Sor (Voodoo Guardians #29)

CHAPTER TWO

Six months and eight days later, Mark returned home to find a note on the table saying she was leaving him. He knew something was wrong. No e-mails. No phone calls. No responses to his messages.

Where Cara made her mistake was believing that Mark was just another guy with no skills. Within two hours, he knew that she’d been working for Craig Grayson’s real estate firm, meeting him for evenings together, and that Grayson was married. Mark decided to take matters into his own hands.

Pulling up to the Garden District mansion, he just shook his head. This was more Cara’s style. Not their simple condo or his favorite fishing cabin. She wanted luxury and wealth. Old money mixed with new. There were more than a hundred people crammed into the small backyard.

Standing at the edge, he was taller than every man there and could easily search for who he wanted. Seeing Craig speaking to a beautiful woman, he knew instantly that it was his wife, and she had no clue what her asshole husband was doing. But when he started yelling at her, accusing her of horrible things, she hauled off and slapped him.

“Good for you, honey,” he murmured to himself. But Craig was a slow learner. He jumped to his feet and started toward the woman. That’s when Mark stepped in.

“You touch that woman, I’ll break your legs,” said the big man standing between him and the woman.

“I suppose you’re fucking her,” he smirked. “You her agent for her porn site?” He stared at the big man, then swallowed, recognizing his face. Mark knew that the asshole knew exactly who he was and why he was there.

“I’m going to give you one minute to apologize to your wife,” said the man. “If you don’t, I’m going to make sure you understand how a man should treat a woman.”

Craig stared at the man in front of him, frowning. Nelly was shaking, her head down as tears filled her eyes. Not one person on the lawn tried to help the woman. That told Mark all he needed to know. They weren’t friends. They were opportunists. The ‘hangers-on’ of their little social circle. Hoping for some scrap of gossip or money.

“Fine. I’m sorry you’re a whore,” he sneered. Mark took a step toward him, and he backed up again, holding his hands in the air. “Alright. I’m sorry. Just get your shit and get out of my house.”

“Is this his house?” asked Mark turning back to the beautiful woman.

“Y-yes,” she sniffed. “He owned it when we got married a few months back.”

“Okay, then I’ll help you get your things together and make sure you’re safe. Just look into the whole community property law,” he said.

She nodded, heading into the house as all eyes turned toward her, staring. Women were whispering; men were smirking at her. As quickly as she could, she took the stairs two at a time to their bedroom. Then she stopped. Standing in the middle of their bedroom, she was frozen for a moment.

“Ma’am? Where are your suitcases?” he asked.

“Hall closet,” she said quietly. He grabbed the suitcases and laid them out on the bed. When she didn’t move, he began tossing anything that looked feminine into them. She gripped his wrist. “I’ll do it. Thank you. But I’ll do it.”

He nodded, giving her some space and standing in the doorway, watching for the asshole to make a move. Praying he would make a move.

“He wasn’t always like that,” she sniffed. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him.”

“No telling,” said the man.

“I didn’t know there was a camera filming me. How could they do that?” She shook her head, wiping her tears, then looked up at him. “I’m sorry. Do I know you? Who are you?”

“My name is Mark Teller.” She looked at him, then nodded.

“You’re Cara’s husband. I’m sorry, I didn’t remember meeting you. Is she here? I didn’t see her?”

“No. Actually, I assume she’s at home packing at this very moment.” Nelly looked up at him, shaking her head. Then she stilled, staring at him. It hit her. Like a ton of bricks, it hit her.

“They’re seeing one another, aren’t they?” she whispered. He nodded.

“I believe so. It was my intention to confront your husband, but I didn’t get the chance. This may have all been planned,” he said to the woman.

“I don’t know how. I never told him where I was going to buy my dress or when. Besides, those men were looking at a site that had all kinds of photos from changing rooms.” She grabbed one more suitcase and put her jewelry, perfume, and makeup inside.

“This is all for now,” she said. “My laptop and other things I need for work are downstairs.”

“Is there nothing in the house that belongs to you?” he asked.

“Nothing I need. Why are you doing this? You don’t know me; you don’t owe me anything.”

“Let’s just say we’re somewhat in the same boat. Cara let me know she was leaving me today to move in here.”

“Th-this was planned,” she whispered.

“Do you have anywhere to stay?” he asked. She shook her head, unsure of what she should do. “It’s alright. I own a fishing cabin out in the bayou. There’s air conditioning, electricity, even wi-fi. I like quiet, but I need to be connected.”

“That’s fine. Anything is fine, thank you. Thank you, Mark,” she said as he picked up the three massive suitcases beneath his arms. She grabbed a duffel bag and tote and followed him down the stairs.

“Sor.”

“Sor? I thought your name was Mark. Is Sor a nickname?” she asked.

“It’s a long story, Nelly. Let’s just get the fuck out of here before I kill your soon-to-be ex-husband.”

“You don’t know that we’re going to divorce,” she said, hitting the bottom step. As she did, Craig was standing there with a folded stack of papers.

“Just make it easy on both of us, Nelly. Sign the fucking papers and get out of my life.”