Chapter 1

ELEANOR’S POV.

“Make the best of it, baby girl.” Tracy, one of my closest friends, winked teasingly as she slid two bags over to me, and looking into the bags, I felt my cheeks flush as I cleared my throat, instantly putting them on my laps like the other people in the club would see the contents of the bags if I left them on the table a second longer.

“And this, this will get you both in the mood.” Ellie winked at me as she slid a bottle of wine over to me, and I couldn’t help but want to get out of there that second.

I took in a deep breath as I tucked my hair behind my ear, staring into the bags that had sexy night dresses. As I gently ran my fingers through the silky fabrics, I couldn’t help but get hot from just thinking about how hot tonight was going to be.

I raised my head to them, all smiles. “Thank you, girls, so much. You don’t know how much this means. I mean, I am flushed, but—”

“Save your being flushed for Robert. He’s got a lot to flush into you tonight.” Tracy winked nastily at me, and I hit her playfully as I took the bags and my purse, staring at the time.

Shoot! My driver was here already.

I bade my girls goodbye as I hurried outside to see the driver. He opened the door, and I thanked him as I got into the car, putting the things in as I stared at the pictures the girls and I had taken together. It’d been some time since we last hung out together, and today, it was much needed. I needed time with them to be able to feel myself again.

Today, I was finally vulnerable about how I was feeling about my marriage. Honestly, I didn’t like the way things were going with Robert and me, especially as I’d accepted him the way he was. While I didn’t give them the full details of my marriage with him, I told them the most important part— that I hadn’t been touched in two years of marriage.

Yes! As crazy as that sounded, Robert and I never consummated our marriage because he’d been feeling insecure about his erectile dysfunction. While I told him I was fine and he was all I needed, he’d said he needed time to boost his confidence and be ready for me, and I’d agreed, as he was seeing doctors for it, but I’d been told by my girls that his condition might not have gotten better because I never made any efforts to seduce him.

“If you lie sexy in front of him while he’s hot, Elle, there’s no goddamn way he won’t touch you.” I’d been told, and honestly, it made sense. There was no way I could be sexy in front of him with my nightie and all, and it wouldn’t make a difference.

Impossible!

As I looked down at my phone, I started to become more eager to reach the vacation home where I was sure Robert would be waiting for me, and every second felt like hours.

“We're here, Ma’am.” The driver finally notified me, and I heaved a sigh of relief as I jumped out of the backseat like a child who’d been taken to an ice cream shop as I hurried upstairs with my bags.

I went into the room, but Robert wasn’t in. Weird. I let out a sigh. More time for me to prepare, huh?

I quickly had my bath, changed into the sexy lingerie Tracy had specially picked out for me as I poured the wine into glasses, dimming the room’s lights as I went to the bed, lying sexily as I waited for my dearest husband. He would be home soon, right?

If only I’d known “soon” would be hours.

I’d texted Robert at least fifteen times in the past two hours since he kept sending my calls to voicemail, but I never got a reply, and now, I was starting to worry.

As I hit send on the most recent message, I received a reply from him.

I’ll be home soon, love. Do not worry.

I heaved a sigh of relief.

I took out my nightwear‘s robe as I slid it on, grabbing my phone as I started to walk around the vacation home.

I’d intended to just walk around for a few minutes, hoping that when Robert returned, I would just jump on him and start everything. With how perfectly the lingerie highlighted my curves, he wouldn’t be able to resist— with or without the wine.

How wrong I’d been.

Even by midnight, he still wasn’t home, and now, I was starting to worry.

Receiving a call, I heaved a sigh of relief. It had to be him. However, it was an unknown caller.

I placed the phone to my ear as I took a deep breath. “Eleanor speaking.”

“Miss Eleanor?” The caller tried to confirm. “I’m from the capitals. Your father just passed. He had a heart attack. A plane has been arranged for you and your flight is in thirty minutes. Please, try to come down here on time. You—”

It felt like my heart was ripped into shreds at that moment as the phone slid out of my hand, falling to the ground as instantly, tears started to stream down my cheeks. I couldn’t breathe at that moment. It felt like my world had stopped.

My foster father. The first man to ever show me what love was. He… he’d passed on?

I placed my hand to my chest as I fell to my knees, bursting into tears. As the tears streamed freely down my cheeks, I heard engines rev into the compound and I grabbed my phone as I went straight outside. It was Robert, looking barely sober— with a woman by his side? A half naked one at that.

“Elle, you—”

I raised my hand, interrupting him. I wasn’t in the mood to listen to anything. “Dad passed away.” I wiped my tears as I spoke. “We leave in ten minutes. The least you can do is clean up.” With that, I walked into the house.

He followed me, trying to explain whatever, but I was in no mood to listen. I was already heartbroken as it was. I couldn’t bear to listen to what he was doing with a half-naked woman in the backseat of his car while he was barely sober.

Throughout the flight to New York, I didn’t listen to a word he had to say. I was shattered on the side. The last time I’d seen Dad, he looked like he was fine. Sure, he’d never been one to publicly share his pain, but I didn’t think he would be going through something like this and keep it from me.

Even though we weren’t related biologically, we shared a bond that was stronger than what most people who had blood relations shared, and now, with him gone, it felt like I’d lost a piece of me.

On getting to the funeral grounds, seeing that it was real, that I’d actually lost him, more tears streamed down my cheeks as I staggered to his portrait that had flowers and candles surrounding it.

I gently traced my fingers on it as I wiped my tears. “Dad—“ I muttered, and just then, I felt a hand on my shoulders.

I turned to see Anderson, Robert’s uncle who’d been a business partner of my father’s. I got up as I wiped my tears.

“Your father. He was a good man, and I’m sure he wouldn’t want to see you this way.” I nodded at his words as I thanked him coldly.

“Please, excuse me.” Without waiting for his response, I walked away.

It wasn’t like we were having a Cold War or anything. It was just that my mind was all over the place. With what I’d seen Robert do, I didn’t want to be around anyone that would remind me of him, and I just needed some air.

It felt like everything was happening to me so suddenly, and it just felt so unfair.

The whole funeral felt like a knife had been passed through me, especially as I’d learnt that he’d been sick the whole time but had the doctors sign an NDA to not disclose his health status to me.

I felt even more offended to see Robert chit-chatting with his secretary about whatever at a moment like this. Not wanting any more disrespect for my father, I confronted him, and he claimed it was urgent work. I sent him home as a result. He could go settle that wherever.

The rest of the funeral went smoothly, and I said my final goodbyes to the man that had been my father. Even if death did us part, I would always love him.

Returning to our home in NYC, I was so tired. My head felt heavy, and my eyes felt like they would pop out at any moment because of how much I’d cried. As I grabbed a glass of water, I started to hear moans from upstairs— mine and Robert’s room.

I gulped as I ran my fingers through my hair, going upstairs slowly.

“Go harder, Roberto!” I heard an all-too-familiar female voice coming from my room. That was the voice of Roberto’s secretary, Beatrice.

I pushed the door open, and the moment I did, I wished I had gone blind before I saw what I did.