All She Wants
Page 20
How could she want anything to do with Marci right now?
She’d hurt her, as hard as that was to admit. In only eight weeks, Marci had managed to get to her. To that soft part of her. To her heart. And then she’d walked away as if Tessa didn’t mean a damn thing to her.
Maybe because Tessa hadn’t voiced that fact. That she felt anything at all.
But she did feel something. Oh, how she’d felt. Too much, in fact. So why hadn’t she told Marci? Why hadn’t she been brave enough to just say she was having fun, that she liked her, maybe more than liked, and that she’d like to keep doing just that. If only that.
And now she was pissed. And angry. And she would be damned if Marci got to deflect from the root of this malfunction.
Marci stepped into her. “Tessa, I’m so sorry.”
Tessa angled her head. “Sorry for what, exactly?”
Marci tugged Tessa’s hands off her hips. “I’m sorry that I acted like a jerk. That I blamed your sister. That I left without saying good-bye.”
Tessa wanted to jerk her hands free of that soft embrace. No. That was a lie. She wanted that soft embrace all over her naked flesh. Inside her. Coaxing her to an orgasm. Oh, so bad.
Marci stepped even closer. “I’m sorry that it took me so long to find my closure. I’m sorry that the sight of your sister made me lose my cool. I’m sorry that I hurt you. More than everything, I’m sorry for that. I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you.”
Tessa looked away. She hadn’t expected Marci’s apology to grab her heartstrings. She also hadn’t expected to believe every word she was saying. She was too mad for her words to reach that deep. But dammit, they did. They were reaching all the way down to that hard center and melting her reserve.
Fuck. She didn’t want to cave. Marci didn’t deserve that just yet.
She needed Marci to work a little harder. From her knees would be a perfect position to earn forgiveness.
Marci let go of one of her hands and tucked a finger beneath Tessa’s chin. She tilted Tessa’s face up.
“Is it too late, Tessa?”
Tessa studied those beautiful brown eyes. She wanted so badly to lie right now. She desperately wanted to tell Marci that it was all over. Whatever it had been, that it had been shut down.
Truth was, she was more desperate to see what the next phase of this life held for her. And she wanted to do that with Marci. By her side. In her world.
God, she wanted that more than she wanted this win. More than she wanted that future.
More than anything, she just wanted Marci.
“No.”
“Before I kiss you, I’ve been instructed to send you outside where Wendy and a gaggle of reporters and photographers and only God knows who else, are waiting for you.”
Tessa could only nod, wanting nothing more than that kiss.
Marci bent down and pressed their lips together.
Cheers erupted behind them.
Time seemed to stand still while Tessa snuggled into Marci’s arms.
Right. Marci just felt right. Like Tessa fit only in her grasp.
Excitement rolled through her as Marci tightened her grip and deepened the kiss, while everyone clapped behind her. This was her new beginning. And she couldn’t wait to see what this new life had to offer.
Marci pulled back and Tessa immediately missed the pressure of those lips. Butterflies erupted in her stomach. Love. She was so in love that it made her emotional.
And she could see that love reflecting in Marci’s eyes.
Dear Lord, she couldn’t wait to see where this love carried them. She couldn’t wait to explore this newfound thing. This thing that had such a hold on her that it frightened her as much as it excited her.
She just couldn’t wait to take that next step.
“Marci!” Seth yelled from the table. “It was you! It all completely makes sense now!”
Curious, Tessa turned around to find Sally and Danny huddled around Seth’s phone. Monty, however, was still standing in the same spot Tessa had left her, her expression blank, yet her shoulders were no longer stiff.
Who could blame her? She’d been the person who helped break up a marriage. Even if the fault didn’t rest with her, her part in the drama had been played.
That part Tessa couldn’t fix. What she could do was love them both until they figured out how to make up and move on.
“I’ll make things right with your sister,” Marci whispered and took Tessa’s hand. “Soon. I promise.”
Tessa looked up at her. “I’d like that. But not today. Let her worry for a minute longer. She deserves that much.”
Marci grinned.
“Holy mother of all things perfect, we get to stay!” Seth said.
“What is he rambling about?” Marci asked as she squeezed Tessa’s hand.
“We all get to stay!” Seth looked away from his phone and stabbed Tessa with wide, excited eyes. “Oh my God! We all got hired by the resort!” He started jumping up and down and was quickly joined by Sally and Danny. “We get to stay! We get to stay! We get to stay!”
Tessa pulled Marci with her and joined the trio. “Whatever are you talking about?”
Seth shoved his phone at her. “Hit the play button.”
Tessa did as instructed. Wendy appeared on the screen. Her hair was drifting around her head with the breeze, and the sun was shining bright. Cars passed her by and Tessa recognized that she was outside the restaurant. A reporter was standing beside her, microphone in hand.
“So, Miss Highland, tell me where this winning crew goes from here.”
“They go nowhere. They all stay right here, at this resort, which is what the contest was all about from the beginning. We needed to find a solid, proven crew that could handle the fundamentals of catering to an elite group of clients.”
“And when you say elite, who or what are you referring to?” the reporter asked.
“The rich and famous. Stars. Celebrities. Clients who simply want their privacy. Who don’t want the hassles of planning their vacations, who want someone to scale down the details and make their wishes reality, and are willing to pay a professional to handle everything and keep their identity secret.”
“Did you have such clients for this contest?” the reporter continued.
“No. These clients were just ordinary, everyday vacationers who signed up via the resort website to be part of this contest. Free of charge. From the party animals, to brides, we encouraged everyone to apply with a video of what kind of vacation they were looking for. My brother and I went through every video and picked out each client based on easy to plan, to hard to handle. These contestants had a complete mix of good and bad, and it was up to each crew to give the clients what they wanted. We were looking for someone who wasn’t afraid to go the extra mile.”
The reporter moved the mic back. “Because you were looking for a crew you could trust with the real agenda? The elite clients, as you called them.”
“That’s exactly what I was looking for. And I found them.”
Marci held her breath. Holy shit. That was her dream. Her plans. Her desire. The very one she’d tossed aside to be with Ashley. The very one Wendy had been hinting about this whole time. Asking her time and time again had she seen it yet.
How had she missed that? How had she not seen that everything happening around her, the crews, the clients, was parallel to the dream she had shared with Wendy? Right down to the nitty-gritty details. She was the only person Marci had ever shared the detailed information with before she got whisked away into fantasy land.
How the hell had she been so blind?
“And your resort is where this will all take place?”
“Absolutely. We’ve already escalated our building plans on the east side of the resort to include five brand new lodges. All private, non-connecting properties, all equipped with everything a mountain vacation should include, and each client will have their very own crew to see to their every need.”
Wendy gave a shy grin and a shrug. “Who knows. Could be. But I’ll never tell.”
The reporter laughed. “Can you at least give me a hint?”
“I’ll just say that since the contest began, my inbox has grown with clients eager to get on that list. And now we have a top notch crew to put that company into motion and train more crews.”
“How are you going to take care of this amazing resort as well as a private company with so many clients?”
“Oh, it won’t be my burden to bear. That job, that new company, belongs to Marci Jones.”
Shocked, Tessa looked up at Marci and found an expression of pure disbelief.
“Marci gave us full control to select the clients and the contestants, and in return we got to piggyback off her dream with free advertisement. Win-win for everyone involved. All we had to do was use the resort as home base to find the perfect crew. And we gave them some really hard clients. Some very tough. And as you see, only the strong survived them all.”
“Tessa Dalton’s team?” the reporter asked.
Tessa threw her free hand over her mouth and Marci gave her a squeeze.
“Yes. Tessa’s team proved themselves weekly. And their finale was a phenomenal, miles outside the box, brilliant performance. What she did for her bride and groom took her to another level of planning. It was incredible, actually. We knew she and her team were the ones for the job when we saw what they had put together.” Wendy looked directly at the camera, and Marci knew that look was for her.
It said, “Do you see it now? Do you see what I’ve been doing for you?”
She had the best friend in the whole wide world. God knew she didn’t deserve her.
Marci mentally choked back her tears. Wendy had done that for her. She’d taken her notes, her detailed notes, and turned them all into reality, all while Marci moped and bitched and fell deeper into her own despair.
How ever was she going to repay such a carefree act of love?
Epilogue
Tessa stepped through the front door of the mountaintop lodge. She stalled to look back over the snow-covered grounds, at the peaks and valleys in the distance, and resisted the urge to hug herself. This was her favorite place in the whole world. In the whole wide world. Where she felt at home. Where she felt free and protected at the same time.
It was just a house. Huge, of course, but it was still just a home. But something about this place just took over her emotions every time she stepped inside.
She spent as much time in this beautiful house as possible. From setting up for clients to just hanging out when the place was empty. She couldn’t get enough of being there.
A whole year had passed her by since she’d won the contest. Since Marci had asked for a second chance.
In that time, she’d covered thirty plus weddings at the resort and planned several large group events, all while watching the construction of the new lodges being built. Like this one, they were huge and fancy and amazing. But for some reason, they still held no candle to this one. They didn’t make her feel connected like she did with this one.
But the most important thing she did feel connected to was Marci. Inside. Outside. In bed. Out of it. Every fiber of being was connected to that woman.
And now they were connected through Marci’s business. Their business.
Zen.
Tessa had to hold back a squeal as she turned to close the door.
She’d done that. Won a contest. Become the shit in the wedding world. And in that time, she’d helped Marci roll the contest over into a business. A thriving business.
Wendy had brought her dreams back to life. How incredible was that? How much love would a person need to do that for their best friend?
But she had. She brought Marci’s dreams back to life. The very ones she’d allowed Ashley to make her forget.
And together, Tessa and Marci had taken on their new clients. Six of them, to date. Prestigious, rich, secret clients. And Marci had seen to it that they paid a beautiful price to get the best private treatment.
Their every command had been met. Sometimes before they even had time to command it. Yes. Their crew was that good. With Seth, Danny, Sally, and Hunter leading every step of the way.
There was no better crew for the job. And Seth was the perfect leader. He was even given that title and that responsibility by the entire crew. And he was fantastic at that job. He had an eye for detail and like Tessa, went above and beyond what the clients wanted or needed. And with the three amigos as his sidekicks, there was no client who could ever want or need for anything.
Tessa wanted to pinch herself sometimes to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. That she was still alive and not in some purgatory space between heaven and earth.
Life was so good. So good, in fact, she often worried that it was all too good to be true. Nothing could be this incredible and stay this perfect forever. Yet, so far, it had. It was perfect. Her life. Love. Everything. Absolutely perfect.
And to add the cherry to her mountain of whipped delight, Monty had found her match in life. Wendy. Of all people, Wendy.
She’d never seen Monty crushing on anyone. Let alone in love with someone. But damn, she wore it well. Nor did she know her little sister, who’d spent most of her life kicked back while women flocked to her, had done all of the chasing to catch Wendy’s eye. She’d wined her. Dined her. Went completely out of her normal way to catch her.
It had taken Marci some time to open up to Monty, but once she did, all was forgiven. Or at least driven to the back of her mind where it was safe to actually care about Monty. They opted to never speak about it again, and that was good enough for Tessa. She wasn’t sure she could have continued a relationship with Marci otherwise. Positive she shouldn’t have, in fact. She loved her sister, was in love with Marci, but having two of the people she loved the most in this world at odds with each other would have been too much. It would have been her doom. Her and Marci’s doom.
And having Monty on this mountain with her was amazing. Of course, Michelle was jealous at times, claiming Tessa loved Monty more than her. But when she’d come for a visit several months back, she’d actually hugged their little sister and told her that she was proud of her accomplishments, but mainly she was proud that she’d settled down.
The shocked expression on Monty’s face had been worth all the years of distance between them. Michelle had made her day, year, maybe even her life, with those simple few words.
Tessa’s life couldn’t get any fuller. She was filled to the max with blessings and never missed a day to thank her lucky stars. Or to blow kisses to those mountaintops.
She turned toward the large open room to find rose petals and tea light candles scattered across the floor, trailing toward the staircase that led to the upper floor.
With a wicked grin, she dropped her bag of cleaning supplies on the table by the door and started walking. She shed her coat and shoes, wondering if she should be stripping her clothes with every step, praying Marci would take care of that little task when she finally found her, no doubt, in that ridiculously huge master bedroom.
Damn, her heart was so full. Full of Marci. Full of happiness. Full of a great life. Just full.
She’d never been so in love. Over the moon, couldn’t get enough of her, in love. Every day she wanted to spend with this incredible woman. Because every day was a new adventure. Every day was another great thing to explore. Together.
It was crazy how deep she’d fallen. Crazy how she couldn’t get enough. Insane how she never wanted to get enough. But scary at the same time. Scary that at any second, the rug could be ripped out from under her feet. It would send her spinning out of control. That she knew.
Marci had done that. Marci had made her feel that secure. That Tessa could trust her with
her life, with her soul, with her heart. So she did. Everything within herself, she gave to Marci. Openly. Unendingly. Without question or hesitation, she gave it all to Marci.
With her heart pounding with excitement, Tessa started up the staircase and listened for any sounds of Marci.
All was silent as she took yet another step.
Halfway up, she found a piece of paper with a single word.
You.
This was so Marci. She was always surprising Tessa with fun, sexy adventures. Always making her feel special. Loved. Adored.
Another few steps, she found another note.
Like.
Unsure if she should be naked when she finally found Marci, hoping Marci would command her to get naked very soon, Tessa took the final steps to the landing and found yet another note.
Me.
Tessa quickened her steps. The next note was only a few feet away.
Best.
Again, Tessa scurried down the hall until she found the next.
On.
Tessa snickered. She knew exactly what the final words would say. Her favorite position for Marci. On her knees. Good God Almighty, but the magic she could work from that position.
Another few steps took her to the bedroom door, where she found the final note on the floor.
My knees.
For sure, she should have been stripping with every step.
With her insides tight, Tessa opened the bedroom door to find Marci down on one knee with her hands behind her back.
Her breath jammed in her throat while her heart overflowed.
Love. She was so in love with her. She wanted to spend the rest of her life doing exactly this. Following rose petals and sexual notes. Making love and experiencing incredible new adventures. On this very mountain.
Marci gave her a bright smile.
Tessa took two timid steps, terrified her knees would buckle and send her sprawling like a damsel.
Was this it? How Marci would propose to her? On bended knee? The exact position she’d told Marci was lame when they’d ventured into the conversation of marriage a few times. It was a subject they didn’t speak of often.