Showcase

by P. Roper

  Audrey, in a sleek black velvet dress, choked slightly on her martini and Noelle absently reached over to rub her back, her wide eyes never leaving me. Both of them openly gawked at the dress before grinning and nodding at me in sync. Their movement prompted more attention from the circle, composed almost solely of Halsteads. Mrs. Halstead gasped as her hand flew to her chest and her eyes looked like they were trying to hop clear out of her skull. Nathaniel’s reaction, while less emphatic than his mother’s, was exactly what I expected from him. His hand skated down my back to where the appliqué rested, barely concealing my actual ass. His eyes darkened and his tongue flicked out, wetting his lower lip. Mr. Halstead cleared his throat, before shaking his head and walking away.

  “Pretty girl, you’re a vision,” Nathaniel declared, pulling my hand to his face and pressing a kiss to my knuckles.

  “Nathaniel!” His mother all but shrieked before hushing herself to a stage whisper. “Please recall what we discussed and remedy this. Immediately!” She huffed and headed in the direction of the bar.

  “I don’t see anything to remedy,” said Noelle, stepping closer and looking, as if to inspect me. “Oh, wait!” Reaching for me, she smoothed a piece of hair at my roots. “There, perfect.” And with that, she smiled and wandered off.

  The evening progressed with dinner and drinks. At some point during the evening, Audrey’s father was handed a microphone. He animatedly read The Night Before Christmas, enchanting the room. Nathaniel, as before, was the picture of a gracious host making sure to speak with every guest in attendance.

  Before the band started to play and the post-dinner nosh began to circulate, I found myself wandering in the direction of the kitchen. We had planned this event down to the minute, it seemed. But to make it appear seamless, I had learned that there was a lot of micromanaging that Audrey did, even while technically attending as a guest. The woman didn’t trust almost anyone to execute her plans.

  Halfway down the hall toward where I could hear the bustle of the kitchen staff, a hand shot out and pulled me into a darkened room. My startled shriek was rendered almost inaudible by the hand that clapped over my mouth. “Pet, this dress is deliriously scandalous,” Niles growled, closing the frosted glass doors to the out-of-use parlour. One of his arms wrapped tightly around my chest, while his other hand remained covering my mouth.

  I squirmed against him, in a futile attempt to loosen his grip on me. “Now Dee,” he rasped in my ear, running his tongue up the shell of it. “I told you that I would reclaim you. Perhaps I should stake that claim as a Christmas gift to myself.” As the words left his mouth, his thin body ground against my back.

  I shook my head and he laughed. Dragging us through the room, he stopped beside an overstuffed chaise with a low back. “This will do,” he declared. “I’m going to remove my hand. If you make a single noise or put up a fight, you will regret it. This much I promise. Am I clear?”

  I nodded slowly, prompting his hand to inch away from my face. He slid it down my neck, squeezing my throat briefly before descending further. The arm around my chest shifted when his other hand met it. One hand grasped each of my breasts through the silk covering them. He huffed in annoyance before he roughly dipped into the fabric, scooping my flesh from its confines. He smoothed his hands over my exposed skin, peering down over my shoulder.

  “Pasties, Dee? Now those just won’t do,” he reprimanded, ripping them off of me. Tears stung my eyes as he dropped the coverings to the floor and brought his hands back up to roughly pinch my now bare nipples. It took all I had to not make a sound. But I knew N. If I did make a sound, it would not bode well for me.

  One of his hands remained tweaking at my chest while the other bent me forward over the back of the piece of furniture. I sucked my lips between my teeth to stop a whimper from leaving my mouth. Grinding the erection trapped in his trousers against my ass, he chuckled. “What a pretty fucking picture,” he taunted. “I’m willing to bet that the stickers were all you were wearing under this dress.” He dropped my breast, leaving them both hanging exposed, brushing against the rough upholstery of the chaise.

  Hands skimmed down my sides, over the curves of my hips, stalling at the tops of my thighs. His long fingers bunched up the silk until my legs and butt were completely exposed. Bare, as he had predicted. His body moved away from mine, hands remaining fisted in my skirt.

  I felt his breath on my thighs before he groaned. “Such a pretty little pussy isn’t it. I wonder, Pet, will it weep for me?” He propped the fabric of my dress along my hip, grazing his hand back down my thigh. Stopping at my knee, he moved it between my legs and began to ascend it. I had to think. I didn’t want him to actually fuck me. Panic rose in my throat, threatening to choke me, as his hand rose up toward the apex of my thighs.

  Footsteps sounded in the hallway. He paused. I lifted my heeled foot while he was distracted, kicking back into his crouched form. Connecting with his abdomen, I was granted the fragment of space I needed. I practically dove for the door, dropping the skirt back down my legs and tucking my breasts back into their places. My nipples strained against the silk but some pressed old people were the least of my worries. Taking a deep breath, I glanced over my shoulder to see Niles rising to his feet.

  With a gasp, I burst from the room. Just as before, the moment I crossed the threshold, I collided with a tuxedo clad chest. Once again, arms shot out to stabilize me. I looked up, and my heart dropped as I met the same eyes as I had the month before. Nicholas Halstead’s face was awash in shock as his gaze shifted from me to the door I had fled from. Releasing me, he stepped toward it. When he peered inside, a scowl etched into his features. He shot me a furious, accusatory look before storming back down the hallway.

  I rushed myself to the kitchen. I needed to be near people. Being alone right now would surely get me caught and punished. I remained in the kitchen, licking icing from a spatula, chatting with Ellen and her daughter, for a good hour.

  “There you are,” a familiar cadence spoke from the doorway. “Most people have left; Audrey is seeing the stragglers out. Are you ready to call it a night, pretty girl?” His full, dimpled smile lit the room and I soaked in the light. I needed to tell him what happened with his brother. But tonight didn’t feel like the right time. I couldn’t be the one to sour his demeanour on Christmas. I stood, placing my hand in his offered one. We bid goodnight to the few remaining in the kitchen before heading upstairs. I spent a restless night, wrapped in his arms.

  Chapter 13

  *BANG* I bolted upright in bed and the sheets pooled at my waist. Nate groaned and rolled onto his back beside me. “Wake up please? Like now! It’s Christmas,” Noelle excitedly screeched from the other side of the door.

  I gathered the sheets up, pulling them up to cover my bare chest and flopped back down onto my pillow. “Nathaniel,” sleep laced my whisper as I reached over to shake his shoulder. “Your sister is at the door. Apparently it’s morning.”

  He rolled over, burying his face in my hair, mumbling. “Can’t she just be a normal teenager and sleep late?”

  “Dude, I heard that! You have five minutes to get your asses downstairs or I’ll be back with at least one bucket of ice,” Noelle threatened us from outside the room.

  As her footsteps retreated back down the hall, Nathaniel’s hand skated over my stomach under the covers. “Mmm, you’re so soft and warm,” his lips brushed my shoulder as he spoke.

  I grabbed his hand, “Alright Casa Nova, five minutes isn’t enough time for that. And I wouldn’t put it past your sister to just walk in when her time limit expires.” A laugh left me as his breath skated across my chest. He pulled one of my nipples between his lips, grazing his teeth along it. “Nathaniel,” I groaned out his name as he released my nipple with a pop.

  “Merry Christmas, pretty girl. You better get some clothes on before I ignore my sister’s warning and take advantage of your nakedness.” His hand caressed my skin, eliciting goose bumps
in its wake.

  “Just one minute,” I reached up, pulling his face to mine and kissing him fervently. As our tongues clashed, he dipped a single finger between the folds of my sex, swirling it around my clit. “Fuck,” I panted. “We really do need to go,” I breathed out between kisses.

  A laugh rumbled from him. “Yeah, I know. We have about a minute until she bursts in here. But we’re finishing this later.” He pressed a light trail of kisses down my neck and across my shoulder before sighing and sliding out of the bed.

  We opened the door to the bedroom seconds before the five minutes Noelle had allotted us; me in plaid legging with a fuzzy white sweater and socks, Nathaniel in jeans and a fitted burgundy sweater. Literally steps from the door, we found Noelle with her promised bucket, filled with snow instead of ice. I laughed.

  “What?” she implored.

  “I just can’t believe you were actually headed up here with a literal bucket of ice, at 7am I might add,” I reply, shaking my head and descending the stairs with her.

  “Its snow, ice seemed like a waste. But of course I was. 7am is Christmas morning time!”

  “Come on you two,” Nate called from several paces in front of us. “If you get yourselves into the kitchen and figure out coffee, I’ll make waffles.”

  Half an hour later, we were sitting around the coffee table by the fire in the family room, finishing the breakfast he had made. Nathaniel turned on Die Hard while he cleaned up from breakfast, but I struggled to focus on the movie, anxious about too much. Partly about the two siblings opening the gifts I had decided on for each of them, but also knowing I’d have to tell Nathaniel about his brother eventually.

  I had given Audrey her gift the afternoon before. I had never seen anyone so excited about a bag before, but she had physically hugged the custom made monogrammed briefcase. “I love it!” she had gushed, opening and closing compartments before settling it over her shoulder and adjusting the strap. Then she put the bag down and hugged me. “Merry Christmas, Deliah. I really am so glad that you’re here.” She had left to spend Christmas with her parents as the party came to a close that night.

  “Okay,” Nathaniel stepped back into the room, rubbing his palms together. In the same moment Noelle squeaked, paused the movie and jumped to her feet. They both settled themselves sitting in front of the towering tree and turned to me expectantly. It struck me then, that I hadn’t actually celebrated the holiday family style since I was a small child. Sure, there had been gifts on Christmas morning while my dad was alive. But I couldn’t recall ever having so much as a tree until I was in college and I set myself up with a tabletop tree, just to be festive.

  I took in the two beautiful people in front of me. So similar in features yet so starkly different, simultaneously. I smiled as I joined them, “Where do we start?”

  Noelle dug under the tree, pulling out two silver-wrapped packages. To her brother, she gifted Shakespeare’s First Folio. “Noelle, how?” had been his response. She explained that she had spent the last 2 years scouring auctions and finally found one of the remaining 235 copies of the book originally printed in 1623. Then, I noticed she had stuck with a theme of sorts as I unwrapped my own silver package to find a set of First Edition Jane Austen books. Originally bound in the 1800s, Sense & Sensibility, Pride & Prejudice, Mansfield Park, and Emma completed the four book set.

  Noelle’s eyes lit as she tore into the snowflake covered paper around a slender box. Pulling the lid off, she gasped and covered her mouth with her hand before meeting my eyes. I smiled and nodded to the box, prompting her to return her attention to the gift in her hand. “Deliah, it’s beautiful,” she breathed as she pulled the delicate bracelet from its box. “Will you help me?” she asked, holding the platinum chain to her wrist. I nodded, reaching out to fasten the clasp before she pulled her arm back to examine the charms dangling there. Each one was also platinum and representative of some facet of her life; a pompom, a newspaper, a cookie, a pen, and a star. It hadn’t taken me long to decide on jewellery for Noelle, but it took days to track down exactly what I wanted to give her.

  Nathaniel had been more challenging. What exactly did you buy a man who had everything? Audrey’s list had helped me brainstorm, but I still wanted it to be more personal than just something I pointed to in a catalogue. So instead of having some of his own hockey memorabilia framed like the list had suggested, I (with the help of the PA team) had tracked down a couple specific things from some legendary Bruins players’ rookie seasons. The boxes contained a pair of game worn skates from Bobby Orr’s rookie 1966 season and a #15 jersey from Milt Shmidt’s, thirty years earlier. They had been preserved and were merely decorative but when he opened the boxes and read the authentication papers, he almost looked like he was going to cry. He stood, picking me up with him and breathing heavily into my hair. “Thank you, pretty girl. They’re perfect. You’re amazing.

  Finally, Nathaniel had purchased Noelle a custom, pink lemonade coloured Tesla SUV. She screamed and jumped up; running for the door when she opened the box to find a key fob nestled inside. Once she had gotten her teenage girl moment out, he looked at me almost hesitantly and handed me a large white box with a red ribbon tied around it. Inside, as Noelle would later inform me, sat a Hermes Birkin Bag. The smoothest leather I had ever felt, in a deep red colour.

  It was possibly the biggest and most beautiful designer bag I had seen in person. Inside the bag was a smaller black box, containing a delicate, intricate skeleton watch. I found myself sort of in awe of his gifting process. Sure, they were far more expensive than I would ever be able to fathom. But Nathaniel had made absolutely sure that he balanced extravagant beauty with practical functionality.

  When I thanked him and told him as much, he laughed. “Pretty girl, I knew that you wouldn’t have been happy with something flashy that was just for show. I specifically sought out purposeful gifts for you because of that.” He gathered me in a hug, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “Fair warning though, I can’t promise I’ll always give you practical gifts.”

  Later in the day, Ellen and her daughter arrived and began cooking dinner, after spending the morning together. Nicholas and Jacqueline made their appearance, both glowering at me through the evening. They informed us with clipped tones that Niles had taken off to Thailand. Claiming he needed hotter weather and wanted to see the resort that one of Nathaniel’s boarding mates from school had just acquired.

  The news prompted Nathaniel into an explanation of why his friend was indefinitely overseas. Colton’s father had grown tired of him frivolously dropping money on failing ventures then walking away. So his father had effectively banished Colton there. To oversee the business he had purchased on a selfish whim in order to have the resort to himself. He would remain there until he turned a fiscal year profit or for three years; whichever came first.

  The evening was also a quiet one. Once the senior Halsteads left back to the city, the three of us bundled up and went skating by the evening glow of Christmas lights that had been strung between the porch and the pool turned rink. We laughed a lot. It was a beautifully peaceful night and the subsequent week turned out to be much the same. Consequently as the week progressed, I still couldn’t bring myself to tell him.

  Chapter 14

  New Year’s Eve. It was the first one I had actually celebrated since I lived on the base. Usually I was working. Initially as a waitress, then I had been in showcases for two years. Christmas in this place had left me with deep warmth inside. It had just been the three of us at the house for the week, as Ellen was home for the week with her grandbabies. The time had been quiet yet still sort of magical, in its own way. But the house became very full again. The second massive party, in as many weeks.

  When I descended the stairs, I saw him there in the foyer. He was clearly arguing animatedly to his father. I could feel him getting more exasperated as the moments passed. His father glanced up and saw me standing there. He glared, probably at least partly
at my dress, and pulled Nathaniel away by the elbow. A deep breath had me continuing down to the space they had just vacated.

  I looked around, finding Noelle. She took me in and I raised a brow, cocking my hip as her jaw dropped. The dress was almost an exact replica of the sheer, diamond dripping one Bella Hadid wore in Cannes in 2017. Of course, I’m a little more curved than Bella, so it fit a little different than it did on her. But the dress was solely chosen to get a reaction. I knew that the guest list tonight was less elderly and more peers. Nonetheless, they were still society people and I was still scandalous.

  “Oh. My. God,” she approached me, eyes wide. “I have no words.” A giggle escaped her. “Nate is going to have an actual coronary.”

  “Maybe, maybe not, but he ran off with your father just now. You want to show me off?” I suggested with a laugh.

  “Abso-freakin-lutely!” she exclaimed. “Come meet some people that may be a little more your speed than the last two parties have been.” She winked and linked her arm with mine before dragging me around the house. It felt like I had met a hundred people by the time we made our way to where Mr. Halstead had evidently whisked Nathaniel off to.