Page 40 of Bittersweet Revenge

As we pulled up at the mansion, I was pleased when Benjamin came to meet me by the car to help me carry the dead weight that was Caleb back to his room.

“Can you please tell his parents that he is resting after keeping an eye on me all night?” I huffed as we struggled up the stairs. Caleb was lean but much heavier than I’d thought.

“Of course,” Benjamin replied. “Thank you.”

“You really care for him, don't you?” I asked Benjamin as he helped me set Caleb on his bed.

He looked at Caleb and nodded. “Young Mister Astor didn’t have an easy upbringing; he is not as unbreakable as he lets on.”

It was my turn to look at the comatose Caleb. “I agree. Thank you for your help. I will take it from here.”

After Benjamin left us, I removed his oxfords and his jacket before leaving to fetch a blanket. When I came back from my bedroom with the spare blanket I had there, Caleb was lying on his stomach. His shirt had ridden up his back, revealing the bottom of his spine and some blue and red ink. I hadn’t been mistaken the other night. Caleb Astor was tattooed.

I walked closer to him. Resting the blanket by his feet, I tried to work out what this tattoo could be. I would have never expected this proper golden son to be tattooed, especially not to the extent the couple of glimpses I got seemed to suggest.

Did his father even know? Again, I could hardly picture James Astor being on board with his son’s decision.

I let my hand hover over the hem of his shirt, my fingers almost tingling with the desire to pull it up and see more. As I touched the soft material, he turned his face to the side with a soft moan. It made me move my hand sharply as if it had burned him.

Shame engulfed me. I had no right to touch him without his consent. Just the thought had been shameful.

I shook my head.Get a grip, Esme. He’ll show you if he wants you to see.

I looked at his sleeping face. Even in his alcohol-induced slumber, he looked tortured, in pain. “What is it, Caleb?” I murmured. “What is hurting you so much?” I reached for his face and ran my fingertips over his cheekbone. “Let me help you, please. While there is some time left, while I'm still here, let me help you.”

I stayed there by his bed for a few more minutes just looking at him. It was hard to admit how much I’d come to care for this cruel, broken, elitist idiot. Someone too stubborn to believe me even if I told him so.

Chapter 10 - Esme

I should have known better than to think I had any luck left in my life. It was a big house, gigantic in fact. I had been pretty confident that I could avoid the Astors. It was not like they were going to seek me out.

Caleb’s mother hated me on principle, probably associating me with the false image she had of my mother. As for James, he gave me the creeps. I shuddered over what he had done to my mother, what he had wanted to do. He had no reason to look for me. I was nothing to him, good or bad.

When I’d woken up before the sun this morning, I’d taken a run around the icy grounds to unwind the events of the past few days and to make sure the drowning hadn’t caused any more damage than it seemed. I’d run for longer than I’d thought, having enjoyed the pure silence only interrupted by the rhythmic sound of my sneakers on the gravel. The cold air had filled my lungs, waking every part of my brain and my body. I had enjoyed the burn of my leg muscles as I’d pushed more, went faster. I had liked feeling my body waking up, showing me I was alive and that everybody who had tried to smother the life in me, had failed. I was just as powerful as I'd always been.

It had taken me an hour of running to feel like myself again. After the last few days and the stress of Caleb’s parents being back, I hadn’t been sure how to keep pretending.

I should have known better than to expect a break from life, I really should have, and yet I was cursing everything that was holy when I found James lurking around my bedroom door. The sun was barely up. He had no business on this side of the house.

He turned to look at me, his smile turning predatory as he detailed me, his eyes taking on a light that made me so uncomfortable I wanted to crawl out of my skin.

I wanted to slap myself. Why did I have to remove my running jacket as soon as I’d walked in? Why didn’t I wait until I was in the comfort of my room to do that? Why? Because I was dressed in an acceptable crop top and leggings, because there was nothing indecent about my outfit, because I shouldn't have to be wary of creepy perverted married middle-age men coming on to me.

He licked his lips as his eyes settled on my chest and I could barely contain my gag.

“Ah, my dear Esmeralda! I was looking for you.” The joviality of his tone didn’t really match the twisted desire in his brown eyes.

I looked past him in the corridor, but there was no help.

I forced a smile but remained where I stood, not coming any closer to him. “Isn’t it a bit early in the day to go looking for your future daughter-in-law?” I joked, a good way to remind him of our relationship status and how deviant he was being right now.

He took a few steps toward me. I didn't realize I’d takena step back until my sweaty back connected with the cold wall of the corridor.

“Yes, this is why I think we should try to know each other better, don’t you think?” He took a deep breath as if he was breathing me in. “I’m so pleased Caleb found you. I tried to find you too, you know. Tell me, Esmeralda, will you try to run again? Do we need to clip your wings?” He was crowding my space now, hovering over me, his sickly-sweet cologne surrounding me. I could just knee him in the balls, but I knew it would be counterproductive.

“That won’t be necessary; I learn quickly.” I hated how small and trembling my voice sounded.

“You look so much like her, you know,” he said a little wistfully, wrapping a strand of hair that had escaped my ponytail around his forefinger.

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