Redemption (The Bet)

by Phal, Francette

  He stared at her for a brief eternity, his pewter gaze boring into her and Samantha tried very hard not to squirm. "Be sure that it doesn’t happen again." He said tersely a moment later, his gaze returning to the files on his desk.

  "Will you need anything else?"

  "I’ll let you know when I need you.” In just that moment she was dismissed and Samantha couldn’t have felt worse if the occasion called for it. She'd royally screwed up and she was now paying for it. With a great sigh, she continued her earlier tasks all the while contemplating how to get back in Nicholas good graces.

  Chapter 17

  Samantha happily stared at the tickets in her hands and still couldn't believe her luck. She taken all her lunch hour and a thirty minute dinner just to purchase and retrieve these tickets. Finally! Something was going right for her, the heavens were shinning down on her and boy did it feel good! She hadn't even believed that it was possible to get these tickets so late in the season and had only gone online as a fluke, hoping to find something endearing to gift Nicholas with and these were by 0far the best present she could've ever hoped for.

  Yves Charmant, a very gifted art prodigy who had become world famous practically overnight with his thought provoking opuses, was having a gallery opening downtown. She'd first seen one of his pieces hanging in one of Nicholas's Tokyo office years prior and had become fascinated by it. Nicholas had caught her looking at it during her first month in his employ and a sort of nostalgic smile had overtaken his visage when he'd told her that he was a collector of Charmant's masterpieces. He hadn't divulged any other details aside from the fact that the paintings gave him a sort of serenity; almost like coming home.

  This was perfect. He would forget the incident this morning and she could finally have a date with him; two birds, one stone. The 9 to 5's were preparing to leave by the time she came back to the office, she just hoped that Nicholas had remained and not spontaneously up and left as he was known to do at times. She gave a short knock on his office door before entering and found that he was still hard at work, no longer perfectly put together, but still undeniably handsome.

  "Samantha, I thought you'd left." He didn't look up as he continued to tap away on his laptop. His hair looked as though he'd raked his hand one too many times through it as it fell across his forehead. His tie was undone and hung around his neck. The sleeves of his collared shirt were rolled halfway up his forearms. His rumpled appearance made him look so damn good. Samantha wanted to lock the door behind her, peel her clothes off one garment at a time and splay herself out on his large desk, ready and willing to do anything he wanted.

  She shook her head to clear out the fantasy and cleared her throat. "I took my dinner early. Nicholas?"

  "Hmm?" his head remained fixed on that damn computer screen!

  "I have these tickets to the opening of Yves Charmant's gallery and I was wondering if you would like to attend with me. I know how big of a fan you are of his works and so I thought maybe…"

  "Ok, I'll go."

  "I mean you don't have to go, I know you have a lot of work to do, but you don't have to go with me if you don't want to, maybe I'll just go with a friend or sell them on eBay…"

  "Samantha! Did you hear me, I said I'll go!" He looked up and for the first time that day and gave her a smile that had her knees wobbling.

  "You…you'll go?"

  He closed the notebook and gave her his attention. "Yes, I'll go. These reports can wait until tomorrow."

  She was shocked, excited and nervous all at the same time, but tried very hard not to act like a complete idiot. "Are you sure?"

  Nicholas raised a brow. "Did you expect me to say No?"

  "No…yes…maybe." her cheeks bloomed. "I'm just glad that we can get to see this together, you know, as art fans and all."

  "Of course, I'm honored that you invited me. It's been a while since I've been to one of his openings, the last I believe was in Paris three years ago, it was very exciting."

  Samantha held down a girlish squeal of glee. "I'm excited to go, this will be my first."

  "And you've picked me to share it with you? Truly I'm honored, Sam."

  God! Was there a limit to how great this night could get? He called her Sam for God sakes and it sounded so endearing coming from his lips.

  "So, when does it start?"

  "Seven thirty."

  He took a glimpse at his wristwatch. "Great that gives us plenty of time to go home and get ready. I'll be by your house at seven."

  With her heart close to bursting, Samantha said her short goodbye before leaving the downtown office; she hurried home to get ready! Eager to begin her date.

  ~*~*~*~

  "Are you going to tell me where we're going?"

  Devlin took a moment to glance at his blindfolded fiancée before retuning his eyes to the road. "I already told you Ellie, you'll know when we get there."

  "You're not being very helpful."

  Devlin chuckled. "And you're not being very patient."

  "It's hard being patient when you've been blindfolded for more than an hour."

  "I didn't realize traffic would be this bad, just bear with me, babe, we're almost there."

  Ellie sighed, leaned back into the passenger seat and tried to give Devlin the benefit of the doubt, despite her misgivings. It wasn't so much that she doubted her fiancé, in all actuality she trusted Devlin implicitly. But being blindfolded for the extent of time that she has without so much as a clue as to where they were headed was bound to get anyone antsy. She wasn't big on surprises and would've preferred to know what was going on rather than finding out later, but Devlin had wanted this. He'd been so eager this evening when he'd picked her up, his enthusiasm encouraging Ellie to reluctantly put on the black satin blindfold. That had been almost an hour ago.

  The unexpected weight of Devlin's hand on her thigh caused Ellie to jump. "You alright, Ellie? You seem a little jumpy."

  "I'm fine. I'm just worried about the kids."

  "The kids are fine staying with Gabe and Ronnie. I want us to have a good time tonight."

  Ellie halfheartedly smiled. "I'm sorry for acting so weird. I've just been sort of out of it all day. Even my students noticed it."

  "Are you Ok? Are you coming down with something? Maybe I should turn the car around…"

  "No!" Ellie hurriedly interrupted. "No, Dev, that's not what I want. I'm fine. I think you have the right idea with this tonight, we'll just go and have a good time."

  "Okay, but any sign of anything you let me know and we'll head back."

  Ellie smiled, touched by his kindness. "I promise."

  Minutes later and they finally arrived at their destination. Devlin hastened to the passenger side to help Ellie out, before handing the keys over to the valet attendant. Leading her from the car to the revolving doors of the opulent building they were to enter, Devlin stepped behind Ellie and leaned down to whisper against the shell of her ear. "I know how much you've wanted to see this." He freed her of the blindfold and quietly waited for Ellie's reaction.

  It took a moment for Ellie's eyes to readjust to light, but when it did, she saw what Devlin wanted her to see and her smile could've rivaled the sun. "Oh, Dev." She turned around after taking her fill of the poster announcing Yves Charmant's gallery opening. "This is, how did you get tickets?"

  "I called in a few favors, are you happy?"

  Ellie scoffed in disbelief, before taking hold of Devlin's face and planting a very satisfied kiss on his lips, mindless of their audience. "Does that answer your question?"

  "I don't know. I might need a little more convincing."

  Ellie laughed before pulling away. She grabbed Devlin's hand and they both practically ran for the revolving door.

  ~*~*~*~

  "What do you think of this one?" Samantha asked as she stood by Nicholas's side, taking any opportunity to get as close as impossible without being on top of him. He'd shown promptly at seven, like he said he would and graciously escorted her to the
passenger seat of his sleek imported car. The trip from her house to the gallery hadn't been long and through the short ride, they'd enjoyed an amiable conversation that hadn't pertained to work. The night was turning out better than she'd expected and hopefully by the end, she and Nicholas would be having a little nightcap that would lead to---

  "“Approaching heaven”, fitting title, but I think that's pretty much all I like about this painting. He seems to be putting too much effort into this. Art should be effortless."

  "You speak from experience?" he peeled his gaze away from the oil painting and gave her a feeble smile.

  "I sometimes fool myself into thinking I can draw. It was hobby growing up." There was that nostalgic air again, surrounding him like a shroud, Samantha wished he would share more with her.

  "Why didn't you pursue it, if you don't mind me asking?"

  He shrugged. "I lost my passion for it. Come let's take a look on the other side of the room." He courteously settled a hand on the small of her back and led her away, the door to his past firmly closed.

  ~*~*~*~

  Devlin listened attentively as Ellie went on and on about each piece they saw, animatedly telling him which pieces were up to par and which ones lacked 'presence'. She seemed in her element here, filled with vivacity. Just being around her made Devlin content. In just a few more months he would be married to this woman, they were going to raise a family together. There wasn't much he could ask for. Devlin wasn't a complicated man and certainly having found Ellie was probably all he would ever need to be happy.

  There were times though, when Devlin wondered if his diminutive lover cared about him just as deeply? He didn't want to doubt Ellie's love. He didn't want to think that there were unresolved issues that were keeping Ellie from committing herself fully, but one had to wonder. He wasn't a stupid man. Any fool could see that she still harbored some feeling for her ex. But the true question was, just how deep did those feelings run? Were they profound enough to unravel three years of happiness? Again, Devlin hated that he had these suspicions. He hated that every time the name Nicholas Grayson came up Ellie gave a start. She feigned indifference, but after three years, Devlin knew Ellie's mannerism.

  "Hey," Ellie frowned in worry as she rested a hand against Devlin's cheek. "You Ok?"

  Starring in those hazel eyes, Devlin saw the reason why he would fight until his dying breath for this woman, why he remained by Ellie's side, despite her wavering feelings. Devlin loved Ellie. It was as simple as that. Ellie was the epitome of his happiness. "Better than you know." Devlin pressed his lips against the inside of Ellie's wrist and smiled. "Come on, I think they have more pieces over there."

  They made their way to the other side of the immense gallery hand in hand and just as they cleared through a throng of people mingling around, Ellie accidentally bumped shoulders with a woman holding a champagne flute. Luckily her escort managed to grab her and the champagne flute before any embarrassing moments could happen. But all the same, Ellie’s mortification prompted to apologize. She stopped short however when she caught sight of who the woman’s escort happened to be.

  "Nicholas."

  "Ellie, what a pleasant surprise."

  "I wish I could say the same."

  “Wesport.” Nicholas coolly acknowledged the other man.

  The tension in the air was as thick as fog, the animosity radiating off both men was enough to spark kindling.

  "Hi, I'm Ellie Holbrook." Samantha looked down at the offered hand as though it would unleash some sort of disease on her. But she took it nevertheless and they shook hands.

  "Samantha Harris." Samantha tried hard to find something about her to hate, something to make her justify the cruelty behind her thoughts. But Samantha came away with nothing. Her imperfections made her beautiful and Samantha hated that she envied her for that. "It's finally nice to meet you, Ellie. Nicholas speaks very highly of you."

  Ellie snorted, her gaze meeting Nicholas’s. "I'm sure there are much more important things in Nicholas's life to talk about than boring old me."

  "You'd be surprised." Samantha muttered wryly.

  "I'm sorry?"

  "You're still a fan of his works?" Nicholas's sudden inquiry saved Samantha from responding.

  "Yeah, I thought you weren't a fan?"

  "I've had a change of heart." When they spoke to each other, like they were doing now, it was as if the world and the people in it ceased to exist.

  "Typical, Nicholas. You could never make up your mind on what you wanted.” The hidden innuendos where there, referencing to a past only they knew and understood.

  "I have a pretty good idea now."

  Samantha couldn't stand it anymore. "There's so much to see, I'm sure we wouldn't want to miss anything. Nicholas, can we go look at landscapes?" She looped her arm through his, not allowing him the opportunity to refuse.

  "Of course. Ellie, Westport, if you'll excuse us." They walked away then and were engulfed by the swarming crowd.

  The remainder of their evening was spent in silence, the awkwardness broken every now and then by Ellie's attempt at conversation. But it seemed Devlin was too wrapped up in his thoughts to respond properly and so, after a while, Ellie just shut her mouth. They arrived home around nine thirty after picking up the children from Gabe and Ronnie's home.

  Ellie headed upstairs and readied Bella and Dylan for bed. By the time she walked back downstairs, cleaned the kitchen and arranged the living room, it was close to eleven. Deciding that she'd done enough busy work, Ellie headed to her bedroom, maybe now Devlin would be in the mood to talk.

  Ellie opened her bedroom door and closed it behind her. The table lamp by her bedside dimly illuminated the room and outlined Devlin's form on the mattress.

  "Dev?"

  "The kids sleeping?"

  "Yeah, Roan was asking for you." Ellie shrugged out of her nightgown and dropped it on the bench of her vanity."Dev, are you Ok? Is there something you want to talk about?" She crawled on the mattress, the expression on Devlin's face made her stop.

  "Is marrying me something you really want to do, or is it a way to forget about him?" he had his eyes closed, his voice thick with emotion.

  "Dev…" Devlin abruptly rose and turned to face her. He grabbed Ellie's hands and forced her to meet his desperate gaze.

  "Be honest with me, Ellie. Be honest with me and yourself, tell me how you really feel. Tell me that it's me you think about when he comes near you. Tell me it's me you want to spend the rest of your life with. Tell me that I'm not just a replacement. Tell me that you're not just settling…"

  "Dev…"

  "Tell me!" he shook her, his voice a roaring boom. "Tell me the truth, Ellie."

  "Devlin,"

  "I don't want to feel this way, always doubting your feelings for me, but how can I not when I see the way you act around him? The way he…"

  "Nicholas means nothing to me, Devlin! I don't know what I have to do to prove that to you! There isn't anything going on and there never will be. It's you that I want, it's you that I think about, it's you that I love. Tell me what I have to do to prove that to you?"

  Devlin settled his forehead against Ellie's own and sadly whispered. "Just…just let me be the only man in your heart. That's all I ever wanted, I can't bear to be anything else."

  "You are, Devlin."

  Releasing her hands, Devlin cupped Ellie's face and devoured her lips. "Let me love you, Ellie?" He breathed against the side of Ellie's neck.

  "You don't need to ask."

  There was no longer any need for words as the sound of flesh and vocalized moans overtook the room. Ellie let Devlin love her, while she desperately fought the images of a certain silver eyed man from coming to mind. She screwed her eyes shut, dug her fingers into the sheets and chomped down on her bottom lip to keep from accidentally calling out the wrong name. She felt like such an asshole.

  ~*~*~*~

  The scene from the prior evening with Devlin replayed over and over again in Elli
e's mind. It pained her to realize what she'd done, what she was doing each time she lied to Devlin. God! But what else could she have done? Devlin's expression alone had done her in. It'd been so raw, so heart wrenchingly hopeful that Ellie couldn't have told him the truth even if she'd wanted to. So rather than honesty and sincerity, she'd chosen deceit and selfishness. How had it come to this?

  How did she end up harboring these feeling? Where did they come from? It wasn't supposed to have been like this. Ellie could say that she loved Devlin. She honestly did, but something always held her back from fully committing to him. She adored Devlin, the man who came into Ellie's life and made loving possible again. He was patient and kind, loving and attentive and there wasn't a day in the last three years since they started dating that Ellie remembered crying because of him. Devlin had always proved himself to be a gentleman, completely conscience of all her emotion. Devlin was perfect for her. Devlin...Devlin...

  Devlin wasn't Nicholas.

  And there laid the crux of Ellie's emotional problems. It always came back to Nicholas Grayson. It was one of the greatest jokes in the history of romance, to want the man who confused and angered the hell out of you. The man who unrepentantly took liberties with your heart and made you enjoy each moment, no matter how torturous. While the mind pleaded for the man who made life simple, who made familial bliss so easy, who wanted nothing more than to see to your everlasting joy, the mind yearned for that.

  But the heart and the body craved passion. They demanded the emotional instability, the edge-of-your-seat arguments that inevitably exploded in hot, body melting sex that had you screaming to the high heavens. The heart and the body desired the man who caressed your soul. Who thrived on spontaneity, understood your insecurities because they were a perfect match to his own. The heart and the body wanted a man who was as wild as you were tame, as idealistic as you were pragmatic. Ellie’s heart and the body wanted what she feared the most.

  She didn't want to be with that man. Yet every time Nicholas looked at her, every elusive brush of his fingers along her skin, every utterance of her name from his lips, was like a call to debauchery. Her heart sang for him. Her body ached like nothing else when he was near. But things were not so simple. The anger and deep emotional wounds from the past refused to allow things to be so simple. She had her pride, her dignity and the tight reign they had over her prevented Ellie from doing something foolish, like run back into the arms of the man who had decimated her heart.