by Vesper Young
Maybe this was why rich people were so often morning people.
The pillows were a bit stiff, though. And warm. I began to stretch myself, my fingers sliding along the warm fabric. Then I froze. I wasn’t using the pillows that lined the head of the bed. Oh, no. I had improvised my own pillow out of Deacon’s naked torso.
Apparently rock-hard abs are softer than expected, my drowsy mind mused.
Oh, and by the way, I was clinging to your ex-boss-turned-fake-husband like a koala clings to whatever type of trees koalas cling to.
Okay, it wasn’t a perfect analogy, but maybe one good night’s sleep a morning person doth not make.
I let in and out a shallow breath. I could do this. Just extricate myself slowly without waking Deacon. I tried to squirm my butt away and towards my edge of the bed without disturbing him. I opened my eye a crack, trying to gauge if I woke him.
He was looking right at me.
Crap.
His head was resting on his arms crossed behind his back. The act seemed lazy, but it had the effect of accentuating the defined muscles of his arms. His dark hair was messy, a stray cowlick at the forefront that I wanted to tug on. Below, a slight stubble on his jaw.
And in between, his eyes were clear and his mouth was stretched into an amused grin.
“Sleep well?” he asked. His voice was rough, giving it a dangerous quality for me to hear while still pressed against him.
Was this how deer felt? Very aware they should move yet utterly frozen?
His grin widened. “You can rest some more if you like. Don’t worry, I won’t move.”
I shook myself and snatched my arms back. He didn’t move. His quiet chuckle rumbled as I fled back to my side. Somehow, I’d had no trouble crossing the bed, yet now my starting point seemed miles away.
I chanced a glance back at him. The sheets were pulled back, exposing his stomach.
“I was thinking we should see Donna today. We’ll tell the others at the party, but she would expect to be told in person.”
I was grateful for the topic change. “Won’t she be upset you didn’t tell her before?”
He nodded. “Oh, I’m gonna catch hell for this. The saving grace is my father probably mentioned you before so this isn’t completely implausible.”
Yeah, it was out of left field but at least it was still in the stadium.
“She’s the one who has to believe this is for keeps, right?”
He sat up. “Yeah. She’s sharp, so we’ll have to be solid before meeting with her.”
I murmured an agreement. “Alright. When do we see her?”
“I was thinking lunch.”
***
Lunch it was. The place Deacon chose was a lot more lowkey than I’d expected, but he explained it was a favorite of Donna’s. In the hours before our arrival, he’d peppered in details about her. He didn’t share easily, and I was tempted to take a crowbar to his brain to get some hint of who this woman was.
I’d learned she was an Italian citizen by birth, though her family emigrated to the states when she was young. From the sound of it, she’d pretty much raise Deacon. She’d probably be insulted she hadn’t been invited to the wedding. They were close, or as close a Deacon got to anyone. He liked her. How could he not, when she’d pretty much been a mother to him?
I made a face at the thought. Not everyone liked their mother. I knew that firsthand.
The only other tip he’d given me was she liked thin mints. As far as I knew, cookie season was over, but apparently, when you had an eight-figure net worth, you could get said cookies on short notice.
So I entered the dinner after Deacon, armed with my box of cookies. He looked around for a moment before heading off. Our arms were hooked, so where he went, I followed.
He led us to a booth in the back. There was someone sitting there, but I could only see the back of their curly-haired head.
The woman turned as if sensing our arrival. Seeing Deacon, her face lit up and she stood to greet us.
“Buongiorno, bambino.”
She pulled Deacon in and landed a smacking kiss on his cheek. Then she turned to me. Her expression didn’t quite lose its exuberance, but there was no mistaking the caution there.
“And hello to you. You must be Mindy? Frederick told me all about you.”
That was surprising. Truthfully, I hadn’t expected her to know I existed. I disentangled myself from Deacon and extended a hand.
“That’s me. It’s great to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you as well.”
She grabbed my hand and pulled me in for a hug.
“No need to be so formal! Come, I’ve ordered some appetizers.”
We sat down opposite her.
“Oh, these are for you,” I said, remembering the cookies.
She took the bag I offered and pulled out the box.
“My favorite! How thoughtful.” She beamed.
I smiled back.
The food arrived. Mounds and mounds of greasy appetizers. Mozzarella sticks, fried calamari, bread, chicken tenders, and a pitifully small salad.
“Eat, eat,” she told us.
Deacon served me a bit of everything and then himself. Donna took single cheese stick.
“So tell me, bambino, how have you been doing?”
Deacon glanced at me. I looked back.
“Well, things have been a bit different. After everything that’s happened, I did some thinking on what was important.” He carefully avoided mentioning his father’s death. “One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I proposed to Mindy.”
“I said yes. And that I just couldn’t wait to get married. So Deacon got a loaner for a jet and took me to Vegas to make an honest woman out of me,” I chimed in.
I placed my hand on the table. Donna reached for it and held it up, then looked between Deacon, me, and the ring.
“Married! So soon!”
“Well, we’ve been seeing each other for a while.” We’d told his father seven months.
She fixed her gaze on me.
“Is there another reason for such a fast wedding?” She gestured to her stomach.
Deacon choked on his water at that. I slapped his back.
“No, but I’ll make a family man of him yet,” I assured her.
She nodded. “I can’t wait forever to have grandbabies. Lord knows Thomas and Gary aren’t in a hurry to work something out.”
Thomas, she’d told me, was her son.
“You’ll have to be patient,” Deacon told her. “What can I say? I’m not eager to share my wife.”
“What can you say? You can apologize for not inviting me to your wedding!”
“I am sorry, Donna,” he said.
“Sorry? I raised you, I changed your diapers, I washed your underwear, and you won’t invite an old woman to your wedding?”
“It was inexcusable. Especially after the underwear,” I agreed solemnly. “It’s my fault. I just couldn’t wait to be Mrs. Blake. We’re hosting a sort of reception on Sunday to announce our marriage. Really, you’re the first person we’ve told.”
Aside from Roland the jeweler and some guy at the department store.
The fact appeased her slightly and she settled back into her seat. The rest of the lunch was more relaxed, filled with stories of Deacon as a too-serious kid who apparently did not love having his underwear selling business recounted.
The only other tense moment came at the end.
“I have to ask, bambino. Do your sudden nuptials have anything to do with what that man, Abbot, called me about the other day?”
He turned towards me as he answered. Probably because it was hard to lie looking in the eyes of the woman who raised you.
“My father’s death made me realize I have to hold on to what’s important. I promise I’ll have no regrets following that.”
She gave him a wary look.
“So will we see you on Sunday?” I interrupted.
“Of course, dear, of course. And thank you
for the cookies.”
***
Sunday came shortly after, and with it, our wedding reception-slash-networking party. I hadn’t been sure what would be expected of me, but clearly not the preparation. At eleven, a team of cleaners arrived to tidy up the already spotless apartment followed by a team of caterers two hours after. Guests weren’t due till seven.
I asked Deacon how many people would be coming that we needed an army of people. “About two hundred.”
“Two hundred?” I exclaimed.
He nodded, his eyes trained on the latest NASDAQ update.
That was a lot more than I’d anticipated. I had envisioned maybe thirty, forty people.
“Can I invite someone?” I asked.
He looked at me. “Who?”
“My friend, Kara.”
“That’s fine.”
I gave him a smile and started to walk off so I could give her a call.
“You know you can’t tell her the truth, right?”
Now he was back to thinking I was stupid.
“I know exactly what I signed up for,” I told him.
“Good. Then by all means.”
I left and gave Kara quick, cryptic call. She told me she’d be here at seven in her fanciest, though I didn’t tell her what the party was really about. I felt bad, making her find childcare on short notice and offered to cover it, which she naturally refused.
After that, I just had to kill a few hours until the party started. I’d taken to exploring the apartment. Sure the tour Deacon gave me initially helped ensure I didn’t get lost anymore. But an apartment that could hold two hundred people comfortably was a world apart from my previous living arrangement. Kara would flip when she saw it.
Seven came quickly. I was wearing the dress Deacon and I had picked. I tried very hard not to think of the price tag. It had been four digits, not including the decimal places.
For his part, Deacon had changed into a crisp black suit and white shirt. All his clothes were perfectly tailored, but this one was exceptional and it showed.
With all the people around, we’d gotten ready in the confines of our room, though I still hid in the privacy of the walk-in.
“Which one?”
He’d held up two handkerchiefs for his front pocket, both complimenting my dress. I took a step forward and matched them against my dress.
“This one,” I’d said, pointing to the right one.
Now, people trickled in. We greeted the first few. Though we didn’t say anything about our recent marriage, there were several glances at my left hand. Eventually, it was unsustainable, so we mingled. Or rather, Deacon mingled while I smiled next to him and introduced myself.
The apartment was transformed. The lighting was warm but low. The caterers moved around with platters of food that refilled as quickly as they emptied. Expensive people in expensive clothing filled the space, mingling at the couch and chairs and in the dining room.
An hour passed. I had yet to spot Kara, but with her son things were unpredictable at times.
Deacon seemed satisfied enough people were here. Particularly several board members I’d seen in the office, though I doubted they’d ever paid me enough attention to recognize me.
He pulled me towards the center of the room and looked around. The effect was instant. The second he wanted the room’s attention, it was his. A hush fell over and people looked towards him.
“Good evening, everyone. I hope you’re all enjoying yourselves.” Despite the crowd, his voice carried easily, that charming, smooth sound that drew people in even with mundane words. “We’ve invited you all here tonight to celebrate with us. Mindy and I have worked together for a while and at every turn she’s enchanted me. I couldn’t have found a better partner in anyone else. As of this pas week, we’ve gotten married.”
A polite round of applause went up through the space.
“Thank you,” he said.
“And he’s not so bad himself,” I called, earning a laugh.
Deacon leaned over and pressed a quick kiss against my lips. It was short and chaste, yet even the brief touch had me aching for more of his soft lips.
It was an act that was getting too real. But the night was young and I had my part to play.
A young woman came up to us. She was a bit taller than I was, with straight black hair and a devious grin. Her dress was a daring, off-shoulder look, a turquoise-navy gradient running down to the floor.
“Deacon, so good to see you. And congratulations,” she purred.
“Glad you could make it, Rose. This is my wife, Mindy. Mindy, this is Rose Dukas.”
So this was the Dukas Shipping heiress. When I’d spoken to Deacon about her all that time ago, he’d seemed unimpressed. Yet now, he seemed delighted she was here.
Then again, if the Greece expansion was essential to keeping his shares as CEO, I suspected Deacon would charm the devil himself.
I smiled at her, hoping it was friendly. It was mostly wasted since she’d only spared me a cursory glance.
“Hello,” I said.
“Pleasure to meet you.” She seemed to only half notice me, still assessing my husband.
“Is your father here?” Deacon asked.
She gave the room a quick scan.
“Oh, he’s around here somewhere. You know how fathers are.” She slapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh, my condolences. We sent flowers when we heard.”
Deacon didn’t even seem to register the remark. He was already looking around for the elder Dukas.
“We received them,” I assured her.
“So tell me,” she said, focusing on me now that Deacon’s attention was lost. “How did you manage to snag this one?”
She batted—actually batted—her lashes at Deacon.
“Animal magnetism,” I deadpanned. I felt Deacons arm twitch against my side and automatically knew his attention had returned to our conversation. “Actually, we worked together,” I replied.
“You did?” She gave me an appraising look. “Now I recognize your voice! You were the one who made our reservations for dinner, weren’t you?”
“That was me,” I said with false cheer. I thought about the two of them discussing business over an intimate location. It had been before Deacon and I had even begun to fake-date, but it put a kink in our lovey-dovey story. And twisted my insides for another reason.
“Mindy was my secretary,” Deacon explained.
“Oh, how scandalous! Rumors must have flown at the office.”
“We pride ourselves on being above gossip,” he said in a dismissive tone.
“Oh, I’m sure you do, Deacon. But it’s different for women, isn’t it?” She gave me a pitying look. “I can’t imagine what people said behind your back.”
“Or to my face,” I said with a smile. “But like I said, it was that animal magnetism that prevailed, and now I get to stay at home all day, keeping my sugar plum prince content.”
I got up on my tip-toes, and pulled his head down to give a wet, smacking kiss on said sugar plum’s cheek.
“Baby, I see my friend so I’ll let you two handle all the business talk,” I told him. “It was a great to meet you, Rose.”
I extricated myself from Deacon’s hand on my waist and went off to find Kara. It had been a slight fib that I saw her, but I’d gotten a bit tired of being pricked by Rose’s thorns.
Different people congratulated me while I made my way through the crowd. I tried to be polite and remember the names, though it was impossible to keep all the details straight. Everyone was an executive of a director or investor of some description.
Kara was usually easy to spot in a crowd, her tall stature just one of her dazzling features that drew attention to her.
Finally, I spotted my friend. She was off to the side and staring intently towards the kitchen.
I tapped her shoulder, startling her.
“Oh! It’s you.”
“It’s me,” I confirmed, leaning in to give her a hug.
&nbs
p; “I’m trying to catch the caterer when he refills on those bacon wrapped scallops. They get inhaled and I’m starving. Sorry I’m late, by the way,” she said, her eyes still trained on the kitchen doorway. “Ryan’s sitter was had to cancel and I could only get my neighbor to watch him for two hours so I’ll have to go in about ten minutes.”
“Not a problem,” I assured her. The life of a single mother was unpredictable and I didn’t know how Kara managed it as well as she did.
I kept watch next to her until, at last, her persistence paid off. She snagged four toothpicks immediately, and I grabbed a few so I could restock her.
“Gosh, I haven’t had these in ages. Bar food is not the same!” She turned towards me. “Wow! You look stunning!”
I glanced down. The dress really did wonders for my figure, pulling me in and shoving me out at the appropriate points. “Thanks. You’re not too shabby yourself.”
She was wearing a classic black dress, lacy sleeves running down to her wrists. Though really, Kara could make a paper bag look like it belonged on the runway.
“So, what’s this shindig for? Some fundraiser your boss needed you to work?”
“Actually.” I paused. What would she think? I just had to get it out. “It’s to announce Deacon’s and my marriage.”
She stared at me blankly before making a mad grab for my left hand.
She held it up, the rings sparkling in the warm light.
“What?” she exclaimed. “What!”
People glanced at us, so she lowered her volume. “When did this happen? How? Wasn’t he a slavedriver a month ago I had to beg you to go on a date with?”
I squirmed. It was one thing to know I couldn’t tell my best friend the truth and a whole other to lie.
“Kara, I can’t go into it now, but things have changed. And honestly, he isn’t that bad outside of work.”
“You’re really married to your boss?”
“Sleeping in the same bed and everything.” I didn’t tell her that only happened because I’d been too embarrassed to correct my slip of the tongue. And if I was honest, I actually kind of enjoyed it.
“It’s so sudden!”
“It is,” I said. “But no marriage is perfect. Ours was fast. Some take decades.”
“Some never happen,” she said with a sigh. “I just can’t wrap my head around this. You haven’t gone on a date in years, Mindy. Years. When was the wedding?”