“Mason’s always good to me. He’s a good friend.”
Chase pulled the crumpled envelope that caused all the disruption from his pocket, and handed it to her. Eden looked at it, confused and questioning.
“Go ahead, read it,” he instructed her, watching as she slid out a card and smoothed it between her hands before opening it. The artwork on the front showed a sparkling star atop a snow-covered tree on a blue background, plain but not needing much more than that to comprehend the message of the season. Inside she saw only a simple verse and a handwritten message.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Here’s to another year without her thanks to you!
“I don’t understand, Chase. What does this mean?” Eden asked, handing it back to him.
Chase took a breath in and blew it out. There was a pain on his face she had never seen before. He was suffering terribly with what he wanted to say, and her heart ached for him.
She moved closer. “Chase, what is it?”
“You better sit.” He walked with her to the bed. Instead of sitting with her, he chose to tread the floor while he deliberated exactly where to start.
“I get the same card year after year from a man whose wife I had an affair with. It’s meant to torment me, and it works.” He walked over to look out the window before continuing on, hoping to hell that she tried to understand.
Eden sat quietly in shock, trying desperately not to judge him without hearing his explanation.
“I was her student at the Conservatory of Music. Her name was Clair. She was 18 years older than me, the affair started after I graduated. We met for drinks after a recital. Clair found out about my funding the school and wanted to discuss the distribution of the funds. We drank too much, and she told me about her failing marriage and one thing led to another…”
Chase raked his fingers through his beard and took in a deep breath.
“Did you love her?” Eden asked, not sure if she would get an answer she wanted to hear. Not sure if she should even be asking him questions.
“No baby, I didn’t…the affair went on for almost a year. She taught me many things in that year about women, their wants and needs and so much more, a lifetime of things…I tried to break it off several times, but she suffered from depression and would guilt me into staying with her. Then her husband found out about us and moved her away to Arizona.”
“So the cards…” Eden was trying to understand, but Chase cut her off before she could ask anymore.
“Let me finish, baby.”
He sat in the chair by the window with his hands folded together and his elbows on his knees, staring at the floor. Eden could see droplets falling to the floor like little sparkling crystals in the moonlight and realized that Chase was crying. His tears formed a tiny puddle on the floor at his feet, and she swallowed hard to hold back her own tears.
“She killed herself!” He buried his face in his hands, and Eden gasped, her heart breaking for him. Moving to him, she dropped to the floor and forced herself between his knees, forcing him to look at her. His emerald eyes glistened with tears, and he concealed his face in her neck, fisting her shirt, holding tight as she held him.
“God, Eden, I’m so sorry.”
“You know it wasn’t your fault, right?” she asked, watching him struggle with his words.
Eden wiped his face when he pulled back. “I know. It took years of therapy with a psychiatrist and therapists to get to the point where I stopped blaming myself, but I know.”
“Why don’t you do something to stop her husband from sending the cards?” she asked.
Shaking his head with a shoulder shrug, he tried to explain. “I don’t really know. Maybe it helps him deal with it…it’s time to put an end to it though. I’ll write him a letter. He may just need some kind of closure, it’s the least I could do.”
“You should do that,” she said, standing. Chase put his hands on her hips and his forehead on her stomach, not moving for the longest time.
“Chase, can ask you something?”
“Anything, baby, anything.” He kept his hold on her.
She closed her eyes and prayed that he would understand she was just trying to make sense of what this had done to him. She ran her hands through his raven curls, releasing the scent that was so much her man, and she inhaled before asking. “Is that why you won’t play anymore?”
He lifted his head, looking at her face. She held her hands in the rough beard at his chin. She saw the answer in his eyes; nothing more needed to be said.
Eden dropped the letter that Chase wrote into the mailbox outside of work as she left for the day. She chose not to look at the name on the address label, not wanting to know. She felt that she knew enough and was happy that Chase’s torment might finally stop now.
After signing the last of the customary corporate Christmas cards and handing them over to Amanda, Eden decided to do some Christmas shopping on her way home. She hadn’t thought much about it, but with all the horrible things that happened to them in the last four months, she figured they needed some enjoyment. What better way than with some tacky decorations for the apartment and presents to open on Christmas morning?
Arms loaded and wishing to god she had worn boots because her toes were frozen, she stepped off the elevator into the apartment, hearing the unmistakable sound of Christmas music through the sound system. The smell of freshly baked cookies forced a rumble from her tummy. Eden dumped her packages, flipped off her shoes, slipped into her warm, pink, fuzzy slippers that Chase hated so much, and headed straight to the kitchen.
It was like a cookie factory, the counters covered in cooling racks full of many different varieties of cookies. The table could barely be seen with stacks of cookie tins, tied with ribbon and handwritten labels.
Hazel stood at the sink washing cookie sheets while Chase took a hot tray from the oven and transferred the cookies to cooling racks, when he finally saw her standing there. He smiled until he saw her slippers, shaking his head with that they-gotta-go look on his face. She laughed and came over to give him a peck on the lips, stealing a cookie in the process.
“I’m going to burn those fuzzy nightmares,” he said, picking her up around the waist and swinging her in a circle. He stopped and melted his mouth over hers in a hot, passionate kiss.
“What are all the cookies for?” Eden asked, taking a bite of a cookie and rolling her eyes into the back of her head like she was in the depths of an orgasm. Chase licked the crumbs from her lips, colliding with her tongue in the process.
“Christmas presents for staff and friends,” he said, slapping her hand away playfully as she tried to get another.
“Ok you two, out!” Hazel said, snapping her dish towel at them both. “I will finish up here.”
Chase gave her a peck on the cheek. “Thank you, Hazel.” She shooed him away, embarrassed by his kiss.
“Come.” Chase took Eden’s hand in his and started toward the living room. “Cover your eyes. I have a surprise for you.”
Eden gladly covered them with her hand and held them closed tight in anticipation. When they got to the living room area, just beyond the stairs, he pulled her hand away and standing in front of her was the most beautiful Christmas tree she had ever seen. It stood twelve feet tall, decorated in traditional red and green sparkling ornaments, with teddy bears, bows, nutcrackers, and beautiful crystal bells and angels.
On the top, a huge, crystal, multi-pointed star was all lit up, its reflection shining all around the room like a disco ball. Eden’s mouth hung in awe, her eyes having trouble taking it all in. It reminded Eden of the dance floor at Pulse except the colors differed. They were far more elegant and pleasing to the eye.
The piano was draped with a red satin runner with tassels extending over the edge and a giant red poinsettia with gold sparkling balls arranged throughout sitting in the center. A silver-framed photo of her and Chase together, taken on the boat, sat beside it. She ran her fingers along the f
rame, smiling when she thought of that day. There were pretty wrapped presents under the tree already. She felt relieved that she had done her shopping and would be able to add to them.
“It’s beautiful, Chase. I was going to ask if we could maybe get a little tree, but this is...wow,” she said, hugging into his side as she watched the lights flicker, taking in all the different decorations.
“I haven’t had a Christmas tree in the apartment for many, many years. It’s kind of nice to have some normal around here,” Chase said, quite proud of his accomplishment in decorating. Well, with the help of a certain Christmas tree company that did most of the work. He did supervise though.
“I’ll be very happy with normal,” she said, turning an ornament to face the right direction. “I don’t remember the last time I had a Christmas tree, so this is great.”
A memory of sitting at the base of a Christmas tree as a small child was the only image she could come up with. She had had no desire or time for one, or the Christmas season altogether, for that matter. She always spent Christmas Day with Mikala. They shared too many drinks and ate at the club since it was always open during the Christmas holidays.
Chase handed her a small, wrapped gift. “Here, open this.” She quickly opened it like a small child with a smile on her face.
In the little box was a crystal ornament shaped like a house and etched into it was “Our First Christmas Together.” She threw her arms around his neck, pulling him down to kiss his lips repeatedly.
“Put it on the tree, baby.”
She placed it where she could see it whenever she passed the tree. “It’s perfect, thank you.”
“I see you went shopping. Would you like Hazel to wrap anything for you?” he asked her as he retrieved her packages by the door, trying to peek inside.
“NO!” She slapped his arm and pulled the bags away. “I’ll wrap them, thank you. Did you honestly cheat and have Hazel wrap your presents?”
“Yep! If I had to do it, they’d still be sitting in the bags Christmas morning,” he boldly admitted, slapping her butt playfully, her scowl quickly turning into a laugh. She set her packages at the back of the tree; she would leave them there until she could find time to wrap them.
They walked hand in hand to the sofa, and Chase pulled her onto his lap. “We’ll be doing the whole Christmas dinner bit with my family. I hope that’s ok with you?” He brushed her hair back over her shoulder. “Sable and Waverly are coming home for Christmas with the wives, and my mom’s going to need us all there to get her through the holidays without my dad. Don’t worry, Rheanna won’t be there. She’s still in rehab. I asked Mikala to join us too.”
“Aw, that’s really sweet of you, but she keeps the club open over the holidays so she won’t be able to come.”
“She’s coming,” he informed her. “She even said she’d be on her best behavior. I told her we’d pick her up so she could enjoy a few drinks with us.”
Eden blinked her eyes a few times, dumbfounded at the news. “I don’t know how you convinced her, but well done…I guess that means you’ve taken care of everything?”
With an exaggerated, toothy grin, he admitted, “It’s the control thing. I can’t help myself.” He shrugged his shoulders, and they laughed.
Eden leaned into him and smoothed her hand over his chin, licking her lips seductively. “That’s ok, I like the whole control freak thing.”
“Really, Miss Fox? You better not start something you can’t finish with this control freak.” He reached down and roughly grabbed both her ass cheeks in his hands, forcing her against his impending arousal.
“Who says I can’t finish?” she whispered, grinding her hips, feeling his bulge growing against her.
“Me, remember the control freak?” He moved her back and adjusted himself in his jeans, trying to relieve the pressure of his fervent erection.
Running her fingers down the row of buttons on his shirt, biting her lip enticingly, she asked breathlessly, “What could possibly be more pressing than playful sex?”
He ran his thumb across her cheek. “I have a very important appointment. I’ll be a few hours at most.” He took hold of her pouting bottom lip between his thumb and index finger with a devilish grin. “Then we’ll play.”
“Fine,” she said in a snotty little spoiled-brat tone. This was a side to her he hadn’t seen before. He wasn’t too sure he liked it. Playful was a turn on, but bratty he’d have to see about.
“This demanding side of you is not at all acceptable,” he said, holding her chin in his hand. “It’s cute, but not acceptable.”
Eden wasn’t quite sure whether to take his cautious words seriously since he showed no signs of anger or humor on his face. Her eyes narrowed, and she smirked.
“Am I being demanding, Mr. Dean?” She took his hand from her chin and kissed his knuckles, smiled up into his eyes, and licked her lips before slipping his thumb into her mouth. Circling her tongue around it and sucking hard, she pulled it from the hot warmth of her mouth with a pop sound and walked away toward the stairs.
“Hey, get back here!” he called out, fevered with a new hot passion. He was breathless, and his arousal was aching against the zipper of his jeans.
Turning with a look of pure, unbridled sex, she said, “Oh I’m sorry, but you have an appointment, and next time I require your attention, Mr. Dean, I’ll be sure to tender a requisition.” She twisted her hips with just the right amount of emphasis to tease him, knowing that his full attention would be planted squarely on her butt as she glided up the stairs, moving out of his sight.
She was temptingly hot, and she knew she was killing him. He would have run up those stairs, stripped her naked, and fucked her brains out, but his appointment was one that couldn’t be missed, not if Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were to go as planned.
***
Eden sat at the window watching the snow falling on the city below. The streets were lightly dusted with white, and the promise of a storm had been forecast, bringing far more through the night. New England took on a romantic feel when it snowed, and everything was blanketed in white.
Chase had been gone for hours. Eden was not really worried, but still it wasn’t like him not to at least call to let her know that he was running late or something had come up to detain him. The fact that Mason was in the office upstairs and not with him was what bothered her.
Eden took her phone from her pocket and decided to send him a text, just to satisfy herself that he was ok. Besides, she was starting to get lonely which wasn’t at all something she had ever had to deal with before. She had been quite used to being on her own, that is, until Chase came into her life.
Being alone and having alone time no longer carried any importance. She truly looked forward to time spent with Chase and found she counted the minutes until his return. She even found excuses to not drive to work so they could commute together each day, the drive to and from the office mostly spent silent, just holding hands.
As crazy as it sounded, Eden enjoyed evenings in the penthouse, spent doing nothing more than sitting in the same room reading or working. At bedtime, lying in each other’s arms without a word made her heart tingle, and waking each morning with her man between her thighs had her loving the sunrise each day. She was definitely a morning person now.
Chase I miss you, will you be much longer? Not being demanding! Lol E.
After several minutes of waiting and getting no response, she resent her message thinking that maybe with the impending storm, the text hadn’t gotten through. Resting her forehead against the window and looking down at the street, she sighed when still no reply came. So not like him. His phone was practically glued to his palm most of the time, and now she was starting to worry.
Her phone began playing “Besame Mucho,” and she quickly checked it for Chase’s text.
Sorry baby my phone was in the car. You shouldn’t frown you’ll get wrinkles. C.
She smiled and gave a little titter, relieved that
he had finally texted her. How was he so sure she was frowning? Was he that in tune with her?
You know me that well already that you think I’m frowning? E.
No. I know you are. Turn around. C.
Eden spun around to see Chase leaning against the elevator doors. His eyes sparkled as he watched her come to him, dressed in a cobalt-blue satin robe that he couldn’t recall seeing before. She was breathtaking. When she stood on tiptoe to share a smoldering kiss with him, he ran his hand down her back. She could feel the cold as it penetrated the thin fabric.
“Your hands are cold.” She jumped back from him. He reached out and grabbed the lapel of her robe and rubbed his fingers over the silky fabric, want and lust surging through his blood. She had such an effect on him.
“You look beautiful, baby. I know a way to warm you up.”
She snickered and unzipped his jacket. He shrugged it off, hung it up, and kicked off his boots, lifting her into his arms. Then he started walking to the stairs as her laughter filled the room.
“You two need to get a room,” Mason said, as he came from the office making his way down the stairs with a duffel bag over his shoulder.
“Already on it man, thanks,” Chase said, raising Eden a little higher in the air to show his intent. Eden laughed, giving him a playful slap on the arm, and he lowered her to the floor.
“Well, I’m off. See you kids in a few days,” Mason said, putting down his bag and zipping up his coat, taking a pair of gloves from the pocket in preparation for the cold, wintery exterior.
“Where are you going? You won’t be here for Christmas?” Eden asked him, disappointment on her face.
“Nope. I decided to spend Christmas with my mom and sister, Mel. I’ll be back for New Year’s,” Mason assured her.
“So you’re spending time with family? That’s nice.” Eden smirked at him. “I’ll miss you.”
Mason wrapped her in his arms in a bear-hug-style move and squeezed. He kissed her on the cheek softly, whispering into her ear, “Merry Christmas, sweetheart. Thanks for convincing me.”
Eden's Pleasure (Pulse Book 1) Page 34
