Page 19 of Impending Consent

Very bad. Terribly bad.

“I have to live with him.”

“Try to negotiate.”

“He won’t.”

“Then I’ll help you pack.” She smiled and I narrowed my eyes.

“Sail, you messed up. This is your problem to fix. Teej talked to him and doesn’t believe this is about money.”

“There’s no way for any of us to know with certainty that Rival isn’t after my money.”

“You’re right but that goes both ways. I don’t know what his reason is for doing this but Teej doesn’t feel like it’s for financial gain. Take the win and give the guy the year or you can let Dad fix this for you.”

“No, absolutely not.” I lowered my head to my desk. “I’m so angry with myself, Sky. What the hell was I thinking?”

“I have no clue what you were thinking. Well… I know one of those thoughts. I’ve seen Rival and he’s a very convincing visual but youshouldbe angry. This is likely the stupidest thing you’ve ever done.”

I groaned and lifted my head, only to drop it back onto my desk. I did this several more times.

“I love you, Sail, and you’ll be fine. We need to decide what to tell Mom and Dad, and when, but it would be best to discuss this with Rival first.”

“I know,” I rushed out with an air of frustration.

“I’m going home to my husband. You should probably go home to yours too.” My head shot up just in time to catch the smug grin on her face.

“You shouldn’t be happy about this.”

Her smile expanded. “I’m not. You compromised the firm, which means Teej and I are caught up in your shit, but happy or not, this is where we are.” She shrugged nonchalantly. “Night, Sail. Take a few days off because I think you need it. We’ll cover whatever you have going on here.”

“I’m not taking time off.”

“Then don’t, but if you need to, we’ve got you.”

“Wonderful,” I murmured.

“I love you too.” I loathed the smile in her voice but could only blame myself. I did this, my siblings were simply a casualty of my bad decisions. They had the right to give me shit. I checked the time. It was five forty-two. I needed to get going or face another unwelcome visit from my husband.

Fuck, I have a husband.

After I logged out of my computer, I collected my things and left. I didn’t bother telling TJ I was leaving. I didn’t want to feel his disappointment any more than I already had. So I just left and tried to mentally prepare myself for dinner with the man I had to spend the next year with.

Rival Hassan.

Instead of going home to get comfortable, I headed straight to Rival’s house, my house, according to the terms of our agreement. His residence was located in Inman Park, which was a beautiful historic district. The address I navigated to placed me in the driveway of a massive, two-story Victorian with a wraparound porch, beautiful bone structure, and an enormous yard. The home was beautiful but not very polished. With some love and care, I could see this house being something amazing.

Exhaling a sigh, I prepared to get out and made my way up the porch where I paused at the door. A few moments passed before I found the nerve to knock. When I did, the door immediately swung open and I was face to face with Rival.My husband.

He smiled handsomely while I took him in. Dressed in jeans and a tee, with his feet bare, Rival presented as tempting. He had a dish towel tossed over one shoulder and a smile on his face. Instead of inviting me in, he leaned against the door jamb and stared with a smugness that made my anger flare again.

“I’m here, aren’t you going to invite me in?”

“Are you sure that’s what you want? I was afraid you were going to back out of the driveway and leave for a minute there.”

“I should have,” I mumbled before I pushed past him, gaining access to his place since he wasn’t hospitable enough to properly invite me in. The rumble of his laugh sounded from behind me ,followed by the soft thump of the door closing. I took in every inch of space I could visually reach and was just as impressed with the interior as I was with the outside of the home.

A massive staircase sat to the left of the foyer, which was open and had at least thirty-foot ceilings. The wood on the railing was newly stained and matched the dark wood floors which also looked refurbished. Every detail was beautiful. There wasn’t any furniture but the only room I could see was a formal living room to my left and what appeared to be the kitchen straight back.

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