.
“Sure, sweet pea.”
Paloma pauses the vacuum cleaner when Levi runs to her and gives her a big hug.
“Paloma, Daddy isn’t coming home for dinner tonight. Do you want to stay and eat with us?”
Paloma laughs and pats his back.
“I have a very important appointment,” she says. “But thank you for inviting me.”
Oscar jaunts over to the door to greet us and I give him a snuggle.
“I left sliced apples on the table, Mrs. Chambers,” says Paloma.
Smiling at her, I nod my thanks and find the popcorn in the pantry. I pour a bowl for Levi as he sits in his booster seat and reaches for the apples with hungry hands. After he eats and we clean up together, he heads to his room for quiet time. I give Oscar an afternoon snack before I think about calling Silas to ask about his late night. I don’t. There’s no point. Confidentiality prevents him from telling me anything about his cases. I married a lawyer with a roster of entitled clientele. Sometimes he gets busy and everything else has to take second place.
“I can’t offer you the type of life that Jeremy would have,” he said when he proposed. “But I can take care of you and your son and, Sylvie, I’m in love with you. Maybe that could be enough to make you happy?”
My heart lifts as I recall the sincerity in his eyes when he insisted on taking me to dinner that night. I didn’t want to leave Levi with a sitter, but I owed him so much for all the ways he’d been there for me since the day we met. When he proposed, I said yes more quickly than I thought possible. He’d been willing to take second place in my heart then, so now—from time to time—I forgive him for needing to put his cases first. He’s been my pillar of strength and I love him for it. I don’t call. I text back instead—no words, just an X and an O.
Chapter Five
My legs are growing tired from only a few minutes of pacing when a muffled voice drifts in from the hallway, a voice as familiar as my own.
“Where’s my brother?” he asks. “Jeremiah Bradford. Where is he?”
I chuckle. Noah never was one for patience. Opening the door, I lean against the jamb and call out to him.
“In here, little brother.”
He turns and when our eyes meet there is something discomfiting about the way he looks at me. He’s frozen for a moment and his skin takes on a sallow hue. I think he might vomit or pass out. I wonder if he’s been drinking again. Then he takes a breath and moves toward me slowly. He inspects me as if he’s seeing a ghost and I can see that he’s more sober than I’ve ever seen him.
“Jesus, it’s really you,” he says, reaching out to grab my shoulder. “You look fucking awful. You
must have lost fifty pounds.”
“Yeah, well, I’m still better looking than you, runt.”
The corner of his mouth twitches up and then he wraps his arms around me and squeezes.
“I was positive I’d never hear you call me ‘runt’ again.”
His head falls on my shoulder. The thin hospital gown fabric there grows wet and then cold quickly. I don’t remember Noah ever crying before.
“I’m alright, Noah.” I tell him thumping his back the way I did when we were boys. “I thought Bruce sent Earnest?”
Chuckling, Noah pulls away. He wipes his face quickly.
“Earnest died last year. Bruce sent the new guy, Christian.”
“He sent someone I’ve never met to verify my identity?”
“Well, no one ever accused Dad of being too smart for his own good.”
A pinch of sadness about old Earnest Aziz passing prevents me from laughing with Noah. What else did I miss? Who else has died in the last four years? I remember Sylvie’s phone being disconnected and a wave of panic slams into me.
“What about Sylvie?” I bark at him with more volume than I intended. “Is she alright? Why is her phone disconnected? Is she alright?”
“Easy, brother, Sylvie’s fine. I just saw her this morning. She only disconnected her old number because there was a media flurry when you disappeared. She needed more privacy, so Silas got her a new number.”
“Silas?” I ask. “Why would Bruce and Sharon’s lawyer… they don’t even know each other.”
Noah looks at his feet and I grip his shoulders until he faces me again. I shake my head, confused, but I don’t have to ask for an explanation.
“It’s a complicated story, but the short of it is that Bruce and Sharon wanted to pay Sylvie off to stay away from the family, so they sent Silas to negotiate with her. The two of them… got close after that.”
The disbelieving motion of my head continues after he stops speaking. Silas is a conniving snake. That’s why my parents have always loved him. I hate the idea of him anywhere near Sylvie. When Noah swallows, bitter-tasting dread fills my mouth.
“How close did they get?”
“They’re… Well… They’ve been married for almost two years now.”
Lights flash before my eyes and, for a moment, I think I’m still lying in the bed. This is a dream, a nightmare really. Any moment I’ll wake up and call that nurse and the whole day will start over again.
“He’s good to her, Jeremy. I was against it too, at first, but she’s got a life and a home and… I know this is probably the worst news you could get, but… I think you should just take a few breaths before you do anything.”
“How’d you get here?”
“I rode your bike,” he says. “I’ve been taking good care of it and you can have it back as soon as you’re fit to ride again.”
“I’m fit right now.”
A surge of adrenaline fuels my limbs. Pushing past him, I follow the bright exit signs hanging from the ceiling.
“You can’t leave yet, Mr. Bradford,” says the nurse as I pass. “You haven’t been discharged,” she shouts.
She’s calling security as I open the stairwell door. A few flights and a couple more long hallways later I find the main doors. It’s a small hospital. I see the parking lot off to the right and my Ducati is right there. Smiling, I move toward it but Noah blocks my path.
“You can’t ride like this, man.”
Looking down I see that I’m still wearing my hospital gown. Part of me doesn’t give a shit. I need to see her. NOW.
“You just woke up from a coma, you won’t have the coordination that you had before. Your muscles have atrophied. You need to recover before you can do the things that you used to do. I’ll take you to see her in a few days.”
“Not good enough,” I growl.
Even as I argue with him my legs start to shake. He’s right. I can’t ride like this. I can barely stand.
“Don’t you want to know why Bruce and Sharon wanted to pay her to stay away?”
Pausing, I can’t think of any reason why Sylvie would want to share even a moment’s company with either of them. The perplexed look on my face makes Noah nod.
“Let’s go back inside, so the doctors can give you a clean bill of health. Then I’ll tell you everything.”
He tries to nudge me backward but, somehow, I don’t budge.
“What did Sylvie want from them?”
“We’ll sit down and I will give you the full run down…”
“What the fuck aren’t you telling me, Noah?” I shout in his face.
“You have a son!” he shouts back, and the world begins to spin.
Chapter Six
I’m roused from a deep sleep when warm hands smooth over my shoulder. My skin tingles as those hands slip under the duvet. He caresses the length of my body and his breath warms my neck.
“I’m home, baby,” he whispers as I shiver with excitement under his touch.
When I roll backward, I find myself pressed against his hard chest. Smiling as he wraps his arms around me, I know there is nowhere else I’d rather be. I’m so glad he’s here. I’ve missed him so much more than I’ve let myself acknowledge. I missed that pine and earth smell. I missed the heat his touch stirs in my core. Reaching over my shoulder, I sink my fingers into his hair. Black silky waves slip between my fingers.
His hand squeezes at my thighs, kneading higher and dragging the hem of my nightgown up over my hips. Pressing his face into my hair, he inhales and pulls me closer with the arm he snaked under me and wrapped across my shoulders. The groan he releases is hungry, almost a growl. Tugging the thin strap off, he kisses my shoulder and cups my breast.
“I missed you,” he says. “Are you too tired to welcome me home?”
“Never,” I whisper.
He rolls me onto my back and begins to peel off my nightgown.
“Mmm… let’s get this off you then. I want you naked, Mrs. Chambers.”
Eyes flying open, I look into the blue-grey irises that belong to my husband. He’d left on the bathroom light and the dim illumination catches his auburn hair. I shake my head the rest of the way awake and smile.
“Why do you look surprised to see me, baby? Were you expecting someone else?”
Perfectly straight white teeth flash as he grins at me. He’s joking. Swallowing my guilt, I help him lift my nightgown. He doesn’t remove it. He twists it around my forearms and presses them into the bed overhead. I tilt my chin, offering my lips in a way that I hope will avoid the question. When his hands close around the back of my neck and both of his lips cover mine, relief eases my mind.
He parts my thighs with his knees and grinds his hard length against my sex. He’s naked. His warm body slides over mine possessively as he reaches between our bodies to guide his cock-head to my entrance.
“I have been daydreaming about getting into your hot pussy all day, baby.”
I gasp as he dips inside me. He tilts his hips to swirl in and out in a shallow tease. I’m slick with heat and desperate to forget my dreams of him. I want my husband to fuck Jeremy Bradford out of my mind. I want him to use me so hard that the guilt and shame I feel whenever I fantasize about my first love burn up in a blaze of our passion. When I lift my hips to take him deeper, he smiles and brushes gentle kisses over my face.
“You want that, don’t you? You want me to shove my cock deep inside you and stretch your cunt around my dick. Tell me you want it, baby.”
“I want you, Silas. I need you to fuck me.”
He moans as he nibbles at my lips.
“Soon,” he says, “but I want to hear you whimpering my name first.”
He kisses down my face and neck. Pausing at my breasts, he sucks my nipples into his mouth one at a time, back and forth. He scrapes with his teeth and flicks with his tongue and then sucks hard again. He doesn’t stop until I’m squirming. With one finger, he reaches down t
o collect the heat dripping from my pussy. I shudder when he twirls that long, thick digit inside me. He brings it to his lips and sucks my juices into his mouth.
“You taste like a woman who needs to come, baby,” he rasps. “Keep still. I’m going to lick your sweet cunt until you explode and then I’m going to drill into you so hard you’ll pray that I don’t rip you apart. Tell me you want to come, Mrs. Chambers.”
I watch him kiss down my belly and try not to move. He rises up suddenly and captures my mouth again. Yanking down on my hair, he chuckles when I gasp.
“Tell me, Sylvie. Ask me to make you come.”
“Make me come, Silas,” I whisper.
He kisses me again, hard, before he pulls away and kisses down my body. He drags his tongue over both of my nipples, down my belly, and over my swollen clit.
He feeds, sucking on my folds and splaying me open with his fingers. My breath quickens as his tongue dips into my entrance.
“That feels so… God, don’t stop!”
He doesn’t stop, he lingers in each touch. Each stroke of his wet tongue brings me higher. The pressure grows unbearable. He sucks hard on my clit and I groan. He bites into my inner thigh and I whimper. His hands explore my body while he continues to assault my pussy with his wicked tongue. When he pinches my nipples, I start to fall. His thick tongue laps over my clit and I call out his name.
“Silas, yes!”
He scrapes his tongue over my throbbing clit as I come hard. Three fingers shove into my pussy and I scream. He fucks me on his hand until I stop jerking against his mouth.
When his hard body covers mine, the pressure spins me up again. When he sinks his hungry cock inside my sex, I moan. His mouth falls over mine as he fucks me. He grabs my ass to adjust his angle and he hits me there.
“Fuck me!” I whimper.
“I’ll never stop fucking you, baby,” he growls. “As long as I’m breathing, I’m going to want to feel you squeezing my cock.”
He shoves hard into my G-spot and I come apart again. I sink my teeth into his shoulder and he tugs my head back by my hair. His mouth takes mine again as his thrusts grow painfully insistent. He pushes harder and harder until he roars, releasing my lips and arching around me. His body, heavy over mine, holds me down as he pumps a few more times. We breathe together, dizzy with passion, until he lifts himself onto his forearms to look at me.
Everything Stolen Page 2
