My First Half (Cate & Kian Book 1)

by Louise Hall

  Eventually, he felt her stop crying and she became weightless as she drifted off to sleep. She murmured a little as if she was giving him a small in to her dreams.

  In the early hours of the morning, Cate woke up to find Kian kneeling down by her side of the bed. He’d rolled up a piece of tinfoil to look like a ring.

  “Marry me,” he said softly.

  Cate rubbed her eyes as if she was still dreaming. “You don’t have to do this,” she reminded him.

  “Let me take care of you and our baby.”

  She held his face in her hands and studied it, wanting to know what he was thinking.

  He lifted up her hand and found her ring finger. “You haven’t given me an answer?”

  Cate took a leap of faith. “Okay, yes.”

  Kian smiled and slid the tinfoil ring down her finger. He kissed her forehead. “Go back to sleep.”

  The next time she woke up, Kian told her they were getting married in Las Vegas, just the two of them. He’d already booked the tickets and arranged everything. All Cate needed to do was get dressed; they could pick up her passport and suitcase on the way to the airport.

  Cate took another, scarier leap of faith and got out of the car. She didn’t have any luggage, Kian had insisted on taking her suitcase with him. Hiking her small handbag up over her shoulder, she made her way towards the busy terminal building. The automatic doors slammed open and she was hit by a wall of loud noise. She focused on breathing in and out, hoping to steady her racing heartbeat. There were so many people milling around. As she looked up at the boards, trying to work out where to check in, she was jostled and bumped about, her ankles bruised by a wayward luggage trolley.

  Cate had never flown by herself. She’d never been outside of Europe before.

  She found the checkin desks for her flight and joined the queue, wishing she’d brought a book to read. Everywhere she looked, there were friends or families, laughing and joking, excited about their holidays while she was all alone. She felt that heavy blanket of doubt threaten to descend upon her once again. She needed Kian, needed his touch, the feel of his skin to soothe, reassure, to anchor her.

  After she’d checked in and gone through security, she wandered through WH Smith’s looking at the books. As if she needed a sign, she found a slightly dog-eared copy of Jane Eyre on the bottom shelf, looking out of place among the bright, glossy travel books. It looked as out of place as she felt, as if they were meant to find each other somehow. She picked it up and was walking across to the tills to pay for it when she caught something out of the corner of her eye. In the midst of all the football magazines, there was Kian’s face grinning at her from the cover of the Rovers magazine. Cate bought the magazine as well.

  The flight wasn’t too bad; Cate managed to get one of the two seats towards the back of the plane so she had a bit more room at the side. As they took off from Manchester Airport, she watched the ground get further and further away and couldn’t believe that she was actually doing this. She was pregnant and flying to Las Vegas to get married. It didn’t seem real. Before they went up through the clouds she looked at the tiny dots of buildings on the ground and thought about Irene in one of those, in her office, barking orders at people. She thought that Cate had gone down to Brighton to stay with Zeke and his grandparents.

  She didn’t see Kian again until after they’d landed and gone through Immigration. He’d gone ahead of her and had got her suitcase off the conveyor belt.

  As they exited the airport, Cate headed for the taxi queue but Kian put a hand on her arm. “I’ve arranged a car.”

  Cate looked across to where he was pointing and there was a huge black car parked at the kerb. “Oh, okay.”

  As they got nearer, the driver came across and relieved them of their bags. Kian held the door open and Cate climbed inside. It was dark inside the car, which had blacked-out windows. As her skin made contact with the leather seats, she started a little, they were so cold. The car was freezing compared to the oven-like temperatures outside. The driver got in and pushed a button somewhere and a privacy screen came up between them. It was just her and Kian alone in the back of the car.

  “How does he know where we’re going?” Cate asked Kian.

  “I told the company when I arranged the car,” Kian said. “It’s not a taxi.”

  “I know.” Cate felt foolish and out of her depth.

  As the car pulled out of the airport, she looked out of the window. Even the road signs were a different colour.

  “Where are we staying?” Cate asked as they got nearer the Strip and she saw all the big hotels looming up ahead of them.

  “The Belvedere,” Kian replied.

  Cate looked out of the window again. “Which one’s that?”

  “It’s not on the Strip,” Kian said. “It’s smaller, more exclusive.”

  Cate couldn’t hide her disappointment. “Oh.”

  Kian stroked the back of his hand down her cheek. “You’ll love it, I promise. We can still go and see the Strip if you want, after we’re married.”

  “We’re here,” Kian said as the car pulled up to a set of metal gates. The surrounding walls were so tall that Cate couldn’t see what was beyond them.

  The driver spoke to the intercom and then the gates swung open, revealing a large, circular driveway. In the centre, there was a bronze sculpture, which reminded Cate of Rodin’s The Kiss. At the base of the sculpture were rows and rows of tightly-packed, blood-red flowers.

  The car stopped in front of the main entrance and the driver came around and opened the door. “Welcome to the Belvedere, is this your first time?”

  “It’s Cate’s,” Kian answered, “I’ve been here before.”

  “Very good, sir,” The driver took their bags inside the lobby. After being in the cool, darkness of the car, Cate was immediately hit by the searing heat and bright sunlight, which made her eyes hurt.

  Cate followed Kian inside the hotel, which looked like any other hotel from the outside. Cate didn’t understand why they needed the high walls and thick, metal gates.

  The lobby was blessedly cool. “Can I get you anything to drink?” A waiter appeared at her side.

  “Water would be lovely,” Cate smiled. There was something different about this place; she couldn’t put her finger on it.

  While Kian checked them in, Cate sipped her drink and wandered through the lobby. There were several vases of the same blood-red flowers, which surrounded the base of the sculpture outside. As Cate leaned closer to breathe in the intoxicating scent, an elegant couple walked past. The woman was incredibly beautiful; her white-blonde hair flowed down her back like the finest silk. When she looked again, she realised that the woman was wearing a white-gold necklace with a large hoop in the centre. The man she was with had his thumb in the hoop and was using it to lead her forward. Cate tried hard not to stare; she’d read about these things in books but she’d never seen it in real life. They were so open about it.

  When Kian came back, Cate nudged him. “Are they?”

  Kian smirked, “let’s go upstairs, I’ll explain.”

  “How did you find out about this place?” Cate asked as they followed the bellman along the short corridor to their room.

  “A friend told me.”

  Cate’s stomach dropped, “a girlfriend?”

  Before he could answer, the bellman unlocked the door to their room. Cate stepped inside. “Wow.” It was absolutely beautiful. There was a king-sized bed with fluffy, white pillows. On the dressing table, there was a black wicker basket with lots of different fruits, all in various shades of red. Cate stepped out on to the balcony, which looked down on the hotel swimming pool. The pool flowed like a river down various levels surrounded by rocks.

  Kian came up behind her; they were alone, the bellman had already gone. “You like it then?”

  “I love it,” Cate turned around. “What is this place?”

  “It’s a…” Kian shifted awkwardly, he didn’t know how to expla
in this to Cate without scaring her off. “It’s a fetish hotel.”

  “It’s a what?” Cate spluttered.

  Kian sat down on one of the chairs. “They’re very exclusive; we’ll have complete privacy.”

  “Is that what you’re into?” Cate asked nervously, her eyes darting around. “Are you going to ask me to wear one of those collars?”

  “No,” Kian laughed.

  Cate frowned, “please don’t laugh at me.”

  “Come here,” Kian pulled her so she was sat on his lap. “I’m not into that, I promise. I didn’t bring you here so I could make you my sub.” Kian traced his finger over her silver locket, “I like the jewellery you’ve already got. I brought you here because I don’t want to worry about people recognising me. I want to marry you without wondering if somebody’s in the back taking photos on their phone to sell to the papers back home. It’s really beautiful here; I promise you’ll forget all about the fetish side of it.”

  “You said you’ve been here before?” Cate asked, chewing on her bottom lip. “Who with?”

  Kian took a deep breath, “I came here with Alice.”

  Cate closed her eyes, bracing herself. “Did you?”

  “No,” Kian said quickly, eager to reassure Cate. “Jack invited her but then he couldn’t get away from his wife and kids. She asked me to come and keep her company. Nothing happened.”

  “It doesn’t look any different to any other hotel room,” Cate mused. “Am I missing something?”

  Kian grinned, “you really want to know?”

  Kian led her back inside and over to the corner of the bed. He lifted up the duvet so Cate could see the retractable cuffs. “I hope they clean them,” Cate giggled.

  Kian lay on the bed, “try them.”

  “On you?” Cate looked shocked.

  “Sure, why not?” He rolled up his trouser leg, exposing his ankle.

  Cate adjusted the cuff around his ankle and then locked it into place. “Can I take a photo?”

  Kian grinned, “sure.”

  Cate snapped a couple of photos of Kian’s ankle in the cuffs and then freed him. “Is that it?”

  “Try opening that drawer.”

  Cate pulled open the drawer, “oh my goodness.” She was faced with an array of what she assumed were sex toys. “I don’t even know what some of these are.”

  “That’s a butt plug,” Kian said, looking over her shoulder.

  “Ew,” Cate quickly dropped it back in the drawer. “Are all the rooms like this?”

  “They all cater to different tastes and… levels of comfort,” Kian said. “This is relatively mild.”

  Cate shook her head, “I feel like such a prude.”

  “Come on,” Kian reached in front of her and shut the drawer. “Put the sex toys away and get unpacked. I’m taking you out for dinner.”

  CHAPTER 21

  The following morning when Cate woke up, Kian was already up and dressed. She turned her head to look at the clock and saw the tinfoil ring on the bedside table.

  “Morning,” Kian smiled, when he realised she was awake. “I ordered breakfast; it should be here in a minute.”

  “Thanks,” Cate said. “I’m just going to use the bathroom.”

  When she came back, the doors to the balcony had been opened and Kian was sat at the small metal table, pouring himself some coffee. There was so much food: three different types of cereal, toast with butter and jam, scrambled eggs, croissants and pastries. “I didn’t know what you’d like…” Kian explained.

  Cate sat down at the table opposite him. She filled up a plate with a little of everything to be polite.

  After they’d finished eating, there was a knock at the door. Kian got up to answer it and when he came back, he wasn’t alone. It was the glamourous stewardess Cate had seen him talking to yesterday at the baggage carousel.

  “Hi, I’m Lauren.” She sat down in Kian’s chair and helped herself to a slice of toast with jam. “Mmm, so good.”

  “I’m going to pop out for a bit,” Kian said and kissed Cate on the top of her head.

  After he’d gone, Lauren smiled and said, “come on, eat up. We’ve got a lot to do today.”

  “I don’t…”

  “You’re getting married this evening, aren’t you?”

  Cate didn’t know it was that fast. “Uh yeah, I guess so.”

  “Well, you can’t walk down the aisle in your jammies now, can you? We’ve got to find you a wedding dress.”

  When they got down to the lobby, there was a driver waiting for them. Kian had hired a car to take them wherever they needed to go. Lauren gave the driver the directions for their 1st stop.

  The car pulled up outside Le Marriage and Cate followed Lauren inside. Cate thought of her paltry savings account and winced; there was no way she could afford even a garter belt from this boutique. A haughty-looking woman appeared from the back and Lauren said, “we have an appointment with Nicole.”

  “Of course,” the haughty woman said and disappeared again.

  Nicole appeared and immediately came over to Lauren and gave her a double air-kiss. “Sweetie, how’ve you been?”

  “I’m good,” Lauren smiled. She pushed Cate forward. “We need to find this one a dress; it’s kind of last-minute.”

  Nicole frowned, “you know how I hate doing things last-minute. The dress is the most important element of any wedding, it’s all anybody talks about afterwards, good or bad.”

  “I know, I know but look at her, she’s so skinny; she could easily fit into one of your samples.”

  “Humph” Nicole made it known that she was not best pleased.

  She came back with a rack of dresses and they pushed Cate into a dressing room. “Try this one first,” Nicole said, handing her a clear plastic garment bag. “Champagne?” she asked Lauren, who nodded.

  Cate took the dress out of the bag and hung it up on the hook. There was a discrete label attached to the hanger and if that was the price, Cate knew there was no point even trying it on. There was no way she could afford this or any other dress from here. She poked her head out of the dressing room.

  “Have you got it on?” Lauren asked eagerly. Nicole wasn’t there.

  Cate blushed; she didn’t know quite how to say this. “I can’t, I mean… These dresses are lovely but I can’t afford any of them.”

  Lauren started laughing. “You are adorable,” she said, putting a hand on Cate’s shoulder.

  Cate didn’t understand so Lauren opened up her handbag. She handed Cate a small, black credit card. Cate looked at the name on the card. Kian Warner. “Why do you have Kian’s credit card?”

  “Silly, he gave it to me this morning. I’m under strict instructions to make sure you get everything you need for this wedding, regardless of the cost.”

  “Why did he give you the card?” Cate wondered aloud. “Doesn’t he trust me?”

  Lauren stopped laughing. “No honey, I promise it’s nothing like that. You’ve never been here before, right? I know this place like the back of my hand. If you need something, anything, I know the best place to get it. That’s all.”

  “Okay.”

  Cate went back into the dressing room and tried on the dress that Nicole had given her. She turned around and looked at herself in the mirror and it was just awful. It was clearly designed for a woman with bigger breasts and the fabric kept slipping down, exposing the cups of her bra. She quickly took it off, without giving Lauren and Nicole chance to critique it.

  “It’s lovely but not for me,” Cate tried to be polite as she handed the dress back to Nicole.

  “I know it’s lovely,” Nicole huffed. “Try this one instead.”

  Cate obediently tried on all of the dresses but none of them were right.

  After Le Marriage, they went to Sophie Mazar but none of their dresses there were right either.

  As they got back in the car, Cate saw a brightly-coloured building a little bit further down the road. “Can we go in there?” She a
sked Lauren.

  Lauren shrugged her shoulders, “if you want?”

  The outside of the building was painted violet like her ceiling back home and when they stepped inside, it was a riot of colour. The thick, shag carpeting on the floor was a bright-green colour and it swallowed their feet as they walked around. There was a Mexican woman sat on a chair behind the till with an adorable, black-haired baby in her arms drinking from a bottle. “Let me know if you need any help?” She smiled warmly.

  The stairs creaked as Cate walked up them and at the top there were even more racks of clothes and accessories. “What about these?” Cate joked to Lauren, picking up a pair of red, glittery pasties with tassels.

  “They’re, um…” Lauren smiled. “They’re very Vegas. Why don’t you get them for your wedding night? Give Kian a little show.”

  Cate blushed and dropped the pasties back on the counter. The wedding night. She’d forgotten about that.

  She was about to head back downstairs when she saw a rack of white over in the far corner. At the front of the rack was a simple white lace dress. Cate fell in love with it instantly. It was simple and classy. It had little cap sleeves and a modest v, the skirt stopped just below the knee and there was a champagne band around the waist. “I’ve found it,” Cate said breathlessly to Lauren. “This is the dress.”

  Lauren studied it from every angle. “It’s lovely. Why don’t you go and try it on?”

  Cate stepped into the dress and already it felt like hers. It fitted her around the breasts meaning that she wouldn’t have to wear padding. The modest v showed a little bit of cleavage. The skirt swayed softly as she moved. For the first time since Kian had asked her to marry him, she could actually picture herself doing it.

  She stepped out from behind the curtain and Lauren clapped her hands together. “That’s the one. Who would have thought we’d find it here.”