Sweet silk; Tattered leather

Chapter Seventeen: Emotional damage

~~This chapter contains sexual content~~~~The image is  of Laetitia~~

Fable watches the window with hawk-like eyes, mindlessly rubbing her stomach. Johnny was supposed to be back hours ago.

"Hey?" Diya asks as Sam leads her to Fable.

"Hey." Fable gasps, opening her arms for a hug. Diya rushes across the room, giving Fable a firm but careful hug. Standing in the doorway is a gorgeous, petite brunette, watching Diya with a shy smile.

"Oh, this is Laetitia, my wife," Diya says, holding a hand out to the woman. She quickly comes over, giving Fable a quick kiss on each cheek.

"I've heard so much about you, it is a pleasure," Laetitia says through a thick French accent.

"The pleasure is mine." Fable grins as the front door opens. Fable can hear numerous people talking, laughing, and joking. Johnny mutters something to Sam, patting him on the back before Sam leaves.

"How are you feeling, my love?" Johnny purrs as he rushes over to Fable. Diya and Laetitia step aside, both grinning ear to ear.

"Tired, sick of sitting." Fable sighs, beaming brightly when Johnny gives her a sweet kiss.

"We'll go for a walk later." Johnny purrs as he makes his way around her wheelchair. Without explanation, he wheels her to the living room. Quite a few people have gathered around, some of which Fable recognizes, some she doesn't. A few staff members bring out glasses of wine, passing them to everyone but Fable.

"Get her a glass of sparkling water," Johnny says in a hushed whisper as he takes a glass. The staff member rushes off, hastily coming back with a cup of sparkling water.

"Thank you," Fable mutters as she takes the glass.

"Thank you everyone for coming," Johnny says as he mindlessly rubs the back of Fable's neck.

"As some of you may know, I've been involved in many court cases lately," Johnny says as Fable leans into his hand.

'I'm sorry.' Fable thinks, knowing many of them are because of her.

"Today, we had a big win. Today Sofia Willis was sentenced." Johnny says brightly, earning a fair bit of happy cheers.

'How did we get to this point?' Fable thinks as a few tears slide down her cheeks. Sofia was her best friend for years. Johnny goes on, explaining how hard he has worked to ensure the woman who hurt 'his wife' ended up behind bars. Before long, everyone is cheering and clinking their glasses together.

"Hey?" Johnny questions when Fable doesn't seem to share his excitement. He hastily kneels beside her, studying her face.

"You aren't happy?" Johnny asks in confusion.

"I'm sorry... I'm just still going through a lot of emotions." Fable sighs, giving Johnny a forced smile.

"It's okay, sweetheart. I know there is a lot going on. After everyone leaves we can slip outside and just relax for a bit, okay?" Johnny suggests before giving Fable a quick kiss. She simply nods her head, staring at her glass. Everyone goes about cheering, drinking, and chatting. Not one of them says a word to Fable throughout the night. Even Diya seems lost in the entertainment of the party. After a few hours of this, Fable manages to slip outside while Johnny talks with his lawyers.

Fable makes her way through Johnny's 'village', mindlessly pushing herself around for a few hours before eventually stopping in one of Johnny's many gardens. After locking the wheelchair, Fable struggles to get up by herself. She limps from the chair to the stone bench, carefully taking a seat.