A/N: Hi everyone. This is my first Literotica series. Chapter 1 is probably as low-heat as the series is going to get, lol. Needless to say, this does fall in the reluctance category, so if you're not into that, maybe this isn't the story for you. Planning on writing a couple chapters a week. I'm not sure how long this is going to go yet. Always open to productive feedback. Thnx, and happy reading ;)
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"Veronica?"
Theo's heart stopped the moment he said her name. The moment he saw her. Three years she'd been gone...and now, here she was. Veronica, his wife, was standing in the manor's greeting hall. As if she'd never left at all.
She wrung her hands behind her, a nervous tick she apparently hadn't gotten rid of during her three years gone. Normally Theo wouldn't have been able to see it, but as he descended the curving staircase down into the greeting hall, he was gifted with a perfect all-around view of her.
"Hi Theo." Veronica's voice quivered lightly, but she kept her posture confident. "It's been a while."
Theo barely heard her. Or rather, the words he did hear were more like soft bells ringing in his ears. How many times had he imagined he heard that voice echoing down the manor's halls? Calling to him from the shower? Whispering him awake, just like she used to do. More times than he could count over the last agonizing three years. Over the last year he was just starting to come to terms with the fact that he might not ever hear it again. But now, all that progress was gone in an instant.
Theo felt his mouth was open, probably embarrassingly so. He nearly tripped down the last marble steps, taking them two at a time. When the maid interrupted him during his conference call, he couldn't imagine her giving any excuse that wouldn't result in her immediate firing. But in one sentence, she had Theo ending the call and racing to the front doors.
"Mrs. Henrys is back."
Theo stopped only a few feet away from Veronica, his eyes racing up and down her. She was even more dazzling than he'd remembered. Her usually wintery skin was bathed in a sun-kissed hue now, and those adorable little freckles she usually only got during the hottest summer months smattered her cheeks. They dripped across her arms as well, likely trailing all over her body. Her sunset orange hair was shorter than he remembered. When she left, it hung nearly to her waist, but now, even pulled back into the braid as it was, it clearly cut off somewhere just past her shoulders.
Her shape had changed. She was always so skinny with him—which he hadn't minded, of course. But now, having put on a little weight, it was like her curves had filled up in the way nature had always wanted them too. Her hips flared like they never had before, begging to be held. And her bust. If she'd been a bit of a less-endowed woman before, now her breasts looked almost as full has they had when she was breastfeeding Damien. All this tucked into the wispy white dress tied with the braided brown belt she was wearing, it might have been enough to let Theo stare forever. But as she looked up at him, his gaze was inevitably pulled back to her eyes. Those beautiful, chocolate brown eyes, watching him with a tremble from under her winged orange lashes.
"You're...you look..." Theo sounded like an idiot, fumbling around his words like this. To hell with words then. Before she could react, he closed the distance and pulled her into his arms. Her warmth burned into him, somehow sinking past the layers of his vest and button-down. And she was even softer than he remembered. Softer than he imagined. He could hold her forever, if only to make sure she didn't leave again.
Veronica let out a short laugh. "Okay, um...maybe a little much." She wiggled in his grasp, forcing him to reluctantly free her. Still, his kept his hands on her arms.
She looked away for a moment, and brushed a free strand of her hair behind her ear. "I see the place hasn't changed." Her eyes flew over the arches of the greeting hall, over the marble stairs and the crown molding of the high ceiling. "It's just as grand as I remember."
"Where have you been?" The words flew out of Theo's mouth. Of all the things to talk about, the manor was not at the top of his list of questions. "Not that it matters..." he added, though it obviously did, but they would get to that eventually. "I'm only glad you're back, and safe."
Even through all the rush of awe, shock, and overwhelming love he hadn't realized was still as fresh as ever for her, a small bead of anger couldn't help but bubble up in him. He tried not to let it twist his face. "I...was very worried that something had happened to you."
Veronica took an annoyed breath. "I wrote postcards. And I called my mother every week—I was fine."
Fine? All but disappearing after an argument one night and refusing to have contact with anyone but her mother for three years, and he was supposed to think she was fine?
"I had top people looking for you," Theo said. "They couldn't get a location."
"I know." Veronica ripped her arms out of Theo's grasp. "Believe me, it was quite annoying to keep moving because some P.I. kept showing up, asking around with a picture of me."
She looked over Theo's shoulder, then started through the greeting hall and towards one of the living rooms. "Where is Damien? It's Saturday, he can't be at school."
Damien. Theo's heart twisted. How was he going to deal with Veronica's return?
"He's at a school camp with some friends. They'll be back in a couple days."
Veronica stopped walking, only a few steps into the main living room. She sighed and dropped her hands over the back of one of the velvet settees, one she herself had picked out when they first moved in. "Oh."
Theo, having kept only a step behind her, took her hand and swooped them both around to the front of the settee. He sat and pulled her down with him. Veronica sat with a short huff. Her eyes darted around for a moment and she fumbled, as if she didn't know where she wanted to put her hands before settling them in her lap.
"Ver..." Theo brushed his fingers over her cheek, instantly pulling her attention back to him. Just her glance alone sent a wave of weakness through him. It made his heartbeat tremble.
"I have so many questions," he said softly. A shade of red tinted her cheeks. "But before I say anything else, please tell me, are you here to stay?"
Veronica matched eyes with him, completely unblinking. "Yes."
Theo's shoulders relaxed. He hadn't even realized how tense they were. But that one word fixed it all. Yes, she was staying.
It didn't matter what she said next. They could work from here. The last three years had been a nightmare, but he was finally awake.
"Then—"
"I know, I know, where was I?" She repeated the question for him, then laced her fingers tightly over her lap, pinching them together until they flushed white. "It's more like where wasn't I. California, New York, Montreal, Paris, The Bahamas. I just needed to find myself, you know? See who I was in all these different places."
Theo clenched his jaw on instinct. "We could've gone any of those places together."
"I needed to see who I was without you, Theo." The words snapped out of her mouth. No hesitating. No remorse. They cut deep into Theo.
Veronica's lips pinched together for a moment before she went on. "We got married so young. I'd barely finished my degree. I feel like I went from being my parent's daughter to your wife instantaneously. I never figured out who I was in-between." She sighed again, and brought her hands up to rub her temples, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment. "I was Mr. and Mrs. Kempton's daughter all the way through college, and then I was Mrs. Henrys. I needed to just be Veronica for a while."
Theo gripped the backside of the settee. He'd always given her a chance to be herself. He knew some of the other husbands who ran in their circles. Half of them didn't let their wives leave the house without knowing what she was wearing, where she was going, and who with—all things they'd patronized him for not doing once his wife was gone. But he'd always loved Veronica too much for that. He gave her freedom to do whatever she wanted, and with however much of an allowance she liked. Anything for the only girl who'd managed to beat him during his college model UN days, stealing his heart from their first tournament together.
She could always be Veronica with him, he'd never told her not to be. But now she was making it sound like he'd tried to cage her. No, this couldn't really be about that. But maybe it was about the one thing he had pushed on her.
"Did it have anything to do with...our last talk?"
Veronica shifted uncomfortably, but managed not to blush too hard. "No. I mean, that wasn't the crux of it. But I think it was that fight made me realize I needed to go."
He took her hands in his, running his thumb over the delicate skin atop her hand. "I wasn't trying to force you. And I admit, I made a bad call."
Even thinking about that night now sent a shudder of pain and disappointment through Theo's chest. They'd been so happy before. Their son, Damien, was the most adorable little boy Theo could've dreamt up. Fair skinned and freckled like Mom, but with his thick brown hair and pensive blue eyes. The perfect product of their love. Him alone was enough for a while, their charming little accident after less than a year of marriage. And since he'd been unexpected, Theo didn't push Veronica for any more kids right away.
But six years in, and Damien was still an only child. Theo had been an only child, always jealous of the kids with little siblings to run around with. He swore he'd never let his child grow up without at least one brother or sister. But even discounting that, it wasn't just about Damien. Theo wanted another child. Desperately.
So when Damien turned six, he brought up the idea to Veronica. First on their anniversary, while they were having rooftop dinner under the stars at one of their favorite restaurants in Barcelona. He'd honestly thought she'd be as ready as he was, and hoped to start trying for their next child that night.
She didn't say no, but she didn't say yes either.
"I don't know about now," she'd said, tapping her wine glass. "Let's wait until after the holidays. I don't want to be that couple sending out annoying pregnancy announcements with our Christmas cards."
