The Rags-To-Riches Wife

by Metsy Hingle

  When Lily finally did begin to talk, she didn’t tell him about the dream. Instead she told him about growing up in the orphanage and foster homes, about hoping that her mother would someday come back for her or some couple would make her their own. She told him about being alone.

  “On that night of the ball, I’d been wired for days. The detective I’d hired had a lead on my locket. It’s not a common design and the detective had finally tracked down the jeweler who’d made it. The jeweler was a master artisan and was sure if he saw the piece, he could tell us who purchased it,” she began. “I was so sure that I’d find out who purchased the locket and that person would lead me to my mother. I even allowed myself to imagine what it would be like meeting her, what we would say to each other.”

  “What happened?”

  “It turned out that the jeweler had Alzheimer’s and while he did have good days where his mind was sharp, most of the time he had trouble remembering his own wife.”

  Jack ached for her. She’d mentioned briefly about the locket being her only legacy. Even knowing the circumstances of her upbringing he still hadn’t been able to imagine just how deep her pain and loneliness had been. How deep they still were.

  “It wasn’t the first time I’d hit a brick wall in my search to find out who I was. You get used to disappointments and usually I can handle them. But that night, I couldn’t. When I arrived at the ball, I’d never felt so alone in my life. And then you were there, asking me to dance,” she explained. “And the moment you took me into your arms, all the loneliness and disappointment seemed to melt away. All I could see, all I could think of was you.”

  He understood, because he had reacted in much the same way to her. Desire for a woman had never been so sharp, passion never so intense for him as it was that night with Lily. He’d broken a string of his own rules that night. Yet he had never regretted it. He still didn’t. “If that’s what the bad dream was about, that you feel you made a mistake that night, I understand. But—”

  “No. That’s not what I’m saying. I just wanted you to know why I did what I did that night.” She turned over, looked into his eyes. She brought her hand to his face. “I don’t regret making love with you that night, Jack. It was wonderful.You were wonderful. I wouldn’t change that night for anything even if I could.”

  “Neither would I,” he told her and turned his mouth into her palm and kissed it.

  “This baby growing inside me, it means everything to me. Everything. It’s…it’s my family. For the first time in my life I really will have a family.”

  “You have a family now, Lily. You have me. You have my parents, my sisters, all of my relatives. They’re your relatives, too,” he assured her. “Is that what the dream was about? You dreamed about being alone?”

  She told him about the dream. About waking up and finding him gone, their baby gone, once again being left with no one.

  “Lily, sweetheart, it was just a bad dream. A nightmare. I promise you, you have nothing to worry about. I’m not going anywhere and I would never take our baby from you.”

  “You could meet someone…someone you love and want to be with.”

  “So could you,” he pointed out and he was surprised at the flash of anger that came with that notion. “If you’re worried I’ll be unfaithful to you, don’t. You’re my wife and I meant those vows we took.”

  “But—”

  “No buts. And no more bad dreams. We’re a family now, Lily. You and me and our baby, we’re a family.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “It’ll be morning soon. You should try to get some sleep.”

  For once she didn’t argue with him. He wrapped his arms around her, held her close and she seemed to rest. When the baby kicked and she stirred, he moved his hand to her belly and that seemed to put her at ease. After a while, he realized she was asleep.

  Unfortunately, sleep didn’t come nearly as easily for him. Her scent surrounded him. She was soft, incredibly soft, and each time she moved, brushed against him, it was heaven and it was hell. Sighing, Jack settled his arm around her and resigned himself to the fact that it was going to be a very long night.

  Lily felt surrounded by warmth. It was a wonderful feeling, like being wrapped in a blanket in front of a fire while a blizzard raged outside. Content, she burrowed into that warmth and hugged the arm that was around her waist.The arm around her waist? Lily opened her eyes. She glanced down and sure enough, there was a strong arm dusted with dark hair anchored just below her breasts.

  Suddenly the events of the previous night came rushing back—the nightmare, Jack coming into her room and holding her, her asking him to stay, lying in the dark and telling him about the dream. It didn’t take a shrink to tell her why she’d had that dream.

  She could blame it on stress. She could blame it on hormones or on the fact that she’d had her life turned upside-down. It was probably a combination of all those things. It was also because she had been scared—scared of her feelings for Jack. And it was those feelings that were the problem, she admitted. When they had agreed to marry, he had been straightforward. So had she. They were marrying to provide a two-parent home for their baby. As two healthy, sexually compatible adults, sex was expected to be a part of the marriage. Love wasn’t. Love didn’t even factor into the equation. She had agreed to it all. Only she’d changed the rules in the middle of the game. She’d fallen in love with her husband.

  What was that old adage about the best-laid plans? She’d thought she was so smart, keeping Jack at an emotional distance even though they were man and wife. She had considered herself a pro at knowing where to draw that line. After all, she’d done it most of her life. It had been the first rule of survival that she’d learned in the foster-care system—to share only a part of herself and to always, always guard her heart. If she didn’t give her heart, she would never run the risk of having it broken. But the strategy hadn’t worked. Somewhere between the crazy midnight forays in the kitchen and him holding her after a bad dream, she had fallen in love with the man.

  Now what, Lily girl? You’re in love with your husband, but he doesn’t love you.

  It was true, she admitted. Jack didn’t love her, that was a given. But he did care about her. He had to care about her because no man would put up with her crazy cravings or disrupt his own sleep just to be sure she was okay after going to the bathroom. No man could kiss her the way he kissed her or treat her with such patience and tenderness if he didn’t at least care about her. And he wanted her. Jack cared about her and desired her. Would that be enough?

  She would make it enough, Lily told herself.

  She could feel Jack lying next to her, his chest against her back and there was no mistaking the hard ridge pressed against her. She stroked the arm around her middle with her fingers.

  “You’re awake.”

  Slowly Lily turned around and looked into his eyes—those deep blue eyes that could be so cool and so warm at the same time. “Yes, I’m awake.”

  “Feeling better?” he asked.

  “Yes. Thanks for staying with me last night.”

  He kissed her lightly on the lips, then ran the back of his fingers gently along the curve of her face. “Any time. It’s almost time for us to get up and get ready for work. So what do you say to me making some French toast this morning?”

  “I don’t want French toast,” she told him.

  “All right. What about a western omelet?”

  She shook her head and before he could offer her another choice of breakfast entree, Lily kissed him. She kissed him long and slow, trying to tell him in that kiss how much she loved him, how much she wanted him. When she finished with his mouth, she pushed up to her knees and went to work on his neck, his shoulder. She kissed his chest, ran her tongue around his nipple and continued down the dark V of hair arrowing to his belly. When she reached his pajama bottom and unsnapped the first button, Jack caught her hand.

  For a moment Lily froze. She thought she’d made a mistake. Maybe he didn’t
want her. She couldn’t blame him. Her hair was a mess. Her eyes were probably still puffy from crying and she looked as though she had swallowed a soccer ball. Not exactly a combination for seduction.

  Then he said, “I want you, Lily. So much that I can hardly see straight. But you’re vulnerable right now. You don’t have to do this just because I was here for you last night.”

  Able to breathe again, she said, “This has nothing to do with last night. It’s because I want you, too.” After ridding Jack of his pajama bottoms and briefs, Lily set about reacquainting herself with his body. He was magnificent—long, toned limbs, firm muscles and abs. Emboldened by the evidence of his arousal, she smoothed her hands over him and followed where her fingers had been with her mouth.

  She wished she were a sculptress so she could capture him in clay. Then she wished she were an artist so that she could capture his face on canvas. It was such a wonderful face. Strong jaw, slashing cheekbones, a nose that looked as if it might have suffered a break sometime in the past, steel-blue eyes that could be as cool as a Connecticut winter or as hot as a tropical sun. And his mouth—a generous, no-nonsense mouth that she knew from personal experience was capable of magical things.

  “Lily,” he whispered and hauled her up so that he could kiss her with that mouth. But he didn’t stop with her mouth. He kissed her eyes, her jaw, nipped at her ear and made his way to her throat. He pulled the gown over her head, tossed it to the floor. Then he resumed his assault on her senses, moving from her shoulders to her breast. He drew a circle around her nipple with his tongue and when he took the tip into his mouth, Lily sucked in her breath.

  “Jack,” she called out, not sure for what she was asking him.

  Yet he seemed to know because he continued to make love to her with his mouth, that clever, oh, so clever mouth that seemed to know just where each sensitive spot was. He eased her down on to the bed and started all over again. “You don’t know how badly I’ve wanted to do this,” he told her as he worked his way down her body.

  She had a fairly good idea, Lily wanted to tell him, but then she could barely think, let alone speak when he lingered at her belly, paying particular attention to the swollen mound.

  “You are so beautiful,” he whispered and tugged her panties down.

  She knew she looked like a soccer ball on stilts, but Jack made her feel beautiful. And then she couldn’t think at all because he was opening her to him, tasting her. Lily shivered at the sensations rolling through her. She gripped the sheets with her fists, unable to speak, barely able to breathe. When she thought she could stand the pleasure no longer, he replaced his mouth with his fingers. He brought her up again, sent her crashing over with the waves again and again. Then he was inside her, one long, slow, deep stroke and another and another, each one pulling at her heart. How she loved him, she thought, wishing that she dare tell him, but afraid to say the words aloud.

  “Don’t hold back, Lily,” he urged.

  She didn’t. The waves came crashing over her once more, like the rush of the ocean against the shore. But still he resisted. “I won’t break, Jack,” she assured him when she saw that he was holding back.

  “I know,” he managed. “But I don’t want to hurt you or the baby.”

  “You won’t,” she assured him, and then she proceeded to prove it by pushing him down onto his back and straddling him. She began to move, following the same slow rhythm he had set. The sensations were exquisite, the look in his eyes empowering as he gripped her hips and helped her move. His eyes never left her face as she moved up and down, up and down. And then, like a storm brewing, she could feel the pressure building again, growing tighter and tighter until she felt herself explode.

  “Jack,” she cried. Then she blurted out, “I love you.” She wasn’t sure if he heard her, then it didn’t matter because the world was splintering into bright lights and he was shouting her name.

  Later when she lay in his arms, Lily told herself that this would be enough. She would make it enough. She had to.

  “The contracts for the new Falcon venture are in the folder for you to look over,” Jack’s assistant Claire told him as he sat at his desk reviewing the morning’s schedule. She continued to run through a list of ongoing cases, trial dates and phone messages. But his thoughts drifted to Lily.

  Ever since that night last week when they’d made love for the first time as man and wife, things had changed between them. Lily was more at ease with him and she seemed happy. He was happy, too, Jack admitted. It was as if all those uncertainties that had been like a wall between them had dissipated. He found himself anxious to get home in the evenings and reluctant to leave in the mornings. It wasn’t just the lovemaking, although that was beyond terrific. It was being with Lily, sharing things with her, like her crazy food cravings. It was learning all those little things a husband and wife knew about each other. Like the way he now knew that Lily loved old musicals and laughed out loud at the Peanuts comic strips. Like the way her eyes lit up at the sight of a kitten and how she loved a ragged teddy bear named Bentley. Like the way she shivered when he kissed that sensitive spot on her spine.

  Face it, Cartwright. You’re a happily married man.

  When the room fell silent, Jack realized that he’d missed something and that Claire was waiting for an answer. “I’m sorry, what was that?”

  “I said Mr. Carlton called. He wants to know if you can meet him for drinks on Monday.”

  Jack hesitated. He hadn’t spoken to Carlton since before his wedding. The political power broker had been as stunned as everyone else when Jack had announced he was getting married. He had also explained his decision not to run for the senate seat. He had known that Carlton was disappointed, but Jack had felt he’d made the right decision. With a new wife and a baby on the way, he honestly didn’t want to divert any of his time or attention to working a campaign. But perhaps he owed it to Carlton to hear him out and explain his decision process in person. “Tell him okay and see if he can meet me at the country club.” He made himself a notation. “Okay, what else have we got?”

  “You have a ten-thirty with Alexandra Gifford and you’re due in court this afternoon at two o’clock.”

  “Thanks, Claire,” Jack told his assistant, who nodded and started to leave the office. “Claire?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Call Dr. Emily Robinson,” he instructed, referring to the obstetrician whose care Lily was under. “My wife has an appointment with her today for a checkup. Find out what time it’s for.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Although Lily had told him it wasn’t necessary for him to accompany her to the appointment, he wanted to be there with her. This was a special time for both of them and while he may have not been there for her the first five months, he intended to be with her for the last four—and all the months and years that followed. When the intercom buzzed, he said, “Yes, Claire?”

  “Mrs. Cartwright’s appointment is for eleven o’clock, sir.”

  Eleven o’clock. Jack looked at his calendar. “Claire, see if you can reschedule Alexandra Gifford for late this afternoon or tomorrow morning.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Jack pushed back from his chair, walked across the room to retrieve his suit coat from the closet and left his office. “I’ll be back after lunch,” he told his assistant. “If you need to reach me, I have a stop to make and then I’ll be at Dr. Robinson’s with my wife.”

  “Yes, sir,” Claire said, but Jack didn’t miss the grin.

  “Something funny?”

  “No, sir. I was just thinking how lucky Mrs. Cartwright is.”

  “I’m the one who’s lucky,” he told her. And he was, Jack thought as he left the office and headed for the parking lot. Yes, he was one very lucky man.

  It was because he felt so lucky that thirty minutes later he was leaving the jewelry store on Main Street with one of the shop’s signature bags. When he reached his car, he slid inside and placed the jeweler’s bag next to
the one from the toy store. A check of his watch told him he had fifteen minutes, so he headed to Dr. Robinson’s office.

  He made it to the doctor’s office in twelve minutes flat, and when he walked in the door, he found Lily sitting in the waiting area, her nose buried in a parenting magazine. Dressed in a soft pink top and white slacks with her hair pulled up on top of her head, she looked far younger than twenty-seven. And, were it not for the definitive bump in her belly, he wouldn’t have known she was pregnant. Even well into her fifth month of pregnancy, her legs and hips had remained slim. Her breasts were fuller, but not overly large and even while reading a magazine, she held herself with the grace of a ballerina. Her cream-colored skin literally glowed. Even the faint dusting of freckles across her nose had a glow about them.