“Hello? Preston?”
“It’s me.”
I heard him sigh in relief. “I’ve been waiting for your call. I thought I would hear from you yesterday and when I didn’t I started to worry.”
“Sorry to worry you. We’ve been trying to acclimate ourselves and also working on Derrek.”
“How is Lena?” His tone was even more concerned when he spoke her name. His protective older brother persona extended to Lena and I was never more thankful for the way he cared about her. It made my next move so much easier.
“She’s doing as well as can be expected.” My eyes moved to her as I spoke and she gifted me with a small smile. It wasn’t the gorgeous smile that reached her eyes, but it was the small troubled smile I’d grown accustomed to recently. She was worried, and a little bit sad as well. I opened my free arm to her and she came to me instantly, wrapping both her arms around my waist and pressing her cheek against my chest. “I’m going to fax you the divorce papers. I need you to get them processed immediately, and get the money transferred as soon as possible. We need to rush this.”
“I’ll do what I can. The money shouldn’t be a problem, a day or two at the most. But it might be a few more for the divorce to be finalized.”
“Just do what you can. And Parker?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
There was a long silence, but finally he responded with, “You know I’d do anything for you and Lena.”
“Yeah.”
“Tell her I say hello.”
“I will.”
“I’ll let you know as soon as everything is finished.”
“All right.”
We hung up and I tore myself from Lena’s arms to fax all the paperwork to Parker. When everything was sent I was left with a sense of anxiousness. We were back to waiting. Back to being in limbo, in flux, where anything could go wrong. I wanted desperately for this part of the plan to come together, to happen without a hitch, simply because Lena deserved that much. But it was also important that the next piece of the puzzle fall into place effortlessly as well. And now there was nothing to do but wait. I hated not being in control, not being the one making things happen. Feeling the control slip from my fingers made me jumpy.
I felt Lena’s arms wrap around me from behind, felt her breasts push into my back, and it caused my whole body to relax. Just the presence of her body pressed against mine was enough to alleviate some of the anxiety, but I needed more. Needed more of her.
I placed my hand over hers, then trailed my fingers up her arm, watching as goose bumps spread over her skin. “I’m going to take you upstairs and the first thing I’m going to do is use my mouth on you until you beg for more.” I felt her breasts push against my back with more force as she drew in a breath, not expecting my words to be so sexual. “You’re going to be filled, sweetheart.”
“That sounds like a challenge,” she whispered, her mouth pressed right between my shoulder blades.
I gripped her arm and pulled her around my body, pressing her ass against the edge of the desk in front of me. I used my finger to bring her chin up, looking right into her surprised and wide eyes. “You think I can’t make you beg? I’ll eat you to the point of explosion, then ease away, making you crazy, making you beg me to fucking finish you.”
Her hand came up to my face, her gentleness a stark contrast to the fire I felt nipping at me. “You can do whatever you want with me, Preston, and I’ll give you anything you need.” My eyes searched hers frantically, wondering how I’d managed to find and capture a woman who could read me so perfectly, understood exactly what I needed and handed it to me in ways I could never expect from anyone else. “You don’t have to take anything from me, as I’ll always give it to you freely,” she said, running her hand from my cheek to the back of my neck. “But if you need it that way, if you need to be in control, I’ll give it up to you. I’ll let you take everything.”
I dropped my forehead until it just touched hers, and breathed in her scent, eyes closed, hands roaming up and down her back.
“I just want to get lost in you,” I whispered, all pretense of control just a haze above our heads.
She nodded, but after a few moments said quietly, “I’ll allow you to get lost in me, so long as you promise to let me find myself in you.”
I kissed her without thinking, kissed her for knowing exactly what I needed and giving it to me, and for being more than I could ever have imagined. I pulled away from her and took her hand, leading her to our hotel room, where I was lost and she was found.
Chapter Nine
“Well, babe. I’m a millionaire.” Lena tossed her phone onto the bedside table and let out a loud and heavy sigh. It had been two days since Derrek signed the papers and, apparently, Parker had managed to get the funds transferred rather quickly. I sat on the edge of the bed, a towel wrapped around my waist, still wet from my shower, and she bent her legs until they curled around me. She was quiet—had been since our encounter with Derrek. She seemed thoughtful, pensive, and I tried to give her the mental space she needed to dig through her thoughts.
At night she gave her body to me, but during the day she was distant.
Her gorgeous dark eyes were focused on nothing, glazed over with the musings of her mind. I could almost see the wheels spinning, hear the gears turning. Eventually, her eyes found mine and she gave me a small smile.
“Are you all right?” I could have been more specific, could have asked her a million more detailed questions than that: do you regret taking the money from him? Are you upset that you’re getting a divorce? Do you wish things had turned out differently? Is the money worth the upset?
But I didn’t ask those questions because the possible answers scared me. I was willing to live my whole life not knowing the answers to those questions because if she gave me the wrong answers, the answers that meant she’d realized this was all a mistake, I couldn’t find a way to live without her. No. I’d rather ask the easy questions.
She nodded and gave me a weak, “Yeah.”
I brushed my hand over her forehead, pushing the dark hair off her face.
“It’s okay if you’re not. It’s okay if you’re upset.” And it was. However she was feeling, it was okay. She deserved to feel every single emotion the whole situation evoked from her. I just hoped my heart could survive them.
Lena sat up a little, resting on one elbow. “I am upset. But I’m all right.” She sighed again, but I didn’t take my eyes off her. I wanted her to know she could talk to me, tell me anything.
“Do you want to talk about it? I’m gonna be really honest right now; your silence on the matter is freaking me out a little.”
She sat all the way up, holding the bedsheet to her breasts, and leaned forward, pressing her lips to my shoulder. “I guess I’m just trying to figure out how I let my life get so out of my control.” She propped her chin on my shoulder, her breath skating over the still-damp skin of my neck, working through more thoughts before speaking again. “I feel very conflicted,” she finally stated, her eyes moving upward to catch mine. “Like, I wish I had never met Derrek; wish I’d never dated him, never married him, never spent all those years of my life, wasted, with him. But, if I hadn’t given up so much to him, I never would have found you.”
“That’s a pretty big sacrifice.” And I’m not sure I’m worthy of it.
She sighed and leaned away from me, dragging a hand through her long hair. “It wasn’t a sacrifice. I guess, in reality, I didn’t give anything up; it was taken from me.”
“You know I want to give you everything, right?” I heard the words before I was even sure I’d been the one to say them. Of course they were true. They were the kind of truth that existed beyond everything else. I hadn’t even formed the words; they just were. “Everything you think you might have lost, or given up, I want to be the one to give it back to you.” I turned toward her, my body shifting to face her, my hands coming to rest on either side of her neck.
She nodded, as much as she could with my hands gently gripping her neck, but her eyes still found mine with a question in them. Her voice was a gravelly, quiet whisper when she said, “I guess I’m just not sure why.”
“Because you’ve given everything to me.” She shook her head, pulling away from my hands, looking down at her lap, still covered in a white sheet. “You’re not broken, Lena. I’m not here to fix you. You don’t need my help and you certainly don’t need me to bring you back to life—as you demonstrated by taking off to Hawaii on your own. I’m not trying to swoop in and make everything easy for you. I want to walk through the hard times with you, I want to celebrate every exciting milestone together. I want to be with you, forever, and to share a life with you. But in doing so, I plan on making sure you get every single thing you were afraid you’d never have with him, because you deserve them.” I pulled her chin up with a gentle finger and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You deserve to be a mom, to be a wife who’s cherished. And I want to be the lucky husband who gets to spend his life making sure you’re happy, safe, and fulfilled.”
“I want to give you all that too,” she whispered.
“When all of this is behind us, we’ll figure everything out. Together.”
She nodded then pressed one hand to my cheek while she kissed the other. “I’m gonna go take a shower.”
I watched her disappear into the bathroom, then raked my hand down my face as I sighed loudly. I wanted nothing more than to get Lena to a place where there wasn’t constant upset. She deserved peace. A normal life with normal issues.
I picked up my phone and dialed Parker, unaware and frankly uncaring of the time difference. He answered, sounding alert and awake.
“Preston, I was just about to call you.”
“Tell me you’ve got good news.”
“I do. I pulled a few strings and had a judge sign the divorce papers. So, it’s official.”
I let out a silent sigh, and my hand went through my hair as I exhaled. “Lena received the money too.”
There was a long pause. “Sounds like everything’s in order, then.”
“Yeah.”
“Preston,” he said, his voice pleading, “you don’t have to go through with it. There has to be another way.”
“This is the only way that ensures Lena is out of the mess for good. I don’t want this to touch her ever again.”
Parker sighed, and I could hear the torment in the groan he released. All he wanted to do was protect us, but we were out of his reach, both literally and figuratively. We were in too deep, and he was standing on the shore waving a life vest that could never save us.
“I’ll let you know when it’s over. Everything will be all right.” I wasn’t sure who I was trying to convince more, him or myself. There was a very good chance that everything would definitely not be all right. I’d never attempted anything like I was planning with Derrek. But Lena’s safety and future happiness was more than enough of a motivator to get it right.
“If I don’t hear from you by midnight your time, I’ll call the local authorities. I’m serious, Preston. This ends today, one way or another.”
“I know. I’ll call you.”
“Good luck.”
“Thanks.” I’ll need it.
I ended the call with Parker and sent a text to the phone I’d given to Derrek.
**Meet me at the Marina at 2 p.m. Bring Jessica and the girls.**
At two p.m. on the nose, I watched as Derrek walked down the planked walkway of the marina, one hand holding Jessica’s, the other supporting the small blonde girl on his hip. Jessica’s free hand held on to the older girl’s hand. They looked like the perfect family, on vacation, about to enjoy a relaxing boat ride. They were all wearing white linen, sandals, and hats. I couldn’t have planned it better myself. It was the perfect set up. It was almost ironic.
“Derrek,” I said as he approached.
“This is a very strange place for a rendezvous,” he said, his voice dripping with disdain.
“There’s a method to my madness.” Just as my words left my mouth Lena appeared at the end of the walkway, and for a moment, I lost the ability to speak.
She looked the part as well. Too well. Her incredible body was adorned with a black bikini, her hips covered by a sheer black sarong that did absolutely nothing to hide the perfection of her curves. The sandals she wore laced up her calves and made her legs look endless. As she got closer, she pushed her sunglasses up, making her soft hair fall to the sides of her face, then flow behind her shoulders.
She smiled at me, her eyes never straying from mine, and walked straight to me, wrapping her arms around my neck, pressing her breasts against my chest. My arm slid possessively around her waist, as I knew Derrek was getting a fantastic view of her perfect ass. He swallowed hard and I knew he’d taken her in, seen exactly what he’d once had and lost.
“Hello,” she said sweetly when she pulled away, not removing her arms from around me.
“Hello, sweetheart.” I watched her eyes soften at my endearment, then she turned to face the man she was ready to leave behind.
“Derrek. Jessica.” That was her greeting to them, and it was cold. She did, however, give a small wave to the little girl at Jessica’s side, and I wasn’t surprised when the child’s face lit up with a smile and she waved back.
“What are we doing here?” Derrek asked, irritated.
“We’re here to go boating,” I said deadpan, fully aware that my answer was snarky and frustrating.
“Cut the bullshit,” Derrek snapped.
“Lena and I are going to rent a boat. You and Jessica are going to rent a boat. We are going to meet about seven miles southeast of here. You can follow me.”
“First you tell me what’s going on.”
“No. We’re doing this my way. You either rent this boat and meet us in the water, or the first call I make is to Edgar. I’ll remind you that you no longer have enough money to pay him back.” Derrek thought about his options, but in the end, the choice I gave him wasn’t really a choice. I turned, my arm around Lena’s shoulders, and proceeded to the small building to rent a speedboat.
Forty-five minutes later Lena and I were shooting through the water, cutting through the ice-blue waves, wind whipping past us. Lena was smiling and so was I. Even though we were about to try and pull off something completely crazy and illegal, it was hard not to enjoy the ride. Lena looked back toward the shore, Athens disappearing in the distance, and I couldn’t help but admire the picture she had painted for me. Long tanned legs crossed, black bikini covering enough to be appropriate, but leaving enough skin available for me to peruse that my thoughts were anything but. Her hair was captured by the wind, flowing behind her in a wild mess that looked both beautiful and free. Perhaps she felt free. Perhaps she had faith enough in me to understand that this would be the last hour of her life where she’d have to worry about Derrek or the mess he’d made. I couldn’t help but smile bigger thinking I’d given her the happiness and freedom painted across her face.
Once we’d reached our destination I slowed the boat to a full stop.
“I know you’ve wanted to keep the details to yourself, and I understand why, but I’m really curious as to what we’re doing way out here.” Lena was sitting on one of the benches that lined the side of the boat, her hair no longer blowing in the wind, but her face a little pink from it.
“Derrek and Jessica are about to get lost at sea,” was my only response and Lena, God love her, accepted it with a nod.
When their boat pulled up near ours, obviously a little behind, not wanting to take theirs at a full clip with little girls on board, Derrek’s face was both worried and irritated.
“Okay, we’re here. Now tell me what the hell is going on.”
“First thing’s first. Jessica and the girls need to board our boat.”
“What?” The rage in his voice was clear and loud, and I completely understood.
“Listen
, Derrek. I give you my word that everything will be all right. But you’ve got to trust me here. I want nothing but for this to be over with.” I picked up the rope I’d pulled out of the supply hatch and raised my eyebrows at him, waiting for him to comply. I knew he would—he had no other choice. He held his hands out and I tossed him the rope, then we gently pulled until our boats were side by side.
Jessica climbed aboard first, then slowly, Derrek passed the girls over to her. Lena held her hands out, offering to take the smaller girl from Jessica. She hesitated for just a moment, but then handed the tiny girl to her. Even though she was holding the love child her ex-husband created while cheating on her, Lena’s face lit up and she made it her mission to make the little girl smile amidst all the uncertainty and chaos.
Once all three were safely aboard, I looked to Derrek.
“You see that island just south of us?” I pointed to the horizon, where one could see the outline of an island in the distance.
“Yeah….” Derrek’s answer trailed off as he tried to put together all the pieces I was giving him.
“The east side of the island is just a rocky cliff. I want you to take your boat around the island and then point it directly at the rocks. Max the speed out. You need to be going fast enough to wreck that boat beyond recognition.”
“What?” Jessica practically yelled, but then calmed immediately when both her children began to panic too.
“You want me to crash the boat into the side of that island?” Derrek’s voice was both scared and unbelieving.
“Yes. I want you to aim the boat at the rocks, but jump into the water about five hundred yards out. We’ll come and pull you out of the water.”
“That’s crazy. I could die.”
“That’s the idea.”
Derrek stared at me, eyes wide, until I saw recognition cloud them over. “You want me to fake my own death.” It wasn’t a question, but a statement.
“Not just yours. The registrar at the marina thinks your whole family is on that boat. They’ll find the boat, but they won’t find your bodies. They’ll think you all died in the crash and your bodies were lost at sea.”
The Private Serials Box Set Page 32
