“Say it!” I yell, and she flinches. “Say it. Ask me the fucking question, Beauty.”
She releases a breath and glares at me. I wait until she gathers the courage to say what she needs to say. She’s a strong fucking woman and should not be scared to ask her fucking husband anything she wants to know. Even if it might make her hate me, I will not lie to her.
“Did you kill my father?”
“I did.”
“You did?” she asks with disbelief in her voice. “You killed him?”
I rise from the bed and walk toward her, then stop directly in front of her.
“I did. He was a threat to you and…”
Her slap stings my face, leaving a burning sensation and a ringing in my ears. A smile crosses my face, and she stares at me like I’ve lost my mind. But I’m smiling not because I killed Arthur. I smile because I’m proud that she’s found her voice.
“I hate you!” she screams. “I want a divorce!”
“No, you don’t, Beauty.” I stuff my hands deep into my pockets to keep from comforting her. “And that’s what pisses you off. Not that I killed your father, but that you love the man who did.”
“Get out, Florian!” she screams, her beautiful skin tinted red. “Get out! I want you gone!”
The truth hurts, but it needs to be said.
“You may want me gone, right now, Arabelle. But you will always belong to me. There’s nothing and no one that will keep me away from you. I’m your Beast, just like you’re my, Beauty.”
I don’t say anything else to her and leave our bedroom. I’ll give her all the space she needs to come to terms that this is the man that she married. I don’t let anyone threaten my family. And she is my family.
“How long are you going to be here?” Didrick asks. “It’s been two weeks, Florian.”
I sip my whiskey, trying to hold back my smile. I’ve been staying at the penthouse while Arabelle ignores me. She’s pissed about what I’ve done, but she knows anything I do, I do it for her. It’s been difficult.
“I know how long it’s been, Didrick. I will leave when she wants me to come home.”
“But are you doing anything to get back in her good graces, or are you just waiting for her to come around?”
I’ve sent her roses, notes, and even extravagant gifts. Alrick says she trashes the roses and has him return the gifts. But I’ll break her down eventually. She loves me. I just have to remind her.
“Are you tired of me being here?”
“Yes,” he says, flopping in the chair beside me. “I love you, but I like my space. I like having my girlfriend over where we can fuck and not have her worry about you hearing her scream my name.”
I laugh. “Well, when Arabelle comes around, I’ll get out of your hair.”
“And you think she’s going to come around?” He shakes his head. “You killed her father.”
“With good reason.”
“No matter the reason, Florian, I can’t believe I’m having to give my older brother advice on women. She’s not going to come around, Florian. Not until you can show her a different side of you.”
“I am who I am. She’s under no illusion of the man she married, Didrick.”
“You are who you are, but you’re also someone who loves a woman who is hurting right now. And you’re letting her go through it by herself. Show her that you are there for her.”
He throws his hand up before I can respond.
“And don’t say you’ve been giving her roses and all that bullshit. She doesn’t want that. She wants the man she fell in love with.”
He gets up and heads toward his room. I down the rest of my drink as I think about what Didrick says. I know she loves me. I just have to remind her of the man she fell in love with. I don’tknow how easy that’s going to be when she won’t even answer my damn calls.
