Underestimated (27 page)

that I be there.”

“I’m actually looking forward to this night,” he

whispered close to my ear, holding his hand around my

throat while he glared at me through the mirror with a

warning.

I took my normal lecture in the back of the limo.

Don’t talk to anyone, but Jena. Don’t look at anyone, don’t

answer questions, and the most important one of all that

night. I was in no way allowed to talk to Mr. Callaway

alone, and if he asked, I was to tell him that I rather my

husband stay. I wondered who Mr. Callaway was. I knew

that Drew said that he was his father. I wasn’t sure that I

believed that. He called him Mr. Callaway. Why would

anyone call their father by Mr.? Even for a fucked up

family like that, it seemed off to me. This would be at least

a dozen times that I would have the pleasure of being

beaten because he insisted, every time that I talk to him in

private. Drew never helped. He walked away with his tail

between his legs.

Jena never showed, only Derik. He said that she

had come down with something and wasn’t feeling well. I

really wanted Jena to be there.

I saw Mr. Callaway being pushed around in his

wheelchair. Drew looked over and told me not to look at

him.

What the fuck?

I turned my gaze away from him. I knew that I was

going to be in trouble regardless, so I asked.

“What’s wrong with him, Drew?”

He shot me a death glare. “Don’t ask questions that

don’t pertain to you. That’s one,” he warned, holding up

one finger. One what, I didn’t know. It could mean

anything with him.

My dress had an open back and Drew kept his

hand there. It made me sick that he made all of these

people think what a wonderful husband he was. He never

kissed me unless it was in public around people that he

was trying to impress.

Mr. Callaway of course made his way over to me.

I couldn’t figure out what his interest was in me. Why did

he always insist that I be pulled to the side with him?

“Leave us Drew,” he boldly stated as soon as he

was wheeled by his caretaker to us.

“With all due respect, Mr. Callaway, I would like

for Drew to stay,” I tried. I did want him to stay. This guy

was just going to ask about my happiness like he cared

about my wellbeing.

“Nonsense, leave!” he demanded. Drew walked

away. I looked past Mr. Callaway and Drew held up two

fingers. I almost rolled my eyes at him, but caught myself,

knowing that I would get the third finger.

Mr. Callaway gently took my hand, beckoning me

to sit. “You look absolutely gorgeous, as always.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“How are you doing? I missed you last month for

our grand opening.”

I had no idea what he was talking about. Drew

didn’t tell me things that pertained to his business.

“Drew said you weren’t feeling well. Is everything

okay?”

No. You old moron, I am married to a monster. I

don’t feel so well at all.

“Yes. I’m fine. Thank you for asking. It was just a

little bug,” I lied.

“How is Drew treating you? Everything okay at

home?”

What the hell? Who the hell are you, and why do

you care?

“Yes, everything is wonderful.”

I had no idea what this guy’s deal was, but for

some reason he felt the need to go on and on about his son.

Michael. I mean, I’m not cold hearted or anything. I did

have compassion for the guy losing his only son. I just

couldn’t understand why he felt the need to tell me,

especially with my obstinate husband glaring scalpels at

me.

Chapter 10

“What was the party for?” Dawson interrupted

when I got silent, thinking about the party.

“I don’t know, some software launch or

something,” I lied. I wasn’t about to tell him Drew owned

fifteen different jewelry stores throughout the country. It

wouldn’t be hard to pinpoint the Callaway name to them

now that I had volunteered the old man’s name. It was

better that he thought he was some kind of software

developer from Indiana. Maybe someday I would tell him,

but not yet. I couldn’t take the chance. I knew Dawson

would go after him, and probably end up dead.

“Why did he not want you to be alone with this

man?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t know. I still

don’t know. I never did figure out what his interest was in

me. Drew had told me the first time that I met him that his

father was none of my business, but I’m not so sure if the

guy was truly his dad.”

“Did you ever meet any of his family?”

“No. I don’t even know if he had family, other than

Mr. Callaway.”

“What happened after the party?”

“Let’s go up to the house, and save that for another

time,” I tried.

He pulled me toward him causing me to knock

over my sand creation with my foot. He kissed the corner

of my mouth and then whispered.

“I love you, Riley, and that was a real nice try,” he

smiled.

I leaned my back to his side, and he put his arm

around me.

“We left almost immediately after Mr. Callaway

was wheeled away. Drew didn’t say a word all the way

home. He did put his hand out for my rings once again

which I without a problem, I handed over to him.”

“Where are you going?” Drew asked once we

were inside.

“To change?” I said in a question, asking for

permission.

“Uh-uh, go to the gym. I want you to watch.”

I knew he was talking about the mirrored wall, but

I asked anyway. “Watch what?”

That was the first blow to my face that night, and

the blood from my lip ran down my sky blue dress.

“That!” he demanded and shoved me toward the

gym.

I looked around the gym puzzled. The room was

empty. The weight bench, the elliptical, the treadmill, it

was all gone. Other than the one padded bench, and the

small refrigerator in the corner where bottles of water

were kept, the room was empty, and I didn’t understand

why. I took a towel from a rack in the gym and dabbed it

on my already swollen lip, glad that it was still there.

I jumped when I heard the doorknob turn, but it

hadn’t turned at all. I was hearing it lock. I walked over to

it and sure enough, I was locked in. I didn’t understand

that either. All Drew had to do was tell me to stay in there,

and I would have. It was just another one of his mind

games.

I stood there for probably ten minutes waiting for I

didn’t know what. I just knew that his plan
wasn’t
to lock

me in that room and leave me alone. I took a deep breath

and walked to the far wall. I slid down the wall and sat on

the shiny hardwood flooring.

“Stand up!” I heard him say through an intercom

that I didn’t know was there.

Okay. Here we go with the head games.

I stood up but stayed leaning against the wall.

“Walk to the middle of the room and stand in front

of the mirror. You need to see what a stupid bitch you

are.”

I wanted to yell, fuck you. It was a very strong

urge, but I didn’t do it. I walked to the middle of the room

and stood in front of the mirror like a proper little

submissive.

It must have been fifteen minutes before he spoke

again, and that was because I spoke first.

“Can I take off my heels?” I asked to the empty

room.

“Did I say you could take off your heels?”

I rolled my eyes and didn’t answer. My feet where

killing me and my lower calves were starting to ache.

“You can take off the dress,” he said.

I didn’t want to take off the dress. I wanted to take

off the damn shoes. The dress was the only thing that I had

on. It was cut low so I couldn’t wear a bra with it, and of

course I wasn’t allowed to wear panties. I did as he

requested and slid the dress from my shoulders, and down

to the floor.

“Turn around,” I heard him say from wherever the

hell he was.

I turned a half a turn, and he told me to keep going.

I turned some more and when I stopped he told me to keep

turning.

What the fuck.

I was standing naked in the middle of the room

wearing three inch stilettos, and he wanted me to play ring

around the fucking rosy. I managed to play his stupid game

for about fifteen minutes, and I couldn’t do it anymore. My

legs felt like jello, and were going to give out. That’s

exactly what happened. My ankle twisted, and I went

down. I sat on the floor and grabbed my ankle. It hurt so

bad. I thought for sure it was broken.

Drew laughed. I slid the heel from my foot and

flung it across the room. I didn’t know where the cameras

were, but that was what I was aiming for.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” he warned.

I couldn’t help it. I had enough. My ankle hurt. My

legs felt like they were going to fall off from prancing

around like some idiot for him, and my tongue wouldn’t

stay away from my swollen lip.

“Fuck you!” I yelled. I hadn’t said anything

remotely close to that since my first week there.

He didn’t say anything. I knew that he would be

bursting through the door at any second. I didn’t care. I

was pissed.

He didn’t come, and all of a sudden the room went

pitch black. That made me supremely happy. The bastard

couldn’t see me anymore. I removed the other shoe. My

ankle still hurt, but I knew that it wasn’t broken. The lights

stayed off for maybe twenty minutes. I slammed my eyes

shut all of a sudden at the bright light while my eyes tried

adjust to the abrupt brightness.

“Move to the middle of the room,” I heard him say.

I started to stand and then stopped. I didn’t care

because it hurt to stand on my ankle.

“Crawl.”

I did as he said, and crawled like an animal back

to the center. I sat in the middle of the room waiting for

instructions. He didn’t send anymore, and my heart sank

when I heard the door being unlocked.

I knew I was in for a night of hell as soon as I saw

the look in his eyes and the bag that he carried, at least

until he got off anyway.

He stood right in front of me and looked down.

“What did you say to him?” he asked in an angry

tone.

“Nothing,” I said, taking my second blow to my

face

“You’re a liar. What did you say?”

“He only asked if I was happy and how I was

doing. I told him yes that I was happy, and I was doing

fine.”

He grabbed my hair and pulled his face close to

mine. “What did I tell you before we went there?”

“I tried not to talk to him without you. You’re the

coward that walked away.”

I didn’t mean to say the last part out loud. It just

came out, and I knew that I would pay for it.

“Stand up,” he demanded.

I stood, and he turned me sideways so that he

could get a nice long stroke when he brought his hand to

my bare ass. It hurt. It hurt like a son of a bitch, but I

wasn’t going to let him know that. He made sure that we

were facing the mirror so that I could watch.

“You’ve been here five years. Are you ever going

to learn to do what you’re told?”

Should I tell him to go to hell now or later?

“I don’t know what you want. Nothing I could do

would ever make you happy.”

I took another welt from his hand on that one.

“Did I tell you to talk?”

“Yeah, kind of. You did ask me a question,” I

smartly said. What was wrong with me? I never defied

Drew nor did I smart off to him.

Third crack to my naked ass.

“Sit,” he demanded.

I did, and he made me turn toward the mirror. He

stood behind me and reached into his bag of goodies. It

wasn’t anything new, and I had been introduced to that

vibrator before.

He turned it on high power and ran around my

collarbone and to my nipple while he watched our

reflection in the mirror.

“Do you think you’re going to come, Morgan?” He

whispered in my ear. I could smell the whisky on his

breath.

Well that’s a stupid question.

“No.”

“And why not?” he asked, teasing my nipple with