Page 16 of A Wife’s Duty

B oone was out to pick a fight.

That was all Lucia could think this was.

Sunday dinner had come around way too quickly, and she was standing on her parents’ front porch, wearing her hair down, with a pair of jeans.

This was not all. The jeans had a nice tight top that seemed to push her tits together and give her a very large cleavage.

He’d also called in Mitchell and Sandra to take care of her hair and makeup.

In her hands was a bouquet of wild flowers. Again, Boone’s idea, not hers. Her hands felt clammy, she felt sick to her stomach. In all the years she had known her father, not once had she been allowed to wear pants. This felt so ... scary.

What if they fought? What if her father attempted to beat her? What would Boone do? He promised he would protect her and take care of her, should she believe him? She didn’t know what to do or think, or believe. It was insane.

The door opened and it was the butler. This was a new guy, and Lucia didn’t recognize him.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Miss Valdez,” he said.

“Actually, that’s Mrs. Grinder now,” Boone said.

She glanced over to her husband and she breathed a sigh of relief. He had her back. This is what he promised.

Her name was Grinder now. She was Boone’s wife. She was no longer her father’s daughter.

She could do this. If they made it out of here alive, and without a single bruise on them, she was going to celebrate with ice cream.

They stepped over the threshold, and right on time, as if it had been choreographed, her mother stepped out of the sitting room.

“Darling, it is so good to see you,” her mother said.

This was a first. Her mother never, ever, called her “darling.” That was a title reserved for Isabella, the favorite daughter.

“It’s nice to see you, Mother. Boone and I brought you flowers.” She held them out, and right on queue, her father stepped out.

Her outfit, without the flowers as coverage, was seen, and she saw the anger in his gaze. Right about now, if Boone wasn’t here, he’d be removing his belt and hitting her.

Boone put his hands on her shoulders, drawing her back, bringing himself into the picture.

“Valdez, it’s good to see you. Long time no see, and it was a nice surprise to get your invite. Wasn’t it, sweetheart?” Boone asked.

“Yes, it was lovely.”

She put on her smile. Boone had advised that she follow his lead, and wherever possible, she looked completely, one hundred percent devoted to him. So far, that wasn’t hard. Boone had given her a freedom no one else had.

Her hair was cut, she wore jeans, she’d been able to wander in the park. She could cook her own food, and she’d even gone and sat in a college campus and listened to multiple lectures. Her life was no prison. Not anymore. Or at least, it didn’t feel like it to her.

She offered her parents a smile, then tilted her head back and looked up at her husband.

They hadn’t said they would be rehearsing this, but Boone pressed a firm kiss to her lips.

She loved when he kissed her. Not that they had kissed often.

It was sporadic. The shower was the last, most intense kiss they shared.

Turning her attention back to her parents, it was hard to be upset, especially as she loved that kiss.

Her lips tingled. It was strange, because on her wedding day, the very thought of being kissed by him, or even touched by him, filled her with dread, whereas now, she felt a tinge of excitement at the thought.

She had no idea what was happening to her.

Her parents were silent. Boone continued to hold onto her shoulders. Her father, in particular, kept looking at her, his gaze going up and down her body. The disapproval was evident on his face.

In response, one of Boone’s arms wandered around her waist. She appreciated the possessive touch as it seemed to pull her father out of whatever spiral he was on, and they were able to move to the main sitting room, where all three of her brothers were, as well as her sister.

It was strange to be back in a room with them. The moment they saw her, her eldest brother Enzo glared. Bruno spat his drink back into his glass. Leandro laughed. Isabella let out a huff.

“If you’d like to take a seat,” her father said.

Boone took the chair, and then he pulled her down so that she was sitting on his lap.

She tried not to feel nervous, but everyone was watching them.

It was strange. She’d been wearing her wedding band all this time, and yet today was the first occasion it actually felt heavy.

Boone placed a hand on her back, and the room was silent once again.

“I think I better go and check on those drinks,” her mother said. “Lucia, would you like to come and help me?”

“No, she wouldn’t,” Boone said.

She tried not to tense up. Her mother looked aghast, and she quickly glanced toward her father. Lucia saw it.

This was all a setup. Boone hadn’t been wrong. This was a setup to try and use her, or to get Boone alone.

“My wife is a guest in your house. If you need help, ask your other daughter who is not doing anything.”

“Lucia is not doing anything,” Leandro said.

“She is sitting on my lap, entertaining me. She is my wife, and she does exactly what I say, which is why her hair is now cut.” He stroked her hair. “And she is wearing the clothes that make me happy.”

Did they make him happy? She wasn’t going to lie and say she didn’t like wearing pants, because she did. The first time she slid on a pair of jeans, it felt so weird. She wasn’t used to her legs being so covered. Over the course of the day, it did start to feel great. She loved it.

She couldn’t believe she was in her parents’ home and thinking about wearing jeans. It was insane. But it was more comforting than what was happening around her. Her brothers looked ready to kill Boone.

“I would very much like to talk business with you,” her father said. His name was Enzo, just like her eldest brother.

“I don’t talk business at dinner. You want to talk business, then we do so during the week. This is Sunday. I don’t conduct business. Unless you have any leads on exactly who blew my car up.”

Lucia couldn’t help but glance over at Leandro. Her youngest brother got to his feet and moved toward the liquor cabinet. Boone already had him caught on tape, but if he had any doubt about who could have done that, her brother was a dead giveaway.

“I’m afraid we don’t have any leads. You were able to make it through unscathed?”

“That’s why I’m sitting with you,” Boone said, with a smile. “And my wife was with me that day as well.”

She offered a smile. They didn’t care if they killed her or her husband. Her mother had already taken a complaining Isabella to get their drinks. Lucia didn’t know what to do as all the men seemed to glare at one another.

“How about the weather we are having now?” Boone said.

She pressed her lips together, because she happened to find it so incredibly funny that he just randomly blurted out about the weather.

“It’s hot as hell out there,” Boone said.

“You can’t handle the heat?” her brother Enzo asked.

“I can handle it, but you know, there are just some people that can’t handle that much heat. Being cooped up all day, locked away, you know what I mean?”

Was he baiting them on purpose?

Then, he blew out a whistle. “Did any of you catch the exposé on that mayor? The dirty deeds he was into? I mean, the footage itself was bad enough. Him screwing an underage girl. I guess he got what was coming to him.”

This was baiting. Was Boone wanting to get killed?

“We do not know anything about that,” her father said.

Now that was a lie. Lucia had gotten good at reading her father. Spending most of her life trying to avoid his anger, she knew what to look out for, and this was it. His anger, his rage. She couldn’t look away as he looked so scary. Boone’s hand at her back reminded her of exactly where she was.

“No, I don’t imagine you do,” Boone said. “But that must be a serious warning to whoever is into that kind of thing. I mean, it is gross and unnatural. I guess someone doesn’t like it.”

And her mother and sister entered the room. She was so pleased to see them. They would stop talking shop at that very moment. Lucia didn’t know how she was going to get through the rest of the meal.

She was handed an alcoholic drink. The scent of it was strong, and Boone placed a hand on top of her glass, letting her know not to drink it.

She’d never touched a drop of alcohol in her life.

She didn’t know why her mother was suddenly providing her with a drink so strong, the smell of it was making her stomach turn.

Each time Boone took a sip, Lucia noticed his glass was not getting smaller. He wasn’t drinking, just pretending. What the hell was going on?

It wasn’t too long before dinner was called, and Boone took her drink, putting them on the table. He, once again, held her hand and wouldn’t allow her to be sat anywhere but where he wanted her.

The food that came out looked delectable. It wasn’t a meal where they had to take their portions, and Lucia wasn’t surprised when her plate came out with barely anything on it.

Boone put his hand beneath the table and squeezed her thigh. What did that mean? She glanced toward him, and he moved his food around the plate. He wasn’t going to eat anything.

This had to be one of the most awkward dinners she had ever been to, and she had lived in this very house for twenty-two years. She usually ate separately from her father. He couldn’t stand to see the sight of her.