Cyra was lying on the couch with Rex when she heard the garage door open. Last night, Chris had worked incredibly late and had been out of bed ridiculously early that morning.
She barely even saw him at work, as they couldn’t even get a cup of coffee together. Now, to add insult to injury, she had left work early so they could meet the wedding cake designer to sample the different selections.
She showed.
He didn't.
Cyra was trying to be as patient as possible, but this was all spiraling out of control. Not only did she not see him, but now they couldn’t even plan a wedding.
This was a disaster, and honestly, it made her want to curl up on the couch and weep.
As he strolled into the living room, he stopped dead in his tracks. Across the coffee table were eight different kinds of cakes, and each had a few bites missing from them.
Then, it hit him. Now, he knew why the alarm on his phone had been going off at work at three thirty.
He was supposed to get back here for a cake tasting that they scheduled weeks ago.
The look on her face said it all.
He was a dead man.
Shit!
“Cyra,” he began, only to find himself cut off. Chris watched as she stood from the couch and stared at him.
“I picked my favorite. Now you can pick yours,” she said evenly. The tears filled her eyes as she stared at him. “Why should we do it together? Why bother?”
Her words hurt his heart.
“Do you want to get dinner?” he asked hopefully. “Then, we can talk and spend time together.”
She stared at him and tried to remain calm. “I’m not hungry. I’m going to bed,” she replied.
“Cyra, sweetheart. I’m sorry!”
She turned and walked away. This most definitely was escalating into something disastrous. When he was off, she was away working on an assignment. When he was working, she was sitting there with just Rex. Now, they had to toss planning a wedding on top of everything else.
Yeah, they needed to work this out.
And fast.
Chris watched as she headed up the stairs wordlessly. Sometimes, he wished that Cyra was a fighter. Maybe if she got it off her chest, they could work on it. But, she wasn’t. He stared over at Rex, who was staring at the cakes on the table.
Breaking off a chunk, he handed it to the dog and then used the fork to try it himself.
“What do you think, Rex-y? Do we pick carrot cake?”
Rex heard the barely audible clicks, and immediately, he rushed away and up the stairs.
Chris watched him leave.
“Traitor,” he muttered, as he tried to ponder what to do.
All he knew, was this couldn’t continue on like this. If it did, he feared he was going to lose the only woman who ever mattered in his life.
Then, he was doomed.
* * *
Tony tried to call his house phone a couple of times and no one was answering.
Doc had just blown off work for the day.
Yeah, that was definitely not like him. He really hoped that the man was okay. On his way over there, he had to admit that there were a million things that rushed through his mind as to what could be wrong.
Maybe he fell.
Or had a heart attack.
What if he was sick?
Damn!
He really wished that he had checked on him sooner. When he showed up at work that morning and Doc wasn’t there, he should have known something was wrong. A better friend would have been alerted to the way this all felt off.
Now there was nothing but panic filling him.
Where could the man be?
As he pulled up to the front of the house, he opted to not park in the driveway, just in case they needed to call for help. He didn't want the ambulances to have to maneuver around his vehicle.
See, there he went again.
He was expecting the worst.
Doc had always told him to look at everything positively, and he was going to do just that. For now, he was going to assume everything was just fine.
Hopping out of his vehicle, he raced through the grass and to the door. He only glanced over and made note that the man’s car was parked in the same spot as it always was. So, he paid it no mind.
At the house, he began knocking.
Soon, it went to banging.
Then, frenzied pounding.
Finally, he went from window to window to peer inside. This gave him an iota of reassurance. The older man wasn’t lying on the floor and there weren’t any puddles of blood. That was a small relief from the fear brewing in his belly.
Maybe the man just took a day off or visited a lady friend.
See, Doc would be proud. That was complete and total positive thinking. Chances were that the seventy year old man was off getting his lovin’ on.
It made Tony snicker and helped alleviate the fear that was threatening to rear its ugly head.
Well, nothing looked out of place. There wasn’t an attic or basement, so the man would be clearly visible if he were lying in distress.
Tony simply shrugged. Tomorrow, he was coming out here bright and early. He was going to give the man total hell for not calling someone to tell them that he was okay.
It was funny.
At some point, the adults became the kids and the irresponsible ones then had to be in charge.
Doc was just lucky that Tony Morell was on duty and watching out for the peace loving citizens of their fair town.
He was lost in thought as he strolled right past the man’s car and the keys lying in the dirt.
Yeah, it was a damn good thing that he was on duty…
* * *
When Chris rolled over that morning, he found his fiancée gone. There wasn’t a trace of her to be found. In her place was Rex, and he was staring at the man with beady black eyes that pretty much said it all.
“I know! I screwed up, Rex. I totally forgot about the cakes. When I put it in my phone, I didn't fill in details.”
Rex just whined as he laid his head back down on the mattress and closed his eyes.
“I know! She didn't want to hear the excuse either.”
When Chris had finally worked up enough nerve to go to bed last night, Cyra was already asleep. In fact, not only was she asleep, but the dog was between them as a protective boundary.
Chris got the hint.
Someone was in the dog house. Ironically, this dog’s house was damn nice. Maybe a little haunted…
Sliding out of bed, he headed for the kitchen. Since he was on duty tonight, he was hoping to get some things done for the wedding that morning.
Unfortunately, doing them with Cyra wasn’t going to happen.
As he stuck his head into the garage, he found their Mercedes gone. Well, one of them. When she moved in, he refused to sell any of his cars. That meant she would have to park outside in the snow, or one of his luxury cars was going to be out there.
Yeah, neither option was happening, so he bargained and they agreed that they had plenty of vehicles that they could drive. So, they were sharing. That morning, Cyra took the sporty one, and that meant she was probably mad, since it was his baby.
At that moment, he visualized her doing vicious donuts in some gravel covered parking lot to take her anger out on their car. When he got it back, he fully expected to see the dings in the black paint.
Then again, she wouldn’t do that to him. Cyra was the sweetest woman on the face of the earth. Yeah, and she had to do a cake tasting alone for their wedding.
Shit.
His car was toast.
Going back in to the coffee pot, he found a note sitting in front of it.
Christopher,
I have paperwork to finish up before I get reassigned to go back out in the field. I know you’re working late tonight. I guess I’ll see you when I get back.
Whenever that is…
Cyra.
Okay, enough was enough. Christopher
Leonard prided himself with being a super patient man, but even his well was only so deep. He never got to see his fiancée, he woke up without her, and went to bed alone now too.
This wasn’t a relationship.
It was roommates.
As soon as he saw her, they were going to be having a conversation. Something had to give, and he only prayed that it wasn’t going to be his upcoming marriage. He loved Cyra with all his heart, and no woman could ever replace her.
That had to be his focus for now.
Nothing else.
Just as he made a cup of coffee, there was banging at the front door. Immediately, he knew it wasn’t Cyra, so that left only one potential person, since everyone else would be at work for the day.
His mother.
Well shit, this day was getting worse and worse.
The only way that it could possibly get even more cataclysmic was if he was suddenly sent out on an assignment. In fact, Chris better not think it, or it was surely going to happen.
At the door, he pulled it open.
The cold breeze whipped around his shirtless body and gave him chills. In strolled his mother, and when she pulled off her cloak, Igor was sitting on her shoulder.
“Mother, you know that he’s not allowed here,” Chris stated. Cyra had a wicked case of arachnophobia and couldn’t stand to be in the same room with the spider. “We’ve had this discussion over and over again.”
In fact, it was turning into a bone of contention.
“She’s gone to work, so it doesn’t matter. Besides, Igor misses you.”
He sighed and walked towards his kitchen. Once there, he sat on a stool and stared at the woman who raised him. Before getting a babe of his own, he was a lot more magnanimous towards the woman. Now, she just bothered him with her demands and pressure.
Yeah and how she was always trying to terrorize his fiancée with the tarantula that was walking on his kitchen counter. Putting out his hand, Igor skittered across to it. Well, at least some living thing wasn’t pissed at him.
Now, he needed to figure out what she was doing there.
With the wedding fast approaching, it wouldn’t surprise him in the least if she was here to bitch and moan. His only saving grace was Cyra was gone to work. Funny, all of the sudden, he wished he was too.
“What is it that you need, Belladonna?” he asked.
“Orion, I have a few things to discuss with you. I had the attorney draw up three different prenuptials.”
“What?” he said, choking on his coffee and nearly spitting it on the spider crawling up his arm.
“Yes, oh, and he sends his best. Anyway, back to the matter at hand. There are three different ones. There’s my personal favorite, the one where she gets absolutely nothing in case of divorce. That means if you dump her or she leaves you, your trust fund is absolutely safe.”
Chris stared at the woman who gave birth to him and so many profanities flittered across the tip of his tongue. “No.”
“Okay, have it your way. We have option number two. In case of divorce, where you leave her, she is entitled to alimony. There won’t be a custody agreement. I had the attorney sneak that line into the fine print. She will automatically lose custody if she files or you file for divorce. Pretty tricky, no?”
He was pretty sure his blood pressure was through the roof. “NO!”
“Okay, then there’s the last one. She gets one million for every five years that she’s with you. I figured that was the one you would go with regardless, but still no custody. It’s not like the gold diggers ever stick around for more than a couple years. What’s a measly million to get rid of her for good?”
Chris actually stood and the stool fell over behind him. “You’re dangerously close to crossing a line that you can’t return from, Belladonna.”
“Orion, you say you love her, but what if you get bored or tired of her and change your mind.”
He knew he needed to try a different route. She just wasn’t getting it. “Mother, how old was I when I decided to be an ME?”
She thought about it. “I think you were about ten. That’s about when you started cutting things open to find out what made them die.”
“Have I ever told you that I changed my mind?”
She shook her head no.
“I’m one of those irritatingly stable people who don’t flit through life like a butterfly from flower to flower. When I find something I like, I stick with it. I have every book I ever bought. I still even have my high school jacket in a closet, and luckily for you, I haven’t tried to purchase a new mother.”
She got his point. “You shouldn’t knock it until you try it, Orion. You may actually see it’s a less stressful way of life.”
He was close to snapping. “Mom, leave.”
“Okay, but one more thing. I was told by the woman doing the flowers that you have a minister planned and a church wedding.”
Chris closed his eyes. THIS is what he knew would be coming. “Yes, mother, we do.”
“Are you out of your mind?” she asked. “I shunned religion years ago and now you’re taking your vows in a church, where I will not go.”
Hey, maybe this day may be getting better and better after all. There was going to be a whole church service without anyone having to cover his mother’s mouth when the minister asks if anyone objected.
It looks like Elizabeth was losing one of her jobs.
“This is insanity, Orion. So, I took it upon myself to cancel the church, the organist, and the minister. I know that she’s pressured you to do all that. So, I’ll take the heat and the blame.”
He stared at her like she was out of her mind. “Are you crazy? We worked hours to find a place that had a few openings for possible wedding days.”
She shrugged. “Well, you’ll find something better. I guarantee it.”
Pulling on her cloak, she carefully lifted Igor from his neck and tucked him beneath her wrap to keep warm. “Have a safe day, Orion,” she stated, going to him and kissing him on the cheek.
As she was leaving, he was so grateful. The day had indeed gotten worse. When he told Cyra this, she was going to lose it and call it all off. After all, could he blame her?
There was no doubt that hell was about to erupt all over his life, and bad things were going to happen. That was saying a lot, considering what he waded through every day of his life.
“Oh, and I saw the flowers that Shana, Cheryl… whatever her name is picked out.”
“Cyra,” he corrected, his blood pressure shooting up even higher. It was official. He was going to die of a stroke.
“Yeah, whatever. Anyway, the colors are all wrong. I cancelled them and reordered the right ones. You don’t have to thank me. I picked my favorites.”
“Mother, she picked roses because they reminded her of her mom. You had no right…”
She cut him off. “Dear, trust your mother. I know what’s best. Not Chantal.”
“Cyra!” he yelled, as his mother walked away.
Well, this was definitely the end of his relationship. It was only a matter of time. It looked like this round was going to go to the witch.
“God help me.”
* * *
Thursday Morning
Well, there was one thing for certain. The three of them were not made for this size bed. At home, their monster mattress was an ultra king, and it fit them perfectly, but this bed was causing issues.
Mostly to Elizabeth.
The men didn't like to hang off the side, so that meant they would move towards the center. Unfortunately for her, she was using that coveted space. Not only using it, but there were technically already two people in it.
Her and Baby Blackhawk.
When she could feel them start to stir, she remained perfectly still. At least now, she wasn’t caught up in anyone’s web of hair.
Callen was the first one awake. When he opened his eyes, he was staring right into Elizabeth’s. “How are you feeling today, Momma?” he asked.
>
As if timed, Ethan popped his head over her shoulder and ran his hand over her ass. “She feels perfect to me.”
It made her giggle. “Yeah, yeah. You two are comedians. In fact, I’m laughing on the inside.”
Ethan stopped laughing. “I just want to thank you both for never giving up on me, and trying to hold me up and not look like you’re doing it. I love you both so much.”
Elizabeth struggled to roll to her back in the tight quarters. “I will always hold you up, Ethan.”
Callen figured this was as good a time as any. “Hey, I have something for you both and this whole conversation is leading there, so I may as well give you an early Valentine’s Day present.”
Watching the man, they both sat up in bed to wait for him to return. After pulling something from of his messenger bag, Callen sat beside them. Immediately, they were his focus.
“I hope you don’t take this gesture the wrong way. It wasn’t meant to upset you or mean anything other than what I’m going to say.”
Now, they were staring at him blankly.
“Okay, Callen,” Ethan said.
He took the small black ring box in his hand and stared at his brother. “When I was battered, bruised, and broken, you did something so incredibly healing, that it put me on this path with you. Granddad gave you the family rings, and you offered them to me so I can feel like I belong.”
They watched him slide it off his finger.
“Callen,” Ethan began.
“Wait, please. Hear me out. I want you to wear it. Granddad gave the rings to me and told me to give it to the person I love, so I’m doing just that. I think it should be yours, Ethan. I know that Patrick Parrish took your ring and destroyed that memory, so I’m giving you something back that will wipe the bad away and keep you safe.”
In his fingers sat their family ring.
“Callen, are you sure?” Blackhawk said, staring down at the symbol of their family.
“I am, because I have this.” He opened the box in his hand and showed them. “It’s the new Whitefox family ring. It’s the exact opposite of yours. Where yours is yellow gold, mine is white, but the stones are still the same. I want your son one day to have this ring. You have every right to pass it on to the ones who carry your name.”
Consumed by Wrath: An FBI/Romance Thriller (An FBI/Romance Thriller ~ Book 8) Page 11