chapter TWO
Nicholas Sinclair ran his hand through his hair. He had exactly six days to find a woman who would pose as his wife for ten days. Finding a woman was not the hard part -he was currently dating several. The problem was selecting the right one. He was sleeping with two women on a regular basis but they were primarily for the pleasure of f*cking. He could not honestly say he"d held a real conversation with either of them. The only time he called them up was for a last-minute urge for company. Sure, they probably did not see it as such, but that was the extent of his commitment.
During the emergency morning meeting, Linda confirmed reservations for Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair on Princess Cruise Lines, scheduled to depart the following weekend.
For an absurd amount of money she managed to buy out another couple"s suite to place him down the hall from the Zelmans. The frustrating piece of information was learning that a Mr. and Mrs. Cooper Wright had also made reservations aboard the same liner. To make things even more maddening, Roger Eaton"s search results on Vivian Zelman were zero.
“I couldn"t find anything.”
“You can"t be serious,” Nick snapped. “William Zelman is the CEO
of a Fortune 500 company. His entire bio should be documented somewhere on the Internet. Christ, any moron can Google me to find out what kind of underwear I"m wearing today.”
“I"m sorry, Mr. Sinclair. I"ve been up all night and I couldn"t find one thing about Vivian Zelman. I could barely find any information on William Zelman. Other than his birth date and current residence, there is nothing on the guy. He"s completely clean.”
“Have you tried charities? Usually women of wealth join charity organizations.”
“I"ve looked everywhere. No picture. No nothing. Zelman has made her a ghost.”
Nick dragged his hand through his hair once more. The day had not started off great. He"d argued with Roger until he was completely exasperated with the situation and stormed out of his office. Even now as he sat across from Vanessa, one of the women he dated off and on, the day was not improving. He"d planned to go out on a date with each one of his sex buddies in hopes of selecting the perfect candidate, but so far the possibilities seemed bleak.
“I was so happy to hear from you, baby,” she purred. “I thought you were still mad at me for showing up at your job.”
He forced himself to smile. “I"m still a little peeved at you but let"s let bygones be bygones.
How is your meal?”
“Fine, I guess.” She shrugged and pouted her pink lips. “I want to f*ck, Nick.”
Nick nearly choked on his wine. Damn, that was a cock teaser. He was suddenly erect and ready for action. “Now?”
“Yes, now. We can do it in the car if you like.”
Nick set his glass down. He wanted to f*ck Vanessa, especially since she was wearing that little red dress he liked so much, but tonight was not about sex. Well, dinner wasn"t, anyway.
“Let"s finish dinner first, okay?”
“You don"t want to f*ck me?”
A guy at the next table glanced at them. Nick waved his hand in apology.
He stared at Vanessa"s hurt expression. Damn, this was not good dinner conversation. He could only imagine how Zelman would react if he heard her.
“Vanessa, let"s talk about that later. For now, let"s finish our meal.”
She folded her hands across her voluptuous breasts. “It"s her, isn"t it?”
Nick paused. “Her who?”
“The other woman you"re sleeping with.”
Oh, God. Today was not his day. He had absolutely no patience to deal with female dramatics. “Vanessa,” he said in a low voice, “not here.”
“Then when? The only time you call me is when you want to f*ck me.”
Again their neighbor cast them a look. Nick signaled for the waiter to bring him the check. If Vanessa was going to make a scene he wasn"t going to wait for the finale.
“You know I"m right,” she continued. “If I don"t say what"s on my mind now, I never will. And since I"m already upset I might as well mention that the only reason you were pissed off at me for coming to your office was because I caught you slipping out with your secretary.”
At this, Nick actually laughed. This couldn"t get any more absurd.
“For your information, Vanessa, that was not my secretary. I was going to a business luncheon with a member of my executive team.”
She rolled her eyes. “You and I both know that woman wants to sleep with you.”
“Vanessa, the only thing we both know is why I asked you to never come to my office was to prevent a scene just like this one.” He gave the waiter a thankful smile when he slipped the check on the table. Nick handed him his credit card and turned his attention back to Vanessa. “I had really hoped things wouldn"t come to this.”
“Are you trying to break up with me?”
“I"m trying to stop you from embarrassing yourself in front of me.” He pointed to her untouched meal. “Do you want to take that with you?”
* * * *
Nick wrapped his lips around her pebbled nipple and sucked hard.
“Oh yes, Nick. Make me come!”
He stroked his fingers in and out of her wet p-ssy. She was most beautiful like this, begging him for release while she dug her long fingernails into his back. Kim was the kind of woman that, once she reached her peak she was a nonstop hellion in bed.
Being the gentleman that he was, he always ensured her satisfaction before seeing to his own. Nick sucked harder on her nipple while increasing the speed of his fingers sliding in and out of her cunt. Kim moaned louder until her back arched off the bed and she came alive under his touch. Sitting back on his knees, he pulled her open legs toward him, entering her with one smooth thrust. Grabbing a handful of her breasts in each palm, he moved in and out of her, quickly losing himself in the slick walls of Kim"s p-ssy.
Vanessa"s meltdown at the restaurant earlier was all but forgotten.
She had raved on about how thoughtless and uncaring he was, but when he"d told her they shouldn"t see each other anymore, Vanessa started crying and begged for forgiveness. In the end, they did f*ck in his car but not by choice. He had had no alternative but to take her that way. While driving her home she started giving him a blowjob. Perhaps that was her way of making him respond to her since he"d been giving her the silent treatment since leaving the restaurant. At any rate, he had had to pull over and let nature take its course. It was a race to slide the condom on before Vanessa mounted him. Their argument must have aroused her, as she was a hellion in his lap. She pumped up and down his cock with crazed speed.
Twice he"d had to hold her still to prevent himself from coming too soon. His climax had been loud and hard. He"d literally had to push her off of him to prevent her from enticing him further. When he pulled in front of her apartment building, he begged her off by pretending to have a headache. She"d only retreated after he promised to call her the next morning.
After he was finally able to get rid of her, he had headed to Kim"s apartment. Kimberly Dawson was his equal in many ways. They had the same thirst for career success and held each other in high regard. The two had met at Keegan Hues" off Broadway theatrical hit, The Man With Two Faces. Nick had been on a date with another woman while Kim, a successful art dealer, was entertaining a client for the evening. They"d locked gazes and immediately knew they would be lovers. Two years later, they still were.
Kimberly Dawson had always been a reliable screw. She never asked questions, never expected more than he was willing to give and never disappointed him in the bedroom. But even as his hips jutted forward in release, he wondered how the hell he was going to pull off this magic show for Zelman. It seemed only natural that he would need Kim"s help.
* * * *
Laney finished folding her last piece of lingerie. She was ripe and ready to enjoy a romantic excursion with Rob. She and Rob had been together for three long years and finally they were taking that romantic vacation she had dreamt about. She packed the last of her intimate apparel and smiled with triumph. This was the start of something wonderful.
The phone rang. Looking at her Caller ID, she giggled. “Hey, I was just thinking about you.”
Robert Smith III laughed in that sexy tone he knew sent shivers down her spine.
“I was thinking about you, too. How"s my girl?”
“I"m great. How about you?”
“Fantastic. Where"s your girlfriend Danny?”
“Now, now. You know I hate when the two men in my life fight.”
“I can"t wait to steal you away from him.”
“I"m yours for the taking. Have you packed?”
“We don"t leave until next week.”
“I know, but I"m excited. I just finished packing.”
“Good girl. I need to have you work for me.”
“Do you need help?”
“Nah, I"ll get to it tonight. I just wanted to call to see how your day off was going. I"m about to leave for lunch. I"ll call you later.”
“Do you want to meet up tonight?”
“I don"t know, baby. I need to put in overtime so I won"t be too far behind when we get back. I"ll let you know.”
“Okay. Have a good day.”
“You, too, baby.”
Laney looked at the phone long after Rob had hung up. It amazed her sometimes how wonderful he was. Rob was all the things she"d been looking for in a mate. He was sweet, successful, handsome, and terribly romantic. Just thinking about lounging on a boat with him half-naked made her blush. Perhaps she should do something for him. He hadn"t found the time to pack yet. She should surprise him by seeing to the chore herself.
She ran a few errands first, dropping off bills, picking up items at the cleaners and grabbing a muffin and frozen frappuccino. An hour later she was pulling up at Rob"s home. He owned a condominium in a trendy area of town not far from his job. There was already a car parked in his reserved area so she had to park in one of the uncovered spots. Since she was close to the mail center she decided to pick up his mail. The great thing about Rob was that he was very open about their relationship. No aspect of his life was closed to her. She gave him the same treatment.
She unlocked his front door and laid his mail on the console near the door. She slipped out of her heels as she made her way to the kitchen. On the refrigerator was a calendar. This Saturday she saw Rob"s neat handwriting.
. She pressed her hand against
the paper. Wow, she loved this man.
That"s when she heard it, soft murmuring coming from the loft bedroom upstairs. At first she ignored it, thinking the neighbors were to blame, but then she heard it again. It was in Rob"s apartment. Thinking it might be robbers, she grabbed the first thing within reach, a chrome paper towel holder and inched toward the stairs.
The sound was definitely coming from the bedroom. Ignoring the heavy thump of her racing heartbeat, Laney made a slow approach toward the bedroom. When she cleared the corner she could hardly believe it. Rob had his cock buried balls-deep into the ass of some woman. She didn"t even remember dropping the towel holder. Somewhere in the far recesses of her mind she heard it thump on the carpet and make a crazy trip down the staircase.
Rob"s head swiveled around to look at her. He froze and came off the bed as if the woman had the plague. “Baby, it"s not what it seems.”
She was speechless. She could only shake her head repeatedly as she backed away from him.
“Babe, we"ve been doing this for years. It has nothing to do with you.”
He advanced on her, his flaccid cock swaying with every step. “Babe, please don"t look at me like that. Nina and I were saying goodbye.”
“Nina--Nina.” She could hardly believe it. Her Rob was f*cking Nina Sheffield, a fellow lawyer at the Lawson Firm. They had been sleeping together for years? Christ, she had invited Nina over for dinner several times! In the background, Nina wrapped herself in Rob"s bed sheets and stood behind him.
“Laney, he"s telling the truth,” she called out over Rob"s shoulder.
“This was supposed to be the last time.”
Laney held up her hand, the proverbial sign all black women used to shut someone up.
“Baby,” Rob started, “I love you. This was just … just sex.”
Laney slapped him hard across the face. It was an action that seemed to surprise everyone. She and Nina gasped while Rob stared at her in disbelief.
He rubbed his cheek. “I guess I deserved that.”
“No, you didn"t,” Nina huffed. She stomped right up to Laney and pointed a manicured finger in her face. “The least you could do is listen to him, Laney!”
Laney"s body seemed to be operating in autopilot. Before she knew it she had slapped Nina across the face. Her blonde locks made a fan of gold as her face whipped around. Nina"s normally pretty face wrinkled with anger. She lunged at Laney. Rob jumped in just in time, holding Nina against him.
“Don"t, Nina,” he snapped at her. “Please don"t.”
Laney had seen enough. She spun on her heel and ran out of the apartment, picking up her shoes along the way.
* * * *
Laney felt like shit. After catching Rob and Nina together, she"d raced home to get her suitcases. She knew as soon as Rob got rid of Nina he would come looking for her, which meant she had roughly a half-hour start. The next few days were going to be a nightmare and she didn"t plan on sticking around to see them through. How could he do this to her? To them? This was the man she"d envisioned herself spending the rest of her life with and he"d been screwing Nina all along. How could she be so blind? She"d seen no signs of infidelity. He had always been so open and loving that she hadn"t ever felt the need to entertain the idea of him being with another woman. Goodness! What did that say about her?
Her hands were shaking and she"d begun to ramble to herself. She couldn"t face Rob like this. She quickly tossed every necessity she could think of into a bag, enough to last her a few days away from home, and when she was certain she had everything, she loaded up her car and drove to the park nearest her building. She didn"t quite trust herself to drive long distances. Resting her head against the steering wheel, she took deep breaths. Calm down, girl, she whispered to herself. Calm down. But it was no good.
Her pants for air continued as the shock began to ebb away, only to be replaced by blinding fury. With trembling fingers, she called the only person she trusted enough to confide in.
Danny listened patiently while she sobbed on the phone. “It can"t believe it, Danny. Why would he do that? I thought what we had was special.”
“Let me get this straight, sweetie. You slapped both of them?”
“I don"t know how I"ll ever get over this.”
“Did you slap them with your open palm or with the ever-fashionable backhand?”
“Danny!”
“Okay, okay. I"m just trying to get a visual.”
“What am I going to do?”
“Go on your cruise, Laney. F*ck Rob. He"s a snake. Take that cruise as retribution for his actions.”
“We"ve been planning this for months. I don"t feel right doing something that will only remind me of him.”
“Laney, go on the cruise. It"s paid for. You might as well enjoy it.”
“But I won"t enjoy it.”
“Just take this opportunity to reflect on your situation and create new goals. You need to get away from here for a while. You need time to think.”
He took a labored breath. “And because I"m such a good friend I"ll go with you--you know, to help you get through this.”
“No, Danny.”
“Why?” he whined. “The trip"s paid for. You can"t go by yourself.”
“Yes, I can.”
“Laney Parks, the man of my dreams could be on that boat. Are you going to stand in the way of my happiness?”
“Danny, you"d better be joking.”
“I am--kinda.”
“No.”
“But why?”
“Danny, I adore you but I"m not up to spending ten days at sea with you. I just want to wallow in my misery alone.”
“Haven"t you ever heard that misery loves company?”
“No.”
“You haven"t? It"s a very popular saying, Laney.”
“I mean my answer is „no".”
“Laney, you"re smoking crack and you aren"t sharing.”
“I know.”
* * * *
It hadn"t taken much convincing to get Kim to agree to play the role of his wife. In fact, it took no convincing at all. Nick had simply asked and Kim eagerly agreed. They arrived in Fort Lauderdale Thursday night. Nick thought a night out would loosen them both up. He chartered a plane to fly them down to South Beach for the evening. They had dinner at Pepper"s, Christopher Tate"s hot new restaurant that everyone was raving about.
Afterward, they ventured into a few nightclubs along the beach before flying back to Fort Lauderdale. They screwed twice before preparing for the next day. Nick took a few phone calls while Kim showered, and was just hanging up his last call when Kim opened the bathroom door. Her wheat-brown locks lay in wet waves against her back. Her skin was flushed and Nick wanted her.
“I have something to tell you.”
His hard-on immediately gone, he braced himself for the worst.
“What is it?”
“I"ve really loved spending time with you, Nick.”
He sighed in relief. “Good. I"ve enjoyed your company too.”
“No, Nick, I love our time together. This is the most time we"ve spent together in all the years we"ve been dating. It"s been magical.”
Somewhat uneasy by her confession, he gave her a weak smile.
“Great. I want you to be happy. If I manage to get this account, perhaps we can take a real vacation. Maybe Spain or Italy. I have an old college buddy in Ibiza that I haven"t seen in years--”
“I love you, Nick.”
Her words struck him like a bolt of lightning. Damn! Nick dragged his hand across his face. “Kim, honey, that"s very sweet of you.” His voice held an eerie practiced note. Clearing his throat, he attempted to soften his words.
“You"re a great girl. You"re smart, ambitious and very pretty. You deserve the absolute best.” The false sincerity was slipping back into his voice again. “Although I enjoy your company and appreciate you sharing your feelings, I have to be honest with you, I"m not ready for something serious right now.” He finished with a sigh of relief but with one glance at her crestfallen face, he knew he had failed to spare her feelings.
She nodded. “Then I hope you"ll understand that I can"t do this.”
He could feel the color draining from his face. “What do you mean?”
“I can"t pretend to be your wife, Nick.”
Nick struggled to control his growing rage. “Kim, we had a deal. You can"t do this to me.”
“I can"t do this to myself, Nick. I love you. Didn"t you hear me? I love you. I can"t pretend to be married for two weeks when it"s what I"ve been hoping for the last two years.”
Nick hung his head. “Please, Kim, don"t do this. I have a lot riding on this. I"m begging you.”
“Ask me.”
“I"ve already asked you.”
“Ask me to marry you.”
He gave her a confused look and God help him he had to laugh. That seemed to only upset her. “Kim, I can"t marry you.” She nodded. “Then I can"t do this.”
“Is this an ultimatum?”
She looked at him unblinkingly. “Yes, it is.”