Emma's POVI shook my head and began to pull away but he held me fast and his eyes bore into mine. It wasn't fair. No one could ever make me feel the way Ellis made me feel and he knew it. His lips descended on mine, warm and soft, capturing me completely. I sighed and moved my arms to wrap them around his neck, unable to deny what I wanted from him.He scooped me up into his arms, holding me bridal style."Ack!" I yelped when my legs flew out from under me. Ellis smirked and kissed the tip of my nose. I struggled in his arms. "What are you doing?" I asked. Instead of answering me, Ellis found my lips with his and kissed me hungrily. He laid me down as we kissed. He moved his hands to my hips, gripping tightly, as he put his weight on me. My body immediately responded to the crushing pressure of him, arching against him. "Well, well," Ellis purred, grabbing the edges of my robe, still only loosely secured, and pulling them apart. His eyes lit up hungrily like he wa
I blinked my eyes open, still wrapped tightly in Ellis's arms. He was breathing heavily in my ear. Memories of the night before flooded my mind and my cheeks got hot. I tried to wiggle away from Ellis. I wanted to get dressed before his penetrating eyes found me naked again. "Where are you going?" he growled, tightening his arms around me. I giggled and fought against him to get free. Ellis growled again and held me tighter. He rolled on top of me, keeping me pinned. "I like when you struggle," he teased, eyes gleaming as he licked his lips. My stomach flipped and I stopped struggling, stunned by his response. I felt the thick, firm weight of his hardened member against my stomach and a shiver ran through me. Ellis leaned down and kissed my lips. I sighed into the kiss and arched my back. I wanted to feel him in me again, feel that close to him. Knock. Knock. Knock. Ellis and I froze, lips still locked together. "You locked the door, right?" I whispered against
Ellis had his car brought to the school and we left Ken around lunchtime. Most of the other parents had left and the teachers wanted the students back in class. I twisted my hands in my lap and kept my eyes down, thinking of the wish that Ken had made. "I'm sorry, Ellis. I know that Ken told me about the open day at school. With everything else going on, I just forgot," I muttered. "You don't have to apologize, Olivia. I want to be here as a father for Ken. I'm happy to do these things. Besides, there is nothing more important to me than you and Ken," he said. He reached over and patted my hand with his before pulling away quickly. "But…"Ellis shook his head. "If you feel you must make it up to me, you can do me a favor."I glanced at him suspiciously and narrowed my eyes. "Okay.""I'm starving. Come to lunch with me?" He smirked and glanced sideways at me. His question was phrased more as an order."Of course, that is a favor I can manage," I said, flashing him a
Shaking my head at Bethany, I turned back to my mother. "Don't worry about her." I handed my mom a fresh tissue and kept her focused on me. "The doctors will tell us as soon as anything changes.""You're ignoring me?" Bethany asked, putting her hands on her hips. I could see her from the periphery of my vision but I wasn't going to play her game. My dad could be dying and my mom was an emotional mess. I didn't need Bethany trying to stir up trouble, too. As if money could mean anything at a time like this. She was prancing around, talking about how she stole our fortune. We were worried about my father's life and she wanted to talk about money?I shook my head again and kept comforting my mother. "How long have they been working on him?" I asked. "I don't know. Too long, it seems like," my mother whispered. "Do you guys even care? The Richardson fortune now belongs to me!" Bethany taunted, pointing to herself and puffing up her chest. "Bethany, now is not the t
"Olivia, your father is awake!" my mother called out, running up to me. She grabbed my arm and smiled.I blinked at her, still thinking of Bethany being taken away by the cops. I blinked again. "Wh-what?" I asked. My mom smiled at me again, wider and brighter than before. "Your father, he's been resuscitated. He's stabilized now and is being moved back to a recovery room.""Oh." I couldn't say anything else. My mind was in complete overload. Good news followed by even better news. "Come, he'll want to see you. We've got a lot to talk to him about," she said, dragging me along. "He's going to have to explain why he signed everything over to Bethany."My chest squeezed in on itself as my smile faltered. I was happy that he was recovering but my mom was absolutely right. How could he do that to us?My father was sitting up in his hospital bed. He looked more lively and healthy than he had the last time I'd seen him. "Olivia, I'm so glad you're here," he said, holdin
I asked Bennett to meet me at a cafe in town. Ellis was reluctant to leave me alone with him but I assured Ellis I would be fine. I even told him he could pick up Ken. He was excited about that chance and almost left me eagerly. Chuckling to myself, I went into the cafe and ordered a coffee. I sat at a corner table with a good window view and waited for Bennett. Bennett arrived right on time, as usual. He came up to the table first. I stood and he kissed my cheek. "It is good to see you, Olivia. Thank you for asking to meet," he said. "I know I've been a little distant, and that hasn't been fair to you. Did you want to get a drink?" I motioned to the barista. "I'm fine," Bennett said, waving at the barista dismissively. We sat across from each other. "For you." He held out a dozen roses. My cheeks warmed and I took the bouquet, smelling the sweet, delicious roses. "These are beautiful," I murmured. A pit formed in my stomach. He was acting like any good boyfriend o
I left Bennett in the coffee shop and went back to the Peterson Mansion. What I'd seen on Bennett's phone made it look like Ellis and Nancy had been a lot more serious than just a few dates. I was too shocked to form any kind of thought or opinion. When I got to Ellis' house, I went right in. He'd given me a key since I was living there now. I was looking down, shuffling through the halls, trying to make sense of what I'd seen. "Hey!" an unfamiliar voice caught my attention. "Wh-" I looked up and stopped dead, nearly colliding with someone else. I stared at the woman in front of me. It was almost like looking into a mirror. Cocking my head to the side, my jaw dropped open. "Y-" "Oh, you must be Olivia," she said, smiling warmly. She took my hands in hers. "I… y-yes. I am Olivia," I said, nodding. "Ellis told me that you and I were very similar. He chose you as a girlfriend because of me," she said, batting her eyelashes. I pulled my hands away. "I don't th
"What are you doing, Mommy?" Ken asked when I pulled his suitcase out of his closet. "Pick out some of your favorite toys. We are going away for a few days," I told him. I put the suitcase on the bed and started folding his clean clothes into it. "I don't want to leave. I don't want to lose my new toys," Ken whined, rubbing his eyes with his fist. "You're not going to lose your toys, I promise," I assured. Regardless of whether Ellis chose to be with Nancy or not, Ken wouldn't lose his toys. I'd make sure of that. I didn't need to tell him that he might not get to come back here to play with his toys. Ken mumbled to himself as he started picking out some of his absolute favorites. I got them into his suitcase and then hurried to Ellis' room. He wasn't inside, which I was grateful for at the moment. He was probably catching up with Nancy. Shaking my head, I grabbed my unpacked suitcase. In all the craziness, I hadn't even had a chance to 'move in' to his bedroom.
Ellis POVI sat in the executive chair in the office, getting work done as well as I could under the circumstances. Even with the new legal troubles, some things never changed. “And tell them if they don’t they will have to answer to me,” I said. “Got it,” my project manager, William, said, looking a little shaken. Handling contractors came with the job, and was mostly a matter of patience, and being commanding. Much the same as handling a child having a tantrum. I relaxed a little as the call went away, taking more of the immediate problems with it. There were other problems hanging over my head that I didn’t like to think about. A little annoyed and very tired I loosen my tie, which had come to feel like a noose. After the house arrest, theoretical as it might have been, I hardly wore one anymore.I felt Olivia’s absence in my chest, like a weight. One I tried to lighten with another drink. Sipping lightly from the tumbler of rum, careful not to get drunk. I wanted to be alert
**Olivia POVI woke up still groggy, the world going from a dark blur to a light blur. Everything that had happened slowly rearranged itself in my mind.Pain came back along with the memories, if in a reduced form. With a wince, my head turned just right, and I saw Ellis seated by the bed, where he’d always been before getting arrested and would always be if I had anything to say about it.Ellis looked troubled, something I rarely saw. He was always so capable and in control of himself if not the situation. I reached out to him instinctively, and Ellis took it tenderly.“Can you be here?”“Of course,” he said.“No, I mean your house arrest.”“That is taken care of. Even if it wasn’t, I think this counts as compassionate grounds.”I relaxed a little, letting out a breath. Then I remembered what happened with the baby.“How is she?” I asked.He squeezed my hand, letting me know something was wrong, no matter what he might say.“She will be fine,” he said, “I’ll take you to the NICU to se
**Olivia POVI’d always heard bad things about hospital food. Fortunately, this proved not to be true. Everything Amber brought was great. I started to feel stronger just from the diet alone.If it wasn’t for hospital policy, I probably could have walked on our twice daily outings onto the hospital grounds. The baby seemed better too, moving even more than before.I started to suspect Nurse Anderson might have cooked the meals at home and smuggled them onto the hospital plates.I was near the end of my bacon and eggs, when a familiar face peeked in through the door.“Mom!?” I asked, more delighted to see her than I had words to say.“Hey, baby.”Mom came over and gave me a kiss on the cheek, like she used to do when I was little and feeling sick.“Me or her?” I asked, patting my belly.“Both of you, really,” mom said with a rare smile.Mom put her hand on my belly and felt it as the baby moved again.“Hello, little one, it’s Grandma.”I was surprised to hear her use the term. Something
**Ellis POVI paced the hallway, resisting the urge to hit something. The control I showed in most situations was carefully built up over years. There were times I worried about Ken and his potential impulse control. Then again his mother was so patient and gentle, except when truly riled, it could be her genetics that might win out. I went to the door again, just to see if I could hear what was being said. The wood was too thick and all I could hear was muffled hums. “You know you could just go in right? You’re on the list.”Spinning on my heel, resisting the urge to yell in fright, I saw Nurse Anderson with a food tray. “I can’t actually.”“Why? Is the door locked?” she asked, testing the knob. “Yes, but that is not the biggest problem.” “Oh, how so?” Nurse Anderson asked. “It was locked from the inside,” I said.“Yes, that is how it works.” “By someone else, on purpose I mean.” “Who?” “Some Fed, I think he said his name was Smiley.” “Agent Smiley?” Nurse An
**Olivia POV Ken came out of nowhere. The only warning of his arrival, an excited shout echoed down the hall. He still hadn’t got the hang of his ‘inside voice.’ Like a shot he was in the room, shattering the quiet solitude. I couldn’t have been happier. Kevin was more subtle, coming in behind and waiting to be beckoned before coming forward. There was something about hospitals that made him less than comfortable. “Mommy,” Ken cried, up on the bed like a shot. “Hey, baby,” I said, as he took me in a near-choking hug. “Hi,” Kevin said, quietly, keeping his wheelchair near the door.. “Get over here,” I said. Kevin came up beside the bed, not needing to be told twice. From my bed I hugged Ken and held Kevin’s hand tightly, tears started to roll with little choice. “Mommy?” Ken asked. “Happy tears, baby,” I said. “Oh.” The room felt smaller all of the sudden and all I wanted to do was go outside with my boys. Pressing the button to page her, Amber appeared in no
**Olivia POV Day came again even as I was sitting on the plane back to New York. It had been a dream, and Ellis was still there, looking deeply worried. “How are you doing?” he asked with a smile that once melted me. “Fine and only getting better. As soon as the doctor gives me the all clear I’m going home with Ken.” “Ken is at home,” Ellis said. “Not your home, my home,” I said. I could see the words cut deep, and almost felt sorry for him. Second thoughts were just coming up when the doctor came in, his expression grim.I instinctively reached for Ellis’s hand. Bad news no doubt on the horizon. “It can’t be that bad,” Ellis and I blurted at once. “It can actually,” the doctor said, looking at the chart. “How so?” Ellis butted in. It didn’t really concern him anymore, but he was the sort to think he needed to be the center of attention in any situation. He must have been a joy at funerals. “You are severely dehydrated, Mrs. Peterson. The amniotic fluid is mu
**Ellis POVI held her hand in the back of the ambulance, never letting her go again if I had anything to do about it. I had gotten far too close to losing her. “We’ll be there soon,” I said, minding the volume. She flinched at the smallest noise if it was unexpected. God only knew what the sick f*cks had done to her, and it was best not to think about it. Anytime I did, the urge to kill them rose. I didn't want to kill Carl, no matter how much of a f*ck up he was.No matter what he did he was still my son. People like us had other ways to deal with our kids when they got off the track. Military service was one popular option, as well as “career opportunities” in another country. Olivia stayed silent, her head lolling to the left before she closed her eyes. “Everyone is excited to see you again,’ I tried, “especially Ken and Kevin.”Olivia winched at the mention of their names. It was probably a touchy subject, after she’d been away for so long, not sure if she’d ever get ba
**Olivia POV“How are you doing, honey?” I asked, rubbing my belly. The baby didn’t move, but she could have been asleep. Apparently, they did that a lot. Resting up for the rest of their life. Bethany and Carl were down there for a few hours. Mostly quiet but with the occasional argument. Things shifted and I heard steps coming towards the attic. I held my breath hoping everything would be okay. I wasn’t sure I’d done the lock up right, and hoped they wouldn’t notice if they came back. It would be an obvious sign of what I’d done, and the punishment could be awful. There was no telling what Bethany might do. She could be merciful and just break my ankles. Or my wrists, to stop me from getting the lock picked again. It would make Ellis really mad, but it didn’t sound like they were planning to stay around, after everything. The clock clicked open, making me flinch and the baby move. I nearly cried to feel her again but had to hold it together. If we were going to get out of
**Olivia POVI felt a thrilling chill run over my body and the baby moved in response, celebrating in my womb. The door was open and we were close to freedom. I rubbed my belly, calming her down. I would need all my focus for the next part. Carl and Bethany could have been back at any time, and I had to be gone before then if there was going to be any chance of getting back to the boys and Ellis tonight. I cracked the door open slowly and I listened to the deafening silence. All was dark but I could just make out the staircase below the door. There was no light from below, so I had to try to get down blind. A little at a time, always sure to hold something, down I climbed. Getting one foot down on the stairs and then the other. Holding the sides of the steps in a death-grip, I finally reached solid ground. The floorboards down below creaking like the ones up above. There was another door at the base of the steps and my heart sank to think that I might have to work to pick another l