The Marriage Debt

by Waltz, Vanessa

  Blair wasn’t as intrigued. "I found out when the rest of the world did. Thanks, brother."

  "I feel like I owe you an explanation." I steeled myself, suddenly nervous. "Graham and I didn't mean to get hitched. We met each other by chance, got blackout drunk, and didn't realize we were married until five years later."

  "Wow," said Liam, grinning. "Did he make you sign an NDA?"

  "Nope," I said.

  Liam slapped the table, laughing. "Wow. He must've taken a shine to you."

  "That doesn’t sound like him at all." Blair raised her eyebrows, suspicious. "So, you’re after his money?"

  "What? No!"

  "Come on," she rolled her eyes. "Why would he keep a stranger around? No offense."

  "It wasn’t a fling. We had plans to start a relationship, but someone else got in the way. We just found our way back to each other."

  Liam nodded at Blair, who still looked skeptical. "This explains a lot, babe. He was always indifferent about dating. I don’t think he ever got over this girl."

  I marveled that she lived here. Blair grabbed a rolling pin from the drawer and frowned at the broken end. She screwed it in and swore when it fell out. "Liam, can you fix this?"

  She held it out to her boyfriend.

  He glanced at it. "Yeah."

  I waited for a punch line, but this was no joke. Blair acted like she wasn't the heiress to a significant fortune. Why was she living like a starving grad student?

  Whatever. Not my business. "What are you guys making?"

  "Perogies," she said. "We’re having people over tomorrow."

  Liam smiled at me. "You’re more than welcome to come."

  Blair shot him a glance, but I shook my head. "I was hoping you'd both come over. Graham isn't well."

  Concern knitted Blair’s brows. "He’s sick?"

  "Not physically, no." I couldn’t explain how dire the situation was without shoving them in the same room. "He’s not doing well. I’m—I’m afraid for him."

  Alarm flashed on their faces.

  "What do you mean?" Blair demanded.

  I met Liam’s gaze, which was the friendlier of the two. "Graham needs you. He needs his family. Please, I’m begging you."

  Liam gave Blair a sharp look. "Sounds serious."

  The copper-haired beauty masked her worry by rolling out more dough. “Whatever it is, I’m sure he can handle it.”

  “Blair, he’s your brother,” argued Liam.

  “No,” she shot back. “He’s an arrogant ass who slugged my boyfriend after I had the gall to invite him to meet my parents.”

  "I’m over it." Liam crossed his arms. “He apologized. It’s fine.”

  “Then I find out I have another goddamned brother from Manhattan Weekly." Frustration sparked from her as she gave up on the perogies and tossed the rolling pin into the sink. "He kept that from me all these years. They all did."

  I slowly met her gaze. “You don’t want to know Ethan. I was engaged to him. Trust me.”

  “My brother should've let me make up my own mind."

  "He wanted to protect you." I sat in a kitchen chair, suddenly drained. "He loves you. Deeply."

  Liam shot me a sympathetic look. “How is he?”

  “Bad. He’s not sleeping. Barely eats." I couldn’t fill them in about his other activities, but hopefully my concern was enough. "He’s in agony."

  Guilt shone from Blair’s eyes. "What do you mean?"

  "Well, he talks about you a lot. He misses you, Blair. I told him he needed to give you space."

  She wiped her eyes, and Liam slid an arm over his shoulder. “So why didn’t you let him?"

  "Because he’s in a crisis." I reached across the table and took her hand. “If you love your brother, you’ll go to him. Right now."

  "Okay," Blair said, sounding like a lump bulged in her throat. "Let’s go."

  * * *

  God, I hoped I was doing the right thing.

  My anxiety made the long ride to Hawthorne Condominiums worse for everyone. It seeped out of me like a poisonous fog, infecting my sister-in-law and her boyfriend. By the time we reached Graham’s private elevator, Blair was crying. Liam scooped her in his arms and kissed her head.

  Graham had no idea they were coming. I didn’t want him to prepare for us. He’d be caught off guard. Blair would fell him at the knees. He’d forget about his bloodlust and move on.

  When the doors opened, we stepped into the lobby. I listened hard for his footsteps and tensed when they wanted to go find Graham.

  "Let me get him," I pleaded. "He might—I don’t know how he’ll react."

  Blair nodded, sinking into a sofa in the lounge. Liam joined her, exhaling a tense sigh. He rubbed her back and shot me a worried look. I left in search of my husband. His office was empty. I checked the bedroom, the atrium, and then my hands grazed the brass doorknob of the library. The door swung open.

  I expected to see the room in tatters—books on the floor with pages missing, chunks gone from furniture, ripped up rugs, and chaos. Everything was in its right place, and somehow that disturbed me even more.

  Years of living with Ethan taught me something—money turned people into thugs. When domination, threats, and fear made a person’s instincts, there was little difference between them and people behind bars. Some people were so accustomed to getting their way that they’d go to any lengths to secure what they wanted. When enough money bought anything, it made billionaires the most destructive people in the world.

  I wouldn’t let Graham become another Ethan.

  "I won’t ask where you go," said a dour voice to my right. "If you promise to stop ditching your security."

  "It’s okay. Mitch came with me."

  Graham sat in yesterday’s clothes, sleep lines etched on his cheeks. He stood at my approach and rubbed his eyes. "I call. You don’t pick up. I call again. This isn’t what I signed up for."

  I took his hand. "I have something for you."

  Warily, he lurched forward. "What?"

  "Just come."

  Graham eyed his bedroom longingly. He looked on the verge of collapse until he heard voices whispering in the elevator lounge. He broke from my hand, suddenly wide awake.

  "Who is that?"

  "It’s okay," I said. "I brought them over."

  "Who?" he demanded, rounding on me. "Why didn’t you tell me?"

  I stifled my response as Blair’s flaming head peeked around the corner. Graham wheeled around.

  "Blair?"

  "Hey, stranger." She took in her brother’s disheveled appearance with a wavering smile. "I’ve never seen you like this."

  My husband froze. He blinked several times, as though making sure she was real. "Like—like what?"

  "Ugly."

  Slowly, he grinned. "Come here, you little jerk."

  Blair flew into his chest as a sob broke from her mouth. Stunned, Graham stumbled backward from the force of her embrace. She dissolved into tears as he wrapped his arms around her.

  Graham clutched her head. "What’s wrong?"

  "You," she growled, voice shaking. "You should have told me about—about him. I’ve been so mad at you."

  "I’m sorry. For everything." Joy flickered on his exhausted face, followed swiftly by crushing sadness. "I missed you."

  Blair tipped her face toward his. "I missed you. Damn it."

  Liam caught my eye and joined me as I walked away to give them privacy.

  "Thank God," Liam said as he watched them embrace. "It’s about time."

  We made small talk in the kitchen while Graham and Blair caught up in the library. When they emerged, Graham's arm wrapped her shoulders. I whipped up an early lunch as the two siblings exchanged wisecracks. A couple of hours later, they left with the promise to visit again soon.

  Graham pulled me into his arms the moment the door closed. His body shook with restrained emotion. Happiness glowed with every kiss planted on my neck. He didn’t say anything, but I knew I’d done the right thing.


  He’d change. Everything would be fine.

  Graham

  Nothing changed.

  Blair wanted to meet her half-brother, but I couldn’t let that happen. Having her in my life meant the world. When he realized Naomi was forever out of his reach, he'd go after Blair. My sister would be the next victim. I loved Naomi for returning Blair to me, but I wasn't done with Ethan.

  Not by a long shot.

  My arm lassoed Naomi’s waist. Her eyes filled with bottomless hope, and this time I wouldn’t shoot it down. I fucking loved her. She was my everything.

  I stroked her naked curves, which sprawled over our bed. Sheets tangled with our feet, and my heart still hammered. Naomi rolled into my arms and pressed her lips into my cheek.

  "Are you happy?" she asked.

  Beyond ecstatic. "I’ll never forget what you did for me."

  She smiled, her face burning as we switched places. I flipped her onto the mattress, kissing her flushed mouth before sweeping down her neck. I nipped her skin already blooming with red, tonguing her collarbone and the gorgeous swell of her tits.

  She moaned, fingers tightening in my hair. "I was glad to do it."

  Desire sharpened in my groin as I continued, her olive skin shimmering with my lust. I kissed her belly, then that beautiful dent of her hips, all the way across her mound, flushed with arousal. She hissed as my tongue flicked her swollen pussy.

  I'd already had my way with her twice, but I wasn't finished. The way she bucked against my lips told me she felt the same. Naomi's taste flooded my mouth as I licked and kissed her clit.

  Her thighs trapped me. She arched her back, but then she started tugging my hair.

  I kissed her before sliding my body over hers. I caught her lips. She melted into me. My lust for this woman was an everlasting flame. She moaned into my mouth and latched onto me. I ripped a condom from a packet and rolled it over my cock.

  She stopped me.

  "Wait," she panted. "I need—I need to ask something."

  "Go ahead, and then I’m fucking you into oblivion." I kissed her swollen lips and stroked her raven hair.

  "Do you want kids?"

  I hovered over her, grinning. "You want to have this conversation now?"

  "Well, yeah." Naomi's cheeks darkened under my stare. "We've been using condoms, but I need to know if you want a family. I'm twenty-eight. If we're going to do this, it should be soon. It's something I care about."

  Children were the farthest thing from my mind. I palmed Naomi’s belly, imagining a baby bump swelling under my hand. I saw her swaddling a newborn—Blair babysitting the rugrats with Liam.

  It was a lovely image, but was I ready to be a parent?

  She was. Naomi’s eyes danced over my face as her chest swelled with rapid breaths.

  "I’ve always wanted kids." I sank from my elbows to rest my forehead against hers. "Two or three."

  "Me too," she whispered. "Two boys."

  "Are you kidding me? I want girls."

  She laughed, shaking her head. "Girls are hard. Boys are so much easier."

  Agree to disagree. "I wanted to have you to myself for a while, but I’m okay with trying now. If that’s what you want."

  "Yes."

  Happy tears clung to her lashes as I peeled the condom off and sank into her. She gripped my cock as though I hadn’t fucked her twice already. She moaned, sending another thrill to my erection.

  I buried myself to the hilt, encouraged by her heels digging into my back. My thrusts deepened when she lifted her hips to match my strokes. She wanted this badly, and I was in no shape to deny her. Naomi won over my heart. I was a prisoner and master of her love.

  She was mine. Forever.

  Her tongue thrust into my mouth. I caught it between my teeth. I drilled her, aching to fill her with cum. My whole body throbbed with the need, and she kept kneading my ass, urging me faster. Harder.

  I yanked her hips. Pleasure burst from me in a crashing wave. My thrusts were like iron, and she arched. A moan shook from her lips as ecstasy claimed her as well. Warmth spilled from me into her, and she contracted, taking it from me. We melted in a pool of baby-making bliss.

  She smiled. It was furtive. "We just tried for a baby."

  "Yeah. We did."

  I grinned at her, sharing in the joy of being in on this beautiful secret.

  Naomi

  Loretti’s was mine again. Finally.

  As soon as I signed the contract.

  I touched the tip of my pen on the dotted line. Blue ink bled onto the paper.

  Sign it. Ethan wants you to have it.

  Did he? Or did he want to avoid another beating?

  Ethan’s signature looped into the adjacent space. I stared at it until my vision blurred, but trying to read his intentions was impossible.

  "Something wrong?" Graham slid toward me on the couch, peering at my printed name. "Did he misspell anything?"

  "No, it’s fine."

  My hand shook as I put pen to paper and forced myself to scrawl Naomi Hawthorne.

  "This is horrible." I slid the paper across the walnut coffee table.

  Graham seemed puzzled. "Why?"

  "I keep thinking about his mangled arm. I can’t pretend it didn’t happen."

  Guilt burrowed into my heart as Graham sank into the jersey-blue couch with an exasperated sigh.

  "He wants you to have it."

  "Does he?" I asked, honestly interested in the answer. "Or is he worried he’ll get killed?"

  "Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth."

  Graham’s thin-lipped smile barely hid his impatience. He wanted this mess to be over as much as I did. An Ethan-free world didn’t seem possible a few weeks ago, but more and more it was as if he was disappearing. I hadn’t heard from him since the hospital.

  Fucking finally, said a part of me. The other half hated that we’d left on such awful terms. It would be a relief to walk away from him knowing he was at peace, but I knew my ex. He was planning his counterattack right now.

  Graham slid to me, his arm snaking my waist. He kissed my head. "You are so softhearted."

  I palmed his chest, playing with the shirt’s buttons. A contented growl rumbled deep in his throat. I curled my fingers in his shirt and relished our closeness, the way he held my hand and brought it to his mouth, his penetrating stare.

  He grasped my neck and pressed his lips into mine. A tremor seemed to pass through him into me. Trying for a baby had unlocked an enthusiasm that began every morning with him dragging the sheets off me, bending me over the bed, taking me in the shower, and once when I visited him at work.

  We couldn’t get enough of each other.

  I glowed with pride. "Thank you."

  "For?"

  Well, everything. "Stealing me back. Keeping me safe. I think he's gone for good—"

  "—He’ll never go away. Not for me." Graham inhaled a deep breath and looked at me, his eyes heavy with something.

  Regret.

  He exhaled. "I don’t know how to do this."

  "What?"

  "You’re going to hate me." Graham seemed to lose his nerve. He reached for the cocktail he’d made, so strong I could smell it feet away. He made a face but tipped it into his mouth anyway. Then he swallowed. "But I'm taking you to your dad's."

  "What?"

  "I’ve already asked," he replied, blowing through my question. "He said it was fine. In the coming weeks, my real estate agent will tour you around the city. I'll get you an apartment wherever you like if you decide you want to live apart."

  "What are you talking about?" I demanded, a lump rising in my throat. "I’m not going anywhere without you."

  "You have to." His voice was suddenly hoarse.

  "No."

  "Naomi, I have to let you go."

  He’d spent a fortune to get me away from Ethan. He risked everything for me. He went against common sense when I’d begged him for a divorce.

  Why dump me now?

 
"So you’re breaking up with me?"

  "No. Naomi, I want you to have space—real space—from me. You need it. I need it, too. It won’t be forever," he promised. "Just until I fix what’s broken inside me."

  This had come out of nowhere. "What are you talking about?"

  "I’m not good enough for you. Me and Ethan are cut from the same cloth."

  "That’s insane."

  He was as steel-jawed when he told me I was moving in with him, and I was certain he wouldn’t compromise.

  I hated this. We were so close to paradise, but Graham kept dragging us to hell.

  Why couldn't he let it go?

  "I didn’t fall in love with a monster."

  "I manipulated you from the beginning. It’s my fault you had to leave your apartment."

  I thought of the brief flare of triumph when I’d walked into that place, only to have it snatched from me.

  "How?"

  "I called the press release and leaked your address."

  Oh God. Tears skated my chin as I looked at the man who had sworn he was nothing like his brother.

  "How—why would you do that?"

  "I had to have you," he said baldly. "I couldn’t believe you were with him, that Ethan held onto you for five years right under my nose. Once I saw that engagement ring on his Instagram, I decided to steal you back. He’d never touch you again, if I could help it."

  "None of that matters anymore." I leaned closer, begging him to see reason. "You and I belong together."

  "You’re here because I manipulated you. I’m the same as Ethan."

  "Not at all. You can’t be fucking serious." I blinked away tears, struggling to find the right words. "Everything was a transaction with Ethan. He toyed with me. I was never sure when he was lying. You aren’t cruel."

  Graham gave me a pointed look. "I broke his fucking arm."

  "So, you have a dark side. We all do."

  "Now you’re rationalizing," he groaned.

  "I’m an adult, and I can make my own damned choices. I choose to forgive you."

  "I’m bad for you," he said softly. "I don’t deserve a wife and family, if I can’t put your needs before mine. When it comes to you, I lose my goddamned mind."