“Mr. Richmond!” Coleen said sharply. “The designs?”
“Oh, right, yes.” Daniel came back in to the moment and opened the portfolio he’d brought in with him. It contained Emma’s sketches for the Delacourt Designs spring line. There were numerous copies, so he passed them around to the other attendees at the meeting. He felt something seize up inside him when he looked at the images.
He remembered being in the Louvre, how Emma had been inspired and begun to draw. He’d picked a fight and left. He was always picking a fight with her as though he were trying to even the score, to hurt her as much as she’d hurt him.
So much had happened in Paris. Daniel let the memory of their night together flicker to the surface. It had been so intense, so erotic, so mind blowing, so—
“Mr. Richmond!” Coleen snapped at him again, her hands angrily placed on her slim hips. “Can you please be present during this meeting?”
“Sorry,” Daniel apologized. “Jet lag.”
People made sympathetic sounds and seemed satisfied with his explanation for his distant behavior.
“We’re trying to decide when to reveal the spring line,” Coleen explained. “Ideally we’d like to do this in tandem with America so that our clients feel like they are gaining equal access to the brand.”
“I agree.” Daniel nodded. “A worldwide release would deliver maximum exposure.”
“Indeed.” Coleen smiled at him, drawing her painted red lips up into a small bow. “Though these designs are remarkably pedestrian,” she added, glancing at the sketches.
“I think that they’re supposed to be effortless.” Daniel quickly leapt to defend Emma’s designs.
“Hmm.” Coleen tilted her head to the side and examined the sketches intently. “They just look lazy to me.” She shrugged. “As though the designer didn’t invest much time in them.”
“I forgot you were a designer,” Daniel declared coldly. Rather than being hurt by the comment, Coleen appeared amused.
“I’m just making an observation.” She smiled.
A light knock on the meeting room doors prevented the debate from developing further. Tentatively Stephanie entered the room. She glanced around and locked eyes with Daniel.
“You have a call,” she told him.
“It can wait.” Coleen turned her back on both Stephanie and the door.
“The caller said it’s urgent,” Stephanie persisted. “It’s a Damion Flores.”
“I need to take this.” Daniel stood up and straightened his suit jacket and swiftly left the meeting room before Coleen could object.
“DANIEL RICHMOND,” DANIEL said abruptly into the receiver.
“Daniel, hey.” Damion’s friendly voice echoed across the miles.
“This better be good,” Daniel said, dropping down into his office chair. “You just pulled me out of a very important meeting.”
“How soon can you get back to America?”
“What? Why? I only just left.”
“The renovations are finished,” Damion explained excitedly. “The Delacourt family home has now been revamped into the headquarters for Delacourt Designs International.”
“It’s finished already?” Daniel straightened in surprise.
“They worked around the clock to get it all done. There’s going to be a big unveiling party to celebrate.”
“Sounds good.”
“You should be there.”
Daniel sighed and gripped the phone in his hand with unnecessary vigor. He knew he shouldn’t be at the party; he was the last person Emma would want to see there, raining on her parade.
“I don’t think I can make it back,” Daniel said, without even checking his calendar.
“Really?” Damion’s voice lowered with disappointment. “You helped make this happen,” he continued. “You brought the international interest that helped make us a global brand. But before that, back when we were just three kids in a dorm room with big dreams, you were there, Daniel. You were a huge part of it all. You found the original investors. We used to be a trio, a team. I hate that we’re not anymore.”
Daniel was silent. He wanted to point out that Nick Cardelinni had filled his position on the team.
“Nick can’t replace you,” Damion added as though reading his friend’s mind. “He’s a great guy, he really is, but you’re my best friend. At least tell me you’ll try to come to the party.”
“I’ll try,” Daniel said stiffly.
“She’s not been herself since you left.”
“I should really go.” Daniel didn’t want to talk about Emma.
“She misses you; we all do.”
“Look, I’ve really got to go.” Daniel spoke quickly, filling each word with urgency. “I need to get back to my meeting. I’ll see what I can do about the party.”
He ended the call before Damion could say anything else about Emma. Daniel sat and leaned back in his chair, sighing as he ran his hands down his face. He was trying so hard to run away from his feelings, but they kept catching up with him. Turning, he saw that the rain was as persistent as his past, still streaming down the windows and soaking the world below.
He needed to go walking in the rain. He pulled on his designer mac and left the office without a word to anyone. He didn’t care about Coleen or the meeting; he just cared about walking the streets and being alone. The great thing about rain, he found, was that it always managed to hide your tears.
“I WONDERED WHERE YOU’D gone,” Coleen commented as Daniel entered his office and shook off his rain-soaked coat.
“I had to pop out and get something,” Daniel explained vaguely.
“You missed the rest of the meeting.”
“I doubt I missed much,” Daniel remarked coldly. “Perhaps you offered some more critique about the designs.”
“You’re close to the designer, I get that.” Coleen entered his office and perched herself on the edge of his desk. She was wearing a knee-length cream skirt and matching jacket, beneath which she wore a cream silk blouse. Her hair was tied into a bun without a single strand out of place. She looked immaculate.
She crossed her long, lean legs and subtly hitched her skirt up slightly to reveal more of her firm thighs.
“I’m sorry I missed the meeting.” Daniel ran his hands through his hair, trying to dry it a bit. He realized with regret that he should have just gone back to his hotel room and drank the rest of the afternoon away. Instead, he’d returned to the office, worried he’d missed more important messages. He knew that he needed to try to keep his head in the game even though he felt all over the place.
“It’s okay.” Coleen batted her eyelashes at him coyly. Outside, the other offices were deserted. Everyone else had already headed home for the day.
Daniel recognized the look in Coleen’s eyes, the way she had seductively draped herself across his desk. She was coming on to him. If he’d been more lucid, he’d have seen the signs, but instead his focus was fogged by the constant cloud of despair that hung around him.
“I hung back in case you returned,” Coleen purred the words from behind her red lips. “I’d be happy to fill you in on everything you missed.”
Daniel traced her bodyline with his eyes. She was a striking woman. Blonde with vivid blue eyes and long, toned legs. Sharp, high cheekbones framed her face, making her look like a model. There was a time when he would have ravaged her right there on his desk, letting her wrap those legs around him while he entered her. But that Daniel was gone. Or at least that Daniel had grown up. As much as his body might have been willing, his mind was not. His heart literally burned in his chest with flames of guilt at the thought of being with another woman. He just couldn’t do it.
“Perhaps you could put it in an email for me,” Daniel said politely. “I just came back to pick up some files.”
“Really?” Coleen smiled coyly at him. “Is that all?” She uncrossed her legs and parted them, raising her skirt even higher to reveal just a hint of her white lace panties. S
he bit her lip and gazed up at him with eyes filled with want and desire. There was no misinterpreting her signals.
Daniel raised an apologetic eyebrow at her and suppressed a sigh.
“Actually, that isn’t all,” he said stoically. “I’m heading back to America the day after tomorrow. There is an event I need to attend.”
Then he picked up his leather briefcase and left, leaving a stunned and dissatisfied Coleen staring blankly at him as he walked out the door towards the elevator.
“WOW,” EMMA GASPED IN amazement, taking in the changes made to her former family home.
The house now contained sleek offices, and the vast library and dining rooms were transformed into workshops. Changes had even occurred outside. The fountains and landscaped lawns were gone, and in their place were a parking lot for staff and visitors and a chic water feature, which had water cascading down a tiled wall emblazoned with the Delacourt Designs logo. It all looked so professional, so immaculate. Emma couldn’t quite believe it was all real.
“Quite a big change, isn’t it?” Sebastian Delacourt smiled as he greeted her. He was wearing a gray suit and holding a glass of nonalcoholic champagne.
“Dad!” Emma exclaimed with delight, opening her arms to hug her father. “I didn’t know you’d be here!”
“I wasn’t about to miss the grand unveiling.” Sebastian grinned.
“So you’re pleased with it?” Damion asked nervously. He’d been giving her the guided tour prior to the imminent party.
“Pleased? I’m ecstatic!” Emma enthused. “It looks amazing!”
“Ahh, so the lady likes!” Nick strode in with a beautiful blonde on each arm. “Glad you’re happy with it.” He winked at Emma.
He suddenly noticed everyone eyeing his guests with surprise.
“Sorry, where are my manners?” He flashed his flawless smile. “This is Porsche and Mercedes.” The blondes waved delicately with just their fingertips. “They’re twins,” Nick added mischievously.
Damion pulled Nick away from his twins and whispered in his ear, “Are they... legal?”
“They’re both over eighteen.”
“That’s not what I meant?” Damion hissed.
Nick laughed and patted his friend on the back. “It’s all aboveboard,” he said warmly. “You need to stop worrying so much. Just relax and enjoy the party.”
“Clearly you intend to.” Damion glanced back at the twins.
“You only get one shot at life,” Nick said sagely, picking up a glass of champagne from the sterling silver tray of a passing waiter.
“I don’t intend to waste mine.”
AN HOUR LATER THE PARTY was in full swing. Nick and Damion had gone all-out, even hiring a DJ, who was set up in one of the workshops, which for the evening had taken on the role of dance floor, with the equipment moved to the side out of harm’s way.
Emma wore a floor-length black sequin gown and felt as though she were at some elite party rather than the opening of her fashion house. She’d already enjoyed several glasses of champagne so that each new song the DJ played was her favorite, and she just had to dance.
“She’s enjoying herself,” Damion commented to Sebastian, who was leaning against a table.
“She is.” Sebastian smiled seeing is daughter dancing wildly on the dance floor. “It does me good to see her this happy,” he added.
“Yeah, she deserves to be happy,” Damion agreed, taking a sip of champagne. The words were barely out of his mouth when he spotted Daniel enter the party, dressed in a navy suit with his hair slicked back. The champagne suddenly tasted bitter, but Damion swallowed it anyway. He feared that Emma’s happiness at the party was about to be short lived. Swiftly he left Sebastian’s side and sidled over to the latest guest to arrive.
“I didn’t think you’d make it!” Damion had to shout to be heard above the beat of the music.
“I thought it was important I be here,” Daniel shouted back. “You said so yourself.”
“Yeah.” Damion nodded. “Well, I’m glad you’re here.” Then he shot an anxious glance back at Emma, who was dancing with Nick’s twins.
Daniel followed his friend’s gaze and noticed the tension in his jaw.
“She doesn’t know I’m here, does she?” Daniel asked.
“No,” Damion admitted apologetically.
“Let’s keep it that way,” Daniel suggested, grabbing a glass of champagne and wandering away from the dance area.
EMMA WAS HAVING A GREAT time. Her feet, now freed from her painful designer shoes, danced energetically with Porsche and Mercedes and a host of other partygoers.
Lost to the music, she didn’t have a chance to stop and remember how the house had once been. How she was dancing in what had once been the library, where her mother would sit and read to her on lazy summer afternoons.
“This is a great party!” Mercedes complimented.
“Yeah!” agreed her twin a little too enthusiastically. It seemed that they’d both hit the champagne with the same enthusiasm as Emma.
“Ladies.” Nick appeared behind them on the dance floor, wrapping an arm around each of their slim waists. “I hate to break up this party, but it’s time we hit the after party at mine.”
“After party?” Emma spoke up excitedly.
“Not the kind you’re thinking of.” Nick grinned at her. “This is more of a private party.” He winked, and Emma giggled drunkenly.
He led the twins away with him, and they glanced back to wave fondly at Emma. A new song started, and Emma was about to dance once more when she glimpsed a familiar figure lingering at the edge of the room, watching her. It took her drunken senses a few moments to realize that it was Daniel. Suddenly she felt sick, and the room started to tip on its axis around her. Picking up her dress, she ran from the dance floor, from the whole house, and headed outside.
Damion saw her leave. Swiftly he placed his glass of champagne down and followed her out into the brisk evening air.
The gardens at the back of the property were the only part that hadn’t been altered during the renovations. Emma ran along the familiar lawns down to a stone bench surrounded by rose bushes. Growing up she used to love sitting down there and inhaling their heady scent.
Now she sat on the bench and waited for the world to stop spinning as she dragged her bare feet along the cool damp grass.
“Ems.” Damion breathed heavily as he caught up with her. “Is everything all right?”
“My head is spinning.” Emma dramatically lifted her hands to her temples. “And Daniel is here. Why is Daniel here?” she whined.
“I invited him,” Damion explained simply.
“You what?” Emma’s face contorted in outrage. “Why would you do something so stupid?”
“Ems.” Damion sat down beside her on the stone bench. “He’s a part of this company too. It felt wrong not to include him.”
“He shouldn’t be here.” Emma shook her head. “He should be in London. He loves London so much let him fucking stay there!”
DANIEL GLANCED GUILTILY at the door through which Emma had run out. He’d considered chasing after her, but he saw Damion following her and thought better of it. Besides, he was the last person she’d want to see. He knew she’d be mad at him, and she had every right to be.
He decided to remove himself from the party. He placed his glass down on a nearby tray and slowly drifted back to the main entrance. On the way out, he admired the changes made to the home. Everything looked so sleek and professional now, it was hard to imagine that a family had once lived there.
A bittersweet smile pulled on Daniel’s lips as he recalled times he’d spent at the home. Times he’d spent with Emma and Damion there. Before Emma’s mother had passed, the Delacourt household had been a happy place to be. Together the trio would explore the gardens, source books from the library, and chase each other down the long corridors. Daniel was almost out of the front door when he had a change of heart. He turned around, preparing to go outside and
find Emma. He didn’t know what he’d say, just that he wanted to see her.
He was about to make good on his decision when he spotted Nick drunkenly making his own way towards the front doors, a beautiful blonde on each arm, hanging on his every word.
“I mean, I did all this.” He twirled his hand around to gesture at the space around them. “I bought the house and did it all up.”
“You did?” one of the blondes cooed adoringly. “That’s amazing.”
“I’m a pretty amazing guy.” Nick smiled drunkenly. “I can do lots of amazing things. Let me show you back at my place.”
Daniel froze as he watched him. He’d forgotten that it had been Nick who bought the house, who originally began all the renovations. Nick the hero. Nick the savior. Nick had filled the hole in Emma’s life that Daniel had left. Nick was the reason Daniel had gone in the first place. And now here he was, holding court in her home like he owned the place, which he actually did. The whole situation infuriated Daniel. It should have been him buying the house, him saving the day.
“Hey, Daniel!” Nick spotted him on his way out and waved merrily. “You’re a brave man!” he complimented.
“How’s that?” Daniel wondered.
“Coming here after you fucked her over like you did!” Nick declared. There was no venom in his voice; he was merely making an observation. “That takes balls! I couldn’t do it!”
“I didn’t fuck anyone over,” Daniel told him sternly.
“You keep telling yourself that!” Nick pointed at him as he slid out of the door with his twins in tow.
Daniel was seething as Nick’s words bounced around his mind. But what angered him more than anything was that Nick was right. He’d been wrong to come to the party. Emma didn’t want him there; she’d run away rather than face him. Sighing, Daniel left the party, his guilt making it unbearable for him to stay.
EMMA WAS CRYING AS she sat on the stone bench in her garden, mascara streaking down her cheeks in black rivers.
Designing Emma (Volume 5) Page 2
