Page 25 of The Mistake

I’d hoped to get some rest last night. Instead, I had watched my wife make herself a hot drink, and rather than go to bed, she’d gone to the game room. I stayed outside, listening as Ivan also made an appearance. And so, while my boss and my wife played games, and I heard that she didn’t have the first fucking clue how to play, I listened, knowing I should be the one to teach her. I couldn’t help but wonder if Ivan did this to Slavik and Andrei’s wives, showing up unannounced, making them laugh, sharing smiles and jokes, and doing shit with them.

There wasn’t even a reason forme to complain. I had no right to.

Ivan had spent more time with my wife in the last twenty-four hours than I had in the whole month of being married. I didn’t like that I was fucking jealous. Charlotte was young. She didn’t stand a chance in this life and by keeping my distance, I didn’t get attached to her.

I wasn’t convinced of her loyalty, even though Ivan had told me about the cell phone Rage had tried to get her to hide to contact her. She hadn’t asked for it back, even though there were a lot of messages from Rage and her sister. They were incredibly worried about her. Not that they needed to be worried. She was alive and safe, enjoying life, and they didn’t have a single reason to question her well-being. She wasn’t being beaten or locked away. She had the full run of my house.

Running a hand down my face, I took a seat, this time at the head of the table. Ivan was the first to join me. I expected him to look tired, but he actually looked relaxed and more refreshed.

“Morning, Ive,” he said.

“Morning.”

He took a seat and chuckled. “Charlotte’s enjoying a sleep-in.”

“I guess so.”

“You know you could have joined us last night,” Ivan said.

This made me turn toward him and look.

“I heard you outside. It could have been fun. We all could have takenturns.”

“Charlotte had fun, that’s all that matters.”

Ivan chuckled. “You’re going to keep fighting this?”

“There’s nothing to fight. You asked me to marry her, so I have. What good are children? She has no hold over the Evil Savages MC. They didn’t want her, Ivan.”

He tutted. “Someone clearly didn’t get enough sleep last night.”

I took a deep breath, because losing my temper with the boss was not the best idea. Ivan does things on purpose. I’d seen the way he worked. Watched the way he worked Slavik and Andrei with their marriages.

“It’s not about control,” Ivan said. “Family builds unity.”

“You and I both know that family means shit.”

Ivan chuckled. “Very true. When the wrong people are in charge and only have a thirst for their own power, it is shit. Youhave what you wanted, Ive. Now to keep our place in our territories, we need to be stronger. Family, children, building our numbers is the priority. Charlotte has a lot to give.”

“Now is not the time to be having babies,” I said.

“Now is the perfect timeto be having babies. There is no better way to tell our enemies that we don’t give a fuck, than by having a family.”

I was about to ask him if he truly believed that Charlotte was ready to have a family. She didn’t even have a fucking clue how to play games.

The woman herself stepped into the dining room. She wore a pair of jeans and a t-shirt that seemed to highlight her body. Why the fuck did I have to notice those large tits and hips? She had a smaller waist. Charlotte was curvy. She was sexy. She had a way about her that felt like a fucking siren’s call.

Turning my gaze away, I glanced over to the kitchen and my staff chose that moment to bring out our breakfast. I always like to have a healthy morning breakfast. I didn’t like bacon and eggs first thing in the morning.

Charlotte sat down and she looked refreshed even though I knew she didn’t get to bed untilpast three o’clock. After Ivan walked her to her room, I’d been tempted to go in there and knock, but something held me back. Something always held me fucking back.

“Morning,” Charlotte said.

We greeted her morning. I watched as she reached for the glass of orange juice.

“Charlotte, my sweet, what are your plans for the day?” Ivan asked.

He was purposefully pissing me off.

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