SADIE
“Your husband—” I jerked inside the fitting room, my hand on my chest. My heart was in my throat. Shivers ran down my spine as I watched my brother in the mirror standing behind me.
“How the hell did you get in here, Jasper?” I turned around to face him, stepping back. At least if he would think of doing something, he couldn’t do it from behind.
“He’s going to ruin this family, sis. He’s going to destroy the Greer legacy.” With a calculated pace, he took steps closer to me. “You should do something. Tell me about his plan.”
I clutched the garments in my hand against my chest. “Back off, Jasper.”
“You will spy on him, Sadie. He trusts you.”
“I’m afraid your judgment is wrong. Cenric doesn’t trust me.”
With his eyes bloodshot wide, he hovered and gripped my arms that I knew would leave marks. “If you, as much as enjoy your life outside, you will do as
CENRIC Having a constant raging hard-on was a motherfucker. And now she thought I didn’t want to fuck her. She didn’t have any idea what I did to control this urge to stop myself from taking her wherever I wanted. Now that she was in period, the struggle was far more severe.What is one week I can’t handle?Easy peasy. But it was a lie. “I want to work.” I focused my mind on the tv screen. Cooper just lost a few decades, and it was that one of his team was getting older while he only got a few hours older. “Cenric.” “I heard you, babe.” “That’s good.” “Not until I settle out with your brother. You’re still not safe.” “If I get an office job, he has to go through a security guard before he can get into me. Devin will send and pick me up after work.” I completely understood that she wanted to work. She had been going through a rough patch for years in the hands of her brothe
SADIE Argh!I wanted to pull my hair out. He didn’t get it, did he? He would never get it. Again, I was trapped in the same maze over and over again. Men were all the same—they thought they ruled the world. They felt they owned women. They thought women got easily manipulated. Well, I would make him wrong. I would never back down.Watch me. I was kind of relieved that he had left me alone. I was exhausted.I’m done. I started getting used to sharing a bed with him, but I woke up alone this morning. The entire penthouse was dead silent. I knew Cenric had left to work— that was what he was good at. I still tiptoed down, making sure I wouldn’t make any noise. “Good morning, ma’am.” “What’s good in the morning? Where’s your boss?” “Left for work.” “Good.” I walked directly to the kitchen. To my surprise, I couldn’t f
CENRIC The last two days had been rough at work, even for someone who had billion dollars. Money couldn’t buy happiness if you were not materialistic. Getting to where I was right now didn’t happen overnight. I worked hard—sweat, blood, and tears were my investment. There were trials, a lot of problems, and errors along the way. There were criticisms and rejections—tons of it, but I never gave up. I had a goal to reach, and my efforts had paid off. I worked for long hours than usual, only to divert my attention from apologizing to my wife. I was not good at sharing my emotions and spilling my guts, and it wasn’t going to happen now. Yes, I was an asshole, a selfish son of a bitch, but Sadie was disrespectful, and she had to learn some lessons. If I tolerated that kind of attitude, she would get used to it and do it again. One of us should change, and it should be her. And this birthday party gave me a headache. All I wanted was a charity event that didn’t have to focus on me. Every
SADIE It may sound like a Q & A in a beauty pageant, but I wanted to help. If there was even a tiny thing, I could help make the world a better place, then so be it. I also reminded myself that I was married to a business tycoon. Cenric had money and power, and he was well connected. So I decided to show up. It was not my first rodeo to attend events like this, but not with the man of the hour. Earlier today, he sent a makeup artist to make me look like the woman fit to be in his side. So tonight, they would meet the trophy wife of the great Cenric Wollf. The birthday slash fundraising gala had already begun, and damn, the strapless sweetheart neckline, high slit red floor-length evening gown in crystals and sequins was eye-catching. It was created in sophistication and class. Added to that, the diamond set around my neck and teardrop earring gave me a Grace Kelly vibe. I also put on my engagement ring and wedding band he returned. I’d already mastered a different kind of smile b
CENRIC The tension between us was thicker than the earth’s surface. Sadie was guarded all the time—distant, and she had no intention of hiding it from me. She wasn’t sorry for what had happened. I must say, though, I was surprised how she could blend in easily with the crowd. And she looked breathtaking in a red gown. Gorgeous. My fucking wet dream. “I’ll pay the money you borrowed from Zhuri. I want you to have your necklace back.” Confusion knotted on her forehead. “Why?” “I want you to have it back. Why is it so hard for you to accept it?” Does she have also trust issues? “It looks special. Who gave it to you?” I had to ask even if I knew it was from her mother. “Mom.” “Then you need to keep it.” The look in her eyes, she was questioning my intentions. “No motives, babe.” “Fine.” I gestured to another table to our left. Willa was sitting there. “The woman you get jealous over.” The reaction on her face was fascinating to watch. She blushed furiously. “Will you stop it?
SADIE I’d waited. Three hours later, still no sign of Cenric. Surprisingly, my banning from technology and the internet was over. I got my phone, cards, and keys back. As if everything was back to normal. The fridge was full. There was also a bag containing a new laptop. So the full moon was over, and he was back to a regular hard-working man. Jeez, if he wasn’t the most temperamental, frustrating, unpredictable, and annoying man I’d ever met. He still hadn’t come home. I was tired of waiting. I went to bed when it was already five in the morning. An hour later, I couldn’t even get a blink of sleep. I sat on the bed with my chin on my knees. I was tempted to call him, though, but if he wanted me to know what made him so late, he would have let me know. I thought he was not the type of husband who informed his wife of his whereabouts. “Why did you not take this?” I was startled and quickly glanced up. My heart was
CENRIC “Ready?” “Not sure.” Sadie still looked puzzled. “I really don’t like it if I don’t know where we’re going. What’s with the surprise?” “Trust me. We won’t ride on a roller coaster.” “Damn it, Zhuri.” She touched her necklace. She finally got it back. Her friend even told me that Sadie forced her to accept it as collateral. The elevator slid when we reached the ground floor, where I parked my cars. I had collections from vintage to sports and even customized, but among these, I chose the Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet. If girls loved diamonds, we boys loved our rides. “Why this one?” she asked out of curiosity as she ran her finger on the sleek gray exterior. “Because it’s timeless. It reminds me of you.” She rolled her eyes. “Cheesy.” “Call it cheesy, but that’s the truth.” I closed the door as soon I stuffed her in. “It still smells brand new,” she noticed. Of cours
SADIE I couldn’t believe things between us were getting committed in a short time. I felt like this was surreal. And it scared the hell out of me. When I entered the house, I realized that we started to have a possibility of a long and lasting relationship. Since his birthday party, he’d been nothing but a thoughtful husband and a free-spirited man who had nothing but to please his wife. Cas was right, Cenric seemed to have two personalities, and he could switch the man on top of me right now if the darker side had taken over him. He groaned, seemed unimpressed, “Here you go again.” “What? Why did you stop?” I ran my thumb on his swollen lips. “You’re not with me.” “Really?” I lifted my hips so that I could feel his erection poking deliciously against my core, and the size could split me in half. I was so turned on, and it ached like a bitch. “So you happened to just get this hard on by humping into the bed.”