“I need more than that if I’m going to make a living for myself again. You want me to sign off on the shop and not be co-owner, I need something in return. Otherwise, that shop you run is the only income I’ll be getting. Designing offices and homes doesn’t cover enough anymore and you know I can’t ask my parents for it right now with my father being sick and all.”
“Well, not if he stops working and pulls his rights to the shop’s name, Miss Ruth.”
She whipped her gaze over to Phil. “What are you talking about?”
“Well,” Phil slid the papers across the table, “this is a new contract. He’s paid the loan off, so he doesn’t owe any more on it. He’s also willing to sign over his ownership of Black Engine, meaning that you can keep the shop and its name all you’d like as sole owner, but that business will be on your hands, not his, if you want it to keep running. Here,” Phil said, pointing to a highlighted section. “The contract states clearly that either owner may pull from the company at anytime they see fit. That means you’ll be held responsible for Black Engine if you decide to keep your name on the contract and he doesn’t.”
“Let me see that.” Sheila’s lawyer snatched up the paper, propping his glasses on the bridge of his nose and reading over it. Theo watched him carefully with a smirk.
I smiled with him.
When the lawyer whispered something in Sheila’s ear, she shook her head and scoffed. “I can’t do that. I don’t know shit about a how a mechanic’s shop is supposed to run!”
“We know you don’t,” Theo said. “Which is why you should take the deal. I’ll give you whatever money I have to spare, but I can’t give more than the fifteen, Sheila. If you try and keep your co-ownership of Black Engine, I will pull my name and you will be on your own. You will drown in debt and have to close shop eventually if you try to keep it and you’ll lose even more money. Let’s not make this anymore difficult than it needs to be.”
Theo glanced up a bit and bobbed his head at me.
I nodded, turning and walking to the restroom with a sneer. From the looks of it, they’d trapped her in a corner and she had no way out. Of course she could keep trying to go for more money, which would fuck Theo over in the end, but we all knew she would be quick to pull her name from Black Engine before Theo. She couldn’t handle what he’d created. She knew nothing about that line of work.
Theo had already said he’d spoken with his employees and would take them with him if anything changed. Hopefully he wouldn’t have to change a thing.
I went into a stall, slightly relieved, but only slightly. After I was finished, I stepped out and went for the sink, but then the door swung open and in she walked.
She was about the same height as me, I realized, taller with heels on. She seemed flustered now, her blond eyebrows drawn together, but of course she was still beautiful. Stunning, really. But I was never going to admit that out loud. Dropping her purse on the counter, she dug into it and pulled out a tube of lipstick.
I felt her glance over at me as I pumped out some hand soap and started washing my hands. I was sure she had no idea who I was, so I pretended I didn’t know her either.
Well, that’s what I figured, until she said, “Hmm. You’re a lot prettier in person than I thought you’d be.”
I shut the water off. “I’m sorry?”
“Chloe, right?” she inquired, applying a coat of the red lipstick. “Yeah, it’s you. I’ve seen you in a few of Izzy’s photo albums. You were young—a little girl.” She looked me over in the mirror. “But not so much anymore, I see.”
“No, I guess not.” I looked away and walked towards the paper towels to dry my hands, apprehensive now.
“You know you deserve better than him, right? You’re young with your whole life ahead of you. What do you want with him anyway?” She popped her lips and then capped her lipstick. When she stood up straight, she twisted around to look me in the eyes.
“I don’t think that’s any of your business,” I responded.
Before I could walk out the door, she spoke again and I paused, not daring to look back at her. “You know, I knew he was in love with another woman when I met him. He had that sadness about him. Like no other woman in the world would ever be enough and I thought I could change that. But I didn’t. And still can’t. I guess if anyone is to blame for this divorce happening, it’s me for thinking I could fix such a sad, broken man like him.” Her nostrils flared a bit.
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because you seem to be the only person that can talk some sense into him. And if talking to you will get me what I want, then so be it.” She dug in her purse and fished out a tube of mascara. “So this is what you can do: tell him that I will settle with fifty-thousand dollars, the furniture from the house, and the car he bought me is mine, and I will leave him alone for good. I know he has more than fifteen grand to spare. I’m not an idiot. He’s clearly lying. I won’t take it to court if he agrees. I will relinquish my ownership to his shop and he can be happy or whatever the hell else he wants to be with you. I will accept the other negotiations he set up. As long as I don’t walk out of this divorce in a slump, he’ll be fine.”
I swallowed thickly, glancing over my shoulder. She had that same smug look on her face, like she knew I would go running to tell him. But that’s where she had me fooled.
“Wow,” I laughed. “I see they were right about you. You are a bitch.” I turned around completely and took a step forward. “Don’t worry, you’ll get your money and that crappy furniture you want so badly. Hell, you can even keep the house for yourself—do whatever the hell you want with it. Who cares? He won’t need it. But,” I said, lifting a finger, “when you get your part of the bargain, I never want to see your name pop up on his phone again or even hear that you tried to contact him in any sort of way. If you even attempt, I will end you.” She seemed taken aback by my sudden change of mood. And maybe I did as well, but love could make you say and do crazy shit. Love could make you bold and fearless. And fearless, I was.
“See, I know lawyers too. Great ones,” I went on. “Ones that can ruin your life with the scribble of a pen, Sheila. If I were you, I wouldn’t test my patience right now. As long as you agree to his negotiations and pull your ownership from his shop, you’ll get what you want. But don’t come back looking for more because it won’t happen. You know his shop is his life—his life’s work—and you aren’t going to take that away from him.” I cocked a brow, my hands lifting in the air. “Understood?”
She looked at me as if I had lost my mind. Her face, I think, had even paled a bit. It was funny. In that moment I didn’t find her so stunning. She looked lost, like a young girl without her rich parents to defend her.
Funny how the tables had turned.
Trust me, I hadn’t lost my mind, but I could tell she’d walked all over Theo for years and he was too damn nice to deny her—too afraid he’d lose everything he worked so hard for if he dared reject her. If I hadn’t set her straight, she would have continued trying to walk all over him. That wasn’t about to happen on my watch. She wasn’t going to make him miserable anymore.
“Wow,” she laughed bitterly. “Bold. But you know what? Whatever. I’ll let you have your moment.” She waved a dismissive hand and opened the mascara. “As long as I get my money from him before the divorce is final, you’ll never hear from me again and neither will he. Hell, he wasn’t that interesting anyway.” She rolled her eyes.
“Oh, no problem,” I bit out, turning for the door again and yanking it open. “You’ll have your money tomorrow. A checked will be hand-delivered personally by me. That’s how soon I want you out of his life.” I looked her over, repulsed. “Now stop stalling and sign the fucking divorce papers already. We’re ready to go back home.”
When I walked out, I heard her laughing, but I knew it wasn’t a laugh of victory. It was a holy-shit-she-isn’t-kidding kind of laugh. I wasn’t kidding. I was tired of her and her endless games.
I had the money and I would have given it all if it meant she was out of the picture for good.
I hurried by the conference rooms and when Theo saw me, he lifted a finger and came out. He brought me to a far corner by the window and asked, “What’s up?”
“Ran into your bitch of a wife,” I said, huffing a laugh. “How did you ever live with her?”
He swiped a hand over his face. “I ask myself the same damn question every day.”
“Well, this time she gave me an ultimatum. She wants fifty thousand dollars, the furniture from the house, and wants to keep her car. In return, she’ll settle with the negotiations and release her ownership of Black Engine.”
His eyes expanded, lips parting. “What? You’re serious? She said that to you? Fuck, Chloe, I don’t have that kind of money to just give to her. I mean—I do, but it’ll come out of my savings and I’m not losing out just because she wants to be a spoiled fucking bitch.” He scoffed. “Would be like her to run to you just to get what the fuck she wants.”
“You won’t be broke,” I said, grabbing his hand and squeezing it. “My dad left me $350,000. I’ll take out fifty for her. You won’t have to give a dime. It’s no big deal. I want to do this, so don’t tell me that I shouldn’t.” I placed a hand on his chest when he started to protest. “I’m sure there’s a bank around. I’ll find a branch, get a check, and make it out to her and I’ll give it to her, just as long as she signs. She’ll get her money and other stuff and she’ll never bother us again.”
He was still shocked, planting his hands on his hips as he looked out of the window. “Goddamn,” he mumbled, and then he eyed me, a slow smile spreading across his face. “I fucking love you, you know that?” He grabbed my chin and I focused on his sparkling brown eyes.
“When I say I will do anything for you, I mean it. I haven’t touched that money since I bought myself a car and put a down payment on the beach house. It’s still there.”
“I’m just . . .” He released a heavy laugh, dropping his head. “You’re the only person that can make me speechless like this. I’ll let Phil know and have him put the new negotiations in writing. In the meantime, you go get a room at the hotel next door. Go and relax. Now. I’ll meet you there, just text me the room number.” He kissed me hard on the cheek and when Phil popped up around the corner to let him know she was back, he pulled away and started walking backwards. With that sexy, boyish grin, he shouted, “You’re too fucking good to me, baby! You always have been! Always my Knight, coming in to save the day!”
I lit up, grinning like a damn fool when he disappeared around the corner.
To my dismay, that smile and the joy I felt as he walked away to finalize his divorce wasn’t going to last for long.
Chapter 41
Theo
The first thing I did when I arrived at the hotel was scoop Chloe up in my arms and smother her with my affection. Her face, her neck, her entire body. And then I kissed her belly—my baby.
“I take it everything went well? She signed?” she asked with a broad, cheesy grin. I placed her down on her feet.
“Yeah, she signed. She gets what she wants and I get to keep my shop and the name.”
“Oh, Theo, I’m so happy for you, babe. Seriously! That is great news!”
“It is. I’m honestly surprised it wasn’t more difficult than this.”
“Yeah, me too.” She shrugged. “But that’s a good thing too. I found a branch that’s only about five miles from here. If you take me tomorrow, I’ll get the check. I promised I would hand deliver it to her myself.”
“What kind of shit went down in the restroom that I don’t know about?” My eyebrows shifted and she laughed.
“Oh, nothing too serious. I just told her that once she gets her money and all the other stuff, to never try and contact you again. I don’t think that’s too much to ask for. Do you?”
“Hmm . . . I think pregnancy is making you kinda feisty, babe,” I teased, pulling my shirt over my head. “I like it.”
“Hey, she had no right to be so bitchy. I could read her like a book. She was trying to stomp all over you.” She met up to me and wrapped her hands around my waist. “No one messes with my Theo.”
I gripped her waist, picked her up, and carried her towards the bed. “No one, huh?” The tip of my nose skimmed her jawline.
Her breath hitched as I lowered my hands, cupping her ass. She kissed my collarbone and I returned the favor, kissing the top of her shoulder.
“Not feeling too sick, are you?”
“Not right now.”
“Good.” I laid her on the bed and spread her legs apart. Unbuttoning her jeans and wrenching them off, I brought my face back up and crushed her lips with mine. She sighed beneath me, hauling me closer as I unbuttoned my jeans and pushed them down.
When I kicked them off and she wiggled out of hers, she flipped me over, climbing on top of me and dragging my boxers down. I hoisted her up when she was perched atop me again, taking her panties off, and she whimpered when the pad of my thumb skimmed her soft clit.
“You’re free?” she breathed, planting her hands on my chest and pushing up on her knees. When I felt her pussy wrap around the tip of my cock, I stiffened, but she kept going, sliding down until every inch of me was inside her.
“Fuck, Chloe,” I groaned, head falling back as she lifted her ass and swallowed me whole again. I held her waist as she rode me, staring into my eyes, her fingers running through her hair.
“Are you free, Theo?” she asked again.
“With you, I always will be.” She smiled at that, swiveling on my cock. She was so wet, her moans making me hard as hell. She rode in near silence. All I could hear were her sighs and moans of pleasure. She didn’t have to speak for me to know she was enjoying this.
The divorce wasn’t going to be final until it ran by a judge, but Phil said in six to ten weeks, it would most likely be processed and would pass, so long as the negotiations remained settled.
I would be a single man again. Well, scratch that. I would be Chloe’s again, and only hers.
Yeah, I would be free. And she knew it too. There would be no fears. No lies. No secrets. There wouldn’t be anyone to stop us.
So I let her make sweet, victorious love to me, because after today, she needed it. We both needed it. It felt too incredible to stop, and even when the urge to take control again swept through me, I ignored it and focused on the light in her eyes.
She leaned forward, her hair brushing my cheek, my jawline. She smelled sweet, like vanilla, fresh. Her tits were close to my lips, and I sucked gently on her nipples, cupping her ass as she started a light bounce and claimed what was hers.
She rode me faster, her lips coming down on mine, her body glued to me. Her hand clasped one side of my face and she held on tight, breathing deep, moaning my name in my ear.
“We won,” I told her. “And you’re mine, baby. Mine for the rest of my life.”
She gasped and trembled, coming hard around my cock, sinking her nails into my shoulder with her other hand. I flipped her onto her back as she released, thrusting deep again, not stopping until I felt her legs shaking around me.
Eyes squeezed shut, her teeth sank into her bottom lip, on the verge of climax again.
“Look at me, baby,” I rasped, still thrusting. Shit, I was close. Feeling her pulsing around me wasn’t helping. Not one fucking bit.
She showed me her big, beautiful eyes, hooking an arm around the back of my neck.
And I smiled, bringing my lips down to hers, not kissing, just touching. A feathery light touch, that caused goosebumps to crawl across her soft skin. I was still so deep inside her, still stroking. Still holding on.
And then I said, “I’m free now, baby. I’m yours. Always. Forever. I promise.”
She brought my face down and started kissing my neck, tracing her tongue around the caresses, building me up even more. I was so hard, so ready to come.
And when she clenched her walls aro
und my cock, it was done. I stilled inside her, cursing beneath my breath, my hand rising up to entwine our fingers. I held on tight as I came—marking my woman.
Owning her.
Never wanting to let go.
“Damn,” I groaned as she panted beneath me. We were sticky with sweat now, but neither of us bothered to move.
Pushing up on an elbow, I stared into her hazel eyes and witnessed the bliss—the joy coursing through her.
How she felt so happy with a fucked up person like me, I would never know. But what kind of man would I have been to question it?
I pressed my thumb to her chin, holding it between my fingers, and kissing her full lips. She always tasted so sweet. Everywhere.
“Free,” she whispered, and I rolled over, but not without collecting her in my arms.
She sighed a breath of so much relief, and for the first time in years, I did the same.
Damn right, I was free.
After forty-six fucking years, I had finally found myself.
It wouldn’t have happened without her.
Chapter 42
Theo
Going home, it felt like heavy weights had fallen right off my shoulders, compared to the ride to San Francisco. I’d never felt so unburdened—so glad to finally be able to do what I wanted.
To have Chloe fucking Knight sitting right beside me in my passenger seat, with the windows down and the air billowing past us. To have the woman I loved with every ounce of my heart holding my hand like her life depended on it, smiling at me with the gentlest gaze I’d ever seen on a woman. A delicate one. One that spoke a thousand words.
After she’d handed Sheila the check, we were out of there. Sheila didn’t ask any questions. She took it and slammed the door. We didn’t want to linger. There was no need. We had a home waiting for us. Yes, us.
Forever, Mr. Black Page 21