by Lauren Wood
“That's not the worst of it.”
“Really? How could it get any worse?”
I smiled at her. I probably would have thought the same thing before all of this. “Well, you know how I have the worst luck ever, right?”
“Just come out with it, Madeline. What's going on?”
“It's Chris. You know, Emily's father. That's my boss.”
“No!”
She was looking about as shocked as I felt she should. She had this startled look on her face, and I could totally relate. When I first realized that he was going to be my boss, I know that I looked the same way. Sometimes I still felt the same way, too, like how this could be happening.
“You've got to be kidding me.”
“I wish I was. I immediately knew who he was when I went into the interview.”
“So, what did he say? Did you tell him about Emily?”
That of course would have made sense. It probably would have been the right thing to do. Obviously, it had crossed my mind, but had not come to be. I think the next part I didn't want to say out loud, because it was a bit humiliating. I never thought of myself as a super prideful person, but the idea of not being remembered by Chris really bothered me. I didn't like that I was so forgettable.
“He didn't say anything. The truth is, that he doesn't even remember me.”
There was silence for several moments, and I knew she didn't know what to say. How could she? I didn't even know what to say about it and it was my life. I had experienced a great time with the guy, and he didn't even know who I was now. As much as I liked to believe that I could get over such a thing, it was easier said than done. My ego definitely took a hit.
“I see what you mean now. It is worse. Have you seriously not said anything to him? You haven’t mentioned the child that the two of you have together?”
“No, I don't see a point in it. He doesn't even remember who I am. I think that makes his feelings clear.”
“As much as I know it hurts, you're going to have to tell him. You didn't tell him before because you didn't know how to find him, but now you do. There are no more excuses, Madeline.”
“I can't lose this job, Mom, and I don’t know if I will still have it after I tell him about Emily.”
“Then at least you will have done the right thing. You can’t make him be here for her, but he should have that option. They both deserve it.”
She rubbed my back and told me that everything was going to be okay. It was just something that moms said.
“What would you do?”
“Well, you've always had more sense than me, Madeline. I probably would have given him the talking to for not remembering me.”
I smiled, because I could see her doing just that. My mother was definitely not afraid to say what was on her mind. I used to be that way as well, but it was different when it came to Chris. I had known that from the first moment.
Why could he forget me so easily when I couldn’t get him off my mind?
12
Chris
“Are you busy?”
“Not really. What's going on?”
“I was hoping that you would be able to help me with something.”
Madeline just kind of smiled in the way that really did something to me. She quickly agreed to help me with whatever I needed. She was always quick to help, and I had been asking a lot of her lately.
I couldn’t help but notice that her shirt was flowy and a little lower cut than usual. That took all of my attention off of my plan to get some alone time with her and put it all on the jiggling breasts that swayed when she moved.
We were going down the hallway before she even asked me what I needed help with.
“I have a couple things that I need to take care of. PR taking care of it would work out best.”
“What sort of issue are you having?”
“Let's just say that someone got wind to the fact that my marriage to Cynthia is not exactly my real bride.”
“What do you mean by that? I thought you were just joking around, trying to flirt.”
“I told you before that the marriage was arranged. I wasn’t kidding. And now it seems like somebody else is trying to start some trouble. It is always better to get a handle on things as quickly as possible.”
She said that she didn’t understand what I was asking.
“So, you were telling the truth? You really don't want to marry that woman?”
I agreed, and I couldn’t help but notice the change in her expression with the news. Maybe it all wasn’t completely hopeless.
“This is just something I have to do, and I can't have rumors going around about it. It would not look good for my family or hers. I need something to come up in the papers.”
She agreed to do it and promised to keep it all just between us. It would come out soon enough that we were purchasing her father's company, but I didn't want it to come out just yet.
Her father would up the price or maybe renege on the agreement. I couldn’t have that happen, not after everything I’d already done with Cynthia. If it became public that I was using his sentiment to get a better deal, I was going to regret it. I knew that.
When I first found out about the rumors, I knew exactly who I wanted to take care of things. Not only did I trust Madeline to handle it, but I was convinced that if she knew my engagement really was a sham, maybe she would think twice about seeing me. She had made it clear that anything to do with me was off limits because I was getting married. If she realized that it really was just a strategic move and not some sort of love, she’d give me a chance.
I was no closer to understanding why, but I knew that she was already looking at me a little differently. I was suddenly an option again.
Madeline had been working on my assignment and it wasn’t getting us closer together. Not like I wanted it to anyway, so I asked her out for dinner, with the project as an excuse.
I shamelessly made it about work, making it hard for her to say no to me. I should have felt guilty about the use of my position to get my way, but I didn’t. Maybe that said something horrible about me, yet it didn’t change the fact that I was more than happy to use it to my advantage.
“Of course. I can meet with you for a little while.”
“I don’t want to keep you from anything. I don’t know if you have someone to go home to.”
I was asking her if she was with someone or not. She knew my relationship status and now I wanted to know what hers was.
“No, it’s just me and a frozen dinner waiting. I don’t mind grabbing a drink or something. I can work on the announcement tonight, have it to you in the morning.”
I told her that she didn’t have to work through the night. It was a nice gesture that she wanted to, but I didn’t want her to think that it was urgent. I may have made it sound that way, but that was just so that I could get some time alone with her.
“We have time, but why don’t you come over to my place. You were asking for more information and that’s where it will be. We can take care of that as well.”
“Well, aren’t you efficient.”
I chuckled, trying not to sound as nervous as I felt. All of a sudden, it was as if she knew exactly what my plan was. I don’t know if she was going to go with it or not.
“I have to be. There is a lot coming down the pike.”
Her smile dissolved. “Of course, your marriage.”
I sighed and wished that there was another way. When I’d agreed to it, there wasn’t a woman that I was interested in. It wouldn’t have been a big deal, because I didn’t have anyone. Now, though, even though Madeline wasn’t mine, I wanted her to be.
“Don’t say it like that.”
She sighed then and looked away. Agreeing to meet me at my place, I was determined to make it work. All I had to do was convince her that a fake fiancée wasn’t the same as a real one. She shouldn’t be treated the same and the rules should be different.
Really, I was finding any reason I c
ould to make sure that I got the girl that I wanted. Madeline was for me. I don’t know how or why I felt that way, but I did.
13
Madeline
I don’t know what I was thinking, going over to Chris’ house. I knew that he was most likely going to try something and that was going to bring more drama into my life. Sadly, I knew that if Chris came onto me again, like he had so long ago, I was going to go for it. I still remembered the way it felt to be in his arms and to have him driving inside of me. It wasn’t a feeling that could be easily forgotten.
When I got to his place, he was already there and I was hoping…well, I guess I didn’t know what I was hoping for. He had a huge smile on his face, and I couldn’t help feeling like this was all a set-up. Worse than that, I was going to fall for it.
“Come in.”
He moved back to let me into the house, and I felt his body brush against me just a little bit. It was clear what was going to happen. Sensible me should have cut bait and run. I knew better, but I just waited for him to shut the door before I went deeper into the house.
“What would you like to drink?”
I shrugged, telling him that I wasn’t all that picky.
“Whatever you have is fine.”
He brought me some wine, and I was thankful that it wasn’t anything stronger. I really wasn’t too big on drinking. I started to ask him some questions about the PR piece he wanted me to come up with, but Chris made it clear quickly that he didn’t want to talk about that.
“I thought you said that it was about work?”
“That’s what I said to lure you here. You have to know that there is something more between us, something that isn’t so professional.”
I was started to sweat because I didn’t know what we were talking about. Did he know who I was finally? I wanted to believe that was true, but I had to hear him say it first.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I see the way you look at me. I saw how upset you were when you met Cynthia.”
Those were all allegations that I couldn’t argue with him about. I had felt something for him, maybe I still did. I was crushed when I found out about Cynthia, but that didn’t help anything. It didn’t change anything, like the fact that he didn’t even know who the hell I was.
“Yes, but she is the reason that we need to keep this professional.”
He set the glass down and moved to the other side of the table, sitting next to me, closer than before. “What if I don’t want to?”
I smiled at him and tried to ignore the need in his dark depths. I had seen that look before. It had drawn me in before and it had done me no good, none whatsoever. All that look had gotten me was Emily. Granted, she was the best thing that had ever happened to me, but it was a lot and unexpected at the time.
“I think that you should. I am on your public relations team, to fix mistakes that you are about to make. I don’t think that you should make anymore.”
“Is that what kissing you would be, a mistake?”
My mind was screaming out the answer yes. Of course, it was a mistake. If he kissed me, I would lose myself and then I would be even more screwed than before. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself, if I led me down the rabbit hole again. I should have learned my lesson the first time. Not to mention all of the secrets that were between us, my secrets.
“By the way that you’re looking at me, Chris, probably.”
He chuckled and the sound of it reverberated through my body. Why did I like the sound of that so much?
“What if I don’t want to listen to your caution? If I were to try and make a mistake, would you let me?”
He was closer now, and I didn’t know what to say. He was making me shake inside and I had to hide it. Didn’t he know we’d already done this dance before? I wanted to do it again. It was then that I truly saw it for what it was. I wanted him, badly.
“Just do it and find out.”
As soon as the last word was out of my mouth, his lips were pressing against mine and I was lost in the moment. His lips were soft and insistent. It was so much like the last time that I heard a whimpering sound coming from inside of me as I pulled myself fully up against him. I wanted this, needed it even.
Before long, he was pulling me towards him, and I was no longer on a chair. Somehow, I was on his lap and I knew then that he was full of as just as much desire as I was. I could feel the hard length underneath me and I rubbed against it, making him growl at me.
“I think you are messing with me, Madeline. You come across all innocent, but that’s not true, is it?”
“I never claimed to be innocent, Chris. That’s just what you wanted to believe.”
As I said it, I turned around in the chair and on his lap, so that I was straddling him and facing away. I didn’t want to see the look of unknown on his face. If he still didn’t know who I was, then I was just going to pretend that I didn’t know as well. Chris was well-endowed, and I was already thinking about having it inside of me. The rest of it, the emotions, could be figured out later. My body was running things now and it didn’t give a damn about how I felt about any of it.
I started to rub on him again, while his lips and teeth were on my neck. Chris was grabbing my hips and grinding them upwards. It made me tremble fully in his arms, but I ignored it. It wasn’t enough and I was desperately trying to get it all. If I was going to do this, mess with my own head, I wanted to make it worth it.
“You’re not innocent at all, are you? You’re a little vixen in disguise.”
I didn’t say anything. I just played with him, rubbing my ass all over his crotch. It was naughty what I was doing, totally out of the way, but I couldn’t get enough.
Soon, though, it wasn’t enough for Chris. His hands snaked around my body and started to play with my tits, coaxing them out of their bra somehow.
Crying out with pleasure, the other hand went into my pants and down the front of them. I felt his fingers opening me up and finding the wetness that was there.
I cried out with the most intimate touch and his hips drove up harder. He was talking about how he wanted to be inside of me, how he needed me and truthfully, I was eating every word up. I knew then that there was nothing I could do. I needed him right then and there.
I was about to tell him to just do it do me, but then the front door flew open and I heard a voice that made my heart stop.
“Chris! Hey, honey, where are you? And whose car is out there?”
The man underneath me started and pushed me off of him. I almost fell, it was so quick, and he apologized, before telling me that I had to go. He didn’t have to tell me, though; I knew what sort of a position I was in. Not a good one.
I had to go to his bathroom and throw on my clothes before going out the window. It was probably one of my least dignified moments in my life. I wanted to forget about it, but I didn’t have time right then. I had to get out of there and ended up leaving my car in the driveway, because I didn’t know how to get in it and start it up, without making a noise.
Never in my life had I been so humiliated. This one was going to go in the record books for sure. How could something so good turn bad so quickly?
14
Chris
Cynthia was in through the locked bedroom door and calling out my name before I could get myself together. She really seemed to know exactly where I was, and I was still breathing hard when she made it into where she could see me. I was rock hard and practically panting. I had the smell of Madeline all over me.
“What are you doing in here? Why are you still in bed? Don't you think that it would be better if you got up? Don’t you have to go to work or something?”
She came a little closer and I had to stop her. She was going to see more than she needed to. It would definitely be more than I was going to be able to explain. I had seen Cynthia upset more than once and I did not want to deal with it at the moment. It was better for me to just smooth it all over somehow and keep her away fr
om me.
“Stop coming closer, Cynthia. Just stay over there.”
“What's going on? You're all sweaty and you look flush.”
I couldn’t think of anything to tell her. When she gave me the status of my appearance, it made me realize that if I didn’t come up with something fast, she was going to see through all this. I wasn’t ready for that, so I just burst out the first thing that came to my mind.
“I'm sick. I don't want you to get it, and I don't know if it's contagious or not. I haven’t seen the doctor about it yet.”
Immediately, Madeline backed up and I had to bite my tongue. Here I was maybe seconds away from getting caught with another woman’s juices on my fingers and all I had to do was mention being sick. She was backing up like I had the plague. I could see now that counting on her in a time of crisis was not going to be advisable.
“What is wrong with you?” There was genuine concern on her face, however I don’t think that it had anything to do with me. She was concerned for her own safety. Not mine. She would have had to get a bull horn to be heard soon, as far away as she had managed to get in such a short space of time.
“I'm just sick. It's no big deal. Better safe than sorry though.”
A minute ago, I was trying to get her away from me and now I was just prolonging it, seeing how far I could get her to run before she realized what I was doing.
The answer to that question was not what I had expected. Instead of offering to help in some way, Cynthia was back out the door. She didn't want to have anything to do with any kind of illness. I mentioned something about marriage being for sickness and in health, and she just kind of waved me off and told me that we weren't married yet. It made me wonder what I was getting myself into. Here I was worried about a few weeks with her, but what if something happened to me while I was married to her? She would pull the plug in a heartbeat. I made a note to make sure she wasn’t the decision maker.