by E. L. Todd
“You look very nice, Clem,” Cayson said.
“Thanks. You do too.” My brother and I weren’t close, but we got along fairly well. “Where are Mom and Dad?”
He shrugged. “Mingling or something.”
I discreetly searched the room for Ward.
“So, Ward is a good guy, huh?” Skye said.
Her question made me defensive. “I wouldn’t know…”
“You had lunch with him last week,” she said.
“Yeah, for like five minutes,” I said coolly, like I didn’t give a damn about Ward.
“Well, he’s single,” Skye said with a smirk.
Cayson didn’t look pleased. “Can you stop trying to set up my sister with him?”
“I’m not,” Skye said. “I’m just saying…if you were curious…he’s not seeing anyone.”
“He’s way too old for her,” Cayson said.
“No, he’s not,” Skye argued. “They’re only four years apart.”
“That’s a long time,” he said seriously.
“He’s got a career, he’s a gentleman, and he’s mature. Why wouldn’t you want Clementine to end up with someone like that?”
Cayson shook his head. “I don’t like him.”
“Whatever.” Skye rolled her eyes.
“Why don’t you like him?” I asked, not understanding how anyone, especially Cayson, could dislike someone so incredible.
Skye changed the subject before he could speak. “Are you seeing anyone, Clementine?”
“Uh, no.” But that was always my answer when I was around my brother. I never mentioned the guys I dated or had flings with. Cayson was overprotective of me. It was just easier not to mention anyone.
“You’ll find someone you like soon,” Skye said. “You’re so pretty and cool. Someone worthy of you is bound to come along.”
“Or you can just be a nun,” Cayson suggested.
I rolled my eyes. “You would love that, wouldn’t you?”
“Actually, yeah,” Cayson said as he took a drink.
I decided to make my brother equally uncomfortable. “When’s the wedding?”
He flinched. “We just got back together…”
Skye had a sad look on her face.
Damn, I didn’t mean to upset her. “Sorry, I was only teasing…”
“No.” Skye waved it off. “I was thinking of someone else…”
Cayson had a sad look on his face too.
“Who?” I asked.
“No one,” Cayson said immediately.
I had no idea what they were talking about but I didn’t press the topic.
Trinity came over, looking like she wanted to be anywhere else but here.
“Hey,” I said. “You look nice.”
“Thanks,” she said quietly. “You too.”
I looked at Cayson and Skye, silently asking what was wrong.
Skye just shook her head slightly.
Trinity crossed her arms over her chest, looking absolutely miserable.
“Can I get you a drink?” I asked, trying to think of something to cheer her up.
“No, it’s okay,” she said. “I’ve already had too much.”
“Well, they’ve got desserts too,” I added.
“I’m not hungry,” she blurted.
I didn’t know what her deal was. I decided to bring up the one thing that would make her feel better. “Is Slade here?”
Without speaking, she stormed off and headed straight for the bathroom.
Feeling like shit, I turned to Cayson and Skye. “Uh, what’s going on?”
Skye looked too upset so Cayson spoke. “They’re…having problems right now. Don’t mention him.”
“Well, thanks for the heads up,” I said sarcastically.
“Just don’t talk to her,” Skye said. “She wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t important to Mike.”
“I wish I could make her feel better,” I said sadly.
“Don’t worry about it,” Skye said. “They’ll be okay.” There was hesitation in her voice.
A shadow passed over us, and I knew who had arrived.
Ward stared at me, eyeing my blue dress. Then he quickly hid his interest. “Good evening.”
“Hello,” I said, feeling weak in the knees like usual.
“You look lovely,” he said. Sincerity shined in his eyes.
“Thanks,” I said. “You too.”
Skye watched us with a grin on her face. “Awe, you guys match.”
Ward glanced down at his tie then turned back to me. “What are the odds?”
“You should be her date, Ward.” Skye gently pushed me toward him.
Damn, at least one person would approve of our fling.
I chuckled lightly then stepped away again.
Cayson glared at Skye, having a silent conversation with her.
Skye ignored him. “She’s not seeing anyone.”
“Oh.” Ward nodded slightly. “Good to know.”
Cayson grabbed Skye and pulled her away, obviously wanting to yell at her in private.
Ward turned to me, trying not to smile. “Well, it seems like Skye really wants us to hook up.”
“Yeah,” I said with a chuckle.
“Whenever we’re at work together, you’re all she talks about.”
“Then you must not be getting much done.”
He laughed. “Actually, no. With Cayson dropping by all the time, and Skye asking me about you, we pretty much just fool around all day long.”
“Sounds pretty fun.”
“Wait until Sean finds out,” he said with a laugh. “We’ll have to make up for it later so he doesn’t know how lazy we are.”
“I doubt Sean would care,” I said. “He has a soft spot for Skye even if he won’t admit it.”
“Well, he’s a big slacker so it would be extremely hypocritical of him.”
“Is my dad a slacker?” I asked.
“I don’t work with him often, but from what the people in his department say, he’s a genius—literally.”
“Yeah, Mom always says that. But I thought she had to say that because he was standing there.”
He laughed. “I’m sure she thinks the world of him.”
“Well, he thinks the world of her,” I said sarcastically.
“I don’t blame him. If I had a beautiful wife like that, I’d put her on a pedestal.”
For some reason, his comment made me uneasy. The idea of him being married made me sad, because I knew it wouldn’t be to me.
“Can I get you a drink?” he asked.
“Champagne, please.”
“Coming right up.” He retrieved the drinks then returned. He was holding a short glass full of scotch.
“Do you ever drink anything else?” I asked.
“I do. But aged scotch is my favorite.”
I would remember that.
He blatantly stared at me. “I like the way you did your hair.”
I pulled it back in a clip and diamond earrings hung in my lobes. “Thank you. You look nice too.”
He grabbed his tie. “I might have to tie you up with this later.”
His comment made the area between my legs burn. “I might have to hold you to that…in the bathroom.”
He took a drink and kept staring at me. “That’s hard to resist.”
We kept staring at each other, saying nothing as we held each other’s gaze. Moments like this made me wish we could just be honest about our relationship, but I knew it would cause more problems in the end. Breaking up would be harder if everyone kept asking if I was okay. This way, I could pretend I was fine and people would actually believe that.
“Hey, Clemy.” Dad approached us and smiled at me. “You look beautiful.”
He snapped me out of the moment. “Hey, Dad. Thank you.”
He hugged me then pulled away. “Thanks for coming.”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” I said politely. Actually, I found his work parties boring but I knew it was important to h
im for me to come.
He turned to Ward and shook his hand. “How are you, Ward?”
“Well, sir. You?”
“Great,” he said. “Call me Cortland.”
“My apologies,” Ward said. “Bad habits die hard.”
“So, you’ve met my daughter,” Dad said.
“I have,” Ward said. “She looks just like your wife.”
He chuckled. “Thankfully.”
“She dodged a bullet,” Ward teased.
I smiled while I watched them banter back and forth.
“You wouldn’t believe how relieved I was when I held her for the first time. I turned to Monnique and silently thanked her.”
“Too bad Cayson looks like you,” Ward teased.
Dad laughed. “He’s got the love of a good woman so I think he’s doing okay.”
“Yeah, he does,” Ward said with a nod. “Skye is wonderful. He couldn’t have found someone better.”
“We’re excited to officially make her a daughter.”
“I’m sure it won’t be long,” Ward said.
Mom joined our conversation wearing a yellow gown. The color looked great against her skin. “Hello, Ward.” She embraced him, and Ward kissed her on each cheek.
“We were just talking about you,” Ward said.
“Good things, I hope,” she said.
“Actually, yes,” Ward said. “I was telling Cortland how beautiful his daughter was.”
Mom turned to me then hugged me. “Hey, Clemy. You look wonderful.”
“Thanks, Mom. You look nice too.” Mom always looked like a bombshell, a trophy wife.
She pulled away and then smiled at me. “So, people have been talking about me?”
“The usual,” I said. “Everyone is grateful I got your looks.”
She smiled and her cheeks blushed slightly. “I see your father in you even if no one else does.”
“She’s full of it,” Dad whispered.
Ward chuckled. “She’s just trying to make you feel better.”
Mom returned to Dad’s side. “Are you guys having a good time?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Free booze, no complaints.”
Both of my parents laughed and gave me fond looks. They thought everything I said was funny and interesting even if it wasn’t.
“When’s the next symphony?” Dad asked.
“On Sunday,” I answered.
“We’ll be there,” Dad said. He turned to Ward. “My daughter is an extremely talented violinist.”
“You don’t say?” Ward said. “That’s impressive.”
“She was just bumped to first chair,” Mom said.
Ward gave me a look of surprise. “Wow…congratulations.”
“Thanks,” I said, feeling red. My parents bragged about me all the time, and sometimes it was overdone, like now.
“She can play the piano, bass, and guitar as well,” Dad bragged.
“You’ve raised a fine daughter,” Ward said. “A very accomplished woman.” Ward gave me a significant look.
I knew what it meant. I should quit stripping and find something else to pay the bills. Silently, I argued back.
“We’re so proud of her,” Dad said. “And of our son, as well.” He slipped in the last part like he almost forgot Cayson existed.
“Cayson is a good guy. He has my respect,” Ward said.
I didn’t understand why Ward spoke so highly of Cayson, but Cayson absolutely loathed Ward. I would have to ask him when we were alone.
“We got lucky,” Mom said. “We have two great kids.”
“I think we did a pretty good job raising them,” Dad said as he looked at her.
Ward gave me that same look, making me feel guilty for getting naked in front of strangers.
I looked away, annoyed with him.
“Well, I need to stop bragging,” Dad said. “And get back to the crowd.”
“It was nice seeing you,” Ward said politely.
“We’ll see you around, Clemy,” Dad said.
“Okay,” I said.
After my parents drifted away, Ward gave me that distinguished look.
“Don’t even start,” I said.
He smirked slightly then put his hands in his pockets. “You have lovely parents.”
“Thanks,” I said. “They’re pretty cool.”
“They’re very proud of you too,” he noted.
“Well, they have to be, right?” I said.
“No,” he said with a laugh. “A lot of kids don’t get praised like that. And a lot of them don’t deserve it.”
I crossed my arms over my chest so I wouldn’t grab him like I wanted.
“Would you like to dance?”
I eyed the dance floor and looked back at him. “Wouldn’t that make it obvious?”
“No,” he said. “It’s the only way I can touch you without raising suspicion.”
“Do you know how to dance?”
“Oh, baby. I can dance real good.”
I chuckled. “I’ll have to see it then.”
He extended his open hand to me. “Let me show you.”
I smiled then took it.
He led me onto the dance floor then held me close. He held one hand in his while the other rested on my back. His face was close to mine, near enough to sneak in a kiss if he wished. “Your parents are fond of me.”
“I can tell.”
“If they knew I was dating you, I think they’d be happy.”
“Maybe,” I said.
“No, they would,” he said firmly.
What was his point? We both knew this wouldn’t go anywhere so there was no point in going public.
He dropped the subject when he realized I didn’t want to have the conversation. He pressed his face closer to mine, making it hard to believe we were just acquaintances. “What are you doing next week?”
“Next week?”
He nodded.
“Uh, I don’t have any plans… Won’t you be in England?”
“Want to come with me?”
“What?” I blurted.
“If you aren’t doing anything and don’t have to work, I could show you around. And you’ll be waiting for me every day when I get off work—you know how I feel about that.”
I was caught off guard by the request. I couldn’t deny the idea of spending a romantic week in London with him intrigued me.
“It’ll be fun,” he pressed. “There are a few places I want to show you.”
“Well, I could get time off from the club…and rehearsals end next week.”
He smiled. “Is that a yes?”
“Uh, I’m not sure.”
“Come on,” he said. “If you aren’t doing anything, you should do nothing with me.”
I still didn’t have an answer.
“And we wouldn’t have to hide from anybody. We could do what we wanted, when we wanted.”
“Well, I guess…”
“Excellent,” he said. “I promise you’ll have a lovely time.”
I couldn’t believe I just said yes. But at least if I was with him in London, he wouldn’t have a chance to meet someone else. Being present would make that pretty difficult. “I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this.”
“I can,” he said simply. “You can’t get enough of me. And that’s perfectly fine because I can’t get enough of you.” He pressed his face close to mine, clearly not caring if anyone saw.
And for the first time, I didn’t care if anyone saw us either.
Chapter Twelve
Thomas
The twinkle in her eyes swept me away. The curve of her lips, full and red, stole my attention. Her natural beauty, hypnotizing and alluring, softened me and made me lose my resolve. Like an enchantress, she destroyed my walls and saw my soul underneath.
I couldn’t take back what happened. And honestly, the kiss was so good that I didn’t want to. But that didn’t make it right. I destroyed the professional aspect of our relationship. I leaned in for the kiss, unsur
e if she even wanted it.
And now I made everything complicated. When I saw her at work, it would be awkward. Would she expect something from me? Like all women, she’d want to talk about it. Since she worked for me, I couldn’t sweep it under the rug and forget about it. I had to see her every day. It was the reason I didn’t want to date her in the first place.
But now it was too late. What’s done was done.
When I went to work on Monday, I kept my shoulders square and pretended like nothing was bothering me. I showed a fake smile to my colleagues as I passed. When I reached my office, Rome wasn’t at her desk.
That was a relief.
I sat down and got to work, hoping I could avoid her for a while. A few minutes later, I spotted her through my doors. She was filling out paperwork at her desk, acting like she didn’t have a care in the world.
I got back to work and drowned myself with distractions. When lunchtime came around, I didn’t leave. I had a banana in my bag, so I ate that and kept going. When the workday came to an end, I couldn’t believe all that time had passed.
But now I had to see her. I packed up my things then put my bag over one shoulder. When I walked out, she was sitting at her desk, making notes on a sticky pad. I sighed then approached her desk.
Rome looked up at me, just as beautiful as the other night. “Hello, Thomas.” Her voice was crisp and professional.
“Hey, Rome,” I said quietly.
“Can I help you with anything?” she asked.
I wondered if she wanted to forget about that night as much as I did. It didn’t seem like she wanted to talk about it. “No…”
She returned her attention to her note.
I sighed then sat in the chair facing her desk. “We should talk.”
She gripped the pen in her hand and didn’t say anything.
“I’m sorry I kissed you.” I kept my voice low so no one would overhear us.
“Thomas, it’s okay. It’s not like I didn’t want to be kissed. You don’t need to feel guilty.”
“I still initiated it. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable around me.”
“Believe me, I don’t,” she said simply.
“Since we work together, nothing can happen between us. I don’t want to give you the wrong impression. There’s nothing more I can offer you.”
“That’s fine, Thomas. I completely understand. We’re both adults here, and I would like it if we returned to our previous relationship.”
