“Thank you,” I gushed.
“I’m glad to help. You’re a beautiful girl, and with the right amount of makeup, you are a total stunner,” she said to me. “I’m supposed to give you a package, too. I’ll be right back.”
I continued to stare at my reflection as she left the room. When she returned a few minutes later, she was carrying a package similar to the one Robert had sent my dress in so long ago.
She handed it to me, and I opened it carefully. My breath caught as I stared at another dress and a pair of heels. Both were absolutely gorgeous. I picked the dress up out of the box and stared at it. The color was a deep red, matching the lipstick I was now wearing and the shoes still in the box. It was strapless with a flowing skirt that would just touch my knees when I put it on.
“You’re supposed to change into that before you leave here,” she instructed, pointing to a door marked Dressing Room.
“Why?” I asked, confused.
She shrugged. “No clue.”
With the package, I walked to the dressing room and closed the door behind me. I stripped out of my clothes, careful not to mess up my makeup as I pulled my shirt over my head. I put my clothes into the box the dress had come in before carefully pulling on the dress and then the heels.
I turned in front of the mirror, checking out the dress. It had a hint of edginess to it while still looking classy and sophisticated. I loved it. I walked back out into the salon with the box tucked under my arm.
The hairstylist smiled at me. “You look wonderful. We’re finished with you. A car is parked outside, waiting on you.”
I profusely thanked her before heading toward the exit. Sure enough, Robert’s driver was waiting for me. He helped me into the car before closing the door behind me.
The driver climbed behind the wheel of the SUV. “I’m supposed to drop you off at Mr. Evans’s office.”
“Oh…okay,” I said, surprised.
Robert had never once invited me to his office. I didn’t even know where it was.
We drove across town in silence. When we reached the middle of the city, the car turned down a side street. A few minutes later, we stopped in front of a two-story brick building with Law Office of Robert Evans written across the top of it. I thanked the driver before climbing out of the SUV and walking into the building.
The reception area was gorgeous. The walls were a light cream color with artwork hanging every few feet. There were two leather couches with a television mounted on the wall across from them. A glass table covered in magazines sat in the middle of the room.
A receptionist greeted me with a smile when I approached her desk.
“Hi, I’m here to see Robert,” I said.
“What’s your name?” she asked.
“Claire.”
“Great. Have a seat, and I’ll let him know you’re here.” She picked up her phone.
I walked across the room and sat down on one of the couches. I heard her speak into the phone briefly before hanging up.
“Claire, he’s ready to see you.” She pointed to a hallway across from her. “Go clear to the end of the hallway, and his door is on the right.”
I followed her instructions and knocked on Robert’s door. A second later, the door swung open. He opened his mouth to greet me, but then he stopped dead when he took in my appearance.
“Hi,” I said, suddenly feeling self-conscious.
“Claire, you look amazing.” He took my hand and led me into his office. He closed the door behind us.
“Thank you,” I said as I looked around his office.
It looked similar to the reception area. A leather couch sat in the corner, and art was hanging on every wall. His desk was a dark mahogany color. Two plush chairs sat in front of it.
I took a seat in one of them.
He sat down in his chair, directly across from me. “Did you enjoy your surprise?”
“I did. Thank you, Robert. I wanted to apologize for last night. I shouldn’t have been so angry with you. I don’t approve of what you did, but I understand why you did it.”
“I didn’t think you would get so angry over it. If I had known, I would’ve tried harder to get you to talk to me.”
“I know. It’s just that my past isn’t pretty, and I’d rather not think about it.”
“I understand, but I hope you can see my side, too. I’m going to be blunt. I have a lot of power in this town. The press also watches me constantly. I knew that I wanted you to be a permanent fixture in my life, and I had to make sure that you weren’t hiding anything. If you were and the press found out about it, I would be the one who suffered.”
“Why would I matter to the press?” I asked, confused about where he was going with this.
“Because once I make our relationship public, things will change. There will be a lot of speculation about you just because of our age difference. Add in the fact that I lost my wife a year ago, and the rumors will run rampant. I don’t want you or my reputation to be hurt. I had to be sure that you were who you said you were.”
I’d never even thought of that. To me, Robert was just my boyfriend, but to everyone else, he was a powerful attorney. Even I’d seen the many articles about him that day in the library.
“I don’t even know what to say. I’m so sorry,” I said.
“Don’t be upset, Claire. You had no clue what you were walking into.” He hesitated. “While we’re on the subject, I’d like to discuss something else with you.”
“What?” I asked.
“I know we haven’t been together that long, but I can’t help from loving you. When I look at you, all I see is the future. I want you to be mine in every way, Claire.”
I was shocked. This was the second time he’d told me that he loved me. I knew I cared deeply for Robert, but I wasn’t entirely sure if I truly loved him yet. It was definitely a possibility, but I’d never loved someone before, not really, and I’d never had someone love me, so the emotion was foreign to me.
“I don’t know what to say,” I finally said.
“I know it seems like we’re moving fast, but time isn’t important to me. When I want something, I take it. Claire, I want you.”
“I’m yours, Robert. I’ve told you that already.”
“I know you have, but I want something…more.” He stood and walked around the desk.
I looked up at him when he stopped beside me.
“More?” I asked, completely confused by his statement.
He took a deep breath as he pulled something out of his pocket. My heart stopped when I saw him holding a jewelry box.
No…he wouldn’t.
“I want you to be my wife.” He opened the box and revealed an engagement ring. “Will you marry me, Claire?”
Several moments passed in silence. Unable to find my voice, all I could do was shake my head. He stared at me, his eyes pleading with me to say something, anything.
“I know this is unexpected—” he said quietly.
“You think?” I blurted out, unable to stop myself.
“I want you to be my wife, Claire. The way I feel about you…it’s like my entire world is driven by those emotions. We don’t need to have a big wedding, if that’s what you’re worried about. We can go to the courthouse or have someone come to the house.”
“I…you…” I started but stopped. I took a deep breath to collect my thoughts. “Robert, marriage is a big deal. It’s not something that I take lightly.”
“Of course it’s a big deal! I’ve thought this over a million times, trying to talk myself out of asking you so soon¸ but I can’t help the way I feel. Please marry me, Claire. You’ll never want for anything as long as I’m around. Everything you’ve ever dreamed of having is within your grasp. All you have to do is say yes.”
“I’m not ready to get married yet. I’m only eighteen! I have so many things I want to do before I settle down.”
“You can still do them, Claire. Marrying me wouldn’t mean that you’d be giving up y
our own life. You can do anything and go anywhere. All you have to do is ask. I would never deny you anything.”
I stared up at him, unable, or maybe unwilling, to process what he was saying. All I could think of was the foster homes I’d lived in. Most of them had included married couples. Almost all of those had been unhappily married couples. The fighting, the yelling, the threats all rang in my ears as if I were witnessing them all over again. To me, marriage was a trap people were pulled into, full of promises of happiness when it actually led to nothing more than anger and sadness.
“Robert, I don’t know. I’ve never even thought about getting married. Almost all my foster parents were miserable because they were married. The things I saw growing up kept me from ever wishing that on myself.”
He crouched down next to me with a sad smile on his face. “Some marriages don’t work out, but some do. I was married for a long time, and I can promise you that I was happy with Marie. Yes, we argued from time to time, but that happens no matter how strong a marriage is. Overall, we were happy though. If you give me a chance, I’ll show you just how happy you can be. Please, Claire, please say you’ll marry me.”
“I-I need to think on this, okay? I’m not telling you no, but I’m not saying yes either.”
“That’s fine. I can wait a few days for you to decide.” He stood, pulling me up with him. “I love you so much, Claire. I swear, you won’t regret this if you say yes.”
Before I could reply, he pulled me to him and kissed me deeply. Content, I relaxed my body into his. As his lips explored mine, I willed myself to feel the spark I so desperately craved from his kisses. I pulled away, feeling defeated.
“I think I want to go home now,” I said quietly.
“Of course. I’ll have my driver, Frank, take you home,” Robert said before gently kissing my forehead. “We can have dinner at home tonight instead of going out like I had planned.”
“I can’t wait,” I murmured as I headed for the door.
With one final glance behind me, I walked out of the office. I kept my eyes glued to the floor until I was out of the building.
The ride back to the house was completely silent. I stared out the window as I tried to process what had just happened in Robert’s office. I knew that he cared about me—he wouldn’t have convinced me to move in with him if he didn’t—but I’d never expected him to ask me to marry him.
Living in his house had been a big step, but compared to marriage, it was nothing. I’d never really thought about marriage. If I were being honest with myself, I’d never really thought about being in a serious relationship before Robert had invaded my life. I’d spent my entire life depending on no one but myself. I still wasn’t used to having Robert take care of me. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him. I just couldn’t help but wait for something to rip us apart because that was how my life had been.
When I was younger, I would get attached to my foster parents. Some of them were truly kind, but most had only taken me in because a nice little check came with me. After being tossed from home to home, I’d finally realized that I couldn’t let myself care about any of them. It had been too painful when I had to start over.
I’d carried that broken mentality around with me my entire life. Giving up the mindset now was proving to be much harder than I’d expected. I wanted to jump into things without thinking, but I couldn’t. I had to be strong. I had to protect myself.
I knew marrying Robert would change everything for me. I’d never want for anything again. A weaker woman would have caved the moment he asked her to be his wife. The possibilities with him were endless. He had everything a woman desired—power, confidence, wealth, and kindness.
I let myself think about how my life could be if I did agree to marry him. I cared for Robert. I couldn’t deny that. Over time, I knew I could grow to truly love him. If I told him no, he might force me out of his life. I didn’t want that. The thought of continuing the way I was before I’d met him was almost unbearable. I’d been so alone, so broken.
As we pulled up to the house, I realized that I knew what my answer would be.
I would marry Robert even if I weren’t in love with him. I would do it because I was weak, because I wanted him to take care of me.
With that realization, I felt like a cheap whore.
Since I still had several hours before Robert would come home, I decided to explore the house. I started with the kitchen and then continued walking around the first floor. I’d seen all of those rooms, so I headed upstairs. I turned down Robert’s hallway, but I didn’t go into his bedroom. I was sure he wouldn’t mind, but I didn’t want to pry, and I wasn’t comfortable with looking in his room without his knowledge.
The only other room in his wing of the house was a bathroom. It was twice the size of mine. I shook my head as I closed the door and headed back toward my wing of the house. I was really out of my league.
Once I married him, all of this would be mine as well. It still didn’t seem real. Things like this didn’t happen in real life. At least, they didn’t happen to people like me. A poor foster kid didn’t normally end up marrying the rich lawyer. I couldn’t help but wonder what the catch was. Life was being too kind to me right now. Surely, something bad would happen soon. The earth might open up and swallow me whole. Robert would probably end up kicking me out once he came to his senses. Something was going to go wrong for me. It always did.
There were two other doors in my wing besides my room and the bathroom. I tried the first door, but it was locked, so I moved on to the next. It was another guest bedroom, which made me think the locked door was Cooper’s bedroom.
Curiosity got the better of me as I walked back to his door and tried it again. It was obviously still locked. I frowned as I couldn’t help but wonder why Cooper’s bedroom was locked. In every single foster home I’d been in, the children’s rooms were never allowed to be locked.
I shrugged and headed back to my room. I closed the door behind me before lying down on my bed. I still wasn’t used to the silence that seemed to be the norm in this house. At almost all my foster homes, I had lived with other kids, and they were always noisy, especially the younger ones. Silence was a luxury that I wasn’t used to.
I closed my eyes, taking in the tranquility of the moment. Before I knew it, I drifted off to sleep.
I awoke to the sound of someone knocking on my door. I glanced at the clock on my nightstand to see that it was already eight o’clock in the evening. I’d slept much longer than I expected.
I stood and walked to the door. When I opened it, I saw Robert standing on the other side. He gave me a small smile.
“Claire, I was hoping you would join me downstairs for dinner.”
“Yes, of course.” I yawned.
I stepped out of my room and followed him down the hall. When we reached the staircase, he took my hand in his.
“I thought we could grill outside,” he said.
I smiled. “That sounds nice.”
We stopped by the kitchen first where Robert grabbed a pack of premade hamburger patties and condiments out of the fridge and a pack of hamburger buns out of the cabinet. Before continuing outside, he pointed me in the direction of some plates, so I grabbed them and then followed him out the door. I stopped short as I took in his backyard for the first time. He’d mentioned that there was a pool, but he’d failed to tell me about the Jacuzzi and basketball court.
“Wow,” I muttered under my breath as I looked around.
My eyes found their way back to the massive pool. It was near dusk now, and I could see the lights inside the pool.
I pulled my gaze away and followed Robert over to where the grill sat at the edge of the patio. I took the condiments and buns from him and put them down on a table a few feet away. Robert busied himself with throwing the hamburgers on the grill. I sat down in a nearby lounge chair and watched him as he worked. He’d changed out of his business suit and was now wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a polo shirt. Sho
wing just how fit he was, the shirt hugged his chest and stomach, and his arms stretched the sleeves. I marveled at the fact that he was forty-two and in better shape than most guys in their twenties.
I also noticed that his hair was starting to gray just a bit around his temples. It wasn’t much, but it was a reminder of our age difference. Robert, the man who wanted to marry me, was old enough to be my father. I shook my head, forcing those thoughts away. Age didn’t matter. He’d said so himself over and over.
When the burgers were ready, he carried the plate to the table and set it down. I stood and walked over to the table. He smiled as he pulled me against him and kissed me. When he released me, we both sat down and started making our burgers. We ate in silence for a few minutes.
“How was the rest of your afternoon?” I asked.
“Good. I finished up a case that I’ve been working on for weeks. My client walked away with a nice settlement.”
“That’s great,” I said as I finished off my hamburger.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full, Claire. It isn’t polite,” he snapped.
Caught off guard by his sharp tone, all I could do was stare at him. Finally, I looked away. “Sorry.”
He nodded. “I’m taking next week off now that the case is finished.”
“How come?” I asked.
“To spend time with you. I know my schedule can be hectic at times. I hate that we have to work around it.”
I shrugged. “It’s your job. You can’t help that you have crazy hours.”
“I don’t want you to think that I’m not spending enough time with you. I’m hoping that you’ll reconsider my proposal after we spend some more time alone with each other,” he said softly.
I looked up to see him watching me. The hope in his eyes prompted me to speak. “You really love me, don’t you?”
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