She placed a hand over her belly. Could she really leave a child of hers behind? No, that wasn’t the arrangement and she wasn’t cruel. It wasn’t like she was going to just leave her baby behind and disappear. No, she would stay here and raise it, love it, and maybe pray to whatever God was out there that he or she didn’t turn out like his or her father. Cruel. Cold. Calculating. Maybe when her baby was a little older, she could go back to school.
A knock shook her from her thoughts and she went to the door, opening it a bit. There was a young woman there, dressed in the black dress and white apron she had seen some of the staff wear when they came in last night. She was probably around twenty years old and had dark blond hair tied up in a bun.
“Mrs. Lennox,” the girl said. “Mr. Lennox asked me to move your things in here. Do you know where you’d like them?”
“Uhm, where would they go…”
“Meg,” she offered. “My name is Meg. I just started here. Anyway, Mr. Lennox had them in the Countess’ room,” she motioned to the door Hank had disappeared through, “but he said to have them moved to the suite. Would you like them in the closet, ma’am?”
“Uh, yes please. And don’t call me ma’am. You can call me Riva.”
Meg frowned. “Oh no, I couldn’t ma’am. Mrs. Lennox—I mean, the other Mrs. Lennox—wouldn’t like that.”
“Fine,” she shrugged, not really knowing anything that went on in the castle. “Just…put the clothes in the closet.” She closed the door, hoping it wasn’t too rude. What was the protocol with household staff anyway? Growing up, she never even had a maid.
After she finished freshening up, she went out of the bathroom and walked to the closet. It was really more of a walk-in closet. It was huge, probably as big as her bedroom in her apartment at school. On one side was what she assumed was Hank’s stuff—suits, shirts, and shoes—and on the other side were the things she had sent ahead. Meg was efficient, that was for sure, as all her things were hung up or folded away, as if they belonged there.
She grabbed the first outfit she could—a pair of khaki pants and a light-colored blouse, plus a pair of flats. What was she supposed to do all day? She’d never even thought about what would happen after the wedding.
Meg was waiting for her outside the room. “Breakfast is served downstair, Mrs. Lennox. Mr. Lennox and uh, the other Mrs. Lennox are already there.”
“Thank you Meg. Would you mind showing me where?” Hank hadn’t exactly given her a tour of the castle.
“Of course.”
Walking into Blackstone Castle in the middle of the night had been intimidating. But now that she was seeing it in the light of day, Riva couldn’t help but feel…underwhelmed? Everything seemed old and worn. Sure, perhaps back in the day, the castle was probably magnificent. Lucas Lennox had been one of the country’s richest robber barons after all, thanks to the deposits of blackstone in the mountains.
She wondered though, why was no one keeping up the castle? The master bedroom looked fine, though it looked like it had been spruced up recently. The rest? Well, the rugs needed professional cleaning, the brass light fixtures needed changing, and the furniture should have been replaced or reupholstered years ago. She supposed it was none of her business, but this was going to be her home for at least a few years.
Meg led her to the massive dining room, and gave her a nod. As she walked in, she saw Hank already sitting at the head of the table, reading the paper. She couldn’t help but notice how handsome he looked. The top buttons of his white shirt were left open, exposing the tanned skin of his throat, and she bit her lip and looked away. Of course, the only other person she could look at was Melissa, sitting on Hank’s right. She was sipping on her coffee and pushing her food around her plate, a sour look on her face.
“Good morning,” she greeted them. God, this was going to be awkward. Was this what her foreseeable future would be like? Uncomfortable meals?
“Good morning,” Hank replied.
“Good morning,” Melissa said, eyeing her. “Finally up?” she asked in a sweet voice.
“Sorry. Had a late night,” she retorted. Melissa’s face remained calm, but Riva could see her eyes blazing with fury for just a second. Good. She walked to the chair on Hank’s left, and one of the male staff scurried toward her to pull the chair out. She thanked him and sat down.
“Would you like eggs, Mrs. Lennox? Toast?” the eager young man said.
“Uh, sure…what’s your name?”
“Christopher, Mrs. Lennox,” he said.
“Thank you, Christopher.”
The young man took her plate and walked over to the buffet table. She glanced over and saw the table laden with trays of food. “Are we having guests?” she asked.
Melissa guffawed. “Guests? No, this is breakfast.”
Riva wrinkled her brow. “Seems like a lot of food.” And waste. Melissa hadn’t even had a bite of the food on her plate.
“This is the way it’s always been at Blackstone Castle,” Melissa declared. “And we like to stick to tradition, don’t we, Hank?”
Hank grunted but said nothing, keeping his eyes on his paper.
Riva shrugged and dug into her eggs. “Mmmmm….” She couldn’t help the moan that escaped her mouth. It was delicious. Heavenly. Soft and fluffy, with a hint of cheese and pepper.
Now that got her husband’s attention. Hank was now staring at her, his eyes hungry, but not for eggs, it seemed. She swallowed, the eggs suddenly losing their taste. She looked back at him, daring him to say something first.
“Are you headed up to the site today?” Melissa asked, interrupting their game of chicken.
“No, I have to do actual boring office stuff today,” Hank said, getting to his feet.
Actual office stuff? Riva frowned. What other ‘stuff’ could Hank be doing aside from running the company?
“I’ll see you later,” he said. As he passed by Riva, he touched her shoulder and bent down to brush his lips on her forehead. She tried not to flinch, if only to not give Melissa the satisfaction of seeing how uncomfortable she was when her husband touched her.
“Hmmph, he’s leaving already?” Melissa remarked. “You just got married yesterday. Aren’t you even going on a honeymoon?” Though her voice was sweet and inquisitive, Riva could hear the venom dripping from every word.
“My husband is a busy businessman,” she retorted, emphasizing the “my”. “And we’ll get around to one, I suppose. It’s not like we need to be somewhere exotic to enjoy…married life.”
Melissa quickly stood up. “I’m headed out,” she declared. “Have the driver come to the front door,” she barked at Christopher, who nodded quickly and scampered out of the dining room. “I guess I’ll see you around.”
As soon as Melissa was out of earshot, Riva let out a breath. There was really something not right here, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to find out what it was.
Chapter 6
If she could do it all over again (discounting the whole marriage of convenience part), Riva would probably have thought more about what she was going to do after the wedding and before she gave birth. Really, she’d spent so much time worrying about the littlest details, that it had simply slipped her mind what she was supposed to do with her time while she was waiting to conceive.
She let out a harrumph. Not that that was going to happen any time soon. For a man who was eager to get her pregnant, he sure was taking his time. What the hell was this “let you come to me” bullshit? Did he want to be seduced or something? Hank Lennox was a confusing and infuriating man and they were wasting precious time with these games. Maybe she should just go ahead and do it. Make him think she was all hot and bothered and beg him to just have at her.
But you are all hot and bothered, a small voice inside her head said.
She told it to shut up.
So, while she waited for her husband to come home, she thought she would do a little bit of sleuthing. None of the staff (did they really need that many
for three people?) would talk to her and avoided her whenever she came to them to try to start a conversation. It was like they were afraid of her. All of them, it seemed, except Meg. Even though she was new, it seemed Meg had already knew the gossip around Blackstone Castle.
“So, do you know much about Melissa…the other Mrs. Lennox, I mean?” Riva asked as she handed the younger woman one of her blouses. The rest of her things had arrived later that morning and she’d asked Meg to help her.
“Not personally,” she replied, then paused. “But you know…the other staff…they talk.”
“Talk about?”
“I shouldn’t be saying this, but you know…Mr. Lennox, your husband, he had to take over the company when his brother died. It was a car accident.”
“I had heard that.” She’d read the obituary. Harrison Lennox had died just six months ago in a car wreck. Probably died on impact. She’d also read some articles online that said it had taken days for them to even realize he was missing. She swallowed the lump in her throat. She prayed he hadn’t suffered.
“Well…” Meg looked around as if to check if anyone was watching. “Mr. Lennox wasn’t alone in the car. Your husband’s…fiancée was with him. She died, too. They were running away together.”
Hank had been engaged? That she didn’t know. And…oh, poor Melissa. No wonder she was so bitter. Her husband had run off with another woman, who happened to be her brother-in-law’s fiancée. Maybe Melissa had nowhere else to go, and Hank couldn’t exactly toss a widow out into the street, not when he lived in an entire castle by himself.
Then a different feeling crept into her when she thought of Hank’s fiancée. She really shouldn’t be jealous of a dead woman, but she couldn’t help it. Curiosity pricked at her too. Perhaps that was why Hank was acting so strangely. Some people went insane when they were grieving, right?
“So, this fiancée…you never met her?”
Meg shook her head. “But, uhm…I was helping clean up his old room in the old wing. And I saw…he keeps a picture of her in there. Hidden inside one of the drawers in the old wooden desk.”
“Oh.” Riva tried to sound disinterested and didn’t ask anymore questions. Still, there was something niggling in her brain. There was a pang in her heart at the thought of Hank being with someone else. She shook her head. That woman was dead and she was being unreasonable.
When they’d finished packing away her things, she thanked Meg and the young woman left her alone. She sat on the big bed, wondering what to do now. She supposed she could tour the castle by herself, since no one had said she couldn’t.
She walked out of the room and down the hallway. It really was a pity; Blackstone Castle was still magnificent, and it could have been even more so if someone cared enough to maintain it.
She continued to stroll down the hall, past the grand staircase that led into the main foyer. This would lead to the other side of the castle, she realized. Hmmm…as long as she didn’t go into anyone’s private rooms, it should be okay, right?
Peeking into various open doors, she saw a nursery, a small office, a library, and guest bedrooms. At the end of the hallway were stone steps leading to the next floor.
She took the stone steps up slowly, one at a time, holding onto the wooden handrail built into the walls. When she reached the top, she found herself in another hallway. This one was much smaller and there were only three doors. She didn’t know why, but the door at the end seemed to beckon to her. Slowly, she opened it and stepped inside.
The room looked much more modern and simple, compared to the rest of the castle. The walls were blue, with dark wooden paneling, and a queen sleigh bed stood in the middle of the room. There was a desk in the corner, which was done in the same wood finish as the rest of the furniture. She sat down on the leather seat and leaned back. Looking around, it looked clean and like it had been recently cleared out, which meant it was probably Hank’s old room. And this was his desk, where Meg said she’d seen the picture.
She reached toward the top drawer, stopping only for a moment before pulling it open. There were various papers inside, letters on official-looking letterhead, a couple of pens and envelopes. She shuffled them aside, and her fingers found something smooth. A photograph.
Carefully, she withdrew it from under the pile. A lump formed in her throat. It was a picture of a younger Hank, perhaps during prom or some formal, and he had his arms around a gorgeous blonde woman. She was wearing a blue gown that accentuated her curves and made her eyes look even bluer. She was staring at the camera, her smile wide.
So this was her. Jealousy, envy, and some resentment slashed at Riva. She was breathtaking. The perfect woman, standing right beside the perfect man. A pit began to form in her stomach. She’d thought she felt unworthy next to Hank at their wedding, but now, looking at this woman…those looks everyone had been giving her seemed to make sense now.
She shoved the photo back and slammed the drawer shut. She wasn’t one to invade anyone’s privacy, and guilt seeped into her. Maybe that was why she felt like the bottom of her stomach was filled with lead. Not because she had seen Hank’s gorgeous former fiancée.
She got up and turned around, walked out of the room, then went down the stone steps. As she headed to the main hall, she heard footsteps coming up the grand staircase. She froze, which was silly, seeing that this was her home, after all. She stopped, her ears straining to hear the conversation, then quickly entered one of the rooms, but left the door slightly open so she could see who was passing by.
“Oh you know, mother.” It was Melissa. “It was fine. Nothing like our wedding of course. No, not even inside the castle.” She laughed. “Yeah, it was outdoors. Like a picnic. How quaint,” she sneered.
Riva frowned. It was a one-sided conversation, which meant Melissa was probably talking on the phone. She couldn’t see anyone else next to Melissa as she walked by.
“Who is she? Some girl from the next town. Of course he’s not in love with her. How could he be? She’s so not his type. I think he prefers it that way. You know he’ll never love or trust anyone else, not after that tramp, Andrea. It’ll be easier when he kicks her out once she’s had his baby.”
As Melissa disappeared down the hallway, Riva felt the air rush out of her lungs and tears of humiliation spring to her eyes. As soon as she was sure the coast was clear, she threw the door open and ran back to the master bedroom before anyone saw her.
Hank breathed a sigh of relief as soon as he entered Blackstone Castle. He had never been more relieved to come home. The office duties he could do without, and he was just glad they weren’t something he had to deal with all the time. He had a competent assistant and a VP of Operations who took care of most of the day-to-day things at Lennox. After all, he had a more important part in the company. But it would be days still before he could go back to the mines.
Most people thought that dragon fire was inexhaustible, and his family was only happy to let that particular myth spread. After all, it was what kept their kind safe. But, the truth was, mining blackstone was a long, arduous process. It took a lot of heat and fire and constant work. After a whole day of spewing dragon fire in the mines, Hank needed a few days to recover.
He quickly jogged up the staircase and headed straight to the master bedroom. He hoped Riva would be there, waiting for him. He’d missed her, plain and simple. He barely knew her, but being away from her made him ache. He was distracted, and every moment that his brain wasn’t occupied was filled with thoughts of her. A sudden realization had hit him.
Riva was his mate.
And the moment he stopped fighting it, the tension left his body. James had told him all those times about how he knew that Laura was his mate, and though Hank had only been half-listening, it somehow burrowed in his brain. James had said he felt overly protective and wanted to be near her the moment they met. And how in his eyes, Laura was the most beautiful woman in the world and no one else could compare. Laura certainly was pretty, though Hank
hadn’t been able to imagine just wanting one woman for his entire life. But then he met Riva, and the thought of being with anyone else was making him uncomfortable.
And so now, what was he to do? He’d married his mate, but they weren’t in love. Would love come eventually? Was he already in love with her? He wasn’t sure. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. She was just supposed to have his child, and now the thought of them leading separate lives when it was over…
He shook his head. No. He would have to find a way to make her stay.
“Riva?” he called as he entered the room. He felt her presence there. Again, another sign they were mates. He would always know when she was near. But only silence greeted him and an empty room. Where was she?
His sensitive ears picked up some shuffling from the walk-in closet. He went to the other side of the room and opened the closet door. “Riva, I—what are you doing?”
His wife was standing in the middle of the closet, her suitcase open. It was already half-filled with her things. Anger rose in him. “What’s going on?”
Her head whipped toward him. “What do you think? I’m leaving.” He detected a slight shake in her voice, but her tone was mostly determined.
“You can’t,” he said, striding toward her. “Are you you going to break the contract? Is that it? You want Sinclair to default on its loans and shut down?”
“No,” she said with a huff. “All you wanted was a broodmare, and here I am. But if you insist on…drawing this out, then you’re the one breaking the contract.”
What the fuck was going on? He searched her face, noting her blotchy complexion and red-rimmed eyes. His hands wrapped around her arms. “Were you crying? What happened?”
“Nothing! Let go of me!” She attempted to wriggle out of his grip, but he only held her tighter.
Rage burned in him, hotter than his dragon fire. He walked her back until she was trapped between him and the cabinets.
The Last Blackstone Dragon Page 4