Chapter Four

Liam

Two Months Later

“Man, I swear I don’t know what to do about Storm. I know I messed up by forgetting our anniversary, but I been trying damn near everyday to make up for it and all she do is push me away. I just don’t know what it is no more, Sat.” I vented to my brother as I made my way to Storm’s office.

“Hear what you saying, big bro, but you have to put yourself in Storm’s shoes. You have been working a lot lately and that’s got her feeling neglected and probably insecure. Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t you the one that told me no woman wants to feel that way in her marriage?” He questioned as I sighed.

“Yeah, but what does that have to do with—“

“It has a lot to do with you and Storm,” he told me. “Look Liam, I appreciate you always wanting to over counsel when my marriage ain’t going right, but let me over you some sound advice in regards to your marriage. Storm is a gorgeous woman…ambitious and successful; if you don’t start listening and paying more attention to her, then you’re going to look up one day and find her in the arms of another man who’ll give her exactly what she’s been asking you for all this time. Is that what you want?”

“Man, you know that’s not what I want. Storm is the love of my life and an amazing woman—“

“If you know she’s all that and more then show her and stop making that woman beg for your time and attention. Go back to being the man you was when y’all first fell in love and fix your marriage before it’s too late.” 

“When the hell did the student become the teacher?” I chuckled with amusement.

“The day the teacher started dropping the ball and the student decided to pick it up. All bullshit aside, fix whatever it is that’s going on between you and my sister-in-law before it’s too late. I’ll get up with you after practice, be easy big bro. I love you man.”

“I love you too, Sat…be easy.” I ended the call.

I’ll be the first to admit that things around the Young household have not been the same over the past two months. It could be that Storm is still mad at me for missing our anniversary or maybe it’s my guilt of making her feel neglected that has me overthinking shit between us; whatever it is, things have been really strange and off between her and I. Usually she doesn’t spend so much time away from home, but lately she’s been spending more time at her businesses or just spending more time with her girls. Normally she would be all over me and wanting to spend time together, even when she’s mad at me; there was nothing my wife loved more than being under me and loving on me, but now she was just away. 

I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but I know my wife about as well as I know myself and there’s never a time when I don’t know when something is wrong with my wife. She can’t still be upset about me missing our anniversary because if she was, we would be fussing about it everyday. I mean I’ve tried on several occasions to make up for missing our dinner and basically forgetting, but she rejected me each time and after awhile I just backed off and gave her space to let it go. I’m still disappointed in myself for allowing work get in the way of such an important night for us. It wasn’t like I let it happen intentionally, I just got so caught up in my case that I turned off my phones and everything just slipped my mind.

I parked my Bentley outside of Storm’s real estate building, then stepped out and headed inside to see what was going on with my wife and what I could do to fix the problem. When I walked through the door, I was instantly greeted by her secretary, Erykah.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Young. How are you today?” 

“I’m doing good, Erykah. Is Storm here today?” I asked, leaning against the desk.

“She sure is. As a matter of fact, she just wrapping up a meeting with a client, so you can go on back if you like.” She said.

“Cool, thank you, Erykah.” I said, making my way back to Storm’s office.

My wife ran one of the biggest real estate agencies in the Atlanta area and made a hell of a lot of money doing it. The way our bank accounts were set up, neither of us had to work another day in our lives, but we chose to run our own businesses that way when Aliyah is older and done with college, she can run the businesses with any future children that Storm and I choose to have. When I reached her office, she was just walking out with a guy who I assumed to be the client that Erykah said she was meeting with. When she saw me, she gave me a cold blank stare and I knew in that moment she was still upset with me. 

“Keiston, thank you again for stopping by and I will call you as soon as I find something for you,” she said as they shared a brief hug before he walked past me and back down the hall. I stared at Storm with a raised brow and she rolled her eyes, walking back into her office with me right behind her. “What are you doing here, Liam? Shouldn’t you be at work or playing counselor to Satin and his many fuck ups?” She asked, leaning against her desk with her arms folded across her breast.

“Damn it, Storm! What the hell is going on with you? Are you still mad about me missing our anniversary dinner? If so, then If so, then just tell me what you want me to do to make it up to you. Do I gotta take you on a shopping spree in Paris? You want me to upgrade your ring again? Do I have to take you on another vacation out of the country? What the hell do I have to do to get my wife back because this silent treatment shit ain’t working for me no more.” I told her.

She just shook her head and walked around her desk, sitting in the leather seat and opening her laptop. I hated when she ignored me instead of just communicating and telling me what’s wrong or how I could fix shit. 

“So all of a sudden you’re deaf, Storm. You can’t hear me talking to you?” I questioned and she just continued to type and scroll through her laptop. Sighing deeply, I brushed my hand across my waves and down my face before walking over to the desk, closing the laptop causing her to glare at me with anger. 

“What! Liam, what do you want? Why are you here?” She yelled, glaring at me. 

“I want you, Storm! I want my fucking wife to tell me what the hell I did wrong to make her push me away like this. I want my wife to tell me what the hell is wrong with her, that’s why I’m here!” 

“Liam go home or back to work, okay. I don’t really care what you do just get the hell out of here. I have too much work to do and don’t have the time or energy to deal with you.” She scoffed. 

Storm is the most stubborn woman I’ve ever met in my life; she’ll stay mad at me forever, only if I continue to allow her to stay mad. But, like I said before, I hate when my wife is mad at me for any reason and at this point, I knew I had to be the bigger person and fix this thing between us. 

“Baby, listen to me, I didn’t come here to argue or yell or even fight with you. I just noticed that shit hasn’t been okay with us and I just wanted to know if there was anything I could do to fix it. I hate it when you’re mad at me and we’re not loving on each other. I’ve been trying to make up for missing our anniversary but it seems no matter what I do, you push me away.” I pointed out and she sighed softly.

“Liam…” she started and her voice trailed off for a moment before she spoke again. “Look, I have a house to show in half an hour and I’m already running behind. I should be done by 7:00pm, Aliyah is staying overnight at a friend’s house, so I’ll make dinner and we can talk about whatever you want to talk about. I just can’t deal with this right now.” She said as she began gathering her things to leave. 

“Fine…fine, I should be leaving the office no later than 8:30…9:00 because you and me really need to talk so we can get to the bottom of whatever it is that’s pulling us apart.” I told her and she nodded in agreement. Walking around her desk, I pulled her into me and placed a soft, tender kiss on her lips; I allowed my lips to linger against hers before pulling away. “I love you, Storm and I promise I’m going to fix whatever is going on between us.”

She just nodded and smiled softly. “I love you too, Liam…see you when you get home.” She pecked my lips one last time before I turned to leave.  

I don’t know what it’s going to take to make things right in our marriage again, but I’m hoping tonight will be a first step to figuring it all out.

 

Chapter Five

Storm

I wiped the sweat that dripped from my forehead as I stood over the hot stove, busy preparing dinner for Liam and me. It had been two months since he ruined our anniversary, but since he wanted to finally talk and fix things, I decided to just make dinner and work it out. Aliyah was at a friend’s house for the night, so Liam and I will have the house to ourselves. I had been busy all evening trying to make everything special for us. I picked up his favorite wine and a bottle of Hennessy. I stopped by Victoria’s Secret and picked up a nice, sexy negligee to spice things up if our talk goes well. Then, I stopped by the grocery store and picked up a few items to prepare his favorite meal for the evening. I opened the oven and pulled out the pork loin smothered in gravy and mushrooms, then placed it on the countertop. Turning off the stove, I realized it was almost time for Liam to get home and I still wasn’t dressed.

I quickly rushed to the bedroom and into the bathroom to shower. Turning the water on, I stripped out of the pantsuit and heels that I had been wearing and stepped into the shower, letting the hot water relax my body. I felt like our marriage had been slowly falling apart due to our lack of communication and his working so much and I just hoped the dinner would be the first step into getting back to us. I finished my shower and moisturized my body before slipping into a nice form fitting back dress that stopped just above the knee. Fixing my hair, I glanced at the digital clock on the night stand and it read 9:15. Liam should walk in the house by 9:30 and we could get this night started with hopes of ending it in a loving way. 

*****

It was going on 10:45 and Liam still hadn’t made it home; I was growing agitated because it was feeling like our anniversary dinner all over again. I could’ve been anywhere else tonight, but here I am trying to be a good damn wife once again and my damn husband can’t even keep his word. The ringing of my phone pulled me from my thoughts and I grabbed it from the table to see Liam calling.

“Liam, where are you?” I inquired curiously.

“Storm, I’m sorry but I’m still at the office—“

“At the office! Liam, you cannot be serious, why are you still at the office? You told me you be home by 8:30, no later than 9:00; I’ve cooked and even got your favorite wine from the store with a bottle of Hennessy in hopes that after we talked that we could come to a resolve and end this night in the right way. Instead of coming home on time, you call to tell me you’re still at the office, really Liam!”

“Baby, it’s not like—“

“No! You know what, Liam, forget it okay. Just forget it! God, I can’t believe you!” I exclaimed before ending the call. I am so damn tired of trying with this man; it seems no matter what I do to make our marriage work, he always ignores me and my efforts. I’m just so sick of it!

Tears trailed down my face as I disposed of the food and everything else that I’d prepared for us to enjoy. What was the fucking point of showing up at my office and making it seem like he really cared about why I was mad at him when all he was going to do is pull the same bullshit that he’s been pulling? I was so angry that I really just wanted to destroy something. I keep cutting my days and hours short just to make time for this man, yet he can’t seem to do the same for me. It’s like there’s no getting through to him, like he doesn’t see my efforts or he just doesn’t care anymore. He can’t even meet me halfway in this marriage anymore; it’s always me making the sacrifices and putting in the effort. It’s always me trying to keep the spice in our marriage. I understand that he’s working and providing for our family, but it’s not like we’re really hurting for money. Hell, we’re not hurting at all, so he doesn’t need to work so damn much and neglect me in the fucking process. 

My phone rang and I grabbed it from the table to see a new message from Keiston. He and I have been texting and calling each other a lot lately; before anyone jumps to conclusions, it’s been strictly business and friendly conversation, nothing more. He’s been a listening ear when I need to vent my frustrations and my girls aren’t available. Opening the message, I read what it said…

Keiston: I want to see you…

I was slightly taken back by the bluntness of his text message. Keiston and I have spent time together as far as having lunch together or him stopping by my office to discuss properties that he’s looking to purchase. He’s never texted me this late wanting to see me. I was hesitant to reply because I didn’t want to feel like I was cheating on my husband, then again it has been awhile since I’ve had the full attention of a man.

Me: Where should I meet you?

Keiston: 4200 Glengary Drive

Me: I’ll be there in thirty minutes…

I grabbed my keys and purse, then headed out the door to my car. I’m sick of waiting for Liam and begging him to spend time with me or make me feel wanted. I deserve so much more than what he’s willing to give me lately and if Keiston happens to be the man that gives me more then so be it. 

*****

“I honestly don’t understand why he can't just put his work on hold for once to just spend a little quality time with me. Sometimes, he makes me think that he's cheating or he's working so many hours because he isn't attracted to me anymore. I don't know what the situation is, but I can feel the difference when he kisses me that our connection isn’t the same as it used to be; we don’t really talk anymore because he's so preoccupied with work for his clients or with his brother. I feel so shut out and neglected by him that sometimes I’d just rather be alone than to be around him. I mean do you know how bad a situation has to be when you just don’t want to be around your own husband anymore?” I asked Keiston as he listened to me whine and vent about my issues with Liam.

By the time I made it to his house, I was in tears after having another argument with Liam about his lack of love and attention to me. It seems I keep begging and pleading for him to give me more time and attention, but he doesn’t seem to listen or even hear me because it's always about him having to secure the bag for our family's future as if we aren't already rich enough. Even if we died today, Aliyah would be set for life because she has several trust funds set up in her name each worth half a million dollars, so I’m not sure what he's securing the bag for especially when it's causing him to neglect me. 

“Storm, are you happy with Liam? I mean truly happy with him or are you just holding on because of the history between the two of you?” He inquired curiously and I honestly didn’t know how to answer the question.

Am I happy with Liam? My husband isn’t a bad man and I know that he loves me, but he haven’t been seeing the love I give him be reciprocated to me. I’m not even sure if I can honestly say that I’ve been happy lately; it just seems like something is missing in my life. Something that Liam just hasn’t been giving or offering to me lately. 

“I don’t even know if I’m happy to be honest. What I do know is that our marriage seems to be lacking love, consistency, time, communication, and above all…there’s no intimacy. It just seems boring and forced lately; I have this sudden craving for more than what my husband can offer me lately and I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing.” I told him as he nodded in understanding.

“So answer me this, if your marriage is lacking all of these things and you’re not even sure if you’re still happy, why are you still with him?” He inquired.

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. “I guess I’ve just been waiting and praying that things would get better for us, yet it just seems to go from bad to worse. To be honest, I think I’m slowly falling out of love with him. I know fifteen years is a long time to be with a person, but sometimes love changes and it’s not always for the better.” 

“So, what are you saying?” He inquired curiously and I shrugged as I sipped my wine.

“I love him, but sometimes I’m live and love, people change and things become different you know? I mean in the beginning we used to be so happy and in love; we couldn’t keep our hands off each other and the sex was mind blowing. Even after we had our daughter, we still managed to have romantic getaway weekends just to keep our sex life alive and fun. There were times when I could call Liam for a quick hook up at one of my offices and he would be there without hesitation. Then things just changed out the blue; the sex became like a routine and we had to fit it into his schedule. He stopped looking at me like I was the most beautiful woman in his world. It just stopped…everything stopped so abruptly. I don’t know if he truly even sees me anymore.”

 “Honestly Storm, your husband is a fool; he has a perfectly good woman in front of him that’s begging for his attention and he doesn’t even see it. If I was your man, I wouldn’t miss a single thing about you.” He said in a deep low tone as he leaned toward me. “Do you know what I see when I look at you, Storm?” He asked as his finger trailed the side of my face.

“No, what do you see, Keiston?” I breathed out in a shaky tone.

“When I look at you, I see an amazingly phenomenal woman who feels unwanted and dead inside. I see a woman who is dying to feel the thrill of being alive and desired again; I see a woman begging for more, yet continues to settle for less. You deserve a man who sees just how phenomenal and amazing you are, and will go above and beyond just to show it to you. You deserve a man that will always put you first above everything; who’ll continue to choose you over and over again even in a sea of other beautiful women. You would never have to beg for my attention because you would have it anytime and all the time.” He expresses as he continued to softly caress my cheek.

“You seem to always know the right things to say to a woman…to me. How are you single? I mean there must’ve been a woman in your life who held your heart or woman that’s worthy enough to win your heart.” 

“There was one, back in college. I thought she was the love of my life and my future wife; I fell in love hard and quick, gave her everything she desired and wanted all while providing her with everything she needed. We were together for about three almost four years, then one morning I woke up and she was gone; no warning, no explanation, not even a goodbye letter. She just packed her things and left me. After that, I’ve just been focused on business and maintaining my success; I’ve dated a few women here and there, but none were worthy enough or real enough for me to fall in love with. They didn’t capture my heart, but there is this one woman that I’ve had my eye on for some time now; she’s very beautiful, but she’s also very taken and I’m not the kind of man to break up a happy home. I just admire her from a distance until I know she’s ready to move on from her unhappy life with the man she’s with.” 

“How do you know she’s unhappy? Have you spoken to her? Has she told you she’s not happy? Do you even know if she’s interested in you?” I questioned curiously.

“We speak often and she tells me often how unhappy she is with him, but she just can’t seem to leave him alone. Much like you, she’s a woman that craves more than what her guy has to offer her; she just doesn’t want to feel like a cheater if she decides to step out on him which I can understand because no man or woman wants to be perceived as a cheater. And to answer your last question, I know for certain that she’s interested in me because her actions tell me that she’s interested. She’s just held back by the love she has for her guy.” He chuckled softly.

“Sometimes it’s not that easy to just up and leave when you’re in love,” I told him. “If she was here with you right now, what would you say to her?” I inquired curiously.

He just stared at me for a moment without saying a word and I instantly felt the temperature rising in the room as he leaned just a bit closer to me where I could feel his breath against my face. 

“I want to make love to you so bad right now,” he finally spoke causing my breathing to stall in my throat.

“Kei-Keiston, I’m mar-married…” my voice trailed off slowly.

“But you’re not happy, Storm…you said it yourself that he’s not giving you what you need. Let me do what he doesn’t do for you anymore…let me do the things that Liam hasn’t done for you in awhile. Let me make you feel like a woman again.” He whispered, his lips just inches from mine. Before I could reply, he placed his lips against mine and kissed me slow and rough.

“Keiston, no! Stop, I can’t do this, stop!” I struggled against him as he continued to kiss me and his hand eased up my dress.

“Just relax…I won’t hurt you, I promise.”