Chapter 67: Someone’s got a death wish

His jaw tightens.

"Stay the fu k away from her, Nerissa."

I stare at him.

"You don’t get to tell me who I can or can not be friends with."

His expression hardens but he doesn’t argue.

He simply turns and walks away.

I stand there for a few seconds, completely stunned.

I mutter under my breath.

"Fucking caveman."

I hurry back toward the dining area.

Victoria looks up the moment I return. Her eyes immediately drop to my mouth.

I instinctively touch my lip.

It’s still tender and probably swollen.

Victoria’s eyebrows lift then she smirks.

"He did that didn’t he?"

I drop into my chair.

"Fucker thinks we’re on a date."

Victoria laughs but she doesn’t say anything else.

And somehow, that makes me start thinking.

I look at her.

Does she...? Does she actually like me?

My mind immediately goes back to yesterday morning.

Victoria staring at me after she found me naked, that strange little smile on her face, the way she had complimented my body and the way she had looked at me.

I shake my head.

No.

Absolutely not.

Lysander is just being a caveman and putting ridiculous thoughts into my head.

Victoria is a friend.

That’s all.

It has to be.

I look down at my ice cream. It’s melted completely. A watery puddle has formed around the bottom of the cup.

I stare at it in disappointment.

After everything I’ve just endured, this is the final insult.

"Can I have another one, please?"

Victoria looks at the melted disaster in front of me and laughs.

"Of course, darling. Whatever you want."

She waves over one of her workers. ℯℯ𝘭.

"Get her another ice cream."

I smile.

"Different flavor, though."

"Already decided?"

"Definitely."

The worker walks over and takes the empty cup.

Victoria leans back in her chair.

"Chocolate?"

I shake my head.

"Too boring."

"Strawberry?"

"No."

"Vanilla?"

"Absolutely not."

She laughs.

"Then what?"

I glance toward the glass counter.

My eyes land on a flavor I’ve never tried before.

I point toward it.

"That one."

Victoria follows my finger, her smile widening.

"You’re brave."

I grin.

"After marrying Lysander Sanchez, I think I’ve earned the right to be."

Victoria bursts out laughing and despite everything, I laugh with her.

But one thought refuses to leave my mind.

Why did he look so angry?

Because Victoria touched me? Because he thought we were on a date? Or because, somewhere along the way, my husband has started believing I actually belong to him?

I don’t know which possibility bothers me more.

———-

Lysander’s POV.

I tell Michael to go home.

"I’ll pick her up."

He sounds surprised through the phone .

"You sure, boss?"

"Yes."

He doesn’t argue. He simply does as he is told, pulls over, and gets out.

I slide into the driver’s seat of my car. The moment I’m alone, I grip the steering wheel.

What the hell am I doing?

I’m going to pick up my wife from an ice cream shop.

My wife.

Who has spent the entire day insisting that what she’s doing isn’t a date.

Even though it is.

At least, that’s what it looks like from where I’m sitting.

Dinner with another woman, laughing, sitting close and spending hours together.

Call it whatever you want....i know what it looks like.

And apparently, I have now become the kind of man who does pickup duties.

I don’t even know when that happened.

I tell myself it’s because I’m going in her direction anyway.

That’s all.

It’s convenient, nothing more.

I repeat that explanation in my head as I drive.

I’m not going because I want to see her, i’m not going because I want to make sure she gets home safely and I’m definitely not going because the thought of her getting into a car with someone else irritates the hell out of me.

I’m going because I’m already going that way.

Simple and logical.

Except I know I’m lying to myself.

By the time I pull up outside the ice cream shop, I’ve already convinced myself not to care.

Then I see her.

Nerissa is standing outside, her handbag hanging from her shoulder.

She’s talking to Victoria, they’re laughing about something.

Of course they are.

I slow the car until Nerissa notices me.

Her face immediately brightens with recognition.

She turns toward Victoria and says something before stepping forward.

Victoria looks toward me and then she does something that makes my jaw tighten.

She walks closer to Nerissa and pulls her into a hug.

I grip the steering wheel hard, my knuckles tightening.

Victoria looks directly at me over Nerissa’s shoulder.

And smiles a knowing one.

The kind that tells me she knows exactly what she’s doing.

My grip on the steering wheel tightens even more.

The woman simply has a death wish.

Eventually, they break apart.

Nerissa says something to her before walking toward the car.

Victoria remains standing outside. Still smiling and watching me.

I don’t bother acknowledging her.

Nerissa opens the passenger door and climbs inside.

She settles into the seat and closes the door.

Then she looks at me.

"Thanks for coming to pick me up."

I look straight ahead.

"Mm."

I start the car and we drive away.

"You know..." Nerissa breaks the silence, turning slightly toward me. "We should probably exchange contacts for easier communication."

I glance at her.

"I stood outside for over ten minutes before you arrived."

I keep my eyes on the road.

"I wasn’t that late."

"Yes, you were."

I say nothing.

She sighs.

"Let me have your number so I can at least call to know your location. Then I don’t have to stand outside waiting for you again."

That actually makes sense.

I reach into my pocket, pull out my phone, unlock it, and hand it to her.

"Type in your number."

She takes it. Her fingers move across the screen, and a few seconds later, my phone rings.

She immediately hangs up.

"There."

I glance at the screen.

Nerissa.

She saved her number in my phone.

Something about seeing it there feels strangely intimate.

Which is ridiculous, it’s just a contact

She hands my phone back and I slip it into the console.

Then, because apparently I have no sense of self-preservation, I ask,

"Did you have fun on your date?"

Her head snaps toward me.

"It wasn’t a date, Lysander."

"It sure looks like that to me."

She rolls her eyes.

"You really don’t have t..."

The car suddenly lurches violently to the side and my body slams against the door.

"What the hell?"

I grip the steering wheel, fighting to correct our trajectory.

I bark out a curse.

"What was that?"

Nerissa tries to turn around, looking toward the road behind us.

"Face forward, Nerissa. Put your head down."

My eyes scan the road and I tighten my grip on the wheel.

"Looks like someone’s got a fucking death wish."