“Believe it or not,” his mouth lifted up on one side, “I am capable of doing something nice just because I think you deserve it.”
Oh brother.
He was laying it on thick.
“You don’t have to butter me up,” I giggled, trying to tamper down the intensity of the atmosphere around us. If I didn’t at least try get a handle on it, it would take on a life all of its own. I couldn’t have that.
“I’m not.” Caleb’s expression turned serious, his eyes fixed firmly on mine. “A beautiful woman deserves a beautiful dress.”
“Want to make sure I look good on your arm?”
That was the nerves talking, but I was unable to ignore the elephant in the room. We were about to step out as a couple for the first time, announce our relationship to society. Naturally Caleb would want us looking our best.
He took my hand, and lifted it to his mouth. With soft lips, he pressed a kiss to my palm, so gentle and light I wasn’t sure I felt it.
But I did.
Everywhere.
“Actually,” his light stubble rubbed my skin as his mouth moved. “I’m the one hoping to do you justice tonight. The press will think me underdressed in comparison.”
If I were wearing panties they’d be ruined because let’s face it, Sean Connery himself could get some tips from this man. He was smooth, intrepid and dare I say chivalrous. Act or not, he knew what he was doing, and I didn’t see anything wrong with relishing the flattery.
Just a little.
Caleb’s grin turned lascivious, and my belly twisted.
Of all the treacherous things my body could do.
I swallowed, and extricated my hand from Caleb’s grasp. “We’d better get going. We don’t want to keep the press waiting.”
I slipped past Caleb, taking my silver clutch purse from the dresser, and left the room. Caleb said nothing, but I felt his eyes on the naked flesh of my shoulders, the sultriness of his body behind me. I had to focus, and keep my head on straight if I had any hope of surviving the game I was about to play.
Henry, who I’d dubbed Saint Henry after his first week with us, was in the nursery with Braelynn. The little Miss was supposed to be sleeping, but her eyes widened when she caught sight of Caleb and me. I was still getting used to that reaction from her, having her give me her own version of a smile whenever she saw me, but it warmed my chest a little more every time.
Caleb kissed Braelynn’s head, and left to make the necessary arrangements with the extra security detail. Alfie had been stationed at home with Henry, and Caleb hired two more guards for us. I didn’t think we’d be as newsworthy as we were, but the press had been relentless in their pursuit of information, and after the Danielle debacle, Caleb wasn’t taking any risks with our safety.
I lifted Braelynn from her crib. “Wish me luck,” I whispered and kissed her little nose. “I’m going to need it.”
Henry chuckled, but was smart enough not to say anything more. He did, however, look at me with sympathy, and I wondered if I was doing a good enough job of hiding my anxiety.
He took Braelynn from my arms, and I said my goodbye before meeting Caleb in the atrium where he was talking to two mountainous men dressed in black suits. Ah, Terminator One and Terminator Two had arrived. They listened intently as Caleb gave them instructions, and only barely acknowledged him with a brisk nod. He slipped his jacket over his shoulders, and if I were a lesser woman I would have salivated right there on the spot. Fortunately, I’d learned to master complete Zen-like control over my salivary glands whenever I was in the same space as Caleb. He seemed to have a direct line to the little bastards.
“You ready?”
My eyes flickered, and I ignored the teasing smirk on Caleb’s face. He enjoyed rendering me speechless far too much, and sadly, it was happening far too often.
“Define ready,” I replied, unable to shake the unease that swept over my body. Now I knew I was doing a terrible job of hiding how I really felt about the evening ahead. I was scared, and the longer I tried to keep that from Caleb, the more obvious it became.
“You’ll be fine.” Caleb gave me what he probably thought was a reassuring smile, but in reality I felt anything but reassured. We hadn’t really spoken about what I would be laying on the line, and after tonight we had nothing to hide behind anymore. I had nothing to hide behind. The city, and probably most of the world, would know that I was the significant other in Caleb Callahan’s life, the woman they would assume was warming his bed, and helping him raise his daughter. That’s exactly what we wanted them to think, but we had no way of foreseeing their reaction, and that was what truly scared me. In all likelihood they would all jump to the same conclusion: I was sleeping with the boss in the hopes of a better job prospect, or the very least because he had more money than he knew what to do with.
Caleb walked towards me, closing the space between us in three long strides. With his thumb, he rubbed the frown lines between my brows, and tipped my chin so that I could see his eyes.
“Stop overthinking it, Kadence. Whatever happens after tonight we’ll deal with together.”
Ugh. Why was it so easy for him to see what I was thinking? What I was feeling?
“Mr. Callahan.”
Terminator One broke the moment between us before I could respond.
“Your car is downstairs.”
Without any hesitation at all, Caleb’s hand found mine and for once I allowed myself to be comforted by the sense of safety his touch made me feel. Right then I needed it more than I needed to protect myself from what this charade was eventually going to do to me. Fair enough, it was my choice, but when it came to Caleb I wasn’t sure there was ever really another choice.
We were contemplative on the elevator ride down to the basement. The press was camped outside the main entrance, so we made a surreptitious exit out the back, and slipped into the early Thursday evening traffic without much fuss. Terminator One sat in front, and when I looked behind us, I noticed another black Escalade tailing us.
“Just a precaution,” murmured Caleb, catching my confused expression.
I looked back outside, watching the city fly by in a multi-colored blur as the driver weaved his way towards Washington Street. Caleb had chosen a refurbished warehouse to host tonight’s event, and in collaboration with our event management staff, we’d managed to turn the space into a fully functional runway. Caleb had insisted I spend less time at the venue, purely to avoid a frenzy with the press, but I stuck to my guns and assisted Macy every step of the way.
With her growing baby bump, I was starting to do more and more of the legwork, and much to my surprise I found that I enjoyed being outside of the office more than being inside it. For once that had nothing to do with Jennifer and everything to do with discovering another facet of my job. It also kept my mind occupied, leaving little to no time to dwell on whether or not my family was going to come crawling out of the woodworks after the night was over. That sliver of fear had still nestled its way into my head, like an insidious parasite feeding off my self-doubt. There was no turning back now, not that I would do that to Caleb. I also had the strangest feeling that he would in fact protect me from whatever came next, and that alone was enough to stop me from pondering why he would put up with all the drama in the first place.
Our objective was to show the Board that Caleb had a stable home life, and could easily balance his responsibilities as C.E.O and father, but I was starting to have doubts about whether pretending to be in a relationship with me would make that happen.
Caleb touched my hand, noticing that I’d zoned out and I whipped my head in his direction.
“We’re here.”
I swallowed the tight ball of nerves lodged in my throat, and gave Caleb a rather pathetic attempt at a smile.
C’mon, I chided myself. You have more grit than this. Get your shit together.
“Okay,” I exhaled into the space of the car, willing all anxiety, and nerves and worry to pack their fucki
ng bags and leave. Come what may, it was now or never, and I was either all the way in or not in at all. A little late to be making that call now, but there was something to be said for the sudden fortitude that arose when staring at your decision in the face.
The stillness in the car was broken when Caleb’s door swung open. Lights flashed, people yelled, and all the while Caleb looked unruffled. He reached for my hand, and helped me step down. If I thought it was loud when Caleb had stepped out, the noise grew by several decibels as soon as my foot hit the sidewalk.
Our names were being shouted, and it seemed that the attention was drawn away from everyone else in attendance. We were in the spotlight, all cameras and questions directed at us.
“Breathe.” Caleb’s lips brushed my ear, the small harmless gesture sending the press into pandemonium.
Show time, I thought. I recalled everything my mother had ever told me about standing next to a powerful man, even though I promised myself I would never be one of those women. It was that exact moment that I decided not to be. Standing next to Caleb didn’t have to mean that I was just another ‘society girl’ on the arm of a wealthy mogul. It meant whatever I wanted it to, and right then I wanted to be seen as Caleb’s ‘partner’, his consort.
With practiced grace, and demure flair, I lifted my chin, slid my hand into the crook of Caleb’s arm, and smiled like I had a secret. The press lapped it up like the mutts they were, taking their pictures and throwing their questions at us. Caleb did well not to respond, and much to my amazement, took my lead. He looked at my profile, and from the corner of my eye I could see his lips lifted into a smile. It was doting, filled with adoration that the fools in front of us bought into. I had no idea Caleb could act so well. We moved with ease, like we’d been together for years, instead of weeks, but then again we’d started moving in sync not long after I moved in with him.
I shifted, and Caleb’s right arm went around my waist. He placed his left hand at his side, and gave the camera’s one final grin before breaking just about every rule I’d set.
He dipped me with suave fluidity and when my mouth opened with a gasp his lips descended, capturing mine like they had every right to.
No, I instructed myself, push back, push back.
The loud eruption around us wasn’t nearly enough to drown out the blood rushing in my ears.
Flash.
“Mr. Callahan, how long have you and Ms. Kavanagh been dating?”
Flash.
“Mr. Callahan, how’s Braelynn?”
Flash.
“Mr. Callahan, are you in love?”
Flash.
“Mr. Callahan, why all the secrecy?”
Flash.
All the questions went unanswered, and it became obvious that Caleb was using actions rather than words to get his point across. My lips double-crossed me, and started moving when Caleb’s did, following the too-sensual-for-public kiss.
Dammit. The man could kiss the lips off a mannequin if given half the chance, and what he was doing to mine felt like sex. Lip sex. Sweet, sensual lip fucking that I specifically said was. Not. Allowed.
Right then.
Two could play at this game, buddy.
Caleb pulled away but not before I nicked his bottom lip with my teeth, hard enough to make him flinch. His eyes blazed, and the independent woman inside me cheered like I’d just won a gold medal at the Olympics.
“I told you,” I whispered, just loud enough for him to hear me. “No kissing.”
The upturn of Caleb’s mouth was the only indication that he’d heard what I said.
“You should by now, Kadence,” he lifted me slowly, “I’m not a man who easily takes instructions from others.”
“It’s never too late to learn, Mr. Callahan.”
With a final acknowledgement of the press, Caleb led me across the red carpet, past what was supposed to be the real press gauntlet, and inside the warehouse.
“OH MY GOD, I KNEW IT!” Annabelle rushed towards us, her light purple lace-sleeved dress swaying at her knees. With her pixie cut hairstyle, and exuberant gait, she reminded me of a dark-haired Tinkerbell. Her smile was wide, filled with expectation, and when I looked over her shoulder I saw an amused Aaliyah trailing behind her. She too looked picturesque in a dark red Venetian one-shoulder gown, her long dark hair slick and straight.
I kissed Caleb on the cheek – for show, of course, not because I really wanted to – and excused myself. He lifted my hand from the crook of his arm and kissed the back of it before turning his attention to the numerous reporters vying for but a second of his time. They were invited, and from what I’d heard were all doing interest pieces on the fashion show, and the brain behind it. Fortunately, I had yet to be accosted by some nosey journalist, but from the gleam in Annabelle’s eye, I wasn’t going to like her impending inquisition any better.
“Knew what?” I asked, swiping a champagne flute from a passing waiter. Aaliyah shook her head playfully, taking a champagne flute of her own.
“I tried to stop her,” she told me, shaking her head in resigned enjoyment at our overzealous co-worker.
Annabelle pouted. “Oh c’mon, Liy. You can’t blame me for being excited. I knew there had to be something going on between Caleb, and Kadence.”
“I know,” snorted Aaliyah. “You’ve been hounding me all week for information.”
“Only because you knew what was going on and didn’t tell me,” whined Annabelle.
“I wasn’t allowed to,” retorted Aaliyah. “But now you can ask Kadence yourself.”
Annabelle’s expression was rather comical, and I couldn’t help but laugh at her.
“Okay, fine.” I sipped my champagne. “It’s true. Caleb and I…” I hesitated, knowing it would be the first time I would be acknowledging out aloud what the rest of the city had already assumed. “Are together.”
Aaliyah and I traded a knowing glance, each reminding the other that we were doing nothing more than playing a part. Me more so than Aaliyah, but she was one of only two people privy to the exact nature of the arrangement between myself and Caleb.
Annabelle clapped, and her reaction garnered a few curious glances from several of the other guests. “This is so exciting. We should definitely do a story on you two for the magazine.”
“You’d have to speak to Caleb about that,” I replied, trying for nonchalance. The thought of having an ‘expose’ done so soon was not at all appealing. “I’m still trying to adjust to all the attention.”
Whatever Annabelle said next was lost on me as I finally took a moment to look around. Large white strobe lights hung from exposed beams above the built stage and chairs draped in an assortment of pastel colored fabrics lined the runway. On the far side of the warehouse stood several high-top tables with various canapés and a variety of champagnes and sparkling wines. To lend to the artistic theme of the event, we had a number of the walls covered in blown up designs from the contestants, along with black and white photographs of the city landscape.
Much like the décor, there was an eclectic mix of guests in attendance as well. It was smaller in scale compared to the Shareholders Gala, and the atmosphere more intimate. Potential investors mingled with top designers, and venture capitalists rubbed shoulders with retail buyers from stores like Bloomingdales, and Saks Fifth Avenue. The room hummed with the sweet stench of money and creative genius and all because Caleb had chosen his guests with the young designers presenting their work in mind.
Annabelle’s fiancé, Brian, stopped by and dragged her away, and when her brother, Landon, stepped up to Aailyah’s side, and wrapped his arm around her waist, my brows shot up in surprise.
“Landon,” she gave him a shy smile. “You remember Kadence right?”
“Yes, nice to see you again,” he replied. He was so enraptured with Aaliyah that he barely looked at me. I chose not to hold it against the guy because Aaliyah looked just as taken with him.
Huh.
When had that happened?
They seemed to have forgotten I was standing there altogether, so I excused myself and took a turn around the room until I’d greeted everyone I knew, and introduced myself to the people I didn’t. When guests asked about me and Caleb, I answered as vaguely as I could without sounding rude, and promptly redirected the conversation back to the event. Caleb found me when I was talking to Anthony and Julien, and not-so-discretely pulled me into his side.
“I should have known I would find my woman with the two of you,” he joked, squeezing my hip. I tried not to roll my eyes at his public display of affection, but figured I should get used to it.
“Oh please,” replied Anthony, waving his hand in the air. “Our sweet Kadence doesn’t have eyes for anyone but you.”
My cheeks warmed. I guess I wasn’t as inconspicuous about seeking Caleb out as I’d thought.
“The feeling’s mutual.”
I couldn’t meet Caleb’s eyes, but when the master of ceremonies announced the start of the show, I was relieved I wouldn’t have to.
CALEB TOOK THE STAGE and while he gave his introductory speech, I snuck around to the back to make sure everything was running smoothly.
There were models everywhere, and everyone, designers included, was running around in a frenzy to get ready. I checked in with one of our event management staffers, and when I was satisfied that I wasn’t really needed I slipped out of the backstage area and down the curtained off hallway towards the bathroom. I stopped short when I heard arguing, walking closer to where it was coming from.
“I know all about the stupid scheme you and Caleb cooked up.” Was that Jennifer’s voice?
“Oh please, you have no proof whatsoever. And in any event, what happens between Kadence, and Caleb has nothing to do with you. He slept with you once, and last time I checked that doesn’t entitle you to anything.”
Macy. That was Macy’s voice.
I rounded the corner, and found Jennifer and Macy in a standoff. Even at eight months pregnant Macy looked ready to smash Jennifer’s head against the wall.
Playing Pretend Page 12
