EX-HUSBAND'S BOSS FOR VALENTINE

STOP DIGGING

ROYAL:

The hands of the wall clock move slowly, and with each tick, I chug a glass of wine. I should be enjoying it because, I mean, it’s Château Pétrus, but the fact Melania is missing has made the velvety taste vanish, and all I can taste is sour wine.

I have called her phone ten times, and she hasn’t answered. It’s like she’s doing this on purpose, and I can’t help but think about what Brady said. What if she’s out meeting her ex-husband? That’s impossible because she would never do that to me, and—

My thoughts are cut off as soon as I hear the front door open. I drop the glass in my hand on the glass stool beside me, then get to my feet, waiting for her to enter the living room.

With my eyes on the door, I cross my arms as my brows furrow. The moment she walks in, I question her.

“Where have you been?”

She pauses, then looks up at me with a shrug. “Out.”

Her answer is flat, and it strikes a couple of nerves. I’m barely holding back because I don’t want to be harsh on her, but she’s trying so hard to see that part of me, and I might as well just break.

“It’s past nine, Melania. Where could you have possibly gone?” She opens her mouth to speak, but then Callum walks into the living room.

“Good evening, sir,” he gives a slight bow, then walks to Melania. “You forgot to take the keys.” She grabs the keys, and he turns to leave, but I call out to him.

“Wait.” He pauses, then turns to face me.

I can’t tell if I’m just trying to push blame, but why would he let her stay out this late? It’s his job to protect her, not put her in danger.

“Where the hell have you been?”

“I took—”

“Callum, stop!” Melania cautions, cutting him off. Callum shuts his mouth, and for a moment, there is silence. I glance at Melania, my entire body boiling over the surface.

My hands curl into fists, and I grit my teeth, trying so hard to stop myself from having an outburst.

“I asked you a question, Callum,” I add, and Melania puts up a hand, signaling him not to say a word. She’s f*****g testing me, and I don’t know how long I can keep up with this.

“You hired him to take care of me, so what we do, where we go, is none of your business.”

What we do? Could she be implying that… no, I must be crazy.

She faces him. “You may leave.”

Callum, who looks confused, stands there for a moment, glaring at me. I can see the fear in his eyes, and I don’t want him to be intimidated because my problem is clearly in front of me. Small but influential.

“Dismissed.” Callum walks away as I say this, then I face Melania. “Fine, you’ve made your point. What did I do wrong this time?” I question, and she scoffs.

“Are you really asking that?”

“Yes. I need to know why I can’t come home and enjoy peace and bliss after a long day of work.”

She chuckles when I say this.

“God, you sound just like him, so what’s even the point?” She asks, letting out a sigh.

The fact she’s comparing me to that loser of a husband gets to me. “And if you really want to know what you did, then here it is, Royal.” She bores her eyes into mine. “I know you are tailing my ex-husband.”

Her words slam into my chest, causing me to swallow hard as my eyes widen. I unfold my arms.

“You have nothing more to say, do you?” she questions, and I open my mouth to speak, but words fail me.

“I followed you today, and I know you met with your P. A, so the only reasonable explanation is you trying to dig into my ex-husband’s life. The fact you are quiet says a lot.” She attempts to walk away, then the words leave my mouth.

“I know he has ties with the Gray Vipers.”

She pauses in her tracks and shrugs. “And why does that matter?” she questions, causing my brows to furrow.

“Can you hear yourself, Mel?” I scoff. “Your husband is a dangerous criminal. He has been to jail three times on counts of s****l assault, drug peddling, and—”

“Go on, school me on the things I have no clue about.”

I press my lips into a hard line as she says this.

She’s aware of all this? Could she have aided in some of them? I shrug it off as I remember the cases were before she got married to him, but why is she trying so hard to get me off it? Maybe he threatened her.

I walk toward her, closing the space between us, then inhale sharply, cupping her face. Her face wrinkles slightly.

“Did he threaten you?” I ask in a low voice, and she loosens her face, throwing it to the side.

“So, he did threaten you?” I question, and she grabs my hand, pulling it away from her face.

“Before I met you, I had a life, Royal. I’m doing this favor because I need the money terribly, but if you weren’t here, I would have gotten my divorce either way. My ex-husband is dangerous, but I know him, and I don’t need you escalating this, please.”

I let out a huge breath as she says this.

“If you want me to keep on with this arrangement, then I’m asking you nicely to stop digging into his life. It will come back to bite us harder because I don’t want him hurting your family members. Thank you.”

With that, she makes her way toward the stairs, and I stand there, trying to process the fact that she just threatened me in the most subtle way. And I want to say it didn’t work, but I’d be lying.

She’s threatening to pull out from the arrangement. That could ruin my life…