Liability (3 page)

Finding frozen lasagna, I open the box and put it in the oven.

“Mr. Vault?” a police officer not much older than Fern asks, knocking twice on the open door and poking his head inside.

Going to the door, I greet him and his fellow officer with a firm shake. “How are you guys doing tonight?” I ask them both, leading them toward the living room.

“Slow night,” they both mutter in unison as I take a seat and point to the couch across from me.

“What can I do for you? “

“We received a call from a Mrs. McCauley stating you are holding her granddaughter here without her permission.”

“I’m here, because this is where I want to be,” Fern’s voice cuts in, and I watch the two men in front of me sit up a little taller and suck in there guts as they take in her wild hair while wearing my shirt.

“Baby, go get some clothes on then come out and talk to us,” I tell her, grateful when she nods and heads back into the room, seeing how I would hate to go to jail today for assaulting an officer. 

“As she said, she’s here because she wants to be, and is legally old enough to make that decision for herself.”

“We would still like to talk to Miss McCauley,” one of the policemen says, and I nod, sitting back in my chair.

When Fern comes out this time, she’s wearing a pair of my sweats that she obviously found in the closet. Holding my hand out to her, I scoot over in the chair, placing her next to me.

“We’re sorry about your loss, and we understand this is a difficult time for you,” the officer with the nametag Murphy says softly. “Your grandmother is very worried about you right now, and—”

“She’s not,” Fern cuts him off, showing more fire than I have ever seen from her.

“She called us, so that leads me to believe she is,” the other officer states.

“Well, I’m not going back there,” she says firmly, but I watch her chin wobble, which causes anger to course through me.

“As you can see, Fern is fine. She’s obviously upset about the loss of her grandfather, but that is completely understandable. If you guys have anymore questions for her, I’m going to have to ask you to speak with her in a few days when things have settled,” I say, standing and waiting for them to stand along with me, then lead them to the door and open it.

“We’ll be in touch in a few days,” Officer Murphy says, handing me his card before I close the door behind him.

Turning, I come face-to-face with my beautiful girl, who once again has tears in her eyes that are dripping down her cheeks and onto my shirt.

Seeing her standing there, looking vulnerable, makes something within me twist and a pain to hit my chest. I’ve never cared when a woman has cried before, but I can’t stand to see Fern with tears in her eyes.

Closing the distance between us, I pick her up in my arms and carry her back to the bedroom, following her down onto the bed, where I kiss away each tear as they fall.

“I
’ll get that, baby. You go get changed,” I tell Fern, kissing her forehead, watching her eyes close as she nods before walking to the bedroom in her simple black dress, carrying her shoes in her hand.

Picking up the concierge phone in the kitchen, I tell them to send up our guest. Today, we went to Mr. McCauley’s funeral. I knew before leaving the house this morning that it was going to be difficult for Fern to be there, but after seeing the way her grandmother snubbed her nose at my girl, I had to pray for patience to make it through the service. Especially when Fern got up to say her goodbyes and her grandmother rolled her eyes. I admit I didn’t know much about Mr. McCauley, but I’m starting to understand not everything was as it appeared to be on the outside.

Once the service was over, we were approached by the family attorney, Mr. Ramos, who is well known in the city for estate planning. He explained he needed to have a sit-down with Fern, regarding her grandfather’s will. Fern didn’t want to wait, and neither did I, so I asked him to meet us here.

Loosening my tie, I pour myself a finger of scotch as I wait near the door. This is the last thing on Earth I’d like to be doing right now; what I want to do is go into the bedroom, strip my beautiful girl down, and make love to her. Having her in my arms the last three nights, holding her while she sleeps, and waking up to her scent surrounding me has been a test of my willpower. I know she’s grieving the loss of her granddad, but I don’t know how much longer I can wait to have her.

Opening the door for the lawyer when he knocks, I’m surprised and a little pissed to see Fern’s grandmother standing next to him.

“Come in and have a seat,” I say, leading them to the living room then moving to the bedroom door, catching a glimpse of Fern’s flat stomach as she pulls her shirt down when I step into the room.

“Your grandmother decided to show up as well,” I tell her, watching as her teeth clench tight. I hate that look on her, and I’m determined to replace it with something else.

Closing the door behind me, I take the two steps separating us, wrapping her in my arms and covering her mouth with mine. Her gasp of surprise allows me to slide my tongue into her mouth while I heft her up into my arms until her legs wrap around my hips.

“I need to be in you,” I groan, pressing her into the wall of windows. “I need to know what it feels like when your hot little cunt grabs hold of my cock,” I growl, hearing her whimper as I lift her higher then lazily move my hands under her shirt to cup her breasts. “I can’t wait to see these full of milk after I fill you with my cum.” I kiss her again while pulling her nipples between my fingers.

Pulling my mouth from hers, I look down between us, where my erection is testing the limits of my pants and I can feel the heat coming off her core.

Lifting my gaze to hers, I press her back into the windows and move her hair out of her face while pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “Tonight, I’m taking what’s mine, Fern,” I say, watching her eyes slide half closed. “Tonight, you’re giving yourself to me. Right, beautiful?”

“Yes, Carter,” she agrees, which earns her another kiss.

“Now, let’s go see what the Wicked Witch of the East Village wants,” I say, making her smile and shake her head.

Taking her hand, I lead her to the door then stop when her hand in mine tightens.

“What’s up, baby?” I ask, watching as she comes to stand in front of me.

“I just... Thank you for everything,” she says, leaning up on her tiptoes, barely reaching the underside of my jaw, where she places a gentle kiss, which causes another pain to hit my chest.

“Anything for you, Fern,” I tell her, watching tears fill her eyes. She leans up once more on her tiptoes, and this time I meet her halfway, giving her a soft kiss before swinging the door open and leading her out of the bedroom.

“It took you long enough,” her grandmother huffs as we walk into the living room.

“If we could get this over with, we have plans for the rest of the day,” I state, taking a seat and pulling Fern down next to me, wrapping my arm around her shoulders.

“Fern, as I said before, I’m very sorry about the loss of Bill. He was one of my dearest friends, and I know he loved you greatly,” Mr. Ramos says as Fern’s grandmother scoffs.

“He babied her.”

Swinging my head to look at her, I growl, “This is my home. If you disrespect my woman again, I’m going to ask you to leave.”

“Do you see the way he talks to me?” She waves her hand in my direction while looking at Mr. Ramos.

“Karen, let’s just move along so we can all carry on with our day.”

“Fine,” she huffs, crossing her arms over her chest, glaring at me then Fern.

By the time Mr. Ramos has gone over the first page of the will, I know half the money is going to end up being donated, because one of the first stipulations is about her not getting married until after her twenty-first birthday, which doesn’t work for me. I want...no, I
need
her to have my last name. Another is her not having a child until after the age of twenty-five, and seeing how I plan on having her pregnant as soon as humanly possible, I know she may as well kiss this money goodbye. Not that she will need any of it; I have plenty. She will never want for anything.

“There was one final stipulation. In order for the estate to continue paying for your education, you must live at home or on campus if you’re going to a boarding school,” he says, and Fern’s fingers latch onto my leg and her nails dig into my skin through the material of my dress slacks. Covering her hand with mine, I look at her grandmother, who has a very smug smile on her face.

“If that’s all, Fern will be in contact with you, Mr. Ramos.”

“Again, sorry for your loss, Fern,” he says, standing from the couch and placing his items back in his briefcase while handing Fern a copy of the will.

“I’d like to talk to my granddaughter alone,” Mrs. McCauley says, crossing her feet at the ankles while sitting up a little taller on the side of the couch.

“Not happening.”

“It’s okay, Carter,” Fern says quietly from my side.

“Fern,”  I growl in frustration, turning my head to look at her, wondering what the hell she’s thinking.

“You’ll be right outside, and I have a few things I’d like to say to her alone,”  she presses, and I search her face then let out a breath.

“Three minutes,” I tell her, waiting for her to nod. Placing a kiss on her temple, I get up off the couch and walk Mr. Ramos to the door, stepping out into the hall with him.

“Who requested the stipulations in the will?” I ask him, closing the door behind me.

“Mrs. McCauley and Mr. McCauley both. Mrs. McCauley’s daughter had her when she was eighteen, and then disappeared, leaving the McCauleys to raise Fern on their own. I believe they are just trying to prevent something like that from occurring again.

“Has anyone heard from her mother since she disappeared?” I ask, wondering how much Fern knows about this situation.

“Not that I’m aware of, but then again, I’m not in the McCauley home, and we were friends, but not close enough for either of the McCauleys to share that kind of information with me.”

Looking at the door opening behind me, I watch as Mrs. McCauley steps into the hall, and then I look behind her as Fern lowers her head, following behind her while avoiding looking at me. Rage and vengeance begin to burn through me as I see a red handprint on Fern’s cheek, which she attempts to hide with her hair.

“We will be leaving now,” Mrs. McCauley says, pulling on Fern’s arm.

“Did you hit her?” I snarl, tilting Fern’s head up until her tear-filled eyes meet mine. “
Get out now!
” I roar, causing Fern to flinch and Mrs. McCauley to release her arm. “I do not give a fuck who you are,” I state, turning to face the woman I’m likely to murder. “You will never see her again. Do you understand me?”

“You know the stipulations of the will, Mr. Vault. She’s coming home with me now.”

“She’s not, Mrs. McCauley, and if you think the little bit of money you’re holding over her head will stop me from keeping your granddaughter, you’re sorely misinformed about the way I feel about her.”

“Are you going to pay her way, like she’s some kind of whore you picked up off the street?” she asks snidely.

“You ever call her a whore again, and I will bury you. Now get out,” I thunder, watching her face lose some of its color then her eyes narrow on her granddaughter.

“I knew you were just like your mother,” she hisses before storming off down the hall toward the elevator, leaving a stunned Mr. Ramos behind.

“We’ll be in touch,” I tell him before wrapping my arm around Fern’s shoulders and leading her into the apartment, locking the door behind us.

Leading her into the kitchen, I set her up on the counter then grab one of the dishtowels. I place a few ice cubes in it before moving to stand in front of her, spreading her legs to stand between them.

“You’re not leaving me, Fern. I don’t care what that woman says to you; you’re not going anywhere.”

“I can’t use you, Carter,” she whispers, placing her hand over mine on her cheek. “She’s right. I can’t use you. It’s not right.”

“You’re right,” I agree then pick her up off the counter and carry her to the bedroom to lie down. “I have some business to take care of, so I want you to get some rest,” I tell her, ignoring the look of anguish in her eyes.

If her grandmother thought she was going to scare my girl away by making her believe she could hold something like money over her head, she had another think coming.

Placing one last kiss on her forehead, I go into my office and make two phone calls—one to a private investigator, who I hope will be able to tell me more about Fern’s mother, and another to my estate attorney.   

“A
re you hungry?” I ask Fern, who is standing in the open doorway of the bedroom, once again wearing nothing but my shirt.

Adding getting her stuff from her grandmother’s to the list of shit I need to get done today, I move to the kitchen and pull out some bread, peanut butter, and jelly, when she says, “Yes,” softly.

“Come eat, and then we need to get dressed so we can head across town.”

“Where are we going?” she questions, worrying a piece of hair between her fingers.

“We’re meeting a friend of mine,” I say as I start to assemble her sandwich.

“Okay,” she says, taking a seat on one of the barstools, watching me closely.

“How much longer do you have in school?”

“Three months, but I only have to go to two classes a day, in the afternoons.”

“That’s good, baby. What did you want to do after graduation?” I inquire.

“I was going to help Gramps out in his office over the summer then decide after that.”

“You can help me in my office,” I state immediately, thinking about her sitting in front of me at my desk with her legs spread, showing me her pussy while I work on cases. “Only requirement is you have to wear skirts and no panties. That way, I have easy access to my favorite snack,” I tell her, watching her blush. Then I think about her being around the other men at my firm, and the lust I was feeling is replaced with something else entirely. “Never mind about the skirts. I don’t think I could handle my colleagues looking at you.”