Page 7 of The Perfect Wife
The waiter respectfully nodded before leaving the table. It amazed me how much respect the employees gave Davian, which was contrary to the way he treated them. His words were short and to the point, with no ‘hello’ or ‘how are you.’
I picked up my water glass and took a sip, hoping to hide my nervousness. I was thankful when the waiter returned with a bottle of wine. He held the bottle toward Davian at a slight angle to show him the label, waiting to get his approval before uncorking the bottle. I felt nervous for the waiter as he struggled with the corkscrew as he twisted the lever. My eyes were on the cork, and when the waiter pulled it from the bottle, I was thankful that it didn’t break. I would hate for him to get reprimanded because he had to push it inside. If I had read Davian correctly so far, it would be unacceptable, and he would request the waiter bring another bottle.
The waiter left with our orders, all of which Davian had placed. I couldn’t remember ever having a man order for me. I put the glass to my lips, and the taste of something fruity with a woodsy undertone excited my palate. “This is very good,” I hinted as I took another sip.
“I’m glad you like it. I love the way it touches your taste buds. Stimulating them in a soft caress.”
The way he emphasized ‘touches,’ ‘stimulating,’ and ‘caress,’ made my entire body tingle. Adjusting my position did nothing to tame the heat pooling between my legs.How could he have such an effect on me?Davian’s eyes matched the grin plastered across his face. There was no doubt. He knew exactly what he was doing to me.
I had to excuse myself if I wanted to get through tonight. Pushing from the table, I placed my napkin on the table next to my plate. “If you’ll excuse, I need to use the restroom. I’ll be right back.”
As the distance from where he was and where I was going widened, I could finally breathe, and I felt my body cool down. I just needed to find the bathroom, and quick. When I stopped a waiter, he pointed me in the right direction. The minute I pushed open the door, a bathroom attendant was there to assist me in any way she could. First, by grabbing my hands, then placing a small dollop of citrus oil on each palm before massaging it gently between my fingers and over the back of my hands. Little did she know that I would rinse off her efforts the minute I ran my hands under cold water to subdue the effect Davian had on me.
Cupping my hands under the stream of water, I splashed my face. Even though it relieved my flushed face, it did nothing to appease the need for relief elsewhere. We hadn’t gotten to the meal, and already I was thinking about dessert. Patting my face with one of the hand towels, I took a quick look in the mirror to make sure my makeup was still in place. “Pull yourself together, Reyna,” I said to my reflection. “He’s just a man.”
Who was I fooling? Davian Cross was more than just a man. He was an enigma, pure heaven, every woman’s dream, and one to be cautious of. I had a feeling there was more to Davian Cross than just his good looks and his enticing charm.
Allowing the bathroom attendant to massage the citrus oil on my hands before leaving, I pulled a ten-dollar bill from my purse and placed it in her tip basket. I pulled open the door and jumped with surprise. Davian was on the other side of the door, his eyes cold and his hair askew.
Before I could ask him what he was doing standing in front of the ladies’ restroom, he took hold of my hand. “We need to leave.”
“Wait, we haven’t eaten yet,” I pointed out, barely able to walk as he pulled me away from the door and into the restaurant’s kitchen. “Davian, what is going on?”
“Not now, Reyna. You need to trust me and not resist.” The sharpness in his tone had done a 360 from moments ago, and my pulse was beating in double-time.
The employees in the kitchen didn’t seem to mind moving out of the way as we made our way past the preparation counters and large commercial stoves. I only had time to take in the wonderful aroma and nothing else. We ended up stopping in front of an elevator, which was just outside the kitchen walls. Crossing my arms over my chest, I looked at Damian as he continued to hammer his thumb against the elevator button as if it would make it arrive faster.
“I am not going any further with you until you tell me what is going on,” I stated.
“Have it your way.” His arms were around my waist just when the elevator door opened. My body was up off the cement floor before I knew what was going on. My heels hit the floor of the elevator, and the cold air inside did nothing to calm the storm about to unleash.
Adjusting my dress to make sure I was still presentable, I gave Davian a dissatisfied look. Pulling my phone from my purse, I found my Uber app and began typing my location. This evening was over as far as I was concerned. I wasn’t sure what was going on with Davian, but I wanted no part of it. He had gone completely insane. Before I could type the R to Regency, he had my phone out of my hand and turned off.
“What the fuck, Davian? Have you lost your mind?” My heat was rising and not in a good touchy-feely way. I was past angry.
“You can’t leave, Reyna. It’s not safe. No calls, no texts. The phone is to remain off.” His eyes penetrated mine with concern as he handed the phone back to me.
“What are you talking about?” Why wouldn’t he let me leave, and why would leaving be unsafe? None of this made any sense.
Davian inserted a key card into the slot and pressed the button to the 54thfloor. I was becoming more confused by the minute. He specifically said we had to leave. Did leave mean the restaurant, or did he mean the hotel? “We are going to my penthouse. You should be safe there while I make other arrangements.”
“Davian, if you don’t tell me right now what thefuckis going on, I am going to scream so loud everyone in this hotel can hear me.” I was so over his macho, dominant persona. Not even his demanding sexy voice could bring me to trust him. He might be a Cross, but he wasn’t my keeper.
“Reyna, please. I need you to trust me. When the time is right, I will tell you everything, but for now, we need to keep you out of sight.” His hand came to my cheek, and as I looked into his eyes, there was more than his commanding request beneath them. He was concerned for my safety.
~5~
Davian
The last thing I wanted was to scare Reyna, but when Patton called, my only concern was keeping her safe. Someone opened Pandora’s box, and now Reyna Braxton was in danger. The secret my father shared with me five years ago was secure, or so I thought. Only he, the McCalls, and a handful of men we referred to asThe Societyknew the truth. It took eleven years of endless searching to find her. I was beginning to think she was an absurdity, and the stories about her still being alive were just rumors, but then we got a break. After her mother’s death, Reyna somehow got lost in the system, a system that caused her to be shuffled from one foster home to the next.The Societyand I never took into account that Reyna would go by her mom’s surname,Braxton, instead of her father’s. Looking back, it made sense. Rui Salko disappeared shortly before Reyna was born. There was no reason for Louise Braxton to give her daughter his name. They never married, and Reyna never knew who her father was.
The authorities ruled Louise Braxton’s death an accident, butThe Societydisagreed and wouldn’t give up until we found the truth. There was no way Louse Braxton lost control of her car, rolling it seven times down an embankment on Suches Loop. She wouldn’t have been there. There was no reason. The authorities found her more than an hour away from Gainesville, her hometown, and it made little sense that she would drive on that treacherous road so late at night. The information we obtained revealed her gas tank blew up once it settled between trees and brush. By the time rescue arrived, there was nothing left of the car but a shell. Her body was unrecognizable. The only way to determine it was her was through her dental records. Pretty damn convenient.
As we stepped from the elevator, my phone vibrated inside my pocket. Looking at the screen, I saw it was my top guy. “Patton, Reyna’s with me. She’s safe. We are about to enter my penthouse.”
There was a moment of silence other than the tapping of his keyboard. “We will let you know when it’s safe for transport.” Patton was always the serious one in the bunch. Always so formal. Must have to do with his military background.
“Any leads on the leak?” I had to know how he found her.
