Papers Don't Lie (Lavish Love, #1)

by Maeve Hazel

“How did you come up with the idea?” I ask, taking in each drawer, one by one. “Well, in case you have another crisis, I wanted you to have a plac...

“Can I sleep here?” I ask jokingly and take one of the lightest purple bows. The color is absolutely stunning. “Oh, this is so beautiful!” He clears his throat. “Wear it at our wedding.” Is he serious about this? I’m eight years younger than him, and I look like it too. Bringing a bow to our wedding would only show I’m nothing more than a child.

Kai enters the room, and for some reason, his steps increase my heartbeat. His hand sneaks onto my neck while his thumb pushes my chin upwards so I’m forced to meet his gaze. His green eyes look from one of my pupils to the other, focusing on nothing else but me. “I don’t care what people think. You should wear this bow because it represents you so well. You said it yourself. You wouldn’t be you without them.”

His decision is not to blame. I think I would’ve done the same if I were him, but next month is so soon. I haven’t even got used to him calling me his wife or his touches in public that I jump every time. Everything is so new and fresh that I can barely keep up. The wedding being weeks away doesn’t help either.

“The businessman Kai Graves has just gotten married in Los Angeles, keeping it a secret from the eye of the public. Who’s the mysterious wife, and will he bring her to tomorrow’s event?” He reads the news, not even an inflection in his voice. He’s not surprised by what he just read, meaning he was expecting something like this.

Kai keeps his expression stern, but I don’t miss the hesitancy in his eyes when he looks at me. He holds onto our eye contact, and somehow, I know that whatever he’s got to say is not good news. “Carter was my partner until I found out he was using me to find you.”

Kai nods as if my reaction was something he expected, but he doesn’t back away from me, explaining everything to me. “Carter and I have worked together for years. He was responsible for security, and when I met you, I hired a team to look out for you. It wasn’t until Kendrick told me about the last envelope with his name that I found out he was supposed to be your husband,” Kai tells me, probably sensing the wheels in my head turning. “He was on your tracks the entire time because I sent him right to you.” He’s got to be kidding.

The last thing I want is to fight this soon after our marriage or for anyone to eavesdrop on our conversation, so I walk out of the room, knowing I’m quick to lose my temper. Now is not the time. He doesn't deserve to be treated this way after everything he’s done for me, but the sole thought that he could’ve been free pisses me off. If Kai had listened, he wouldn’t have been in the position to marry me so I could get away. Gosh, why

“Why did you marry someone just because you felt guilty? You can’t save everyone, and even if you can, it’s not your job to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong!” He looks at me like I just slapped him. Kai tilts his head a bit, the force he watches me with making me regret what I just said.

“Kai…” I murmur and reach out for him, but he distances himself from me. “I didn’t mean to⁠—” “You’re not the only one in the situation of marrying someone you don’t love, but this marriage was for you as much as it was for me, and I don’t have to explain myself to you. You are safe and no longer on the run. I gave you freedom. My question is, why did you do it?”

I don’t understand why the idea of him not being able to help everyone brought him to this state—thick and grave voice, words that are meant to hurt, and his ...

“Because I didn’t have a choice.” “That’s bullshit, and you know it. Yesterday, you became my wife whether you like it or not. You wanted freedom; you have it." He raises his arms in the air, pointing at what’s around us. “As far as I know, I’m not keeping you locked in your house, away from your family, and I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do. What do you want me to do, ...

My stomach twists at the look on his face, and there’s no one to blame besides myself. I brought him to this state with what I said, which was so wrong. He didn’t deserve what I sai...

“I’m sorry, Kai. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m just angry at myself that I dragged you into this when you could’ve escaped if you stayed away," ...

His lips twitch. "Trust me when I say that if I could’ve, I would’ve stayed away from you,” Kai says, but not like a love declaration. His tone is acid, full of blame, and something I would rather have not seen… honesty. “It would’ve made my life a lot easier.”

Kai’s words sting, but I try to dim the pain carving in my chest by forcing myself to believe that he told me everything he did only because he’s hurt. And even if he means everything he said, I can’t blame him. My shoulders slump in defeat. “I said I’m sorry, Kai.” Kai nods and walks towards his room, and for some reason, seeing him walk away like this breaks my heart. I don’t like him going, knowing he’s mad at me. That’s not how I want it to be.

At the last moment, he turns to me. His black hair is ravished, matching the storm in his green eyes. “I might have my own secrets, my own thoughts torturing me at night that are only mine for now, but that doesn’t mean I’m also hiding my true self from you.” I...

Thinking it’s a stupid thing to do, I push my finger into the small place and struggle for a few seconds before I catch the paper. It’s better that he didn’t see it. Sending him a note is definitely childish. I get the paper out and stop breathing when I notice it’s unfolded.

At the sight of her, all the fury that has lurked inside me since last night disappears.

It was wrong of me to take my anger and years of frustration out on her. Just like everyone else in my life, she doesn’t know about my SCS—savior complex syndrome—and how hard is to live with it or how much I try to fight it.

“I didn’t think you’d wear it,” she says after a few seconds of excruciating silence and points at my suit. “After last night.” When I woke up, one of our housekeepers Tarina knocked on my door and told me my wife had prepared an outfit for me. She thought it was sweet considering I did the same, including the diamond necklace she can’t stop touching in the wait for my reply.

“Why wouldn’t I wear it, Esmeray?” I ask, placing my hands in my pockets. Her gaze finally rises and collides with mine, her green eyes burning red for what I assume is the lack of sleep. She swallows, shrugging. “Because I chose it.” I shake my head. “Nonsense.”

“Is it, though?” Esmeray steps closer to me. “Last night you kept calling me Esmeray, and I thought today that’d change, but it hasn’t.”

“What do you mean? How should I call you if not your name?” I ask, my brows furrowed. Her eyes drop once again. “Ray.” Did I… I didn’t even realize I hadn’t called her Ray anymore. It was completely unconscious and surely not meant to hurt her in any way. I guess deep down, I’m still bothered by what she said about me not being able to help everyone, even if she’s not the one to blame.

“You only call me Esmeray when you’re serious and apparently… mad,” she whispers, sucking in a breath afterward. I’m surprised she noticed that when I didn't myself. “I’m not mad. I simply don’t like fighting with you.”

“Then where’s the purple handkerchief?” She quirks a brow. I lift the margin of my coat a bit to show her the improvised thin bracelet I made out of it. Her eyes light up as she places her finger on it, twisting it on my wrist. “It matches my bow, you know?” Esmeray says, continuing on touching it, and implicitly, me.

Kendrick is already in the driver's seat, glancing at me through the rearview mirror. “Mr. and Mrs. Graves.” He nods his head at us before he drives away.

“You’re right. It’s so nice of you to do this,” Esmeray replies for me when my gaze gets lost somewhere in the distance and collides with Carter’s. His eyes scream murder, and his sinister smile only adds to it. The nerve this guy has.

“The entire room has their eyes on her, and I have no problem with that. I know my wife is beautiful. My only problem is you.”

“Nothing, I was just making sure I’m understood,” I tell her and grab her by the waist before turning away from Carter. Esmeray is snatched away from me, and when I look over my shoulders, Carter has his dirty fingers around her small arm. All I see is red and simply forget about not being the violent type for a second. No one touches my wife like that—like she’s an object, something that has to obey—not even me.

“You have a point there. I always play nice, so keep your hands on her for another second and I won’t hesitate to show you what it’s like when I get my hands dirty. The unknown is dangerous,” I mutter, trying to keep my calm and not snap his head.

“I didn’t know you two loved each other so much.” He laughs. “And remember, my precious, je sais tout.” “Don’t talk to her.” I thicken my voice,

“Touch her again and you die,” I warn through gritted teeth before walking away.

“What did he tell you?” He seethes, marching forward through the back door. “He said, 'I know everything,'” I mutter,

“Kai,” I repeat as I fight his grip. Kai mumbles something under his breath, but his attention is still far away from me. He doesn’t hear me. He walks further towards the parking lot, cursing something under his breath. I can’t keep up with my heels, and I stumble a few times, but he doesn’t notice this either. “You’re hurting me,” I grunt, tears pooling in my eyes. Suddenly, he stops.

Something shifts in him, and he glances at the place where he’s grabbing me—the same place Carter grabbed me two minutes ago. His fingers release my arm, one by one, and his palm drops on his leg. “Fuck," he thunders, circling in place. I look at my bicep, where my skin is red. That is going to definitely leave a bruise. “Fuck,” he repeats,

His head hangs low between his shoulders, which slump in a defeated position. He did the same thing Carter did, but there’s no way to describe the difference between the actions. Carter gripped me with threat lurking in his eyes and obsession ruling his decision, but I know Kai didn’t mean to hurt me. He did, though. His thoughts were clo...

I take a step toward him and place my palm on his shoulder, but he removes it from under my touch. He faces me before taking a few steps back, shaking his head. “Get in the car,” he says, not looking me in the eyes and ins...

Since we met, Kai has treated me with respect and hasn’t once stepped over my boundaries. What happened tonight is a mistake, one that he’ll never repeat. I ran from Carter to escape this kind of behavior, and even if they don’t have anything in common, I’m not going to settle for abuse just because it’s different than the kind I’m used to.

The only thing that I’m praying for is that Kai will forgive himself for tonight and that he’ll believe me when I say I understand what happened earlier. Because I do, but it will never happen again, no matter how pissed he is. He needs to learn to control his emotion, even if it’s about my safety.

Kendrick does as his boss says, and I can’t stop looking at Kai, whose hair is a mess. He unbuttons his shirt, his fingers shaking with the movement. I can’t help but place my hand on his to stop him, forcing his eyes to meet mine. When they do, his brows lower over them, almost as if he’s trying to hide the regret and sorry in his eyes. “I’m fine, Kai.”

“I hurt you. This is something you should never accept, no matter who’s the person doing it," he tells me, letting me squeeze his hand. “Yes, you did hurt me. There’s no point in denying that, but I also never said I accept what you did. What I meant to say is that I forgive you, but this is the first and last time I’m going to tolerate this,” I say, wanting to be sincere. Kai nods, then takes his hand away from under mine, looking everywhere else but me. “I won’t ever touch you again, Esmeray.”

“I trust you,” I admit, my voice a whisper. I hear Kai suck in a breath, hesitant the moment he turns to look at me. His eyes search for something in mine. “You’re just saying that.”

“I’m so fucking sorry, Ray." His voice cracks, and my heart sinks. “I don’t know what I was thinking—I didn’t. All I saw was red, and the only thing I could think about was the way he touched you when I was around. What is going to happen when I’m not with you? I know I said I’m not keeping you locked inside the house, but I’m seriously considering it.”

“I’ll run if you do that.” I raise a brow at him. He finally looks my way. “Then I have nothing to worry about because you’re pretty bad at running away.”

“There’s no excuse for what I did, but if my promise means anything to you anymore, I promise it won’t happen again under any circumstance.” “I know,” I tell him, leaning down on his shoulder and inhaling deeply as Kendrick drives us home.

While Esmeray's forgiveness should make a difference, it doesn’t because that doesn’t change the course of my previous actions.

She rubs her hands before she speaks. “I was pretty upset when I found out I wasn’t invited to your wedding, but you can redo it for me,” she tells us enthusiastically.

“Kai’s wife, do you marry Kai?" Lacey asks, taking me out of my thoughts.

“Kai, do you marry Esmeray?” my sister continues. “Yes, I do, I did, and I’ll do it again,”