by Leanne Banks
“Of course,” she said, smoothing her dress with her hands. “Sharon, come stand here with me.”
Sharon shook her head shyly. “Oh, no. It’s your time to shine. You look beautiful.”
“But I want my close family members with me,” Calista said. “Please get my sisters and bring them here.”
Calista posed for several pictures before her sisters and Sharon returned. Then she took several pictures with them. Tami took a few pics with her cell phone. Calista drank in the sight of her happy sisters and reminded herself repeatedly that they were the reason she was doing this. Their lives would be so much better because she was marrying Leo.
One of Leo’s staff poked her head in the doorway. “It’s time,” she said with a smile. “Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Tami and Tina chorused, giggling with excitement.
Sharon placed a kiss on Calista’s cheek. “I’ll see you on the dock. You can still change your mind,” she said.
How I wish. Calista smiled instead. “I’m all decided. Thank you for coming today.”
“Wouldn’t miss it,” Sharon said. “Be happy.”
Happiness for herself was the last thing on Calista’s mind as she and her sisters walked down the staircase. Just before they stepped outside, Tami turned to her and adjusted her veil. “You really do look beautiful. Leo is one lucky dude.”
Calista laughed. “You’re sweet. Both of you look gorgeous yourselves.”
“Do we really get to go for a boat ride after the ceremony?” Tina asked.
“Sure do. We’re changing clothes and eating on Leo’s yacht,” Calista said. “Now let’s get this over—” She barely caught herself. “Let’s get this wedding on its way.”
On either side of her, her sisters escorted her down to the dock. As she rounded the corner, she saw the minister, George and Leo. Her heart felt as if it dipped to her feet at the sight of him. Dressed in a designer black suit with a crisp white shirt and crimson tie, she knew the second he saw her. She felt the weight and heat of his gaze from yards away.
“Ready?” Tami asked. “Why did you stop?”
Calista had been so distracted she hadn’t even noticed she wasn’t moving forward. Tami glanced in the direction of Calista’s gaze and gave a sigh. “He’s pretty hot, isn’t he?”
“Tami,” Tina whispered. “Show some dignity. This is a wedding.”
“You were the one ready to go jump on a boat before we’d even gotten to the dock,” Tami retorted.
“Girls, you’re supposed to be escorting me. Please stop arguing,” Calista said, gritting her teeth. She began to walk again.
She felt Leo’s gaze take her in from head to toe and wondered if he approved of the full-length A-line ivory chiffon gown with fitted sweetheart bodice that suddenly felt as if it was suffocating her. Her hair was half up, half down in loose curls. Pearl drop earrings dangled from her ears. She felt like a sacrificial bride from the Regency period.
Mentally rolling her eyes at herself, she stiffened her spine. Cut the martyr act. She was a woman taking control of her and her sisters’ destinies. She only had to last six months. Not a lifetime.
She finally stood opposite the minister and focused her attention on the kindly faced man for a moment while she wondered if she would burn in hell for what she was doing. She felt a stab of guilt and brushed it aside. She couldn’t have done this to just anyone. She’d chosen Leo because of what his father had done to her family. In the scheme of things, it was fair. It wasn’t as if he would miss the money.
Lord, what thoughts to have while she was getting married. “Who gives this bride?” the minister asked.
“We do,” Tami and Tina said and giggled. Tami took Calista’s hand and reached for Leo’s, then put them together. “Be good to my sister,” she whispered to Leo. “Or I’ll make your life a living hell. Ask Aunt Sharon. I can do it.”
Leo blinked and shot Calista a bemused look. Embarrassed, Calista shook her head and mouthed teenagers. Leo’s mouth lifted in a half grin and he nodded, both his hands enclosing hers.
Within seconds, she was held captive by his gaze as he began to recite the vows. “I, Leonardo Grant, take you Calista French…”
The rest of the ceremony passed in a daze. She looked down at the diamond and platinum band Leo placed on her finger. Was this real? Was this happening?
“Calista,” Leo whispered. “Ring.”
Biting her lip, she took the platinum band from Tina and pushed it down his finger. His hands were so much larger than hers, warmer and stronger. In a different lifetime, she wondered if she could have trusted him, relied on him. She remembered what his father had done and dismissed the thought. Deep, underneath it all, Leo was a liar, and she’d just joined with him in the biggest lie of her life.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.”
Leo lowered his head and took her mouth with a kiss of possession and the promise of passion. He’d done his part. Now she would have to do hers.
Less than an hour later, they changed clothes and took Leo’s yacht for a ride around the lake. After a late lunch that she didn’t consume because she was still too nervous to eat, her sisters and Justin went for a swim. Leo made friendly small talk with all of her family. He promised her sisters that he would take them skiing next time they visited.
All too soon, the sun faded and the air turned chilly. The yacht returned to the dock and Calista kissed her family goodbye before Leo’s helicopter took them away. She watched them go, fighting a feeling of abandonment. She felt Leo slide his hand behind her back and around her waist and closed her eyes, girding herself for the night to come.
“Thank you for letting them come,” she said. “It meant a lot to me.”
“You’re welcome,” he said, his lips twitching. “As long as Tami doesn’t come after me with any sharp objects.”
She laughed despite the way her stomach twisted with nerves. “She’s a big bluffer. Very dramatic and emotional. She’s the one who has asthma. She gives Sharon and me hives with some of the things she does, but she’s got a big heart.”
“Like her sister,” he said and began to lead her back to the house.
“Hmm,” she said in a noncommittal voice.
“You haven’t eaten anything all day,” he said.
She glanced up at him again, taking in his hard jaw and the sheer maleness of his physique. “How do you know?”
“My staff told me you ate nothing before the wedding, and I noticed that you ate nothing on the boat. Except for one bite of the cake.”
“It was a big day.”
“Yes, so I want you to eat something now. What shall I ask my staff to bring you?”
“I hate to bother them.”
“You’re not bothering,” he said impatiently. “They are paid to do this. They spend a lot of time bored, so they’re actually glad to have something to do.”
Skeptical, she shot him a sideways glance. “Who told you that? Someone who wanted a raise?”
He chuckled. “If you don’t tell me what you want, then I’ll order a five-course meal.”
“A turkey sandwich,” she said quickly.
“Done,” he said and squeezed her shoulders. She was still surprised at how kind he’d been to her sisters. She hadn’t expected him to be an ogre, just distantly polite. Instead, he’d been charming. With his arm around her, she could almost believe he felt protective of her. Almost.
Four
Leo drank a beer while he watched Calista take a few bites of her turkey sandwich. Her gaze skittered from his and she took tiny sips from her water. It took him a moment to read her, but then realization jolted him. She was nervous. He’d noticed her nerves at the wedding, but assumed they would pass after the vow-taking.
She was still on edge, he noticed, and felt a foreign twist of tenderness toward her. Virginal nerves, he concluded. In this day and age, who would have thought it? There was no need to worry, he thought as he took in the sight of
her. He could have easily seduced her before now. Some odd sense of ethics he hadn’t known he possessed had made him pause.
No need for that anymore, he realized as he watched her lick her lips after she took another drink of water. “The sandwich was a good idea, thanks,” she said.
“I frequently have good ideas,” he said, holding her gaze.
“I’m sure you do,” she said.
“It’s been a long day,” he said. “We should go upstairs.”
Calista’s heart jumped into her throat. She’d known this would happen. Leo was now her husband. He would pay for the security of her sisters’ future and she would pay by being his wife, albeit temporarily. Part of her couldn’t dismiss the fact that this man was connected to her father’s financial failure and subsequent death. In a way it would be making love with the devil.
She took a deep breath. There was no need to be melodramatic now. Leo was just a man, not a god or a devil. Right? Why was she so apprehensive? It wasn’t as if she…
Stiffening her spine, she told herself to buck up to her end of the deal. “Can I grab another water?” she asked with a smile.
“I have plenty in my room.” He extended his hand and his gaze fell over her like the heat from a midafternoon scorching summer day. She took his hand and he led her upstairs, stopping at his bedroom door to open it. Before she realized it, he swooped her up into his arms and carried her inside.
“Oh,” she said. “A surprise.”
“It’s a tradition. Since you’re a new bride, I thought you might enjoy it,” he said, his face close to hers.
All too aware of his strength, she spotted a bottle of champagne and a tray of strawberries next to the huge bed that seemed to dominate the wall facing the windows. Lit candles provided a seductive ambiance. She clung to his shoulders. “I didn’t know you were much for traditions.”
“I’m not,” he said. “But I don’t have to buck all of them.”
He set her down on the bed. “Now we can have a private toast,” he said and popped open the champagne. He spilled the light golden liquid into one flute then another.
Giving her one of the glasses, he lifted his own. “To us and all the traditions we’ll make and break together.” He clicked his glass against hers. “Starting tonight.”
Her heart hammered at the expression on his face. He looked as if he could literally consume her. She’d known he was highly sexual from the first time she’d seen him in person, but now she wondered if she would be able to…Pushing the thought from her mind again, she nodded and took a long drink of champagne, then another. She suspected, however, that she would need to consume the entire bottle to bring her anxiousness under control.
Leo sat on the bed and lifted his hand to cup her cheek. “There’s no need to be nervous.”
“I’m not,” she said. “Really.”
His lips lifted in a half grin. “You just need something else to think about,” he said and lowered his mouth to hers. His lips were sensually rich and expressive. He rubbed his mouth from side to side, slipping his tongue inside when she took a half breath.
“You taste delicious,” he murmured against her mouth. “And I plan on tasting every inch of you.”
The vibration of his mouth on hers did things to her. She felt warmer, her face felt hot and her skin seemed ultrasensitive, hyperaware of his potent masculinity. He continued to kiss her, his caresses growing more aggressive. A shocking excitement flooded her.
How had that happened, she wondered. She’d been dreading this. She had. She felt his hand threading through the back of her hair, tilting her head to give him better access to her mouth. He pulled her against him and she instinctively clung to his strong shoulder, her champagne glass tilting precariously.
Leo pulled it from her hand, took a sip and then swore. Fire flickered in his eyes. “You’re amazing…” He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring. He lifted the glass to her lips and she took a sip.
Setting the glass on the bedside table, he turned back to her and without a second of preparation, he pulled her shirt over her head. Three seconds later, he slid his arms behind her and unfastened her bra. Her breasts sprang free and he filled his hands with them. The sight and sensation of his tanned skin against her pale breasts was so sensual she had to close her eyes.
There was something primitive and carnal between her and Leo. She’d glimpsed flickers of it before and dismissed it as overworked imagination or hypersensitivity. He pulled off his shirt and his skin, molding to his muscles, glistened in the candlelight.
His strength, inside and out, called to her. She had been forced to be strong so long. What a temptation to be able to lean on someone else. And she suspected he was strong enough. She gave into the lure and slid her hands over his shoulders and biceps. “Good Lord, how did you get such an amazing body? Do you work out all the time?”
His teeth flashed. “No, but I have George to keep me in shape. I’m glad you appreciate it, since he beats the crap out of me.”
He slid his finger over her bicep. “You do some working out yourself,” he murmured.
She shivered again and his gaze slid to her breasts. “Gotta keep up my delusion of having control over my life,” she said.
His hands covered her breasts and she forgot what else she was going to say. He slid one of his hands down to her jeans and unfastened the top button. The sound of her zipper sliding downward felt as if it were magnified between her breath and his. He pushed her jeans and lace panties down over her thighs. She felt naked in more ways than one.
Her discomfort must have showed. “Looks like you need another distraction,” he said and lifted the glass of champagne from the nightstand. He splashed some of the cool bubbly over her, shocking her with the chilled wet liquid.
“What are you—”
She broke off when his warm lips licked the champagne from her chest. Then he moved lower to her breasts. She bit her lip as her nipples grew hard and sensations swam to all her erogenous zones. She tried very hard not to arch her back, but her body acted out of its own volition.
“Good,” he muttered against her nipples.
She felt as if her body began to spin. It had been so very long. She shouldn’t let herself go. She hadn’t in such a long time.
His hand slid between her thighs and he found her wet and swollen. Making a growling sound of approval, she felt him move away for several breaths. She began to come back down, but then he pulled her against his naked body. The sensation was so delicious and seductive she began to spin again.
“Leo,” she murmured, wrapping her arms and legs around him. She wanted to absorb his strength, his passion, his life.
He swore under his breath. “Oh, damn it. I want inside you,” he said and rolled on top of her. Pushing her thighs apart, he thrust inside her.
She blinked at the sensation, the thick, hard penetration of him.
A strange look crossed his face, and she couldn’t prevent herself from wriggling beneath him.
He moaned and thrust again. The pleasure inside her grew. He began to pump. She clung to him, climbing higher and higher. Close, oh, so close, she was ready to burst free.
He sank inside her one last time, spilling his release in a long ecstasy-filled groan.
She bit her lip, still brimming with arousal, on the edge of a cliff, wanting to soar off of it. Something inside stopped her. Yawning need screamed inside her as deep as a cavern.
Leo rolled off of her, breathing heavily. “You weren’t a virgin,” he said. “You tricked me.” A moment later, he rolled off the bed, grabbed his pants and left the room.
Calista stared after him as she tried to pull her mind and body together. Sexual need still hammered through her, clouding her mind. She felt as if she had no control of her body or mind. He’d taken both.
You tricked me. His words echoed through her mind. She hadn’t thought he would know whether she was a virgin or not. After all, how many times had he had sex with a virgin? Her heart hammere
d with sudden fear. What if he annulled their marriage? What if, after all this, she still couldn’t take care of her sisters?
Leo sat in the upstairs den with a bottle of scotch and bucket of remorse. His bride, the so-called virgin, had tricked him. What a fool he’d been, not wanting to seduce her lily-white sexual innocence from her. He hadn’t wanted to taint her with his carnal needs in hopes that her purity would somehow cleanse his dirty past.
He chuckled with no humor. For a man who’d spent his youth deceiving others, he’d just experienced the biggest heist himself. He tossed back another shot of scotch. What was he going to do with her now?
The sound of a board creaking broke his solitude. He glanced up and saw her, wearing a white silk robe that belied her innocence. Her lips swollen from his kisses, her cheeks white and her eyes full of fear, she met his gaze. A surge of desire rolled through him. Lord, he was a fool.
“I never said I was a virgin,” she said softly.
“You just inferred, suggested and did everything but say it,” he said.
“You’re not going to understand this,” she said, crossing her arms under her chest.
“I can agree with that,” he said, leaning back in his chair. He gave a cynical laugh.
He saw a flash of anger and defiance shoot through her green eyes, but she seemed to make an effort to quell it. She sat down in the chair across from his. “The truth is I had a sexual relationship during my sophomore year in college. It was a mistake. I thought I was in love. I thought he was the one. But he wasn’t.”
“Because he didn’t have enough money?” he asked bitterly.
She narrowed her eyes and took a breath. “No. Because he lied to me and told me he loved me when he was involved with two other girls. That’s when I knew I couldn’t give myself that way again unless there was going to be a long-term commitment.” She took another breath. “Yes, I made a mistake. Maybe you’ve never made a mistake. But if you had, then you’ll know how it feels to want to make a fresh start.”
