I wasn’t a fool. I knew a man like Demi didn’t make false threats. He would try to get even with me, but he couldn’t hurt me as long as I had Tiana. She was the only thing that mattered to me. He could try to ruin my reputation, spread rumors and lies about me, convince people not to do business with me, but I could deal with that. The only thing I couldn’t deal with was losing Tiana. “You’re wasting your energy. Nothing you say or do is going to tear us apart.”
“Did you make her sign a prenup?”
“No.”
“You’re even stupider than I thought.”
I linked hands with Tiana. My lawyers would be blowing up my phone with the same message as soon as they heard the news. Most people would say I was crazy to marry anyone without a prenup, but most people cared about money a lot more than I did. Even if, God forbid, Tiana did leave me and take half of my fortune, I would still have an obscene amount of money. But the thought of losing the money didn’t scare me as much as the prospect of losing her.
“I never asked for your opinion, and I don’t want it.” When a tremor moved through Tiana, I pulled her close, reminding myself this man was still her father and now my father-in-law. For her sake, I had to leave the door open for a reconciliation at some point. “Look, I know you’re angry. I get that. You hate my guts, and I’m the last man in the world you would have wanted your daughter to marry.”
“You’re right about that.”
“But she did marry me. And I can promise I’ll do everything in my power to make her happier than she’s ever been.”
“You’re a worthless liar. You hate me as much as I hate you, and you’re just using my daughter to take your revenge on me. It wasn’t enough for you to lure Deacon, Damon, and now Tiana away from the family business. You wanted more.”
“I didn’t lure them away,” I said, stunned by his paranoia. “Your children are all intelligent, ambitious people. You shouldn’t be surprised they wanted to forge their own paths. You did the same when you were their age, and look where you ended up.”
Whether Demi believed it or not, I had enormous respect for his business acumen. I knew how hard it was for a man to start with nothing and build an international conglomerate worth billions.
“I don’t care what you say. I know why you did this, and you won’t get away with it!”
I handed the phone back to Tiana after her father hung up. She was shaking, so I drew her into my arms and held her tight. “I’m so sorry, baby.”
“It’s not your fault.” She burrowed deeper into my arms, obviously desperate for comfort and assurance. “How do they think he found out?”
“It doesn’t matter how he found out.” I knew how he’d found out, and I would get Bev fired later. “The point is that he knows. Everyone knows.”
“Your phone stopped ringing,” she said, glancing at it. “I can’t believe my brother gave up that easily.”
I noted that she’d turned hers off. “I turned the volume down on the ringer. Do you want me to call him back now or wait ‘til morning?”
“We should call now. Get it over with.” She glanced at the screen as I reached for the phone. “Has Damon called too?”
“Yup.” I even spotted a call from my old man. That one had come in hours ago, which meant the story broke shortly after we exchanged our vows. The hotel would be crawling with paparazzi by morning. Great. “Since our phones were both dead, I guess that explains why they weren’t blowing up earlier.”
“Thank God for that,” she said, wrapping her arm around my bicep. “It’s bad enough we have to deal with this on our wedding night. It would have been even worse if they’d started calling before we even had a chance to consummate the marriage.”
“Consummate?” I grinned at her and tweaked her nose. “You’re too damn cute, Mrs. Kessler.”
She lit up. “Say that again.”
“What? That you’re cute? You already know you are.”
“No, call me that again.”
I chuckled. “Mrs. Kessler.”
She sighed, looking utterly content as all of the anxiety brought on by the phone calls seemed to melt away. “I will never get tired of hearing that.”
“You better not,” I teased. “You’ll be hearing it for the next fifty or sixty years, by my estimation.”
Tiana took a deep breath as I called Deacon. I knew I could reason with her brothers. They may have been upset they weren’t included in the ceremony, but unlike their father, they didn’t see me as the devil incarnate.
“Hey,” I said when Deacon picked up. “I know it’s late, but since you’ve been blowin’ up my phone, I knew you weren’t asleep.”
“What the hell were you thinking, taking my sister to Vegas for some quickie wedding?” Deacon demanded. “She deserves better than that.”
At least he wasn’t angry about the wedding, just where and when it took place. I suspected Damon would feel the same way.
“I’m sorry, man. This wasn’t planned. If we’d had more time, we would have flown you guys out here.” Though I wasn’t sure they would have made the trip. Deacon was even more overprotective than usual since learning about Mia’s pregnancy, and he didn’t like her to fly. “We’ll have a big party when we get back, I promise.” When Deacon didn’t say anything, I got a little nervous. “I’ll, uh, spare no expense.” Trying to get a chuckle out of him, I said, “We’ll even release white doves if you want.”
“So no Greek-Orthodox ceremony?”
Damn. I hadn’t even thought of that. Deacon wasn’t devout like his old man, but he had a healthy respect for tradition and was proud of their culture. I looked at Tiana, wondering why she hadn’t objected to a simple ceremony or questioned whether I would consider converting.
“Uh, we haven’t talked about that yet. It’s a possibility.” I would do anything for Tiana, and if converting was important to her, I would have to consider it. I’d been born and raised a Baptist, but I hadn’t set foot inside a church since my granddaddy died years ago.
“You can’t just get married without talking about stuff like this, Blake. What the hell’s wrong with you?”
He had a point. Tiana and I should have had this conversation before we took our vows, but once I’d had the idea of making her my wife, I couldn’t allow myself to consider anything or anyone that might get in our way.
“We will talk about it,” I assured him, brushing my hand over Tiana’s cheek when I spotted her quizzical expression. “But the only thing that matters right now is that I love your sister, she loves me, and we’re legally married. You could say congratulations.”
“I’m still pissed at you. I should have been there. I should have been your best man, and if my father was too stupid and stubborn to be there to give my sister away, it should have been me. She deserved that, and I should beat the hell out of you for taking it away from her.”
“Fair enough.” I’d done everything I could to make this night special and memorable for Tiana, but for people who’d grown up like the Starkis children, a wedding fit for royalty was expected. “I just knew that if we went home and told y’all we were engaged, Demi would’ve done everything in his power to get in our way. I didn’t want to put Tiana through that, man. Now it’s a done deal, and there’s not a damn thing your father can do about it. Try to understand, I was just trying to protect her.”
Deacon sighed. “Fine. I guess I understand that. I’m still not happy about it, but I understand.”
“Good. You wanna talk to Tiana? Can I put you on speaker?”
“Yeah.”
I activated the speaker phone and held the phone between us.
“Hey, big brother,” Tiana said, sounding a little timid. “You’re not going to lecture me, are you? ‘Cause I’m really happy right now, and I don’t want you to say or do anything that might spoil it.”
I didn’t know how she could still be happy after going to war with her father, but I admired her attempt to put her brother on warning.
“
Tiana, I love you,” Deacon said, his voice softer than I’d ever heard it. “You know I just want you to be happy. I wouldn’t have tried to stand in your way. I’m sorry if you felt you couldn’t include me because you were afraid I’d ruin everything.”
Tiana’s eyes filled with tears. “That’s not why we didn’t include you. I would have loved to have you here. It just happened so fast. Blake planned everything, and as soon as he asked me to marry him, we decided we didn’t want to wait.”
I appreciated that she tried to make it sound as though it had been a joint decision instead of admitting that the wedding had been a surprise to her too.
“Tiana, what about getting married in our church and baptising your children Greek-Orthodox? You always told me that was what you wanted.”
Thinking that I’d been so wrapped up in what I wanted that I hadn’t considered something so important to her hurt me.
“I thought that was important to me,” Tiana conceded. “But tonight, when I was faced with a decision, I chose Blake.” She gave me a soft kiss. “I’d do it all over again. I have no regrets, Deacon. None.”
He sighed. “I guess there’s nothing more I can say then.”
“You could say you’re happy for us? That you love us and only want what’s best for us?” Before her brother could get a word in, she said, “You could wish us a lifetime of happiness and tell us that you’ll always be there to support us, no matter what.”
Deacon chuckled. “Anything else?”
“Yes, you can tell that gorgeous wife of yours, along with Damon and Eleni, that I love them and will call them tomorrow.”
“Done.” He sighed. “Have you talked to Mom yet? You have to know she’ll want some answers.”
“When she had to choose between her husband and daughter, she chose her husband. I don’t know what more we have to say to each other.”
Deacon said gently, “Sis, I know it feels like the whole world is against you right now, but I promise you that’s not the case. Me and Mia, Damon and Eleni are all here for you. Not to mention Catia, Kara, and Darius. They all called me when they couldn’t reach you.”
“What did they say?” she asked, sounding almost afraid. “Did they think I was crazy?”
“No, they actually said they admire you for standing up to the old man. They love and support you, just like we all do. But, honey, don’t burn your bridges with Mom. Demi may seem about as flexible as a brick wall, but you’re his baby girl.”
Tiana closed her eyes. “I know you’re only trying to help,” she said, her voice breaking. “But please—”
“Just listen to me.” Deacon covered the receiver, and we heard hushed voices before he said, “I have to believe he’ll come around eventually. He just needs some time to get used to the idea. They both do.”
I didn’t know whether Deacon really believed that or was just trying to make his sister feel better, but I wasn’t holding out hope that my new father-in-law would ever accept me or our marriage.
“Now that I’ve said my piece,” Deacon said, “you guys need to get back here so we can throw you a proper wedding reception. Mia just told me she’s going to start planning it first thing in the morning.”
Tiana smiled. “Tell her thank you for me. I love you guys.”
“We love you too.” His voice was gruff when he said, “Both of you.”
I disconnected the call and pulled Tiana into my arms, “You okay, baby?”
“Never better,” she whispered.
I didn’t know if that was true or if she was just putting on a brave face for my benefit, but I intended to make sure I spent the rest of my life making up for the stress and misery she’d had to endure because of me.
Chapter Eighteen
Tiana
I wasn’t looking forward to cleaning out my desk, but I couldn’t put it off forever. I wouldn’t put it past my father to have someone else riffle through my personal belongings and ship everything to me in a non-descript cardboard box, as if I were a disloyal employee who’d stolen from him and wasn’t allowed back in the building.
“There you are,” Chris said, walking into my office and closing the door without waiting for an invitation. “I was hoping to catch you before you left.”
“Must be your lucky day,” I muttered, piling my family photos into the box, on top of files and a few mementoes from trips I’d taken.
“I heard the news.” He sat on the edge of the desk, a little too close for my comfort. “I have to ask, Tiana. Why him? We could have been so good together.”
I didn’t need this. The very real threat of having to face my father on his turf was my only concern. “I’m sorry, but it never would have worked. I think you’re a nice guy, but I had feelings for Blake long before you came to town. I’m sorry my father got you mixed up in this, but—”
“You’re sorry your father got me mixed up in this?” he asked, his voice dripping in sarcasm. “What about the time we spent together in Greece? Are you going to tell me you were thinking about Blake then too?”
Nothing had happened between us in Greece, but I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. I just wanted to go home, snuggle up with my husband, and put this awful day behind me.
“You’re not going to deny it?” He grabbed my wrist when I reached for the box lid. “Were you just playing me all along?”
He had a crazed look in his eye, and when he backed me against the wall, I regretted telling my former assistant I didn’t need her help clearing out my office. Suddenly I feared I would most definitely need help.
He seized both of my wrists and pinned my arms against the wall over my head. “If you couldn’t get the man you really wanted, you thought you would keep me around as what, some kind of insurance policy or consolation prize?”
“Are you crazy?” I asked, wiggling to break free. “Get your hands off me! I never wanted you! I never intended to marry you! My father was the one who wanted this, not me!”
“You’re a liar,” he whispered viciously, securing my hands with one of his while he grabbed my jaw with the other hand. “You’re a filthy liar. You wanted me.” He bit my bottom lip while grinding his erection into my stomach. “You know you wanted me. You want me now. I can tell.”
I screamed and brought my knee up just enough to catch him off guard. He reared back, but not because I’d hurt him. Blake had barrelled through the door and grabbed him. Everything happened so fast, but it wasn’t long before my father raced through the door. Demi ushered me out while Blake beat on Chris.
“No!” I screamed, grabbing the door frame so I couldn’t be forcibly removed from the room. “Blake, please! You’re going to hurt him!”
“I’m going to kill this bastard for putting his hands on you,” Blake grunted, kicking Chris in the ribs.
Chris curled into a ball, groaning.
“No!” I tried to grab his jacket, but my father held me just out of reach.
“Tiana, stop this,” my father warned. “You’re going to get hurt. Can’t you see he’s out of control?”
Blake was out of control, and that was what scared me. He was only trying to protect me, but I was terrified he’d already taken it too far.
When I couldn’t stand the dull thud of fist meeting flesh another second, I yelled at my father, “Do something!”
“Get security up here and call the police,” he instructed an administrative assistant who’d rushed out of the office across the hall, looking alarmed.
“No, no police,” I pleaded, gripping my father’s arm.
“Of course we will call the police,” he said, straightening his silk tie. “You’re obviously not safe with that monster. He doesn’t even belong on the street.”
“You didn’t see what Chris did to me or the terrible things he said to me. If Blake hadn’t come in when he did, Chris would have attacked me.”
My father waved as though the idea was preposterous. Just when I thought he couldn’t hurt me any more, he did.
Two burl
y security guards in full uniform rushed off the elevator.
“Detain him,” Demi said. “The police are on their way.”
“The police don’t need to be involved in this!”
I couldn’t believe this was happening. Blake had only tried to defend me, something my own father was unwilling to do, and now he would have to defend his actions to the police? It wasn’t fair. Chris was the one who’d crossed the line, not Blake. Okay, maybe Blake had gone a little overboard, but I understood why he was so angry. He was afraid for me, and he snapped.
I heard Blake shouting and swearing before a loud crash drew even more attention from employees down the hall. Many poked their heads out of their offices before retreating once they saw my father was on the scene.
“You can’t do this,” I pleaded, lowering my voice. “Blake doesn’t deserve to get in trouble for trying to protect me.”
“Can’t you see this man for the animal he is?” Demi shook my hand off his arm with a look of disgust.
Before I could defend Blake, two police officers stepped off the elevator.
“Officers,” Demi said, stepping forward, “I’m glad you’re here. My employee will need immediate medical attention. My security personnel is detaining the perpetrator.”
“Call the paramedics,” the older officer said to his partner.
“You’re Mr. Starkis?” he asked, withdrawing a leather-bound notebook from his pocket.
“I am.”
“Can you tell us what happened, sir?”
“He wasn’t there,” I insisted, stepping forward. “I was.”
“And you would be?”
“Tiana St-um, Tiana Kessler. My husband, Blake, is the one being detained, but he shouldn’t be, Officer. None of this was his fault. You see, Chris, the, uh, victim…” That was a poor choice of words, but I couldn’t think of another. I was trembling, my entire body knotted with fear and anxiety. “He came into my office and started saying offensive things to me. Then he held me against my will. I tried to fight back. Blake came in and—”
Tiana (Starkis Family #3) Page 19