Chapter 15

KY

Two days after we got Bea’s things settled into our place, my phone rang with an unknown number. Normally, I’d just ignore those calls, but something made me pick that one up.

“Thank fuck!” I heard an all-too familiar voice grumble as the line connected.

“Who is this?” I asked the question even though I already knew the answer because he didn’t deserve to know that anyone in Bea’s life would recognize him.

“It’s Law.”

I laughed in response and almost hung up until I heard him groan. “I know I did a shitty thing. Wasn’t thinking. She won’t take my calls.”

“She has you blocked, and for good reason, asshole.”

“I know,” he moaned again, like I would have any sympathy for him. “I wanted to make things right. I will sign annulment papers or whatever she wants me to do, if she’ll drop the criminal charges.” My laughter should have sufficed as his answer. “What the hell, Kylan? I’m being serious and trying to fix the situation.”

“The situation you created by committing fraud?”

“I wasn’t thinking.”

“You were thinking clearly enough to get an accomplice to help you.”

“Yeah, and don’t you give a single damn about your ex-girlfriend? She’s facing charges too, and all because she’s in love with you.”

“She’s not in love with me. She can’t possibly be because she loves herself too much to care about anyone else. Plus, Sandra was never a girlfriend to begin with. I honestly don’t give two fucks what happens to her. She chose to play that game with you and now she has to live with the consequences.” He stayed silent on the other end, so I let him know that his efforts were wasted. “You do too. Bea can’t ask them to drop the charges because you were caught on camera, in the courthouse, committing fraud. They literally have video of what you did and of Bea and me coming in to make things official, only to learn that thanks to you and a technicality, she’s already married. Not legally, mind you, but you’ve caused us enough headaches, you couldn’t possibly think either of us would do you a favor even if it was within our power.”

“You’re an asshole, Ky.”

“No, Law, you’re the asshole for leaving a good woman at the altar, for faking a marriage on paper with her, and prolonging her misery because she’s unwillingly attached to you.”

“She said yes to marrying me.” He yelled down the line.

“Yep, and then she said ‘No’ to you when you left her a note saying you were interested in another woman.”

“I did the right thing!” He yelled.

“No, you didn’t. The right thing would have been for you to call things off when you first realized you didn’t love Bea enough to not get carried away with another woman. This is really a pointless conversation though. We’re only a couple weeks from having your mess fixed and then Bea is all mine. Thanks, by the way. I appreciate you fucking up so I could get my woman back in my arms. I stupidly let her go because I thought SHE would be happier before. I won’t make that mistake again.”

“You really don’t care that they’ll put me in jail, do you?” Once again, my laughter was the only response that seemed to fit his question. “Well, I bet Bea cares.” The asshole insisted rather smugly.

I glanced over to the bed, where Bea still slept. “You really think so? After what you put her through?” He didn’t answer but I could hear his huff of indignation down the line. “Her wild, dark curls are spilled out all over my pillow and hers right now. She’s on her side facing the part of the bed I only just vacated a few minutes before your call. Her arm is stretched out like she’s trying to find me there. She looks so peaceful and serene in her sleep, even with the drool she’s collected on the pillow beneath her.” I chuckled a bit at that because it was true. While they hadn’t lived together before, they had spent nights with one another, so I knew the fucker could picture exactly what I was talking about. “She spent last night with her arms and legs wrapped so tight around me that I didn’t think I’d ever get free. Not that I wanted to. If I didn’t have to go to work today, I’d still be there snuggled up to the best woman in the world. You remember her - the woman you threw away for a missed opportunity with someone else.” I chuckled again as I heard his breathing increase right alongside his growing anger. “You had the perfect woman and now you’ll go to jail for trying to claim her when she wasn’t yours to claim anymore. Both of those things are one hundred percent your fault and I thank you for them.”

I hung up and glanced back up to see that Bea was awake. “That was some speech. I’m assuming Law called you for some reason?”

“He said he would sign annulment papers or whatever was necessary if you would withdraw the criminal charges.”

My beautiful woman laughed. “I don’t have any control over those criminal charges. He did what he did in full sight of the security cameras and witnesses, including the woman whose job is on the line as a result.”

“Told him that too, but you were still asleep for that part.”

“So, you think I’m the perfect woman, huh?”

“Drool and all, baby!”

She threw her swampy pillow at me, and as luck would have it, the wet spot is what caught me in the face. That wasn’t something I’d ever complain about.

“Do you have to go to work today?”

I nodded. “Took as much time off as I’m able to right now. Some of us don’t get summers off like you, lucky girl.”

“I’m thinking about looking for a part time job this summer. I need something to keep me busy. She seemed worried about how I would react, so I moved to her side and smiled down at her.

“Bea, you do whatever is best for you. You want a summer job to keep you occupied, get one. If you don’t want one and want to work on hobbies or just laze around the house all day, that’s fine too. Whatever makes you happy.”

“You mean that, don’t you?”

“Of course, I do. Why wouldn’t I want you happy?”

“It’s like night and day. I don’t know how I stayed with Law as long as I did. Every time you prove what his answers should have been, it makes me wonder why I didn’t put it all together before now.” She huffed and blew a curl out of her face as she sat up with her back to the headboard.

“What do you mean?”

“When I told Law that I wanted to get a little side job for the summer, he almost lost his mind. Of course, I’d done it in front of his mother during Sunday brunch, and she had the same opinion as her son. They had the nerve to tell me that my time off should be about being there for Law and whatever he needed. Another job would mean time sacrificed. It’s not like he wouldn’t still be working.” She huffed again. “His mother suggested that I hand deliver Law’s lunch to him every day and he was in complete agreement with her.”

“That whole family has issues.”

“I can’t believe I almost married into that mess. What was I thinking?”

“It doesn’t matter now. We have one another, and I’m all for whatever schedule will make you happy.” If I knew how to make that smile on Bea’s face permanent, I would bottle the sentiment and make sure to give her healthy doses of it on the regular. Unfortunately, the alarm on my cell phone rang out and I realized that I would be late if I lingered any longer.

“Sorry, Sweet Bea, I have to get to work. There’s nothing more I want right now than to lay you flat on this bed and eat you up from bottom to top, but I am out of time. So, stew on that all day while you think about where you want to work. Tonight, we’ll make it happen.” I winked at her and watched as she ducked her head and blushed. Fuck, but that was a sight. The woman was too mature to blush the way younger women did. Then again, she had two lovers in her life, and I doubted either of them were that good, so it was kind of like she was still all fresh and new. I cherished every fucking blush she gave me and hoped to see more.

“Bea,” I called just as I got to the bedroom door.

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too, Ky.” The words were almost a whisper and I could see the shine of tears in her eyes as she spoke. There was a part of her that Law had damaged. That asshole made her believe she wasn’t worthy, but it was now my life’s mission to disabuse her of that silly notion. My woman was perfect and damn if I’d allow her to behave as though she had reason to doubt that.