It was just depressing to know I would never have the same thing.
On Saturday, I was performing at the theatre, so I did my hair and makeup and prepared to leave, hoping I would run into Maverick before I left. I hadn’t seen him in a few days. Since he was the only person who knew what I was going through, he was my confidant…not that he wanted to listen to my problems.
When I approached the stairs, I ran into Abigail. She had a small plate in her hands with a small cupcake in the center. With chocolate frosting and a single candle in the center, it looked like a miniature birthday cake.
“What’s that for?” She brought food to my room during my darkest days, but now that I’d been feeling better, I came to the dining table whenever meals were ready. It wouldn’t make sense for her to bring a treat.
“Mr. DeVille. It’s his birthday today. He hates to celebrate, but I always like to leave this on his nightstand…just to acknowledge it subtly. He never mentions it, but he does eat it…so I think he appreciates it.”
“Today is his birthday?” I asked in surprise. He’d said he was turning thirty soon, but I’d had no idea how soon.
“Yes.” She kept walking and headed to the next set of stairs.
“Is he home?”
“No. He left about an hour ago.”
“Do you know where he went?”
“He went out with some friends. Where specifically, I’m not sure.” She walked up the stairs until she was out of sight.
I wished I’d known it was his birthday today. He obviously didn’t want me to know because he’d rather pretend it didn’t exist, but he was my husband. I should know these things.
15
Maverick
“Not tonight, man.” Kent slammed his hand down on the table. “Drinks are on me. I don’t give a shit if you’re a billionaire, birthday boys never buy their own drinks.” He turned to the waitress who set the drinks in front of us. “Don’t take his money, alright? His number is okay but no cash.”
She addressed him and but smiled at me. “Got it.” She tucked her tray under her arm and walked away, her ass shaking in her tight skirt.
The guys were at the bar talking to two women they’d spotted the second they walked in, and since Kent and I weren’t as hard up as the others, we took our time before we started the hunt. It was never smart to go after the first piece of ass you spotted. It was essential to figure out who had the nicest ass first.
“So, how’s the wife?”
I had no idea what she was doing tonight, but since it was Saturday, I assumed she had a performance. “She’s probably singing at the theatre.” Kent knew the marriage was totally bogus, but he was still fascinated by the arrangement. “I haven’t talked to her in a while.”
“How does that work? You just don’t see her for a couple of days?”
With one arm over the back of the booth, I drank the scotch, remembering the afternoon Arwen and I drank together. “It’s a pretty big place. She sleeps on the second floor on one side of the house. I’m on the top floor on the opposite side.”
“But you’re fucking her, right?”
The only time I came close was on our wedding night. I didn’t have much interest in her at the time, but when I thought she wanted me, I wasn’t going to say no. That was purely for convenience, nothing else. “No.”
“No?” Kent asked incredulously. “You’re joking. You haven’t fucked your own wife?”
“No.” I took another drink.
He shook his head like he couldn’t believe what I said. “Mav, not to be a dick, but she is gorgeous. On your wedding day, she was the sexiest woman there. She’s probably the sexiest woman everywhere she goes.”
I wasn’t impressed as easily as he was, but I didn’t deny that she was a looker. Ever since I’d been forced to marry her, my desire had been inhibited. She was a commitment I didn’t want to have, not a sexy one-night stand I could kick out the next morning. She was an obligation…and that wasn’t sexy. But as I’d gotten to know her over the last six weeks, I’d started to see her in a new way. She was a smart woman with incredible resilience. Sometimes she fell down…but she always picked herself up again. She’d garnered my respect…somehow.
“You can’t sit there and tell me you disagree,” Kent said. “It’s just not possible.”
“Yes…I think she’s beautiful.”
“Then why are you out drinking with me and the boys when you could be fucking her? Any piece of ass you pick up in here won’t compare.”
My relationship with Arwen had evolved since the night we’d met. There was an alliance between us, a partnership that was based on something akin to friendship. But she didn’t want a physical relationship with me. She knew she could have me if she wanted me…based on our wedding night. Sometimes I caught glimpses of her looking at me, admiring my bare chest. When we kissed, I knew she could feel the heat between our lips. But perhaps that was just biology mixed with chemistry—nothing more. “That’s not how our relationship is.”