by C. M. Albert
“Unless there’s a modern-day immaculate conception, I don’t see that happening.”
“Still no word back from Presley?”
I shoved my hands in my jeans and stepped back from the cake so Veta could cut it. Dad was doing a little better with his chemotherapy, though his doctors cautioned us that at this point, because of the spread to other organs, it was more to treat the cancer than to cure it. In other words, it was buying us some time. I wanted every minute I could get with him, which is why I’d been staying at Dex’s beach house—scratch that. I guess it was my beach house as of today.
“I’ve left her a ton of messages apologizing, saying hi, just wanting to make sure she was okay. Even if I didn’t do anything wrong, she’s still hurt over this. And I get that. It just kills me to know she’s hurting because of me, and I can’t do a damn thing about it.”
“Can’t you though?”
“Unless I literally sit on her doorstep in Chelsea, I don’t know how else to get her to respond. She emailed me a list of follow-up questions for the interview, and I took your advice.”
“What wonderful advice did my handsome husband give out this time?” Bianca asked, curling up to Dex’s side with a glass of wine in her hands. Scottie had the kids out on the beach watching a movie on a huge blow-up screen so they could be here for my party. The guy was already doing an amazing job stepping into his new role. Dad would technically stay property manager in name, to help make critical decisions. But Scottie had jumped into the deep end and was learning the day-to-day ropes as quickly as he could. We suspected it wouldn’t be long before the job would be all his.
“He told me to take back my narrative with the media. To not let them bulldoze my reputation just so they could sell a few papers. So, that’s what I did, with Presley’s help.”
“The article was amazing, Carter. Presley has gotten a lot of positive feedback from it.”
“I’m glad,” I said, meaning it. “I didn’t want her to write it at first—I even fought her on it. But then I realized it could really raise some awareness about the social issues behind why some people hire me to begin with.”
“I’m glad you let Finance Times run with it. If you ever want a spread on your newfound wealth and what you’re doing with all this money, just let me know. I may know someone who could write it,” she said, winking.
“I’m sure Presley won’t want another thing to do with me after that fiasco on the yacht,” I said, grimacing.
“I didn’t mean Presley, Carter. She actually doesn’t work at the Times anymore. Didn’t you know that?” she asked, looking pointedly at Dex.
“Uh, no?” I said, turning toward my friend. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”
He pulled up his phone and opened the Finance Times’s website, then handed it to me. The top article was an announcement about Presley Kincaid signing on with Montague Enterprise’s philanthropy division as their new finance executive.
“Well, holy shit. Good for her.”
“Good for us,” Dex said. “She’s already started her onboarding process, and that girl is smart. She’s running circles around poor Richard and has a dozen process improvement and innovation ideas that she wants to integrate not just in the philanthropy division, but at a corporate level, as well.”
“That’s wonderful,” I said. But it also left a huge hole in my heart. I just wanted a real and honest shot with Presley. Without any of the drama from our pasts getting in the way. I’d missed my chance with her twice. I wasn’t doing it again.
“Look—I gotta go,” I told Dex and Bianca.
“You can’t leave,” she said. “It’s your party!”
“It’s my party, I can leave if I want to, leave if I want to,” I sang as I backed away from them and headed toward the door.
“Carter!” Veta called out. “Get some cake at least!”
“Can’t, Veta!” I said over my shoulder. “I’ve got something much sweeter in mind.”
I made my way back to the beach house to pack an overnight bag. I’d sit on her damn stoop as long as it took to get her to listen to me. It was such a stupid mix-up. Yeah, maybe I’d taken it too far, but Vivienne’s ex was such a douche bag. He’d tried to make things worse for me, too. But Dex’s lawyer slapped the paper with several defamation of character cease and desist notices. And when I received a threatening phone call from Victor one afternoon, I calmly made some phone calls first before getting back to him.
See, the thing about working with a close circle of wealthy people in the dog-eat-dog metropolis of New York City is that everyone is willing to turn on someone else eventually. And everyone has secrets they want to keep. It didn’t take long for Dex’s lawyers to get some of the women Victor had assaulted over the years to agree to speak out against him. Presley’s testimony wasn’t even needed, he’d had that many allegations filed against him during his run at the paper. Conveniently, all the internal investigations found him not guilty and were originally dismissed. But women speaking out in volume would be hard to silence.
I was surprised he didn’t press charges against me for the fight I started on the yacht, but something told me Dex might’ve had something to do with that, too. It didn’t stop Victor from threatening to bring me down, though, when I told him what was coming with his own pending assault charges in the form of a class action lawsuit. I’d do it all over again, too, if it meant protecting other young women like Presley.
When I approached the house, I was surprised to find the downstairs lights on. I could’ve sworn I’d turned them off. I took the elevator up, rehearsing what I’d say to Presley in my head when I finally saw her.
All coherent logic left my brain when I realized that flesh-and-blood Presley was standing in my living room, and she wasn’t a mirage. She had a small cupcake in her hand with a solitary candle and a cute blue gift bow on her head. She looked ridiculous and adorable all at once.
Neither of us knew what to say. But I could tell there was forgiveness in her eyes. Just as there was passion. Thank god that hadn’t died when she looked at me. I walked toward her, never breaking eye contact. I was eager to have her in my arms again. Talk, that could come afterward. First, I just fucking needed to hold her again so I could finally breathe.
“Happy birthday, Carter,” she said. “Make a wish?”
I looked down at the cupcake and the lone candle. I closed my eyes and made a wish. When I opened them, there were tears in her eyes.
“My wish has already come true,” I said, setting the cupcake down. “You’re really here.”
“Carter, I’m so sorry—”
“Presley, you don’t owe me an apology. I should’ve realized there would be photographers there and how you might feel seeing me with a client. I did nothing to prepare you for that. If I could do it all over again, I would’ve woken you up that night after the party to tell you what went down. That way, you could’ve heard it from me first. I never dreamed it was going to go down like that.”
“I understand that now, Carter. I guess I just panicked when I saw Victor in the papers, and you kissing his ex-wife. I was so confused. Especially since we’d just had a conversation about how you never crossed that line with clients. Everything in me wanted to believe you, but the pictures were so hard to unsee. They brought out a lot of insecurity in me. I think maybe because Vivienne looks so much like Lauren, too,” Presley admitted.
I wrapped my arms around her and finally pulled her against my body, enveloping her shaking frame. I wanted to soothe the tears away. Kiss them away. Make love until she could cry no more. But I knew we had to put the past behind us before we could build a future. And that was exactly what I wanted with Presley Kincaid.
“Come here,” I said, leading her upstairs.
She didn’t question me. She held my hand tight and walked up all the flights of stairs with me until we were on the sta
rgazing balcony.
“I was wondering if you knew about this,” she said, smiling.
“I found it after you left,” I said. “I’ve spent many evenings up here, just looking up at the sky. It’s like a sea of infinite possibility. I’ve had a lot of time to think, Presley.”
“Me too.”
“Let’s sit,” I said. I pulled her onto my lap on one of the lounge chairs. Her back was to my chest and my arms were where they belonged—around her. I’d waited weeks for this, and I was almost overwhelmed finally having her in my arms again.
“Cute bow, by the way,” I said, booping the bright blue bow on her head. “Does that mean you’re my birthday present?”
“If you’ll have me back,” she said quietly.
“Let’s talk first. Then you can let me know if you want me back, as well.”
She nodded, relaxing against me.
“Presley, Vivienne asked me to stand-in as her date that night because she had a very slimy ex-husband, as you now know. Vivienne knew about his work indiscretions and let a lot of them slide. But when she caught him red-handed with their nanny, she couldn’t look away anymore. So, she divorced him. That was a several years ago. She did not invite Victor to the party, and she wasn’t looking for trouble. But she found out he’d managed to weasel in as someone’s plus one. Which is where I came into the picture,” I explained.
“When I got there, I didn’t know who her husband was. I just knew he was Mr. Vanderbilt. And yeah, looking back, I could’ve probably put two and two together sooner, but I honestly was just worried about helping Vivienne not feel insecure around the man who’d hurt her so badly. When he walked in, he was such a smug bastard. Really flaunting it in her face—you know?”
Presley murmured, “Yeah, that sounds like the Victor I remember.”
“So, I told her to trust me. To follow my lead. It was just an act to make him jealous. And boy did it ever. We paid him no attention, but I made sure he got an eyeful of what looked like me romancing Vivienne. I swear to you, Presley, I never once did anything inappropriate with her. She doesn’t hold a candle to you, anyway, princess.”
She turned in the seat so she could look at me. “I was so foolish, Carter. We weren’t exclusive. We’d never talked about being exclusive. Just because we were having sex didn’t mean you owed me a damn thing. I—I was jealous. And that wasn’t a good look for me. But I realize now how much I overreacted. I should’ve been there as a friend, instead of blowing what we had so far out of proportion,” she said.
I grabbed her wrist and pulled her closer to me. “We were more than friends, and you damn well know it, Presley. We may not have had a talk because it was all so new, but I wouldn’t be sleeping with you and messing around with anybody else. Especially with you.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means I have feelings for you,” I said. “Deep feelings. You weren’t some random hookup for me. I’m sorry if you felt like you were. That was never my intention.”
“You didn’t make me feel that way,” she whispered. “Which is why it caught me so off guard, I think.”
“I never touched her intimately. I just made it look like I was. And I never kissed her. It was all slight-of-eye for Victor’s benefit.”
“Is that why you ended up with a black eye?” she asked, giggling.
“Oh, is that funny to you?” I was so ready to kiss those damn lips silent.
“A little? It was kind of nice to see how much worse off Victor was.”
“That part wasn’t about Vivienne, Presley.”
“Oh,” she said, growing quiet. “What was it about then?”
“I’d put two and two together by then. About who he was. You mentioned Victor’s name the night you confided in me. And when I got him alone, he confronted me about Vivienne. So, I confronted him about you.”
Presley gasped. “You didn’t!”
“Yeah, I did. I’m not sorry either, because he was a complete dirtbag and had what was coming.”
“So, he punched you?”
I shook my head. “Nope. I threw the first punch.”
Presley took my face in her hands and leaned forward, gently kissing my lips.
“Thank you, Carter.”
“I wish I could’ve done more,” I admitted.
“I think you did enough,” she said. “Nobody’s ever done anything quite so chivalrous for me before. It’s kinda sexy.”
“Oh, it gets better,” I told her. I filled her in on his threat and the women who had come forward, thanks to Dex’s attorney and Vivienne’s promise to protect them. We’d be taking Victor all the way down.
“Oh, Carter,” she said, hugging me, “a part of me is so relieved to hear this. And another part of me knows I can’t hide from it anymore.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I want to be a part of the defense team against him.”
“Are you sure? That kind of intense examination isn’t easy.”
“It adds to the pressure though, doesn’t it? The more women who come out. I never would have done this on my own though. Hell, I didn’t even realize it was this bad.”
“Unfortunately, Vivienne suspected. It wasn’t until Dex and I had some friends start asking around about her suspicions that even more cases came to light than we anticipated, too.”
“Well, I’m sorry that’s the case. But I won’t be sorry to see them all get justice.”
“To see yourself get it, too,” I reminded her.
She nodded, then curled against me. “So, now what? It’s easy for me to forgive you, but you have no reason to forgive me, Carter. I didn’t believe in you when I should have. Instead of trusting, I ran. And then, when I should’ve listened, I avoided you. I’m really sorry.”
“Pres, we both made mistakes. I don’t blame you. I know what it all looked like. I can just promise you that I won’t put you in a position to question me again.”
She looked up at me. “What do you mean?”
“I want you more than I need Mister Stand-In.”
“No, Carter. Did you read my article?”
“Yes, I did. It was really good, Presley. I appreciate what you did for me.”
“I didn’t do anything. I just told the world who you really are. I got your flowers, by the way,” she said, resting her hand against my chest. “Thank you.”
I lifted her chin. “I have so much more I want to talk to you about, princess. But more than anything, I need to feel you in my arms. Are we okay?”
“More than okay,” she said, stretching up and kissing me. “In fact, I have a special surprise in honor of your birthday.”
“Oh yeah? And what’s that?”
Presley stood, grinning as she removed her clothes slowly, piece by piece. Once again, she was completely naked underneath—no panties, no bra.
“In honor of your birthday, I wore my birthday suit,” she said, grinning.
I stood and faced her, taking off my jeans and sweater in between kisses. “I couldn’t ask for a better birthday present, Presley. Now get back down here,” I said, yanking her in my lap. Her adorable squeal turned me on to no end, the effects ricocheting straight to my cock.
“I have one more surprise,” she said.
“Oh, yeah? And what’s that?”
She slowly lowered herself over my cock as I leaned back against the lounge chair, the evening sky lighting our way. Presley leaned forward, her long, strawberry blond hair brushing my naked chest and sending goose bumps across my skin in the cool October air.
“I’m on the pill now,” she said, sinking all the way down until she could go no farther.
“Fuuuuck,” I said, finding a slow and steady pace as I drove myself deep inside her, my face buried in her hair.
This was officially the best birthday ever. I got the girl,
I got the money, and the bad guy was going down. Life couldn’t get any better than this for a guy who started out with next to nothing. Now, with Presley in my arms, I had everything I never knew I needed and more. She wrapped her arms around me, and we stayed molded like that together, our bodies making up for lost time as our love was baptized beneath the stars.
EPILOGUE
Presley
“MISS KINCAID, ISN’T it true that—”
“It’s Mrs. Wright, now,” I said, correcting the reporter. We had Dex to thank for that. We were officially the second wedding he officiated, before he decided to retire that hat.
I looked toward a young, timid woman in the back of the crowd. “How about you?”
She looked around, unsure if I’d called on the right person. She smiled gratefully, even as her male counterparts tried shouting over her.
“Thank you, Mrs. Wright. Can you please tell me about Montague Enterprise’s new philanthropic initiative partnering with the LGBTQ community to make sure no one feels alone again?”
I smiled broadly. “Thank you for asking the questions that matter, Ms. . . . ?”
“Silverstone.”
“Well, Ms. Silverstone, my husband and I have joined forces to open The Stand-In, a nonprofit organization staffed with many compassionate volunteers who will be there to help support the LGBTQ community in any way they need—whether it’s to be an advocate for them at their school to make sure their voices and needs are being heard, or to stand-in as a big brother who walks his sister down the aisle when a parent has turned their back on them. Connection, empathy, and equality are the cornerstones of The Stand-In, and we hope to not only be there for those in need, but to also partner with existing nonprofits to help further educate the community about the diverse and beautiful LGBTQ community here in New York City.
“We’ll be working closely with The Center, The New York Anti-Violence Project, and the LGBT Bar Association of New York to further push the agenda of equal rights for everyone. We want to make sure that more impactful fines are levied against those businesses that continue to discriminate against this community.”
