Juliette had to focus. She couldn’t let Michael take control of her every thought. She’d started her new life and had responsibilities, even if he still demanded everything she had. Hearing him speak to Beck like that hurt on so many levels. Beck had always been there for her. He cheered her on. She didn’t care if he improved his life around hers. It felt good. She still didn’t understand Michael’s attitude or intentions. He’d always told her how temporary she was and how disappointing she was for him. He only kept her around because he’d not found any better. Michael insisted if Aria became available, he jumped at the chance to have her. He’d done that within a day of her leaving. Why was he unhappy? He’s dragged Aria with him to what? To speak to Juliette and show Juliette how easy it was for her to be replaced? Then why make a point of calling her his wife when his lover was living with him? None of it made sense, and Michael wanting to reconcile for six m
Hours later, the food sat in the kitchen waiting for Juliette to arrive. She’d called for his driver to pick her up and Edward, his driver, called up to say she’d accepted her pass card from him and she’d entered the building safely. Michael thanked him and left his office to hear up their meal. As he waited by the microwave, he realized he felt nervous. He had sweaty hands and felt shaky. He’d not expected feeling like this about Juliette’s return. Should he feel like he’d won? She was back where she belonged. He could protect her from being taken advantage of. His life could return to normal with only a few minimal changes. He debated whether he should reset his five-year marriage plan. He hated the idea of delaying his plans, but he now had information about Juliette and Aria that changed things for him. Aria was flashy and a perfect show piece, but her character was riddled with problems. He valued honesty in others, even if h
Juliette watched Michael take in what she asked, and a thrill ran through her. Her mind switched on and gave that sexy little demon free rein over what happened now. One of her hands unconsciously loosened a couple of buttons at the top of her blouse and she couldn’t keep her knees together under the table. She desired a bit of excitement, so she rubbed against the chair. Michael watched the transformation in Juliette. It was like she was coming alive. When he saw her open her blouse just a little more, he knew he had her attention, and she’d play by his rules of the bedroom. “You are my little wanton slut, aren’t you, Juliette? I can see you want it now, don’t you? You want me to take you to our bed and entertain myself with your body until we can’t do anything more than sleep. Admit it, love. Does my wife want my dick in her hot cunt? Do you Juliette want me, Michael, to fuck you until you can’t scream any longer because you’ve orgasmed too many times?” Mich
Juliette’s eyes always widened as his thickness filled her. When he made her sit on his lap like this, his cock felt larger and deeper in her. It felt like he hit the very opening of her womb. They both moaned together as he settled into place within her, and it only made her want more from him. His hands held her in place and wouldn’t allow her to rock on his straining staff. He’d impaled her on his hardness to tease her into an urgent frenzy, and it worked. She could feel her body weep with desire for him to go wild in her. “Please, Michael.” Juliette felt weak. She lost all her resistance and begged for more. “Show me how you love to play with your breasts. I want to you to beg for me to soothe them with my tongue when you pull on them too hard. Come on.” He’d not moved within her. He wouldn’t until she did as he commanded. Juliette whimpered as she complied, pulling, and twisting on her nipples until her nipples swelled and throbbed from her rough play. It
Aria left the car first, almost leaving Leon in the dust in her rush to return to their home. Leon couldn’t help but smile at that. She would learn soon enough that she wasn’t in control of anyone anymore, including herself. Leon knew she needed to grow up and learn a lot. Her father didn’t do her any favours and when he told Leon he’d washed his hands of her. Leon was content with the fact that his political career would never take off. Aria just had to realize that now. Her life didn't meet her expectations. He’d told her father what he thought of how he raised his daughter and Leon told him exactly what he forced Leon to do. There may have been threats on both sides of that phone call, but Leon saw he didn’t save his daughter, or even try. Leon’s threats weren’t hollow, but Aria’s father’s were. “Go take a shower and clean yourself up, Aria. You’re a mess and I won’t have you around if you don’t show an effort.” Leon ordered her as he closed t
Juliette lay panting under Michael as he spoke. Julie couldn’t understand why he said that. Did she somehow miss something that changed? She gasped as he left her body because he wouldn’t stop touching her. It felt like he was obsessing about her. “Michael…” “No, I’m talking Juliette. You’re listening. I want everything at once. I always get what I want. You know that. Come, we’re going to bed early.” Michael lifted her off the table and guided her to their bedroom. Her legs were shaky, and he might as well have carried her because he supported so much of her weight. He wasn’t finished talking to her. “I want my life back and I realize that means having you in it. But it also includes A.K. Crusader, and that means I must share you with her. Starting tomorrow morning, we'll revert to the way things were and adapt for A.K. Crusader. I’ve also been doing research on your condition, and I’ll be making changes around here to make this easier on both of us. There’
Leon blew his load into Aria’s mouth, and she easily swallowed it all. Mewling with pleasure the entire time. Her eyes never left his, so he knew she heard his words. When he slipped from her mouth, he hadn’t finished with her. He picked her up and threw her over his knee. He caressed her bum, slapping her cheeks as she moaned and writhed in his lap. Her thighs were damp with her desire and her pussy flushed and pink. “Look at how needy you are. Do you think you’re going the find me satisfying you? Do you think I should stuff this cheating hole with my cock?” He’d never said it like that before, but he hated the habit she had of wandering, and he’d finally decided it would end now. Aria panicked at those words and whined a little. Leon grabbed out the paddle and slapped her bare ass each time she opened her mouth. “No whining. You aren’t a squeaky wheel and there’s no grease for you.” Tears flowed again, but Leon ignored them. With t
Michael was the first one awake and witnessed Juliette waking up. She glanced at the time on the bedside clock. Not finding him in bed, she quickly jumped out before he could say good morning. Instead of calling her back, he let her go about doing what she was doing. The first thing he noticed was that she talked to herself about her tasks and plans. It was eye opening because she added how she felt and reasoned why she didn’t do things. It was like he had a window into her private thoughts. “No time for a shower again. Michael will want to start his day. Just brush my teeth. I’ll shower later if there’s time. Oh, geez, the coffee maker. He’ll want coffee after his shower. I must start that first.” She rushed back to the bathroom to shut off the shower. She was running. Michael followed her into the kitchen where she struggled to find the coffee supplies. She was banging the cabinets and searching the shelves when she noticed him. “I’m sorry nothi
Julie removed her earbuds as she sat at her desk. She’d just listened to the ready-to-print version of her fifteenth novel. It was survivable, at least. She felt Stephen and her publisher would love it. She could hear everyone out at the pool having fun. Michael entertained the early bird parents and kids as they slowly arrived for Johnathan’s birthday pool party. Their children’s parties seemed to be an event where people wanted invitations and their presence recognized by their peers. Julie couldn’t believe the changes that had happened over the last few years. Johnathan’s birth shone in her brain as the mark when Julie knew Michael was hers. He’d not settled, but he’d found a different direction for his life that made him happier. Michael had help from the parents, nannies, and several staff members minding the chaos of children everywhere. They’d long ago child proofed the house, and currently Michael hid his genuine prized items in a series of locked rooms away from t
Aria’s honeymoon was so much more than she had expected, and she used her social media accounts to poke the bear that was her father. She posted teasing photos of the place where she got married. Sold a few of her wedding photos to a couple of magazines with an interview hinting at why her father really wasn’t at her wedding and how disappointed she was at his betrayal of family ties. At the end of the interview, Aria made it good and clear that she’d broken off all ties with her father and she wasn’t interested in ever reconciling at any time in the future. He and his staff burned those bridges. As she went around Europe and saw the unique way of life there, some of it initially felt confusing and complicated. But she investigated other differences in how they treated people. It was something she’d not given much thought about until her life spiralled out of control and she finally understood why she was the way she’d become. It wasn’t pretty, and she had the photos and v
“Edward has everything in the car, Julie. We’re ready to head for the hospital. Now, you’re sure you’re okay with going through with a c-section? I mean, if you change your mind, you can still back out.” Michael could see how large Julie grew and wondered how his son hadn’t torn his way out. Michael worried Julie could no longer stand and walk safely. Life kept changing and he couldn’t believe he’d once thought this part of his life could go on without him. Over the last eight and a half months, he’d learned so much about a woman’s body he had to wonder if they were the same species. Women were so complicated, and Julie had some unique complications. A common comorbidity Julie had called EDS would complicate even the epidural she would need. Her joints had more range, and it caused her shoulders, back, and hips to be uneven. It could complicate administering the epidural. If she couldn’t get it, then she’d have to give birth naturally without it. This terrified Julie, alon
“I’m glad you’re doing this, Julie. Honestly, I don’t know what her father is thinking. But if he thinks she could embarrass him normally, to not come to his daughter’s wedding. Campaigning or not, he’s going to look bad. He recognized her as his daughter when it was convenient for him. Now he pulls this because it’s not convenient. His poll numbers will go down and he’ll lose the public confidence. If it gets out and it will that we showed up after that entire mess that started all of this. He’s sunk.” “You don’t think this is a mistake? She will not pull something fast. Like become caught in someone else’s bed?” “Julie, Aria’s been through a lot in the last six months. Leon didn’t just send her to rehab to just get off the medication. He sent her to a location that deals with complex abuse cases. She doesn’t realize it, but they did. He had to wait for over two years to get her a place there. It’s why I took her in like I did. I admit there were other stupid
The small plane landed at the secluded island airport, and Julie sighed in relief. There was something about travelling she disliked. To come all this way for a wedding for someone she didn’t like seemed crazy. But Leon was Michael’s best friend and Julie would muddle through it for five days there. What she still couldn’t get over was Aria’s request to come and bury the hatchet somewhere other than Julie’s back. She’d apologized. The hadron collider must have tested something again, and the world altered in reaction to the outcome of that test. That’s how Julie thought of why things changed in ways she didn’t see coming. Not that she believed the conspiracies; it was just a humorous way to look at her problem because Julie didn’t believe she’d ever find out the true reason these things changed. But jumping off into another timeline felt as sane as any other reason, and perhaps sometimes more logical. They stepped off the plane with the other guests, and a protracted line
Michael had said that he didn’t want to celebrate something that didn’t change. He didn’t want to admit he’d changed, and that changed their relationship. His explanation for this was he’d not been aware that he could be any other way until he’d seen how she lived in perpetual difference. Her effort to give him an easier existence while ignoring her own struggles had him questioning and rejecting much of his father’s teachings. It’d crossed over into his work life to and several people mentioned it over the months. So much so it became part of the water cooler gossip. Julie only found out about this after they’d gone back to the gym, and she heard the gossip at the juice bar. Michael hadn’t gone with her today as he now often did. Julie still struggled to become used to his constant presence around her. But she knew why this time around she struggled with it. Julie had to fight putting up a mask for the world and in that moment with Michael at the gym, she couldn’t figure
Christiana brought Aria upstairs, showed her the room, and helped her to unpack her things. Aria had to wait an hour before Leon came upstairs to her. But once Christiana ended with that, she gave Aria an odd warning before she left Aria to her own devices. “My dear, you’re not as sweet as you pretend to be, but that’s not a mark against you with me. The problem you will have been with the men of this family. They run this family with an iron fist, and we are not part of the conversation or the family business. So, if you think you will control anything or anyone within this family, then you’ll be walking a thin line between surviving or disappearing within an unfortunate accident. Please be careful what you say and do. This is something we say to all women who enter this family. Think carefully and long. If you stay, learn to keep your head down and your mouth shut. You can do and say anything outside of the family but don’t allow the bad to reflect on the family.”
“Julie love, you fell asleep. We’re here now. Let’s go in for our appointment.” Julie woke up to Michael’s voice. During their trip to her doctor’s appointment, she’d fallen asleep. Today she would talk to the doctor about her pregnancy and what to expect, including her birthing plan. Something she’d been avoiding because it absolutely terrified her. With pain, she had an odd relationship with it. There was no normal response to it for her. It either didn’t register or she was in a world of hurt that no one understood. Medications didn’t seem to work correctly either when dealing with pain. She’d believed that she was imagining this issue for most of her life, but Julie learned not too long ago that wasn’t the case. Her body resisted many pain medications, and she did in fact register pain differently to other people. “Great, let’s get this over with because there’re things I need to get done today.” She’d been grumpy for most of the day. Between
Julie sat there in the conference room with her lawyer. They’d been hashing out exactly how things would go from here on out. Michael had given her a file of documents which gave her terms he was willing to work with and he’d changed all the wording. Her lawyer had to review it all over the last few days and he had admitted to Julie that the generosity in the new offer was off the charts compared to the first time they sat down to get through this. But to stay was more beneficial for both parties. However, he warned her not to do anything if it wasn’t in her heart, or best for her safety. She should do what she believed was best for her and her child. “I will, I promise you that. But I will have to say that things have changed greatly in the last six months. I’m still unsure what changed things. If it was a single event or multiple events, but he’s not the same man. No, before you say it’s temporary, understand he’s happier now with the changes he’s made. It’s