Lose Control (Firebacks Book 3)

by Linda Verji

  The woman was out of options. There was nothing more she could do.

  ***

  “Eli, stop.” Chryssa hit him on the arm for the fourth time in just twenty minutes. “Doc, ignore him. He’s just being an asshole.”

  “It’s okay.” Dr. Stiles green eyes lit up with mirth as he looked between them. He was undisturbed by the paces Eli had been putting him through since they’d stepped into this office. “I don’t mind the questions.”

  Unfazed by the furious looks Chryssa kept throwing him, Eli focused his attention on the doctor. If this was the man who was going to be taking care of his woman and child, then Eli wanted to make sure he was qualified for it.

  “Dr. Stiles…” He gave the doctor a narrow eyed look like he was some kind of criminal. “Can I call you Mathew?”

  “My first name is Martin.”

  “I’ve heard it both ways,” Eli dismissed.

  “Eli, don’t be a dick,” Chryssa snapped.

  Ignoring her, he persisted, “Exactly what are your plans for the last trimester because I know that’s when we’ll need to get her off her meds? If you won’t be able to handle it we can get someone else.”

  “I can handle it.” Dr. Stiles smiled as he explained, “As I see it we need…”

  By the time they were exiting the office Chryssa wasn’t even speaking to him. She walked slightly ahead of him at an angry pace. But since his legs were longer than hers he kept her pace quite easily.

  “If you’re pissed right now you’re going to blow your top off tomorrow,” Eli said as he followed her in the buildings hallways. “You have no idea what a dick I’m going to be to your gynecologist.”

  “Like hell I’m going to let you near her,” she muttered.

  Like hell she was keeping him away. He lengthened his stride until he was ahead of her then he turned. With a grunt she crashed into his chest. She slapped away his hands when he tried to steady her. Ignoring the evil eye she threw him, Eli insisted, “If they’re going to be handling my wife they better be the best at what they do.”

  “Your wife?” Of course she would catch that. Chryssa pulled back and lifted up her left hand turning it this and that way as if looking for a wedding band. Satisfied it wasn’t there, she said, “I’m not your wife. I’m never going to be anyone’s wife. Now move.”

  “What the hell does that mean?” Eli asked but moved when Chryssa tapped his arm and they started walking again.

  “I don’t believe in marriage.”

  Eli came into an abrupt stop, “Excuse me?”

  “You’re surprised? For real?” Turning to face him she offered him a chuckle, before walking down the building’s front steps. “I’m a divorce attorney. You think I’d set myself up like that. Your broke ass probably gon try to cash me out when you leave me for a fresh out-of-college bimbo.”

  There were so many things wrong with that statement that Eli didn’t even know where to start. Shaking his head, he started from the most logical, “I’m richer than you.”

  “Nigga, you don’t know me like that.” She threw over her shoulder as she led the way to her car. Eli’s car was parked on the other side of the lot, but he wanted to finish this conversation first. She added, “You ain’t seen my check book.”

  “Cause you’re always borrowing money from me.”

  “Cause you’re a sucker,” she returned as she pressed on her keys to open her car doors.

  She started to open the driver’s door, but Eli closed it leaning his back against the door as he said. “We could have a prenup.”

  “I don’t believe in prenups. All you need is a lawyer like me and that prenup becomes just another piece of paper.” Twirling her car keys in her fingers she emphasized, “Just another piece of paper like marriage.”

  He insisted, “Yeah! A piece of paper we’re getting before our baby comes.”

  “This isn’t nineteen o fuck yourself. You see now we’ve got this little thing called co-parenting.” She laughed, not taking the conversation in the least bit seriously. “And even if I was crazy enough to think of marrying a controlling dick like you what kind of shady ass proposal was that?”

  “I did not propose to you.”

  “Yes you did.”

  “No I didn’t.”

  “Yes you did” She rolled her neck as she pointed towards the entrance of the building. “Right at the door. Over there. You said I was your wife.”

  “That doesn’t count as a proposal.”

  “Legally it does,” she insisted in a singsong voice.

  “Since when did the law start governing proposals?”

  “Since I said so.” Fake sorrow in her eyes, she shook her head as she straightened out the lapels of his suit jacket, “Poor Renée.”

  “What does Renée have to do with anything?”

  “Her proposal must have been the worst in the world.” Chryssa asked, “How did you do it?”

  “Actually it was really good.” Eli straightened up against the car. A smile on his face as he remembered, “I took her to this nice-”

  “Wait! Wait! Wait,” she interrupted him midsentence patting his chest. “Let me finish this story. You took her for dinner to her favorite restaurant, got the waiter to bring you a bottle of wine and then dropped the ring in her wine glass when she wasn’t looking.”

  Eli was shocked speechless because that was exactly how it’d happened. Chryssa laughed when she saw the look on his face. “I know you that well.”

  It should’ve been an insult. Eli took it as a compliment. She knew him that well. Smiling he asked, “How would you do it?”

  “Do what?”

  “Propose.”

  “Like I’m stupid enough to teach your no game cliché ass how to trap me into marriage.” She chuckled. “Pshh! I’m not your teacher anymore.”

  “We never officially ended the contract so technically…” Eli let the words trail off. Her face went from smirking to ‘nigga please’ in a flash, but before she could explode he chuckled pulling her close to him for a hug. “I’m playing. I’m playing.”

  From her low laugh before she rose up on tip toes to kiss him, Eli could tell she thought he was playing when it came to the proposal. He wasn’t. He came from a traditional family and he was doing this the traditional way. First comes marriage, then comes baby.

  Chryssa had a ring coming.

  But if there was anything he’d learnt from Chryssa it was how to be creative. Already he had started thinking of creative ways to get her to say yes. He lowered his head accepting her kiss as his hands went around her waist to keep her close.

  ***

  Click. Click. Click.

  Snaps and flashes as the camera took several shots of the couple kissing by the silver BMW. The image was clear in the lenses you could even see the seams of his grey suit and her beige fitting dress.

  Click.

  The two talked, their lips so close you thought they were breathing the same air.

  Click.

  He stroked her hair and listened intently as she said something to him.

  Click.

  She wound her arms tighter around his waist as he said something to her.

  Click.

  The two laughed as they finally separated though the connection between them still remained in the lingering glances and smiles.

  Click. Click

  He opened the door for her.

  Click.

  One final kiss before she closed the door.

  Click. Click. Click.

  She drove off.

  Click.

  He walked off.

  Click.

  The two never even noticed their silent voyeur.

  Click.

  CHAPTER 29

  Chryssa was in a bad mood.

  Sunday’s were usually easy for them. They got up late, made love, did some clean-up before they settled to do something together or hang out with their friends. Today, she’d been up at the crack of dawn and scrubbing the kitchen. When he’d
asked if there was any breakfast, she’d snapped at him that she wasn’t his maid.

  At first he’d put it down to hormones. That is until he found her standing by the glass terrace doors looking around the living room with a morose expression on her face.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked as he crossed the room to stand next to her.

  “Look at this place.” She gestured to the expanse of the room.

  Her living room was a neat space furnished in beige faux leather seats around a claw footed glass coffee table and facing a large flat screen. The wall was lined with images of her and Mickey, her and her friends along with several paintings. An eclectic mix of animal and ethnic sculptures was strategically positioned along the floor giving the room an air of modernism with a hint of roots.

  It looked exactly as it usually did. Eli said, “I don’t see anything wrong with it.”

  She sighed deeply, “It’s too small.”

  His brow furrowed in confusion, “For what?”

  “Sunday brunch.” Turning slightly to wrap her arms around his waist, she said. “It’s our turn. I’m trying to figure out how I am going to fit them all in here.”

  Oh! So that’s what was stressing her out. Eli fought not to smile. “Couldn’t you just say let Zain host it?”

  She didn’t even bother replying that ridiculous suggestion. She sucked in air deeply again, laying her head on his shoulder as she suggested, “Maybe we should just rent out space in a restaurant.”

  “You know there’s another option.”

  She lifted her head off his shoulder as she asked, “Which is?”

  “We could host at my place,” Eli suggested as he stroked her back. “The house is big enough for everyone to fit in. I don’t have a pool, but there’s enough space in the yard for the kids to run around. We could even have an open-air buffet instead of a sit-down dinner.”

  She took another look around the living room as she nodded her head slowly, “I supposed we could do that.”

  This was perfect. It was a chance for finally get her to his house and move their relationship to its next logical stage. He went for the kill-shot. “You’ll have to move to my place for a couple of days. You can’t organize from here.”

  Hopefully, she’d get so comfortable that the temporary move would become permanent.

  Chryssa turned her face towards him. Her eyes searched his and Eli kept his face blank though on the inside he was holding his breath as he waited for her reaction. She must’ve seen something in his eyes because her gaze narrowed and she sucked her teeth. “You’re not slick.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  Anger flared in her eyes. “I know exactly what you’re doing.” She untangled herself from his arms before roughly pushing him away.

  “What am I doing?” He followed at her heels as she left the doorway and settled on the couch.

  She didn’t respond. Instead she picked up the remote controller from the coffee table and switched on the TV. The sounds of auto-laugh from the comedy playing onscreen filled the room.

  “What am I doing?” Eli asked again over the noise.

  No response. She pretended concentration on the TV.

  He watched her broodingly, getting angrier every second she ignored his presence. He was tired of Chryssa handling conflict by either getting too aggressive, going silent or running away. What he wouldn’t do for her to just learn how to talk to him instead of all these antics.

  He marched over to the TV and manually switched it off. “Chryssa, why are you pissed off?”

  She threw the remote on the seat then stood up. He caught her arm before she could walk away. She slapped his hand at her wrist but he didn’t let go. Wrapped his fingers tighter around the slender limb, he demanded, “Stop being childish.”

  “I’m being childish?” she asked, or more accurately growled. Her voice rose in volume with every word she added. “You’re the one who’s playing little games, trying to manipulate me into moving in with you. Your sneaky thing may work with other people, but not with me.”

  Ignoring her accusations, he asked, “Why are you yelling?”

  “Because it’s my house and I can fucking yell if I want.” She tried to shake his hand off her wrist again but he didn’t let go. He knew if he let go she would try to run from the conversation. Frustrated, she added, “I’m not moving from here and I’m not marrying you. Period.”

  “Just like that? Period,” Eli asked looking at her. “What about what I want? For chrissakes I’m your…”

  His words trailed off because he didn’t know what he was to her. She refused to acknowledge that they were in any kind of relationship apart from him being her baby’s father. The mutinous expression on her face told him she wasn’t going to budge. She really was serious. She had no plans to marry him. Whatever new plan he came up with, she would thwart. Then what the hell am I doing here?

  The question hit him harder than a ton of bricks.

  What was he doing here?

  He let go of her hand and sat on the couch she had vacated rubbing a palm over his face in frustration. Eli liked to be in control of his environment. It wasn’t in his nature to leave others to make his decisions for him. Yet with Chryssa, he’d released the reins. He’d let her run the show.

  He was living in her house. He was taking care of her. He’d let her decide whether they were having a baby or not. She decided the pace of their relationship. She got what she wanted. He made all the compromises. It was too damn much.

  Maybe it was time to take a step back and evaluate if this was the type of relationship he wanted. Everything couldn’t be on her terms. Not looking at her, Eli asked, “What are we doing?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean who am I to you?” He raised his head to stare at her. “And don’t tell me I’m your baby’s father because obviously that doesn’t matter enough to you.”

  “Where’s this coming from?” she asked instead of answering his question. There was genuine surprise in her voice as she added, “I thought we had a good thing.”

  “You call this a good thing?” He chuckled as he gestured between the two of them, but there was no humor behind it. “You don’t even know what it is.”

  “We’re in a relationship,” she said.

  “You can’t call it a relationship if it’s not going anywhere,” he explained. “We can’t continue living like this indefinitely.”

  “I don’t know what you want from me.”

  Yes you do. He could see it in the spark of apprehension in her eyes. But just in case she was in doubt he said, “Chryssa, I want you to be my wife someday.”

  There was silence between them as she processed his words. He let the silence linger in the air between them not willing to break it himself. She sat back in the seat looking down at her hands before finally mumbling, “I can’t do that.”

  “Why?” he asked. When she opened her mouth to answer, he interrupted, “And don’t start throwing divorce statistics or your disorder at me. I already know all that and I’m still here so tell me why.”

  “Eli, please…” her words drifted into silence.

  “Do you love me?”

  She didn’t answer.

  “Do you love me?” he repeated. Again no answer. He knew his answer. She needed to figure out hers. He stood up.

  “Where are you going?” She turned in the couch following him with her eyes as he walked to the door.

  “I’m gon’ spend the night at my house. I need some breathing space,” he said as he slipped his socked feet into loafers. “And you need sometime to decide what you want.”

  He deliberately took his time putting on his jacket. Waiting for her to plead with him not to leave and that she wanted to be with him like he wanted to be with her.

  She didn’t. She just watched him silently.

  He opened the door and left.

  CHAPTER 30

  “Sign here, here and here.” Chryssa tapped with her pen at th
e sections she needed signed as she passed Hanna the document. She, Kian and Hanna were seated in one of the boardrooms in Harrington Shultz finalizing the parental agreement.

  Hanna yanked the documents closer to her as she scanned them, though she didn’t really need to. She’d already read the copy Chryssa had sent her earlier in the day. That however didn’t prevent her from wanting to drag out the process.

  She’d been strong armed into letting go of the one thing, apart from her career, that meant anything to her.

  RJ.

  Today Chryssa looked more subdued than the other night at Kian’s hotel but that didn’t make her any less lethal. Along with the draft parental agreement, she’d sent in a sworn affidavit by the lab assistant Hanna had tried to buy. If that came out, Hanna would not only lose RJ, but her career would be in the ashes too. Tapping her own pen on the rectangular table, Hanna asked, “And if I sign this he’ll keep quiet.”

  “He’ll keep quiet.” Chryssa said. She waved the affidavit, “But I’ll always have this.”

  The message was clear. Chryssa was going to keep the lab assistant dangling over Hanna’s head like a sword. If she even thought of breaking the agreement, he would come down.

  Nodding curtly, she clicked on the pen. With large pen strokes she scrawled her name on the assigned spaces on the document. There was a faint tremor in her hand as she signed away Wednesday and every other weekend with her son.

  Hanna couldn’t believe this was happening to her. This sort of things happened to other people; people who were foolish. These were the kind of stunts she pulled on those people. It wasn’t supposed to happen to her. For Pete’s sake she was Hanna Simms.

  She caught the small hint of a smile on Kian’s face as she passed the papers back to Chryssa. He bent his head to put his signature next to hers. Flicking the pen closed, he handed the papers back to Chryssa. After silently going through them to make sure every “i‘’ was dotted, Chryssa passed Hanna her copy. The chair groaned in protest as she stood up, followed by Kian.

  “I’ll come for RJ on Saturday at eight,” Kian said his first words since he’d come into the boardroom.

  Hanna nodded curtly.