Page 39 of Mr. Kelly

I want to continue the conversation, but his tongue traces a hot trail up my slit and pregnancy brain kicks in, or is it dick fog? Either way, real life is not on the menu. Teddy’s tongue is having a private conversation with my pussy.

Theodore

I gota warmer reception than I was expecting. With my past, I expected yelling and guilt trips, so silence from River felt ominous and much more deafening. I didn’t expect for her ex with a death wish to be yelling at her, but I’ve let him know he’s on my radar.

She stirs next to me, her body warming my side and calming me in ways I haven’t felt since I learned of Helena’s betrayal. Just thinking her name leaves acid in my stomach, but I had to work through that fog of anger.

I didn’t return until I knew I was able to talk to River about everything I learned. If we’re going to have a chance, I cannot live in deception like my last relationship. Our bodies must have been starving for each other because we fucked our way through most of the night.

“Teddy?”

“Yes?”

“A house?”

I smile in the dark. I had a feeling she wasn’t going to stay asleep. I could feel her thinking, even in her dreams.

“Yes, this house is yours. I won’t attempt to take it back, and I’ll cover the expenses.”

“Ted-”

“It’s already done, River. I just want you to worry about finishing your level-three studies and carrying our child. I’ll handle everything else.”

“If this is my house, where is yours?”

She turns so she can see me in the low light. “I still have the penthouse and cabin.” I kiss her hand and pull her close. “I can also stay here until you don’t want me to anymore.”

I’m over the perfect house, perfect family fantasy. This time, I didn’t buy a house with me in mind. I got the best place for my child to grow. River and I still have a lot to figure out. She traces the bottom of my lip with her thumb.

“Do you really think I’d kick you out?”

I kiss her palm and shake my head. “No, but I’ve been off in the past…”

“You may have turned a blind eye to some things, but she’s incredibly duplicitous. Do not blame yourself for that.”

“Part of my job is being perceptive.” I sit up quickly because that sick feeling is back, riding along with the urge to hit something. “And I couldn’t see what was in front of me.”

She sits up and cups my face.

“Love is a crazy thing. You shouldn’t have to use your skills with yourwife. She’s supposed to be a safe place for you. It was her failure, not yours.”

River is so sweet that I fear I’ll tarnish all the good inside of her. I come from a long line of darkness that separated me from my family. They were scared that I’d wound up dead, in prison, or as some unfeeling monster. They didn’t start breathing easier until just before I married Helena. I’d thought she was the light that pulled me out of the darkness, but she was keeping me there, just in a different space.

The moment I thought she could do no more harm, she broke what was left of my heart with her lies.

“Yeah, well, she almost sent me to jail.”

River’s eyes grow into giant orbs. “What?”

“Not literally. I’m sure Andrea and I would have covered it up.” She gulps, but doesn’t speak. She just waits for me to explain. I sigh hard, because although I’ve compartmentalized my anger, it still hurts. My wound is very much raw. “She wasn’t barren, River.” She gives me sad eyes, but I continue.

“When you told me you were going shopping, I was outside of her house, walking in to serve her divorce papers. She refused to sign. We were about to argue because she was talking about taking me to court for more money because thirty million was unacceptable.”

The shock on her face reflects her lack of knowledge of my net worth. I can’t dwell on how cute she is because I’m getting to the part that hurts the most.

“Andrea called me. Asked me to meet him at his house. He gave me a file to review. Three years ago, she got her tubes tiedwhen they refused to take her uterus. She never planned to give me a family.”

She covers her mouth, but her tears flow freely. River’s crying for me. Someone crying for me is something I’m not used to seeing. I reach out to wipe her tears, but she wraps her arms around me and pulls my head to her chest, rubbing my hair like the world is a dangerous place and she wants to protect me from it. Her concern somehow triggers the tears that have been elusive to me since I found out.

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