Chapter 9

“What?” Gael asked his father who was looking on with an amused expression.

“You like her.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not you. I don’t get starry eyes over women the way you do,” he said. “How could you do it after all she’s done to you?” He found he was worked up over the little exchange with Zoe. The girl had the uncanny ability to boil his blood.

His father stepped closer and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Let’s have a talk in my study. We need to clear the air.”

Before he could reply, Marla returned with the chicken soup on a tray. She stood awkwardly a few feet away, obviously sensing the tension.

“Where is Unicorn?” she asked.

“She went back up; she isn’t up to eating. Let her rest,” Gael told her, not taking his eyes off his father.

Marla returned to the kitchen, and as soon as she was out of earshot, he addressed his father. “I don’t want to know,” he replied, shrugging off the man’s hand. “It’s your life.”

“I insist, son.”

They eyed each other for a minute before he relented. The resentment towards his father and stepmother churned in his stomach, bringing a bit of bile to his throat. David started in the direction of the passage behind the staircase, and he followed.

The first door on the right opened, and the two of them entered, after which his father closed it. Gael noticed that the room’s décor was as different as the rest of the house.

The last time he was there, the place was dilapidated with the furniture falling apart. The walls needed painting, and the roof had been in disrepair. Now the house seemed brand new and well-maintained. David was also different … happy even? At least the man hadn’t had a drink since he arrived.

One thing was the same in the study, and that was the mahogany desk which his grandfather used to own. A lump rose in his throat at the sight of it. It appeared to have been restored from the deplorable condition in which he last saw it.

“Gael, when will you forgive me?” David asked, his voice thick as he reached his Lazy-boy behind the desk.

“What are you talking about?”

“I know you resent me for a lot of things, including losing the shipping company your grandfather built. I’m so proud of you for doing what you did.”

Gael sat in an armchair facing the desk. “Is that what this is all about?”

“You need to let go of the past, son,” David continued. “This anger you have towards me will eat at you until there’s nothing left but a shell.”

“I’m not angry,” he replied, his voice like steel.

“You’re angry about a lot of things, including the fact that Marla and I got back together.”

“That’s none of my business,” he told the man who cocked a brow. “What’s with that? You divorced mom when she cheated on you but took back your second wife …”

“What your mom did was different.”

“How so?”

“Marla never left me,” he said.

“What? Weren’t you the one to drink yourself into a stupor when she left you for that billionaire?”

David shook his head. “That’s just it; she never left me for him. She did what she thought was best to save the house … our lives.”

A look of incredulity crossed Gael’s features. “What are you talking about?”

“She did it to save us. The man knew what he was getting, and he agreed?”

“I’m confused. Are you saying you sold your wife for money?”

“No,” David replied hastily. “I had no say in the matter. She did what she did without consulting me first. But the man did ask me to sign a contract; that’s how I found out.”

“I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Is this some kind of a sick joke?” Gael rose. “Is this what you’ve amounted to?”

“Gael, when the man approached me, I was stunned. That’s when I started drinking again. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized what she was doing.”

“And what exactly was that?”

“She was doing it to save our family.”

“Jesus Christ, Dad, you could have come to me if you needed money that badly!”

David looked sharply at him. “Could I Gael? Would you really have listened to me? Would you have helped me?”

He did not answer. Perhaps his father was right about coming to him for help. He’d been so angry with them all that he perhaps would have turned him away, but to barter his wife for money was beyond his scope of understanding.

“How much was it?” he asked, curious about the sum collected for giving his wife to another man.

“Does the amount matter?”

“Yes, it does, and how long did she … you know what with this man?”

“It’s not what you think,” David replied.

“What do you mean it’s not what I think? You just told me she sold herself to the highest bidder, and you took her back to your bed!”

David’s face hardened. “Be careful what you say about Marla. I said it’s not what you think.”

“Then what is it? It sounds like high-class prostitution to me,” he replied.

“Stop it this instant!”

“Why, because you were too weak to say no to a few dollars you sold your wife to another man?”

“He was gay!”

“Oh, come on Dad, you expect me to believe that?”

“Are you going to listen to what I have to say or will you continue your disrespect of my wife?”

“Okay, I’m listening,” he muttered, returning to his seat.

In a calmer voice, his father began, “I can’t tell you who the man is due to our agreement, but he’s from Dubai, one of the oil princes. If he came out as being gay, he could be put to death. His parents needed him to marry and arranged a girl, but he told them he met and fell in love with a woman from the Americas. He needed to produce this woman to his family, and that’s where Marla came in.”

“So you’re telling me that this gay prince needed to fool his parents and chose another man’s wife?”

“Well, when we got into debt she decided to get back into acting and signed up with an agency. At the time, he was looking for someone who could play the role well, and he liked my Marla.”

“Are you sure this wasn’t some story they made up to fool you, Dad?”

“I met the man, and he was legit. At first, I didn’t believe, but she convinced me it was just another acting gig.”

Gael shook his head slowly. “I’ve never heard anything so ludicrous. How much was it?”

“Two million dollars. She told him she would not consider less and that his secret would be safe with her. To prove it, she never took her cell phone or a camera the entire time she was in Dubai.”

“This is one hard story to believe.”

“I know,” David said in a quiet tone. “So you see why I took her back. She never left me. What your mother …”

Gael cut in mid-sentence, “I don’t want to discuss mother.”

“You’ve got to let go of the bitterness, Scooch. She is sorry for what she did to us.”

“How do you figure she’s sorry when she cheated on her second husband?”

David’s eyes widened. ”What?”

“You heard me, Dad. She cheated on him, and when he kicked her to the curb, she came running to me for money.”

“I didn’t know that. When did that happen?”

“Three years ago.”

“Oh,” his father mumbled. “I had no idea what was going on. She called last summer to tell me how sorry she was about hurting our family. We talked for a while, and she seemed happy.”

“The idiot took her back.”

“Have you considered this man loves your mother?”

Love? What was love anyway. Didn’t his parents claim to love each other until death? He remembered them together as a child. They were loving, always affectionate toward each other. His father would go work with his grandfather, Aaron, and his mother would do her gardening.

They weren’t wealthy. In fact, they were a normal middle-class family with a struggling shipping business. His grandfather was old school, fearing the new technologies that could help his business grow. The company needed money, and the bank turned down numerous applications for a loan.

It was so bad that some Christmases there were no presents as his family couldn’t afford it. He remembered not having birthday parties or going on camping trips with his school because of low funds. However, his grandfather always told him that one day the business would belong to him and it would be a success.

As he grew older, he began to notice the rift between his parents. His grandfather passed away when he was seven, and his parents started arguing a lot.

He had no idea that his father had drinking and gambling problems, and that his mother was seeing another man. He wasn’t certain if her infidelity was as a result of the failure of the business or not. All he knew was that she left him to marry another man and never looked back until she needed something.

A part of him blamed the man sitting before him. If only he had been a better husband, perhaps she’d have stayed. He should have tried to save the business, provide a better livelihood. Instead, he drank and gambled away their savings. Of course, he was aggrieved with the past.

As if the man was reading his thoughts, David’s voice brought him back to the present. “I know you blame me for your mother leaving, but what could I have done?”

“I don’t know,” he growled, getting to his feet. “I don’t really want to talk about this. Let’s just drop it.”

He started walking to the door when his father’s voice stopped him. “It’s not because we didn’t love you.”

“I’m going to bed,” he replied, feeling his body tingle from the emotions coursing through him.

“Okay, we’ll finish our talk some other time.”

As Gael took the stairs, his mind on the conversation with his father and the bizarre deal Marla made with some oil prince, he paused in the passage facing the bedroom where Zoe was either sleeping or planning her next attack. He decided to let her be. Maybe by morning, she’d be rational enough to have a decent conversation and perhaps tell him the truth.

Still, he just could not remember where they met. He didn’t bother switching on the light as he removed the sweater and jeans he donned earlier. He removed his boxers as well and crawled under the thick blanket.

The house was very warm. He figured that with the kind of money they got from the contract, they could afford central heating along with heating the walls and floor.

His last thought before he closed his eyes was, what do her lips taste like? Were they as soft as they appeared? The thought faded as he succumbed to slumber.

Encased in a warm cocoon, she relished the feel of the heated blanket at her back. She sighed contentedly as the blanket sent light electric waves through her, energizing her. Loving the feel of it, she snuggled closer, feeling something hard sticking into her backside.

Thinking she’d somehow lost her cell phone under the covers, she reached behind her to retrieve the offending object. Her eyes flashed open, widening as her hand gripped something cylindrical, hard and warm.

A growl sounded behind her, and she snatched her hand away, her heart galloping like a car without its brakes. Her body froze as fear made her hairs stand on end. For a moment, she was confused as to where she was. Had the fever made her do something crazy? Was she dreaming?

She inhaled a quavering breath and closed her eyes. Then she tried to remember what transpired the night before. She’d left downstairs after arguing with Gael. Feeling woozy from the drink David had given her, she made her way to the bedroom, undressed, and got under the covers. She fell asleep not long after.

That means someone was in the wrong bed! Realizing she was not in bed alone, she started hyperventilating. She wanted to scream, but nothing came. Swallowing hard, she tried to regain some control of the situation while wondering what the hell happened? Was what she remembered correct? Did she get drunk and do something crazy after that liquor flu shot?

Someone’s arm was embracing her, a piece of information she’d failed to register. The arm pulled her closer, resulting in the back of her head hitting his chin. She could hear his light snore and feel his warm breath brush the top of her head. His heat was electrifying, scaring the hell out of her.

She stiffened and tried to think clearly. They were under the covers; therefore, she was unable to determine whom her bed buddy was, but she had a fair idea from the strength of his hold that it was Gael. There was no one else in the house other than the four of them … right? Of that, she wasn’t a hundred percent clear either.

Slowly, her heart rate began to tame; at the same time, the realization that Gael was in the bed with her, in his birthday suit! Her heart skipped a few beats and started its erratic pace once more as her body flushed from her crown to the sole of her feet.

No matter how good his body felt against hers or the sensations assailing her from the skin to skin contact, there was no way in hell that she would allow him to get away with it. Twisting her right arm free, she sent her elbow flying backward.

“Ooomph!” came back to her. “What the fuck?”

She wrangled free from his arm, threw the covers off and twisted around to face him in a sitting position. The morning light filtered in through the lace curtains at the window allowing her to see him clearly.

“Get out!” she shrieked, staring down at defined pecs which flashed before her eyes.

It was a bad idea yanking the covers. His eyes widened upon seeing her, and he partially raised himself. Then he narrowed his eyes and leaned back against the pillow, watching her. Her eyes unwittingly drew to his washboards, traveled lower to his erect member sticking upwards and lingered there.

She swallowed hard and closed her eyes before she remembered that she was only dressed in her panties. Her hands flew to her breasts, covering them while her face and neck turned crimson.

“I said to get out of this bed,” she said, her voice brittle.

“I think you have it wrong, my dear; you are in my bed,” he replied casually. “Look, if you think I’m lying.”

She didn’t believe him, so she cracked her eyes, but the first thing she saw was his still erect penis.

“Cover yourself, first,” she replied.

“Why, are you shy? Didn’t you just get an eyeful?”

“Argh,” she groaned. “You shameless prick!”

She opened her eyes, grabbed the covers and yanked them over him. Her eyes darted around the room, seeing that it was all white walls with midnight blue curtains and bed linen.

Embarrassed and completely frazzled, she jumped from the bed and rushed to the door, only to realize she had no clothes on. She stopped as she reached the door and turned. Gael had also sprung from the bed. He came up behind her and handed her jeans and T-shirt with his cock still standing at attention. She grabbed them from his hands, trying to avoid looking at his naked stature.

With a mad dash, she rushed through the door, across the hall, and into the room she was supposed to occupy. Her breaths came in shallow gasps as she leaned back against the door. She closed her eyes as her shoulders slumped shamefully.

“How did I get in that bed?” she asked the empty room. “I will never live this down. He’s going to remind me every hour we spend together.”

With a spring, she flung herself on the bed, beating at the pillow and flailing her legs. She ignored the slight pain still in her joints and the weakness of the flu. What was more important was her shame and disgrace for letting Gael, of all the men in the world, see her naked.

“Oh, God, he saw me naked!” she shrieked, the pillow muffling her voice. “I saw his dick, his huge dick … Oh, God, I saw it. I am now a soiled woman!” She stopped her flailing and rolled over. “I know, I’m never leaving this room. Ugh!”