Page 16 of His Weekend Wife

CHAPTER FOUR

Declan hung up the phone and sat back in his chair, the springs squeaking under the pressure. Shock was a mild description of his feeling. One second he was thinking about Ash, and then the next she was on the phone. When his secretary had first told him that Ash was waiting on the line, he’d suspected someone was playing a cruel joke on him, but sure enough, it was the truth.

She had asked to see him, but she didn’t say why.

She wanted a divorce. That had to be the reason.

He was in a shit hole of a situation. He needed to find a pretend wife ASAP while separated from his real one who was coming to ask for a divorce. He blew out a long breath and leaned his elbows on his desk.

He pictured his wife, wondering if she’d changed any in the last five years, curious if she could still turn him inside out with one look from those intense, violet eyes. The first time he’d met her, he’d had a goal. He wanted to make her want him. And then the tables had quickly turned and he’d wanted her more than he’d wanted his next breath. Although he’d had a deep-rooted need to slam inside of her, he’d also wanted to, strangely, hold her.

A woman like her wouldn’t fall for any man’s fanciful charm, which he found out when she’d turned him down time and again. When he’d finally been able to talk her into going to dinner with him, they’d spent the entire evening talking about everything under the sky, but nothing in particular. When the sun came up, he knew of her dreams to become a social worker, her love for family, the pain of losing her father early in life, and he, well, didn’t say more than five sentences because he only wanted to hear her talk—and be hypnotized in her radiance. He’d even told her by date three that he was loaded, or rather his family was, and she didn’t blink an eye. No surprise.

He rubbed his jaw, then dropped his hand to his desk, clenching and unclenching his fist. His mind plundered deeper into their past relationship, their honeymoon night when he’d found out she was a virgin. No doubt a man knew when a woman wasn’t as ‘skilled’ in sex as other women, but he’d had no clue that she’d never been touched by a man—and he was given the most precious gift when she’d given herself to him. At first, he’d been scared that he would hurt her, but she had been the aggressor and soon he’d found himself under the wicked spell of his wild wife who quickly learned the art of seduction. During the first few months of their marriage, he’d learned her ins and outs, her every feminine line and curve, and especially her beautiful soul. Their connection had grown and he’d started making plans for a solid future for them. He planned to work at Knight Corp, following in his father’s successful footsteps. She would continue in college. Kids would come later, but not too much later, but after they’d gotten settled. He’d even lived with her in a ratty apartment above a machine shop to make her happy. Life seemed great, but boy had he been wrong.

Feeling like a foolish man, he’d been caught up in infatuation so strong that he’d been blinded to the facts. How could he have believed two people so different could come together as one?

Ash had never gotten over that her dad had left when she was young. Her sister, Abby, drowned her misgivings in alcohol and men, while Ash placed herself in charge of fixing everyone’s problems, leaving her exhausted. Although she had a giving and free spirit, her lack of trust for people, especially Declan, had been hard to withstand at times. He’d loved her enough that he would have stuck by her side, proving that he’d never leave her. But instead she’d left him…

He wasn’t guilt-free.

The wound of her leaving was covered in a thick scab and buried underneath years of bad choices and mistakes on his part. He thought he could patch himself up by having fun, sleeping with an endless list of women, but instead he got burnt out on good times. On one random pussy after another.

The door opened and Todd stuck his head inside. “Sir, you wanted to see me?”

“Yes. Come in.”

Todd closed the door behind him, then took a seat across from the desk. “Marabeth said it was urgent.”

“You’ll never guess who called.” Considering Todd was the only other person who knew that Declan was still married to Ash, he felt comfortable in telling the man about the call. After Declan told him of the conversation, Todd’s brows scrunched.

“And she called out of the blue? When you need a wife? I’d say that’s a sign if I ever did see one.”

Declan laughed. “Okay, let’s keep this in perspective. She’s coming to see me to ask for a divorce.”

“You know this how? I thought you said she didn’t tell you the reason.”

“She didn’t. But it certainly isn’t to catch up on old times, my friend.” He’d also heard a slight tremor to her voice, which told him she was bothered over something.

“That would be quite unusual. Yet, far more unusual things have occurred, wouldn’t you say?”

“Like the asteroid hitting the earth and killing all of the dinosaurs. Yes, rarer things have occurred.”

“Sir, you’re looking at this down the wrong spectacle. She’s your wife and it just so happens you need one to impress Hannigan. If my memory serves me correctly, not only was Miss Ashley a lovely woman, but her personality won over everyone she ever met, including me. Mr. Hannigan would never be able to resist a charmer like her.”

Declan narrowed his eyes. “Todd, are you listening to yourself? Not only do I not have any interest to be near my wife, I’m sure she’d rather fish through public trash cans every day of her life than be near me.”

“I know things ended poorly between you two, sir, but entertaining me with lies is such a ridiculous waste of time. I suspect you still care for the young lady and why you’ve dragged your heels on asking for a divorce. It’s high time you put an end to this, one way or another. But then again, I’m just the assistant. What do I know. My apologies.” His tone was far from being apologetic.

Biting back a laugh, Declan thrummed his fingers on the edge of the desk. “I value your opinion. In fact, I agree. It’s time there was closure so we can move forward.”

“Exactly.” Todd nodded.

Declan stood, grabbed his suit jacket from the chair and pulled it on. “I have to go. I’m meeting her at home.”

“Much better to meet her there than here.”

“Let’s hope, Todd. That’s all we can do is hope.”

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