by Unknown
“I better get inside.” She whispered as she slowly backed away from him.
Clearing his throat Shane said, “Yeah, I better head home.”
“Call me when you get home so I know you made it safely.”
Shane gave her a quizzical look and said, “Okay…”
“It’s a thing I have when being out late. I worry about people, drunk drivers…I’ll feel better knowing that you made it home safe, so please call me.”
Shane’s heart melted.
“I promise I’ll call you the minute I get home,” he said smiling.
“Thank you. Good night,” Satra said as she smiled in return before she closed the door.
“Good night Bella,” Shane said before winking at her and turning around to walk back to the elevator.
He knew it was wrong to do but he sped the entire way home. He couldn’t wait to get home and call her.
****
Shane called Satra from his cell phone as he was entering his front door. She sounded sleepy but she was happy to hear his voice and it made him happy that she was happy. They spoke briefly and said good night to one another one last time before hanging up. Satra was happy, excited, and tired. After removing her make up off her face, showering, and tying up her hair for the night her body begged for sleep, but she knew she couldn’t possibly go to sleep for the night and not call Alinna. Her best friend would never let her hear the last of it if she didn’t call her right now. Satra grabbed her phone off the nightstand and called her.
“I was wondering if you were gonna call. I was about to go to bed very mad at you.” Alinna said with a hint of attitude.
“Well hello to you too! I’m not studying you or your attitude Miss THING! Are you ready to hear about my night or not?” Satra said with the same amount of attitude in her voice.
Rolling her eyes Alinna said, “Of course I’m ready to hear it!”
Satra started her story from the time she arrived to the ball with several shrieks of excitement and “Oh no she didn’t” and “Oh no he didn’t” in between from Alinna. By the time she ended the story with Shane taking her home Alinna was speechless.
“Hello…are you still there?” Satra asked.
“I don’t know what to say. That was the most romantic, drama filled evening any woman could possibly ask for. But he was so sweet to you the entire night staying by your side. He was a true gentleman to you, your real life knight in shining armor.”
“I know. He’s so sweet to me, so attentive and gentle.” Satra was getting caught up in her own musings about Shane. The more she thought about their evening together the more she felt herself falling for him.
“I think he’s the real deal Satra. I haven’t even met the man and I love him. He sounds like he knows how to treat a woman. He’s protective, attentive, and honest. More importantly he’s been nothing but good to you since day one.”
Satra moaned and rubbed her forehead. She knew her friend was right.
“I think you’re right. I can’t think of a bad thing to say about him. The way he shows his jealousy is so cute, his anger turns me on. Am I a freak now? Have I turned into you?” Satra asked trying her best not to snicker at her last comment.
Alinna gasped loudly into the phone, which made Satra crack up.
“I’m highly offended, but to answer your question yes, you’re a freak like me now.” Alinna stated proudly.
They both laughed.
“Seriously girl, I’m so happy for you Satra, I truly am. You’ve waited so long for this and now it’s finally here. Take your time and let him take the lead. Be honest about your feelings and don’t let anyone or anything come between what you have. You guys started out as friends and I think that’s huge. Keep getting to know each other. I’ve been told that best friends make the best marriage mates.”
“Listen at you sounding like Dr. Phil giving me all of this good advice!” Satra teased. If only her friend would take her own advice when it came to a certain someone...
“Seriously, I appreciate everything you’ve said and that’s exactly what I plan on doing. Continue being friends and continue to get to know each other and just see where it goes.”
“After what he did when he saw Cole hug you I think we all know where this is heading. He staked his claim on you the entire night Satra, but especially with Cole.”
“I detected his jealousy with Cole right away. No one else in the ball made Shane react that way until Cole showed up. Now don’t get me wrong, Cole creeps me out, but he is one fine man. He’s tall, built, and chocolate. I think Shane saw him as real competition, but he’ll never admit it.”
“Girl the last thing a man wants to see is another man pushing up on his woman, especially a handsome man.”
“Well I’m not officially his woman so he’s gonna have to chill on that,” Satra said as she rolled her eyes. Deep down she knew Shane and only Shane had her heart.
“Really Satra? You could have saved that girl. If things keep going at the pace it’s going it won’t be long before me, you and your mama are going wedding dress shopping.”
“And on that note, I’m going to bed. Good night Linna,” Satra said.
Laughing Alinna said, “Go get your beauty sleep. Love you girl!”
“Love you more,” Satra said before she hung up the phone.
She reached over and turned off the lamp on her nightstand and sunk down in her down pillows. She decided to tell Alinna about the trip to Italy later. She wanted to see her face when she asked her to come with her. Closing her eyes she thought about how in just a few short hours she’d be able to see the sweetest, sexiest man alive again and it made her smile. For the first time in her life her heart was overflowing with happiness.
Chapter Fifteen
“You interrupted my plans for Sunday brunch with my grandkids. There better be a damn good reason why.” Mitchell Daniels growled as he sat in the limo across from his secret business partner on an abandoned country road in northern New York. His car and driver were parked alongside the limo.
“I think we need to speed up our plan. It won’t be long before Evans gets suspicious, and he’s getting too close to the Sinclair girl. The new blood I was telling you about was at the ball last night. Come to find out he knows Ms. Sinclair. I wasn’t expecting that. If we don’t act soon Evans and Sinclair will put two and two together which will complicate things.”
“And this is my problem how Di Amato? I warned you about getting too many people involved!”
“Look, it’ll be fine…”
“No! I’m tired of hearing that from you. If you had stuck to our original plan we wouldn’t be in this position! Fix this Di Amato and fix it NOW. The sooner we get this over with the better.”
“Better for whom? You and your conscience?” Di Amato shot back with an eyebrow arched.
“Yes better for me! You may despise the man but Grayson is still one of my closest and trusted friends. I’m only doing this because I feel it’s time for our company to branch out so it can remain competitive well after we’re dead and gone. If Grayson would listen to me I wouldn’t have to do what I’m doing now.”
There was regret and sadness in Mitchell Daniels eyes, but in his heart he knew he was doing the right thing. If it took going behind Grayson’s back to do it, so be it. If it means months of secret meetings with board members convincing them to side with him, he was willing to do it, and he did just that. Yes his conscious bothered him but he felt he had no other choice. Lucas was a very smart man, but very stubborn.
“Well he may not trust you so much after he finds out what you’ve done. In any case, just trust me.”
“Says the cat to the mouse. Don’t you for a second mistake me for a fool Di Amato? I’ve been around too long, seen too many things and have dealt with too many people like you to not know when I’m being screwed. This company is my life, built with the blood, sweat and tears of Grayson and myself. I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t think it was in the best interes
t of my company. Screw me over and there will be hell to pay.”
With that stern warning Mitchell Daniels exited the limo and got back into his car. His driver turned around in the middle of the dirt road and headed back to the city, leaving a cloud of dust behind them.
“Old fool.” Di Amato huffed.
****
Shane woke up early the next morning, excited about having breakfast with Satra. He hopped in the shower and then shaved. He quickly checked his emails on his phone and immediately recognized the email from the photographer. There was an attachment file with the pictures that he took of him and Satra at the ball. Shane immediately opened the file and once again his breath was taken away at Satra’s beauty. That first picture the photographer took will always be his favorite for the rest of his life, followed by the one of them they took in South Carolina. He sat down on the edge of his bed as he looked closely at every photo. There were fifteen pictures total and he loved them all. He barely looked at himself in any of them, as he couldn’t take his eyes off of Satra. Her eyes, that smile, that dress, her hair. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever laid his eyes on, and he knew from the first moment he met her that he would never let her go. Life as he knew it would never be the same.
Sean and Audrey Evans had just sat down for breakfast as they normally do early on Sunday morning. They ate out on the sun porch where the sun shone brightly and the birds were chirping. It was their favorite part of the day as they both were morning people. Henry, their butler, brought them their Sunday papers, which included the Manhattan Social Elite paper. Mrs. Evans was about to reach for the Sunday Journal when she caught the glimpse of a handsome man in a tuxedo that looked eerily like her son. She picked up the paper and gasped out loud.
“It’s her! This is the woman Shane has fallen in love with!” She exclaimed, startling her husband who was more interested in eating his Belgian waffles topped with fresh strawberries.
Mrs. Evans passed the paper to her husband, eagerly awaiting his reaction. He was speechless for a moment and then he spoke.
“She’s beautiful that’s for sure, and from the way she’s looking at him I’d say she’s head over heels for him too.”
“She’s stunning. They make a beautiful couple don’t they?” Mrs. Evans said in a dreamy voice. Her husband knew the wheels were turning in his wife’s head from engagement dinners to planning the wedding and most importantly, having more grandchildren.
“Slow down there, Audrey. Don’t go getting ahead of yourself and upsetting Shane by planning things before he’s ready.”
Mrs. Evans mouth flew open in protest but nothing came out. She knew her husband was right. Instead she smiled coyly as she began to eat her breakfast, still looking at the picture of her son and soon to be daughter in law.
****
Satra was up before her alarm clock had the chance to go off. Who knew those few hours of sleep was all she needed to be recharged? She took a quick shower and washed her hair. After blow-drying it she put some big curls in it and then used her fingers to loosen up the curls. Next she put on her makeup, her usual eye shadow, mascara and lip stick and then got dressed. She decided to wear the pink flirty dress that Alinna tried to get her to wear when she went to South Carolina with Shane. She opted for her nude peep toe sling back pumps and her grandmother’s gold diamond pendant necklace. It was so delicate yet beautiful. Since she was wearing her hair down she decided not to wear any earrings. Satra also grabbed her pink pair of ballerina flats and put them inside her purse in case they decided to do some walking or sightseeing in this little town that Shane was taking her to.
She was amazed at how quickly she got all of this done with fifteen minutes to spare. Punctual as always, Shane was outside in the lobby ringing her doorbell. Satra grabbed her keys, sunglasses and purse and ran out the door, locking it behind her. When she stepped off the elevator in the lobby and she saw him standing there looking so deliciously handsome she sighed. ‘He’s so gorgeous.’
Shane was casually dressed in his crisp white dress shirt with the first three buttons undone with a black blazer that fit him perfectly and jeans that she could tell got some good wear and tear in them. His jeans fit him perfectly, showing off those big strong thighs and bowlegs of his. He wore his favorite Berluti black Italian loafers to round off his look, and to Satra he looked delicious.
Her heart began to beat faster and faster the closer she got to him. His eyes and his face showed his pleasure at seeing her as well. He loved the soft curls in her hair and how they bounced as she walked. He loved everything she had on. She looked comfortable, feminine, beautiful, and sexy. The pink complimented her brown skin beautifully, and he thought she looked amazing in the dress. It showed off her shapely legs and he ached to have them wrapped around him. He smiled and walked up to her to greet her. He took her by her small waist and pulled her to him for a warm hug.
“Good morning. You look beautiful,” he said in a deep, husky voice.
“Thank you, you look very handsome yourself,” Satra said in return as she blessed him with her deep dimpled smile.
“Thank you. Are you ready to go?”
“Yes, I’m starving.”
It was a beautiful, sunny Sunday morning and the roads were relatively empty which made for easy driving. Shane sped on the freeway but once they reached the town of Sycamore where the diner was located, he slowed down so they could take in the beautiful countryside.
Their conversation was easy and lighthearted as they recapped the funny and not so funny moments at the ball. Shane told Satra about some scandalous couples that were at the ball – wives, mistresses, lovers, and adulterers. Shane laughed at the look on Satra’s face.
“That is beyond bold and blatant. And the wives…they just put up with it. Why?”
“Money. Not wanting to give up their cushy lifestyle and status. The list of ridiculous reasons go on and on,” Shane said matter-of-factly.
“I know but I just can’t wrap my head around that. No amount of money is worth my happiness, dignity and self-respect. What kind of example are they setting for their kids, especially their daughters? It’s okay for your husband to cheat on you and flaunt his mistress at public functions as long as he keeps money in your bank account?”
“I understand what you’re saying and I totally agree, but it is what it is. Thank God my parents didn’t have a marriage like that, but I had plenty of friends growing up whose parents did have marriages like that. It was very sad to see how it affected them.”
“I bet.” Satra said as she looked at Shane.
There was a short silence as they both were wrapped up in their own thoughts. One thing that Satra couldn’t stop thinking about was Grayson and what Di Amato may be up to. She wanted to talk to Grayson so badly she could taste it, but she knew Shane was right when he warned her against it.
“I can’t stop thinking about Grayson and Di Amato,” Satra said softly to Shane.
Shane looked at her, concern in his eyes. He took her hand into his warm one and laced their fingers together, giving her hand a good squeeze.
“I figured as much. I’ve been thinking a lot about it too Bella. I know you and Grayson are very close.”
“When I first moved to New York and started working for Lucas & Daniels, Grayson and his wife Maggie took me in right away. They are the sweetest people you could ever meet. They knew I was here all by myself with no family and no friends. They instantly became my second parents, and their kids became my siblings. I’ll always love them for that.”
“I liked Grayson from the first time I met him. I knew he was good people right away. I’m glad you had them to lean on. New York can be scary and very overwhelming as it is, but to come here by yourself with no family and friends, it can be downright frightening.”
“Believe me it was very scary at first. I’m just a Midwestern girl who comes from the inner city that’s very slow paced compared to New York. Everything was new to me, but thank God I adapted quickly,
and then I had Grayson and Maggie helping me out. They were a God-send.”
“Did you get homesick a lot?”
“Oh my goodness yes! My first year here all I did was cry at night because I was so homesick. Even after Grayson and Maggie took me in I still wanted my parents and my family. My family came to see me as often as they could, and of course over the holidays I was on a plane going home. I just had to get used to my new life and make the best of it. Or as my grandma liked to say “Baby, it’s time for you to put your big girl panties on!”
Shane and Satra laughed together.
“Well it’s just me and my sister. I’m the oldest and only boy so of course a lot was expected of me because of who our family is and the businesses that we have. My dad had my life all mapped out for me, mostly working side by side with him and eventually taking over the family businesses. I had other plans, so you can imagine how well that went over.”
This was the first time Shane openly discussed his family so Satra gave him her undivided attention.
“It’s only natural for you to have dreams of your own no matter what your family’s expectations are.”
“You’re right. My mom helped me to see things from my dad’s perspective too. He dreamed of having a son, and he had one, and of course like most fathers they want their sons to follow in their footsteps. The thing about it is my dad also had dreams of his own, but his parents were very old fashioned and adamant about keeping the Evangascione name and traditions going.”
‘What? That’s a far cry from Evans!’ Satra loved the way Shane said his last name in his Italian dialect. It rolled off his tongue in the sexiest way.
“Evangascione, that’s your full last name?” Satra asked surprised.
Looking at her smiling Shane said, “Good job on your pronunciation Bella! Not everyone gets it right on the first try.”
His praise made her smile, and happy that she pronounced his name right. She really didn’t try hard; she just simply repeated what she heard.