Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 91149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
After I dropped Bowie Jane off at school, I returned the call to my attorney that I’d missed. The conversation was both hopeful and frustrating, but we have a game plan moving forward.
And now… I have to deal with Mazzy who’s inside the house right now waiting for me. I wonder if she’s still wallowing in guilt for letting Sandra in or if she’s gearing up for a fight over her refusal to press charges. Perhaps she’s in there ready to give her notice because she did not volunteer for this crazy train.
I exit my vehicle and pocket my phone. I guess it doesn’t matter what she’s thinking because that all might change after I say the things I need to say.
When I open the door that leads into the kitchen, I find Mazzy sitting at the kitchen table, an empty coffee cup beside her. She’s on her laptop and when I enter, she closes it.
I nod with a wry smile. “Typing up your resignation?”
Her eyes flare. “Do you want me to resign?”
I respond by moving her way, taking her hand and pulling her out of the chair. She doesn’t pull against me as I walk us to my bedroom. It’s only when we cross the threshold that she shows some resistance and I wheel around on her.
With my hands to her face, cupping gently because she’s bruised, I bring my mouth to hers. It’s a soft and mellow kiss despite the fact that my blood is racing just at her scent.
To my relief, she melts into me and I take that as acquiescence that although she might be thinking of quitting her job, she’s clearly not quitting me yet.
A kiss isn’t enough and it’s not what I brought her into my bedroom for. She’s in here because I need every inch of her in a way that I’ve never needed anyone before. The last several hours have rattled me, made me realize the fragility of relationships and bonds, and I don’t want to go another minute taking what I have with her for granted.
She doesn’t challenge me when I strip off her clothes. Instead, she watches me with hungry eyes as I discard mine. I lie her on the bed and kiss every inch of her body. She writhes and moans as I wring an orgasm out of her with my mouth and doesn’t protest in my urgency to have her by merely surging up her body and driving in deep.
Mazzy clings to me as I claim her body and it’s my hope that she’s giving me small pieces of her soul through this act of intimacy. I come brutally hard, thinking of her fighting off Sandra to keep Bowie Jane safe, and I sag onto her thoroughly depleted.
She lies still after I roll us to the side. I stroke her lower back and say the second-most important thing on my mind. “I cannot thank you enough for what you did for Bowie Jane yesterday. What you did for me by keeping her safe. There is no one in this world I trust more than you, Mazzy.”
Lifting her head slightly, she kisses my jaw before murmuring, “No thanks are necessary. I love that kid, and you know it.”
Yeah, I do know it well. And after talking to Bowie Jane this morning, I know my kid loves her in return. Mazzy is the one who made her feel safe and secure yesterday.
“What are you going to do?” Mazzy asks, one hand coming to my chest to draw light patterns with her fingertips.
“I talked to my attorney after I dropped off Bowie Jane. He’s preparing a motion to modify my custody to a permanent nature as well as a protective order that she cannot come on my property without explicit permission.”
“Does he think the judge will grant it?”
“Yes, because it was pretty damning that she packed a suitcase to take Bowie Jane somewhere. It’s heightened the threat she could jet out of the country with her although he talked to Sandra’s attorney first thing this morning and she’s claiming she was merely taking her to her hotel in Pittsburgh for some mother-daughter time.”
“Bullshit,” Mazzy mutters, and I chuckle, drawing her in closer.
“Yeah, it’s bullshit. She’s also claiming there was no problem in her doing that because she’d told me she was coming to visit and I never opposed it, therefore I’d given her permission.”
“Also bullshit. But will that work?”
“Jared seems to think the judge will see through that. I won’t ask you again to press charges, but the fact she physically assaulted you to get to Bowie Jane is important. I might need you to give a statement about that.”
“Of course I will,” she assures me, and then to my surprise, she rolls away, right out of bed where she bends down to grab her panties.