Bliss, Inc. (Indigo Love Spectrum)
Page 13
Matthew’s mouth was agape. “The groom and the best man?”
“You heard right.” Paige shook her head. “I’m usually prepared for anything when it comes to weddings, but this was a first, and hopefully last, such thing for me.”
“Poor girl.” Matthew finished his coffee.
“It would have been kinder to leave her at the altar.” Paige got up and put the mugs in the dishwasher.
Matthew stood up. “You’re right about that.” He paused. “How about I give you a proper hello?”
Matthew took her in his arms and they kissed.
“Where’s your bedroom?” he whispered.
“Upstairs.” Paige led him by the hand up the stairs and to her bedroom. Out of habit she locked the door behind her.
Just as she was about to unbutton her suit, Matthew stopped her. “Allow me.” He unbuttoned her jacket and then turned her around to unzip her skirt. Her suit fell around her ankles, revealing the cami set she wore underneath.
“Oh my, look at you.” He pulled his sweater over his head and quickly took his trousers off.
CHAPTER 12
Tempted by the smell of coffee brewing, Matthew opened his eyes. Looking around Paige’s bedroom, he realized that she was not decorating challenged. He took in the modern style. It was surprising for a woman who was all about wedding and frilly things. Matthew got up and put his pants on. He noticed the photos on her dresser and took a closer look, studying the photos of a young man he took to be her son.
“That’s my baby, Maximillian Holden Carter.” Paige came in with two cups of coffee.
“He’s a handsome young man,” Matthew said as Paige handed him a cup. “Thanks.” He sipped the coffee. “How did you know I took my coffee black with sugar?”
“I figured you probably took your coffee like you do your women, black and sweet,” she said coyly.
They laughed.
Matthew looked at Max’s picture again. “He looks very tall.”
“He is very tall. He’s almost six feet, seven inches.”
“Wow! You weren’t kidding.”
“I might call him my baby, but he’s a far cry from the five pound bundle of joy I brought home from the hospital. He’s outgrown the bundle part, but he’s still the joy of my life.”
“And now he’s turning eighteen and heading to college, I’m sure.”
“Yes he’s been accepted at Cornell.”
“That’s terrific, Paige. I know you must be so proud of him.”
“I am.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask you a question, but I’m not sure if I should.”
“That sounds ominous. Now you have to ask.”
Matthew thought for a few moments. “I was wondering why you and Max’s father got divorced. It doesn’t seem like your divorce was contentious.”
“It wasn’t contentious.”
“So what happened, if you don’t mind me asking? You can tell me it’s none of my business and I would understand.”
“It’s a fair question.” Paige sat down and crossed her legs. “We came to a point in our marriage when we wanted different things. Joshua was bucking for senior partner and as his wife he expected me to play the game with him.”
“In other words go to all the office functions, host dinner parties, play tennis or golf at the club on the weekends. Something like that?”
“It seems you’ve seen this movie before.”
“I have. That’s exactly what it’s like in my family’s company. Everyone has to play a role.”
“Well, I wasn’t prepared to play a role. I was a political science major not a drama major. I didn’t go to law school so I could be a mirror and reflect his greatness.”
“So you weren’t of the ‘Mrs.’ mind-set.”
“Definitely not. I was supportive of Joshua’s career but I had a career of my own. I was head of the mergers and acquisitions department for a Fortune 100 company.”
Matthew looked impressed. “That was some accomplishment.”
“I thought so, too, at the time. He spent long hours at work while I juggled everything else including the mommy job. We just grew apart.”
“So you came to a mutual decision.”
She nodded. “It didn’t make sense to prolong the agony.”
“Although it was the right decision I’m sure it wasn’t easy.”
“Divorce is never easy, even under the most amenable circumstances. Nonetheless, that’s in the past and he’s married to a woman who takes her job as his wife very seriously,” she said facetiously.
“She says with her tongue firmly implanted in her cheek,” he joked.
“It is what it is.” She smiled.
He paused to look at another picture. “Who is this cutie?”
“That’s my nephew Cole, my sister Siobhan’s miracle baby.”
“He’s adorable. How old is he?”
“He’s three. Siobhan and David went through three years of fertility treatments before she got pregnant.”
“That’s great.”
Matthew sat on the bed.
“I was thinking about that poor bride yesterday.”
“I know. I can’t get over it either,” Paige said.
“Well, you don’t have to worry about that for my brother’s wedding.”
“I know. It’s obvious how much he adores Jennifer, and she adores him.”
“Speaking of adoration, what about us?”
“What about us?” she repeated.
“When are we taking it public?”
“After the wedding.”
“Why after the wedding? Are you worried about the interracial thing?”
“Not at all.”
“Then what is it?”
“If we go public now, people will think I got the wedding contract because I’m sleeping with you.”
“Why would they assume that? The Kleins hired you. Besides, I’m the black sheep of the family, no pun intended. Everything about me says I am anti-status quo.”
“I know, but once people, and I mean other people in the wedding business especially, realize we are together, the Queen of England could have hired me and it wouldn’t matter. For a lot of people it would mean that I got this gig because of affirmative action.”
“Do you think the Kleins hired you because you’re black?”
“No, they hired me because I am the best person for the job. The fact that I’m plus sized doesn’t hurt.”
“What does being plus size have to do with anything?” He was genuinely puzzled.
“Well, I can’t say that it was a factor in getting the job, but as a plus size woman I see a lot of myself in Jennifer when I was that age. So when she told me she doesn’t want four bridesmaids in addition to her cousin, I could relate to her reason why.”
“Do you mind sharing it with me?”
“The bottom line is she doesn’t consider them her friends, and bridesmaids are usually friends and/or relatives of the bride.”
“That makes sense to me.”
“It makes sense to me, too. Only I now have to convince her mother to back off and let her have a small wedding party.”
“Isabelle probably wants to show off a little.”
“I understand why she would want to show off, but Jennifer doesn’t want it and that should be the end of it.”
“A lot of society nuptials have tremendous bridal parties.”
“I know. The truth is they are a nightmare to orchestrate. You have what seems to be a cast of thousands, with different likes and dislikes. A good deal of the time some of them don’t like each other, and that makes for friction. It’s the reason I charge more for wedding parties with more than five people.”
“You do?”
“Oh yes. If I get an aerobic workout chasing down members of the bridal party, somebody is going to pay for me working myself into a flop sweat in my designer duds.”
Matthew laughed uncontrollably. “I never thought of it that way.”
“
So as far as I’m concerned, a small wedding party works for me. Why should she have a bunch of salad witches in her party?”
“It sounds to me like you know a little something about a controlling mother.”
“My mother was a nutritionist and a calorie watcher.”
“I take it there was a lot of tension at the dinner table.”
“In my house we raised mealtime tension to an art. Still, in a weird way it helped me. I became more aware of clothes and how they looked on my body, courtesy of the withering Coreen glance.”
“Withering glance?”
“Oh yes. My mother had a way she’d look at you if she thought you weren’t dressed properly, so I learned how to mind my Ps and Qs. I think Siobhan owes her career in fashion to my mother.”
Matthew laughed. “Mother and daughter relationships are more complicated than I thought.”
“Be very happy you’re not a girl.”
“I’m getting happier by the minute.”
“I bet you are,” she chuckled.
“So you’re this sexy, confident, curvy woman because of your mother.”
“Maybe a little more in spite of her.”
“Your confidence is very sexy,” he said as he moved closer to Paige.
“You think so?”
“Oh yes.” Matthew took both coffee cups and placed them on the nightstand. He leaned in closer. “It’s very sexy.” Matthew kissed her tenderly. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.
Paige’s robe, followed by Matthew’s pants, hit the floor.
Their lovemaking on a Sunday morning was slow, deliberate, and very sensual. Paige kissed every part of Matthew’s body. Her soft full lips excited him and the warmth of her breath made his body tingle. An electric current pulsed through him with every touch. He lifted Paige onto him, he wanted to see and feel all of her. Their bodies moved together in rhythm.
“Oh, that’s much better. I can see you now.” Matthew spoke softly as he slowly traced the outline of Paige’s hips. The feel of her curves so soft and warm excited him. Like a sculptor relishing his chosen medium, Matthew savored every inch of Paige’s body.
The more he touched her the more Paige knew why she was so taken by his hands. His touch was light and deliberate, making Paige feel like a precious and priceless work of art.
Sensing her Venus rising Matthew pulled her closer to him, and kissed her, his fingers in her hair. Then he moved on top. In a flash their lovemaking intensified until they reached the point of exquisite surrender.
* * *
The sound of the phone ringing woke Paige up.
She cleared her throat before picking up. “Hello?”
“Mom?”
“Yes, Max?”
“I was just calling to say I’m on the way home.”
She sat up. “Okay. Where are you?”
“We’re on Northern State.”
“Okay. I’ll see you when you get here.” She hung up and lay back down for a moment before sitting straight up and then leaping out of bed, startling Matthew.
“What’s wrong, baby?”
Paige scrambled to get dressed. “You have to get up,” she said urgently.
“What’s going on?” Matthew was still a little groggy.
“Max is on the way home, and you haven’t officially met him.” She grabbed a bra and a pair of panties from her dresser and quickly slipped them on.
“I’m looking forward to meeting Max. You do want me to meet him, right?” He sounded a little unsure.
Paige pulled a shirt and a pair of jeans out of the closet. “Absolutely. I just want you to meet him fully clothed in the kitchen.” Paige buttoned her shirt and slipped into her jeans.
Matthew got out of bed. “I see your point. You want to ease him into it.”
“I’d rather do it that way. I’ve never had a man stay overnight since my divorce.”
“How long have you been divorced?”
“About eleven years now.”
“And in that whole time you’ve never had someone sleep over, even when Max wasn’t here?”
“That’s right.”
“Wow.”
“I know it sounds a bit old-fashioned, but it’s different when you’re a divorced mother as opposed to a divorced father.”
“Why would there be a difference?”
“You’re not serious, are you?”
Matthew was stumped. “I am serious. What’s the difference?”
“Frankly, it’s a double standard. You see divorced fathers are expected to have women in and out of their lives or bedrooms. No one ever accuses a father of damaging his child or children by carrying on a sex life.”
“That’s true.”
“On the other hand, it’s a completely different story for mothers. Having a man stay overnight is a major sin that damages the delicate psyches of their children.” She paused. “I’ve seen many custody and divorce cases where attorneys trot a woman’s sex life out and put it on trial. Put a man’s sex life out there and it barely registers on the pious meter.”
Matthew mentally tossed the idea around. “You know I never thought of it that way. I didn’t realize you mothers go through so much just for having a relationship.”
“It does seem medieval but it’s the truth. So instead of trying to be a trailblazer, I decided I would wait until Max was old enough to deal with it.”
“Wow.” Matthew was dumbfounded. “What about your ex? He met his wife pretty soon after the divorce, right?”
“Not really. Before Tara there were Tina, Helen, Amber, Bethany, Louise, Margaret, Adina, and Evelyn.”
“Holy cow! How come you know all their names?”
“They were friends of Daddy’s and they helped him with his office stuff.”
Matthew laughed. “From the mouths of babes.”
“Frankly I was glad when he met Tara. She put an end to the tit parade.”
Matthew nearly choked. “The tit parade?”
“Max got quite a gander at the mammary glands of his Daddy’s friends. Apparently they liked to walk around braless. At the time he really liked that group Rage Against The Machine, so instead of singing ‘Bulls on Parade,’ he replaced bull with tits.”
Matthew cracked up. “Your Max is one smart kid.”
“I know. I made sure I told his dad, and next thing I knew there was Tara.”
Paige picked up the coffee cups and went downstairs to the kitchen. A few moments later a fully clothed Matthew walked into the kitchen.
“Having the privilege of meeting Max, I feel special.”
“You should. Can you do me a favor and get one jar of marinara from the fridge? I think it’s on the bottom shelf.”
“Sure.” He noticed a shelf filled with prepped meals in microwaveable containers. He took the marinara out and handed it to Paige.
“Thank you.”
“So are you on a diet or something?”
“What? Why would you think that?”
“I saw all those prepped meals in the fridge.”
“It’s not one of those programs. I make meals up in advance for Max, so if I’m running late he has something to tide him over.”
“That’s just a snack?”
“You’re a high school teacher, answer that one yourself.”
He thought for a moment. “I see what you mean. Do you need help with anything?”
“No, thanks. All I have to do is heat up the eggplant parmesan and the chicken parmesan in the oven.”
“So what’s the cover story?”
“We can say you’re here to talk about your brother’s bachelor party.”
Matthew looked at her like she was nuts. “Paige, Max might be young, but he’s not that young.”
“It does sound pretty lame. I guess we can play it by ear.”
“I think we’ll find out soon enough. I hear car doors slamming.”
Paige looked out the window. “Oh, great. Joshua’s coming in, too.”
“Hey Mom!”
The tall and lanky teenager walked into the kitchen.
“Did you have a good time?”
“Yeah,” Max answered as he checked out the stranger in their kitchen.
“Hello, Paige,” Joshua said as he walked into the kitchen.
Paige wiped her hands. “Max, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine, Matthew Smythe. Matthew, this is my pride and joy, Max.”
He stood up to shake his hand. Although Matthew was six feet, four inches tall, he had to look up. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Same here,” Max answered.
Joshua cleared his throat.
“Don’t worry, Joshua, I was getting to you.” She paused. “Matthew Smythe, this is my ex-husband, Joshua Carter. Joshua, this is Matthew Smythe.”
They shook hands.
“Smythe. You wouldn’t be related to the Smythes?”
“As a matter of fact I am related.”
“So you’re here about the wedding? It is your brother that’s getting married, right?”
Paige knew Joshua’s attorney’s mind was at work.
“In a way. I came to give Paige a little background information.”
“A little 411 about the society world.”
“Right.”
“It does seem like a different world.”
Max’s stomach got the best of him. “What’s for dinner, Mom?”
“Eggplant parmesan and chicken parmesan with a tossed salad. If you would be so kind as to get the salad from the fridge, Max.”
“Sure, Mom.”
Joshua took a whiff. “I knew something smelled good. Do you still use that special cheese?”
“Yes, Joshua. Don’t you have a bowl of salad with some tofu waiting for you at home?”
“Very funny.”
“Would you like to stay for dinner, Joshua?”
“Well, since you asked so nicely.” He sat down at the table. “You’re staying for dinner too, right, Matthew?”
Matthew grinned. “I’d love to.”
Joshua settled into the chair next to him. “So, Matthew, are you a part of the family’s media empire?”
Paige flashed Joshua a look.
“No. I teach history at P.S. 175.”