Page 8 of Claiming His Wife
An uncomplicated annulment was a dream she didn’t dare have. It seemed too easy to ascertain. Finn seemed too confident in his position.
“If you decline my offer and move forward with your immediate plans, I will oppose this annulment at every turn. Since you’ve been gone, I’ve acquired way more assets, and your name is on everything I’ve acquired. I will have my lawyer bury yours in paperwork for the next several years over the division of property.”
The coldness in his voice caused a shiver to her spine and she knew he meant every word. Between both of their assets they could be stuck in court forever since they didn’t have a prenup to begin with. She had refused to sign the documents her father had presented to Finn and herself. One of her final acts of rebellion against her father. She studied for a moment longer as her mind battled between emotions and thinking over possible loopholes in his plan. She knew too much to trust him. Men like him and men like her father should never be underestimated. She would agree with his deal and in three months, she was certain things would be over and done with. She figured the months would roll by fast. She finally gave him a slow nod then turned around to leave.
“I need verbal confirmation, Kalilah.”
She rolled her eyes.
"I accept the offer, Finn, but just so you know, I'll never change my mind. Not about this.” She jerked the door and without a backward glance stepped through it.
"Not if I can help it." he returned under his breath and she heard him clear across the hall. His cockiness riled her up and strengthened her resolve to play his game and win.
She couldn’t resist having the final word.
"Game on," she yelled confidently. She would teach him a valuable lesson indeed. If he thought that his power games would work on her, he was in for a rude awakening. Kalilah almost strutted out of the building with a kind of elegance she didn't feel. She inclined her head briefly as she passed by the administrative assistant and again to the receptionist at the lobby desk on the ground floor. The doorman wished her a good day and she rewarded him with a half-smile before heading toward the car where her driver Owen patiently waited for her.
CHAPTER 3
THE MOMENT KALILAH CLEARED THE DOOR, Finn took a few slow breaths to regroup and refocus. She was the only person that could blow his focus to pieces, and five years had not dulled her potency. He missed her. He was shocked and proud of the assertiveness he’d seen her display today. She was now a woman willing to meet her battles head on. He admired that and it turned him on to no end. He loosened his tie and shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
When she had cocked her hip in the face of his mockery, clenched her fists and demanded her freedom, he almost couldn’t hear her words over the roar of blood in his ears. A fierce arousal that had threatened to undo him had fired his loins. She wasn’t even aware of how much power she had over him. He would do anything for her; he had given her the break she had coldly requested years ago.
“I need you to leave my apartment now.” Her tone had held no emotion. Her eyes had glistened with tears, her dark skin dull. He had tried to cut in but she had continued. “I don’t want to hear anything else you may have to say right now. You’ve hurt me enough, and I need this time away from you. Being around you hurts my very soul. Please leave.”
He had left her apartment then and promised to give her all the time she needed until she felt ready to listen to him. He had vowed to wait for her, for as long as she needed to sort through her emotions. Every well-laid plan he had ever made in his life, for himself, for their marriage, came tumbling down like King’s Landing. And it hurt, dammit, it hurt immensely – but her absence hurt more. Her refusal to speak with him or believe him had hurt him so much. She returned every gift he had sent and refused to even speak to him on the three occasions he showed up in Seattle. The only time she showed was to tell him that she needed more time. He decided to pull back and give her some space. The truth was, he’d taken the coward’s way out. He wanted to flee the keen disappointment he saw in her eyes every time he visited her. He finally resigned himself to waiting until she was ready to hear him out.
Letting her go all those years ago had been the worst decision he’d ever made. He’d poured the rest of his soul into the company he’d gotten from her sacrifice; their sacrifice. Over the last few years he became a workaholic, gradually taking on more and more responsibility in the business. Assisting everyone he could within the company, so he could learn how everything worked. He even assisted his father-in-law with some of the duties he had as CEO. He loved the challenge because now he knew the business like the back of his hand. Thankfully, his hard work had paid off, because now he was the chief operating officer, and their profits were higher than ever. People assumed he was given the position because of his relationship with Kalilah, but he earned this position. He knew the job of the janitor up to the CEO. The goal was to eventually take over for his father-in-law after he retired. Unfortunately, placing his full attention on work came with its disadvantages. There was nothing for him to look forward to except closing huge deals.
The years following Kalilah’s departure were filled with dreadful weekdays and equally bleak weekends. Now she was back, and her return opened a floodgate of emotions that were almost forgotten. He had hoped that her return would be different; a gentle reunion of sorts where they would talk through everything that had happened in the past, but he could not have been any further from the truth.
“I promise you, Finn, nothing will ever come between us. You’re everything to me.” She would tell him this every time they parted back then. Her eyes held so much hope. He had taken her proclamation seriously because he felt the same way about her. Those promises had dissipated, along with the girl who shared those declarations. For the past five years he had loved her, and for five years he had counted on her youthful promises of unconditional love to bridge the gap when she was ready to fully listen to him and settle down with him. He now realized that was naïve of him to rely on her promises. She was no longer a girl. She was now a woman, and unfortunately, not his woman. He had waited too long; here she was, irate, beautiful, all grown up and wanting nothing he had to offer except his acquiescence to an annulment.
His heart was doomed; he knew it from the moment she walked into his office. The resentment he had felt toward her long ago for not giving him a chance to explain his side of the story had dissipated. When he pinned her against the wall, her floral scent gripped his senses, and it took all the self-control he’d learned over the years not to give in to the primitive urges surging through him. He wanted one taste of her plump lips. She was so close, yet so far away; she looked so alluring, and the challenge she presented aroused him more if that was possible. When she started bucking under him, he had to clench his teeth to keep in the groan that her unintentionally provocative actions drew from him.
He had released his wildcat before she thwarted his advances further. He wondered how things might have turned out had she believed in him and his love for her. They probably would have had a child or two by now.Would their kids have her curly hair?A smile curved his lips at the thought, but it was short-lived when another thought came to mind. The sacrifices he had made both physically and emotionally; contrary to what he was sure others in her position might believe, he hadn’t looked at another woman ever in the years since Lilah left. He’d had a few dates to social events, and even though some of the women were willing and open to a one-night stand, his pledge to his wife and the need to see it through regardless of the distance prevented him from ever being unfaithful. After a five-year drought, he was ready to swim in the river of her most coveted heat.
His blood heated with anger at the thought of her replacing him.Who was this man? What did he do for a living? Was he American?Questions roamed his mind, questions he needed answered, but there was no use. It would be naïve to dismiss this other man, even though she couldn’t admit to being in love with him. He was certain that the man, whatever his name was, was a threat to their reconciliation for the simple fact that she returned to town only for the dissolution of their union. The urge to find this man and kick the shit out of him was high, but that wouldn’t go over well with Kalilah. Besides, he may not even know about her marriage.
He quickly shook off that bitter thought. Kalilah was honest to a fault, and she would have told this man about her marriage. Actually, citing how much she had changed, it was a genuine possibility that this jerk didn’t even know what he’d gotten himself into. Suddenly, he had this unsettling image of a stranger exploring his wife’s body and doing things that he had yet to do with her. What were his intentions, he wondered – perhaps he knew of her huge trust fund and wanted to sink his hooks into it (not that Kalilah wasn’t capable of enticing a man who was fully invested in who she was as a person). At his uncomfortable thoughts, his heart felt like it was being ripped out of his chest. He didn’t want to lose her, not now and definitely not for a second time.
He swiveled his office chair to face the tall windows overlooking downtown Montréal. People could also assume that he had married her for money and position.
He had met his father-in-law, Richard, when he interned at the company eight years ago, after gaining his master’s degree in business from McGill University. He was twenty-six at the time, fresh out of university with something to prove to the world. He got to work early and left late, and he wasn’t shy about asking questions either. After all, how could he learn if he never asked any questions? He interned there a full three months before meeting Richard Anderson, CEO of Anderson Property Group.
When he first met Richard, he’d boldly asked him in the lobby of the offices why a business of such good standing wasn’t offering franchise services, as it would improve valuations and thereby boost growth and improve profits. Richard regarded him intently for a long time that day, until finally he invited him to his office and picked his brain about the other ideas he thought would be good for the company.
Finn had made suggestions about their website and how it could be improved to offer people a virtual experience of real estate. Thanks to Finn and his never-ending questions the company also now offered franchise opportunities and protection services for home buyers and sellers. Richard had hired him on the spot and invited him to dinner with his family. That was the first time he’d met Kalilah. She’d peeked at him throughout dinner under the cover of her thick lashes. He’d ignored it. She’d looked no older than sixteen, and he wasn’t trying to go to jail. In addition to that, he’d only just landed his first job, and messing with the boss’s daughter was not a good idea. His interest piqued, however, when she mentioned her upcoming graduation from CEGEP. He had asked her age then and found out that she had just turned nineteen.
He was immediately put off by the age difference between them. He considered her a child, but he was drawn to her like a moth to a flame. After that first dinner, he frequented the Anderson mansion numerous times for dinner and other soirees. During those months, he got to know Kalilah more, and he realized that even though she appeared younger than her age, she was no child. She was mature, intelligent, and sexy. Everything about her deepened his attraction. She knew what she wanted out of life and had a passion for helping others and trying out new adventures. She was devoted to everything that she did, including loving him. She would listen to him vent his frustrations about everything happening at work, and in return he would listen to her vent her frustrations about school and her parents. They made a wonderful team, and she quickly became his best friend. The best friend he was in love with.
Memories of the first night their friendship shifted to something more rushed through his mind.
They had been at one of her family dinners, and she and her mother got into another disagreement about what her university major would be. She had walked out of the dining room and stormed from the house. Finn had no idea what compelled him to hurry after her, but he had. He quickly excused himself from dinner and followed her. He found her seated under the dark gazebo on the back lawn, sobbing. Her obvious anguish crushed his heart, and so he had brushed a tear from her cheek and held her against his broad chest as he rubbed her back. Her face was pressed to his chest while he reassured her that everything would be okay. His body had reacted immediately to her being in his arms. He had ignored it. He had held her like that for what seemed like hours, but it was merely minutes.
Her sobs had gradually subsided, and she had looked up at him then. He couldn’t see her face clearly in the darkness, but he imagined her eyes still filled with unshed tears. She had brought her face up closer and pressed her lips to his. It was gentle at first, unsure. But the feel of her lips upon his had opened a floodgate of desire, and he had deepened the kiss. His tongue had coaxed her lips open and began an exploration of her mouth. His hand travelled from her back and cupped her ass, bringing her body even closer to his. When they’d broken apart, he was in disbelief of what he’d just done, but Kalilah was smiling.
That was their first kiss, and many had followed. After that night, theirs became a relationship of stolen minutes, in the shadows of the mansion, to make out and spend time together. He would pick her up from school on the days he got off early and bring her to the old port or Mont Royal. They went to the movies, clubs, and dinner together. One weekend they even drove to Ottawa to meet his family.
