Edward: BBW (Members From Money Book 17)

by Katie Dowe

  But it turned out she did not have to use it.

  “Oh Abby, there you are!” Monique breezed in looking coolly beautiful in orange pants that billowed around her and a tan blouse. “We have a new client. A banker friend of Edward’s. He is quite impressed at the work you did for him and wants the whole works. Oh, and Edward is gone off on business for a week so I guess you will pick up where you left off. Lincoln Mulberry is on Walnut Street and his card in on your desk. I am so impressed.” She blew a kiss and left.

  Abby sank back on the sofa she had been sitting on and breathed a sigh of relief and then it struck her! He had used her and had left with not even the decency of calling her to tell her he would be out of the country! She blinked back the tears and swallowed the anger before going back to work.

  *****

  “I don’t understand this unscheduled leaving of yours, Edward,” Lisa complained as she spoke to her boss. “You had meetings lined up for the week and now you are on your way to Europe? What’s going on?”

  Edward smiled and nodded at the stewardess in his private plane as she handed him a glass of orange juice. “I have some things to take care of in France and the London and I will be stopping in Hawaii to look for my parents. I am entitled to be impulsive, Lisa. It’s no big deal.”

  “See that’s the thing, you are never impulsive and that is what’s worrying me.”

  “You worry too much,” he told her lightly. “I am just a phone call away. Reschedule the meetings and tell Monroe from accounts to get the figures ready and shoot them off to me.”

  “Are you sure the fever you had has not gone to your head?”

  “I am sure,” he told her while silently remembering the one he had when he was making love to Abby!

  “I am beginning to think otherwise,” Lisa muttered. “Okay, Edward, since you don’t want to share I will just go about cleaning up the mess you have left me in.”

  “That’s a good girl,” he said and hung up on her. He had to run! He kept telling himself that. He had left the office in the early hours of the morning and requested that his jet be fuelled up and ready to leave within the hour. He had packed a few things and sat there looking at the ones Abby had picked out for him. He had made love to her and thought that was it but it had gotten even worse! Now he was thinking about her constantly and not able to concentrate. He had to step back and get some perspective on all this. He had never been in this position before and it scared him! He had fallen so deeply that he had no idea how to get back out of anywhere. He found himself wanting her in no uncertain terms and he had no idea how to go about telling her that maybe it was their destiny to be together.

  He leaned back and closed his eyes as he remembered the texture of her skin and the way she tasted. How was he going to stop thinking about her?

  *****

  She concentrated on Lincoln Mulberry, the potbellied slightly balding man with the pasty face and acne. He kept talking about what she had done for Edward and telling her that he hoped she could make him look like that. She opened her mouth to tell him that with Edward she had what to work with but with him it would take a miracle! But she kept it to herself and showed him what she had brought with her.

  “I noticed you dressed Edward in jewel colors mostly but these are dark colors.” He looked at her with a frown.

  “You have the kind of skin that requires dark colors and besides these colors tend to hide your paunch.” Her dark brown eyes met his watery blue ones and she did not break the gaze.

  “You are very direct, aren’t you?” he finally said.

  “In my career you have to be. I am here to make you over, Mr. Mulberry, not just to collect a check at the end of the day. I will always do what’s best for the clients no matter what.”

  “Okay, my dear, I am in your capable hands.”

  Chapter 6

  “So how is the esteemed Edward?” Jenny asked her one night they were in the kitchen. It had been four days since she had heard that he was not around and she had done her very best to get him out of her mind.

  “What?” Abby looked up at her startled that she had mentioned his name. She had finished suiting out Mr. Mulberry and he had given her a glowing recommendation and had sent several people to them. Monique had told her that she was in fear of taking her job.

  “I have not heard you say anything about him for the past week,” Jenny told her as she squeezed honey into the lemonade she had made to go with the succulent steamed chicken.

  “That’s because I have finished doing my part where he is concerned and besides he is out of town,” she said casually.

  “I see. I actually had hopes that there was something there and you would be coming home to tell me that he has fallen in love with you and very soon you would become Mrs. Edward Moore,” she said with a grin oblivious to how flustered her friend was at what she said.

  “You and your imagination,” Abby said shaking her head as she looked back down at the catalogue in her hands. “Romano’s is coming out with a magazine featuring the men we have made over and little biopics about them.” She turned the catalogue to show her the pictures of Edward, before and after. “What do you think?”

  Jenny peered at the before picture and then looked at the after one. “How on earth did you not fall in love with him?” she demanded. “Look at his eyes and the way the dark blue suit looks on him and that hair!” she sighed. “In the before picture he looks like any old rich geek but the picture in these clothes man oh man I would do him right now.”

  “Because of his change of clothes?” Abby asked dryly as she stared down at the picture. She was right! He was gorgeous in a quiet subdued way and those eyes!

  “Clothes really do make a man,” Jenny said as she continued to look at him. She leafed through the pages. “You are good,” she said in admiration as she looked at the formerly drab looking men who came to life after Abby had finished with them. “I think Edward should go on the cover.”

  “I was thinking that way too. Monique asked my opinion and I told her I would give her my answer tomorrow.”

  “Definitely Edward. He is one sexy man!”

  *****

  “Darling, you look so different!” his mother kept saying as she looked at her tall handsome son. He had told them not to bother picking him up from the airport but had had a car pick him up. Eleanor Moore was a very gracious and graceful woman in her late sixties with blonde hair that looked almost white and her son’s beautiful grey eyes. She was petite and always wondered at the fact that the six foot two man standing before her really came from her but his dad was very tall. “It is a woman!”

  “Hi, Mom.” He reached down and pulled her into his arms twirling her around until she protested. “I just gave in to the pressure of dressing the part of the successful banker.”

  “And you look it,” Edmond Moore said in approval as he looked at his son. “So no woman then?”

  “No, I am afraid not,” he said lightly as he followed them into the main dining room. His parents had retired in style and lived in a large palatial house near the sea complete with uniformed maids and chauffeurs. A native woman flashed him a smile as he sat at the dining table. He had come straight from London and it was almost eight p.m. on the island. He was very tired but he sat and enjoyed the meal that had been prepared and chatted with his parents.

  “So when are you leaving?” his mother asked him as she passed him the salad bowl.

  “Tomorrow night.” He saw the look of disappointment on her face and hurried to add, “I have a function that I cannot miss on Saturday but I thought you and Dad are coming over for Thanksgiving?”

  “We have an annual function here remember and the locals look forward to it,” his father reminded him. “I know we had promised to come over in this month but things did not work out.”

  “How about you come?” his mother suggested.

  “I will let you know.”

  “Son, you look so handsome. I which you would give the girls a chance,�
�� his mother said with a sigh.

  That night while in bed he dreamed that he had asked Abby to marry him and she said yes!

  *****

  “A magazine cover?” Edward said with a laugh as he looked at Monique. She had cornered him at the function he was attending on Saturday and had told him about the one they were planning to put out for December.

  Monique brushed her hand over the lapel of his slate grey suit with the pale pink inside shirt and thought he looked so handsome. “Abby did such a terrific job with you and the others. Men are lining up for her to attend to them. So what do you say?”

  “So how is she? I mean how is she working out?”

  Monique looked at him curiously. “She is an anchor and really amazing. She has an uncanny knack for these things. I asked her to come to the function but she said that she needed to sort something out.”

  “A magazine cover.” His expression was thoughtful. “What would I have to do? You know I hate that sort of thing.”

  “You would only have to sit still for a few minutes while our photographer gets a few shots.”

  “I will tell Lisa to set it up.”

  “Good.” She leaned in and kissed his cheek. “You are a sweet man who deserves an incredible woman.”

  “What is it with you women?” he asked in exasperation. “You are determined to get us all married.”

  “Not just married but happily married.” She glanced over where her husband was holding court with a senator.

  “How about a dance?” he suggested.

  “Of course.”

  *****

  Abby spent Sunday cleaning. Jenny had gone out for the weekend and she relished being at the apartment by herself. Since she had started working at Romano’s she had been coming home late and sometimes going to functions. She loved her job so she did not mind working in the evenings and sometimes on weekends. Besides she was highly compensated. She knew he was back because Monique had told her and she had seen his picture in the papers where they were saying something about a deal he had closed in London. She had stared at his picture for a long time and had shivered thinking of what he had done to her. He had not called her! He was back and he had not called. Not that she expected him to but he had made love to her on the sofa in his office and had not spoken to her since. She had not expected that he was that type of man and she told herself that it was the disappointment that was eating at her. She pulled off the plastic gloves she had been using to scrub the toilet and got to her feet. It was almost November and the weather went from being unseasonably warm to very cold. She wiped her hands on her baggy sweatpants and went to the kitchen to make herself something to eat. She had gotten up at ten this morning and had started working without eating anything.

  Her phone rang when she was in the middle of making a sandwich and she ignored it, not in the mood to talk to anyone right now. Tyrone had been silent for several weeks and she hoped it was for good. She nibbled on the sandwich without much interest, her thoughts muddled. Her phone rang again and she reached for it. “This is Abby.”

  “Hi.” Her heart stuttered and her body trembled! “It’s Edward and I need to talk to you.”

  “I am sorry, Mr. Moore, but I have nothing to say to you,” she said coolly.

  “I screwed up and I am sorry. I could not handle the emotions and I ran away but I need to make it right.”

  “You have nothing to make right,” she told him firmly squelching the rush of emotions. “What happened between us was a big mistake and we need to put it behind us.”

  “Can you?” he asked her softly.

  “I have already done so.”

  “I need to see you,” he said ignoring what she just said.

  “No. It is not a good idea.”

  “Hear me out please,” his voice was pleading. “I met you and I knew that there was something different about you-“

  “There is something different about me. I am a size sixteen African American woman and not your usual size two to six,” she interrupted him.

  “I don’t care about that!” he told her impatiently. “If you cannot see how beautiful you are-“ He stopped and sighed. “Look this is not easy for me. I lived my life in basically solitude. I don’t have many friends and I love what I do so I spend a lot of time doing it. My parents keep asking me when I am settling down but I knew I was not going to take the typical wife from a rich family because it is expected of me. I wanted more. I saw you and that smile of yours and it bowled me over. It happened so sudden that I was confused and when you came to the office that night and I touched you I lost control. That is something I never do but with you I don’t know what comes over me. I had to leave to get some perspective.”

  “Why are you telling me this?” Abby felt herself trembling.

  “Because I want you to know what is happening to me. I need to see you, Abby. I told you I crave you more than anything else in the world and I mean it.”

  “So you want to have an affair.”

  He laughed wryly. “I am not the type of person to have an affair and I think you already know that.”

  “So what are you saying?”

  “I need to see you, Abby, and I am begging. Please.”

  “This is crazy! We don’t belong together-“

  “Says who?”

  “Says everybody in your circle and mine.”

  “Please come over,” he whispered. “We can work out the other kinks later but right now I am aching for you.”

  “Stop,” she moaned.

  “Please, I am going to die if I don’t see you.”

  She closed her eyes and bit her lip. “Okay.”

  “When?” he demanded.

  “In an hour.”

  She almost called to tell him that she had changed her mind! It was crazy! They were poles apart and they did not belong together! He had said he needed her and that he would die if he did not see her! What did that mean? She showered and got dressed hurriedly not taking the chance that Jenny would come home and demand that she tell her what was going on! She selected black jeans and a blush rose sweater and bundled her hair on top her head.

  “Okay, Abigail, you are a very sensible woman who is smart enough to know where this is heading. I am going to have sex with him.” Her hands tightened on the steering wheel as she remembered the details. “That’s it. I am going into this with my eyes wide open and I don’t expect that the glass slipper is going to fit my size eight and a half feet and he is going to sweep me away in his Benz and we are going to live happily ever after. It is just sex and when he meets his really suitable blue blooded delicate wife with her blue eyes and blonde hair then we are going to part ways in a civilized manner and be done with it.” It sounded hollow even to her ears.

  He opened the door to let her in and she took off her jacket and handed it to him. He was wearing sweatpants and a grey t-shirt that matched his eyes. He put away the jacket and stood there looking down at her. “This is-“

  “You are here.” His hands rubbed her arms up and down as if trying to convince himself that she really was here. He took her hand and led her to the kitchen. “I prepared something for us.”

  “What is it?” she asked curiously in spite of herself.

  “A crab salad.” He smiled at her gently and her heart turned over. “Sit and tell me how it tastes.” She sat around the shiny marble counter as he shared her a plate. “I have a penchant for seafood and my housekeeper taught me how to prepare this.” He passed the plate to her and sat opposite her. He waited until she had ate several bites before he asked anxiously. “What do you think?”

  “I have never eaten crab salad before, but it is delicious.”

  “Good,” he said visibly relieved. “You look very nice.”

  “Thanks.” She felt self-conscious and wondered if her blouse was too revealing.

  “Let us just enjoy the meal and each other’s company. I promise that if you want to go home when we are finished then I will not stop you. I just wanted to se
e you,” he said quietly.

  She stared at him and looked down into the salad. She had never met anyone like him and it was beginning to affect her. She nodded without saying another word. He talked to her and told her about his trip and his visit to his parents. “I want you to meet them eventually.”

  She looked at him startled.

  “Too soon?’ he asked her whimsically.

  “This is not a date or it is not a case where you are courting me, Edward. I came against my better judgement. We are from different worlds. I am the gal who is big, black, and works for a living. You are the guy who is white and comes from a generation of money. Somehow the connection between us is very strong and we are exploring it. That’s it.”

  “It’s not that simple and what I feel for you has nothing to do with the color of our skin or the fact that you are not an heiress. I do not choose to feel this way and I backed off because I know what you were going to say. I don’t care what people say about me, Abby, and as I told you before you are a very beautiful woman and I-“ He broke off and got to his feet to put away his barely touched meal. He leaned against the sink and bowed his head before turning back to her. “Do you want me?” he asked her abruptly.

  “What?” She blinked.

  “Do you want to be with me?”

  She stared at him for a moment and then nodded.

  “That’s good enough for now.” He came around to her side. “Are you finished?”

  “Yes.” Her mouth was dry as she saw the look on her face.

  “We are going to make it to the bed eventually because I want to taste every inch of your body.” He had turned her around and was unbuttoning her sweater. She had worn a white lace bra and he passed his hands over the material before unhooking the clasp. He weighed her breasts in his palm before passing his thumbs over her nipples. Abby shivered and moaned. “I have been waiting for you all my life,” he murmured as he pulled gently at her puckered nipples. “I told myself and others that it was work that kept me from being with someone but I was waiting for you.” His head lifted and his stormy grey eyes met hers. She could not breathe at the look on his very attractive face. His hair was mussed and several strands fell over his forehead. “I will wait until you realize that we belong together.” He did not give her a chance to respond but bent his head and took her nipple inside his mouth. Abby cried out and sank her fingers into his hair. He took his time pulling on her nipple and sucking it into his mouth. He was very thorough and he explored her until she felt every nerve endings in her body coming alive! He lifted his head and looked down at her, his breathing ragged. “I get a fever that I cannot get rid of when I touch you or even think of you.”