AllFreeNovel
Share Us
9
Lavinia
“That was a beautiful wedding. I can’t believe Max had it in him to get married. And Kiana is pretty damn cool. I’m glad I finally have a sister.”
Vini slipped off her shoes as she and Nico walked into their home. He’d been silent ever since the reception, and she wasn’t sure what was going on. Things had been going well for them over the past month. They’d talked more about the loss of their baby, which was still very difficult for Vini to put into words. While the doctors said she should have no issues with getting pregnant again, just the thought of it scared her.
“Yeah, it was nice. Big Mama and Mama Bishop went all out for this,” he said in a distracted voice as they made their way upstairs.
Once they got to their bedroom, she took off her dress, hanging it up and placing it on the side of the closet designated for the cleaners. Looking over her shoulder, she caught Nico staring at her with an odd look on his face. Glancing down at her body, she wondered if something was wrong. “Nico, why are you staring at me like that?”
After a few more moments, he shook his head, as if to clear away the cobwebs. “Do you ever feel cheated? I didn’t give you the big wedding, or the public declaration. Is that why you questioned my commitment to you?”
His question caught her by surprise. Her heart began racing due to the sudden bout of adrenaline coursing through her veins. She’d never once spoken about her feelings on this. When they’d gotten married, she’d agreed with what he wanted because she’d honestly thought it was the best plan. Things were so hot and heavy back then. The streets were constantly gunning for the three of them. She was as much in the dark underbelly of the business, as Nico was.
It made sense. At the time.
If she were to really think about when the insecurities began to increase, it was before she’d gotten pregnant and lost the baby. It was the knowledge that Nico could never wear his wedding band, even though it sat in their jewelry box on top of their dresser. That when she was introduced to his business colleagues, it was never as his wife, but as his woman or girlfriend, or even his lady.
That lack of public acknowledgment had begun to seep under her skin. She never thought she was a selfish person, but the longer they had to keep hidden, the more she questioned why he’d married her in the first place. Maybe now was the time to ask.
“Let me ask you something. And this isn’t to start a fight. I really want you to think about the question.” Gazing at him from the closet, she slipped her satin, thigh-length robe over her arms and shoulders, then tied the belt at her waist.
“What do you need to ask me? It won’t start a fight. Not tonight,” he said, stepping out of his own shoes before pulling his shirt from his pants.
“Why did you marry me?”
Sighing, he shook his head. “Vini, baby…”
“No, listen to me for just a second,” she came over to sit next to him on the bench at the end of their bed. “You asked me if I felt cheated that I didn’t have the public wedding and commitment that Max gave Kiana. Before I answer that, I want to know why you married me. The truth.”
Nico sat there for a few minutes. His gaze going from her to the ground as he thought about her question. After a while, he began to speak. “I didn’t like the way others were starting to look at you differently.”
“Meaning,” she prodded.
Shifting in his seat, he began to look nervous. “Vini, I don’t know why you’re asking me this.”
“Because I think if we’d had this conversation five years ago, it could have prevented some of the bullshit we’re going through.”
“So, you’re back to questioning why I married you? If I really love you?”
She could tell he was getting frustrated, which she didn’t want. If everything went the way she wanted tonight, they’d be in a better place. Able to move forward and put all this behind them. Together, the two of them were amazing. When they were fractured like this, things didn’t work as well between the two of them. It caused issues on the streets and others began to question what was happening within their dynamic. Not being aligned caused too much potential for danger. They had to stop this, and they needed to get it right.
“No, Baby. I know you love me. You love me just as much as I love you, of that I’m positive. But I want you to answer my question.” Standing from the bench, she began to remove her bra and underwear. Maybe she could entice him to answer her questions a little faster. “Have you thought of that reason yet?”
Closing his eyes, he stood in front of her, his hands on his hips. Licking her lips, she admired the man in all his great glory.
“There was chatter on the street that because I hadn’t wife’d you up, that you were fair game. That even though you were my main lady—and only lady, I might add—others could try to make a play for you to get back at me. A wife is off-limits, but a girlfriend could be played and discarded. People were making plans to try and take you, use you to get to me. I couldn’t allow that to happen. I wasn’t going to risk someone approaching you, offering you things you felt I hadn’t given you. The possibility of losing you tore me up. It wasn’t something I was willing to risk.”
That wasn’t what she expected to hear. Standing naked in the middle of their bedroom, she had no words for what he’d just told her. Some parts of what he said pissed her off. Other parts made her heart grow big.
“Let me get this right. Based on some ‘word on the street’ that someone was planning to use me against you, you decided the best approach was to marry me? Is that right? In a secret ceremony only two other people knew about. And you did this to prevent some hypothetical man from enticing me away from you? Even though no one actually knows we’re married, you thought that would solve the problem?” Flabbergasted wasn’t a strong enough word to explain how she felt right now.
“No, that wasn’t all.” He’d removed his shirt, so he stood only in his tuxedo slacks. “I just…just…I couldn’t risk losing you to another man,” he almost yelled. Running one hand over his short blond hair, he began pacing. “No. It was more than that. This world changes by the day. Hell, by the minute. There was this feeling I had when all that chatter began. That if something happened to me, you’d be left unprotected. Sure, Max would always take care of you, but you would have nothing of mine to protect you.”
“Nico…”
“No, let me finish. If I left this world, I wanted you to have the protection of my name. I needed you to be Mrs. Lavinia Mitchell. Nothing would be held back. All the money in my bank accounts, all my legitimate business holdings, stocks, everything. You’re the only person who should have all the wealth I’ve spent my entire life building.”
