Mrs R (Mrs R & Mr V #1)

by Jessie Courts

  “I took a photo without your permission and kept it. Then I found out that spiteful bitch Chloe nabbed my phone and found it. She didn’t know it was you but she made a copy on her own phone. Then she had the fucking audacity to try and blackmail me into going back out with her by threatening to post it on Facebook, and I knew that if Jess and Lucy saw it they would recognise you.”

  Rachel was immediately relieved mentally reiterating that nothing could be as bad as her daughters discovering their mother had been fucking around with their best friend. Nonetheless, something was obviously distressing him. “Wait, Luc you’re not making any sense. So what if she saw my photo? You could have given her a perfectly reasonable explanation for it – you were staying with us for long enough.”

  “Umm; not really Rachel.” His mouth screwed up on one side and she could see him chewing the side of his mouth. The boy was nervous. Her stomach rolled in response.

  Luc bowed his beautiful head in shame; his blond fringe flopping forward to hide his face. Rachel moved towards him and took his chin in her hand forcing him to look at her. The pain in his eyes made her chest tighten and intuitively Rachel suspected the photo was not as innocent as she had initially imagined. At this point she was incredibly aware of the difference in their ages, feeling more like a parent that she had ever done before in his presence. She tried to remain stoic even in the knowledge that something bad was coming.

  “Let me see the photo baby boy” she urged tenderly. His discomfort was more than she could bear.

  Luc sighed and flicked his finger over the homescreen and she felt his body go rigid tentatively holding out the phone for her to see. She squinted trying to focus on the image on the small screen and as soon as she realised what she was looking at her fury was instant and she lost it big time.

  “What the fuck? Are you shitting me? When did you…? How on earth…? Oh my fucking god!” she screamed at him. Her hands fell to her sides and she fell backwards on to her sofa covering her bright red face with both hands. “Luc, what the fucking hell were you thinking?”

  Rachel felt the sofa dip with Luc’s weight as he came and sat next to her. He was leaning forward resting his arms on his thighs looking thoroughly miserable. The vile language erupting out of Rachel’s mouth was enough to indicate how high her stress levels were at this revelation. His voice was raspy and low as he tried to explain how much he’d needed a small reminder of how fucking sexy she was. Rachel slumped a little hearing his confession and even through her anger she was both flattered and a little bit heartbroken for him.

  When he spoke his voice was thick with regret and she wasn’t sure if it was because he had taken the photo or because it had been discovered. “Rachel, please, I’m so sorry. It was selfish of me; childish; immature, I know all that, but I couldn’t resist. This is all I had left of you.”

  Luc’s voice cracked and a lone tear rolled down his face and Rachel understood for the first time properly how much the boy had invested emotionally in their relationship. He had fallen for her and she had sent him away. As necessary as it had been, it still must have hurt him immensely. Her fury was slowly being replaced by the need to comfort him.

  “I’ve retrieved the copy from Chloe and she won’t dare to come near me ever again. I toyed with the idea of never telling you but my conscience wouldn’t let me. I’m so sorry I let you down.” He sniffed and a piece of Rachel’s heart broke. She wrapped her arms around his head and pulled him in close. He clutched her tight apologising over and over and she murmured reassurances into his hair.

  “I’m sorry baby boy. I never meant to hurt you so badly. You will never know how much you helped me. I love you Luc. I’ll always love you, but there was never going to be a future for us, you knew that from the start. I don’t know how to say it so that it won’t hurt you, but you have to move on Luc.” She felt him nod. “And…and now I’m with Joe; he’s what I want Luc.”

  The boy in her arms stilled and sniffed loudly wiping his face with the back of his hand. Rachel loved those hands and even now the sight of them made her tingle with the happy memories of how they felt all over her body. “I’m happy for you Mrs R, honestly I am..” Rachel smiled at Luc’s use of the nickname he gave her. She no longer detested hearing it. “I hope Joe Mason knows what he’s got in you. I’m guessing he turned out not to be short, bald and fat then?” Rachel chuckled; holding his face in her hands she wiped his tears away and kissed him tenderly on both cheeks. He in turn gave her a big hug wrapping his long arms around her and pulling her close.

  “WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?”

  Rachel and Luc sprang apart at the booming sound of Joe’s roar as he slammed open the door to her office and marched over to them. “Get off her now.” He was looking daggers at Luc; his hair mussed as if he had been raking his hands through it repeatedly and his eyes as graphite as she’d ever seen them. The man was intimidating at best but add a layer of barely controlled aggression and he was close to frightening.

  Looming over them Rachel could see he was barely holding on to his temper. If she thought his behaviour outside the court room was overbearing the time her opposing counsel had decided to lay into her, now was on a totally different level. While part of her was excited that he was so jealous – she knew him well enough to feel anxious about his reaction to finding Luc hugging her in more than just a friendly way. Their embrace was familiar and hardly appropriate for a mother to be in with the male best friend of her daughters. Still, Rachel felt the need to intervene quickly.

  “Joe calm down. It’s ok.” Rachel stood up moving in front of Luc effectively blocking him from Joe’s reach.

  The murderous expression on Joe’s face and his predatory manner said otherwise. “It most definitely is not ok when I come in here to find my girlfriend wrapped around another man. Correction; boy.” The word ‘boy’ was spat at Luc.

  “Joe; don’t be horrible. Luc was just visiting.” Rachel was now bright red in the face providing Joe with further suspicion that she was covering for Luc. Turning his gaze towards the boy next to her Joe took a moment to study Luc properly; he knew a guilty man when he saw one.

  He couldn’t explain why he had felt so uneasy knowing Rachel was in her office alone with Luc Vincent, but now it seemed evidently clear. He had been fretting as to why her daughters’ friend had just shown up out of the blue and made the decision to see what was going on for himself – now he wished he hadn’t. If felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room and he could only focus on how intimate the boy looked with Rachel.

  “So please then tell me What. The. Fuck. Is. Going. On?” Joe hissed. Luc stiffened at the menacing tone in Joe’s voice. He was clearly no match for the big guy and having no desire to be on the receiving end of Joe’s wrath any longer, decided to hit the road. He had done what he had set out to do and felt that it was now up to Rachel to explain. Judging by the tension emanating from Joe Mason, Luc didn’t want to make it worse for Rachel by giving his version of events – he doubted the man would appreciate it and Luc was keen to hold on to his body parts. Part of him however, couldn’t resist riling the man – this was his Mrs R after all and he wanted Joe to have to work for it.

  Feeling brave Luc stood up and dipped his head close to Rachel’s ear whispering caustically “He’s just charming Mrs R – I can see the attraction.” He outwardly appeared not to be at all fazed by the extremely large angry man looking to rip him in half at this point.

  Joe shot him a look of pure disdain then slowly turned to Rachel. “What did he just say?”

  “Nothing Joe. Honestly, I’ll explain everything – it’s not what it looks like.”

  “Are you fucking him?” Rachel gasped at Joe’s question that sounded more like an accusation, and Luc froze on the spot. He couldn’t judge at this point if Joe was going to make a move on him or not but decided he couldn’t know Rachel very well at all if he thought her capable of cheating on him. Turning on his heel to meet the fury head on, Luc pointed his fi
nger right in Joe’s face.

  “Who the fuck do you think you are talking to mate? You need to get your head out of your arse and apologise. I could care less what you think of me, but you don’t get to speak to Rachel that way. You have no idea who she is if that’s what you think she’s capable of. Show some respect or piss off.”

  Joe’s fists were balled at his sides and he was shaking with restraint but he was actually growling which made Luc’s stomach flip with fear. Trying desperately not to crumble in the wake of the big man’s ire, Luc decided It was definitely time to go. He didn’t want things to get any worse for Rachel and she looked so distraught he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold himself back from physically comforting her. He instinctively sensed that Joe would lose it completely if he did that, so in a tone laced with affection Luc told her, “The man clearly has issues so I’m going to leave now Rachel. I think it’s for the best before your boyfriend decides to kill me.”

  Rachel sighed; Joe grunted through gritted teeth something about it not being a moment too soon, and Luc went to retrieve his phone from the coffee table. Unfortunately, the home screen lit up under his touch to reveal Rachel’s naked legs and arse; a good portion of her chest area and a lot of her hair.

  “Shit” gasped Luc as his heart actually missed a beat and he prayed no one, especially Joe had seen the image. Rachel froze as Luc swiftly pocketed his phone but the speed at which Joe launched himself at the boy defied logic. He had him up against the wall with one hand around Luc’s throat and the other holding his wrist without even breaking a sweat.

  “Give it to me” Joe demanded; the red-hot rage from minutes ago now replaced with a terrifying calmness. No one was in any doubt that he meant Luc’s phone.

  “No.” croaked Luc bravely denying Joe. His lungs were screaming as the hand around his throat squeezed harder. Tears leaked from the corners of his eyes and his vision had started to blur. He had been so sure that Joe wouldn’t actually hurt him but now a cold fear crept up his spine. It seemed Joe Mason was not a man to fuck with after all.

  Joe squeezed harder holding Luc easily in place, he couldn’t believe the boy was still resisting him and even through his haze of fury was slightly perturbed at the lengths Luc was going to to protect Rachel. The kid was going to pass out if he kept this up. He could easily have relieved Luc of his phone but he needed the boy to surrender to him. This was a power play Joe was not prepared to lose. “Now, Vincent. I mean it.”

  Luc shook his head and Joe slammed him into the wall. “Give it up boy” he roared. Luc closed his eyes and let his body go limp and Rachel panicked. Leaping across the room she tried to push herself between the two men.

  “Joe, get off him for god’s sake. You’re hurting him.” She was pushing at Joe’s chest trying to get him to release his hold on Luc who was wheezing disturbingly. “Joe! Stoppit Joe! Oh for fuck’s sake…” Rachel reached into Luc’s pocket and shoved the phone into Joe’s face and screamed. “Now leave him the fuck alone.”

  Joe immediately released his grip so he could take hold of the phone, and Luc slumped forward with his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. Rachel stood by him protectively running her hands over his back and stroking his hair helping him to calm down.

  “Happy now?” Rachel shrieked at Joe. He was blankly staring at the photo and although he could only see a part of her face he was only too familiar with Rachel’s freshly fucked look. Clearly Luc had taken the image, which meant they were sleeping together. He no longer cared when; Rachel had lied to him and the pain was unbearable. Now she was speaking to him and he was having a hard time hearing what she was saying over the loud ringing in his ears. “I think you should leave Joe. If you want me to explain I will, but you need to calm down first.”

  Both men looked at her then looked at each other. Luc made the first move determined to get away from Joe Mason as soon as possible. The man was an absolute tyrant clearly used to getting his own way and having everyone around him think the sun shone out of his arse. Well, Luc did not and he was not about to yield to the mighty Joe Mason just because the man refused to listen first before throwing his considerable weight around. And he didn’t want Rachel to know how deeply he was affected at being on the receiving end of Joe’s passion for power.

  Straightening out his dishevelled clothes and running a hand through his hair he threw an apologetic grin Rachel’s way; blew her a kiss, plucked his phone from Joe’s grasp, and strutted out the door. The boy clearly had a death wish. Joe stiffened and surged forward, but Rachel quickly blocked his path. Placing her palms against his chest to stop him Rachel pleaded with Joe who still looked ready to spill blood. “Let him go. He’s not the problem.”

  Forcing himself to look Rachel in the eye, Joe’s face was a mask of hurt and Rachel’s heart lurched in her chest. “You lied to me, Rachel. And now that little piss ant thinks he can mock me and get away with it.”

  Shaking her head swiftly from side to side she tried to deny it. “I did not lie, but admittedly I haven’t been totally honest with you. But I was going to tell you this weekend, Joe, I promise.” Even to Rachel’s ears it sounded a bit lame but she was desperate.

  Joe wanted to believe her but his rage was too consuming and he couldn’t find any reason not to trust anything but what his own eyes had seen. He had trusted her and she had played him for a fool. Grey eyes blazing, Joe angrily brushed Rachel aside. “This isn’t over.”

  “Don’t hurt him, Joe,” whimpered Rachel as he slammed the door shut leaving her in a state of utter turmoil.

  **********

  Luc exited the building and inhaled a deep lungful of fresh air. Well not exactly fresh but certainly it helped make him feel less claustrophobic, and it was a relief to be away from Joe Mason. The man may be some bigwig in the City but he was nothing more than a complete twat treating Rachel that way. A lot of bullies used physical intimidation as a weapon, but Luc wasn’t scared; just disgusted with himself. Nothing Joe could do or say was worse than anything he had already tortured himself with a hundred times over. He was such a bloody idiot he couldn’t even fathom how Rachel could have forgiven him but it seems like she had. Clearly she was head over heels in love with the big brute who, judging by his reaction, felt exactly the same way about her. Rachel deserved to be happy; he only hoped Joe would listen to her explanation of what happened and accept there was nothing between him and her any longer. Luc was sure he would spend the rest of his life crushing on Rachel but she would never know it. One day maybe someone would come along to make him forget her but he doubted it. A wave of melancholy threatened to overwhelm him and he looked back at the offices of Gyles Bishop with a wistful look in his shiny blue eyes.

  “Vincent!”

  Shit, Joe was on his tail still sounding royally pissed off and now Rachel wasn’t around to witness round two, he decided not to be quite so compliant. Standing his ground he turned to face his predator.

  “It’s Luc, or Luc Vincent, or even Mr Vincent,” he told Joe in no uncertain terms. The man may have a few pounds on him and be extraordinarily strong but Luc wasn’t about to fall prey without giving as good as he got. Joe scowled and grabbed the front of his jacket but Luc shook him off this time pushing at Joe with all his might. The man looked surprised as he stumbled back a step.

  “Oh no old man – you only get one bite of the cherry and that was just to make you look good in front of your girlfriend. Don’t fucking lay your hands on me again, Joe.” Luc snarled at Joe.

  Joe was quite impressed. Defying all reason he realised he actually admired Luc’s bravado however, he wasn’t about to share that little nugget of information. Luc sighed and shoved his fists into the pockets of his jeans before he did something monumentally fucking stupid. “Whatever you want to know has to come from Rachel.”

  Joe raised an eyebrow at the boy’s audacity; stupidity; bravery. Whatever. “Don’t you dare patronise me Luc. You’re lucky you’re still fucking breathing.”

 
; Luc shook his head and narrowed his eyes at Joe. “You have the biggest fucking arms I’ve ever seen and more power in one hand than I have in my whole body, but you don’t scare me Joe. Do you know why? Rachel – you love her too much to hurt her and I bet she told you not to touch me.”

  “Don’t be too sure of yourself boy.”

  “I am sure because I have been where you are now and I know what it is like to love her. Please just don’t fucking hurt her mate.”

  “Mate? I don’t think so. Give me your fucking phone. Now!” Joe stood there with his palm facing upwards so Luc had to go to him and place his phone in his hand. Bastard with the fucking power moves.

  Luc did as he was told. He knew Joe was going to delete the photo he had of Rachel and there was no point in trying to argue with him. Joe scrolled through his images until he found the one he was looking for. Running a hand over his face looking remarkably deflated, Joe deleted the photo.

  “Is this the only one?” He asked Luc.

  Joe was getting restless and tired with Luc’s impertinence. “You believe so – or your know so? Which is for fuck’s sake?”