Glancing back down at her magazine, she wasn’t surprised to hear his retreating footsteps. She moved toward the window, and watched as he made his way toward his car. What was going on with him?
She waited until she was sure he was gone, finished her chocolate, and locked up the house. Until next month, she was free.
****
Shaun slammed his phone down, and stormed across his office to stare outside the window. It had been a week since he’d last been to see his wife, and something was bothering him. He didn’t know what. Running fingers through his hair, he was caught by the gold band decorating his finger. His wedding band was for decoration. Addison wore a diamond wedding ring, and he wondered if she ever had moments like this? Moments of thinking about their marriage, or lack of one.
They had sex once a month when he went to their shared house. He didn’t live there, couldn’t live there. Addie never actually spoke to him about anything. Their marriage had been their parents’ idea, and at first, they had wanted him to marry her sister, Evangeline. That wasn’t going to happen. Evangeline was a wild child, and screwed any man who looked her way. He wanted his woman to be untouched. No, he wasn’t a saint, but he had standards, and his wife was going to be the right one to mother his kids, not some slut. Addison, or Addie as he thought of her, wasn’t a slut. She was a beautiful, curvy woman, who would make a fantastic mother.
Three years and nothing.
He’d gone and got tested in case something was wrong with him. The doctor assured him, he was fine, and that getting pregnant took time. He didn’t want to admit to the doctor that he only slept with his wife once a month. Shaun didn’t want to broach the subject with Addie, and he wasn’t in a big rush to get pregnant, but he’d wanted to be sure. Their parents wanted them to have a kid together. They believed a child would stop them ending their marriage. Shaun had no intention of ever ending his marriage. He didn’t believe in divorce, and in time, maybe he and Addie could come to some kind of resolution.
Pulling out of his thoughts, he made his way out toward the main room. When he couldn’t find Bruce, his amazing PA, he went in search of him. Walking into the empty staff room, he was about to turn away when the person on the television caught his attention. Pausing, he blinked, and when that didn’t make her go away, he reached out for the remote, turning up the sound of his wife.
What the hell had Addie been doing? He didn’t know why she was on television. Her blonde hair had been curled so it spiraled around her, and her blue eyes were smiling at the interviewer. She wore only a little makeup, but then she’d never needed a lot.
“You have the blog, the video channel, and now the book,” the interviewer said.
What the fuck?
“I know. It has been really surreal.”
“This book is selling, and pre-order sales are through the roof. What inspired you to write this book, titled, In Addie’s Kitchen?”
“Sir?” Bruce said, entering the staff room.
“Tell me, Bruce, do I need to call the doctor or is my wife being interviewed right now?” Shaun asked without taking his eyes away from the television screen.
“I’ve always loved to cook. For as long as I can remember I was experimenting in the kitchen. One night, I just started cooking, and writing everything down. Then my friend told me I should film myself cooking, and before I knew what was happening, I had everything set up, and I was posting a new video once a week. My friend helped me to film everything. Then it went to twice a week.”
“What makes you so successful is the fact your recipes work, right?”
“Yes. They work. I make the dishes a minimum of five times to make sure they are perfect. The dishes I’m sharing now are the experiments of a couple of months ago. I always make sure I have a lot of recipes ready,” Addie said.
This was like an alternate universe.
“We all know you’re the wife of successful billionaire, Shaun Woodside. What does he think of your success?”
Shaun watched as Addie tensed.
“He’s, erm, very supportive as any husband would be with their wife.” Addie ran her fingers through her hair, looking off the camera. “He’s a busy man, and we don’t interfere with each other’s businesses.”
The questions moved on, and Shaun stormed out of the staff room. Bruce followed him, closing the door to his office.
“You’re not aware of your wife’s success?”
“What success?” Shaun asked. He didn’t know that Addie could cook. Thinking about it, he didn’t know anything about his damn wife.
“Addie has been making headlines since last year. This cookbook that is releasing in two weeks’ time will be her first, and she already has another two books to create,” Bruce said.
Pacing up and down his office, Shaun tried to grasp what he’d just been told. “Wait? You know about her?”
“With all due respect, sir, I’ve been dealing with calls from her publicist, and the media. They want a response from you.”
Shaun paused. “What? Why wasn’t I notified of this?”
“I tried to tell you, but you said anything to do with the media or your wife, I was to handle. I told them you were very busy, like I do every single time.” Bruce went to say something then stopped.