Page 35 of Nemesis
These women weren’t my friends, and truthfully, they’d never be. They were who society dictated them to be. Status and wealth were what shaped thesefriendships. These were the people myhusbandwanted me to befriend since in this world, connections and the image you projected were everything.
And just like the dutifulwifeI was, I’d done exactly what he asked of me.
“Tempting enough to contemplate cheating on my Mike,” another added. More shrieks of laughter erupted. I just nodded, nursing the glass of champagne, sipping it every once in a while to avoid having to join the conversation.
I wished I had something stronger to make this more bearable.
Mila zeroed in her attention on me as she drained the rest of her glass of red wine, patronizingly lifting her hand to the waiter who was passing by for another one.
She was already on her third, and we were barely an hour in. Mila had never been a huge fan of mine, although she’d never come out right and said it. None of the ladies around the table were honest about anything—each hiding their own secrets behind closed doors.
Conversations were filled with pointed comments and backhanded compliments. As soon as one person had their back turned, whispers immediately started shortly after.
Myhusbandwas richer, more successful than their husbands ever would be and they were threatened by that.
If only they knew what made him so successful.
“I would pay to have a man look at me like that,” Hailey said, her tone suggestive as she poked my side.
The table quieted, all of them waiting on bated breath, their attention now solely focused on me.
“I’m sorry, I was lost in thought,” I responded, feigning ignorance to dismiss her suggestion.
“Come on, tell us,” Hailey urged before continuing with a sly grin on her face. “He hasn’t taken his eyes off you the entire time.”
“He’s a bodyguard. That’s his job.” I stopped myself from rolling my eyes at her, opting to take another sip from my flute.
“But he isn’t watching you like it’sjusthis job.” She glanced at him quickly, returning her attention back to me, her eyes narrowing. “He’s watching you l—”
“He’s my bodyguard,” I repeated, cutting her off.
She sighed dramatically. “Whatever.” Hailey turned to Mila, sparking a conversation about the new family that had just moved into our neighborhood and how they didn’t fit.
Realistically, who did?
Sighing with relief that their attention was no longer on me, I discreetly tried to steal a peek at Theo, but he was already watching me closely, that signature stoic expression on his face.
Memories of two nights ago were still plaguing my mind. His actions were so out of character, he’d caught me off guard, cementing me in place. His boldness was the opposite of what I’d expected.
Instead of keeping his distance, he’d stalked across the room and leaned closer, flushing our bodies together. There was so much of him all at once, that I hadn’t been able to think straight.
His size loomed over me. His rich and familiar scent wrapped around me, sending my stomach into a frenzy of somersaults. The water droplets slipping down his abdomen, cascading over every divot of his toned stomach made my mouth dry.
He’d barely touched me, barely any words were said, yet the desire was still just as palpable as ever, despite all the years apart.
But he wasn’t aware of who I was. My heart tugged at the idea of him moving on with someone else. Despite Maya not being his daughter, what would stop him from having that with someone else other than me?
Seven years was a long time to wait for someone.
I’d been relieved when he hadn’t further questioned me about the bruise on my face after that night. I didn’t need another problem to be added to my plate.
I realized I had been staring at him this whole time when his expression morphed into a questioning one. I quickly diverted my gaze away from him and looked down at my watch, counting down the minutes until I could politely excuse myself from this charade.
The gathering continued, and I pretended to enjoy myself as I made an effort to chat with a few of the ladies near me, glancing at my watch here and there.
I hadn’t realized he’d moved from his position, until I felt him looming over me.
“Sorry to interrupt, Mrs. Morales, but we have to go,” he stated before leaning in next to my head.
