Page 40 of Bad Husband

Chapter Fourteen

One week passed.

Then a second week.

A third week.

By the time Halloween came around, Chiara didn’t know what to think. She’d tried to call her father, only to have no answer. Her husband wasn’t picking up his phone either.

Life at No Point had gotten back to normal. There were still people who were happy to talk and brag about what they had seen at the diner. Marco had become a legend to the small town for standing up to the bikers and sending them packing.

They loved him for it. And Chiara didn’t know if he was ever coming back, and the truth was, she missed him. She missed him so much and she wanted him back.

Heather was dressed up as a she-devil for the week of Halloween. Rosemary loved celebrating Halloween, and felt it was good for the kids. Chiara had been looking forward to Halloween, seeing as she never celebrated it. She wrapped her arms around her body as she made her way toward the staff room.

It was another long day, and her feet were hurting. She had no choice but to keep massaging them as they ached. There was also the pesky little test she’d taken this morning.

She was pregnant.

With Marco’s child.

And she didn’t even know where he was, nor could she get in touch with him, and even as she tried not to be scared at the prospect of raising this baby on her own, with each passing day, that was potentially getting closer.

On the way out, Heather invited her to a party, but Chiara declined. She gave Rosemary a hug, and then started the journey to her trailer.

She missed Marco. His trailer was empty, and she hated looking at it, but the dogs missed him as well. It was a lot of work, taking care of all those dogs on her own, especially now that she was pregnant. She did find herself getting tired easily.

Making her way to her trailer, she smiled and waved at the kids. Several of the families had decorated their trailers with Halloween stuff, and she’d been hoping to do the same, but she didn’t have the energy. Arriving at her trailer, she opened the door, expecting the dogs to come rushing out, only there was no dogs.

Panic set in as she rushed into her trailer. There was no sign of the dogs, and no sign of anything else. Her trailer looked clean, and yet there were no dogs. She felt the panic start to set in, until she saw a card on the table with her name on it. On top of her name was a key, and she lifted it up and turned the card over, where an address was given.

Chiara frowned, but she recognized Marco’s handwriting. She had no idea what this was all about, but she was more than willing to risk finding out.

Stepping out of her trailer, she came to a stop when she saw a taxi waiting to take her.

“Chiara?” he asked.

She nodded, holding the card to her chest. In his arms was a wriggling Poodles. “I’ve been asked to tell you to trust me, and here is Poodles as a sign of good will”

Every fiber of her being was telling her not to get in that car, but if Poodles was here, that meant Marco had the other dogs. This had to be what that meant.

She took Poodles from the taxi driver and climbed into the passenger seat. Chiara didn’t relax, not as he pulled out of the trailer park, not as he made his way back toward the main town, but he also passed it, going to a small estate with luxury houses.

He kept driving until there was one house, right at the end, and Chiara couldn’t help but admire the house, as it looked stunning with a short driveway. There was also a garden, and it was a large house, but not overly so.

The taxi driver brought the car to a stop and told her he would wait for her. She felt nervous, but she pressed a kiss to Poodles’ face and climbed out of the car. She made her way toward the doorway and saw that it was already open. There was a sign asking her to close the door, so she did and walked into the main reception room.

The house was gorgeous, all modern furnishings, and she saw a nice, dark wooden staircase, leading to upstairs. There was a small chandelier above her, and as she turned left, she saw Marco standing there. She put Poodles down and immediately went to him, as Marco was in his office, and looked an absolute mess. His face was covered in bruises, and cuts that had clearly been stitched up.

“Marco, what happened to you?” she asked, reaching out as if to cup his face, but then forcing herself to stop, just in case she hurt him.

He, instead, reached out and brushed the back of his knuckles against her cheek. She pressed her face against his touch, and she wanted him to keep holding her. She had missed him, but now seeing him, she didn’t even realize just how much she had missed him.

Marco suddenly went to one knee and reached into his jacket pocket. She gasped as he held a small velvet box out in front of him.

“Chiara, will you marry me?” he asked.

“Marco, we’re already married.”