Wicked Lovers 06.5 Wicked All The Way (8 page)

“Are you finished with your wine?” he asked as he scooped
their dinner into the little Styrofoam containers.

“I do not care about it.”

“Me, either. Let’s go.” He took her arm and tugged her from
the booth. She tottered to her feet and let him usher her to the door.

“Well, if it isn’t the ex-ball and chain,” a terribly
familiar voice drawled from behind her as they neared the exit.

Gordon.
His voice
dripped with reprisal. Carlotta froze.

She had not actually seen him since Hunter had carried her
out his door. The little bit of speaking they had done had been conducted
through attorneys. Now, standing mere feet in front of him, she could not bring
herself to turn and face him and found the familiar anxiety knotting her up
inside.

Carlotta dug her fingers into Caleb’s arm, her mind racing,
grasping for something to say to diffuse Gordon’s anger. Then she paused. They
were divorced. No longer did she owe him so much as a polite hello. No longer
was she obligated to try to make his life comfortable or happy. She could waltz
out the door without a word.

“We have nothing to say, Gordon.” She tugged on Caleb’s arm,
urging him again toward the door.

He wasn’t budging. In fact, she would probably have more
luck moving a brick wall. Still, Carlotta tugged harder, before this
confrontation turned ugly.

“Sure we do,” Gordon corrected. “Or I do. Your hair is
longer. It seems your clothes are sexier. But you’re still fat. Does he know
yet what a cold, uptight bitch you are?”

Her ex-husband wanted a fight, probably because she had left
him and his dented pride could not tolerate it. After nearly fourteen years of
marriage to the selfish bastard, she refused to give him anything he wanted
ever again. Putting him in his place was not worth the heads that would turn or
the tongues that would wag. He was not worth another moment of her time.

Carlotta pulled Caleb toward the door again. “Please, I want
to leave.”

He didn’t listen. Instead, he tugged free of her grip and
whirled on Gordon. Dread sliding through her veins like ice, she forced herself
to face her ex-husband, too. He looked the same as always, short
salt-and-pepper hair cut like a banker’s. He stared up at Caleb with faded blue
eyes, looking slightly panicked, as if he had finally realized that Caleb stood
at least six inches taller and outweighed him by fifty pounds of muscle.

But she wasn’t shocked when Gordon whipped out his bravado
and flashed an insolent smirk.

Caleb stabbed a finger in Gordon’s chest. “If you’d still
like to be breathing in the next ten seconds, I suggest you shut your vile
mouth before I squash you like a fucking bug.”

She slapped a hand over her mouth and grabbed desperately at
Caleb’s sleeve with the other. He could not know the havoc Gordon was capable
of dishing out, but she did—all too well. He would twist words and call in
favors. He manipulated and lied like no other.

“Are you threatening me?” Gordon smiled as if he relished
the idea.

His small ego and his small penis probably could not stand
the idea that someone he found as contemptible as her had left him. That she
had not pined and regretted her decision each and every day. That she had, in
fact, landed someone more wonderful and manly. Not that he would ever admit
that last bit, even to himself.

“I’m telling you the consequences of failing to shut up,”
Caleb replied. “Carlotta divorced you for being a cruel, neglectful, cheating
douche. If you ever speak to her like that again, I will rip off your head and
piss down your neck. I spent twenty-four years in the U.S. Army as a trained
sniper. Want to try me?”

Gordon swallowed and paled a bit, looking pastier than
usual. Then he ripped his gaze from Caleb’s face to glare at her. “This one
looks and sounds like the asshole who carted you out of my house like some
damsel in distress. He was your son-in-law, right? So I’m guessing this
Neanderthal is his father. You’re fucking the family now?” Gordon shook his
head. “I gave you a roof and raised your brats. After using you, this jackass
will probably kill you in your sleep. Enjoy that.”

Gordon bypassed Caleb and brushed past her before he darted
out the door. Caleb flung the doors wide and stomped after him, a man on a
mission with thunder in his eyes. But her ex-husband ran to his convertible and
hopped in, peeling out of the parking lot before Caleb could catch him.

Carlotta rushed out the restaurant’s door, balancing their
leftover dinner cartons. She stopped short when she heard Caleb curse.

“The asshole got away.”

Yes, and despite what Caleb thought, that was for the best.

“Let it go. He is not worth it.”

He turned to her as if he suddenly didn’t understand what
language she was speaking. “There’s no way I was going to let him or anyone else
speak to you like that. Not ever, Lottie.”

“I appreciate what you meant to do, Caleb. But I am a grown,
capable woman. And I am fine. I did not need you to speak for me.” She put a
gentle hand on his arm.

“If you weren’t going to stand up to him, then yes, you did.
That’s my role.”

“He can only hurt me now if I let him. He was worth neither
my anger nor my words. He wanted a confrontation. Why should I give him what he
sought?” She blinked up at him, willing him to understand. “I know what sets
Gordon off. Do not be surprised if he slashes his own tires, then calls the
police to blame such a thing on you.”

“I don’t give a shit, Lottie. He treated you with terrible
unkindness and disrespect. I won’t have that.”

“I would rather not listen to it. However, if it means
keeping the peace, his insults, which no one else will hear, mean nothing to
me.”

“It means something to me. Pissant bullies like that only
understand strength. Silence is weakness to them. He would have continued to
browbeat you until he found just the way to make you feel every bit as
miserable as he does. He’s angry and jealous and determined to at least ruin
our evening, if not ruin your life. I’ll be damned if I’m going to let him.”

“I would rather not give him the satisfaction either.”

“So don’t!”

“I am handling it in my way, and you took that choice from
me without discussion. You silenced my voice, just in a different way than
Gordon.”

“Are you going to compare me to that asshole?”

Around them a family gave them a wide berth as they walked into
the restaurant. A laughing couple in their twenties walked out with bright
smiles, the woman wearing a Christmas sweatshirt that said, “BE NAUGHTY. SAVE
SANTA THE TRIP.” A nip was finally beginning to fill the air.

And standing here knowing that Caleb did not grasp her point
of view—and worried that he might never—very nearly broke her heart.

“No. I will merely tell you that I do not need and will not
have another man taking over my life. Will you drop me at Mari’s house,
please?” She walked toward his truck, clutching the Styrofoam and forcing
herself not to look in his direction.

“I was going to take you home and—”

“I think it is best if we say good night.” She drew in a
shaking breath. “And good-bye.”

December 22 –
Lafayette, Louisiana

Carlotta pulled up in front of Kata and Hunter’s apartment
and waved at her daughter, who stood on the balcony with a smile and gestured
her inside.

The late afternoon sun blinded her as she exited her sedan
and headed up the stairs. Kata popped back through the apartment and met her at
the door with a hug.

“It’s good to see you, Mamá. I’m so glad you’re going to
spend Christmas in Lafayette. Hunter is en route home now. I expect him in the
middle of the night. Mari had Carlos take the boys to a movie, so she’s been
baking and waiting for you.” She frowned. “It’s Christmas and we’re all going
to be together. Why do you look so sad?”

She tried to paste on a bright smile for her daughter, but
felt anything except happy. In fact, she had been unable to feel happy for
nearly three weeks. “I am tired.”

Kata only narrowed her eyes and dragged her to the sofa.
“And I’m Santa Claus. Out with it.”

“I do not wish to burden you.”

“You’re my mother, not a burden. You’ve always been there to
help me with my problems. You kept me from making the biggest mistake of my
life and divorcing Hunter. You raised me and loved me and…how can you think I’d
ever do anything but listen and try to help?”

Carlotta fidgeted. Kata really should know something. On
Christmas Eve, there would be a big surprise party at her new house. Kimber,
Tara, and Delaney had all been planning it feverishly and keeping her apprised.
Luc and Alyssa were catering from their restaurant, Bonheur. Everyone would be
there…including Caleb. If she didn’t tell Kata the truth now, her daughter
would only ask later, when she should be focused on her new home and having her
husband with her for the holidays.

She heaved a big sigh. “Caleb and I tried having
a…relationship. It did not work, and I miss him far, far more than I imagined I
would after such a short time.”

Kata’s eyes bulged. “He dumped you? That makes no sense.
That man has been crazy about you—”

“No,
Mija
. I told
him that such a relationship would not work. You and Hunter have settled your
issues with control and power, and I know your…” She looked at the discreet
collar around her daughter’s neck, and after many conversations, understood
what it represented. “Your private life has helped with that, but I—”

“Stop there, Mamá. Hunter and I have worked it out, and yes,
understanding that his dominance isn’t meant to flatten but
help
me has made a huge difference. I
know the Colonel is a force to be reckoned with, but he would never make you
miserable like Gordon.”

“Not intentionally. He has a good heart. But he does not
understand my need for independence, I fear. And to please him, I wonder…would
I simply let him have his way?”

“There are so many things wrong with that statement…” She
shook her head. “First, I don’t think so, but
talk
to him! I don’t understand… Tell me what happened—and don’t
leave anything out.”

Trying to hold back her tears, she related the incident with
Gordon at the restaurant. To others—maybe even to Kata—breaking a burgeoning
relationship because she felt silenced may seem extreme. But after so many
years of misery, she could not bear the risk of losing herself, of disappearing
again. She would rather be alone and able to stand on her own two feet than to
be utterly dependent again.

Kata leaned forward and took her hands. She hesitated for a
long moment before she finally sent her an empathetic frown. “I understand. I
struggled with so many of the things you’re feeling now. I want to ask you a
few questions and answer me very honestly, okay?”

“Of course.”

“These won’t be easy questions. First, do you believe in
your heart that Caleb would ever want you subjugated and silenced? That he
would disrespect or neglect you in any way?”

“No. He would mean well, always. He has a kind heart and
good intentions. I know he merely meant to protect me from Gordon, but it is my
battle to fight,
if
I choose to fight
it. I did not. Gordon is a rat not worth my time and anger.”

“But he’s a rat who will come back if you don’t put him in
his place. Has he tried to contact you since you ran into him?” Kata sent her a
knowing stare.

Carlotta flushed. “He called the hospital earlier this week,
asking for me, and left a message.”

“There you go. He believes that you’re sufficiently cowed
now because you didn’t stand up for yourself. He may even believe that he can
bully you into coming back. I don’t know. But I don’t think Caleb had the wrong
idea exactly. Sure it might have been nice if he’d talked to you before he
threatened the asshole, but honestly, what would you have thought of Caleb if
he’d done nothing while Gordon denigrated you?”

The question ripped through her thoughts with quiet
destruction. Carlotta had never considered the situation from that point of
view. But she knew the answer immediately. “I do not think I could respect such
a man. It reeks of cowardice.”

“And that’s something no one will ever accuse the Colonel of
having. In his eyes, you were his to care for and protect. He wouldn’t have
been treating you properly if he had let Gordon walk all over you without
saying a word in your defense. You know what would have happened if Hunter had
been with you.”

Yes, her son-in-law would likely have punched Gordon and
threatened him with something violent and unrepeatable. By comparison, Caleb
had been fairly restrained.

“If one of my ex-boyfriends ever treated me like that—”

“I would show him the sharp edge of my tongue immediately,”
Carlotta assured.

Kata smiled. “The instinct of a mother. I’ve heard you and
Mari talk about it several times. You didn’t even have to think about what
you’d do. You simply knew. What about the instinct of a man in love? You think
that’s any less strong when men like Caleb are, by nature, protectors?”

Eduardo had loved her very much. He would have never let
Gordon or anyone talk to her that way. Why should she imagine that Caleb would
allow such a thing either?

Carlotta’s thoughts tangled, and her head told her that Kata
had some very valid points. Her frightened, half-frozen heart kept trying to
override her logic, reminding her that her terrible past could repeat itself if
she allowed something as foolish as hope to rule her.

“Kata, I…” But she didn’t know how to finish that sentence
because she did not know how to feel or what to say.

“Last question,” her daughter assured. “You’re very unhappy
without Caleb now. I’m not even going to phrase that like a question because I
can see you are. But you’ve avoided being with him because you’re afraid to be
unhappy?”