The Wives of Beverly Row 4: Lust Has a New Address (2 page)

“Oh,” Zola said, uncertainly. She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to talk about what had happened. “Did Peter have a good time?” she said awkwardly.

“A good time? He’s been all over the forum, telling everyone on there that you’re the best wife he’s ever tried.”

Zola nodded. Her stomach felt so tight, she tried to take a deep breathe but she was too tense.

“I’m going to really plan something big for you,” Jake said.

Zola nodded very slightly. She didn’t know what he meant by that. She was too afraid to ask.

She opened the black tissue paper carefully and saw that it contained leather lingerie. There was a black collar for her neck.

“Put it on,” Jake said.

“Now?”

“Sure, why not?”

She tried to act like she was excited to put on the collar. Her stomach was so tangled up in knots that she could hardly focus on what she was doing. She opened the zip on the back of her dress and let it fall to the floor.

“That’s it,” Jake said. “You might as well take off your underwear too.”

She opened her bra and got out of her panties. She was naked now in front of him. She knew she shouldn’t feel so nervous, Jake was her husband, but her heart was pounding in her chest. She put the collar around her neck. It fastened with a buckle.

“Come here. I’ll close it for you.”

She leaned down to Jake. He was sitting on the bed in the clothes he’d worn the day before. He’d come home early in the morning and offered no explanation for where he’d been. He could do anything he wanted without a care in the world, and when he came home, she had to obey him. He fastened the collar around her neck.

“Thank you,” she said.

Jake smiled.

She went back to the little bundle of tissue paper. There was a skimpy black satin bra and a thin thong of the same material. She put them on and then stood in front of the bed.

“Beautiful,” Jake said.

“Do you like me?” Zola said. She was being desperate. She knew she was. She was so hungry for any kind of affirmation or words of kindness.

Jake didn’t answer. He picked up the controller for the television and switched it on.

“The outfit will do perfectly,” he said. “This is going to be so much fun. You’ll see.”

Zola stood there and nodded. She looked at the TV. A baseball game was on. There were so many things that she wanted to say to Jake, that she needed to say to him. She wanted to tell him that she was finished with all of this, that she was never going to allow him to use her like a whore again, that she wasn’t going to be passed around his friends like some piece of property, but she had no voice. She wasn’t able to stand up to him. She was too scared. She didn’t know what she was afraid of but it was blatantly obvious to her that she lacked the courage to stand up to Jake. She stood by the bed feeling foolish in the black lingerie he’d bought her.

“That will be all,” Jake said, his eyes firmly fixed on the television screen.

“Oh,” Zola said. She felt silly just standing there. She bent down and picked up her dress and underwear and hurried into the bathroom to get dressed.

III

A
RIEL AND VERONICA PULLED UP
to the property on Sunset.

“Is this it?” Ariel said as she got out of the car.

“Looks like it,” Veronica said. “This is the address they gave me.”

Ariel looked at the realtor’s prospectus. It looked like the right place. It was a good location for a restaurant, a lot of street traffic, a corner location. There was good signage.

“Matt’s meeting us here?”

“He’s supposed to. He said he had a client meeting nearby and would take a look with us.”

They walked up to the door. The unit had been empty for a while. It had been a restaurant before but something very different to what Veronica had in mind. She was going for an upscale, evening kind of place, somewhere to get a glass of wine and some antipasto after work. The last tenant seemed to own a burger joint.

“What are your first impressions?” Ariel said as they stepped into the space.

Veronica looked around. “It will be a lot of work.”

That was true. There would certainly be some work required. Ariel could see that much. But she could also see the potential in the place, and she thought Veronica did too. At least she didn’t look daunted.

“The light is great.”

“Yes,” Veronica said. “I love the windows. The high ceilings are good too.”

“Those are things that would be very expensive to put in.”

Veronica was nodding. “The floors are nice. Worn, but good wood. Matt could clean them up.”

Ariel smiled. Veronica was already picturing Matt in the space.

“The size is good too,” Ariel said.

“I could fit fifteen, maybe twenty tables.”

“Is that enough?” Ariel wasn’t sure what the economics of restaurant management required.

“It’s perfect for what I have in mind,” Veronica said. “Let’s go through to the kitchen.”

Ariel followed Veronica behind the bar and through the swinging doors that led to the kitchen. It was a clean, large space with a ceramic floor and white tiled walls. There were some steel prep tables for food but not much else.

“Good size,” Ariel said.

“Venting is in place. That’s good. That costs a lot.”

Ariel was impressed with Veronica. She seemed to know what she was looking for, what she needed to make the business work. Ariel never would have guessed that Veronica was a hard-worker when she’d first met her up on the Row, but here, she could tell that there was more to this woman than just being Hank Roycroft’s wife.

“You’ll need equipment,” Ariel said.

Veronica was nodding. She took a pen and notepad from her purse and began jotting down a few figures and notes. She seemed positive, optimistic, like she could make a business work in this space. While Veronica calculated the cost of various improvements, Ariel went back out to the main area of the restaurant.

Someone was arriving at the door.

“Hello?” Ariel called.

It was Matt. He came in through the door wearing big work boots and a fully loaded tool belt on his hips.

“Ariel,” he said, smiling at her.

Behind him was another man, just as impressively dressed in work boots and tool belt.

“This is my brother,” Matt said.

Ariel looked him over. He was quite a guy, with thick, muscular arms, a broad chest, perfect stubble.

The brother stepped forward and offered Ariel his hand. “I’m Jeff” he said.

Ariel was blushing. She took his hand and shook it. She smiled shyly as she looked into his handsome face.

“You must be Ariel,” Jeff said.

“Yes. It’s nice to meet you.”

Veronica came through from the kitchen and Ariel couldn’t help notice the way her eyes lit up when she saw Matt. She walked up to him and he introduced her to Jeff.

“My,” Ariel said when everyone had been introduced. “You fellas sure know how to fill a room.” She let herself admire the two of them for a moment before Veronica took control of the situation.

“So,” Veronica said, leading the men through the space. “Tell me what you think. Obviously I’d like everything to look as good as possible, as quickly as possible, for as little money as possible.”

Matt laughed as he followed her. “You always knew what you wanted. That’s for sure.”

She smiled over her shoulder at him as she took him through the space. Ariel could tell that they were flirting. She couldn’t blame Veronica for it. She could see the way Matt lit her up. It was as if she was dormant while she waited for him. She was in love with him and there were few things as difficult in life as being in love with a man you weren’t married to. In Ariel’s experience, it was almost as difficult as being married to a man you weren’t in love with. Poor Veronica, she was dealing with both situations at the same time.

“The floors, you can sand them down, right?” Veronica said.

Matt bent down and took a look at the wood. “Looks good and thick,” he said. Veronica had to look away from him when he said that. Ariel knew why.

“Structurally, everything looks great,” Matt continued. “A little drywall, some paint, new fixtures, nothing major.”

Veronica was nodding at him. The two of them looked like they’d been made for each other. Ariel could see what a perfect couple they would make, if only Veronica wasn’t married already.

“So,” Jeff said to Ariel, obviously making smalltalk while the others examined the property.

Ariel looked at him. God, he was good-looking. She’d never seen such hunky guy in her life.

“Matt tells me you’re a good friend of Veronica’s.”

“I’m a new friend,” Ariel said, “I just moved onto her street.”

“Oh, where did you move from?”

“I moved up from Pomona with my daughter.”

“Divorce?”

“Yes.”

Jeff nodded, knowingly. “How’s that going?”

“Not too bad actually,” Ariel said. She felt a little strange talking about her divorce with someone she didn’t even know but she was glad to have something to talk about. She found silence awkward, especially with a guy as good-looking as Jeff. “In fact, I think my ex likes me better now than he ever did when we were married.”

Jeff laughed. “Did he give you a hard time?”

“He gave me a run for my money. Sixteen years I put up with him. I couldn’t get his attention for most of that time.”

“And now?”

“Now, he seems to be pursuing me as if we’re in high school and he’s got a crush.”

Jeff looked at her. “Well, for what it’s worth, I can see why.”

Ariel blushed. She didn’t know what to say to that. Jeff was flirting with her and he didn’t seem one bit shy about it. She looked at him. He was looking back at her, a hint of a smile on his face. She wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do. She could see a little triangle of his chest at the neck of his shirt. Even from the small part she could see she could tell that it was solid muscle. He seemed like the kind of guy that was used to getting what he wanted, a player, but Ariel felt like she was pretty sure she wanted to be played!

IV

V
ERONICA’S HEAD WAS SPINNING BY
the time she got home. It had been a busy day. Ariel had confided in her that she’d slept with Jake Medeiros. She still didn’t know what to make of that. Then she’d had the restaurant location to check out. That had gone well, she felt. The space certainly had potential, it was a good price, good location, and had everything she needed. She felt like putting in an offer through her realtor but she wanted to talk it over with Hank first. The biggest thing on her mind though, wasn’t the restaurant at all. It was Matt Harkness!

She just couldn’t get him out of her mind. She felt bad about it but there was nothing she could do. Every time she closed her eyes she saw his face. She knew she was being disloyal to Hank but it was beyond her control. It was her mind, and her heart, that were betraying her.

“Honey?” Hank said as she was getting ready for bed.

She could tell that he was going to say something important from the tone of his voice.

“Yes, dear,” she said.

“Could we talk?”

“Of course, honey.”

She went and sat on the bed next to him. He’d been reading a book about personal growth and how to apply it to business.

“I just want to tell you how much I love you.”

“Oh honey,” she said. “I love you too.”

“I know,” Hank said, choosing his words, “I know things haven’t always been easy for you.”

“Oh, Hank, what do you mean? I couldn’t be happier with the life you’ve given me.”

“I know things haven’t always been as passionate as they might be.”

“Oh, darling,” she said. “What’s gotten into you? Why are you bringing this up?”

“I don’t know,” Hank said. “It’s just, sometimes I feel bad for the life I’ve given you. I look at you, how beautiful you are, how youthful, how full of life, and I think you deserve so much more. I look at someone like Trudy Luxton, or Ariel, how happy they are now that they’re single, and I think that would be you if we ever split up.”

“That’s nonsense, dear. I would
die
if we ever split up. You know that. I would not be one bit happy.”

He smiled at her but there was a sadness in his face that he couldn’t hide. “You’d be so
free
,” he said.

“Hank,” Veronica said, “there is no one in this world I love as much as I love you. There is no one in this world I would rather be with. Trudy Luxton can do what she likes. Ariel West can do what she likes. I don’t envy them for one single second. Believe me. I feel safe with you. I feel loved. I feel appreciated.”

He looked into her eyes. There was so much kindness and love in his face. She felt so guilty for having feelings for Matt when she had this kind, loving man waiting for her at home. She didn’t know how lucky she was. She could have been stuck with a husband like Jake Medeiros, a cheating pervert who forced Zola to do all sorts of horrible things. She should learn to appreciate what she had, be grateful, and love the man who was doing everything he could to give her a good, happy life.

“Are you sure?” Hank said.

“Of course I’m sure, honey,” she said. She put her arms around his shoulders and kissed him, long and passionately on the mouth. Her tongue moved toward his lips, it met his tongue and for a moment she was kissing him the way she’d kissed other men in her youth. Their tongues were connected. They were connected. And then Hank broke off the kiss.

“I just wanted to make sure you were alright,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure you didn’t feel as if I was holding you back.”

Veronica looked at him. It was so clear to her that he loved her. He loved her with all his heart and she’d spent the entire day fantasizing about Matt Harkness. She had to get that out of her system. She had to commit to her husband and learn to be the wife he deserved.

“Don’t you ever worry about me, Hank Roycroft,” Veronica said. “I’m
your
wife, I belong to
you
. Whatever you want from me, I’ll give you.”

Hank nodded.

Veronica looked at him carefully. She tried to gauge what he wanted. She tried to read him. He was so difficult to read. Often she looked at him and felt as if she was looking at a complete stranger. It was rare for him to open up like this and let her in. He was usually such a closed book.