by G. Bailey
I sit down on the other side, giving them some space because I know this will be hard.
"Parker, I want to tell you something really important," Emilia starts, looking at me once before she goes to talk, but Parker speaks first.
"I know, Daddy told me last night," Parker says. “He got me sweets, too, but I’m not meant to tell you about those.”
"What did he tell you?" Emilia slowly asks, clearly worried.
"That he isn't my real daddy and that Luke King is. Daddy is always my dad, so I don't understand," he says, so confused and it hurts me to see him like this. Every child should know who their parents are.
"I'm your biological father and Eric is your dad who brought you up. All you need to understand is that you have two men in your life that love you, and want to be there," I fill in, knowing Emilia isn’t sure what to say.
"You haven't been here. I don't know you," Parker resorts.
"I want to change that if you’ll give me a chance to," I reply. “I had to go away, but I’m here for good, and all I want is to be in your life.”
"Daddy said you are a bad man," Parker says, and I try to hide my instant anger. I’m a bad man? Eric is one to talk.
"Your daddy must have been mistaken," Emilia coughs out, looking furious for a moment before she hides her emotions and opens her arms. Parker climbs onto her lap, holding his hands in his lap and looking nervous. "Luke is one of the best men I know. He is strong, smart and really...well, nice for you to have as your father."
"I promise I'm not a bad guy. I just want to be your friend," I say, staring at Parker, seeing so much of myself in him.
"I’ll think about it," Parker says, hugging his mum and keeping his eyes firmly locked on me the entire time. Whatever Eric said to my son, he is going to explain it to me. I don't want my son in the middle of the war Eric just started.
127 Emilia
"Why don't you go and play in your room while I cook dinner?" I ask Parker, who still seems a little shaken after today after everything he has learnt. I'm burning with anger, knowing I'm going to kill Eric the moment Parker is out of sight. What a fucking asshole he is for telling Parker the truth without me there. It was bad enough without him having to tell Parker that Luke is a bad person. That wasn't fair, and I feel like it's made Parker distrust Luke without giving him a fair chance. Everything was tense for the rest of the day and Parker only really smiled at Luke when he gave him a drink of fizzy pop. I thought it was sweet that he remembered Parker asking for a pop at the wedding.
"What is for dinner?" he asks.
"What do you want? It’s your choice, Hun," I reply, kicking my shoes off and taking Parker’s coat off him. I put them away as he thinks about it.
"Pizza from the man at the door," Parker says with a big grin on his face.
"Pizza takeaway you mean," I say, shaking my head. Of course, he would ask for that. "It's a deal. I’ll order our usual." Parker fist bumps the air before running up the stairs and to his room. I take Luke's jacket off, pausing for a moment to stare at it before placing it on the hook. I didn’t even notice I was still wearing it when I left. After hooking the jacket up, I slide my shoes off and pull my phone out of my back pocket, quickly calling the pizza takeaway and ordering food for me and Parker. I walk through the house and get to the study, where I can hear moans through the door. I push the door open, seeing my dear husband fucking his assistant over the desk. The blonde woman is holding onto the desk, her dress pushed up to her hips as he pounds in and out of her, and luckily, I can only see his bare ass.
"We need to talk," I say, rather loudly.
"Fucking hell," Eric stutters, turning to look at me leaning against the door with my arms crossed. I try not to smile as they both rush to pull their clothes on and the pretty blonde woman doesn't meet my eyes once before she runs out of the room past me. Eric finishes doing up his trousers before giving me a slightly guilty expression.
"I didn't know you'd be home tonight," he admits.
"You told Parker!" I growl. "I don't care what you do, who you fuck in my home, but what you tell my son is important to me!"
"Luke King is no dad for a kid like him," he resorts. “I was telling Parker the truth. His father is a monster.”
"Is this just jealousy?" I ask. "He isn't just yours. Luke isn't taking him from you."
"He is going to take everything from me, but I'm not going to make it easy," Eric frustrated shouts.
"You are acting like a goddamn child!" I growl.
"Don't push me or tell me what to do, Emilia. You’re just a pretty face I bought off Arthur in exchange for letting him do whatever he wants," he replies. I walk straight up to him and slap him hard across the face, the force snapping his head to the side.
"I married you because I had no fucking choice. I detest you as much as you hate me, but I will not let my son be the victim in this. Push me, and I will leave you. Fuck the consequences," I warn him, and I mean every single word.
"You wouldn't dare, you know why?" he says, roughly grabbing my chin. "I'd take your son from you and ruin everything. Arthur would help me, you know it. I know it."
"You are a bastard," I spit out.
"I won't lose my son," he says, showing me a vulnerable expression, before letting my chin go and walking past me down the corridor.
"You and Luke...keep it quiet," he pauses to say, shocking me a little bit before he walks away. I rest my head on the wall, taking in deep breaths before I can do nothing but burst into tears. I slide down the wall, wrapping my arms around my knees as I try to control the sobbing escaping my lips. I rest my head on my knees, wishing there was a way to escape this all, but I know there isn't.
128 Luke
Sitting quietly at the bar, I hold my hand up for a moment to call the blonde, pretty bartender over. She quickly runs over and takes my empty glass, refilling it without another word. No matter how pretty she is, she is nothing on the woman I am waiting to see. Elliot's club in town is the local hot spot during the day for business meetings and a relaxing atmosphere for a drink at night. I know that Elliot has opened three more very successful bars with Allie over the years, and they definitely have an eye for what makes a club popular. I pick up my full whiskey tumbler and take a sip before looking around the room once more, hoping to see Emilia turn up. She isn't here, and I don't know why I actually expected her to come. She is the mayor's fucking wife. Emilia can't be seen in a place like this.
"You remember my drink," Emilia shocks me by remarking, placing her hand on my arm as she slides into the stool next to me, where her martini is waiting for her.
"I remember everything about the times we were together," I reply, knowing how crazy that sounds. "You’re what I thought of when times were rough. Our every moment together, our every kiss. I keep those memories safe, like a drug to block out everything else."
"Luke...what did he make you do all these years?" she asks, her eyes vulnerable as she looks at me. This is the question I don't want to answer.
"Anything Arthur asked, I would do," I admit to her. The memories I can usually push away, pretend they didn’t happen. Nightmares? Yeah, that’s when they come back to haunt me. I don’t remember the last time I had a good night’s sleep. I chose to be the person I am, to do the things I’ve done, and I will live with the price of that.
"How many people did you kill?" she asks, and I wish I could remember.
"I lost count," I reply, and she doesn’t seem too shocked, whereas I feel more than a bit tense answering any more questions.
"How many women did you sleep with?" she asks next, sipping on her drink and pretending like the answer doesn’t matter to her.
"You don't want that answer," I reply.
"You scare me, Luke. You know that?" she says, which makes her a fool.
"You should be scared, Emilia. You should run the hell away from me because I will never stop fighting for you. I can't. Every time I did something because I had to, I thought of you. You are mine, Emilia
," I firmly state.
"I won't run," she whispers, leaning closer and placing her hand over mine. "Every part of me tells me to run away, but my heart? My heart knows it's yours."
"Emilia," I warn. I want what is best for her, and I don’t think that is me.
"I did bad things, too. It's not just you that he has fucked up," she says. "I married and slept with Eric once because Arthur demanded it. I've stripped on that stage for years, losing a bit of myself each time. I just want it all to be for something. For us."
"It is," I say, linking my fingers with hers. "I promise, he will pay for everything, and we will both be free. This is not for nothing."
"Can I have a word?" A man asks, and Emilia quickly pulls her hand from mine as we turn to see her brother standing behind us. Dale looks nothing like his sister, so much that I wouldn’t think they were even related at first glance.
"Dale, right?" I say, offering him a hand to shake. Dale shakes my hand, looking between me and Emilia before letting go, and crossing his arms.
"No wonder Parker doesn't look a thing like that dickhead of a husband of yours," Dale mutters. "He is the image of you both."
"Good guess," I reply. "What do you want?"
"The fight...it’s for a reason. Isn't it?" he asks, and I run my eyes over Emilia, who is clearly worried.
"Luke won't kill you...we’ll figure it out," Emilia says before I can reply.
"Emilia, I have to finish this, and the only way to get Arthur to trust me is to do this," I tell her, reaching for her hand, but she pushes me away. “I’ve never let him down, I’ve always done what he asks, and he will instantly distrust me if I don’t kill him.”
"You are going to kill him? My brother?" she asks, looking more than betrayed and it breaks my heart that I can't change this.
"I don't want to do it, but I have no choice," I reply.
"You always have a choice!" she shouts, drawing a lot of attention towards us.
"What part of the last five years, in fact, my whole life, do you think was my choice, Emilia?" I shout right back, standing up off my chair. "I don't have a choice."
"If that’s the case, then you do it," Dale says, giving me one fixed glance before turning away.
"No!" Emilia shouts, grabbing Dale's arm and stopping him before he walks off.
"I want it all over, and I know he can do that. I'm going to spend my last week having fun," Dale tells her, nodding once at me before he walks away, leaving us. I stare at Emilia, waiting for her to say anything, to even look at me. When she finally lifts her head, I almost wish she hadn't because of the hurt in her eyes. I never wanted to hurt her.
"I will hate you if you do this," she angrily growls, pointing a finger into my chest. "Don't you dare kill my brother like he is nothing, Luke."
"Hate me then. Your brother is the key to the destruction of The Cage. He has to die, and he isn’t nothing. Don’t you think I know that?" I say, and she doesn't say another word before she walks away. I almost want her to shout at me because it's sure damn easier than watching her walk away, heartbroken.
129 Emilia
I wasn’t a King.
My son was my only connection to the King family I had. I knew if they found out my secret, I would never be let back in their house. Luke knows my secret, and I hate that. I hate what it has done to us both. I hate what The Cage has done to us both. We stare at each other across the dinner table, neither of us willing to put the past behind us and attempt to forgive each other. I can’t forgive him for wanting to go through with the fight and eventually killing my brother. How could I?
It’s too late for any of those things. Forgiveness. Understanding. Compassion…even love.
We do nothing but destroy each other, leaving nothing but broken pieces of our souls to pick up after.
“More wine, Emilia?” Luke suddenly asks, and I hold out my glass.
“Thanks,” I mutter.
“Fucking hell this is more awkward than I thought it would be. I’d pay someone to call Elliot’s phone right now,” Seb exclaims as Luke pours wine in my glass and I put it down.
“On it!” Allie replies and Elliot just groans as his hilarious ringtone starts playing. As the Milkshake song plays, and Elliot rushes to get his phone out of his jeans, I meet Luke’s eyes.
We both can’t help but laugh. Everything has been so tense since the argument and laughing together like this seems to break some of that up for a moment.
“Allie, will you please stop setting that as my ringtone?” Elliot groans and Allie only laughs.
“Nope,” is her only response.
“Parker, how is school?” Luke asks Parker, who looks up at me and then decides to ignore Luke once again. This is not going well for them both. I know Parker can pick up on my tension with Luke and Eric is no doubt not saying nice things about Luke to him. This is all so messed up.
“It’s rude to ignore people, Hun,” I say.
“School was fine,” Parker says, rolling his eyes. “Can I go and play with Jake now? I’ve eaten all my food.”
“Sure,” I say, and he is all too quick to climb out his chair and run off into the garden with the others as they nicely play behind us. Luke pushes his chair back and walks out of the room, looking upset by Parker’s actions. I feel like a lot of this is my fault.
“Go after him then,” Allie suggests, nudging me as the others all awkwardly stare. “I’ll watch Parker.”
“Thanks,” I say, getting out of my chair and walking out of the room. I walk through the kitchen, into the hallway where the door is left slightly open. After pushing the door open, I see Luke walking to his car, looking defeated.
“Luke, wait!” I shout, and he ignores me, unlocking his car and getting inside as I jog to the other side, and pull the door open. He could have locked me out, so that’s a good sign.
“He hates me,” Luke points out as he leans back in his seat, making no effort to start the car.
“No, he doesn’t. Parker is shy, he always has been, and this is one huge change for him that pushes his boundaries. Don’t give up,” I tell him, not thinking about it as I cover his hand with mine on his lap.
“I’m never going to give up. Never,” Luke says, turning to look at me. “I love him, even if he can’t understand that right now. He is my son.”
“Time will help. We should make some plans for you to have alone time with him. Parker loves the cinema and bowling. Maybe you could take him out after school twice this week to those?” I suggest.
“Yes. Do you think he would come with me?” He asks. “I don’t want to force him to spend time with me.”
“We can ask, and I think he would come. I might have to come with you for the first few weeks, but eventually, I know he will end up loving you like everyone else,” I say.
“Everyone?” Luke asks, picking up my hand.
“W-we can’t do this…no matter how I feel,” I sputter out.
“I love you, Emilia. You know that, right?” Luke tells me and every barrier I’d forcefully put up between us just burns away as I reach over and kiss him. Luke pulls me onto his lap as we passionately kiss, his hands rubbing all over my body as I settle on top of him. I reach down, undoing his belt and desperate to reconnect with him after all this time apart. Luke pulls my dress and bra down, revealing my breasts and he runs his fingers over my nipples as I free his long, hard erection. I push my thong to the one side before lining us up, and slowly inching myself down until he fills me up.
“Fuck you are incredibly tight and wet,” Luke groans, grabbing my hips as I roll my hips, chasing the orgasm I know is close.
“I love you,” I whisper against his lips before kissing him as we both lose all control. Neither of us can do anything but move our hips, battle with our mouths as we both get close to the edge. Luke’s hand slides between my legs, finding my clit and rubbing it as fast as I roll my hips, loving the feeling of Luke’s hard cock sliding in and out of me.
“Emilia!” Luke groans aga
inst my lips as I cry out in pure pleasure, an orgasm slamming into me so hard that everything goes blurry. Luke slams me back on to his cock one more time before he explodes inside me, feeling like pure bliss. I collapse onto his chest, feeling his cock throbbing inside me as I listen to his fast beating heart.
“It’s me and you now, you got that?” Luke breathlessly tells me, lifting my head to meet his eyes. There is nothing but pure love in his eyes, nearly making me feel speechless.
“It’s me and you.”
130 Luke
"I wondered how long it would be before you came to see me, Eric," I state, looking over at him as he stands next to my car, his arms crossed against his chest. I unlock the boot, placing my bags in that Tilly sent me to the shops to get because Hope has a temperature. Harley was going to go and get her some Calpol, but I offered as I wanted to get some pop anyway. Hope is a sweet little girl, but I wish she would stop leaving creepy teddy bears tucked into my bed every day. The first night I collapsed into bed only to be freaked out by the teddy with glowing eyes that she left me as a gift. Though every time I ask her about them, she pretends not to know and then runs off laughing. Kids. Though Hope reminds me of Parker, and our growing relationship in the last few weeks. The places we go after school seem to really be helping, and Parker asked if we could go alone next week to the bowling alley. It will be good to give Emilia some time to herself. I know she runs around like a headless chicken looking after our son. I shut the boot and lean against it, knowing Eric wouldn't have chosen to come and see me at eleven in an empty shopping car park for no reason.
"You’re fucking my wife," he bluntly states, and I dislike him straight away. You don't talk about your wife that way, but I doubt very much that he cares for her at all. I can see it almost instantly and hear it in his voice.