Renewed (Awakened #2) (15 page)

But a job at Long Publishing?

“Why do you want me to work for you?” I was sure he could hear the hesitation in my voice.

“Because before we left for the trip, someone in our accounting department left, and I figured it would be nice to have you at work.”

“I don’t know how I feel about that. I mean, first off, I’m your wife now. Second, we have a child on the way, and I really need to get everything together for that.” That was a pretty pathetic excuse; I still had seven months, but I just couldn’t work for him.

“Just shut up and say yes.” Stefan leaned over and kissed me, causing my insides to melt, and any rational decision making flew right out the window.

“Two conditions,” I responded. Stefan raised his eyebrows, waiting for what I was going to say next. “One, this is only temporary. Once Bean is born, I would like to stay home.”

“Of course,” Stefan said as he rubbed circles on the inside of my hand.

“Second, I want to work from home, not the office.” I looked at him, waiting for him to respond.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because, I’m your wife, and I don’t think it would look good for me to be working at the office.”

“Jennifer, I don’t care about what anyone else thinks. I will trample anyone who gets in my way. I will fire whoever. You working for me is my business, no one else.” Stefan was stern, but I was sticking by my decision.

“Well, if I’m working for you, it’s from home.”

“Are you making demands now?”

“Yes.” I was getting shaky.

“I’ll show you demands, Mrs. Long,” Stefan whispered into my ear.

“Take the deal or leave it,” I replied, trying to maintain self-control.

“You drive a hard bargain.” Stefan nuzzled my neck. “Fine! If it gets you to work for me, I’ll take you however I can get you.” I smiled and did an internal dance. It wasn’t often that I got my way..

“When do I start?”

“Tomorrow. I’ll need you to come up to the office to see how everything works, and then we can set you up at the house. I’m having Nancy order you a desktop computer and anything else you might need.”

“Stefan, I already have the laptop.”

“No, you need a desktop. End of it.” He looked at me, his eyes lit with fire, so I dropped the conversation. I wasn’t pressing it.

I leaned my head up against the window and pulled my legs up under me. I started drifting off when Stefan laid a blanket on me and began rubbing my leg. “Get some sleep, baby,” he whispered as I began drifting off.

Working for my husband…here goes nothing.

Chapter Thirteen

We pulled up into the driveway, and I noticed something on the front porch...flowers? I hopped out of the SUV as soon as Charles put it in park and ran to the front door.

“Who the hell is sending flowers?” I heard Stefan ask Kennedy. I bent down and looked for a card; the aroma of the bright yellow flowers filled my nostrils.

My dearest Jennifer,

Here are some flowers for you. I hope we can meet soon and catch up, I’ve been looking everywhere for you.

 
          
See
ya
soon!

           
 
xo Dad

My heart fell into my stomach as the card fluttered to the ground. I was going to be sick. I put my hand over my mouth and another hand on my tummy, protecting my unborn child.

“
Birdfoot
Deervetch
, it means…revenge.” Ayden’s voice quickly transformed into a whisper. Kennedy grabbed my waist, and I stared at the flowers—the bright yellow death flowers.

He knew where I lived…where my family lived
.

“What the fuck is happening?” Stefan was behind me, putting his arms around me. Kennedy unhooked her arm from my waist and I turned around, pushing my face into Stefan’s white, Ralph Lauren polo. The tears started to fall. Stefan wrapped his arms around me, smoothing out my hair.

“Her fucking dad!” Kennedy said.

“What?” Ayden asked. Stefan squeezed me tighter.

“Her dad! Her dead beat dad is after it again. Jennifer, baby, he has to go through a lot of people to get to you.” Kennedy rubbed my back as the endless sobs continued.

“Charles!” Stefan yelled.

After a moment, Charles was next to him. “Sir?”

“I want you to find George White. I want to know cell numbers, address, where he’s employed…I want to know what he is fucking wearing and eating every day. Got that?”

“Yes, sir,” Charles replied.

“Any resources you need, make them available to you or anyone on my staff. Also, I want round the clock security at our house until I know of his whereabouts.” Stefan squeezed me, kissing the top of my head. “Get these fucking flowers out of my sight, please.”

I had calmed down, but now my head was pounding.

“Got it, sir.” Charles picked up the vase of flowers and walk off.

“Mind telling me what’s going on?” Ayden asked.

“I’ll tell you on the way home. Jennifer, I love you. If you need me, call me.” I still had my face in Stefan’s chest when Kennedy kissed the side of my head.

“She’ll call you,” Stefan told Kennedy.

I heard them drive off as we stood by our front porch. What if he came here, what if he tried to kidnap me…or worse, what if he tried to kill Stefan?

“Jennifer?” Stefan pulled me away from him. “Please believe me when I tell you that
nobody
will hurt you. I will kill whoever even
tries
to lay a finger on you.”

“I don’t want you to kill him, Stefan.” He was still my dad…my awful, murderous father who kicked me out and abandoned me.

“Jennifer.” Stefan’s eyes were dark. “If he lays a finger on you, I will take whatever actions necessary to protect you. If that means inflict pain on him, so be it.
You
,” he placed his finger under my chin, pulling me closer to him. “Are my primary concern and
that
will never change. You trust me?” he asked as we started walking to the garage.

“With my life.”

Stefan smiled as we made our way into our home,
our
unbreakable home. Stefan led me to the living room, sitting me down on the couch. “I need to feed you,” he said as he kissed my forehead and walked to the kitchen.

“Stefan, really…I’m not hungry.” I just wanted to sleep.

“Jennifer, you are carrying a child. You need to eat,” he said, digging through the refrigerator.

I ignored him as I got up and made my way to our bedroom. I kicked off my flip flops and threw my lifeless body onto the huge, king sized bed. Why couldn’t my father just stay out of my life? Hadn’t he done enough to destroy me?

I turned over on my stomach and screamed into my pillow as my tears began flowing. I hated him! I hated the secret he made me keep all my life! I hated that I still loved him and wanted a
normal
father daughter relationship with him. I had spent my whole life running from him, and he
always
found me. I just wanted him gone! Out of my life!

I punched the mattress with each fist again and again, screaming into my pillow as the tears flowed. I wanted to disappear; take Stefan and our baby and get far away from here.

I heard Stefan open the door, but I couldn’t stop. My body was on autopilot, and there was no turning it off anytime soon.

“Jennifer, for Christ sake!” He threw his body on top of mine, pinning me down so I couldn’t move.

“Get off of me!” I yelled. I wormed my way out from underneath Stefan and grabbed a pillow, throwing it at the dresser and knocking over cologne.

“I hate him!” I yelled, throwing another pillow at the mirror right beside me trying to get my reflection. “I hate what he has done to me, Stefan. He ruined my entire life!”

“Baby, calm down. Let’s talk about this.”

“I’m done
talking
. I have so much hatred towards that man! I could kill him with my thoughts!” I gripped my stomach as shooting pains rocketed through me.

“Jennifer!” Stefan leaped across the bed, grabbing me as I fell to the floor, putting myself into the fetal position. “You need to calm down, or you’re going to hurt our baby with this stress. Let it go! Let it fucking go, Jennifer…give him up. You’re better than this. We’re better than this. You have a full life ahead of you, with me and our baby.” Stefan placed a protective hand over my stomach.

The tears consumed me. I couldn’t live like this anymore. I was always looking over my shoulder for him. I deserved better, so much better! I let it go, I let him go as I cried so hard into Stefan. I let him go for me; for us. I forgave him for every bad thing he did in my life—including killing my own mother.

 
“I forgive you! I forgive you for touching me. I forgive you for beating me. I forgive you for killing my mother. You took my guardian angel, but I forgive you.” Tears were still flowing. “I hate him, Stefan, I hate him more than I could ever describe in words, but I,” I took a deep calming breath and pulled away from him chest. I looked at Stefan. “I forgive him,” I whispered.

We sat there, in silence as I breathed in the words that just floated from my lips. Stefan placed his hand on the side of my face as I snuggled into him, closing my eyes. “I forgive him,” I whispered again.

“You, are the strongest person I know,” Stefan whispered as he leaned in and kissed away my tears.

“Tell me again,” I opened my eyes. I needed to hear I was strong because right now I felt like the weakest person.

“You are the strongest person, baby,” he whispered again.

“I
am
because of
you
.”

“Strong? No, you’ve always been strong, my dear.”

“No,” I shook my head ever so slightly. “I
am
because of
you
.”

A small smile teased the outer edges of Stefan’s lips as he rubbed his thumb over my bottom lip. “I am because of you,” he whispered as he pulled my face into his. He scooped me up and laid us on the bed, our bodies intertwined together. “I need to feel your body,” Stefan said as he pulled my shirt over my head. He unclasped my bra, pulled my shorts off and my lace panties and threw them over the bed. Stefan quickly removed his shirt, pants and briefs.

He pulled the blanket up and moved my body close to his, wrapping his hands around my naked body. His hands covering my lower back as he squeezed my body, trying to morph our bodies to one.

“I am because of you,” he repeated in a whisper.

I snuggled deeper into his chest and listened to his
heart beat
. Everything I needed was right here.

“You will always be safe in my arms, baby,” Stefan whispered, brushing his hands through my hair. I closed my eyes, letting his words sink into me. “I will do anything to protect you. You are my life and my love, and nobody will take you from me.”

All my life, he was exactly what I had been searching for. He was home for me— he was my love, my everything. I loved him more than I thought was humanly possible.

Together, we could just
be
.

Chapter Fourteen

“Wake up, sleeping beauty. First day of work for you. We need to get you showered and dressed.”

I rolled over to my side with my back facing him. Maybe if I ignored him he would stop, and I could sleep longer.

“Baby...” Stefan pushed my hair back and started gently kissing my neck.

This man was relentless
.

“You’re going to make us late if I have to take off the blankets and get deep inside of you to wake up.”

I smiled.
I would enjoy that...

My eyes popped open as his hand skimmed down my backside.

“There we are,” he whispered into my ear before nibbling on my earlobe. “Let’s go, sunshine.”

“Let’s stay in bed and cuddle all day.” I rolled over to my back to see his light caramel eyes looking at me.

“As tempting as that sounds, I do have a business to run. Up
ya
go, Mrs. Long.” Stefan gave my backside a firm squeeze, sending me to my feet.

“It’s cold!” I was jumping around on the tips of my toes, the hardwood floor like ice under my feet.

“Shower, now,” Stefan ordered as I tip-toed into the bathroom. He started the shower and once it was warm enough I stood under the stream. Stefan was soon behind me, sliding his hands around my body. “You feel like velvet.” He pulled me into him, my breast pushed against his chest.

“You got me up. Wash me,” I said sleepily.

“Challenge accepted.” He had a sly smile on the corner of his lips as he grabbed the shampoo and squirted some in his hands. He rubbed his hands together and started massaging the soap through my hair.

After I stepped out of the shower, Stefan wrapped a big white towel around me before planting a small kiss on my shoulder.

“Get your hair and makeup done, then get dressed. Meet me downstairs for breakfast.” Stefan wrapped a towel around his waist and walked out of the bathroom into the bedroom.

I turned towards the mirror and let the towel drop to a pool around my feet. I examined my stomach, running my hands along the bottom. It was hard to imagine that there was life inside of me.

I blow dried my hair and let the natural curls fall down around my shoulders. I put on some light eye shadow, then went into the bedroom and found my black pencil skirt and paired it with a light purple, silk button up blouse and some black Mary Jane pumps. I still had a natural glow from our trip, which made my skin looking kissed by the sun.

I walked to the kitchen and sat down at the barstool after giving Stefan a kiss on the cheek. “Good morning.” There was a plate of eggs and toast in front of me.

“Well, you will be turning heads this morning. I guess I’ll have to follow you everywhere.”

“Thank you.” I smiled as I picked up my fork. “But that won’t be necessary. I am just getting to know what I will be doing, and then I will start working from home.” I took a bite of my eggs and toast.

“You will be training in the conference room on my floor with three of the best in the accounting department. Once they feel you are ready, you will work from the office in case you have any questions.”

“Stefan, I told you that I want to work from home. That is going to look so weird with your
wife
working for you.”

“First off, don’t talk with your mouth full. That’s rude, Mrs. Long. Second, I have told you that I don’t give six different shits what anyone thinks about my
wife
working for me. If they want to stand up and make it an issue, I will fire them. I trample, Mrs. Long. Remember that.”

I finished eating without saying another word. If he really thought I was going to work from the office until I had our baby, he was out of his mind. Once I finished eating and set my fork down on my plate and wiped my mouth with the napkin. Stefan stood to his feet and grabbed my plate.

“Charles is taking me into work now. Once you are ready, you can head over. You will check in with the receptionist and she will direct you where to go. You will park in the underground garage. I have five parking spots right by the door to go inside, park in number two, please.”

I smiled and nodded.

Stefan walked around the bar and grabbed my chin, tilting it up so that our lips were less than an inch apart. “Trample, Mrs. Long. Don’t forget.” He pulled my mouth to his and slipped his tongue into mine, claiming what was his.

He pulled back and slowly opened his eyes. “I’m so glad I can do that whenever I want to now. I no longer have to wait until I get home.”

He turned around and made his way to the front door. “No, Stefan!” I hollered, but he was out the door before I could finish it.

What was I doing?

 
I looked at the gold watch on my wrist, I should probably finish getting ready.

I drove up to the massive glass building and pulled into the underground garage, then into the second spot by the doors.

As I walked through the door, I was immediately greeted by an attractive red-head with a smile that showcased her perfect white, straight teeth.

“Good morning, and welcome to Long Publishing. You must be Mrs. Long.”

“Good morning. Yes, I am Mrs. Long, but you can call me Jennifer.” I smiled back at her, switching my purse from one arm to the other.

“Okay, Jennifer. If you will take these elevators over there,” she pointed down the blank hall to a set of elevators, “Go to the twentieth floor and there will be another receptionist. I will call her and tell her you are on your way up.” She smiled at me as I started walking down the hallway to the elevators.

The twentieth floor was beautiful. The floor was marble with white walls, and there were windows everywhere. Natural sunlight filled the huge area, making me want to put my sunglasses on.

“Mrs. Long?” The lady towards the back of the room said.

Were all of the secretaries supermodels?

“Please, call me Jennifer,” I said once I reached her desk. The whole lobby area up here was open, and I was sure you couldn’t find a piece of dust anywhere.

“Jennifer, my name is Bridget. I am Stefan’s secretary. If you want to have a seat, I will let him know you’re here.”

I smiled. “Thank you, Bridget.” I walked over the pristine white love seat and sat down. I looked across the lobby and noticed a white door open, revealing not only an office, but my gorgeous husband standing in the doorway. He was wearing his dark grey Armani tux with a black skinny tie. The suit was made for his body, outlining his muscles and making him look that much more delicious.

I stood to my feet and walked across the marble floors, meeting Stefan in the middle.

“You look...amazing.” Stefan pulled me into him. I was hesitant and tried to put some space between us. I needed to keep this professional.

“Please, not here,” I replied as he squeezed me tighter.

“First off, trample. Second, I am the only one on this floor.” A wicked smile crossed his lips. “Come with me.” He turned us around towards his office. We walked in through the huge door, and he closed it behind us.

His office was massive. He had a huge dark cherry desk in the middle of the room with two large Mac computer in the middle of it. There were two white chairs in front of his desk and a white couch with a dark cherry table behind his desk near the windows. To the left of his desk was a fully stocked liquor cabinet. Off to the right of the room was a bathroom, the door open, that just as crisp as the rest of his office.

“So, this is where you spend all your time?” I asked.

“It is.” He smiled and walked around to his leather chair on the other side of his desk. He dialed some numbers and picked up the phone.

“Bridget, you can call David and Steve and tell them to meet us in the conference room in twenty minutes ... Yes, the conference room on this floor ... Tell them to bring all the necessary items to properly train Jennifer.” He hung up the phone.

“Why twenty minutes?” I asked as he opened one of his drawers to his desk.

“That’s how long it will take for me to tie you up, possess you from the inside out and get you back to looking normal before your training starts.” He had no sarcasm in his voice. He pulled out a small hand held device and pressed something on it. I looked around and black drapes fell down in front of all the windows, making the room dark except for the light from the lamps.

He walked around his desk, eyeing me.

“Here?”

“Here,” he whispered.

“Right now? We’re doing this right now?” I asked.

“Yes. Come here,” he demanded. “You need a proper welcome to the team...from the owner.” He grabbed my wrist and pulled me into his chest.

“Is this normal?”

“This welcome?” He rubbed his hand down over my sides, resting on my hips. “No, you’re special.” He leaned down and gave me a small peck on my lips, causing my body to come to life.

I pulled my hands up over his shoulders and locked them around his neck. Everything inside was telling me we probably shouldn’t be doing this right here...but there was no saying no to him. Once Stefan had his mind set to something, there was no changing it.

“God, you smell delicious,” Stefan said as he swept my dark curls off my shoulder. My body shivered under his kisses. He slid one of the black straps to my dress off my shoulder and planted a small kiss in its place. I leaned my head to the side as he slid his lips up to the nook in my neck.

“Twenty minutes,” I warned. At this pace, we’d be here all day. Stefan quickly picked me up and sat me down on the edge of his desk. He opened my legs and pushed them hem of my dress up revealing my white lace panties. He used his middle finger to trace them over my clit.

“Holy shit, Jennifer.” He moved the lace over and slid his finger deep inside me.