by Lena Skye
He said nothing and just looked at her. She spun around and unzipped her dress in front of him, surprising him. She stripped herself from her gown, and he saw she had on racy lace and satin lingerie that followed her posterior in such a lovely manner, he had to stop himself from gripping her behind.
But that wasn’t all. She stripped off of her lingerie too, leisurely, and it tortured him. His animalistic urges were starting. He couldn’t be celibate with her around, not with her undressed like this. Even without clothes she was gorgeous. She turned to face him and he saw she was bare down there, and he wanted to smother his face in it. Sweet mother of…
She was looking at him, as if she was bored. “I need to sleep in a bit. If you’ll excuse yourself out that’d be great.”
What did she just say? Did she just tell him to leave? He walked toward her, determined to overpower her. He wanted sex and he wanted it now. “I’m having you tonight,” he said with a clenched jaw.
“If you want me tonight, you’re going to have to listen to screams the whole time. I’ll scream you’re hurting me,” she said with a hint of a smile. “That way everyone on this floor can hear. Justin Henderson hurts lover in hotel room.”
He stopped in place. He was not expecting that at all. “You think you’re so smart—”
“Get out, I’m tired. You can have me tomorrow if you aren’t busy,” she said coyly, proudly displaying her nakedness. The spa did wonders yesterday, she thought.
He thought about the engagement party tomorrow and shook his head. The bloody hell!
Mikaela saw his jaw hardening and she knew he was horny. You’re not the only one that can manipulate, she thought.
Justin took a deep breath and spun around, bidding her a good night. He had been caught off guard. He had not expected her to make such a bold move. It was a move that worked. That move gave me damned blue balls, he thought, still infuriated as he made the journey home. He would need a glass or scotch later. He thought about how lovely she looked, and he hadn’t noticed that while at the bar, and she was at her most glorious. His judgement was clouded over by the men around her. Couldn’t she get that through her head that she was his and his alone?
Then he thought about the engagement party tomorrow and he hoped that she wouldn’t be there. He could prod her out of the hotel, make her move out even. That wasn’t too much to ask, right? She had the upper hand now. Tomorrow he would have it.
“You’re drinking scotch,” his mother interrupted his thoughts. “Bad day?”
“You know me all too well,” was his reply.
***
It was a party fit for royalty, well, they were technically corporate royalty. The room was filled with peonies and all the expensive tea sets were out for the small crowd of twenty-five to use. The chandeliers sparkled, and everyone was dressed to impress. It looked like a 1950s movie had come to life.
The women in his life had never looked lovelier, and despite his glum outlook about his sister getting married, he was fairly happy with how George treated Beatrice. The smallest things mattered to Beatrice and it mattered to him, being the remaining father figure and older brother. Pictures were taken and gifts piled up despite the small crowd.
A sizeable paparazzi group had wanted to enter hotel premises, but no one would let them. Security was excellent and Justin realized this was why his mother and George’s parents wanted the party here. Sunlight filtered from the tall, rectangular windows. It was a good day for a party and a shoot in the small garden the hotel had.
He suddenly wondered what Mikaela was doing. Where she was, if she was awake already, seeing it was nine. Of course she would be, she was used to waking up early, and she could be cramming in every possible sight to see while she had two days left in London. He only had sex with her once on this trip and it was bothering him already, plus his ego had been ticked off. Without another thought, he reached for his phone and texted her.
It took her awhile to respond.
Still in my room. I see media outside trying to get in the carriage way entrance.
Yes, they’re bothersome. Where are you off to today?
Saw Big Ben, changing of guards, Westminster, and Tower of London already. Thinking about Stonehenge.
God no. You can’t even get close to it. It’s a waste of 6 hours of driving back and forth.
I’m not the one driving anyway.
Mikaela was eating breakfast as she replied, picking up a newspaper, and the second among three dailies that morning. She saw a photo of Justin and stopped.
“Beatrice Henderson of Henderson Steel Engaged to Murray Son,” said a society news headline. Underneath the photo was a caption, Seen here with sister Louisa, billionaire playboy brother Justin and mother Lydia.
She almost laughed. Playboy brother? The colored photo was recent, she figured. So that’s why he was here. His sister was about to get married. He didn’t bother telling her about that. Wasn’t that kind of happy news worthy of sharing?
Well, maybe not to me, she added as an afterthought. She didn’t mean much to him anyway. No, I’ll mean something to him. I’ll make it happen.
As it was a sunny day, she opted for a pale yellow dress and black ballet flats. She now carried her raincoat and umbrella safely in her new messenger bag. She opted for a museum walk, and maybe add a bit of shopping if she wasn’t too exhausted. An Egyptian show was on loan from Cairo, which made it all the more exciting. She did want to take a peek at the engagement party and it was sure to be at the Rosewood, seeing how curious the paparazzi were piqued her curiosity, too.
Mikaela made her way down, conscious that she wasn’t really going to crash into a party, she just wanted to see how it was like, an upper-class British occasion with tea and expensive tea sets and the like.
There was no signage to indicate an engagement party was taking place, but Mikaela found herself walking for a small event room she had seen on her first day of exploring about. It seemed a likely place. She opened the door ever so slightly when a voice interrupted her and she almost jumped back.
“What are you doing?”
She spun around to see Justin, wearing a summer suit, with a navy gray top and khaki colored slacks and brown oxfords.
“I-I was just walking around, stretching my legs,” she stammered.
His brow rose. “You’re a bad liar.”
“I didn’t know you had an event here. I just saw the door open and there were flowers everywhere and the tea sets—”
“Didn’t know you liked tea sets.”
“They’re really nice to look at.”
“Don’t you have London to see?”
She nodded when the door opened wide.
“Justin, I was looking for you—why, who is this lovely young lady?” Lydia Henderson began.
Mikaela felt like a deer caught in the headlights. She saw in front of her a middle-aged, yet slim and beautiful, brunette-haired woman wearing a pastel A-line dress with a string of pearls on her neck. She could have passed for Justin’s older sister.
“She’s—”
“Mikaela, Mikaela Johnson,” she smoothly cut Justin off before he could dismiss her presence. “Justin and I know each other from California.”
Lydia smiled, seeing how pleasant this young woman was. At least this one had manners. The others pretended to have manners but their true colors showed in the end. She had seen enough of Justin’s dates to last her for a year at most. She looked like a modern Dorothy Dandridge, she had this invigorating quality about her, a down-to-earth manner and the most gorgeous smile Lydia had seen in recent memory. Were they dating though? It didn’t feel like it, but Lydia suddenly wished they were.
“California?” Lydia smiled.
Justin stepped in. “We met at a Metropolitan Bank event a few weeks ago.”
“And now you’re in London?” Lydia said, extending a hand to shake Mikaela’s. “How do you find it so far?”
Mikaela looked at Justin’s eyes narrowing. The poor asshole wa
s panicking, wasn’t he? Just the way she wanted it. “For a short vacation. I didn’t even think I’d see Justin here,” she said earnestly. “It’s been really interesting here. I feel like five days is too short.”
“Five is barely enough for this part of the city alone,” Lydia told her. “Are you with friends or family?”
“Alone, actually. It’s more of ‘me’ time,” Mikaela replied. She saw a flicker of anger on Justin’s face. She was pushing his temper.
“And you didn’t even ring Justin for a short tour?” She looked at her son reproachfully.
“I know he’s busy,” Mikaela replied. “It was just a matter of huge coincidence I had to meet him here.”
“Oh how lovely then. It’s my daughter’s engagement party today, I’d love it if you came.”
“But this is a family event,” Mikaela protested.
“Let’s just say I’m letting a new friend in for goodwill,” Lydia said with a smile. “Justin, would you be so kind to escort Mikaela to our event?”
Justin stiffly held out his arm and gave a faint, bitter look that doubled as his smile. She took it with a grin. In a matter of moments, she was introduced to the small crowd, charming almost all of them except Justin, who knew what she was up to.
Mikaela immediately found herself liking his sisters, two young women who were equally attractive and kind like their mother. She wondered why Justin had a cruel streak in him when his family was genuinely nice from her first impression of them. She wished she had brought along her camera, but figured she would look too invasive. The engagement party set-up and even the food looked like it came straight from a magazine. There was only one photographer allowed and two videographers to film the whole event, which lasted until eleven in the morning.
She was even introduced to his grand-aunt, the oldest person in the room, whose vision was still as sharp as her brain. Mikaela took this time to try to get to know Justin better, as the dame Victoria was quite talkative.
“So are you a model in America?” Victoria asked.
Mikaela laughed and shook her head. “Unfortunately, no.”
“Good, because my grand nephew’s been dating models, none that we’ve liked so far, but they’re apparently liked online so much. Why, my Instagram’s only got a few hundred followers but they’ve got more than a hundred thousand for posting bum photos.”
Mikaela laughed outright, delighting the octogenarian. At least this one showed actual enthusiasm for her stories.
“Justin doesn’t have Instagram or Facebook.”
“With good reason. He’s probably tired of all that attention.”
“For a CEO, he sure gets followed around a lot by media,” Mikaela said, dropping her voice.
“Oh, it all started in uni, when he dated the illegitimate daughter of one of those European royals,” Victoria said. “The media liked that girl, but they found out he was interesting and poised to become an heir to one of the largest companies in the world,” she relayed, taking a single grape from a fruit and cheese platter.
“What happened?”
“It lasted until the end of summer, then—” Victoria stopped.
Then what? Mikaela looked at the old woman with expectation. Then Victoria’s eyes bulged out and her hands flew to her throat.
“Aunt Vicky!” Louisa cried out.
The room fell silent, and everyone was wondering what was going on with Louisa’s distressed voice. Then they realized what was wrong. She was choking!
“She’s choking!” someone gasped.
Justin bolted from across the room, wanting to do something but unsure of what to do. Mikaela looked in horror and her body rushed into adrenaline mode as she went behind Victoria and administered a Heimlich maneuver she had read about but had never actually done. She pulled Victoria’s abdomen inward, and then upward, amid the gasps of the guests. Seconds later, a grape fell on the table and rolled all the way to the floor. Mikaela was shaking from what had happened, as the Lydia and Justin helped Victoria sit down.
Mikaela sat down across Victoria who was still trying to catch her breath, her fingers cold and her breathing shallow. Good god, had she just saved someone’s life? The hotel doctor came in, along with a nurse, moments later to check on her.
“She saved my life,” Victoria murmured, looking at Mikaela in awe as she allowed herself to be escorted for further checkup at the clinic. Lydia followed suit.
“You saved Aunt Vicky,” Beatrice gasped, walking up to her.
Unexpectedly, Mikaela found herself wrapped in an embrace. One from Louise and one from Beatrice. Justin was staring at Mikaela, and it was something he never expected to happen. He couldn’t have predicted this, he couldn’t have known that Mikaela would end up being useful outside of the contract. But she had saved his beloved Grand Aunt’s life.
He found himself looking at her like it was the first time he had actually seen her. Despite her unsteady hands and pallor, a byproduct of the adrenaline rush, he had found Mikaela at her most beautiful.
Chapter11
Her last day in London had been magical, by all aspects. Lydia and her daughters outdid themselves in letting Mikaela experience what remained of the city she hadn’t seen yet. They were with her the whole day, shopping, having tea, and walking around.
She had dropped by Victoria’s home before the hotel car drove her off to the airport. She had only seen Justin that morning, as he dropped by at the hotel before work, telling her that she would be traveling alone back to California. Her heart dropped. That was the moment she knew she was in too deep with Justin. No one falls in love in just a few weeks, she told herself. Even if she felt used, even if she felt like an object, she still found herself wanting him to like her back. Which was stupid. Men like Justin would never give women like her the time of the day.
Am I too nice for my own good? she wondered. No, I can’t be, I still want material things, I want to be recognized, I want sex with him… Mikaela tried to stop the negative thoughts from forming. I still have two more months to go, she said to herself. I’ll get through this like how he does it. How does he do it? How can I be that cool about all of this?
Mikaela’s heart was heavy as she boarded the plane that was bringing her back to reality. He really had left her no choice. While she hadn’t expected any reward, she at least expected a change of heart in him. Well, she was wrong. He hadn’t even thanked her for saving his grand aunt. A vacation was still a vacation, no matter how short. Her post-vacation blues had begun the moment the plane taxied down the runway.
Nine hours of first class airplane rest, twenty pounds in excess luggage, and the gratitude of Justin’s family that was beyond priceless made her feel better, if only a little while. She took a cab from the airport, giving the wrong address first (her old apartment), when her phone rang.
“Where the hell are you?” Lynne said irritated. “I was worried sick.”
“I’ll explain later,” she said blearily.
“Are you sick?”
“No, just jetlagged,” Mikaela mumbled.
“Jetlagged? Mikaela Johnson, what the hell is going on?”
“I promise I’ll explain soon, maybe tomorrow. After work.”
She heard Lynne sigh. “You have got a lot of talking to do, Missy.”
“I’ll see you then, okay?” Mikaela put down the phone and watched as the familiar streets raced by her eyes. The sun was hot, and despite her misgivings about English rain, she actually missed it.
Entering her sort of new apartment felt alien to her. It was grand, but it didn’t feel welcoming. She had tried to bring some warmth to it by bringing a few of her salvaged and DIY furniture, some pictures of her family from throughout the years and even her old bedsheets. They hadn’t had sex in this apartment yet, she realized. She didn’t want it tainted by that ugly contract. Ugly? A vacation to London was ugly? A new apartment was ugly? She was his personal whore, at least he made it seem like she was.
Benefits were still benefits th
ough. It was a thought she wanted to instill in herself over and over again. There was some good to come out of this. But what would her mother and father say about this? They were dead, yes, but was she disrespecting their memory by trying to survive and enjoy life? She didn’t even feel enjoyment all throughout. It was fleeting. It was torture to realize she actually liked him more than she expected she would. What was he? Another charming psychopath who just so happened to be a billionaire and whom just so happened to be one of the most gorgeous guys she’d ever met?
There was no shortage of her emotions that went like waves, up and down, and up and down. She was an idiot for allowing this to happen, to even think that he would actually look at her the way he looked at his previous girlfriends in magazines.
Yes, she had done some stalking, she had seen articles about him, and it rang in the same tone, with different bombshell women, women she could never compete with. Why the hell would she, right? He chose her, out of all the women.
Should I be flattered? Maybe I have a golden vagina, she thought almost laughing aloud to herself. She was losing her mind. Tomorrow she would have to work again, toil from seven in the morning until god knows what time, just to keep herself distracted. She hadn’t even taught the kids their dance lessons in weeks and she felt bad about it.
Justin hadn’t asked her if she had safely arrived and she took it as a sign that he was only interested in her for one thing and one thing alone. She wanted to be as callous as he was, so her emotions could be at ease, so she could be at ease. She suddenly missed his mother and sisters, even if they had only been together for less than a day. She was being emotional about all of this, she was being vulnerable, showing how weak she was about finding and keeping love. Was she that needy?
She fought the urge to message him. She fought the urge to call him. Every fiber in her body wanted to talk to him, all she wanted to do was ask him how he was doing, drop a sultry hello, maybe he liked over aggressive women. Maybe he liked it if she wore sexier clothing aside from her usual loose tops and jeans. Maybe she looked too prudish for someone he wanted to keep having sex with. She could invest in lingerie. His ex-girlfriends modeled lingerie.
