Je Suis a Toi (Monsters in the Dark Book 4) (5 page)

THE LAST WARMTH of sunshine faded as we drove up the incredibly long driveway of
Castelnaud-des-Fleurs
. The Castle of Flowers.

Anyone with an income as sizeable as Q’s could rent this private estate—costing a small fortune for a few days’ stay.

I’d found it thanks to the contacts Q had made in the property world where he’d earned most of his wealth. We regularly brushed shoulders with building officials, high-powered governors, and businessmen with money and power.

Those same businessmen were on a secret list that Q and I’d compiled of known sex offenders and traffickers. I might have found my happily ever after, but I hadn’t forgotten my vow to help others. Along with our charities and regular donations to the families we’d already saved, we kept track of underground dealings and recent sales of women. Including a new trafficking ring that’d opened in Europe called the QMB—the Quarterly Market of Beauties.

Q had enlisted spies to watch and report. He wouldn’t let it go on for much longer before he slaughtered those doing the buying and scavenge for those who had been sold.

We weren’t bound by propriety and paperwork of the law.

We didn’t stand by and let such evil occur.

Q didn’t tell me much about what he arranged, or how far he had them punished, and I didn’t ask. That day he’d found me in the warehouse and wrenched the heart from the man who’d broken me had shown just how dark I truly ran.

I didn’t squirm when Franco told me exactly what Q had done after Frederick carried me to the plane. I didn’t gag when he spoke of the gore, or lament and ask why Q had been so savage.

Instead, I thanked him. From the bottom of my soul. He’d only done what that bastard deserved, and I wouldn’t ruin his gift and sacrifice by ever being weak. Q could kill every last trafficker with his bare hands, and I would stand beside him with a rag to wash away the blood. I would spread my legs for him even while he smoked with sulphur from the gun he used to exterminate such vermin.

Did that make me a monster, too?

Yes.

And I accepted that wholeheartedly.

Turning off the ignition, Q gave me a gentle smile. Whatever violence that we’d given into in the barn was sated and whatever shyness and unwillingness to talk from our picnic had been shoved away to discuss at a later time.

He would tell me.

I trusted him.

And I didn’t care what it was, I would do it. Because that was what our marriage was. He took, I gave. I asked, he gifted. We were on a never-ending tug of war where we each took turns to win. But there was no losing. We had far too much happiness to ever lose.

“Thanks for giving me time, Tess.” He grabbed my hand from my lap and kissed my knuckles.
“Je ne vais pas te torturer beaucoup plus longtemps. Jete le promets.”
I won't torture you much longer. I promise.

I smiled, tracing his five o’ clock shadow with my eyes and lingering on his lips. “Oh, you can torture me anytime you want. Just not with secrets.”

A smirk appeared. “You’ve brought us to a castle for a few days. I’m sure they have a dungeon and some apparatus we could find a new use for.”

“I don’t think they had pleasure in mind when they cooked up the rack or whatever else those medieval heathens invented.”

“No, but that’s how history works. They create something for one purpose, but the future finds new uses.
Better
uses.” Unfurling my fingers, he leisurely inserted my index into his mouth.

I shivered as the hot wetness of his tongue shot directly to my pussy.

How does he do that?

How had he somehow not only captured all my senses but became the ultimate puppet master on my body, too?

“Ah, you’ve arrived.” A moustached butler appeared from the massive gothic front door, peering through the car window.

Q bit my finger before relinquishing my hand. “That’s your cue to behave.”

I giggled. “
Me
behave? I don’t know what you mean. I’m the perfect example of behaviour.”

He snorted as he climbed from the Aston Martin and slammed the door. His eyes danced with danger. “That’s only because they don’t see what I see.”

The butler snapped his fingers, summoning a chauffeur to drive away our car. I didn’t need to ask if they’d take care of the remains of our luncheon in the boot or if our belongings and friends had arrived.

In a place like this, things ran effortlessly—oiled by the perfection of money.

Looping my arm through Q’s, I inhaled the tantalizing scent of his coat. “What don’t they see?”

His head bowed; his breath hot in my ear. “They see the blonde haired angel with a sweet smile and kind voice. They see the wife of an egotistical, stubborn investor and assume you’re content to let me be in charge. They don’t see you as a threat.”

My temper flared. “You’re saying I come across meek and stupid?”

Q chuckled, guiding me into the castle. “No, my dear
esclave
. I’m saying they’re fucking stupid for not seeing the
true
you. The minx who would sooner be belted and chained than adorned in silk and finery. The woman with a temper to rival mine, intelligence to run my entire empire while still asleep, and the ultimate truth.”

“Truth?” My low heels clicked on the ancient flagstones of the castle. The temperature wasn’t as snug as our home, but cheery fires roared in the humongous entrance hall as we traded foyer for the heart of the castle.

He hugged me closer as staff appeared from nooks and crannies to take our coats and give us a welcome cocktail. “The truth, Tess. That you own my ass. That you’re the one with all the power.”

My heart constricted into a lovesick knot.

“Mr. and Mrs. Mercer.” A sweet looking young man handed us a goblet with some sort of concoction.

Even now, after so many years together, I still got a thrill being called Mrs. Mercer. My maiden name was gone. Forever banished. I no longer thought of myself as Tessie Snow. She died the day she was kidnapped in Mexico.

And good riddance.

“Please, allow me to show you to your room.” The man bowed, motioning us to follow.

Q and I fell into step, never breaking our hold on one another and sipping the overly sweet alcohol.

Grandeur was now a part of my life. If Q took me around the world to investigate a new hotel chain he’d invested in or the exquisite residence he’d purchased in Saudi Arabia so we had a base when he worked with the overseas authorities on traffickers, I enjoyed the gilded walls and gold embossed crockery.

However, just as wealth had dulled my wonderment, so too did poverty make it so much more appreciated. Q had been mindless in his acquisitions for wealth. He’d had nothing else to comfort him while recovering slaves found salvation in his home.

His company had been his saving grace. Until me, of course.

And now that he was happy, he gave away so much. He entered slums in Brazil and built free houses and upgraded the water supply and enlisted gardeners and teachers to form a better community.

He took me with him to Vietnam where he bought badly run hospitals and fired the staff that didn’t care and replaced them with top-of-the-line nurses and caregivers. He transformed bad into good wherever he went, and I was so damn proud of him.

“Good choice, Tess.” Q pointed at the wall fresco and cupid decorated ceiling. “The craftsmanship is superb.”

The servant took Q’s impressed interest to give us a guided tour as we climbed the sweeping staircase past portraits of long-ago deceased lords and ladies and travelled down plush carpeted corridors. Sconces, tapestries, and stained glass windows kept our guide’s narration busy as Q and I nodded respectfully, disappearing further into the enormous castle.

Finally, our guide stopped outside the largest wooden door I’d ever seen. It was gnarly and knotted with no decoration whatsoever. But it didn't need any. Its simplistic weathered age was all it required.

“This is your room, Mr. and Mrs. Mercer. Your guests are on the floor below. I was informed by Suzette that you would prefer not to be too close.”

I swallowed my laughter.

Damn Suzette and her meddling
.

One of these days, I would book her and Franco a trip and ensure an entire hotel floor was unoccupied with the veiled innuendo that they could be as loud and as adventurous as they liked with no neighbours to hear them.

Q growled under his breath. “She’s always taken too many liberties that woman.”

This time, I couldn’t stop my giggle. “I’ll make sure she has payback. Don’t you worry.”

He raised an eyebrow but didn’t ask. He was wise. Women business should stay women business. Just like whatever he spoke about with Frederick was his.

Speaking of Frederick.

Q opened the door to our suite while I hung back to talk to our guide. “Everyone arrived okay?”

The boy nodded. “Yes. Your guests settled in about four hours ago. They’ve arranged for dinner and drinks to be served in the great hall at six p.m.”

“Dinner?” Q popped his head back out. “How many are attending?”

I patted his chest. “Don’t you worry about that. This is your surprise, and I intend to surprise you.”

His eyes narrowed. “Tess…”

“No. You will not badger me into telling you. Trust me, Q. You’ll like my surprises. I know you, remember? I wouldn’t do anything to make you uncomfortable.”

Okay, maybe one thing…

But apart from that tiny inconvenience, the rest of the week would be purely perfect.

TRUSTING TESS AND her orchestration of the next few days—with no guessing what she’d planned—was hard. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust her. I just wouldn’t put anything past her.

Look at our fucking wedding.

That had been ruined by Suzette and Franco thinking they had the right to strip Tess at the altar and give me the leash to her collar.

It worked because of our lifestyle.

But it wasn’t their place to do such a thing. Even though I appreciated and loved them for wanting me to accept that part of me. I got it. I did. And for the most part, I was grateful. But it also made me very fucking wary about social functions run by others.

Tess sat opposite me in a gown I’d never seen. We had a seamstress and suit maker on our books, so it didn’t surprise me that the gold silk clung to her figure with skilful precision.

Suzette and Angelique sat beside her at the large banquet table while Franco and Frederick sat on my side. The six of us had indulged in a decadent meal of pumpkin soup for a starter, pheasant and roasted vegetables for a main, and finished with a decadent tiramisu for dessert.

Since we’d arrived, everything had been relaxing and calm. Our room overlooked the aqueduct flowing into the valley below, and our bed was even bigger than our one at home with the convenience of a four-poster with thick swaddling curtains to cocoon us. The giant fireplace roared and was kept stoked by attentive servants, and the large claw-foot bath by the balcony would be used at some point during our stay.

The castle was quiet and straddled modern and history with seamless charm. We hadn’t explored much, but there was always tomorrow.

Sipping on a fine glass of aged whiskey, I chuckled as Franco acted out the bumpy landing they’d endured in the helicopter before we’d arrived. I wasn’t surprised. The valley here would’ve been havoc with wind thermals.

Tess and I remained quiet, letting the others do the entertaining.

The staff cleared the table, appearing and disappearing effortlessly. It felt as if we were alone and in a private sanctuary rather than a cavernous castle.

Finishing his wine, Frederick stood up, helping Angelique to her feet with a doting smile. They made a handsome couple with their svelte frames and similar features. I didn’t have many close friends, but those I did, I cherished.

“Let’s play a few parlour games. What do you say?” Frederick clapped his hands, encouraging us to stand.

Tess rolled her eyes as Franco plucked Suzette from her chair.

“I don’t think monopoly or scrabble are what most of us have in mind tonight.” Tess murmured too low for anyone but me to hear as she came toward my side.

Wrapping an arm around her waist, it came off as kind and loving, but the fierce way I glued her to my side spoke of domination and desire. “Shall we retire and find our own entertainment?” I whispered in her ear.

She smiled coyly. “I think that’s a—”

“Come on. No excuses. A few games together and then we’ll head to bed.” Frederick in his bossiness didn’t let us say no.

With a mixture of grumbles and half-hearted hesitation, he ferried us into the room attached to the great hall and motioned us to sit in the mismatch velour love-seats and wingbacks grouped together around a low coffee table. Nestled by the chairs were a whiteboard, markers, and other paraphernalia.

“What the hell are you planning,
mon ami
?” I asked, reluctantly letting Tess pull me onto a love-seat with her.

Angelique answered for him, tugging her long dark hair over her shoulder. “Well, we’re in a castle. We thought it would be fun to play some of the parlour games that would’ve been their entertainment back in the day.”

I groaned dramatically. “I’d much rather drink.” I pinched Tess beside me, hissing in her ear. “And then play with you.”

She swatted my hand, fighting a smile. “Behave.”

Franco hopped up, grabbing a top card from some moth-eaten time-stained deck on the coffee table. “Great, I’ll start.” He read the script on the chosen paper, his forehead furrowing. “There’s a game called Wink Murder.” Glancing at us, he added, “But I don’t think we can play it with so few numbers.”

“How does it go?” Suzette asked, smoothing her pale blue dress with silver lace in the panels around her chest. I loved seeing her so normal and content. I never asked her to wear a uniform while working at the chateau, yet she did.

I supposed it might seem odd to be fast friends with my housekeeper, but I found it perfect. She knew my secrets just by living under my roof. What better way to keep those secrets hidden than by befriending her and her partner?

Besides, Franco would give his life to keep me safe. And I would do the same for him, even if it wasn’t in my job description. His friendship was what bought me his loyalty, not his paid service.

“One of us is assigned the role as a murderer and can kill others by winking at them. If they’re spotted winking, they lose. But if they don’t, and people keep dying, they can win by killing off everyone before they’re caught.”

I looked at our small group. “I hardly think six will work. Next.”

Slapping the card onto the table, Franco picked up another. He put it straight back down again. “The Minister’s Cat. I don’t get the rules. I’ve had too much to drink.” He laughed. “Brain cells are on holiday.”

Suzette plucked one from the deck, pursing her lips. “This might be fun? Consequences. We each have to name an adjective, a verb, and—”

“Sounds like homework. Next.” Frederick chuckled. It was his turn to grab a card. “No, not this one, either. Way too complicated.”

Seemed like historical games were a lot more tricky than the games of today. Or we were just less intelligent.

Or drunk.

I’d go with the drunk option. And was perfectly fine with that.

Taking another sip, I let them decide our fate.

All I needed was Tess beside me and the expensive whiskey in my glass. My evening was complete.

“Oh, this one sounds good.” Suzette held up her selection. “Charades.”

We all groaned in unison.

“That’s a sure-fire way to make a fool of yourself,” Frederick said.

“Then it should be easy for you,” Angelique quipped.

Frederick rolled his eyes. “Fine, woman. But wouldn't you much rather play that game where you have to guess the name of a movie or song with pictures?” He pointed at the whiteboard. “That’s what that’s for, right?”

Angelique shook her head. “They wouldn't have had that wipeable thing back then. Charades are much more in keeping with the times.”

I swallowed a mouthful of whiskey, joining in the bullying toward my CEO. “Go on, Frederick. You’re up. Make a fool of yourself.”

Franco laughed while Tess snuggled deeper into my side.

Standing, Frederick proceeded to do exactly what I demanded.

He made an absolute utter fool of himself.

For the next few glasses of alcohol, we laughed at each other’s expense.

And I slowly forgot why I was terrified of surprises.

* * * * *

Midnight chimed in the large grandfather clock in the foyer, clanging through stone walls and architraves, echoing in our alcohol-mellowed bodies.

For the past few hours, we’d drank, joked, humiliated ourselves, and hung out like any normal group of friends. Half-way through the charade skit, while Tess scratched the top of her head and blew bubbles like a monkey, I pressed pause on this magical evening and let myself enjoy such simple but valuable things.

I’d never once played like this.

Innocently played with others without barking orders, running companies, or fighting unfairness on behalf of those who’d suffered so much. Even with Tess, I was still aggressive and overbearing and never just relaxed enough to laugh and be normal.

But this…

This ‘forced upon me’ holiday where my work colleagues and staff became trusted parlour game enthusiasts, I was struck by how beautiful it was. How rare and fucking precious.

For the past fifteen minutes, we’d finished teasing and poking fun and sipped contently on our rapidly depleting reserves of whiskey and wine.

I was inching past tipsy to drunk, but I wasn’t pissed at the lack of motor skills and slight blurriness of my vision. It was nice to be intoxicated and have nowhere to be, no worry to feel, and no one to keep appearances for.

Even in our own home, Tess and I could never let down our walls entirely because we always had guests. Women from rapists and slaves from imprisonment. If they saw us laughing and drinking, it would be a slap in the face of their unhappiness.

Frederick stretched, covering his mouth as he yawned. “We’re getting old if we can barely last past midnight.”

Tess giggled. “Speak for yourself. Suzette and I are years younger than you lot.”

Younger by calendars but not by wisdom. If anything, Tess surpassed me in emotional intelligence and wisdom on a daily basis.

“How about one more game and then we retire?” Frederick asked, reaching once again for the deck of cards.

No one complained. We’d all slipped into acceptance. We’d played Tiddly Winks, Snap Dragon, which ensured Franco singed his eyebrows (a stupidly dangerous game of flaming brandy while trying to scoop raisins from the flammable liquid), Twenty Questions, and the mind-taxing memory game called Elephant Foot Umbrella Stand.

“How about Blind Man’s Bluff?” He held up a card.

“What’s that?” Tess asked.

“Exactly what it says. Someone has to be blindfolded.”

My curiosity piqued at the mention of a blindfold. Anything to do with the resemblance of kink always earned my utmost attention.

Reading the instructions, Frederick replied, “One of us is blindfolded and spun around. The rest of us fan out around the room and take turns to ‘bluff’ push gently—according to the guidelines—the blind man or woman until they can find said victims and catch them. Then they become the blind man and so on.”

“So how do you win?” I ran my thumb around the top of my glass. The game sounded interesting. And thoughts of using a different type of blindfold made my heart hammer. My cock overrode the heaviness of liquor as I became more and more aware of Tess pressed against me.

“Umm.” Frederick flipped the card. “Another version is if the person gets tagged, the blindfolded wearer must correctly figure out who they caught and then they’re out of the game.” His eyes danced around the room. “It does say to play where there are no obstructions so no accidents occur. Perhaps we should—”

“Here is fine.” I stood. The sooner this was over, the sooner I could get Tess into my bed. I had other ideas for a blindfold once we were no longer in company. Turning to my wife, I smirked, “I nominate you,
esclave
.”

“Me?” Her eyebrows shot to her hairline. “Why me?”

“Because you’ve avoided being the centre of attention most of the night. This is the last game, and all of this was your idea. You’re up.” Hauling her from the chair by her wrist, I manhandled her away from the circle of love-seats. The room was large with open archways and sideboards uniform and neat against the wall. The only things she could trip over were the wingbacks and coffee table.

I could move silently enough that I could keep pace with her, and she’d never know I was there. I’d prevent any accidents.

Franco opened the small box on the table and pulled out a red silk blindfold. Black ribbons dangled on either side ready to secure.

I cleared my throat as my cock grew thicker.

Fuck.

The need to have Tess boiled my blood as the beast inside salivated.

Taking it from him, I ordered, “Turn around, Tess.”

Pouting but giggling at Angelique and Suzette, Tess obeyed.

I placed the blindfold over her eyes and tied it tight. Waving my hand in front of her face, I asked, “Can you see?”

Her head tipped up, doing her best to see down her nose at the small sliver of light. Finally, she shook her head. “No. Unfortunately.”

I chuckled. “Like old times then.”

She licked her lips, thickening my cock even more.

Christ, I needed her out of public and very fucking soon.