Unwrapping Mr King

by A. Zavarelli

  “Why don’t you go upstairs and get settled,” Julia urged. “Dinner will be ready in a couple of hours.”

  “Thanks, mom.” Jameson leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek, and I have to admit, I swooned a little. It was clear there was something going on between him and his family, but it was also obvious he loved his mother. Very much.

  It made my heart ache a little knowing I would never have anything like that again. I tried to ignore those feelings as I followed him up the grand staircase and into a master suite.

  “They obviously expect us to sleep in the same room,” he uttered in a stiff tone. “So you can have the bed. I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

  “You don’t need to do that,” I protested. “I can take the sofa.”

  It felt weird to be sleeping in his bed while he slept on a couch.

  “You’re not sleeping on the sofa, Harper. These next two weeks are probably going to be rough, so you’ll need all the rest you can get.”

  “Okay.” I frowned at his cryptic words. How rough did he think it was going to get exactly?

  “I have some work to do.”

  He wasn’t looking at me, and the tension between us was so thick you could have cut it with a knife. My stomach clenched, and my eyes burned. I wondered if he really couldn’t stand the sight of me.

  “Right.” I nodded. “I’ll um, make myself scarce.”

  “There’s a library on the lower level,” he suggested. “Or a TV in the next room.”

  “Okay.” I blinked back my emotions and walked towards the door. “See you later then.”

  I wandered around downstairs for a while, unable to locate the mystical library that Jameson spoke of.

  As I roamed around this strange house, I was coming to regret my decision. I had no idea what I was doing here. Why did Jameson even want this? I didn’t understand. And I didn’t know how I was going to make it through two weeks of his icy cold exterior.

  I couldn’t even imagine pulling this off. How was I going to pretend to be head over heels in love with him when he couldn’t even look at me?

  I snuck down an empty corridor and pulled out my phone to text Katia. There were already three texts from her asking me for deets. Her word, not mine.

  As I texted her back, I heard voices carrying from the kitchen. Something delicious floated through the air and made my mouth water, followed by the sound of laughter.

  Sure enough, when I poked my head around the corner, there were Jameson’s mom and sisters, all sitting around the center island with smiles on their faces.

  My heart squeezed in my chest, and as much as I wanted to, I couldn’t tear my eyes away. I missed having a family. I missed having a mother or an aunt or someone who cared about me. Someone that wanted to spend the holidays with me.

  “I told him that until he was willing to put a ring on my finger, I was withholding his special Christmas cookie.”

  “Cookie, or nookie?” Lily laughed.

  “Maybe both,” Amelia mused. “At this rate, I’ll be too old to enjoy my honeymoon.”

  “You’re only twenty-seven,” Julia placated her. “There will be plenty of time for a happy marriage yet.”

  “Speaking of…” Evelyn interrupted. “What do you think of Jameson’s new Goldie. Is she mining or what?”

  “Evelyn,” Julia chided. “I will not have that kind of talk about your brother’s girlfriend. This is the first Christmas he’s been home in three years, and if you do anything to ruin it…”

  “Alright,” Evelyn conceded. “I’m just saying what everyone else is thinking, though.”

  “I don’t know,” Lily spoke thoughtfully. “She doesn’t really look like his type. I mean I know she’s dressed the part, but she looks too…”

  “Sweet?” Julia supplied.

  “Yes,” Amelia agreed. “She doesn’t seem like someone Jameson would date. At all.”

  I closed my eyes and let out a shuddering breath. I didn’t want to hear any more of this conversation. This was a huge mistake, and I needed to go find Jameson and tell him exactly that.

  But in my hurry to get away, I bumped into a decorative table I hadn’t seen and sent a vase flying to the floor in a spectacular crash.

  “Shit.” I squeaked. That probably cost more than I made in a year.

  Julia came around the corner with a worried expression that turned to pity when she saw me standing there.

  “I’m so sorry.” I bent down and frantically tried to pick up the shards. There were tears streaming down my face, and I was humiliated.

  Then to make matters worse, I sliced open my thumb.

  “Oh, Harper.” Julia pulled me up from the floor and gathered me in her arms. “I’m so sorry. You heard all of that, didn’t you?”

  I couldn’t exactly lie since I was standing so close. “I didn’t mean to,” I apologized. “I was looking for the library and got lost.”

  She pulled the tea towel from her shoulder and wrapped it around my bleeding thumb. “Please don’t think badly of us,” she said solemnly. “Jameson’s sisters are all just very protective of him. And it would kill me if he left now. I don’t want this to ruin our time together, or my chance at getting to know you.”

  She looked so apologetic I couldn’t help but put her at ease. I didn’t want to ruin her Christmas. And I wasn’t sure if I left if Jameson would too. It didn’t really seem like he wanted to be here though I couldn’t understand why.

  “Why don’t we just pretend it never happened,” I suggested in a weak voice. “Jameson doesn’t need to know.”

  Tears filled her eyes, and she hugged me once more before leading me towards the stairs. “I have a good feeling about you, Harper,” she said. “I can see why Jameson is so taken with you.”

  Yeah, except he wasn’t.

  “Let’s get you upstairs to get this cleaned up.”

  I expected her to lead me to a bathroom so I could wash up, but instead she led me straight back to the room where Jameson and I were staying. I wanted to protest, but that might have sent up a red flag, so I kept my mouth shut.

  She opened the door, and Jameson glanced up from his computer in surprise.

  “Harper?”

  There was concern in his eyes, and I could only imagine what a mess my face was. Katia had put so much black makeup on my eyes I probably resembled a raccoon now.

  “There was a little accident,” Julia said. “Harper has a cut.”

  “What happened?” Jameson stood up and strode towards me.

  “I knocked over a vase,” I said sheepishly. “And then tried to clean it up.”

  “Well don’t just stand there,” Julia chided. “Take her to the bathroom and clean it up before it gets infected, Jameson.”

  “Oh.” He blinked. “Of course. Come with me Harper.”

  I followed dutifully, with Julia in my wake. If I didn’t know any better, she was getting a kick out of this.

  She stood in the doorway and watched as Jameson gestured to the chaise. “Just sit there and I’ll get the supplies.”

  I took a seat even though it was totally unnecessary. I could have cleaned it myself if they’d just told me where the Band-Aids were. Jameson kneeled before me and opened the bottle of peroxide, pouring it onto a cotton ball.

  “This might sting a little.”

  He pressed it to my cut and started cleaning with a gentleness that surprised me. I couldn’t stop my gaze from raking over his face, so close I could see the depths in his dark eyes. He was incredibly handsome. A well-defined jaw had just the lightest dusting of stubble to match his dark hair. It wasn’t overly perfect, but artful in that messy way. I wanted to run my fingers through it and feel the silky strands. But that would be totally inappropriate… of course.

  “I raised my sons to take good care of their women,” Julia boasted proudly. “So if he isn’t taking care of you, you just let me know Harper and I’ll set him straight.”

  “You have more than one son?” I asked.

&nbs
p; Jameson stiffened, and belatedly I realized I’d screwed up. I was supposed to know this already.

  “Didn’t you tell her about Lleyton?” Julia furrowed her brows.

  “No, mom, I didn’t,” Jameson replied flatly.

  “You two are brothers. I don’t know what has gotten into you, but this stupid rivalry has to end sometime…”

  “Mom,” Jameson’s voice was thick with warning. “Please don’t do this in front of Harper.”

  She nodded and gave me an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry. He’s right. I just want us all to have a good holiday.”

  Jameson remained quiet as he wrapped the Band-Aid around my thumb and set my hand back into my lap. I missed his fingers and his warmth already, and it surprised me how much.

  “Jameson.” Julia shook her finger at him. “Aren’t you forgetting the most important thing?”

  He looked up at me with what I could only describe as embarrassment before averting his gaze to his mom. “Shouldn’t you be catching up with the girls?”

  “I’m not leaving until you do the thing.” She planted her hands on her hips. “He used to love this when he was a boy, Harper.”

  I observed the two of them and grinned when I saw Jameson squirm. His mother was embarrassing him on purpose, and I kind of enjoyed it.

  That enjoyment turned to something else entirely when he scooped my hand back up in his and brushed his lips over the Band-Aid.

  “A kiss makes it all better,” his mother whispered.

  I swallowed as Jameson and I locked eyes, and my heart started to beat so loud in my chest I swore he could hear it.

  “Thank you,” I whispered.

  His thumb moved over my palm, bringing to life a swarm of butterflies deep inside me.

  When we both glanced back at the doorway, Julia was gone.

  7

  Dinner with Jameson’s family was one very loud, very boisterous affair.

  I finally got to meet his brother Lleyton, and I was surprised how different they were. Lleyton was much more outgoing and a definite smooth talker. He had confidence in spades, but he didn’t have Jameson’s looks.

  Jameson was the quiet one. The observer of the bunch. The broody, mysterious guy that you couldn’t help but be drawn to. Or at least I was. I found myself glancing in his direction several times throughout dinner, watching him take it all in. Then Julia caught me and I looked away in embarrassment.

  Jameson seemed even more tense than when we’d arrived and I couldn’t understand why. His family was fun and energetic, and it was obvious how much they loved him. And yet this seemed like the last place he wanted to be.

  Everything seemed to be going just fine, or at least that’s what I thought. But once dinner had been cleared, and we moved into the sitting room, the real inquisition began.

  Jameson’s father Charles leaned back in his chair and observed me with shrewd eyes as he tipped back his drink. I noticed he’d had a few already this evening, and while he was quiet before, he seemed to be more than ready to talk now.

  “So Harper,” he began. “Why don’t you tell us about yourself.”

  I shifted in my seat and wrung my hands together as all of their eyes fell on me. Jameson tensed as well, and I knew this wasn’t good. We still hadn’t fully fleshed out my cover story, and I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to be spouting off things as I went. So I decided to be honest, at least wherever I could. It would be easier to keep my story straight later on.

  “Well, I’m originally from West Virginia,” I said. “I moved to New Jersey when I was twelve. And then to New York last year.”

  “What brought you to New York?” he asked, his brown eyes flat.

  I glanced at Jameson, unsure what to say. I had no desire to open up to this many people at once. But I guess that’s what I was being paid for- to throw myself in front of the firing squad.

  “My aunt was sick,” I answered in a quiet voice. “Cancer.”

  Charles remained unaffected by my admission, but Julia put a hand to her mouth and shook her head. “Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that, Harper. Is she alright?”

  “I’m afraid not,” I said. “She passed away three months ago.”

  “What was her name?” Charles cut in.

  I didn’t like his tone, or the way he was looking at me. I highly suspected he believed I was lying, which really upset me. I may have been lying about other things, but this wasn’t one of them. And it stung that he thought I would ever lie about something so awful.

  “Dad.” Jameson’s voice was thick with warning. “I think that’s enough for tonight.”

  Charles didn’t seem altogether pleased with his son’s attitude, and Julia looked sick with worry.

  “He’s right, Charles.” She squeezed his hand in hers. “We have two weeks to get to know Harper. There’s no rush.”

  Charles and Jameson had a silent war of wills as they stared each other down, but Charles was the first to concede. I suspected it had everything to do with how tight Julia was squeezing his hand.

  “Very well,” he said, tearing his gaze back to his wife’s face. “I’m sure you two are probably tired.”

  “Indeed.” Jameson grunted, rising to his feet.

  He surprised me when he held out his hand for me, but then I remembered this was all part of his plan.

  I threaded my fingers through his, savoring the warmth and strength of his palm. A tiny shudder ran down my spine when he closed his fingers around mine and stroked me with his thumb the same way he’d done earlier.

  “Goodnight everybody.” He turned towards the staircase and tugged me along. “We’ll see you in the morning.”

  When we got upstairs, Jameson dismissed himself shortly after. He said he had some business to tend to, and that he’d use the library so he didn’t disturb me. I suspected he was just as nervous as I was about sleeping in a room together or making idle chit chat. It was something that neither one of us seemed to be very good at.

  I dimmed the lights and went into the bathroom, opting to help myself to the large garden tub. I might as well appreciate the luxuries while I had the opportunity.

  I made a whole affair of it, lighting the candles that lined the edge and pouring scented oil into the hot water. I soaked for an entire hour before I started to drift off. I knew I should get out, but I didn’t want to leave my warm cocoon.

  And then the door swung open and Jameson strode inside.

  He stopped short when his eyes landed on me, and I gasped as I covered myself with my hands. I expected him to take my cue and avert his eyes, but it took him a full minute before he finally did.

  “Sorry,” he muttered. “I thought you were already in bed. The lights were off.”

  I didn’t speak. My eyes were too busy roving over his muscular body. Somewhere between the bedroom and the bathroom, he’d discarded everything but his boxer briefs. And there was a very visible outline of his erection staring me in the face.

  I swallowed, but still couldn’t speak. Was that because of me?

  “I’ll just…” He turned back towards the door. “Wait out here until you’re finished.”

  “I’m getting out now,” I squeaked. “I’ll just be another minute.”

  He nodded and shut the door behind him, taking all of my air with him. My God he was sexy. Quite literally perfect in every way. I could only imagine what he looked like on the soccer field, sweat dripping over his body. That was the stuff my fantasies were made of.

  I closed my eyes and had the sudden urge to touch myself. I would have too if he weren’t waiting on the other side. I may have been a virgin, but I wasn’t a nun. I was very well acquainted with my fingers.

  I stepped out of the tub reluctantly and wrapped a fuzzy towel around myself, making quick work of getting into my pajamas before treading back into the room.

  I wished I’d paid more attention when Madame Jackie and Katia were packing my clothes, because all the nightgowns they’d included were silk chemises. For someone who
wasn’t supposed to be having sex, it looked like the only thing I wanted to do.

  I flashed Jameson a nervous smile as I slipped past him and tucked myself into bed. His eyes lingered in my direction for a pause before he let himself into the bathroom.

  He turned on the shower, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I could just pretend I was asleep when he came back out and avoid any more awkwardness. It was exactly what I intended to do.

  Until I realized belatedly that I’d forgotten to take my sleeping pill.

  Crap.

  Since my aunt had passed, I had a lot of trouble sleeping. For the first month, I didn’t sleep at all. Katia made me go to the doctor and get some sleeping pills before I ended up getting hurt because of my exhaustion.

  Even now, as tired as I was, I knew that when I laid my head on the pillow my brain wasn’t going to shut up. It was just the nature of the beast. Wide awake when I finally decided on getting some sleep.

  I could wait until Jameson finished his shower and go into the bathroom, but then it would just mean I’d be up even later. It took a while to kick in, and it was already late as it was.

  I threw off the covers and wrapped a silk robe over my nightgown before I snuck out the door. Hopefully I wouldn’t be bumping into anyone in the hallways at this hour.

  8

  I thought I’d made it free and clear as I tossed back my pill, until I heard a throat clear behind me. I turned around to see Lleyton sitting at the kitchen island, eyeing me curiously.

  “Headache?” he asked. “I wouldn’t blame you after that dinner.”

  I grinned and shook my head. “No, it’s just something to help me sleep.”

  “If you need that then I would say my brother’s not doing his job,” he teased.

  I laughed awkwardly at his joke, but a moment later his eyes filled with guilt.

  “I came down to sneak some milk and cookies,” he said. “It usually helps me sleep.”

  “I can imagine. Sugar coma.”

  “Will you join me?” he asked, heading towards the fridge.