by Cj Howard
“I loved your kiss,” she said softly. “I haven’t ever felt like this with anyone, and it’s incredible; you make me feel so good, but I am contracted to Peter. I am married to Peter, and I need to talk with him about what’s happening between us. You’re his business partner, and I have to respect that. I have to balance my priorities between the three of us. I have to be careful with this, as you know. Everyone outside of this house needs to believe that Peter and I are married and in love, and that cover can’t be lost, or we will all lose everything we have sacrificed to get as far as we have. I just need a little time, I need to try to work this out.”
“I can give you all the time you want. I would wait any amount of time for you. Only let me kiss you once more before you go,” he said, placing his hands on her cheeks and lifting her face to his. She slid her arms around him and hugged him back as he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her once more, sending heat and light through her, making her melt into his arms and wish that she could make her time with him at that moment last forever. His soft lips pressed against hers and opened her mouth, tasting her ever so lightly, teasing her, touching her, making her want just a little more of him, as he held her tightly, his hands moving from her face to her waist and her back, holding her against him. He felt so solid, so good pressed to her body, and her mind let her imagine that this kiss could last without end, that she would never have to let him go and feel her lips without his touching them, moving over them, making her want him to never let go.
He did let her go, though, after a long while, and she touched his cheek and turned, walking into the house without a word, leaving him standing in the fairy lights, watching her walk away. She saw him several times over the following days and he was friendly with her, tender and close with her, holding her, hugging her, kissing her cheek, but he told her that he respected what she had asked for, that he knew that there needed to be some semblance to what was happening between them, and that she needed to talk to Peter to figure it all out.
He told her he would wait, and she was so glad to hear it.
***
Peter came home from his time out of town and Emmaline walked into his office to talk with him later in the afternoon of his first day back. He smiled widely when he saw her come in and he hugged her tightly when she walked to him to greet him.
“Did you find a dress?” he asked. “I felt bad that I couldn’t go with you.”
She nodded and grinned at him. “Yes! Tristan took me shopping and we found a really beautiful gown.”
He felt ill when she said that Tristan had taken her, but he hid it so she wouldn’t see his jealousy, and instead he said, “Well, would you please put it on and show it to me, so that I can get a good idea of what I should wear so that I look half as good as you will when I stand beside you at that party?” He smiled at her, and she nodded and went to her room, put the dress and shoes on, and then walked back into his office. He looked up at her and his heart stopped in his chest. She was right. It was a beautiful dress.
She saw by the expression on his face that she had affected him, and it warmed her somewhere deep in her stomach to know that. He walked around his desk to her and shook his head.
“You look stunning,” he whispered.
She smiled at him and turned in a circle. He walked toward her and held his hand out for her to take. She was surprised, but she slipped her hand into his and he placed his hand on her back, drawing her toward him, and he began to dance with her. She felt the smile slip slightly from her face as he held her so close. His breath touched her cheek and her neck and it heated her in a way that she had never felt before. She felt butterflies with Tristan when she was in his arms, but Peter’s embrace sent white heat through her, and it shortened her breath and made her heart almost pound out of her chest. He leaned down and kissed her cheek softly, letting his lips linger on her skin for a long moment before he stepped away from her and went immediately back to his desk and sat again.
His body had reacted to her again and he could not let her see or feel his solid desire for her. He moved his chair closer to his desk and looked at her with an uncomfortable smile. “That is a truly lovely dress. You have excellent taste.”
“Well, to be honest, Tristan chose the dress. I’m glad you like it. Do you think you can get something that matches it?”
Peter cringed inside and smiled at her on the outside. “If you could leave me a small piece of the hem on the inside of the dress, I can take it to a shop and have it matched.”
She nodded at him and wondered at his behavior. “There’s something I wanted to talk with you about as well. I hope you understand.” She sat down before him, taking care with her dress and looking at him with a warm and happy smile on her face.
“What is it?” he asked, curiosity wrestling with dread and desire in him all at once.
She leaned toward him, her heart in her hands, and told him, “Tristan has taken an interest in me, and I like him as well. We kissed a few days ago, and I stopped it from there, because I wanted to talk with you, I wanted to know what you thought about he and I possibly seeing where our interests might lead. You hired me to be your wife, and that commitment is a priority for me, but things have changed unexpectedly, and now I want to see him romantically; I want to know what might happen with him. I know we laughed and joked about it, but I think he might be my perfect match; you know, my ideal man. I know there’s not really anyone who could fit all of the characteristics on my list, but I think he may be the closest I ever get. I will stay married to you, because that’s what we agreed, but I thought since you have your out of state arrangement, I wondered if we might work something out for me where I could see him behind closed doors.”
Peter felt like he had been gut checked. He had been leaving town, and when he was there he had every intention of finding women to satisfy his urges and physical needs, but even though he had found no end of truly gorgeous women who were anxious to spend the night with him, he hadn’t been able to be with them. All he could think of was Emmaline. All he wanted was Emmaline, and no other woman could turn him on enough to reach physical release. He hadn’t been doing what she thought he was doing, because his mind was stuck on her. Now here she was, after they had talked about it, and she was interested in Tristan. She was interested in another man who was living under his own roof as his guest and who was his business partner. There would be no way he could avoid seeing the two of them together, just as he had seen them dancing in the garden the day before he left. He was taken aback and struggled to hold his poker face in place. He wanted to grab her and hold her tightly to him. He wanted to tell her that there was no way she could be with another man. He wanted to tell her that she was saturating his dreams and his waking hours, his thoughts and his heart, that she was becoming the object of his desire more than any other woman had ever been and he could no longer fight it like he had been doing. He wanted nothing more than to give in to it and be with her, but she was sitting before him asking him to let her be with one of the two men closest to him.
He rubbed his hand over his chin, trying to hold in all the turmoil twisting within him. Peter shook his head and forced himself to steady his voice. “I realize that he can be very charming, and he is a likeable fellow, but you’ve been here alone, perhaps he is just good company for you and you are misconstruing your feelings for him. Whatever the case may be, with my election coming up, I really don’t feel as though this is the best possible time for you to explore a relationship like that, outside of our marriage, and in our home together. If it got out at all, if somehow a photograph was taken when you didn’t realize it, everything we have worked for would be ruined and destroyed. The project would be scrapped and nothing that we have worked so hard for would come to fruition. I am sorry to ask this, but I’ll need to ask you to wait a little while at least. Perhaps until after the election. No matter if I win or lose, we won’t be quite as much in the spotlight as we are in the time leading up to it, and that is the most cr
ucial time. Could you please give me until after the election?” He felt horribly guilty and selfish asking her for the time, because he was only partially asking for the stay of execution based on his election. Mostly it was just him giving himself a little time to try to win her for himself, or at least find a way to show her that he was falling in love with her and let her make a choice between the two of them. He had to give himself a chance, somehow, to try to get her to see what he felt, to see how much he needed her.
She nodded. “I understand. I’ll let him know, then, after the election.” She stood up and smiled at him, cutting at his heart as she turned and walked out of the room, and he whispered after her, “I love you.”
Chapter8
Peter’s words echoed in her ears. “Wait until after the election,” he had said, looking as though he was a hollow shell. Emmaline would wait as long as he asked her to, and the election was coming soon enough. It was months away, but she was in the same house with Tristan, and at least they could be around each other and she could get to know him better as time went by.
Hers was the most unusual situation. She was married to Peter, but it was a marriage of convenience. It was a business arrangement. He was a billionaire playboy who had been caught having sex in a hotel room with the current Governor’s wife. He was also a local businessman with every intention of completing a project to refurbish and repair part of the French Quarter and the surrounding neighborhoods when tremendous damage had resulted from the last big hurricane that hit New Orleans. Because of his tryst with the Governor’s wife, every time he tried to get through the red tape at City Hall to acquire permits and get inspection approvals or make any kind of improvements, he was stopped by dirty politics. In an effort to stem the negative publicity, he hired Emmaline to marry him so that his public image would evolve from that of the local playboy to one of a respectable businessman.
Their agreement was for three years. He would rent her for three million dollars, they would sleep at opposite ends of the house, in separate bedrooms, and only show the faces of a happily married couple to the public, while keeping their lives as their own behind closed doors. The public loved her and bought their story, eating it up like red beans and rice and gumbo, and the politics that held Peter back from his business endeavors with his project seemed to lighten up a bit, but not enough to allow him to make much progress. He had to bring in one of his business partners, Tristan, who was able to get further with the city than Peter was. Emmaline suggested to Peter that he run for the Governor of the state to replace the current Governor who was giving him so much trouble, and he began a campaign, which meant that if he won, she would be the Governor’s wife.
Tristan had moved into their home temporarily, to be able to help Peter work on the improvement project in the city. While Tristan was in their home, he began to fall in love with Emmaline. At first, Peter was just jealous, because he had been fighting his own feelings for Emmaline, trying to keep their relationship strictly business as he had promised her, but the more he was around her, the more he fell in love with her. Emmaline had come to him and asked him if she could see Tristan behind closed doors, and Peter had asked her to wait until his political campaign was over and she had agreed, and it was then that Peter, torn that she had asked to see Tristan, had finally admitted to himself that he loved Emmaline, and wanted her. Knowing that her heart was discovering feelings for Tristan made him keep that revelation to himself.
Emmaline knew she had to tell Tristan that they needed to wait, and while part of her was a little relieved because it would give her more time to get to know him better, most of her heart was disappointed to have to wait for him. He made butterflies dance in her stomach and she loved the warm and happy manner that he had, especially with her. She found him in the kitchen the next morning, making coffee for them both, and as she walked up to him, he closed his arms around her in an intimate embrace.
“Good morning,” he said softly into her ear, kissing her cheek, and then letting her go.
She smiled a little, and looked down, then looked back up at him. “Tristan, I talked to Peter.”
He nodded and waited for her to continue. “He wants us to wait until after the election results before we go any further with this, just in case someone gets a photo or finds out about us or it’s leaked somehow. Just as a precaution. There’s a lot on the line for all of us right now. I feel like he’s right about this.”
Tristan reached his hand up and stroked her face, running his thumb over her cheek and his fingers over her hair. “I understand completely. I don’t mind waiting for you. It will only make it sweeter when we can be together.” He leaned over and kissed her forehead, and she closed her eyes as his lips touched her skin. He kissed her cheek and she smiled, and then he kissed her lips softly, and at first she hesitated, but the warmth of his lips on hers was dizzying and she pressed her lips back against his and kissed him in return. He looked down into her eyes with longing, but then he let her go.
“It’s going to be hard to wait, but we can do it,” he said, pulling her into his embrace. She closed her eyes and smiled, thinking of how it would be when they could be together. It was so strange to her that she got married to a stranger only to find her true love.
They spent time together, talking, laughing, and sharing stories about themselves with one another during the times when he wasn’t working with Peter and Nelson on the project. Days passed and the night of the ball arrived. Emmaline spent the morning at the salon getting her hair and nails done for the event, and the afternoon getting ready. When she walked out to the drawing room to meet the men, they were all ready and waiting for her, and from the look on Peter and Tristan’s faces, she knew she looked good. Tristan took a few steps toward her and then stopped himself, as Peter was walking toward her as well, and Emmaline realized that he was remembering that she was married to Peter and this was Peter’s big night.
Peter hugged her and kissed her cheek, smiling at her, and then gave her his arm. “Shall we?” he asked, his face glowing with pride and happiness. They went out to the limousine and, in no time at all, they were walking into the ballroom at the hotel. Photographers and media reporters were all over the sidewalk and in the lobby when they arrived, snapping photographs and asking questions. Peter had his arm tight around Emma’s waist, holding her close to him. He knew that this night would be one of the best opportunities he would have to be close to her and somehow show her how he felt, maybe try to change her mind about her feelings for Tristan. He had noticed that Tristan kept watching her and trying to be close to her as well, without being obvious or disrespectful. She seemed to be alright with being so close to Peter, and he decided that he would take complete advantage of that, and use the time to try to win her over to him.
Peter had talked to Nelson about what was going on, and had asked him to keep himself between Emmaline and Tristan as much as he could, and to really push the happily married couple image with the press. Nelson, as always, was on top of it.
When the press stopped them at the door asking for photos, Peter turned and faced the cameras; his green eyes sparkling and his smile wide, holding Emma to his side. She waved and smiled, as she should, and then he turned her to him and lifted her chin with his finger, and kissed her softly, his lips molding themselves to hers, and she drew in her breath as his kiss lingered for a long moment before he let her go and smiled down at her, then turned to wave to the reporters before walking into the hotel.
Peter sat at the head table and had Emmaline at his side and Nelson beside her. Tristan was made to sit beside Nelson, just in case. They greeted their guests, hugging and kissing them, shaking hands and thanking everyone for coming. Peter had Emmaline with him the whole time, and he cherished every moment of it, feeling her so near to him. She looked stunning, and it was all he could do to keep his focus on everyone they met. She walked with him to the podium and stood beside him when he spoke to the crowd, talking about what he was going to do to improve the communi
ty. He received a huge response, and everyone cheered heartily for him. He was leading in the polls, and it showed in the enthusiasm of the crowd in the ballroom with them.
Emmaline felt the excitement of the crowd and Peter’s happiness as it emanated from him. She discovered that she loved being at his side for it, talking with people about what they were going to do, and she really meant every word she said to the people she talked to. She wanted to make a difference in the community as much as Peter did, and together it felt like they could bring about a real change and improve their city and the lives of the people who lived in it. It brought her a sense of purpose and meaning that she had never known before, and she loved it.
Peter walked off the podium and looked at Emmaline with a genuinely happy smile. “Care to dance with your husband?” he asked.
She grinned at him. “I’d love to.” He took her hand gently in his and walked out to the floor. Peter slipped his hand around her waist and as he pulled her to him, something in her swelled and she felt light as a feather with him. He looked down at her, gazing into her eyes, and it seemed like everything around them disappeared and it was only the two of them together, turning in each other’s arms, and nothing could touch them.
She smiled and said softly, “Your eyes are the color of my dress.” She hadn’t realized it before, and it was a sweet little nothing that touched her heart; an unplanned connection.
He leaned down close to her ear and said quietly, “Yes, but no one is looking at my eyes tonight, my dear, everyone is completely enchanted with you, including me. You take my breath away.”
Peter kissed her cheek softly and turned her in his arms as the music carried them along. She blinked in surprise, but she liked what he said. As the song came to an end, he closed his arms around her and held her to his heart, and as she looked up at him, he bent toward her and pressed his lips to hers softly, in a gentle and tender kiss, and his kiss lingered as he moved his mouth over hers subtly and slowly. Heat emanated from him as they connected, and something deep in her responded to it immediately; the core of her body began to blaze and she felt a magnetic pull to him that was irresistible and powerful. Her hands went to his face and she kissed him back breathlessly.