Beyond(22)

I look to the woman who slept with Elizabeth’s husband, Vera. She looks smug, which annoys me. Elizabeth is obviously upset, tears streaming down her brown skinned cheeks. She was a beautiful woman, who obviously deserved better from her husband, but I didn’t think it was my place to say that. I was alone in the room with the three of them, which was a good thing. I look at her husband, who has the grace to look guilty.

“Do you love your wife?” I ask him.

He nods. “Very much.”

“Then why would you hurt her like this?” I ask, curious.

“He wanted a real woman,” Vera pipes up, pissing me off further.

“Do you like sleeping with other women’s men Vera?” I ask her.

She grins impishly. “They like sleeping with me.”

“You’re a teacher, isn’t that right Vera? Teaching the children, who are the future of this community?”

She looks down, not looking so smug anymore. “Yes. And I’m a good teacher.”

“Since you like sleeping with men maybe you would be more suited to the…” I didn’t know what to call it. Oh hell. “Brothel?”

Vera gasps, shaking her head. “No, you wouldn’t do that.”

I wouldn’t but I wanted to scare her. Also there wasn’t a brothel anymore. I shut that shit down. The women all said they were there because they wanted to be but I call bullshit. If they want to entertain men on their own time then that’s their business, but I won’t be housing an establishment like that now that I’m in charge. I did tell them that they could use protection if they want. I’m not forcing anyone into having babies. I know we need to rebuild the population but the people who want children can be the ones doing that. I’d rather have a smaller population than have people having children they don’t care about. Gina was happy with that and so was I.

“I’m not going to. This time. Next time you might not be so lucky. Derek, Elizabeth is a kind, beautiful woman. If you don’t want her, trust me another man here will. Treat her right or I’ll find her another husband.” I turn to Elizabeth. “Do you want to stay with him? If you don’t then I can organize separate housing for you.”

“I do,” Elizabeth admits. “I love him.”

I give Derek a look that lets him know he better be good to this woman. He swallows hard and nods. “I won’t mess up twice Olivia.”

I nod. “Tell whoever is next to come in.”

They leave and I exhale slowly. That was awkward. When Sam strolls in next, I can’t stop the smile on my face if I tried. “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes? What are you doing here?”

“This seems to be the only way to get some of your time,” he says, smirking.

I roll my eyes. “Well thank you anyway, I needed a break from everyone’s drama.”

He chuckles and takes a seat, his long legs stretching out before him. “Vera? I can only imagine.”

I walk past him and pull one of his curls. “How have you been? How’s mystery man?”

Sam groans. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

“I believe I do,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest. “This room is where I learn everyone’s secrets. Time to spill, Sam.”

He runs his hand over his jawline, looking like he’s about to tell me every juicy detail when Dane walks in, raising an eyebrow when he sees me standing before Sam. I probably look like I’m about to interrogate him, which I was.

“Do I want to know why you’re alone in here with my woman?” Dane asks, stepping behind me and kissing my nape.

“She was my friend before she was your woman. I still have rights,” Sam replies, lip twitching with amusement at Dane’s possessive side.

Dane scoffs. “You have the right to keep your hands off her.”

I roll my eyes. “Two of the strongest men we have in this castle--listen to the two of you.”

“Did you just threaten Vera to send her to the brothel that doesn’t even exist anymore?”

I turn to look at my husband. “And if I did?”

Hazel eyes sparkle. “Kind of genius.”

He kisses my lips and I hear the chair scrape on the floor as Sam stands. Stepping to the side of Dane, I narrow my eyes on my friend. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“I’ll come and see you later. I’m supposed to be training some of the teenage boys.”

I nod. “Archery right?”

“Yeah, let’s hope some of them are as good of a student as you were.”

He waves and then leaves the room.

The second the door closes, Dane kisses me, deeply this time. “I missed you.”

“I can see that,” I say when he ends the kiss. “How’s your day been?”

“Was checking out our weapons. We need more. Pointed spears will have to do, since there’s a lot of trees around. And more bows and arrows, since those can be made.”

“Planning for war?” I ask with an arched brow.

He shrugs his broad shoulders. “You know you can never be too careful. We can’t get too comfortable, thinking no trouble will ever come our way.”

I nod my head, knowing he was right. “True.”

I was teaching some of the younger women basic first aid, how to dress and clean wounds, and everything else I knew. Sharing knowledge was important here, in our situation. If we had only a few people with a certain skill, and something happened to them, we were screwed. Knowledge was power.