by E. L. Todd
Come What May
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this novel are fictitious or used fictitiously. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher or author, except in the case of a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.
Copyright © 2014 by E. L. Todd
All Rights Reserved
ISBN-13: 978-1497369122
ISBN-10: 1497369126
Come What May
Book Nine of the Forever and Always Series
E. L. Todd
1
Scarlet
Every morning, I made Sean breakfast before he went to work. I didn’t want him to be at the office all day on an empty stomach. Before we were together, he would down a cup of coffee before he walked out the door, and he wouldn’t eat until he had his lunch break. Totally unhealthy.
Now that I was his wife, that was over.
I usually packed him a lunch while he ate at the table. Sean was a picky eater, so I made him a cup of fruit, a cucumber sandwich, and a few hardboiled eggs. Even though he settled down, he kept up his specific diet and his intense workout regime, not that I minded. It was nice being married to a Greek god. Sometimes I felt guilty about the weight around my stomach. My pregnancy was starting to get more noticeable, and I didn’t feel attractive anymore. But Sean didn’t seem to mind.
After Sean showered and put on his suit, we walked downstairs into the kitchen. I noticed the smell of bacon in the air, along with pancakes and eggs.
But I didn’t cook anything…
The table was already covered with food. Two plates were across from each other, along with two cups of juice.
What the hell?
“Hello, Mr. And Mrs. Preston. I hope you slept well.” An older blonde woman smiled at us warmly. She was heavy around the waist, and her hair was pulled back in a tight bun. The kitchen was spotless, and she wore my apron.
“Yes,” Sean answered. “Thank you.”
I stared at her, wanting to know what the hell was going on.
Sean caught my expression. “This is our housemaid, Olga.”
“Oh.” What? He didn’t mention this to me. I wanted to grab him by the throat and slap him. He knew how I felt about servants. I gave him a look of hate but kept my tongue. Now I knew he did this on purpose. If she were standing in front of us, I wouldn’t have an outburst and be rude.
Sean turned back to the maid. “I apologize on behalf of my wife. Her pregnancy hormones make her forgetful of her manners.”
His words brought me back to reality. I extended my hand. “It’s wonderful to meet you, Olga.” Now I felt horrible for being totally rude.
“You too,” she said. “Now eat your breakfast. It’s the best way to start your day.”
“It looks great,” Sean said. He guided me to the table and pulled out my chair. I sat down, still feeling the frustration in my veins. Sean and I needed to have a serious talk, but Olga stayed in the kitchen. I would have to wait until we were alone.
Sean sat across from me and didn’t look at me once. He wanted to avoid the fire in my eyes.
“Here’s your lunch, Mr. Preston.” Olga placed a brown bag on the counter. “Apple broccoli salad, diced fruit, and an egg salad sandwich.”
Hell no. No one made lunch for my husband but me.
“Thank you, Olga.” He smiled at her then continued his breakfast.
I was pissed. I made it perfectly clear I didn’t want someone to wait on me. Then Sean had to go behind my back and do it anyway. I took a bite of my eggs and became even more pissed. The food was delicious. Damn it.
Sean finished his breakfast then sipped his coffee. His eyes still didn’t meet mine. “Thank you for breakfast, Olga. I have to head to work.”
“Of course.” She grabbed the plates and carried them to the sink.
Sean grabbed his bag and placed the lunch inside. I stood up from my chair, prepared to follow him into the garage so I could scream at him.
He grabbed my face and kissed me hard on the mouth. I wanted to pull away but his lips felt too good. “I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too,” I blurted.
He headed toward the door and I was close on his heels. That kiss couldn’t stall me forever.
Sean was practically running.
“Sean, hold on a moment.”
He reached the garage then ran out. “Baby, I’m late.”
“You can’t avoid me forever!”
He sprinted to his car then got in.
“We’re going to talk about this when you get home.”
He turned up the radio. “Sorry, baby. I can’t hear you.”
I stomped my foot. “I told you I didn’t want a maid.”
He backed out then waved.
“Fucking jackass.”
He reached the road and drove out of sight. But he couldn’t hide from me forever. He would get an earful as soon as he got home.
After I worked for a few hours, I realized I needed to get some laundry done. I usually did the housecleaning in the middle of the day, when I needed a break from my manuscript.
When I opened our closet, the laundry basket was empty. Sean suits hung up in the closet, color coordinated. Even his ties hung up. His entire wardrobe was rearranged. And mine was too.
When I opened his underwear drawer, everything was folded perfectly. Even his socks were folded.
What the hell?
I went downstairs and entered the laundry room. Olga was folding the clothes and placed them in the basket. She turned to me, smiling. “Did you need something, Mrs. Preston?”
How did she get everything done so fast? She was like a wizard. “Uh…no thank you.”
“Well, let me know.” She returned to her work.
I left the laundry room then entered the kitchen. I was still in a daze. Olga already cleaned the entire house. The floor was so shiny, I could see my shocked expression in the tile. The house practically looked brand new. She was much better at cleaning than I was.
She appeared behind me then pulled a plate out of the refrigerator. “I wasn’t sure when you would be hungry.” She placed the meal on the table. It was a turkey sandwich with sliced apples. “Your husband told me you need to take your vitamins. I made you a shake so it’ll taste better.” She smiled then left the kitchen.
This woman was too good. I sat down and ate my food. The fact it was amazing only made me more upset. I didn’t need a housemaid to clean up after me and my husband. I was perfectly capable of doing it myself. The house was bigger than I wanted, but I could handle it.
When I returned to my office, I realized Olga visited. The hard wood of the desk had been polished. My manuscripts were organized on the shelf and labeled. My keyboard and mouse had been sanitized. The room even smelled different. The window behind me was so clean, I didn’t notice the glass.
Damn, she was good. But that made me more resentful. I could clean for my own husband. I sat down then called Sean.
It rang four times before he answered. “Baby, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I—”
“I got to go.” He hung up.
I sighed in frustration. I knew he was avoiding me as much as possible. Next time he asked if I was okay, I would say no so he wouldn’t hang up.
I called him again. Sean could ignore my call but I knew he never would. He would only not answer if he absolutely couldn’t.
“Baby, I’m busy.”
“I said I didn’t want a maid and you did it anyway.” My voice increased, carrying my
anger. Sean made me angry in the past, but it wasn’t anything like this. I felt very strongly about having someone wait on me. It was disgusting.
He sighed. “We’ll talk about this later.”
“No, we’re going to talk about this now.”
“I’m hanging up.”
“Sean.”
“I love you.” He hung up.
I listened to the line go dead. I tossed the phone aside and sighed. I could call him again but that was pointless. We would just argue back and forth all day. I concentrated on my work and tried to forget about the perfect housemaid.
I left the window open, so I heard Sean pull into the driveway. He had the same routine every day. He came home after the gym, showered, and then relaxed for the rest of the night. I decided to wait until he showered and changed.
I heard him walk past my door. He usually stopped by and gave me a kiss. But today, he kept going.
He wasn’t getting any sex from me tonight.
I finished my work for the day and closed my documents. I liked editing, but sometimes it gave me a headache. The words blurred together and made my eyes burn.
My pregnancy hadn’t changed my life. I was still in my first trimester so it wasn’t noticeable. But I did have a baby bump. Sean kissed it every chance he got. He was obsessed, really. His parents still didn’t know. I wanted to keep my pregnancy a secret until I made it into the second trimester. Something could go wrong. You never know.
Olga knocked on the door. “May I come in?”
That bitch. “Yes.”
She opened the door and smiled at me. “Dinner is ready.”
She made dinner too? Ugh. “Thank you.”
“If there’s nothing else you need, I’ll be leaving.”
“No, thank you. Have a good night.”
“You too, Mrs. Preston.”
Stop calling me that. “It’s Scarlet.”
She nodded then closed the door.
I knew I was being childish, but I couldn’t help it. She continued to dwarf me with her abilities.
I finally went downstairs and waited for Sean. He came in, wearing a gray t-shirt and jeans. His hair was still slightly wet from his shower. But I liked it when his hair was like that. I knew he purposely tried to look sexy, hoping it would dim my anger.
“Hey, baby.” He came to me and tried to kiss me.
I turned my face away.
He lingered near my lips. “Let me kiss my wife and acknowledge my baby. Then you can scream at me.” He grabbed my face and planted a hot kiss on my lips. I melted into him even though I didn’t want to.
Then he kneeled down and lifted up my shirt. He placed a kiss on my stomach and placed his hand over the bulge. He did this every day when he came home from work. I knew how excited Sean was about the baby. And that made me excited.
He rose to his feet then sat across from me. The food was laid out between us.
“Everything looks good,” he said.
I glared at him. “Sean, what the hell is your problem?”
He sighed. “Scarlet, let me explain.”
I continued to give him a look of hate.
“I want you to relax during this pregnancy. Having a maid will take a lot of burden off you. I don’t want you carrying the laundry, or bending over to put the dishes in the dishwasher. I don’t want you to do anything.”
“Sean, I’m not handicapped. I’m only a few weeks along.”
“I don’t care,” he said. “Take the time to get ready for the baby.”
“By sitting on my ass all day?”
Sean shook his head slightly. “After being with her all day, you still don’t like her?” he asked incredulously. “The house is spotless and the food is great.”
“I can take care of my house and my husband,” I snapped.
“That’s not what I meant,” he said quickly.
“It sounded like it. And she’s at least fifty. She shouldn’t be cleaning up after us.”
“She took the job because she needed it,” he said firmly. “And I pay her well, far more than she would make doing anything else.”
“I still don’t want her here.”
“Fine,” he snapped. “Then you fire her.”
“Fire her?” I asked incredulously. “I can’t do that.”
“Neither can I. So I suggest you let her do her job. We’ll only keep her until after the baby is a few months old. Then we can let her go.”
I released the breath from my lungs. “Or you could have just not hired someone behind my back.”
“I want someone to be here when I’m not around. Just let someone take care of you for once.”
“I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself,” I snapped.
“God, you’re stubborn.”
“What were you expecting?” I asked seriously. “I made my feelings about help perfectly clear. That was my one condition about moving out here.”
He wouldn’t meet my gaze. “I was just trying to do what’s best for you and my little girl.”
“Little girl?”
He shoveled the lasagna into his mouth then nodded to my stomach. “We’re having a girl.”
My eyes softened. “Why do you think that?”
“I just do.”
“Do you want a girl?”
“I would love a girl,” he said seriously. “It would be nice to have a smaller version of you running around. Hopefully, she isn’t nearly as annoying.”
I rolled my eyes.
Sean kept his eyes downcast while he ate. I picked at my food and took a few bites. The fact it was awesome just made me more annoyed. Olga was perfect. She was sweet, an amazing cleaner, and a fantastic cook. Since it wasn’t her fault she was here, I decided to be nicer to her. I knew how bitchy she was being, and she didn’t deserve that.
Sean and I didn’t speak for the rest of the meal. I knew Sean just wanted the best for me but I was still annoyed he did it behind my back. If we discussed it, I probably would have caved eventually and given him what he wanted. But to be so deceitful was irritating. We were married now. That behavior was no longer acceptable.
When we were done, I carried the dishes to the sink. After the water was warm, I grabbed the sponge and started to scrub the plates.
Sean came to me then grabbed the sponge. “I got it, baby. Just sit down and relax.”
“I’m perfectly capable—”
“Just let me take care of it,” he said firmly. “Now go relax.”
I appreciated how sweet he was being. He worked all day then headed to the gym. It meant a lot to me that he put me first. But I was still pissed at him. I sighed then headed to our bedroom. I didn’t want to look at him or talk to him.
I lay in bed and read a book for a few hours. Sean was probably downstairs, watching a game. I didn’t have any interest in spending time with him. And he would be sleeping in another bedroom tonight.
He came in around ten. He pulled his clothes off and started to get ready for bed.
“You aren’t sleeping here,” I said without looking at him.
“I don’t agree.” He removed all his clothes then pulled back the covers.
I yanked them back up. “I mean it, Sean.”
With his strength, he overpowered me and moved them down. “Yes, I am.”
“Fine.” I shut the book. “Then I’ll sleep in a different bedroom.”
“Are you really that mad at me?” he snapped. The anger in his voice escaped. Now he was livid. “I’m sorry for trying to be the husband of the year. Scarlet, I do everything for you. Everything. I just wanted someone to help you around the house. God, I’m such an ass.” He stayed rooted beside the bed and stared me down. “You’re going to get bigger, and it makes me feel better knowing someone is here to help you. I’m fifteen minutes away, but that’s still not close enough. I want these nine months to be wonderful for you. Maybe you don’t realize it now, but you’re going to get really uncomfortable carrying a child. You aren’t going to want to do a
ny housework. I’m just trying to give you everything you deserve. I still feel like shit for the way I treated you in our past, and I’m doing everything I can to make up for it. And I will be for the rest of my life. Everything I do, I do it for you. I just didn’t tell you about the maid beforehand because I knew you would throw a damn fit and get upset. I need you to stay relaxed. I figured if I did it anyway, you would just let it go. I guess not.”
I didn’t look at him. I concentrated on the wall on the other side of the room. His words went straight into my heart. Now he made me feel like a bitch.
“And I’m sleeping with my pregnant wife. If you want me out, you’ll have to hold a gun to my head and pulled the trigger.” He crawled in beside me then wrapped his arm around my waist. “Now get over it.” He leaned over and turned off the light. Darkness filled the room. His speech ended and he snuggled next to me. Sean never put pressure on my stomach, so his arm was directly under my breasts.
I stared at the ceiling. “I’m sorry…”
He leaned over me and kissed my neck. “It’s okay. I understand why you’re upset.”
“I just feel horrible having someone wait on me.”
“I know,” he said quietly. “It’s not forever. If you still feel this strongly in a year, we’ll let her go.”
“Okay.”
His hands moved to the straps of my nightdress and he pulled them down. When my breasts were revealed, he sucked each nipple while he removed my gown. When he pulled off my underwear, he leaned over and turned on the light.
I hated it when he did that. “Turn it off.”
“No.” He leaned down and kissed my belly.
I was self-conscious about my body. My extended stomach made me feel overweight. My breasts were getting bigger and swollen too. “Sean, I don’t like it when you look at me.”
“Too bad.” He separated my legs then leaned over me. “I’ve never been hotter for you, Scarlet.”
“But I’m fat.”
“No, you aren’t,” he snapped. His hand moved to my stomach. “You don’t understand how sexy this is. I like seeing it. I have a hard-on all day because I keep thinking about your swollen belly. My baby is in there. I’m the one who knocked you up. God, it’s hot.”
