Preston (Members From Money Book 28)

by Katie Dowe

  The silence stretched a little longer this time. “I'm sorry,” he muttered.

  “For what?” she played dense.

  “For the argument over dinner the last time we were together.”

  “And?”

  “And what?” he looked at her bewildered.

  “And where do we stand Cameron?” she folded her hands over her breasts and stared at him. “Who am I to you? Where is this relationship going? Is this just a fling for you? Something to assuage your grief over your brother’s death?”

  His eyes flared at that as he looked at her. “Which order do you want the questions answered?”

  “No particular order. I just care that they're answered.”

  “You are very important to me—”

  “Not good enough.”

  “Please let me finish.” He took a deep breath. “This is not a fling. I don’t have flings.” She smiled at that. “You've changed my life for the better but I'm asking you to be a little patient with me. I'm not used to this and I have a lot of baggage that shouldn't be put on you.”

  “I have baggage too.”

  “Yes, but I tend to keep things inside. I want this to work Addie. If it doesn't work—” he broke off and walked into the living room. “Would you please sit?”

  She did and he continued. “I have something to tell you that I haven't told anyone at all.” He folded his hands in front of him and stared down at them. “The morning of the day that Parker died we had a terrible argument. Our father left a will stipulating that both of us should run the company. Parker was never interested in the ins and outs of Sinclair’s Automotive. He was more interested in the glamorous side of it. The parties, the functions, and the glossy billboards with his picture next to the latest vehicle we released. And I was fine with that because I much prefer to work behind the scenes. I love the challenge of trying to work the kinks out and trying to find out what will work so I worked with the engineers and that was fine with me. When Dad died I was thrust into being the CEO. I spoke to Parker about taking the reins and he refused, saying that I was more qualified. I didn't like it at first but I realize that leading from there I got to say what goes on and what doesn't. I started thinking of it as my company and I was comfortable with it. Then Parker came to me that morning and said he wanted to meet with the board. I asked him why and he told me that he thought it was time he took over.” His expression became bleak. “Just like that. He'd been running around all over the place never even attending meetings, never there when a competitor tried to entice away our top engineer and I had to step in and do something about it, and all of a sudden he was saying that he wanted to be the CEO. He told me that as the first son it was his right. I told him that he would get control over my dead body. And I told him that he wasn't fit to run the company and he should stick to what he does best. I told him that he should stick to being a philanderer and that I wasn't going to allow him to run the company to the ground just because he was probably tired of living the way he did. Those were the last words I said to him before he stormed out of my office and left. I never saw him alive again.”

  Chapter 12

  Addison moved automatically. He was so wrapped up in self-recrimination and grief that he was surprised to see her kneeing in front of him. He shook his head and his eyes focused on her beautiful face. “I told myself that I was never jealous of him but in those last few moments of his life I showed that I was. He had everything going for him and I just wanted that one thing—” he broke off and closed his eyes.

  She parted his hands and stepped between his legs. “I cannot tell you how to feel about that Cameron,” she told him quietly. “You had a fight with your brother, which happens, and from what I've learned about him so far I think he was a selfish human being, and I'm being polite out of respect for the dead. Please look at me.”

  He did, his eyes bleak. “You had an argument with your brother, nothing more, and nothing less and from what I hear you worked your butt off to become the CEO of that company. It wasn't fair for him to demand control. You didn't put him behind the wheel of that vehicle. You didn't send him off in a mad dash to his death. He did that all by himself and from what I read about him it seems like he was always in a mad rush.” She clasped his face between her palms. “You deserve to be happy. You deserve to have a relationship and a life of your own. I'm going to ask you to try and put the guilt away and mourn for him because he was your brother and you were close, but stop thinking that you were the one who killed him because you certainly didn't!”

  He stared down at her for a moment. “I can’t,” he whispered.

  “You can and you're going to because I'm not going to have the man that I love walking around with sad looking eyes.”

  His eyes flared as he looked at her. “The man you love?”

  “The man I love,” she smiled at him slightly. “I fell in love with you the first time up at the cabins and I only fell deeper since, in spite of you being such a stubborn ass.”

  His eyes narrowed at that but his expression was gentle. “I think the feeling is mutual,” he said huskily.

  “You think?” she arched her tapered brows at him.

  “I know,” he pushed his fingers through her tangled hair and she winced slightly.

  “We're going to have to talk about permanency.”

  “Like marriage?”

  “Hmm,” she smiled as she looked up at him. “I'm not shacking up with you honey. So what do you say? Want us to get hitched?”

  “Am I not supposed to ask you?” he asked her wryly.

  “You were taking your sweet time in doing it. I had to take the reins.”

  He hauled her up to him and pressed his mouth against hers, stealing her breath as she clung to him. He fisted his hands in her hair as he kissed her, all the pent up emotions, the hurt and pain he'd experienced poured into the kiss. Addison felt it and understood, a moan trapped inside her throat as she returned the kiss with every fiber of her being.

  *****

  “Billionaire CEO of Sinclair’s Automotive Preston Sinclair engaged to script writer Addison Duncan, who wrote the blockbuster ‘Love Unlikely’. Ms. Duncan has written another script that has been grabbed up by famous and eccentric producer Mikhail Gamble and is set to make its appearance on the big screen in December, just in time for Christmas. The power couple are set to get married in November at the lovely St. Matthew’s Cathedral uptown with the invitations have already been sent out. We cannot help but remark on the trend of these men who are members of the Elite Club and who are marrying women of color and making interracial relationships hip and happening! The bride to be will be wearing a dress designed by one of Romano’s designers. In an interview with Preston Sinclair he told us that he was looking forward to becoming Addison’s husband! ‘She's beautiful and full of spirit and is what I have been searching for my entire life.’ We say congratulations to the couple as they get ready to join together as one!”

  Addison put aside the magazine and looked at her fiancé with raised brows. It was now the middle of September and the frantic preparation for the wedding was already underway. Responses to the invitations were pouring in and the more as time approached Addison was becoming nervous. Preston on the other hand was as calm as ever, which made her very puzzled.

  “Cameron are you sure about all this?” she asked him. They were sitting out by the pool at the manor, enjoying the mild summer-like weather. The reception was going to be held in the ballroom and Denzel White, the famous wedding designer, was going to be decorating the place. She'd met with the other ‘wives’ and had been welcomed by them like a long lost friend.

  “If I'm not sure then it would be too late,” he told her lazily as he linked his fingers with hers. He'd changed drastically from the morose-looking man who cared only about work, to someone who had a smile on his face all the time. His light green eyes shone with light from within and he told Addison that it was because of her. No longer did he carry the guilt about his brother�
�s death around with him. He felt sadness that he was gone but he no longer felt guilty. He brought her fingers up to his lips and kissed them. “I want to show you off.”

  “I'm not exactly invisible,” she reminded him wryly.

  “I want to show everyone that I have the best woman in the world,” he supplied with a ready grin.

  Addison stared at him. She couldn't stop staring at him these days and wondering about the changes from when she'd first met him. “Darling that’s sweet.” She abandoned her chair and climbed onto his lap. “So you're telling me that you don’t mind the flood of invitations for us to attend some function or the other since our engagement has been announced?”

  “No,” he wrapped his hands around her waist. “We can weed out the ones we don't want to attend and ignore the rest.”

  “You hate public appearances,” she pointed out.

  “I'm engaged to a very famous woman,” he said with a proud smile.

  “Famous?” she wrinkled her brows. “I'm getting married to a billionaire. What I make can never be compared to what you make.”

  “It’s not about the money. And speaking of money, I was thinking that I want to do all the spending for the wedding.” He picked up her slim left hand and admired the sparkling emerald and diamond ring he'd given her for their engagement. He'd picked it out himself.

  “Absolutely not!” she told him. “I'm paying for my dress and Annmarie’s and your ring.”

  “I want to give you the world.” His expression was so intense that it startled her for a moment and caused her to tremble. “You saved me and I want to show you how much I appreciate what you mean to me.”

  “Hey,” she took her hand from his and cupped his jaw. “We saved each other, never forget that. It’s okay baby, I'm not going to say no to you spending on me. What am I going to spend my own money on?”

  “Charity,” he tilted her chin up and looked at her. “Anything you want. I'm going to spend the rest of my life taking care of you.”

  “And I'm going to enjoy every minute of it.”

  “Good,’ he said huskily as he bent to take her lips with his.

  *******

  “Bevy of incredible beauty! It's not often we see so many beautiful and powerful black women gathered together in one place. The occasion is a combination of the woman of the hour: Addison Duncan who at this time tomorrow will be Mrs. Preston Sinclair; celebrating her bridal shower at the elegant hotel belonging to an ‘Elitist’ Ryan Sullivan. The occasion is also a charity event where the ladies are targeting funds for children born with Down syndrome which has become a pet project for the bride to be. The ladies are all decked out in every color ranging from white to orange to champagne and every dress from the simple to the extravagant was designed and made by the famous international clothing line Romano’s who also designed the wedding dress for the bride. Saturday, November fifteenth will be highly anticipated as Preston and Addison take their vows. The bridegroom to be is noticeably absent along with the husbands of the women we so love to see as they celebrate the last of Preston’s single life at the Elite Club.”

  ******

  The dress was going to make news all over the world! Its boat neck and fitted bodice was deceptively simple and the bride chose not to wear a necklace to take attention from it. The sleeves were long and came to her wrists, bringing attention to the diamond and emerald bracelet that was part of a set that her fiancé had given to her. The skirt was wide and sheer with an underlining of taffeta and silk, and drifted down to the carpeted floor. Her thick dark hair, which had been styled by the celebrated stylist and makeup artist Chloe, was swept back in a casual yet elegant chignon at the nape of her neck. The veil, which trailed several feet behind her and, was being carried by three children with Down syndrome whose parents worked closely with the foundation that she'd made her project. Her sister Annmarie had already gone inside, making her solitary walk up the long aisle dressed in a pastel colored dress that flattered her petite frame. Gamble had offered to walk her up the aisle.

  “You're like a daughter to me darling,” he'd told her with a wicked smile.

  “Ready?” he asked her as he looked at her beneath his shaggy brows.

  “As I'll ever be,” Addison put her hand through his and they started making their way inside.

  “After my third marriage I no longer feel anything,” he told her with a grin.

  “This is going to be my only marriage,” she told him wryly as they stood outside waiting for the music to change.

  ******

  Preston straightened as the many guests got to their feet and turned to look at the dazzling bride. His breath caught inside his throat as he stared at her. She looked like a mirage, a figment of his imagination as she walked towards him. He blinked away the moisture when she smiled at him and he found himself walking to meet her. He didn't see anyone else but her and as Gamble leaned forward and kissed her cheek and handed her over to him, Preston barely acknowledged the man as he looked down at her.

  “You're beautiful,” he whispered.

  “And you're the most handsome man I've ever laid eyes on,” she whispered back.

  He took her arm and they made their way up to where the minister and his best man, Marco stood. Addison handed her bouquet of babies’ breath, peonies, and daises to her sister as they turned to the minister.

  “You may be seated,” the man said with a smile. “These two have declared their love for each other and today they are publicly acknowledging it among God and the family members and friends that are invited here this morning. Marriage is a commitment and an institution that should never be entered into lightly. Marriage is honored by God, because God said that a man should leave his mother and father and cling to his wife. Preston and Addison have made their decision to join together as man and wife and we are here to witness that and to support them.” He paused and looked around. “As a marriage officer I am required to enquire that if there is anyone here who thinks that these two people should not joined together please speak now or forever hold your peace.” He waited a beat and then continued. “Preston and Addison have written their own vows. Please turn to each other.”

  He stepped back as they did so.

  “Addison Maya Duncan,” Preston’s deep voice rang out in the vast chapel. “I love you, plain and simple. I love you when I'm awake and when I'm sleeping. I love you even when you're wrapped up in your writing and forget everything else. I love you completely. There is nothing I wouldn't do for you, there is nowhere I wouldn't go to prove my love for you. I'm a different person because of you. Before I was drifting along and just existing. Now I grab life fully and it's only because of you. You've shown me a different way and shown me that I don't have to feel guilty about living. I love you and I think that you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen.”

  Addison’s fingers gripped his and for a moment the words she had inside her failed her. “Preston Cameron Sinclair, my man, my best friend, my darling! I thought that my writing was everything! I thought that it was my true passion and then I met you in that isolated place surrounded by piles of snow with subzero temperatures. But there was nothing cold about the passion that you stirred inside me the first time I saw you, the first time you touched me. I was waiting for you all my life and I realize that now. I love you my darling, and there's nothing you can ever do to stop me from loving you.”

  The minister took over and waited a moment as silence enveloped the room after they'd finished.

  “The rings please,” he said quietly and Marco placed them onto the open booklet he had before him “Let us bless the rings. Father in the name of your precious son Jesus we place these rings before you, a symbol of their love and commitment. We ask for your continued guidance and blessings on these two young people and recognize that as the rings have no ending so will their love be never ending. Amen.”

  “Take the ring and place it on Addison’s finger and repeat after me please. With this ring I wed you, through sickness a
nd in health, in good and bad until death parts us.”

  The couple repeated the vows and the placed the rings on each other’s fingers.

  The rest of the ceremony flew by with the brief sermon by the minister and a serenade of the couple by the chapel’s choir.

  “Ladies and gentlemen we ask you to stand and welcome Mr. and Mrs. Preston Cameron Sinclair!”

  ******

  Addison had dispensed with the long veil and the tiara as they came into the large elegant ballroom that had rarely been used. Only a select number of guests had been invited to the reception and the room was filled with close friends and business acquaintances. The sumptuous food and finest champagne had been enjoyed and the cutting of the pink champagne four-tiered cake had been done and the couple were dancing on the floor that had been cleared for them. “My wife,” Preston said huskily. “Do you have the slightest idea how much I love you?”

  “I can hazard a guess.” She tilted her head back and looked up at him. She'd also changed her elegant satin shoes for a much more comfortable pair. “My husband, my man and my best friend.”

  “Thank you,” he said hoarsely, his throat working as he swallowed.

  “You're welcome,” she knew instinctively what he meant. She wrapped her hands around his neck and rested her head on his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart. He closed his eyes and put his head on top of hers, finally at peace within himself.

  ******

  “It’s so freaking cold!” Addison gasped as she ran ahead of him in the cabin. “How can it be November and be so cold?” She edged towards the blazing fire and held her hands out to get them warm.

  “You were the one who insisted that we go for a run.” Her husband reminded her fondly as he hung up their coats. They'd gone back to the cabin, the one she'd stayed, in for their five day honeymoon.

  “And you're my husband and should tell me when my ideas are foolhardy.” She walked over to him and wrapped her hands around his waist.

  “Hungry?” he murmured.

  “Starving,” she said impishly as she moved suggestively against him.