The Red Wife Read online

  The Red Wife

  by Tyffani Clark Kemp

  Other Books by Tyffani Clark Kemp

  LeKrista Scott, Vampire Hunted Series

  Scorned

  The Beasty Series

  Beast Within

  Beast Anew

  The Shaggy Maggie Band Series

  Shaggy Maggie

  Without Rules Series

  The Man Without Rules

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Published by

  SideStreet Cookie Publishing, LLC

  www.sidestreetcookiepublishing.com

  Copyright © 2013 J.A. Howell

  All rights reserved.

  Cover design by J.A. Howell

  DEDICATION

  For the Red Wives

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Thank you once again to the amazing J.A. Howell for another amazing cover. Thank you for all of your support and for kicking my butt when I was slacking and for lifting me up when I was down on myself.

  My amazing assistants Autumn and Brenda, thank you for all of the work you do to put my books in the hands of my readers and for your notes. Without them, this book would not be what it is.

  Tara Wood, you are not only an amazing writer, but a good friend. Thank you for helping me the scenes I couldn't get unstuck.

  Mel at Girls **Heart** Books Tours, you are overworked, under appreciated and underpaid. And you totally rock my world. Thank you for being so understanding when I hit crunch time and I'm way behind.

  To my very own Man Without Rules, I will forever be your Red Wife. Minus the cheating part. I love you.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  TITLE

  DEDICATION

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE

  CHAPTER ONE

  TABLOID TROUBLES

  Mariss stormed into the lobby of Sebastian's apartment building and marched across the marble tiles to the elevators, a tabloid clutched in her fist. Her knuckles where white where she gripped the damn thing - the only grip she seemed to have on anything anymore. She punched the button for his floor. As the doors closed, she refused to let her tired body sag against the wall. She held onto her anger for the sole purpose of throwing it back in Sebastian's face when she saw him, because God knew, once she saw him it would be a struggle to remember why she was angry.

  Her body trembled by the time the elevator stopped at the second to last floor, but she didn't think it was because she was angry. She hadn't seen or spoken to Sebastian since they'd slept together weeks ago. As the doors slid open, she wondered about the wisdom of coming here at all. When she first saw the tabloid, her first instinct was to confront him. Now, she just wanted to be back in her office, surrounded by her friends and her books.

  On weak knees, Mariss walked to 833 and banged on the door as hard as she could. Convinced it sounded urgent, she dropped her arm to her side and waited.

  An awkward, young blonde woman with thick, black-rimmed glasses opened the door and smiled, showing teeth a little too big, but perfectly straight.

  “Hello. I'm Rachel, Mr. Boa's personal assistant,” she greeted.

  “Yeah, I really don't have the time.” Mariss pushed the girl out of the way with her forearm. Rachel stumbled backward as Mariss marched across the shiny marble tile, her heels clacking so loud she was sure Sebastian would hear her coming.

  “You can't go in there!” Rachel stage-whispered as she caught up to Mariss. She made a grab for her arm. Mariss shook her off and barged through the door into Sebastian's home office.

  The blonde flight attendant who was accusing Sebastian of rape sat on the sofa next to a man who resembled her, though his hair was a few shades darker. In a chair next to them was Herbert, the FBI agent whose wife's book Mariss had published. And Sebastian Boa, the Man Without Rules himself, the one who had somehow twisted his way into her life and heart, leaned against the edge of his cherry wood desk, arms folded across his broad chest without a care in the world. His goatee was nicely trimmed and that glorious head of dark, wavy hair just begged to be touched. Sebastian looked perplexed, like he was working out a math problem in his head. He looked up when the door slammed against the wall and his ridiculously blue eyes locked onto hers. Shock and pleasure surfed across his features.

  Mariss steeled herself against the power of that ocean-blue gaze and let a ferocious scowl light upon her brow. That ought to show him. In reality, she couldn't think, could scarcely breathe for the wash of feelings that suddenly plagued her. She remembered the slide of his skin on hers, the way he filled her and touched her like no other man could.

  “I'm sorry, Mr. Boa,” Rachel said, coming up behind her. “She's strong,” she whispered. The corners of Sebastian's perfect mouth twitched.

  Mariss blinked, hating the way he made her feel, hating that she'd been unfaithful to her husband with a man who could never love her, even when…

  “How could you?” Mariss growled, surprised that she could still sound so furious with him looking at her like he wanted to breathe her in or absorb her through his pores.

  “What?” he asked. His intense, smoldering gaze was bewildered, but he wasn't angry with her interruption. That perplexed her. Anyone else would have felt his wrath.

  “I thought we'd resolved this. How dare you!” She flung the tabloid at him. It smacked him in the middle of his chest and fell to the floor. Mariss watched the muscles in his jaw work as his body undulated away from the desk so fluid and graceful. There. He was finally angry. It was both satisfying and terrifying. Her body reacted to the mix of emotions and she crossed her arms over her chest so no one would notice how her nipples hardened at the thought of that anger focused on…

  “I was aware that we had,” he said, his tone clipped. He stooped to pick up the paper and scanned the front. She knew there was a mugshot of her as a teenager with a headline that read, “Mariss Red, Juvenile Delinquent.” She's stared at it for twenty minutes before logic made her think properly.

  Sebastian looked over the top edge of the tabloid. His
concerned, innocent eyes maked her heart stop. Or maybe it was racing. She wasn't entirely sure anymore. “I had nothing to do with this, Mariss.”

  “You were the only one I told!” she shouted. “No one else knew!”

  Sebastian flung the paper onto his desk and shoved his hands in his pockets. He looked like he was about to cross the room and wrap his hands around her neck. “Mariss, what good would exposing this do me?”

  “I don't fucking know!” She fought the urge to pout, her fury draining away. What she really wanted to do was punch him, then kiss him. Her husband needed to hurry up and come home. Loneliness was making her do unthinkable things.

  “Alright.” Sebastian walked over to her and took her by the arm. His hands were warm on her skin as he marched her out of the room and closed the door. “Mariss, I didn't-”

  “Mr. Boa, did you need some help?” Rachel stuck her head out the office door.

  Mariss raised an eyebrow, but it went unnoticed.

  “A moment, Rachel,” Sebastian said, his accent thick with annoyance.

  “Yes, sir, Mr. Boa.”

  Sebastian looked like he was trying to calm himself down before he spoke. Had throwing the paper at him really pissed him off that bad? Maybe it was the accusations, but there was no one else.

  “Mariss, I had nothing to do with this.”

  She believed him, but she needed someone to blame and a reason to push him out of her life.

  “No one else knew!” She let her voice carry and echo off the walls and floor.

  “Please, stop shouting, Red. Listen to me. Hellena may have known.”

  Mariss frowned, the anger dripping back in like a broken IV tube. Hellena worked for Sebastian at his fetish club here in New York. Over the last year she'd made it her business to cause Mariss as much trouble as she possibly could. Hellena wanted to be with Sebastian, but to him they were just very close friends. Intimately close.

  “You told her?” Now Mariss was pissed. She'd told Sebastian about her past in confidence. That Hellena bitch didn't need to know shit.

  “Bloody hell. I explained to her in the shortest terms possible so she would understand what she'd done. I didn't tell her anything.” Sebastian was squirming. Mariss had never seen him squirm before. She rather liked it.

  “Sebastian, do me a favor and stop trying to help.” She was shaking again. He reached out to touch her. The pull between them was magnetic, more so now than before they'd had sex, but she couldn't allow it. Mariss pulled away before he could touch her.

  “Don't,” she commanded. “One week doesn't change things.” If he touched her…

  “No, I hadn't expected it to. I thought I'd taken care of Hellena. I had no idea she would do this. I will fix the problem, and before you get smart with me, no. I'm not going to kill her.”

  “I wouldn't have asked-”

  “Yes, you would have. Mariss.” He sighed.

  “I have to go.”

  “Let me walk you out.”

  She shook her head and put a hand out to stop him. “Please, don't.” If he touched her she'd crack, and she couldn't afford to crack. Despite what was between them, no matter what she had allowed to happen a week ago, she still loved her husband completely. What she felt for Sebastian was nothing more than physical lust, she told herself. He was a perfectly crafted man, though not by mistake, and she wanted him in the same way everyone else did.

  Without putting her back to him, Mariss moved around Sebastian and hurried out the door. It closed behind her with a heavy slam. She leaned against it a moment for support, her knees wobbling as the adrenaline faded. Sebastian was going back to London in a few days. That would help.

  She took out her cell phone and made her way back to the elevator.

  “Hey, Juliet. I'm going home.” Juliet was her personal assistant. A few months ago, when Sebastian had gone on his ridiculous rampage trying to ruin Mariss' life, Juliet had quit working for him and come to her for employment.

  “Everything okay?” Juliet sounded distracted. There was muffled whispering in the background.

  “Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired.” Mariss leaned her head back against the elevator wall.

  “I'm going to head to your place and get dinner started. I'll see you there.”

  “No, you don't have to-” The phone disconnected before she could get the rest of the words out. “Fine. I'll see you there.”

  Mariss put her phone away as the elevator hit the main floor.

  Unlocking the front door, Mariss expected to find Juliet working on dinner. The two of them were close and she was the only woman allowed in her home alone on account that she was a lesbian and Mariss didn't have to worry about her trying to hit on Holden, her husband.

  “Jules?” Mariss called as she hung her jacket by the door, but she got no answer.

  The apartment Mariss shared with her husband was the perfect blend of modern and old school with a wide-open, warehouse style floor plan. The outer wall was all brick with floor-to-ceiling windows. Stairs led to the loft that doubled as an office and opened to the master suite. The living room boasted a twenty-foot ceiling. It was cozy with a fireplace topped by a widescreen TV. The charcoal grey and plumb purple color scheme felt so much like home to her that Mariss couldn't stop the smile that lifted the corners of her lips. This was where she belonged. Here. Not with Sebastian.

  The smell of roast beef and potatoes pulled Mariss to the kitchen where she stopped short. Juliet sat at the island, her phone in one hand and her cheek propped on the other. Holden's back was to the room as he worked at the stove against the outer wall. He wasn't wearing a shirt, so his strong, broad back was on full display.

  “I came home a day early.” He turned long enough to flash her a grin. His full lips framed perfect white teeth that stood out in stark contrast to his dark skin. He only wore the grey sweats Mariss loved, and his biceps bulged like he'd been working out. “Surprise.”

  Mariss dropped her purse on the island next to Juliet and went to her husband. Her hands glided over his warm, smooth skin. She wrapped her arms around his neck and settled in against his body. “God, I missed you,” she breathed.

  Holden's arms tightened around her waist. He cradled her to him like he would never let go again. The guilt from what she'd done shattered her heart, and she sobbed against his shoulder. Holden rubbed her back in a circle, stroked his fingers through her hair, and whispered softly in her ear, all of which made it worse.

  “Stop crying, Mare,” he finally said. “I'm here now. What's wrong?”

  He pulled her away from the halo of warmth that surrounded his body so he could look into her eyes. She tried to smile.

  “I just missed you.”

  “You don't have to miss me anymore, baby. I'm here.” He kissed her, his lips soft against hers, molding to hers like they were always meant to compliment each other.

  “Juliet and I have been talking.” Holden wiped away her tears and turned back to what he was doing at the stove.

  “Have you?” Mariss knew what he meant before he said anything. They'd discussed it a few times, but never come to anything concrete.

  “Yeah.”

  “I'm game for tonight,” Juliet said. “If you are.”

  Mariss looked to the woman who was fast becoming her best friend. She knew everything, of course. She was the only one who did. As soon as it happened - the very next morning - Mariss went straight to her.

  “But, Jules. You don't even have a wang,” she joked.

  “You don't have a wang.” Juliet slipped off her stool and came over to Mariss was. “Your man wants to see you with another woman. He thinks it's only fair that you return the favor, since you had Sebastian a few times.” She shrugged.

  They'd discussed this before they made the decision to find a man for a double penetration, one of Mariss' fantasies that Holden had indulged her with for her birthday last year. That was how they'd met Sebastian. His obsession with her had driven them into a year long relationship of sor
ts.

  “You don't have to do anything for me. This one is a freebie.” Juliet winked.

  “Are you going to give him head?” As well as seeing Mariss with another woman, Holden wanted to get head from two women at once.

  Juliet nodded. “I will. For you.” She winked and Mariss shook her head.

  “Don't flirt with me, cause I'm not into it.”

  “I can get you into it.”

  Juliet closed the spaced between them and kissed Mariss before she could protest. Her hand went to the back of Mariss' head so she couldn't pull away. She kissed her friend back simply because she was so startled by it. Even though she felt nothing from the kiss, she let it continue because she knew Holden was watching and it would turned him on. After a few moments she got into it.

  Holden came up behind her. His chest pressed to her back. His large, rough hands snaked beneath her blouse and caressed her skin. She shuddered under his touch and pressed closer to Juliet whose hands snaked around and grabbed Mariss' ass.

  “On the counter,” Holden said. His voice was deep and husky in her ear and it vibrated through her body. He unzipped her skirt, pushed it down her hips, and onto the floor. Then he turned her to face him. Holden's lips pressed against hers and his tongue invaded her mouth. Mariss sucked at it. Her arms wrapped around his neck and his hands slipped around her hips and under to lifted her onto the island. His fingers slid down her front, unbuttoning her blouse.

  Holden grinned and pushed the satin top from her shoulders. “I want to see you with her.” He nuzzled his face against her chest and nipped at her breast. “Please.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Yeah?” He smiled.

  She smiled back. “Yeah.” She'd do anything for him. No only because she loved him, but she owed him that much.

  Holden nipped at her stomach. Mariss flinched away with a giggle. Her husband was quickly replaced by Juliet who winked. She hooked her fingers in Mariss' panties and pulled them down over her hips.

  Holden climbed up on the counter behind her. His hands pressed firm against her arms, running slowly over her skin. His lips played across the back of her neck.