Who Is My Husband
Scene 16

Kailee woke up the next day to see Trey sitting at their bedside. He already had his mask on and was just waiting for her to wake up. Last night they had finally embraced each other again. It was intense and fiery. They had connected on another level and there was a closeness between them. He was hoping they could continue to develop the relationship during the day.

“Good morning.” Trey said and reached his hand out to rub it over her forehead. He let his fingertips gently trail over her face, his thumb softly rubbing her skin.

“Good morning.” She whispered back shyly. She had a sheet covering her but was very much naked underneath. It was silly after the night they had spent together but she felt shy.

He watched as a slight blush crept over her cheeks. And behind his mask he smiled. She was adorable, perfect, beautiful, fire and ice. She was everything. He wanted her to know that him taking her was because he really wanted her. He couldn’t explain everything to her yet but he could start by letting her see his affection for her. Her reaction was cute. And while he wanted to see her full naked body in the daylight he was going to be considerate of her.

“I’ll wait for you out in the hall so you can get dressed. Then we will get you some breakfast and go from there.” Trey watched as her doe eyes looked at him with a small smile on her face. Her cheek remained crimson. Her lips were plump and inviting. And as thoughts of last night played through his head, he knew he had to escape from the room. He stood up and brushed his hand over her cheeks then left the room.

Trey had made some special plans for her today. He wasn’t with her to celebrate her birthday and he planned to always be there in the future. But for now, he wanted to give her something special. He was very excited and hoped she liked her present.

He was leaning against the cold stone wall when he heard the door beside him click to open. He turned to face her. Through his mask he could see her soft yellow flowing gown she had chosen. Her caramel hair was pulled up revealing her slender neckline.

“You look lovely.” He reached out and pulled her into his side and slowly led her down the hall.

“Thank you. I’m sorry you are stuck wearing the mask.” Kailee frowned as she glanced up at him. There was no way that could be comfortable.

“It won’t be all day though. Since we will be taking some breaks.” Trey led her into the dining room.

Kailee smiled and waved to Reggie who was already seated. “Where is Grum and Lance?”

“They both have tasks today.” Trey answered as he helped her into her seat. “What would you like?”

“I want one of their sticky buns that Lance has gotten me hooked on.” Kailee looked up to Trey and smiled.

“Anything else?” He frowned behind his mask.

“Um… maybe some tea.” Kailee said as she adjusted herself in her chair.

Reggie took a sip of his coffee and smiled. “That’s all she wants Trey. Don’t force more on her.”

Trey lifted his head up to Reggie. Through his mask his eyes set upon him. He didn’t say anything but moved away to inform the maid of what to bring. He stood by the door and looked back to Kailee and Reggie who were chatting about something together. He couldn’t help but feel a small sting of jealousy by how normal they were together.

“When you are finished with breakfast, come outside. I want to show you something.”

Kailee lifted her head up to look at Trey. “You aren’t staying here with me?”

If only Kailee could have seen how happy her words made him behind his mask. Instead, he walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her neck. How he wished he could k**s her soft cheeks or plump lips.

“I have to get something ready for you, my sweet wife. Then I promise. I won’t leave your side again until tomorrow morning.” His voice dripped into a seductive whisper as he lifted up from her.

“Reggie, escort her out to the front when she is through.”

“You’ve got it.” Reggie said with a grin.

Kailee still felt a bit pouty. She did not care what he was getting ready for her. She thought they could eat breakfast together. Then she thought of something that she hadn’t before. He had a full mask on, not a half mask. He would not be able to eat with her around.

“Don’t worry kitten. He already had breakfast before dawn.” Reggie answered her unspoken question almost as if he could read her mind.

“He was up that early?” Kailee asked, shocked.

“Yes, he always is. Why?” Reggie asked.

Kailee looked at him for a moment and then turned to look out the window. “He must be tired, is all.”

Reggie smirked. “Why is that? Did you keep him up all night?”

Kailee rolled her eyes and turned back to face him as her food was brought out to her. “Thank you very much.”

The young maid nodded and then quickly continued on with her duties.

Kailee was going to ignore Reggie’s insinuating and obvious question. She was going to quickly finish her breakfast so she could talk with Trey. He must be tired, and she wished she could see his face. Behind his mask he could hide how exhausted he was. She found herself caring for her new husband. He had been so gentle and attentive to her. He was always checking to see she was okay with his advances during their nights together.

She found herself caring for this man. Which was a good thing considering he was her husband. But there were all these feelings inside of her. There is this part inside of her that needed more than what he was giving her. She knew he had his reasons, but she felt untrusted since she couldn’t see his face. He can explore every inch of her body during the night, but she couldn’t see behind his mask. There was another part of her that said to hell with it. It said behind the mask didn’t matter. It was how he treated her that counted. That was the most important. And so far he had been treating her well. Then lastly there was the scary side of her. She was drawn to him in a way she couldn’t explain. She felt comfortable around him and a strong attachment to him. Only it was scarier than all of that… she felt like he was hers. As if he was an item that she had claimed.

He was her husband. So, in a sense he was hers, right? The type of ownership her soul was demanding though was more intense than just saying he was hers. She creeped herself out when she got these strong intense feelings. She couldn’t understand where it was coming from. She chalked it up to her several years of loneliness and wanting to have a family so much. She reasoned with herself that maybe it was because it was something she wanted so bad that she was trying to force it. In either case she tried to suppress it as much as possible.

“You’re awfully quiet this morning?” Reggie looked at her with a soft smile on his face. He had been studying her as she slowly ate her food. It was obvious she was deep in thought about something.

She looked up at Reggie and smiled at him. “Still trying to digest this new life I have now. It is still so new and I am not sure if I should get attached to it or not.”

Reggie tilted his head to the side and quirked his eyebrow up. “What does that mean?”

“Mmm nothing really. Forget I said that. I was thinking a bit out loud there.” Kailee could see his face studying her. She didn’t mean to say the last part.

“Do you doubt Trey?” Reggie’s cool collected voice sounded a bit agitated this time as he spoke. Enough that it took her by surprise.

She frowned as she looked down at her fingers. Did she doubt him? Doubt his feelings? What didn’t she doubt right now? Everything was so new. She had no one to fall back to or depend on in this life. If Trey discarded her, had a mistress, locked her up or anything she had nowhere to turn. The only thing she could do was try to protect her heart that didn’t want to be protected. She wanted to be loved. She wanted to be happy. So, she answered the most logical answer. “I doubt life.”

Her answer seemed to have surprised Reggie. And the pained look in his eyes rose to the surface. He sighed heavily and then ran his fingers through his hair. “Life has a way of surprising us. One moment it kicks us down and tests our durability. And then the next we are being lifted up. The journey everyone takes is different. But we get to decide how to live this life. We get to decide if we let the past dictate who we are.”

“I am deciding how to live my life. I am also deciding who to give my heart to. Trust should also be earned and not naturally given. In this life I was loved by two wonderful parents and a sweet aunt. When they died the person, who should have been there for me took me in and mistreated me. I should have been able to trust my uncle. That would have been the natural order in life. So I made up my mind to protect myself. But…” Kailee stopped abruptly. She wouldn’t continue this thought out loud. But everything she had been preparing internally was being crumbled. From the moment she met Trey everything started changing. And she was letting the man in way too easily. She was done going in circles in her head. She stood up. “I’m finished eating.” Her brown eyes met with Reggie’s green pools. His eyes were studying her carefully. As if he was accessing what he felt she was going to say. She was relieved when he finally stood up and looked away from her.

“I’ll take you to Trey.”

Kailee slowly followed behind Reggie. She could feel an odd pain inside of her. Like she had made herself sad. Her own feelings of wanting to guard her heart against Trey was hurting herself. She touched the bangle on her wrist and sighed. There were still more surprises that awaited her about herself too. She was curious about being magical and what that meant for her.

“You can believe what you need to Kailee. But I will just say this to you… Trey cares about you. You are important to him.” Reggie’s voice was quiet as he kept his gaze ahead of him while they walked down the hall.

Kailee was a bit annoyed with how he worded it. She can believe what she needed to? And his word mattered here why? He was just another one of Trey’s men. He was bias. The only one who was always around her was Sparks. And even he had been keeping secrets.

Reggie opened the door to her to the outside and stepped aside allowing her to step out. The bright sun blinded her for a moment. The warm wind swirled around her hair as it greeted her. She turned her head to the side and her eyes widened when she saw Trey.