by Cole, S. Ann
This. Shit. Fucking. Hurts.
He didn’t know what else to say at this point. What to do. Where to go from here. All he knew was he couldn’t live without her. He couldn’t.
However, he wanted a family. He needed a family. With her. He couldn’t see anyone else being the mother of his children. But, if she didn’t want to have his children, then …
“Why don’t you love me, Krissan?”
Silence extended between them, and when he raised his head to look at her, her face was red with anger. “Are you being serious right now? You think I’d marry someone I didn’t love?”
“Maybe I bullied you into it.”
“You didn’t bully me into anything!” she yelled. “I married you because I love you. More than oxygen. More than functioning lungs and a beating heart. More than sight, hearing, and my sense of touch.”
“But not more than yourself,” he pointed out.
Her perfect white teeth clamped down on her bottom lip as she lowered her head, pleading the fifth.
“You swore before God, a priest and my two brothers, Krissan, you’d be my wife.”
Her head snapped up. “I am your wife!”
“Partially,” he returned. “A wife gives her husband children, builds a family, a home. A wife doesn’t deceive her husband, breaks her promises. A wife respects and honors her husband in every way.”
A nervous habit of hers, Krissan wiped her hands down her silk covered thighs. She was resplendent in a gold evening dress that hugged her curves with such perfection, one knew the dress was specifically made for her. She allowed her hair to grow over the years, only to chop it off again into a sharp, white-blonde bob cropping just below her chin. The style gave her a fierce, edgier look.
His wife was a woman who kept it fresh, forever changing things up, and he loved her all the more for it. She made sure he stayed in love with her by making herself become every other woman out there, so he wouldn’t ever feel as though he was missing out on anything — which probably wasn’t her intention, but that surely was the results.
This beautiful, glowing woman was his wife.
“This has nothing to do with you and my love for you,” she humbly stated. “But everything to do with me, my selfishness, insecurities, and fear.”
“What are you insecure about? What do you fear?” he demanded to know. “I know I was messed-up before you, but since the Sarah incident, I’ve never cheated on you, Krissan. Not once. I have no desire for, or have any attraction to, anyone but you.”
“I believe you,” she whispered.
“Then what the fuck are you afraid of?!” he shouted, growing angry all over again. “Everything I own, you own. That makes you a fucking billionaire. You have me all to yourself. Everything. How can you be so selfish, Krissan?!”
She bit her lip and dropped her head, refusing to answer.
Trevillo was getting nowhere with her. Krissan knew the depth of his love for her and knew he wouldn’t leave her, so she felt she was safe in doing whatever she wanted in their marriage, selfishly knowing he’d let it slide, because he always let her shit slide, loving her too much to argue and risk losing her. But, could he let this one slide?
Ultimatum, Trev, ultimatum. Sometimes you have to play dirty to win. To get your way. To secure what’s yours.
Or, sometimes you just have to walk away.
Clearing his throat, Trevillo spoke in a tone he knew she would sure as shit recognize as his serious tone. The tone that left no room for disputes. The tone he used when brooking no negotiation.
“Here’s the deal: You don’t want kids, obviously. That’s where you stand, and I respect that. I, however, am not getting any younger. It can’t just be me, you, sex, and wealth. I want kids. I want a family. I don’t want to live in a penthouse for the rest of my life. I want a home with a backyard, a pond, and my three little kids running around. I want to hear tiny little humans calling me ‘Daddy’, climbing all over me, asking me tons of annoying questions, falling asleep in my arms while I read them fairytales … ”
Trevillo trailed off, his heart warming at the prospect. “I love you, Krissan. I always will. And I wish you could’ve been the woman to give me that: a family and a meaningful future. Unfortunately, you don’t want the same things I want.”
Pushing up from the bed, he stood and straightened his jacket. “I’m filing for divorce.”
Trev & Krissy
Part 2
A loud gasp escaped her, and Trevillo tried his damnedest not to wince at the painful sound. She clutched her stomach, and her body rocked forward as she sobbed.
Trevillo wanted to sweep her up in his arms and make the pain she felt melt away. But he was hurting, too. Who would hold him and make his pain go away?
He didn’t want to divorce her, but if she didn’t want kids, if she wouldn’t budge, he had no choice. He would never find someone to replace her. Never. Krissan was irreplaceable. But he would find someone to love him enough to want to have his babies, even if he didn’t love them back.
Keeping his stance, he walked past her and tossed over his shoulder, “Don’t worry, the divorce will be in your favor. Whatever you ask for, I’ll give you … ” He stopped at the door and looked back at her — her small frame convulsing with gut-deep sobs. He hated this. Every bit of it. “I’ll phone Marcello and let him know we won’t be showing up for dinner this evening.”
He stalked out of the room, his heart breaking with each step he made. Crack. Crack. Crack. Blood and fucking arteries.
This. Shit. Hurts.
With a trembling hand, he nabbed his cellphone from the coffee table in the living room and went to the elevator. Standing there for a minute, he turned and went back to the living room, shoving a hand through his hair. Trying again, he jaunted to elevator, but only ended up staring at the closed doors for another minute before turning and heading back to the living room.
Fuck.
Unable to make himself leave the apartment — leave her — he sat down in a sofa chair, blocking out his wife’s sobs which grew louder by the minute, echoing from the bedroom. He needed to ignore it, make himself not care, just like she was so good at doing.
He slid his thumb across the screen of his cellphone to unlock it, and there was a text message from Sadie. When he opened it, he couldn’t believe his eyes. They were photos of his nephew, Nathan, grinning!
Unbelievable.
This was some epic shit. Trevillo had convinced himself, and everyone else, Nathan was the anti-Christ. He was a very scary, very intimidating little dude, and he couldn’t even walk yet. He never smiled, glared a lot, and his tiny hands were always balled into tight fists. But now, in these photos, he was grinning. Epic.
As Trevillo scrolled through the photos, his decision to divorce his wife strengthened. He most certainly wanted kids. He wanted to take photos like these one day and send them out to his family. He couldn’t go on with her if she wouldn’t give him that much. He’d given her everything she ever wanted. Needed. Never cheated, remained completely faithful since the day he said “I do”.
He couldn’t understand why she would do this to him. How she could hurt him like this and not give a shit.
Sighing, he stopped torturing himself and cleared the photos and dialed his father’s number. It started ringing when Krissan came barreling into the room. Her eyes swollen, her face soaked with her tears, her gaze fixed on him as she marched right up to where he was sitting and knocked his cellphone out of his hand.
Trevillo winced as the phone crashed to the ground, skidding across the tiles and disappearing under the sofa across from him.
Jabbing a finger in his face, she hissed, “You can’t leave me. I won’t let you fucking leave me. You promised me you wouldn’t leave me!”
“Should’ve found out first if you wanted kids before I made that promise.” He shrugged, insouciant. “My bad.”
Krissan’s face crumpled like a demolished building as she cried, “You said I would be yo
ur end.”
Staring up into her weeping blue eyes, he assured her, “You are my end. I’ll never love again. You’ve murdered me, Krissan. Ruined me for the next woman. She’ll carry my children, but I’ll never love her. I’ll be soulless, emotionless, empty. I’ll never love anyone but you.”
Krissan made a ferocious growling sound and fisted her hands at her sides. “There. Won’t. Be. A. Next. Fucking. Woman!!! Because you are not leaving me!!”
Veins bulged on her forehead and on her slim, delicate neck, her temples red as blood. He’d never seen her so enraged before, but divorce was a serious threat, so he couldn’t have expected anything milder.
“I am leaving you, Krissan,” he said with force. “We’ve reached an impasse, and divorce is the only road left to take.”
Violently trembling, she glared at him, inhaling choppy breaths, opening and closing her fists. Then all of a sudden, she dropped to her knees in front of him and said in rush, “I’ll have your babies. Don’t leave me, Trev. I’ll have your babies. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Trevillo shook his head. “No, no. I’m not letting you do something you don’t want and risk having you resent me in the long run.”
But Krissan vehemently wagged her head. “Babe, I want to have your kids. I was just afraid. Afraid kids would ruin us. Ruin everything.”
Trevillo watched her without a word. She was only conceding to save their marriage. He wanted her to want this as much as he did. He didn’t want a wife who would begrudge him later on. No way. He could be a lot of things, but selfish wasn’t one of them.
“I’m not lying this time, Trev, I swear!” she cried. “I didn’t want to have kids because I love having sex with you.”
Huh? “Huh?”
Reaching for his hands, she laced her fingers with his. “Babe, when we have sex, we create magic. We leave earth. We travel the fucking universe. Sex with you goes on and never ends. It transcends. I’m fucking addicted to it. Addicted to you. I didn’t want to share you.”
She paused and took a breath as another sob tried to leave her. “Kids will ruin it. They’re whiny and needy and will take up a lot of our time. You already travel a lot. How will it be when little noisy brats come along? You won’t have time for me. You’ll love them more than me. I don’t want to lose you, not even to my own babies. You are mine, Trev, mine!”
Mouth agape, Trevillo could only stare at his wife. The hell? “Krissan, you’re talking like a woman obsessed.”
“I am obsessed!” she yelled. “A wife obsessed with her fucking husband. And I want to have your kids. I’m going to have your kids. There won’t be a ‘next woman’ for you, Trev. Five years ago, you chose me. Me! Divorce is nowhere in our future. Nowhere. If I have to sacrifice having mind-blowing sex with you, so be it. Whatever it takes to keep you. I’ll give you a mouthy little brat like Lovette or scary little freak like Nathan. Anything. Anything. Just don’t leave me.”
A slow smile crept onto Trevillo’s face. “You aren’t sacrificing anything, Krissan. I’ll make sure our sex life remains the same, better even. But, I will share my love and affection between you and my kids, and I’ll be displeased if you don’t do the same. As for time, we can work on that. If we’re going to start a family, I’ll set things in place so I can work mostly from home. Travel as less as possible. I’ll never neglect you, babe. You’ll never stop being the center of my world. There’s nothing for you to be afraid of.”
She nodded, eagerly. “Okay. Okay. I believe you. I trust you.”
Tightening the fingers that were laced together, Trevillo pulled her up onto his lap. Krissan spared no time in straddling him and crashing her mouth down to his.
Her lips were so much softer after being marinated with her tears, and her tongue was enthusiastic, unrelenting, as it roamed his mouth. She wasn’t giving him a chance to breath.
Over the years, Krissan had grown overly sexual, perpetually aroused, always initiating, more than was probably normal. But Trevillo had never considered the possibility she was becoming an addict, a nympho.
He’d done that to her, and at the moment, he wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. Whether good or bad, however, he’d be sure to keep her satisfied, sated. Making sure she never, ever felt neglected or unwanted.
Krissan unlaced their fingers and reached down between them to undo his belt buckle, but Trevillo grabbed her wrists to stop her. “No, Krissan.”
“No?”
“No.” He shook his head to emphasize. “I’m not having sex with you again until you get some sort of fertility cleanse to get rid of the synthetic hormones stemming from your long use of birth control. That way, I’ll know for sure my sperm’s not being wasted on an impregnable egg anymore.”
“Are you serious right now?”
“Dead,” he said with a sharp nod. “That’s your punishment.”
“But it’s Thanksgiving,” she whined. “Doctor Leeman’s in Iowa visiting his family, he won’t be back in the office until next week.”
Trevillo wrapped an arm around her waist and stood up from the sofa chair, setting his wife on her feet. “Use your rabbit if you want an orgasm. But, until your system’s clean, I’m not giving you one.”
“Using sex as a weapon is a low blow, Trev,” she spat, smoothing out the creases in her silk dress.
Ignoring that, he paced his words as he said, “Babe, if we’re not getting a divorce, then we don’t have an excuse to skip Thanksgiving dinner, which means, we have to go … .right now.”
Krissan turned to the adjacent wall, checked the time and swore, “Oh shit!” and started scrambling down the hall to the bedroom. “Gonna fetch my make-up kit so I clean up my face in the car. Meet you at the elevator.”
Chuckling lightly, Trevillo headed for the elevator but stopped dead as a wave of nausea passed over him. His head spun for a minute, leaving him in vertigo. Aftershock? The reality of what just happened — almost happened was starting to sink in.
He almost lost her.
Holy fucking shit, what was he thinking threatening divorce?
He almost lost her, again.
He should apologize. He should apologize.
If he felt like this now, would he have even been able to go through with a divorce if she hadn’t caved? Not in a million, because he couldn’t even leave the goddamn penthouse when he’d tried earlier.
Taking a deep breath, he resumed his steps and tried pushing aside the awful feeling that came over him. That was close.
Grabbing his One-77 car key, he reached the elevator and pressed the call button just as Krissan got back to him.
The love of his life. His angel’s feather. His forever.
He snaked an arm around her, tucking her into his side. “Krissan?”
“Babe?” she answered.
“Don’t ever lie to me again.”
On a deep sigh, she replied, “I won’t. I promise.”
Trevillo wasn’t sure he believed she would keep her promise. But he knew now whether or not she did, he wouldn’t ever do something as stupid as divorce her. So, he tightened his arm around her, kissed the top of her head, and waited for the elevator to open.
Marcello was going to spray his shit all over them.
Father Nelson
Marcello sucked in a deep draw of his cigar, looking down through his bedroom window at the chaos of vehicles speeding into his residence, each one braking to a screeching halt as they parked haphazardly around the imposing marble fountain at the front of his mansion.
His family.
A smirk formed on his lips as he watched them all bustle out of their vehicles, frenetic, racing each other up the steps to the house. They were all afraid of him, this he knew. Afraid of how he’d react to their tardiness. Afraid of getting on his bad side — because nobody liked being on Marcello Nelson’s bad side.
He liked that everyone in his family feared him. It was quite the power to have, no lie. However, he wasn’t that way just fo
r the sake of being an asshole. He wasn’t a megalomaniac as they all seemed to think. He didn’t use his puissance to bring people under submission just because he could. Not at all.
Marcello was a family man. Nothing meant more to him in the world than his family. So he acted the way he did with his family because he wanted them all to be successful in their own right. To walk their own path. Build their own strength. Master their own world. And to love each other, value each other, look out for each other, and take care of each other — because a family bonded was the greatest form of strength and alliance there was.
Uncaring of how they viewed or regarded him, he stood over their backs and made sure they chose the right career path, the right women, the right future. Making decisions that were durable, eternal even — legacies lasting for generations to come.
The women he’d chased off from his sons weren’t women who were worthy of them. And he was positive they were thankful, though they would never admit it aloud. He’d wanted strong women for his sons: women who could stand on their own two feet and fight, women who didn’t need their husband’s spotlight to shine. Women, who could take over, take control if their husbands should suffer any infirmities. The ones who ran at his first cold glower, were ones who didn’t have what it takes to be a Nelson.
That’s what made Sadie his favorite daughter-in-law. She was a fighter. He wouldn’t let her know the depth of his love for her, though — well, at least not until his lawyer read his will.
Axia, she was innately a fighter. Powerful. One who intimidates the intimidator. He never once had any concerns where she was concerned — she was a gem, the epitome of what a strong woman should be.
Krissan, he considered her cool and deadly: innocuous on the outside, insidious on the inside. She was like a snake you observed, charming from a distance, learning her secrets and disarming her before getting too close — he adored her.
Marcello took one last drag and butted out his cigar on the windowsill. Now, he could die peacefully, knowing his sons, his entire family, would thrive. They’ve all made perfect decisions, and he was proud of them. He fought long enough to stay alive — for them — beating their backs, making sure they got it right.
