My brief mention of Maddie to Cyrus crossed my mind. I shrugged and reached for my box. “Delivery.”
She opened hers and read the dress label. “It’s a sequin-and-crystal pink-and-silver ball gown.”
I showed her my tuxedo. “I didn’t send for this either.”
She checked her phone and raised an eyebrow. “Also, there is a limo downstairs with your name on it.”
Date night had been upgraded. And it was probably my mother’s doing. Cyrus must have told her Maddie and I were going out.
I walked around my desk, holding the box. “Shall we change and go find out together?”
She hugged her dress. “You’re not lying? I said I’d go out, but we don’t need… fancy.”
I caressed her cheek. “I’d never lie to you, Maddie. It was probably my mother who set this up.”
Her eyes went as wide as saucers. “Why would she…?”
I hadn’t wanted to pressure her, and that was partly why I was okay with going anywhere she wanted so as not to trigger her. I whispered, “My mother, father, and brothers all think of you as family.”
She sucked on her lip again. I wasn’t sure what she would say. Then she said, “Give me ten minutes.”
I changed in the private bathroom attached to my office. She’d bounced out before I could offer her the room. I fixed my tie and walked out. As I waited in the office hall, she stepped out of the side room, the dress floating at her feet and hugging her waist. It reminded me how perfect her breasts were. For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.
“You look gorgeous.”
She twirled. “Thank you. I feel pretty like this.”
I offered my arm so we could head out. “You’re more than that. Let’s find out what they planned.”
The elevator ride was fast, as most people had left for the weekend. As we approached the limo driver, he handed me an envelope.
“What’s this?” I read the first part of the itinerary and showed Maddie how my mother’s signature was at the bottom.
The driver held our door open. I waited for Maddie to get in, then I followed her. “Our dinner starts on the helicopter for an aerial view of the city.”
She settled in. We fit together easily. “My daughter talked about the helicopter ride with your mom, and I was slightly jealous. It sounded fun.”
We rode through the traffic with ease, and she curled her fingers in mine. This was good. It was more than I’d planned already. The limo stopped at the helicopter pad, and the smell of steaks sizzled in the air as the helicopter finished loading in the back.
I waited at the door for Maddie. “Come.”
We headed into the helicopter, and the roar of the blades blasted in our ears until all the doors were closed. My phone beeped with a message from my mother. I opened it and read what she’d planned for the entire night.
Once we were level and the noise was lower, a waiter served the champagne. When we were alone, Maddie said, “The city is truly magical up here.”
Her smile was as bright as the buildings. I swallowed. “It’s not the lights of the city that catch my eye.”
She pressed her hands to her heart. “Me? All of this feels too good to last.”
I put my phone down, and she scooted closer. “Where are we heading?”
The plan was dinner in the clouds and then more food and a spa service, though I told her the most important parts first. “Dinner and a one-night hotel reservation at Glenmere, a country home that is now a hotel. It once housed Gilded Age royal visits.”
She stilled and her lips thinned. “What about Aurora?”
Fair enough. I’d thought we would just get pizza and a beer. I showed her the message. “She’s to stay with my mother unless you want to head home early and pick her up.”
The helicopter headed over the bay, where there were fewer lights except those in the skyline. She handed me my phone back and then held up her glass to clink. “No. I’ll stay. This was sweet of them, and we’re talking, so it’s a win-win for both of us.”
I hoped so. Flying in the air was just the beginning for us.
Maddie
The ride was thrilling, and the meal made my mouth water. Honestly, the salad alone was more than I usually ate for dinner. For ten years of my life, I’d watched everything I ate because Bob refused to allow me to get fat. Since I’d been with Arman, all he’d done was ensure that I had food, water, shelter, and clothes—and a job so I could get all those things for myself. He treated me like I was important.
If life was a fairy tale, he qualified as a prince amongst men.
The steak arrived, and it was easy to cut. My mouth watered. I ate a small piece. It went down smoothly. “This is delicious.”
He put his napkin on the table. “We’ll tell the staff to compliment the chef.”
I laughed. We ate in easy silence. In the air, I could believe romance might be in my life forever, and if I married Arman, my life would never be the same. We could soar, fly, or sail off into the sunset like little girls were told was possible. I could half imagine we’d fly off to Tahiti if I gave him a clue that was what I wanted.
I laughed to myself as I finished my meal and then sat back. “Is everyone in your family as romantic as you are?”
His face turned a little pink, and he shook his head. “I didn’t do anything today. I thought we’d keep it low-key like when we went out to dinner in Virgin Cove.”
If he’d told me we were going out like this, I would have said no. We both knew it. I shrugged. “That would have been nice too.”
Then I sipped my wine. Like him, his family was amazing. They weren’t just rich and entitled. They were down-to-earth and the best people I’d ever met. Roxanne treated me better than my own mom did. And Arman was from the same stock.
My heart raced. This wasn’t who I was. This wasn’t my life. I put the glass down and tried to ignore the tension building in my gut.
He laughed. “If I’d thought you’d accept all this planning, I’d have pulled out all the stops.”
Right. Maybe this is the weekly standby date the Norouzi men know how to do to impress women.
That thought grounded me, though I sipped my wine and then confidently said, “And here I thought I was the creative one when it came to planning activities.”
He winked. “Very true. I hire the best people to handle details.”
Perhaps they even owned stock at the hotel. Everything clicked in my mind as I thought of reasons not to get carried away. But Arman was the real deal, so I said, “You’re patient, kind, smart, and romantic. It was your idea to go out, and you’ve been eying a horse-drawn carriage ride in the park.”
His eyes narrowed, and I could have sworn he winced. “I have?”
Perhaps I was being hard on him. It wasn’t his fault that I was a mess. I put down my full cup and stared at the liquid. “Yeah. When you asked me out the other day.”
He massaged the back of his head. “I didn’t say a word.”
I moved to sit beside him and patted his arm. “I know you better than you think I do.”
He gently bumped into me. “That’s nice to hear.”
It was time to stop believing in fairy tales. I sucked in my lips and took a minute to gather my strength. The helicopter started its descent. It’s now or never. “So, tell me about your dating past.”
His eyes widened in shock, and he sat stiffer. My stomach had butterflies. I shouldn’t have asked. I’d found to way to screw the night up.
“Why drag that up?”
Because happiness isn’t a state of mind that blooms quickly. I ignored the trembling in my gut and quickly said in a low, shaky voice, “I wondered if there was a string of women waiting for a night like this with you, but I shouldn’t have let that out. I’m scared and out of my element.”
“I’d never hurt you.” His shoulders tightened. It was clear I’d offended him. “I don’t tend to give my heart out to just anyone.”
I wasn’t enough for him, yet ho
pe kept popping up inside me. I glanced up at him. “You wouldn’t on purpose. You’re the best man I ever met. But there is nothing I can offer you that you don’t have already.”
He closed his eyes and for a second as if thinking this through. Then he said, “You don’t see yourself in the mirror the way I see you.”
I shook my head. Impossible dreams were bad for me, as they created unrealistic expectations. But this wasn’t a judgment on him. “That’s sweet. It’s hard to believe in this life you’re presenting. It feels like a dream.”
He stared up at the stars that were appearing. “I’m not presenting anything to you. Since you arrived, I’ve been half-worried you were going to leave, and I never worry about anything.”
Hurting him was the last thing I wanted to do, but it seemed I kept doing it. I stared out the window to avoid him. “And I worry about everything.” Especially pleasing you.
He put his hand out in front of me like he wanted me to hold it. “You don’t have to. Just trust me.”
The helicopter landed, but the engine still roared. We stayed in our seats, but I took his hand and yelled, “Well, I trust you because you’re the only man who ever even tried to get to know me.”
His palm on mine made me feel amazing. I never wanted to let go. We stayed where we were until a staff person opened the door.
We left the loud helicopter and stepped away from the helipad, and he said, “Then I’m the lucky one.”
I glanced up the hill at a pink building with blue shutters. “Are we at the hotel?”
He nodded. “Up the path. We’ll have to walk or take the golf cart up.”
I patted my stomach. We’d skipped dessert, and I was full. “Walk. Dinner was too delicious.”
He squeezed me gently and said with a smile, “Whatever you want.”
“That’s what you always say.” I began to blubber.
He was always so sweet. I needed to stop lying to myself or digging out reasons to avoid him because the truth was he was perfect in every way.
Arman
Maddie’s tears were a punch in the gut. I’d wanted to join her life with mine, but every time it seemed we were getting closer, something happened, and I wasn’t designed to handle a woman’s tears.
I hugged her. “Don’t cry. I’ll take you home if that’s what you want.”
She grabbed my shirt, and her eyes widened. “No. These are tears, but it’s not… I’m happy. I promise. I don’t know what’s happening to me.”
Her cheeks didn’t dry. We walked slowly to the door, and just outside, I whispered, “Everything is going to be okay.”
She wiped her face and reached for the handle. “Maybe. I’m all screwed up. Let’s go inside.”
Right. The truth was, she didn’t want me. At the counter, when I handed over my ID and credit card, I said to her, “We can get two rooms if that makes you feel better.”
She sucked in her lip. “I came here to be with you.”
The clerk said, “You’re in a suite that has two master bedrooms.”
She smiled for the first time since we’d arrived. “Let’s go, Arman. We need to talk.”
I nodded. This might be the last time we were together. Letting her go was going to take every ounce of strength I had. That night, I would draw up preliminary plans to ensure that she and Aurora never suffered.
When we got to the hotel room, she opened the door. On the helicopter, I’d half imagined carrying her over the threshold like she was my bride. But I only closed the door behind us as she walked in.
“The room is incredible.” She didn’t even look at me as she headed to one of the closed doors of a bedroom and called over her shoulder, “Don’t go anywhere. I need to clean myself up for a few minutes.”
There was nothing I could do. If she wanted to be with me, she needed to make the choice. I headed to the other side to give her space as I called out, “I’ll have staff send up our change of clothes, Maddie.”
“Have them be fast. I want to be alone with you.”
I stopped and faced her from across the room. My heart whispered that she loved me. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I need a few minutes, and then I’m all yours.”
I deflated. That wasn’t a declaration. She was going to break my heart, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
Chapter Eighteen
Maddie
Arman had to think I was hysterical and crazy. Blubbering and running away weren’t how I intended to end our amazing night. I needed to switch this around fast.
First, I changed out of the ball gown. I wasn’t comfortable in it. I found linen pants and a simple T-shirt in my size because, of course, the Norouzi family remembered small details. At least, Roxanne did.
He was from the best family. I rubbed my face. If I didn’t act fast, I would lose my opportunity to fix everything with the only man who’d made my heart stir.
I popped my head out to the living area, but the lights were out. Damn. He’d left. I tensed and grabbed my phone. Hopefully, his was on. I typed, Arman, can you meet me in the living room?
Then I closed my eyes and prayed. In meditation class, and every night when I closed my eyes, I wished he was near me.
When he walked toward me, my entire body lit up. I’d never been like this with anyone else. Fear held me back. I knew it, but I wasn’t sure what to do about it.
My phone beeped, and I opened my eyes. My heart leapt in my chest as I read, Let me get dressed.
My eyes misted, but I wouldn’t cry again. Maybe I wasn’t good enough for him, but that didn’t mean I should ruin our date. I rolled my shoulders back and rushed out of the bedroom.
Arman tugged a T-shirt over his body. “What’s going on?”
I wanted to wake up next to him. No, I wanted his arms holding me tight. I couldn’t say either without starting a fight. So I said, “I’m sorry. I’m know I’m acting like a crazy person.”
“It’s okay. I think you’ve been through a lot in your life. I know you need time.”
He had a sad smile. My heart hammered, but I lifted my chin. “I saw the spa menu and how we have a couples massage booked.”
He crossed his arms. “We don’t have to go.”
I fought the urge to tremble and instead stepped closer. “But I want to. I… I want to apologize for throwing a wet blanket on our date. I’m good now and hope the night’s not over.”
For a moment, I wasn’t sure what he would do. Then he nodded and lowered his arms. “Let me get my shoes.”
I tapped my hands together and headed to the door. He followed right behind, and I decided that night I wouldn’t think about the future or the past, and hopefully, we would live in the moment.
As we walked to the door, I said, “Well, the massage probably means you won’t need them.”
He stared at me like I was the confused one. “Only you get to see my heels.”
I let out a giggle as we headed down the hall. “I had no idea the soles of your feet were that private to you.”
His shoulders slumped, and he smiled. “You’re in a better mood.”
I swallowed. It was time to explain, so I stopped and faced him. “I needed to splash some water on my face, but I’m better now and looking forward to a spa.”
We walked down the stairs together. He placed his hand on my lower back, and we entered the spa. I glanced around the room and stared at the bubbling fountain. After we checked in, we were shown around. The spa had blue decor with a hot tub and a cool pool on either side.
Arman asked me, “Have you ever had a massage?”
My cheeks felt hot, and I and said in a low voice, “No.”
We were left in a changing room that had two separate doors. He lifted off his T-shirt, revealing his hard muscles. I wanted to press against him and hold him tight.
I licked my lips. “I’m glad we are doing this together.” I checked that the door to our suite was closed and then lifted my shirt.
“Me too.” He toss
ed me a white towel and pointed to our pants, and I untied the strings. “Did you think I’d go without you?”
A full-blown laugh escaped me. I hung my clothes up and then winked at him. “Maybe, and since you are the hottest guy I’ve ever seen, I can’t have you going alone. I figured I’d have to protect you.”
He came up behind me and kissed my shoulder. “It’s more my job to protect you from danger.”
“I think being afraid of life is done for me.” I turned toward him.
I would never put myself in danger. There was no more need. I was with the only man I’d ever wanted.
Arman
The music and massage seemed to quiet Maddie. A team of masseuses worked on our backs, and it sounded like she snored a little. Once they were done, she turned and stared at me, more relaxed than I’d ever seen her. She didn’t breathe a word as we headed back to the changing room. There was a couch, and I was half-tempted to strip that robe off her, but the sheer joy on her face caught me off guard.
I took my time and didn’t rush to the locker. “So, how was it?”
She curled up on the couch next to me and placed her knees at my side like we were sharing a secret. “Amazing. I never knew a woman could push my muscles that deep.”
Her happiness made the day perfect. I refused to worry about the future. “I’ve had you riding me, so I’m spoiled.”
The twinkle in her eye made my skin practically dance with awareness. “Hmm. I’d be jealous if you weren’t lying right beside me.”
Maddie jealous would be cute to see—not that I would pursue that. “I didn’t think you’d ever be jealous.”
She shook her head. “Why not? You’re the most desirable guy I’ve ever met.”
“You didn’t get out much.”
She rubbed my arm, and I half wanted to strip off her robe. The growing need for her overpowered the relaxation.
She was bright and happy as she said, “Let’s not pretend you’re modest. I’ve seen your closet.”
Honey Bun: Virgin Cove Trillionaire Single Brothers Page 15
