Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72863 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72863 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Maybe he’s doing this for show.
Then I tell myself, surely not, because when he presses his body to mine, I can feel how much he wants me, not just by his demanding lips, but with what I feel between us.
He tastes minty, but not like peppermint. I hear the glass he took from me shatter on the floor at our feet before his arms wrap around me. I pull him closer, unable to help myself, as his tongue takes ownership of mine. He kisses like he wants to take my breath away, and I kiss him back like I’m willing to give it.
When my lips feel bruised and swollen, he pulls back and rests his forehead against mine. We both breathe heavily, trying to calm ourselves.
“Fuck,” he says before he stalks off and leaves me standing against the wall to watch him go.
What just happened?
And why did I like it?
The rest of the night goes by quickly, and I get to know some of the wives. I realized about an hour ago that no one actually has girlfriends here.
Is that a thing?
What type of party is this?
And what else do they do?
Boston seems tight-lipped about all aspects of it, hardly speaking now. I highly doubt he’d want to tell me about the inner workings of something I’m not meant to know anything about.
“Sit, sit,” Lilith insists. I glance around to see a few of the women I met earlier staring at me.
“I was just—”
“Sit. We won’t bite,” she says again. She has hard eyes, like she can see through what others try to hide.
“She may bite,” the one with black hair says with a shrug. “Just a risk you’ll have to take.” If I remember correctly, her name is Cressida. She’s married to Soren, who seems to be in a position of power among the gathered men.
“We want all the gossip about your wedding. Tell us all the details,” a lady with honey-blonde hair says. “I’m Cora, by the way. I’m with Arlo.”
“Hi.” I rest my hands on the table and look at each of them.
Cressida smiles and asks me, “How does it feel to be a part of a secret society? This is the wives’ only party, in case you weren’t aware.” At first, I think she’s joking, but when none of the others laugh, I stare at her in confusion.
“They also have girlfriend parties. I don’t recommend going to one of those. They try to fuck everything with a pulse,” Lilith says. “But if my husband goes to one, I’ll stab anyone who touches him,” she adds with a wicked glint in her eyes.
“Is the Forsaken actually a real thing?” I ask.
“Yes. Maybe you should ask your husband what he does for the society,” Cressida says. I turn to look at her as she sits back and eyes me. Changing the subject, she asks, “What is it you do for work?”
“Freelancer. You?”
“Reporter.” She winks.
“They allow a reporter in here? Isn’t all this supposed to be a secret?”
“Oh, Cressida was sneaking in even before she was with Soren,” Cora says, flicking her blonde hair over her shoulder.
“What type of freelance work do you do?” Lilith asks.
The women seem friendly enough, I’ll give them that. But telling them what I do for work? I don’t trust them that much.
“I get hired to do jobs that others don’t want to do. It pays extremely well,” I reply.
“Interesting,” she says, nodding.
“The wedding. Tell us all about it,” Cora chirps. “Did you wear white? Lilith wore red.”
“That’s because during our first marriage, I wasn’t conscious for the ceremony,” Lilith explains.
“What do you mean?” I turn to her.
“One of the rules of the Forsaken is that wives are off-limits. So Reon married me without my knowledge to protect me. He knew I never wanted to be married again since my first husband cheated on me.”
Before I can utter another word, Arlo stops behind Cora’s chair. He sets his hand on her shoulder, then leans down and kisses her cheek. He has the beads wrapped around his hand, and she reaches up and touches them.
“Ladies, if you don’t mind, I may have to pull my wife away soon.” He glances at all of us and then locks eyes with me. “Maven, if you ever need to talk, ask Boston for my number.” I stare at him, confused.
“He’s a therapist. The best,” Lilith says.
“I don’t need a therapist, though it seems Boston does. So you should offer your services to him,” I say, to which he smirks, then kisses his wife’s cheek again before he tells me the offer is always there and walks away.
“He’s actually very good. One of the hardest in the country to get a booking with. But I guess since you’re married to Boston now, you’ll have access to things like that,” Lilith tells me. I turn and see him speaking with Boston, who looks back at me. Our eyes meet and hold for several beats before he looks away.