by Vivian Ward
“Two Jack and Coke’s,” she ordered, pushing past us without acknowledging our existence. She was still in a mood; I guess because I wouldn’t let her wear the dress I had just bought. When she’s mad, she likes to drink Jack and Coke. Her drink order showed me that her intention was to get wasted.
After walking around and talking to the few people we knew, all the while consuming several glasses of champagne, Liam finally talked me into dancing with him. We danced awkwardly as we stood about six inches apart, his hands on my waist and mine on his shoulders.
From the corner of my eye, I spotted my sister making out with some guy I had never seen before. I had no idea how many drinks she had already gone through but watching the way the two of them were groping each other publicly, she’d had plenty. I told Liam that I wanted to go talk to her but he convinced me to stay on the dance floor until the song was over.
Once the band was done playing, Liam kissed me on the cheek and we made our way back towards the tables where my sister was heading. The sound of my heels clicking on the floor reminded me of when I was a little girl and loved hearing my dress shoes click whenever I walked across the kitchen floor.
I was taking a sip of my champagne when I noticed that my sister was not only clearly intoxicated, but she was being helped out the door by the man she had been making out with. I looked over to Liam with concern on my face, his face mirrored mine.
“I’ll follow them out and stop them before he gets her into his car. She may not like it but I’ll take her home before she does something she regrets,” Liam assured me. “Are you going to be okay here until I get back?”
“Yes, I’ll be fine,” I replied, realizing that the champagne was doing a fantastic job of making me much less socially awkward.
I finished the champagne in my glass, the bubbles tickling my nose as it went down. Since I didn’t want to look like a loser sitting alone, I figured I might as well go back up to the bar and get another drink. I’d seen quite a few people I knew so I’d just join in on their conversations until Liam returned.
As I was ordering my drink, I felt a tingling on the back of my neck as my spidey senses kicked in. I went to scan the room and almost ran right into the chest of a tall, handsome man.
“Oh, excuse me,” I said embarrassed as I tried to make my way past him. He stopped me by grabbing my arm, turning me back towards him.
“What’s your name?” he asked, his voice deep and attractive.
Surprised by the sudden situation I’d found myself in, I looked up at the man I was talking to. It only took me a moment to realize who he was. His name is Christian Wilde. With his gorgeous eyes, amazing smile and perfectly chiseled facial features, he may have been the most attractive man in the entire Scarsdale area. He is also well known for being the biggest playboy around. He doesn’t even try to hide out.
He’s almost famous for playing the field and I couldn’t even guess at the number of women who have been in his bed. Men like that disgust me, yet for some reason, I was feeling butterflies stir in the pit of my stomach. I was sure the feeling was a result of how much alcohol I’d been drinking because I knew I shouldn’t react to him.
“I’m Sarabelle,” I replied, only realizing that I sounded like a gushing schoolgirl after it was too late.
“Sarabelle, huh? Why don’t you join me at my table and we can get to know one another?”
My mind told me to say no, to make a run for it and surround myself with anyone at the party but him. Yet, there I was, making my way towards his table.
Christian 2
She had no idea what she was about to get herself into. To her, running into me at the bar was nothing more than a chance encounter but in reality, the move was perfectly planned and orchestrated. It had been nearly a month since the first time I laid my eyes on Sarabelle.
There is a charity auction that I attend every year and this was her first year on the committee. I like to pop into charity events from time to time. It helps keep my name out there and can only look good for my investment company. We like to throw our money at a few charities. I mean, it’s a tax write-off, after all, so what could it hurt? If it helped send a little good karma my way, that’s even better.
I was watching the silent auction when I first laid my eyes on her. She was sitting at a table to the side of the stage with the other committee members. I was scanning the room to figure out which ladies were available. I’d already screwed most of the women in the room and wasn’t particularly interested in a repeat performance.
It wasn’t a hard rule and I’d broken it a few times in the past but the sex would have to be exceptional for me to sleep with the same woman more than once. When I saw her laughing with one of the other girls, I noticed that she had a single dimple on her right cheek. She was beautiful but that wasn’t what I was attracted to.
What made me want her was her innocence. I didn’t know her personally but I could tell she was a good girl. The only thing I wanted to do was take her innocence and leave her ruined for all the other men she might encounter later in life. Just thinking about all the dirty things I could do to her made me ache for release.
After the charity event, there was a dinner held to honor everyone who donated their items and time to the cause. That was where I had planned to make my move but it wasn’t meant to be. She left early and my opportunity to turn the good girl bad was lost for the time being. I ended up taking someone else home that night. Even as I screwed her, I closed my eyes and imagined it was Miss Innocent straddling me.
I asked around to find out who she was. Getting her name was easy. She was relatively well-known around Scarsdale, or, at least, her parents were. Their tragedy was plastered all over the news when it happened. It looked like she did okay for herself, though. I looked her up online but every social media profile she had was set to private and I wasn’t about to send her a friend request.
I didn’t need her seeing the lewd comments from women wanting to see me again. I knew I had to bide my time and wait for the right opportunity. When I saw her name on the guest list for the gala, I knew my time had come.
The whole damn night, I had to watch as this guy she brought refused to leave her side. He was like a dog who walked alongside their owner no matter where they were going. If she went to the bar, he was right there with her. If she went out to the dance floor, he was right there with her.
I could be wrong, maybe it was her following him around but I doubt it. They were there together but they didn’t seem like a couple. I was patient and wanted to wait for the right opportunity. That opportunity came as I watched her date stroll out the front door.
I approached her cautiously. I knew she wasn’t going to be an easy lay like the girls I was used to. I would have to move slowly at first if I was going to get what I wanted out of Sarabelle. Before I had a chance to say hello, she swung around and smacked right into my chest. Obviously embarrassed, she looked up at me, flashed a nervous smile and started to walk away.
Once again, that dimple of hers stood out to me. I realized that it was what made her look so innocent. Realizing she was about to get away, I grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back to me, maintaining eye contact as I spoke to her.
After she had told me her name, she accepted my invitation to join me at my table. I had my own spot near the back of the room. It was a private VIP section of sorts. I had a waitress with full bottle service and I wasn’t above convincing this girl to have a drink with me.
She seemed apprehensive so I pulled out her chair to show her I could be a gentleman. I began pouring her a glass of wine, which she waved off immediately. I finished pouring anyway and sat the Chateau Lafite in front of her.
“My name’s Christian. I don’t think I’ve seen you at one of these things before.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Christian,” she said as she scanned the room. “I don’t attend a lot of events. A lot of people I know are surprised to see me here tonight.”
“Why is that
?” I asked. “A beautiful girl like you should use any excuse she can to get all made up and come out to the parties.”
“That’s what my friends tell me. The truth is, I’m not much of a partier. I’d rather keep a low profile. My weekends usually consist of sitting at home with a good book.”
“That’s a shame. The scenery would be a lot better if you came out more often,” I said, trying to lay it on thick but not seem too obvious about it.
“That’s very sweet,” she said as her face turned crimson. “It’s just not something I can get into.”
“I may be mistaken, but didn’t I see you at that charity thing last month?”
“Yes, but that’s only because I do a lot of work with that charity. I lost my parents when I was young so I feel strongly about charities that help orphans find permanent homes. Even then, I left as soon as the silent auction was over. Do you support the charity as well? I’m guessing so if you were there.”
“I give to a number of different charities. I feel like, with as much money as my company makes, it’s important to spread some of that wealth around for good deeds.”
She gulped down her wine in an attempt to calm her nerves. Her nervousness made her that much more attractive to me. I also knew she was not the kind of girl I’d usually go for.
Typically, I would give my attention to girls that I could tell would be a sure thing. For some reason, I was in the mood for a challenge. It would be a different kind of conquest. She would be a trophy of sorts.
“You know Sarabelle, it’s kind of loud in here. Why don’t I have my driver bring the car around and we can go back to my place?”
“No, I don’t think so. I need to wait here for my date. He was going to take my sister home and come back for me.”
“Oh come on, I can have someone watch for him and let him know it’s okay to go on home. It’ll be fun. We can have some wine in my hot tub and you can tell me what you’d like for breakfast in the morning.”
She nearly choked on the wine she was drinking as my comment caught her off guard. I know that it’s a good line. It’s worked on plenty of women. It didn’t appear to be working on her, however.
She wiped her mouth with the napkin lying on the table, excused herself and left my table, heading straight for the door. I lifted my glass in a toast to her as she left. This wouldn’t be the last time I would see her. She would soon find out that I can be a patient man when it comes to something I want.
Sarabelle 3
Tell him what I’d like for breakfast in the morning? Was he serious? The man has a reputation as one of the biggest players in the world. I’d heard about the breakfast line from several people but I thought it was one of those urban legends because it sounded so ridiculous.
I must have been completely wrong because he had just used the line on me. What’s worse is that it must actually work if he keeps using it.
I left his table and ran out the front door as fast as my heels would take me. The cool air caught me by surprise as I descended the stairs. Autumn was arriving early in New York. The evenings were turning colder and the leaves on the trees were starting to turn various shades of orange and yellow.
As I breathed in the fresh night air, I wondered what types of women actually fell for those lines. It didn’t take me long to realize that I knew exactly what kind of women were falling for those lines. I’m nothing at all like those women and he was crazy if he thought a sleazy pickup line like that was going to work on me.
All I wanted to do was go home but Liam’s phone was going straight to voice mail. Knowing how my sister could be, I figured she was being stubborn and putting up a fight.
I didn’t want to stand in front of the building looking like an idiot so I walked into the gardens located behind the ballroom. I’ve loved gardens ever since I was a little kid when my mom and I used to plant flowers out in the yard.
The garden that I had just walked into was huge. There were colorful and fragrant roses, azaleas, daffodils and a variety of other flowers. What caught my eye, however, was a massive archway right in the center that led into some type of maze or labyrinth made from tall bushes and shrubbery.
I figured I had some time to kill so I decided to check it out. This thing was amazing and was much larger than it appeared. As I made my way deeper into the maze, I could hear voices talking from just outside. They were discussing Christian Wilde, the man that had just been trying to pick me up. I couldn’t understand their entire conversation but I did learn that Christian himself was the sponsor of the gala that I had been attending.
He also donated large amounts of money to the charity that was hosting the event. I was a little surprised by what I was hearing. Was it possible that I had judged Christian wrong? After all, the information I’d heard about him all came from second-hand sources. Maybe the things I’d heard weren’t actually true.
Maybe Christian Wilde wasn’t such a bad guy after all.
Wandering further into the huge maze in the garden, I stopped every so often to smell some of the flowers I came across, especially some that I was not familiar with and hadn’t ever seen before. My favorite was these purple flowers that resembled a rose but didn’t have the perfume smell that roses were known for.
Instead, they smelled sweet, almost like a honeysuckle. It made me sad to think that the cold New York weather would soon be swooping in, leaving all of those flowers frosted over, most of them dying until spring came along to revive them, starting the process all over.
As I walked and took in the beautiful scenery, I tried to call Liam again to let him know I was no longer at the gala. When he came back, he would be looking for me and I didn’t want him to worry that something was wrong. Once again, his phone went straight to voicemail. I was going to leave him a message but who does that anymore?
I know when someone leaves me a message, I’m more likely to call them back to see what they wanted before I’d ever listen to it. The only time I ever actually check it is when I get tired of seeing the little envelope icon in my notification bar. After not being able to reach him, I tried calling my sister, hoping Liam had been able to get her home safely so that she could let him know where I was.
Her phone rang and rang before her voice mail picked up as well. Hanging up my phone and tossing it into my purse in disgust, I realized that I’d been walking aimlessly in this giant maze and hadn’t paid any attention to where I was going. No matter where I turned, I seemed to run into a dead end. When it kept happening, my palms started to get sweaty and my heart began to race. Being lost in the labyrinth was beginning to freak me out.
I continued to try to make my way through one way or another. If I couldn’t find my way back to the entrance, hopefully I’d be able to make it out the other side. The thing that bothered me was how dark it had become inside the garden.
The front of the maze was illuminated from the lights outside but none of it was able to penetrate the significant growth within. Turning a corner, I jumped in surprise when I realized I wasn’t alone.
Straight ahead was a man with his back towards me. He was well-dressed and had likely been at the gala as well. I was about to speak up to ask if he knew how to get out when I realized that he was with a woman. She was wearing a black dress with the top pulled down, exposing her breasts.
They weren’t having sex but it looked like they weren’t far off from starting. The two of them were making out pretty heavily when the woman looked over his shoulder and saw me standing there.
The girl was either on something or freaked out for some reason because her eyes turned wide and her face went white as she pushed them man off of her, pulled her dress up and took off running out of the maze. If I had been in my right mind, I would have followed her as she looked like she knew where she was going. Instead, shock took over me and I was frozen in place as I realized I knew who she was.
She was an older woman who is married to Benjamin Eager, a man who was one of my dad’s best friends when he was alive. I s
aw them together at the party so I knew they were still together. I didn’t know who she was making out with but I knew it wasn’t her husband.
“Hey, you know she’s a married woman, right? Don’t you have any respect for the vows her and her husband took?” I asked, disgusted by what had been happening.
“Yeah, I know she’s married. It’s not me she’s cheating on so it’s not my problem,” replied the very familiar voice. I wasn’t able to put my finger on it at first but as soon as he took a few steps out of the shadows, I realized who I was talking to. It was Kade Nichols.
Kade was my age, so the fact that he had been making out with a woman much older than him should have been surprising, but in reality, it was what everyone had come to expect from him. He had a thing for married women and had ruined several marriages with no regrets whatsoever. Sometimes I wondered what went wrong with him.
It would probably surprise many people who’ve only met me in the last few years to know that Kade Nichols and I used to be very close. In fact, the two of us had been best friends ever since we met in kindergarten. We did everything together and had lots of play dates.
We even used to make sure we napped next to each other in class. Our friendship continued as we got older and was going strong all the way up until I was placed in state custody. Kade and I lost touch but I thought about him often. As soon as I was back out on my own, he was the first person I looked up.
Unfortunately, the Kade that appeared at my house did not match the person that I used to know. The boy who used to come over to watch movies and had me cracking up with laughter had become a chauvinistic pig who thought he was God’s gift to women everywhere. After hanging out with me a few times, he developed some sort of crush on me and decided that he had to have me. I had to tell him over and over that he was a best friend to me and that’s how I saw him.
