DECLAN
Zahra’s determination to pretend nothing happened between us on our wedding night is as commendable as it is frustrating. I can’t say I know much about Disney princesses, but she may as well be Cinderella. Except instead of turning back into a maid when the clock struck midnight, she immediately shifted into treating our relationship as a strictly platonic arrangement between our allied families. I’d mentally prepared myself for some of her defenses to go back up following the reception, but I refuse to let us go back to square one.
Immediately following the wedding, we both spent days packing up our essentials in preparation for today—move-in day. My father’s cabin house has officially been renovated with our selected changes and alterations. The only thing that’s left is us. I was determined that living under the same roof would allow us to get back on the same page. Now that I’ve seen what we can be together, been able to taste her, feel her tight cunt wrapped around my fingers, I would never let her go. She wasmywife, and she could try and deny it all she wanted, but we were inevitable.
One thing’s for certain—her body definitely likes me. That much was clear by the way she kept coming on my fingers. Now I just needed to help her realize that she could have all of me too. That we weren’t doomed to some painful fate. That our love for each other could handle any threat.
Connor clears his throat. “Boss, Mrs. McAlister and her movers are here.”
“It’s Mrs. Ahzimi. It’s customary to keep your last name after marriage in Iranian culture,” I correct him. My heart begins to race as I pace toward the front door and throw it open.
In true form, Zahra is currently bossing around about a half a dozen men twice her size, telling them which boxes to handle with extra care and remove first from the van.
“If this is you moving light, I’d hate to see how many trucks you’d need to bring over all your stuff,” I tease, propping the entry door open and stepping aside so the movers can enter.
“You’re one to talk. How did you decide which five sports cars out of thirty you wanted to bring?” she jests.
“The same way any normal person would. I put all my keys in a hat and let fate decide.”
“Hmm, not sure that same strategy will have worked for me, especially when it comes to deciding what clothes to bring over, but I appreciate the suggestion.”
“You’re right, maybe you should have just let me choose what stays and what goes. I may have given Samirah a run for her money.” Or picked only the skimpiest outfits from Zahra’s closet, because I’m a selfish man who loves to ogle his wife.
“Mmm, from that plotting look in your eye, I have a feeling letting you near my closet is asking for nefarious behavior to occur. And we can’t have that.” She nails me with a seriouslook, but there’s a twinkle in her eye. One that makes my blood rush to my heart.
“Nothing nefarious. Just an additional hand to help speed up the move-in.” I wink.
Zahra’s eyebrows pinch together. “Ugh, that’s on me. Cody was having a really tough time adjusting to the move. I knew it was going to be a problem, I just didn’t realize how upset he would be.”
Cody? Who thefuckis Cody? Our entire time together, she never once mentioned a lover. Sure, most bosses were known for having a side piece, but I never really pegged Zahra as being the type. My chest heats, filling with rage, as violent images of me tracking down this loser and putting a bullet in him fill my head. Killing her boytoy won’t win me any brownie points, but given she admitted how she hadn’t orgasmed with a partner in a while, I doubt she would miss him that much.
“Eventually, I was able to get Cody to cooperate. I really appreciate you opening your house to him. I really don’t know what I would’ve done if he wasn’t allowed to live with us.” She gives me such a sweet smile that I almost forget what we were even talking about.
Almost. “What do you mean, move in with us?!” If she thinks I’ll be okay with her boyfriend playing house, she has another thing coming. There’s no way I was going to share my wife. Because that’s what she is.Mywife.
Zahra worries her lips together. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her so nervous before. Fuck me. Who is the guy? How does he have so much control over her? And how come this is the first I’ve ever heard of him? Did no one else catch this?
She sucks in a sharp breath. “I spoke with your lawyers and your staff…They all reassured me it wouldn’t be a problem.”
Fired. Everyone on my payroll is about to be fired. Either that or this must be some long-winded prank Zahra ispulling on me, because there’s no way that anyone in my employment would even for a second think that I would be fine with?—
Zahra reaches for the straps of her backpack, readjusting it so the front of the pack is facing me. I’m immediately met with a glass dome and an incredibly skittish-looking spotted cat. “I promise Cody won’t be a bother. He really just sleeps for most of the day, wakes up to eat, and then goes back to sleep. He’ll probably run away from you for a while, but once he gets used to you, he’ll turn into a big snuggle bug.”
Oh.Oh.“Cody is a cat?” I clarify.
“Yes. The best cat in the whole world.” She wraps her hands around her backpack, as if to give it a hug. The look of sweet innocence on her face makes me forget how lethal she is. “Why, what were you expecting?”
A real human man that you were in love with. One that I had already planned on dismembering limb by limb. “Nothing. My staff just didn’t inform me you were moving in with a cat.”
“Oh. Well, you don’t have to worry about taking care of him. I fully accept Cody is my responsibility. That was the only way I got my father to agree to letting me keep little fluff after I found him on the street.”
I peer into the bag again. The cat, who’s giving me a pretty lethal side eye, looks neither little nor fluffy, but I’m not going to correct her. Not when she looks so damn…adorable sharing this part of her life with me.
“I’m surprised your dad used the word ‘no’ around you. I always assumed you had him wrapped around your finger,” I tease.
Zahra rolls her eyes. “I can’t exactly deny that he spoiled me, but he wasn’t exactly fond of the idea of me taking in a stray kitten that was covered in fleas. He tried to bribe me with purchasing a big, fancy, purebred cat in exchange for him taking Cody to the pound. I told him that if he dropped Codyoff at the shelter, I would never speak to him again, and I meant it at the time. I was quite stubborn and angsty when I was fourteen.”
“So nothing has changed since?” I quip.
