Delilah chuckled. “Day and Morrow are cute names. How old are they?”
He shrugged. “They’re puppies. I was on a mission, uh, I had a job…”
“It’s okay. I’m married to a Soldier. You don’t have to be ashamed of what you do.” The look he gave her increased that nervous feeling she was trying to suppress. “So,” she cleared her throat. “You had a job and what happened?”
“That’s where I found them. The guy I was after was breeding pit bulls for dog fights.”
Delilah shook her head. “That’s horrible.”
“After my job was done, I put in an anonymous call to a local animal shelter. When I was leaving, I saw Day and Morrow. They looked at me. I looked at them. And, now they live with me.”
“Where are they right now?”
“With a sitter.”
This big killing machine had hired a baby sitter for his dogs. Delilah smiled. Never judge a book by its cover. Sometimes it was the people who’d seen the darkest days that had the most light in them.
“I bet they like to run all over your house, huh?” Delilah said, wanting Yury to talk more.
That smile from earlier returned to his face and he started telling her about all the trouble his puppies got into. When they started their conversation, they’d both been standing against opposites walls.
As the conversation progressed, they’d slid down the walls and were now seated on the floor across from each other. As the conversation changed from pets to favorite cars, Yury ended up seated right next to her as he told her about the first care he’d purchased.
They talked for so long that Delilah didn’t even remember falling asleep. All she knew was that one second, she was chatting about any and everything and the next, she was waking up in bed, next to Zariah.
Light was shining through the hotel window. She’d scooped her daughter up and left the room only to find Yury sitting in the hallway, watching the door. Last night, they’d chatted like old friends.
Then morning came and so did her sense of propriety. He too must’ve regained his senses. He didn’t say a word to her as she left his bedroom and headed down the hallway. She’d resisted the urge to look back.
In her own room, Boris had still been passed out in bed. She’d laid her child down on the other bed, sat down next to her and stared at her husband. This was her life. This was her fucking life.
Delilah had sat on the edge of the bed for over an hour, staring at the man she’d married for security, for safety. She hadn’t married for love. So why was she seated there upset because she wasn’t receiving any love?
Why was she upset because Boris had never stared at her the way his friend Yury did last night? Why was she upset because she and her husband had never stayed up late at night talking about unimportant things?
And why the fuck was she upset because they didn’t have puppies named Day and Morrow? What the hell was wrong with her? Just then, Boris turned over and yawned. His eyes drifted open and his gaze met hers.
“Hey, baby.”
Hey baby? Hey baby! Hey, fucking baby! Delilah snapped. “I want a divorce.”
He sat up. “What? What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the perfume on your clothes. I’m talking about this being a vacation, but you spent no time with me at all. I’m talking about you always working late hours and barely spending time with Zariah and I. I’m talking about this sham of a marriage…”
“This sham of a marriage saved your life.”
“Yeah, thank you. But now it’s killing me.”
“How is it killing you? You have everything you need. You have a roof over your head. Food on your table.”
Yeah, but she didn’t have what she really wanted. She didn’t have love.
“And most importantly,” Boris continued. “Those damn traffickers you testified against are no longer after you. So, if you ask me, you’re doing better now than you were before.”
“Is this what you wanted for us? When you asked me to marry you, is this what you pictured?”
Boris shrugged. “I guess.”
“Why did you even ask me to marry you?”
“Because you needed protection. And because….”
“Because what?”
“While I was undercover doing that job,” he swallowed. “I started to like you. I didn’t want anything bad to happen to you ever again. I wanted to protect you.”
“What happened to those feelings?”
“They’re still here. It’s just…”
“Just what?”
“It’s just, marriage isn’t as easy as I thought it would be. I know it and you know it.”
“It hasn’t been hard.”
“Really? Is that why you spent the night in Yury’s room?”
“What?”
“Is that why you sat up all night talking with Yury?”
“I…”
“I saw you with him. I watched you laugh as he talked in that irritating monotone voice of his. That’s when I realized that I needed to step my game up. So, I will.” Boris rose and came over to sit beside her. “I’ll step my game up, Lilah. I’m not just a husband, I’m a father and I’m your friend. I should’ve been the one you stayed up talking to all night last night. I should’ve been the one making you laugh. If a monster like him can make you laugh, I know I can. Give me another chance to do that, please.”
When did she become such a weak bitch? More tears dripped from her eyes. Boris wiped them away.
“I messed up. I really did,” he told her.
“Boris, if we’re not happy, we shouldn’t be together. We should just get a div…”
“Let’s start over. Let’s start over, okay? We can renew our vows. I’ll get you a new ring. Hell, I’ll even get you a new house if you want me to. I’ll… I’ll…”
“Boris…”
“I want us to work, Lilah. I don’t want to lose my family. I fucked up. But I swear, sweetie, I won’t ever do this shit again. It’s not worth it. It’s not worth losing my family. Please. Please, baby. I need you. I need our daughter. Please don’t take my daughter away from me.”
And that was what had gotten her. That one word. Daughter. She had a daughter. And her daughter needed her father. She didn’t want her baby girl to grow up the way she had, fatherless.
Because of her daughter, Delilah decided to forgive the man who’d rescued her from a sex trafficking ring and helped her bring down the local perverted freaks who ran it. She decided to forgive the man who’d helped her get a new identity so that the ‘big’ guys who were over the ring wouldn’t find her.
At the last minute, she and Boris renewed their vows in Hawaii. In Hawaii, they decided to put an end to their marriage of convenience and begin anew. Those feelings she’d felt for Yury, she’d pushed those to the back of her mind.
She’d pushed that entire encounter to the back of her mind. Those feelings didn’t matter. Those feelings weren’t even real. So what, they’d had a moment. It was just a moment. A momentary lapse in judgment.
She forgot about the encounter soon after it happened and she went on to live a happy life with her husband. She and Boris lived their fairy tale life until the day he left her. Until he left her and their daughter behind and faked his own kidnapping.
Until Con had to hire someone to track him down. Until the leader of the Soldiers killed him for betraying the Brotherhood. And just like that, the fairy tale was over. The princess found out that the prince who claimed he’d changed hadn’t changed at all.
Actually, that frog that the princess kissed hadn’t turned into a prince at all. He turned into a pretender. A fake prince. The princess found out that there was absolutely nothing charming about the fake prince at all.
During their marriage, her fake prince had said all the right words. In front of her, he’d done all the right things. He never came home late again. He never came home smelling like perfume again. After they renewed their vows, he started treating her li
ke a princess.
And she’d gotten used to being pampered. She’d gotten used to being treasured. And he’d spoiled their child also, buying her whatever she wanted. But, it hadn’t been real. He’d never done anything real for her or Zariah.
He’d placed them in a beautiful cage and provided them with the most expensive bird feed. However, that hadn’t been love. He’d never cooked for her or Zariah. Not once. Not even a microwavable meal.
Yeah, he’d played with their daughter. And Zariah had good memories of her father. But he’d never helped her with her homework or took her to or from school. He never stayed up late to watch over her while she was sick.
He’d never gone to PTA meetings nor had he ever stayed up late baking cupcakes for birthday parties. From the outside looking in, he’d seemed like the perfect husband. When people had seen the two of them together, they’d thought, ‘there goes a match made in heaven’.
And because it was a better relationship than any of the ones she’d grown up seeing, she’d accepted it. What a fool she’d been. She’d really thought she was in love. She’d really thought he’d been in love with her.
She hadn’t been unhappy. He hadn’t abused her. Not once. He hadn’t called her out of her name. Not once. He hadn’t hurt Zariah. Not once. To a person who’d never felt love, that surely felt like the real thing.
Boris’ actions proved to her that he’d never been in love with her. And the fact that she hadn’t cried once after finding out what he’d done helped her to realize that she hadn’t loved him at all either.
They’d both just been going through the motions. They’d both been pretenders. Now, she was seated across her kitchen table, staring at a plate of food that had been prepared for her by the man she’d gone out of her way to avoid for the past five years.
A man her ex-husband liked to refer to as The Monster. Delilah raised her head to stare into Yury’s dark eyes. Staring at him, she couldn’t help but wonder if she’d chosen the right prince. Had Boris been the right prince?
Or should she have ended it all in Hawaii? If she’d done so, she wouldn’t be in her current situation. Perhaps she wasn’t like all the other girls. Perhaps it wasn’t a prince she’d needed all this time.
Perhaps it was a monster that she craved.
Chapter Four
Angels versus Devils
What the hell was she thinking?
She was a mother. Mothers couldn’t date monsters. She was pretty sure it was written in those ‘mommy to be’ books that she’d read when she first learned she was pregnant with Zariah.
Too bad those books didn’t tell you what to do after the father of your child was killed by a crime lord. A book about that would be helpful. Maybe she’d write one and sell it to the wives of the Soldiers. It could be a profitable business.
“Are you about to cry?” That deep voice of Yury’s filled her kitchen and brought her thoughts back to her present situation.
“Um, no. I’m not. Are you about to cry?”
“I forgot how to cry a long time ago.”
“I think I’ve forgotten how to cry also.”
“Good. Crying is overrated,” he told her.
“True. Crying is for the weak. And you’re not weak. Neither am I.”
“No, you’re not. But are you at least hungry?”
“I’m starving actually. You brought enough food for two. Since Zariah isn’t here, you and I can share it.”
With a nod, he rose from his seat, walked over to her cabinets and took out two plates. He searched through her drawers until he found some utensils. She watched the way he moved. He walked around her kitchen like this was his home.
He appeared more relaxed than he had when he’d first gotten out of his car. There was an air to him that she’d never noticed on anyone else. Even when he was handling the smallest task, he still exuded confidence.
No, it wasn’t just confidence. It was more than that. He had swag. Not the normal swag either. Big dick swag. Speaking of big dicks, it had been months since she’d had a big dick in her kitchen.
Actually, she’d never had a big dick in this kitchen. Boris had an average dick. It got the job done, but it was nothing to brag about. Three times out of ten he’d made her come, which wasn’t bad.
But Yury seemed like the type of man who could make a woman cum six times out of ten. Scratch that, seven. He returned to the table and sat down. He even sat down like he was carrying around a big dick.
“You ready?”
“Huh?”
“Are you ready to eat?”
“Oh, oh, um, yeah. I’m… I’m ready. Are you ready for some of my pie?”
He swallowed. Damn, even his Adam’s apple was sexy.
“I would love to have some of your pie.”
Why did he have to say it like that, all sexy and stuff? “Okay. I’ll go get it.” She stood up and left the table. She rushed to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. She leaned down, using the door to shield her face from him.
“Pull yourself together,” she whispered to herself.
It was like there was a little demon standing on the butter in her refrigerator telling her to do naughty things. And right next to it, leaning against her milk, was an angel who told her to be good. They both wanted to offer up their opinions.
“Remember that you’re a new widow,” the angel next to the milk said. “You’re in debt and you should be out there looking for a job. You don’t have time to be thinking about dick. Especially not Yury’s dick. He’s a complicated man. You don’t need any more complications in your life.”
“True,” Delilah nodded. “I have lived a very complicated life. I’m done with complications.”
The devil had a different opinion. “Now is the perfect time to think about dick, Delilah. You’re angry. You’re frustrated. You have all these pent-up emotions that you can’t think of a way to release. Let Yury be your outlet. Use him to fuck away your troubles. He’s a big boy. He can handle it.”
“True,” Delilah nodded. “He is a big boy. I’m sure he can handle all of this energy I have stored up.”
The angel frowned. “You used Boris as a safety net and looked what happened. If you use Yury, you’ll end up in a worse situation than you are now. No more using people.”
Guilt crept over her. “True dat, little angel. I need to learn to depend on myself. No more using others for protection or even as a sex toy. That’s wrong.”
The devil poked her with its tiny red pitchfork and said, “Bitch, does he look like the type of man you can use? No. Look at how he stares at you. He wants to slide inside. You and Boris stopped sexing regularly a couple of years ago. You’ve got cobwebs down there now. Let big boy sweep them out for you. And, if you feel like you need to give him something in return, throw in a little head. Fair is fair.”
Delilah rolled her eyes. She hadn’t given head in years. She wasn’t about to embarrass herself in front of Yury with her amateur oral sex skills.
“I vote on making him leave after he finishes eating the pie,” the angel told up.
“I vote on making him leave after he finishes eating the pie also,” the devil said. “And by pie, I mean, the pussy. Make him leave after he finishes eating the pussy.”
“You okay?” That deep voice sounded from behind her, close behind her.
Delilah stood up and spun around. She ran straight into Yury’s chest. His massive chest. She took a step back and nearly fell. How? She had no idea. His hands immediately went to her waist to help her stand upright.
“Did I scare you?” He asked, towering over her.
“A little. I didn’t expect you to be so close.”
She instantly regretted saying those words when his hands fell away from her waist and he stepped back.
“You’re never going to get the dick like this,” the little devil said, it was now seated on her shoulder.
“He needs to keep his distance anyway,” The angel spoke up from her other shoulder.
&
nbsp; Yury shoved his hands into his pockets and asked, “I thought you were going to get the pie?”
“I am.”
He nodded toward the counter. “Isn’t that the pie on the counter?”
She came up on her tiptoes to stare over his shoulder. Yep, the pie was on the counter. So, why was she looking for it in the refrigerator?
“I’m looking in the refrigerator for some whipped cream to put on the pie. Whipped cream goes tastes good with sweet potato pie.”
“It does?”
She nodded. “I’ll grab the whipped cream.” She turned around and searched the refrigerator for the whipped cream.
“Bitch, you ain’t got no whipped cream,” the devil reminded her.
“It’s true,” the angel agreed. “You never buy whipped cream. I don’t even know why you said that.”
Because I was panicking, Delilah thought. She took a deep breath then faced Yury again. “It seems I’ve eaten all of the whipped cream.”
“I’ll bring you some tomorrow.”
“Tell him to bring the dick too,” the devil whispered in her ear.
Ignoring her naughty demons, Delilah simply smiled and said, “Okay.”
“I’ll heat the food I brought while you cut the pie.”
“Okay.” That seemed to be the other word she knew how to say.
“You can say dick. Try and say it with me. Da-ick. See how it rolls off the tongue,” her inner devil said.
She watched Yury walk over to the table and get the containers of food he’d brought. He even walked like he was toting a big dick. Ugh, why was she thinking like this? Just fifteen minutes ago, she’d been ready to dig up Boris’s body and mutilate it.
Now, she was picturing herself riding Yury. Maybe this was just another stage of depression. Yeah, that had to be it. That had to be what this was. As he reheated the food, she closed the refrigerator the walked over to the pie.
She cut two slices and placed them on saucers then carried them over to the table. Forks, they needed forks. She spun around to go get forks and caught Yury staring at her. He didn’t even turn away after being caught. He just kept staring. Delilah swallowed.
Cabin Fever Page 21