“And the sex…spectacular, right?” Clair asked.
“I never kiss and tell,” I re-deployed what I hoped was a coy smile.
“I’ll tell you what, if that man were mine, I’d have him naked all the time,” Jolene said.
I couldn’t blame her. From what I’d seen of his body, he was certainly something I’d never get tired of looking at.
Later in the day, I told Nate everything I’d told them about our courtship and wedding so he’d be able to answer questions if asked. His cheeks reddened when he learned about the questions about having sex in his office and his manly size.
“I don’t understand women.”
I rolled my eyes, “Are you telling me you never talk about breast size with men?”
He shook his head, “Not since I graduated from high school and grew up.”
I had to concede it was a little juvenile to discuss him as a piece of meat, but I also knew, women often lived vicariously through others. Today I was the conduit of the idea that fairy tales could come true.
That first day, I had a lot of questions about Nate, but by the next day, people lost interest, and our work lives went back to normal. Except for Clair and Jolene, of course, who never missed a chance to ask me probing questions about Nate.
Mid-week, Nate and I flew to New York for the first official stop to make his presentation for his IPO. He booked a suite and told me I could have the bedroom and he’d take the hideaway couch. The bed looked bigger than a king-size, and I considered offering to share, but I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t somehow end up jumping him if we did. Since this was a business deal that, when done, would require me to go back to being his assistant, it was probably better that I didn’t seduce him.
Like a good assistant, I had all his presentation materials and the information he needed about each potential investor ready for him and coordinated with his lead underwriter who set up the roadshow presentations.
Working alongside Nate, felt all very normal until he’d do something like put his arm around me or hold my hand and remind me that I wasn’t just his assistant, I was his fake wife.
The presentations in New York went well. Aftward, Nate talked with the lead underwriter, and then we prepared to attend a gathering with the investors at a local restaurant’s event room. After a little rest from the presentation, we changed, Nate in a different dark suit that made him look like the billion bucks he was. I was back in the green dress I wore at the Madison event. I hoped that there wasn’t anyone from the Madison event at this gathering. We were over 200 miles away from Washington, D.C., where the Madison event had been held, but working with Nate showed me that rich people seemed to get around. If anyone noted I was in the same dress, they’d wonder why since surely I’d have access to enough money to buy a new dress.
As I came out of the bedroom, his eyes scanned my body, making my breasts tingle. Crap, he was probably wondering why I was wearing a dress I’d already worn.
“This is the only formal dress I have.”
“It’s a good one,” he said, stepping toward me. His gaze took me in again, and I cursed my body for getting all warm and aroused. He held out a jewelry box, “I got this for you.”
Confused, I opened it to find a simple yet elegant necklace with a diamond pendant inside.
“I hope you won’t be offended, but I was thinking that my wife would have jewelry. Not that you don’t, but—”
“I get it. I need to look like a billionaire’s wife,” I wasn’t offended, but it was a reminder of how different our worlds were. Perhaps I should mention that I’d need a few more dresses if these types of gatherings would be a part of the roadshow.“What will you do with all this when we’re done?” The rings alone had to be tens of thousands of dollars.
“I hadn’t thought about it. You can keep them.”
“What?” What would I need with an engagement and wedding ring, much less a fancy necklace when this ruse was done?
“Hock them if you want.”
I wasn’t sure what to say to that. I didn’t like feeling like a charity case, and yet, I needed to take care of my parents.
While we were dressed nice, the gathering itself was fairly laid back. The atmosphere was friendly and informal. Of course, there were several questions about our marriage, and a few people indicated that they liked that Nate was settled. I wondered what they’d think when they learned we weren’t married anymore. It was one factor we hadn’t discussed about our fake marriage - our fake divorce.
As the evening wore one, Nate and I got separated, and I ended up talking to a woman who was a patent lawyer that once lived in Washington, D.C. but was now with a firm in New York.
“Nate sure has changed,” she said, watching him from across the room. The gleam in her eyes wasn’t the usual admiration that I saw in women around Nate. No, her expression suggested a familiarity with him.
“You know Nate?” I asked.
“Oh yes,” she said wistfully. Then she jerked, looked at me, and blushed, like she realized she was thinking of Nate naked in front of his wife, “I worked with him on a patent deal a few years ago when I lived in D.C.”
“Oh?” I had a good feeling that working wasn’t all they’d done. I pushed down the jealousy. I knew of Nate’s history and reminded myself this was a fake marriage.
“Yes, although in the end, he didn’t patent it,” she shook her head, “He wouldn’t need this IPO if he had.”
“What do you mean?”
“It would have made him a fortune. Or another fortune, I should say. But he decided to give it away. A real-life Jonah Salk.”
What? I forced myself to nod like I knew what she was talking about, but I had no clue.
“He swore us all not to say anything. I figure since you’re his wife, he’d probably told you though.”
“Yes, of course,” I sipped my wine to hide my lie. I looked over at Nate, smiling and talking to a potential investor.
“When that drug is finally approved by the FDA, many people with Parkinson’s will have a more affordable medication option.”
My heart tumbled in my chest at this news. Why wouldn’t he want people to know he’d not patented a drug? He wanted to change his image, and instead of getting the news out that he was forfeiting millions - even billions - to create an affordable Parkinson’s treatment, he opted for a fake marriage.
Nate caught my eye, he smiled, and then, when he saw who I was talking to, he frowned. He appeared to excuse himself and made his way to me.
He smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Allison,” he said, kissing her on the cheek. “I see you’ve met my wife.” He draped his arm around me.
“Yes, we were swapping stories,” she winked at me.
Nate flinched.
“All good, I assure you,” she laughed.
He looked at me and smiled, but it still looked forced, “Please tell me you’re not talking about my prowess again.”
I patted his cheek, “I don’t have to tell people about it, darling. People already know.” Once the words were out of my mouth, I regretted it. The whole reason for this charade was to change his reputation, and I just reminded him and Allison of it.
Annoyance flashed in his eyes.
“Of course, I don’t tell people. I don’t want to make them jealous,” I said, trying again.
Allison snorted.
“You’re bad,” he said, but I could see that his irritation was lessened.
I smiled sweetly, “You like bad.”
He surprised me by letting out a low growl. He shocked me when he planted his lips on mine. It wasn’t a quick peck, either. It was firm and full, and it made every neuron in body fire at once. Just as I was getting ready to really sink into it, he pulled away. He wrapped his arm around me again, tugging me closer. The movement shocked me back to reality. This was all fake. The marriage. The kiss. All. Fake.
After that, I continued to smile and schmooze with all the business types in the room, but I felt
like the wind had been knocked from my sails, which was ridiculous. I knew this was all fake. The problem was, my body wanted it to be real. I wanted him to mean it when he said “I won’t have to fake that part either,” the night we discussed attraction in his pool.
Once the soiree was over, and we were back in our room, I immediately changed into my pajamas - cotton pants and t-shirt, and tied my hair up into a knot. I had no one to impress now that we were in the privacy of the hotel suite.
“You okay?” Nate asked as he watched me take a seat on the couch and grab the remote. Allison probably thought we were now having wild sex. Instead, I was looking to see if there was a rerun of Sex in the City on t.v.
“Sure.”
He came to stand behind the couch. He held a drink in his hand as he looked down on me, “You sure? Did Allison say something?”
“She said a lot of things,” I poked the guide button on the remote looking for the menu.
He swore under his breath, “Look, Allison and I were a long time ago, Hallie.”
I tilted my head to look up at him, “It doesn’t matter. This is all fake, remember?”
His brows knitted, “Even so, I don’t want you feeling uncomfortable.”
I shrugged, turning back to the t.v., “I’m not uncomfortable. I can pretend marriage and fake kisses.”
I was just about to click on a channel, when Nate’s fingers threaded under my hair knot and tilted my head back.
“The marriage might be fake, but the kisses aren’t.” Then his lips were on mine again. An inferno flamed through my body as his mouth consumed mine. This time, his tongue drew along the seam of my lips, which I took to mean he wanted me to open my mouth. I parted my lips and invited him in. He tasted divine, like bourbon and Nate. He moaned, or maybe it was me. All I knew was that my body was on fire and I wanted him around me, on me, in me.
And then he let go. His expression was a mixture of frustration and desire.
“Fuck,” he growled and turned away, headed to the bathroom, leaving me hot, needy, and disappointed. This is all fake...right?
Fake Marriage, Real Kiss
Chapter Seven: Fake Marriage, Real Kiss
Nate
Fuck, fuck, fuck. I pressed my hands on the wall of the shower as I doused my head under the spray of the showerhead. I promised her I wouldn’t touch her and then I kissed her. Twice. I could probably write off that first one as being a part of the fake marriage, but that second one, there was nothing fake about that.
Christ, I could still taste her - a mixture of honey and fine wine. From the first feel of her lips, my dick sprang to life, and all I could think about was squeezing her glorious tits that had tantalized me all night in her sexy green dress. I wanted her naked and writhing under me. Even now, the image of her had my dick at full tilt.
I should have turned on the cold water and froze my dick into submission, but who was I kidding? It wasn’t like it wouldn’t be the first time I shot a load thinking of Hallie. The last time was the night after we’d been in the pool and I got a good look at her gorgeous tits. That night I imagined fucking them and came in a matter of minutes.
There was so much about Hallie I hadn’t noticed before. Yes, I’d had an immediate pull to her, but she was my assistant, so I tried hard not to pay attention to her. That’s how I missed how perfect her mouth was. Plump pink lips, perfect for kissing and for bringing a man pleasure. I grabbed my traitorous cock in my hand, I thought about how her sweet, pink lips would look sucking me off. Once again, it didn’t make me long to spurt my jizz on the shower wall.
When I finished getting off and cleaning up, I exited the bathroom wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt. She wasn’t on the couch. I glanced at the bedroom where her door was closed. Just as well. I only hoped I hadn’t scared her. Perhaps this fake marriage was beyond a bad idea.
I grabbed a blanket from the closet and lay on the couch, opting not to roll out the bed portion. In my experience, the rollout beds were lumpy and sagged, especially for a man over six feet tall. I put my hands behind my head and tried to push Hallie and her tasty lips out my mind. Instead, I thought about how the first leg of the roadshow had gone.
We did five presentations today, and I felt good about them. A couple of them commented on my marriage, noting to me how finding a good woman had helped them settle down. It highlighted why I was in this fake marriage. I just hoped to hell that I wasn’t going to damage a good working relationship with Hallie by having her pretend to be my wife.
There were so many issues I hadn’t considered in this scheme. One of them was running into women I’d known, in the Biblical sense, before. Allison had worked with me when I wanted to patent a drug we’d developed to help reduce symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. While I held fast to not sleeping with my staff, I did fudge the rule a bit by fucking her. She was a consultant, not an employee. She was sexy and fairly adventurous in the sack.
She was pissed, though, when I decided not to patent the drug. I wanted it to be freely shared throughout the world. She also didn’t believe me when I’d told her, before I ever touched her, that I wasn’t a man to settle down. She’d tried to change me, and I felt bad that I likely hurt her. It was probably worse now that she believed I was married. I hadn’t known her to be mean or vindictive, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have said something to Hallie that was hurtful.
Christ, I should have pushed Hallie to tell me what Allison had said to her. Perhaps that was why she was a bit off after we’d talked with Allison. Or maybe it was the kiss. I hadn’t set out to kiss her. In fact, considering that she’d highlighted the whole reason for this arrangement by saying everyone knew of my prowess, I wanted to shake her. And then, as if she realized her mistake she’d said, “Of course, I don’t tell people. I don’t want to make them jealous.” But when she responded to my comment that she was bad with “You like bad,” the banter of that had my hormones waking up. It sounded sexy and naughty, and all I could think about was wanting to taste that sexy, naughty mouth. Thank God she went along with it because I hadn’t gone into it thinking it was part of our cover. I just wanted to kiss her. Of course, I fucked that up later by kissing her again for no marriage fakery reason.
I wondered if I should go apologize to her. I couldn’t say I was sorry because the kiss was fucking awesome. But I could apologize for doing it when I’d promised I wouldn’t. I could check to make sure she was okay and that I hadn’t made her feel uncomfortable.
Deciding that’s what I needed to do, I got up and went to the bedroom door.
“Hallie?” I knocked lightly. There was no response. I knocked a little louder. “Hallie?” Still no answer. I was going to open the door but then worried that it would be a violation of her privacy. Then again, what if she was really upset and had left while I was in the shower?
I opened the door just enough to peek in. She was sleeping, the covers outlining the round curves of her body. I felt an overwhelming urge to join her, but my conscience reminded me that I was trying to improve my behavior. I closed the door and went back to the couch and tried not to think about Hallie’s lips or luscious body.
The next morning, I heard her in the kitchenette. I checked my watch - 5:30 am. She was an early riser. I liked that. I got up and went to the bathroom to take care of my morning woody, and then joined her in the kitchen.
“Good morning,” she said as she poured a cup of coffee. She handed it to me.
“You don’t have to serve me,” I said.
“I’m using good manners.”
I took the coffee and sat at the table, “Listen, Hallie, about last night—”
“It’s okay Nate,” she poured herself a cup of coffee. “We’re playing married, and you had a good day yesterday. I understand that maybe the excitement of a good presentation got away from us.”
Huh? She thought that kiss was an accident from too much excitement from a successful day?
“It’s forgotten,” she finished.
Ther
e was nothing quite as successful to deflate a man’s self-esteem than telling him his kiss was forgotten. I took a sip of the hot coffee to soothe my ego, “I just want to make sure you’re okay. That I didn’t upset you.”
“No,” she put on a bright smile, but I didn’t buy it. Something was still up. “I know there’s work to do at the office, but I was hoping I’d be able to stop by my parents’ house when we got back to Virginia. I’d like to check on them.”
“Yes, absolutely. Take the rest of the day off. You’ve earned it.”
She smiled again, and that one looked genuine. It told me she was close to her parents. I liked that too. I might be a horndog, but I knew that family was important.
A few hours later, we were on a plane heading back to New York. We flew commercial, but I wondered if maybe I should charter a plan for our upcoming trips. It would give us more flexibility when coming and going, allowing her to get home sooner to her family.
I needed Hallie to help me pull off a profitable IPO, but I didn’t want to have her sacrifice too much time with her family to do that. I knew first hand what it was like when one parent was gone. Her mother had multiple sclerosis and her father, being much older than her mother, was beginning to slow down. She needed to have all the time with them as she could.
Admiration
Chapter Eight: Admiration
Hallie
On the flight back from New York, I glanced at Nate, who was reviewing something on his tablet. I kept thinking that I’d look at him and see something that made his kiss last night make sense. We were alone, so it wasn’t like he was trying to make people think we were married as he did in front of Allison.
“The marriage might be fake, but the kisses aren’t.”
If I were prone to romantic notions about him, I might have thought his words meant something, such as perhaps he was into me. But then he swore and stormed off. Then the next morning he wanted to apologize for it. There was nothing that could hurt a woman’s ego more than a man regretting kissing her.
Her Hero Boss Page 5
