The MC President's Forsaken Wife (Zara and Knox) novel Chapter 85

Chapter 56-1

My Dad’s office has become my happy place.

Clam

I never imagined I’d say that about a room overflowing with ledgers, shipping manifests and enough coffee cups to suggest that Locke and are personally keeping the Colombian economy afloat.

“I’m telling you,” I say, peering over the edge of the spreadsheet in front of me. “Color-coding a criminal enterprise’s documents doesn’t automatically make you organized.”

“It does too,” Locke says.

“It absolutely doesn’t.”

“It does if you’re right.”

“You know,” I say thoughtfully. “I’m beginning to think you enjoy being right.”

“I’m beginning to think you’ve only just noticed.”

“Good God, you’re impossible.”

“So I’ve been told.” He grins at me. “Usually by you, in our bed, as you beg for me to stop teasing you, and just fuck you already.”

My face automatically flushes red-hot with desire, with need. Before I can come up with an appropriately smart-ass comeback, the office door swings open without so much as a courtesy knock.

Jade marches in like she’s leading a military operation, takes one sweeping look at the paperwork covering every available surface, then plants both hands on her hips.

“Absolutely not.”

Locke doesn’t even look up from the invoice he’s reading. “Morning, Jade.”

“No.”

He lifts his eyes. “No?”

“No,” she repeats firmly. “I refuse to allow this to continue.”

I blink. “Allow what?”

す

“This.” She gestures dramatically around the room. “You’ve spent weeks breaking up your marriage, doing chemotherapy, recovering from chemotherapy, and helping Mr Spreadsheet over there dismantle organised crime.”

Locke cocks his head. “I feel ‘Mr Spreadsheet’ is unnecessarily personal.”

“I haven’t even started in on you, buddy boy.”

I bite the inside of my cheek, trying not to laugh.

Jade looks at me. “You’re coming with me.”

14

<Chapter 56-4.

“Where?”-

Clam

“Shopping. And Mayhem will be picking me up in a few hours, so you’re driving – Cobra says you can take the club truck, just bring it back tomorrow.”

“I’m working.”

“So was I until thirty seconds ago.”

I glance hopefully at Locke, expecting him to rescue me, but the traitor closes the file in front of him with a soft snap. “I think she’s right. I’ll survive without you for one day.”

“Will you?”

He smiles, slow and warm. “It’ll be difficult.”

“Well,” I say, dithering a bit. “Try not to solve any more drug crime without me.”

“No promises.” he smiles,”Now move that hot little ass out of here and go throw some much-needed money at the local economy.”

***

Thirty minutes later, Jade and I are standing in front of one of the most beautiful lingerie boutiques that I’ve ever seen. She’s positively beaming; I’m absolutely horror-struck.

“Oh, no,” I say, mentally clutching my pearls. “No, no, no.”,

“Oh, yes. Yes, yes, yes.”

I stare through the enormous front windows at displays of silk, satin and lace arranged beneath warm golden lights that somehow make underwear look like museum pieces.

“I can’t go in there.”

“You absolutely can.”

“I’ll be arrested.”

She blinks. “For buying sexy underwear?”

“For being hopelessly out of my depth.”

She hooks her arm through mine before I can make a run for it. “You rebuilt a motorcycle engine when you were thirteen.”

“That’s completely different.”

“You stared down your psychotic ex-husband.”

“I was internally screaming.”

She laughs so hard she has to stop walking. “Sweetheart…”

“What?”

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Chapter 50+

It’s just underwear.”

“It looks expensive.”

“It is.”

“I don’t belong in expensive.”

Claim

She turns me gently to face her, the teasing disappearing from her expression without taking the warmth with it. “Zara.”

I sigh. “What?”

“When was the last time you bought something beautiful because it made you happy?”

The question lands more heavily than I’d expected. I open my mouth, then close it again, because the answer is embarrassingly easy:

“I honestly don’t know.”

“I do.” She smiles sadly. “Never. And that’s way too damn long. Now, let’s go.”

A few moments later we’re inside, and I immediately discover that the boutique is considerably less intimidating than I’d imagined. Instead of hovering or judging, the sales assistant greets us with an easy smile before disappearing to let us browse in peace, leaving Jade free to wander from display to display making delighted little noises that make me laugh.

“Oh,” she breathes, lifting an emerald green lace set. “Now that’s dangerous.”

“Dangerous?”

“For the poor man who’s eventually going to see it.”

Heat creeps into my cheeks. “Jade.”

“What?”

“You say these things very loudly.”

“I certainly do.”

She holds the emerald lace against me, then tilts her head thoughtfully. “Mmm.”

“What?”

“Too predictable.”

“I don’t think anyone has ever described emerald green as predictable.”

“No, but you would choose it because it’s elegant.”

“I like elegant.”

“I know.”

She reaches for another hanger, one holding something frothy and see-through. “But today…” Her grin

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Chapter 56

grows positively wicked. “…we’re trying something else.”

Clam

Ten minutes later I’ve somehow got in my arms black lace, deep sapphire blue, blush pink, and something in a shade of red that makes my face feel approximately the same colour.

“I’m not buying the red,” I say.

“You haven’t even tried it on.”

“I don’t need to.”

“Why?”

“Because I’d spontaneously combust.”

Jade rolls her eyes so dramatically, I’m amazed they don’t disappear into the back of her head. “To the fitting rooms.”

“I’d rather wrestle Diesel for a socket wrench.”

“To the fitting rooms.”

“Taking food off Mayhem’s plate would be safer.”

“To. The. Fitting. Rooms.”

I groan theatrically, but she’s already steering me gently toward the changing area, shoved me into a cabinet, swept the curtain closed, planted herself on a chair opposite.

The black set is beautiful. The blue is even prettier. The blush pink is surprisingly flattering to my skin tone. By the time I reach the red, I’ve almost stopped feeling self-conscious.

Almost.

Then I catch sight of my reflection from the side.

The scar.

My smile falters.

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