MIDNIGHT Bride The CEO's TEMPTATION

The next day, when Crystal discovered what Paul had done, she was furious.

Crystal reread Paul's post for the third or fourth time, and with each reading, her anger grew. Of all the ways that Paul could have drawn Nancy out of hiding, this was the most despicable.

If Nancy did not show up at the courthouse, the public would see it as an admission of guilt. She had already lost their approval, and the only way to redeem herself would be to stand up for herself. Of course, if she did that, then she would be vulnerable. 

Until this moment, Nancy's life had begun to show some improvement, and it was hard to believe how quickly things had turned to shit.

Crystal pounded the table with her fist. "Eric must be involved in this," she muttered. Between him and Paul, he was the more capable one, definitely, the more intelligent one. "But what is his motivation?" Paul's was apparent, but there was no reason for Eric to get involved in this way, especially if he was still trying to prove his love for Crystal.

****

The snow was still falling, but the heat from the hot springs warmed the snowflakes before they touched the water. The pool was half full, and everyone was having a good time. Only Eric seemed out of place. 

Eric lounged in the corner of the pool with a glass of champagne in his hand. There were half a dozen half-naked women on the other side of the pool. He watched their breasts bounce about enticingly, but he did not join them. Occasionally, one of them would blow him a kiss, but his d**k did not respond.

Paul waved to him. "Come on!" he shouted. "Have some fun, why don't ya?"

Eric frowned, took a sip of his campaign, and said, "No thanks. Maybe later."

What's the matter?" Paul laughed. "Is somebody hiding a hard-on?"

"Not me," Eric replied sadly. "How about you?"

Paul scowled. "I don't have one either." And as they faced each other, it occurred to them that they both had the same problem: They were both impotent.

"This is all Nancy's fault!" Paul complained. He looked down and punched himself in the d**k. "That little bitch!"

His friend's show of aggression disheartened Eric. He looked at the girls and thought - Why not? He waved two of them over, and they obediently joined him on the other side of the pool. The first one stood behind him and began to massage his neck and shoulders. She moaned into his ear. "You are so tense... Let me help you with that."

The second girl gave the first the evil eye as she sat down beside Eric. She brought his right hand to her breast and encouraged him while her right hand slipped into his swimming trunks.

"Do you think she'll show up in court?" Paul wondered.

"Who?"

"Nancy!" Paul exclaimed. "Who else?!?!"

"I am not sure," Eric admitted.

"Aren't you always sure?"

"I used to be, but I'm not anymore. With Crystal in my life, I feel like I'm riding a roller coaster backward. Everything seems to catch me off guard, and I'm always on the verge of throwing up... Does that make any sense?"

"It does," Paul replied. "Nancy makes me feel the same way. That is why this little war between us is so aggravating. I called her, but she didn't call back, and she blocked me on all of her Social media."

Eric smiled and said, "It sounds like you are in love with her. They are likely with Nathan. Go to his home and bring her back with you. If you do that, your erection is sure to return!"

"I will do that!" Paul exclaimed. "But not because I love her. I will do it because I want to torture her. I can't let her be happy."

"Good for you, buddy!" Eric smiled and casually told the girl beside him to "Get the f**k away from me." Finally, he was ready to go inside.

****

Nancy began to tremble at the sight of Paul on the television. This was supposed to be over - she thought. But with Paul, nothing was ever over.

Clark was quietly playing with his Legos, but when he heard Paul's voice, his eyes lit up. He looked at the TV and said, "Mommy! Look! It's Daddy! He's on TV!"

Nancy nodded.

Paul was speaking to a reporter, and in the top left-hand corner, a video of Michelle abusing Clark was being shown.

Nancy could not believe her eyes. She had always suspected that Paul knew what Michelle was doing to their son. Now that it had been exposed, though, she never would have thought that he would come to her defense.

Paul cleared his throat, and then he said, "By now, I am sure that everyone has seen the shocking images that my ex-wife posted. If they were real, I assure you that I would be as livid as you all were when you saw them, so I do not blame anyone for the angry things that have been said about me. Thankfully, the videos were fake. None of the things that were shown in the videos were real, and my son was never harmed while he was in my care.

"Unfortunately, he is no longer in my care, and I have no way of knowing if he is safe. We have all seen what Nancy is capable of, and it scares me to think that she could use our son to hurt me."

Tears welled up in Nancy's eyes, and before long, she was wailing into her hands. Clark climbed up into her lap and wrapped his arms around her. "Mommy, don't cry." 

"Don't worry, honey. Mommy loves you, and everything will be alright."

Suddenly, the television clicked off, and they both looked up. Noah was standing in the middle of the room, and he had a sad smile on his face. "I think we've seen enough of that," he said. "I think we need a media blackout."

Nancy nodded. "Agreed."

"Agreed," laughed Clark.