The Billionaire Princess

by Christina Tetreault

  ***

  Christopher walked through the glass doors separating the living room area of the penthouse apartment from the rooftop pool. Callie must have planned this.

  Charlie was a terrific woman and a perfect match for Jake, yet, she didn't strike him as the romantic type. And while Jake had always been smooth with the ladies, this didn't look like something he'd come up with either. Vases filled with long stemmed red and white roses sat on every table. Candles placed along the edge of the rooftop near the railing flickered as did the candles floating in the pool. The padded lounges had been pushed together and covered so they resembled wide couches, and throw pillows had been added to increase the effect. Soft music played in the background, loud enough for dancing but not so loud you couldn't have a conversation. A slight breeze from the ocean kept the rooftop a comfortable temperature as the wedding guests mingled over drinks and food.

  Before joining the others, he stopped at the bar, which had been set up in the far corner, and ordered a vodka martini then filled a plate from the buffet. Satisfied with his food selections, he joined Jake and his family.

  “Congratulations again,” Christopher said sitting in an empty seat facing the glass door. “Who did all this? I know it wasn't Jake.” With his hand he gestured around the rooftop.

  Jake nodded in Callie's direction. “Callie planned the reception and Dylan arranged everything else.”

  “Nicely done.” He looked over at Callie who sat diagonally across the table next to Dylan and Maureen. “Aren't we one short?” Christopher asked noticing that Sara still hadn't joined them. In fact he hadn't seen her since the photographer finished the pictures on the beach.

  Jake paused with his wine glass almost to his mouth, “She needed to return some phone calls.”

  The sound of the glass door sliding on its runner caught Christopher’s attention, and he immediately looked up. He watched Sara step outside and close the door behind her. She still wore the turquoise sundress from the wedding, but now her blonde hair hung in thick waves skimming her shoulders.

  Raising his fork to his mouth, he watched as she crossed to the bar and ordered herself a drink. She moved with such grace and elegance—even if he hadn't known who she was, he would've known she wasn't just some ordinary woman. Everything about her spoke of wealth and privilege.

  Since no one else seemed to notice, he kept his gaze locked on her as she stopped for food before joining the table.

  “Sorry that took so long.” Sara pulled out a chair across from him.

  “We know you just like to make an entrance,” Jake joked, pushing his empty plate away from him. Immediately a waitress appeared to clear the dish away.

  Sara made a childish face and stuck her tongue out at her brother causing Christopher to nearly choke on the carrot he'd swallowed. While he could easily picture one of his sisters doing the exact same thing to him, the action didn't fit with the image he had of the proper and elegant Sara Sherbrooke. But if anyone else found her behavior odd, no one commented. Jake simply laughed and pushed his chair back.

  “How about a dance, Mrs. Sherbrooke?” he asked holding out a hand to Charlie. Without a word Charlie accepted, and the couple moved toward the other side of the pool.

  The sound of a chair scratching on the ground drew Christopher’s attention to Dylan whispering something in Callie's ear before they both stood and joined the dancing couple. Shortly after that Maureen pushed her chair back as well.

  “I think I'll say goodnight. It's already tomorrow morning back in North Salem.”

  Left alone at the table, Sara and Christopher ordered another round of drinks and finished their dinner in silence while the other two couples danced to the slow love songs pouring from the speakers.

  Finished with dinner Christopher leaned back in his chair and watched Sara from across the table. Since joining the party she hadn't said much beyond the basic pleasantries.

  “Do you want to dance?” he asked before taking the last sip of his second martini.

  She was watching the two couples moving to the music and immediately her head whipped around to face him, but Sara remained silent.

  “If you don't want to that's fine too.” It didn't matter much to him either way. When it came to dancing he usually avoided it. Yet she'd been watching the other couples with such longing, he guessed she enjoyed it.

  Sara started to push her chair back. “Sure.”

  Christopher followed her toward the dance floor. When she stopped and faced him, he encircled her waist with his arms and pulled her closer but kept an appropriate distance between them.

  Once Sara slid her arms around his neck, they began to move to the classic love ballad pouring from the speakers. Slowly one song melded into another, and soon he couldn't remember how long they'd danced or when he'd pulled her so close. No space remained between them as they moved as one with her head resting against his chest. But he didn’t mind, in fact he liked the way her body felt pressed up against his. He didn't even mind that every now and then a strand of her silky hair blew across his face.

  Throughout their dancing, his eyes strayed back to the woman in his arms. He enjoyed watching the candlelight flicker across her skin, and the way she felt in his arms.

  A few feet away Charlie and Jake danced and, as the song ended, he noticed Charlie whisper in Jake's ear.

  “I'm told it's time to call it a night. We'll see you all tomorrow.” The smile on Jake's face told everyone he was more than happy to head inside.

  “I doubt that,” Dylan said from near the pool where he and Callie danced.

  Jake ignored his half-brother and kept on walking.

  Christopher agreed with Dylan. He’d be surprised if he saw Jake or Charlie again before he returned home.

  “I think it's time we went inside too. We'll see you two sometime tomorrow.” Dylan led Callie toward the glass doors.

  Christopher paused for a moment even though a new song started. “Looks like we've been deserted,” he said letting his eyes rest on Sara's face.

  Sara met his gaze and then nodded, “Seems that way.”

  Without any warning, Sara moved out of his arms. “I think I need another drink.”

  He couldn't be certain but he thought he detected the slightest hint of embarrassment in her voice. “Sounds like a good idea. What can I make for you?”

  “Another Cosmo would be great,” she answered with a tiny half smile.

  Nodding he headed toward the vacant bar. He'd never received any formal training, but he knew how to mix the staple drinks. Once both drinks were prepared he carried them to Sara, standing near the pool.

  For a while they both stood in silence gazing out at the beach below. Although long past sunset, the lights from the other hotels and the streets below provided enough illumination to see the sandy beach and rolling waves.

  “Are you working for Sherbrooke Enterprises now?” He remembered Jake telling him Sara graduated from Harvard Law School. A position in the company's legal department seemed the next logical step for her. Assuming she worked at all. She didn't have any reason to.

  “No. I'm Senator David Healy's chief of staff. I've been with him since his campaign.”

  She took a large swallow of her drink and he watched, mesmerized for some reason by the way she held her glass to her lips. The urge to pull the glass away and replace it with his mouth started to overtake him. It wasn't the first time since meeting her years before that he'd been physically attracted to her, any man with a pulse would be. But tonight the pull was stronger. Different somehow. In a way he couldn't explain.

  “You look surprised,” Sara said reminding Christopher that he still hadn't responded.

  “I don't associate beautiful woman with politics.” He didn't stop to filter the thoughts flowing through his head and the words spilled out.

  Countless men had called her beautiful, yet coming from him it sounded different, more sincere perhaps. Running her tongue over her lips to moisten t
hem, she met his gaze. Then they both took a step forward at the same instant. A tiny part of her brain went on autopilot when she felt her body come into contact with his. Slowly, he lowered his head toward hers and she found herself craving the taste of his lips more than she craved her next breath.

  When his lips settled on hers he placed his hands on her shoulders, warmth seeping though her body. Their kiss remained gentle and sweet, but Sara allowed herself to learn the taste and texture of his lips, something she'd wanted to do since he climbed into the limo that afternoon.

  The desire to increase the intensity of the kiss soon exploded. Sara wrapped her arms around Christopher's waist and anchored him against her as they continued to kiss. When the need for air became so great she feared his lungs would explode, Christopher pulled his mouth away from hers and began to leave a trail of kisses from the corner of her mouth across her jaw and down her neck.

  In response Sara tilted her neck to the side to give him better access. Christopher continued his trail of kisses as his hands slid up and down the skin of her uncovered back causing her to tingle at his touch.

  “Maybe we should go inside,” he whispered near her ear.

  She nodded in agreement without pausing to consider the ramifications. Moving on autopilot, she let him lead her back inside to his room as his hands and lips stayed in contact with her body.

  After closing the door with his foot, she heard him lock it. One hand gripped her hip making it difficult to move, while he attempted to unbutton his shirt with the other. When the buttons wouldn't cooperate fast enough he yanked at the front tearing the buttons off and sending them in every direction. Once his shirt no longer remained as a barrier between them, he reached for her zipper. In the back of her mind, she expected him stop at any second—for him to come to his senses, pull away and toss her from the room. Instead he slid the zipper down her back and then pushed the thin straps from her shoulders, making the dress fall in a puddle around her feet.

  Kicking the dress aside, she reached for his belt buckle. As her hands worked to undo it, his hands explored the contours of her back only stopping once to unclasp on her strapless bra.

  When they'd both managed to dispose of each other’s clothing, he moved them, stopping when the backs of her legs hit the bed. Then in one final movement they tumbled onto the bed together.

  Chapter 2