Page 50 of Taming His Honeydoll
“Now, hold on there,” blustered Big Henry. “Leaving aside marriage protocol with regards to family mergers, I thought Henry was in love with Emma, and I was delighted to finally have a grandson as much as any parent would. And I’ll admit I much prefer the traditional couple to the bent that Henry and Everett share. I’m not going to apologize for that. A man believes what a man believes.”
He harrumphed and cleared his throat. “Beyond that, Henry will always be my heir. He’s my son for bloody sakes, and that will never change no matter how much his mother threatens to make Henry’s life miserable. Since she didn’t succeed in her plans, what I want to know is what will it take for you to allow me to handle my wife in my own way rather than through the law?”
“Are you trying to bribe me?” Sawyer asked, his voice low and deadly.
Chapter 12
There was a pause,then Big Henry came back on. “I don’t know. Are you bribable, son?”
Sawyer snorted. “Hell no.”
“Good chap,” Big Henry said with a chuckle. “My respect for Emma’s choice would have gone down a notch if you were.”
Nat snickered and Sawyer shot him a glare. He could see Oliver hiding a grin behind his hand as well.
His glance slid to Henry, who was listening intently and looking hopefully at him. Then Henry’s eyes dropped to the floor and Everett put his arm around his shoulders in support.
Sawyer was glad the threat was gone, but Marlene needed to be punished and not allowed to get away with the havoc she’d caused. She needed to pay for what she’d done.
“Since we’re sharing opinions here, I’ll give you mine. Your wife needs to be horsewhipped at the very least as far as I’m concerned. She put Emma out of her home and threatened people’s lives, not to mention the fact that Emma, Chessy, or my son could have been hurt or killed when they were run off the road. How do you propose she be punished if not in the courts?”
“Son, I know what she did was wrong. If you press charges and it goes to court, there is no proof the fire was deliberately set. I’ve just retrieved the police report through my sources in my email as we speak. And as you know, I’ll have to employ the best lawyer’s money can buy because she’s my wife and my responsibility. And not to be boastful, but Icanbuy a lot. Not to mention that I do love her, even if she drives me to distraction at times.”
He sighed. “I know she gets out of control when left to her own devices for too long, she’s just that sort of plotting personality. She’s spoiled, onery, and used to getting her own way, I won’t deny it. When it comes down to it though, I predict she won’t spend a day in jail. But I give you my word as a gentleman that she will pay dearly for what she’s done if you let me handle it.”
“So, what are you suggesting?” Sawyer asked guardedly.
“Well, I know Henry can vouch for the fact that I believe in familial discipline.”
“Henry,” Marlene gasped through the phone.
He ignored her and went on. “I have a cane right above my desk and she’s looking at it now. You give me a list of what you would charge her with and I’ll see to it that she pays for every item, once every six weeks, until it’s finished.”
Sawyer considered that as everyone else stared at him. Emma’s face was turning red but she didn’t say anything.
“How do I know you’ll keep your word?”
