by Sam Crescent
“You’re going to buy me a present?”
“You got it.” She winked at him, and stepped away moving toward a jewelry store. There was something she wanted to get him, and she needed space. Never had she been so jealous of someone else.
She was beautiful.
You’re not.
Staring at the abundant display of jewelry, Bella kept thinking about Blue, and finally, she caught sight of the perfect watch. It was gold, and expensive, but it would go with his business suits.
She asked the man behind the counter if she could look, and once she had a feel, and was happy, she purchased the gift. Other than her father, this was the first gift she had ever bought a man.
Did it mean something?
Did it have to mean something?
All of her past boyfriends had ended their relationship before Christmas. She was used to being along this time of year, apart from visits with her friend and Rebecca.
Once the box was beautifully wrapped, she made her way outside, and found Blue with a few bags of his own. “I’m ready to head home now, if you want. I’ve got what I need today.”
“We’re still going shopping this weekend.”
“I’m going to get you into the Christmas spirit if you like it or not.” She chuckled. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pressed her body against him.
“I like this side of you,” he said, grabbing her ass.
“Oh, mister, I like this side of you, too.” She kissed his lips. “Right now, I’m starving. Take me home, and I’ll feed the two of us.”
He grabbed her hand, and she got a thrill as he locked their fingers together.
Stop comparing.
It was hard for her not to. Her other boyfriends didn’t want to be seen with her, and if they went out in public, they never stayed too close. Blue held her, kissed her, and claimed her for others to see.
Her heart started to pound, and she really didn’t want to think about her feelings right now. One week of knowing a guy, and she truly believed she was falling in love with him.
Chapter Eight
Over the next week and a half, Alaric spent every single available minute on his life with Bella. He met her after work, or he stayed over, especially during the weekend. So far she hadn’t asked to go to his place, nor find out what he did for work. She would ask him about his day, but never ask him to go into detail. He wasn’t even sure if she cared all that much, or if she was just being polite.
Everything was going to plan, apart from one thing. He was loving every single one of those seconds. At work whenever he heard or saw something, he wished to share it with her. There were even times when he wondered what she was doing, if something bad had happened. Never had he cared so much, and now he was caring a whole lot for his enemy’s daughter.
Standing at her bathroom sink, he stared at his reflection, wondering what the hell he was doing. They had gone shopping together, and he’d even bought her a couple of presents, and he had been the one to pick the presents himself. Shit was really getting crazy right now, and even Rex had to ask him what he was doing.
The truth was he didn’t have a fucking clue what he was doing anymore. Nothing made any sense. His plan was working perfectly. He knew she was starting to have feelings for him. The biggest problem was the fact he was starting to have feelings for her as well. Everything was turning out fucked, and he didn’t like it. Not one bit.
“Are you okay in there?” Bella asked, knocking on the door.
“I’ll be right out.”
“All right.”
He waited until she was far away before taking a deep breath. “This is just a job. You don’t have to worry. This is just a job.”
Even as he spoke the words, he didn’t believe it.
Bella was no longer a job.
He cared way too much.
Exiting the bathroom, he headed out to the kitchen to find her finishing the carrot cake. He’d help her make it by grating the carrots and squeezing out the excess juice.
“Are you okay now?” she asked. “You look a little pale.”
She was covered in the day’s baking, and to him, she looked perfect. He suddenly realized what her father had found in her mother. There was something about having a woman, a real woman, to love.
“Er, I’m a little nervous.”
“Really?” She placed the spatula in the bowl and rounded the kitchen counter. “What is it?”
“I sort of planned ahead, and I’m hoping that you won’t say no.”
“Why don’t you tell me what it is, and I’ll let you know what I think.”
He moved toward his jacket, and handed her out the tickets to the exclusive cabin in an even more exclusive resort. “It’s just for the weekend. I wanted you to myself for the weekend.”
“Wow,” she said, opening the leaflet. “You sure you want to spend the weekend with me?”
“I’ve been spending all of my time with you, Bella. I’d really like this. Next Friday I’ll pick you up from work, and drive us there.” He pointed to the location. “A couple of hours’ driving. It shouldn’t be a problem.”
“This is … wow. You want to go away with me?”
“Yeah, I do.” He meant it. Every single word.
“That is the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me.”
“Baby, I think you need to get out more,” he said, chuckling.
Bella thrust herself into his arms, and he held her close, inhaling her sweet scent. She smelled of everything that was amazing and good to him. Pressing his nose against her neck, he breathed her in, finding her calming.
“This doesn’t mean I’m ready to meet your father,” he said, making her laugh.
“I’m nowhere near ready for you to meet him.” She kissed his cheek, and pulled away. “Thank you.”
He didn’t know what she was thanking him for, and right then he really didn’t want to know. Following her to the kitchen, he swiped his finger in the cream cheese frosting, and tasted it. The icing was sweet but not overly so. “This is so good.”
“It has taken a long time to perfect it. I don’t like it too sweet, but I also don’t like it bland.” She shrugged. “I’ve enjoyed this, a lot.”
He walked behind her, banding his arms around her waist. “Me, too.”
****
“You’re falling for her,” Rex said the following Monday.
“What?” They were sitting in one of the conference rooms waiting for several clients to come in for the last meeting of the season. He would be working up until Christmas Eve, and would probably do some hours on Christmas day. He rarely believed in time off. The last few weeks with Bella was the most time off he’d ever had.
He sitting sat at the large table but staring out of the city.
“Bella Reed. You’re starting to fall for her.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I’m your closest friend, Alaric. I know you. I can see how different she makes you. You’re happier.”
“Please, you’re over exaggerating.”
“Yeah, you can keep saying that all you want. I’ve known you since we were kids, and you even went out shopping for her present, Alaric. This is not just some twisted revenge anymore. You want her. Why don’t you come clean?”
Alaric didn’t say anything. Coming clean had been on his mind for so long now. Either way, he was going to hurt her. Bella believed him. She trusted him, and he’d been lying to her from the beginning. No way was she going to forgive something like that. Even he didn’t forgive himself.
“I can’t. She’ll never forgive me.”
“The longer you live this lie, the more it’s going to torment you. I know you.”
“Yeah, and then you know I deserve this. I’m a fucking asshole.”
“That too, but you’re not a monster. Bella isn’t like anyone else, and keeping her on false pretenses is never going to work out well for you.”
Rex kept talking about what he should or shouldn’t do. Alaric tu
ned him out. It was easy to tell him what to do. His friend didn’t have a clue what he was going through, and he wasn’t about to enlighten him.
Never had he stepped away from a challenge or a plan. This wasn’t like all of his other plans. He’d actually found a woman who meant everything to him. Rex only shut up when the first of their clients arrived. He had a business meeting to organize, which had to come before his love life. It sucked, and he hated it, but those were the needs he’d been putting first for many years now.
“What are you doing to do?” Rex asked, getting ready to leave.
“What I do best.”
He left his office, and made sure to grab some flowers on the way. Buster had his first lot of injections, and in another week, he’d be able to get his second, and then he could take him out.
You’ve got to get rid of him soon.
She still has her father.
No matter what happened, this was never going to go in his favor. When Bella realized that he’d been lying to her, she would cut him out of her life. He’d seen the damage other boyfriends had done to her. She had even told him that was how close they were getting, and it was all his fault. He wouldn’t allow her to create any kind of space.
He had her cell phone number. Texted her regularly throughout the day, and then he left work early to come and see her. This was all his fault. No one else’s
Bella walked out of the veterinary practice, and the smile on her face blew him away. He couldn’t believe that he had ever thought this woman plain. She was utterly beautiful. Breathtakingly so.
“Hey,” she said, going straight to him, and wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’ve missed you today.” She kissed his lips, and frowned. “What’s the matter?”
“It’s nothing.” He pulled away, and leaned into the car. “I got you some flowers, and I’ve also got us a table at a restaurant. How do you feel about Italian?”
“I love it. I told you that, duh.” She chuckled. “They are so beautiful. You don’t have to get me flowers.”
“I want to. You deserve flowers, and chocolates.”
“My hips wouldn’t cope with the chocolates.”
He ran his hands from her ass to her hips. “I could cope. I can have something to hold onto when I drive my dick deep inside you.”
She sighed. “Can we skip the restaurant?”
“No. It’s my treat. You’re always feeding me. This is the best way I can feed you.” He rubbed his hands on her back.
Just tell her.
“Come on, get in the car, and I’ll feed us both.”
He made sure she was in the car and secured, and climbed into his driver’s side.
“You seem a little out of it,” she said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. It has just been a long day at the office.” He wanted to tell her the truth, but he didn’t know how. Everything he said would just make her withdraw from him, and that was not what he wanted to do.
Damn it.
Rex tried to warn him before he even got in too deep, and instead of listening to his friend, he’d fucked up.
Parking outside of the restaurant, he climbed out, and then moved the man aside who was about to help Bella out, to take her hand. He didn’t like any other man touching her. She belonged to him, and it was his place to make her feel special.
“This is a fancy place,” she said.
“The best.”
He’d already arranged ahead to be known as Blue, and to only have his regular waiter whom he’d spoken to. This restaurant offered secluded, private booths that meant no one would be able to see him.
This was a huge risk, but he’d wanted to give her a really wonderful experience, and this was the only way he saw of doing that.
Once her jacket was taken, and they were escorted to their table, he noticed how uncomfortable Bella looked.
“Are you okay?” he asked, taking hold of her hand.
“Yeah. Just feeling a little underdressed. This is a very, erm, exclusive place. You must be closer to your boss than you think,” she said.
“I make a good living.”
She smiled, and again, he saw this unnerved her a little.
“This has nothing to do with you, babe. I promise. I’m not trying to get your father’s money, or use you. I’ve got my own money, and I just want to treat you.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry. You’ve been unusually quiet is all. I didn’t know if all of this was to dump me.”
“Dump you?”
“Yeah, keep me happy, and then crash my hopes in the mud, that kind of thing?”
“We’re going away for the weekend in a couple of days.”
“That doesn’t mean you don’t think it’s a mistake.” She waved her hand in the air. “Forget I ever said anything. I seem to be putting my foot in my mouth a lot.” She reached over the table taking his hands. “Thank you for bringing me here. This is nice.”
“I take it an old boyfriend took you to a restaurant like this?” he asked.
“Yeah. I thought it was lovely, romantic even, and then I was the one left with the check. His words were, ‘you can afford it. I can’t. Pay up.’ Wow, I really dated some awful dicks, didn’t I?” she asked, laughing.
He smiled along with her.
Yeah, and right now you’re sitting opposite one.
“You’ve got me, and I’ll be paying for tonight.”
****
“Are you all set for tonight?” Rebecca asked, looking into Bella’s suitcase.
“Yeah. I have everything I think I’ll need for two days. We’re heading home on the Sunday, late evening. I’ll call you as soon as I get back.”
“This is a huge step. Isn’t it? You and him, going away together?”
“Yeah, it is. I’m kind of nervous. This is where everything goes wrong all the time.”
Rebecca walked around toward her. “Don’t worry about it. Everything is going to be fine.”
“I don’t know. Everything is moving really damn fast, and it scares me, like a lot.” She sat on the edge of the bed. “I’ve never felt this strongly about anyone before.”
“Do you love him?”
“Yeah, I think I do, and that scares me. I’ve known him a couple of weeks, a handful of days, and yet I have feelings for him. I want him to meet my father, and I don’t know what any of that means.”
Rebecca wrapped her arms around her, trying to offer her comfort. “It means you can’t keep fighting how you feel. You love him, and love is a beautiful and precious thing.”
“It’s also scary and dangerous, and it makes you get hurt.” Bella grabbed a pillow hugging it close to her. “That’s what I’m afraid of, getting hurt.”
“Sweetie, we’re all going to get hurt. It’s just the way it is. We get hurt, and then we bounce right back. It’s what makes us human.”
“I know I’m human.”
Rebecca smiled. “Give it a chance. What’s the worst that can happen? You have to trust in yourself, and in men, sometime as otherwise you’re going to end up lonely, and old, and even more lonely.”
Bella laughed. “So I’ve got to either let him in or grow old.”
“That’s it, sweetie. You know I talk sense.”
She agreed. “You do, it’s why I trust you. You’re always looking out for me.”
For several seconds Bella rested her head on Rebecca’s shoulder.
“Right, I’ve got to go. I’m going on a date myself tonight, and I won’t want to be late.” Rebecca kissed her cheek, and stood. “Remember, have a little faith, and a lot of fun.”
Bella saw her friend out, and then finished packing. As she was doing up the zipper on her suitcase, her doorbell rang.
“Done. I’m finally done.” Opening the door, she smiled at Blue.
He wore a pair of jeans and a white shirt.
“You look … sexy.”
“I’m dressing down, baby. We’re going camping.”
“In a cabin?”
“It’s as close to camping as I’m ever going to get. Have you ever been camping?”
“I have actually. A tent, no electricity. In a field with bathrooms and stuff. It was fun,” she said. “My mom was a great believer in keeping everything real. I did tell you.”
“You did. Don’t I get a kiss?”
She stepped into his arms, and pressed her lips against his. “This doesn’t seem real.”
“It is. Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
Heading into her kitchen, she grabbed her suitcase, which Blue took from her.
“You won’t be carrying that.”
“You’re being a gentleman now?”
“All the time. Haven’t you noticed?”
“Not in the bedroom you’re not.”
He chuckled. “You don’t want me to be a gentleman in that room remember?” He pulled her close, and slammed his lips down on hers. “Having any regrets?”
She stared into his eyes, and wondered if for a second it was possible for him to fall in love with her. Could he do it? Was this just a bit of fun to him?
A bit of fun is exactly what this is.
“None,” she said taking Rebecca’s advice.
Hiding away from her feelings wouldn’t solve her problems, or even change them. There was no getting away from this. If Blue felt something for her, then he’d come out and tell her one day. She could wait. She had been patient a long time.
Closing up her apartment, she made sure it was locked, and she had already put a call through to her father to pop by and check on it.
“What’s happening with Buster?” she asked.
“He’s with friends. Don’t worry, he’s under strict instructions not to take him out, or to give him chocolate. Nothing will happen to him, I promise.”
“I’d hoped to see a little more of him. I didn’t mind if you wanted to bring him along for the trip.”
“I know. I want you all to myself, and I can admit to being a tiny bit jealous.”
“Of what?”
“Of Buster. He’s a good pup, and I know you’ll give him more attention than me all day.”