“Mac…look at me,” he demanded. I shook my head. I couldn’t do it. “Mac.” His voice sounded desperate, but I couldn’t find the will to lift my head.
He placed his fingers under my chin and lifted my jaw until our eyes met. His looked intense, hungry. They were stunning, and I felt myself engaged in the very beauty of his dark, intense eyes. “Mac,” he said again, directing my attention, “or should I call you Mom now?” he taunted, his lips forming into a teasing grin.
I pulled back from his hand and slammed my fists into his chest. “That’s not funny!” I whispered loudly.
He stepped into me, making me step backward. He continued until my back was flat against the wall. He positioned a hand against the wall next to my head, smiling down at me. “It’s a little funny.”
I bowed my head, begging myself not to cry. “Sure, it’s hilarious. I’m the little slut who had a one-night stand on my fiancé—a kind, charming, and near perfect man. Not only that, but also it’s with his damn son.” I lifted my head to look at him, a smile no longer on his lips. “So, yeah…it’s
fucking
hilarious!”
“Mac, calm down,” he urged. I was not in the mood to be calm. This…was not a calming situation.
I felt my face heating and turning red, I was sure. That always happened when I got overly upset. I couldn’t help it. “How am I supposed to calm down, Alex? I was never to see you again and now you’ll be living in my house!” I hissed, trying to keep my voice low while still yelling at him.
He leaned into me and I was so surprised by his gesture, I didn’t even push back. “Listen,” he said smoothly, rubbing his knuckles along my cheek. “I like you. I
really
like you. Our night together was incredible, Mac. I’m not sorry about any of it. The only thing I regret is that you can’t remember it.” His voice was sultry, capturing me with every word he said.
“Mackenzie?” I heard William’s voice, and I instinctively pushed Alex away from me.
“Yes?” I called back, standing away from Alex and walking toward William’s voice. He quickly came into view with a glass of amber liquid. “There you are, darling. Everything okay?” he asked, his eyes moving sharply to Alex behind me.
I swallowed, wondering how bad this probably looked. I didn’t get to respond since Alex cut in.
“Everything’s great. Mackenzie was just saying her ring had slipped off her finger, and I was helping her look for it.”
My eyes widened in shock. He knew I didn’t have my ring. Why would he say that?
“What?” William’s shocked tone echoed through the hall.
“You know chicks, Dad. They have tiny
wet
fingers after washing their hands. It probably just fell off on her way out.”
I turned around and scowled at him. How dare he!
“Ah, turns out I was right!” He bent down and pretended to pick it up from the floor. Fucker had it the whole damn time.
I had to hide my anger—so instead I thanked him.
“Oh, thank goodness!” I flashed a smile at William who looked pleased. “Perhaps I need it re-sized,” I said as a lame excuse.
Alex stood up with the ring in his hand. “Here,” he said, looking directly at me, heat and desire evident in his eyes. I stuck out my hand, my palm upright as I waited for him to give me the ring. Instead of dropping it into my hand, he turned my palm around and grabbed my ring finger. I swallowed hard.
This was not happening.
I tried to pull my hand back, but William was standing behind me, and I didn’t want to make a scene. I sighed, giving in, and relaxing my hand in his.
He slipped the ring back on my finger, slowly and torturously while keeping eye contact with me. I was shooting him daggers while he continued smirking at me. Once he pushed it all the way on, he squeezed my hand and patted it gently.
“There. All better,” he said, not bothering to take a glance at William. I took my opening and pulled my hand back sharply.
“Thanks,” I gritted between my teeth and swallowed.
“Darling?” William called, breaking my scowl at Alex. “Our dinner will be arriving soon.”
“Let’s go.” I turned around and smiled at him, wrapping my arm through his. Alex walked behind us, sending a mixture of goose bumps and needles up my arms. This night needed to end as soon as possible.
“So, Mackenzie…Dad told me you work in fashion,” Alex said just as I lifted my wine glass. Our food had arrived, and I was enjoying my shrimp as they talked about work. In fact, I had faded their conversation out until I heard my name.
I swallowed the wine, gently placing my glass down before making eye contact with Alex. “Yes, I’m a fashion blogger at
Boxy Magazine
.
“So you know a lot about designer clothes?” he inquired, a fresh grin on his lips.
“Yes, I do. I’ve loved fashion for a long time. I jumped at the opportunity to work there.”
“So you know the dress you’re wearing cost at least four thousand dollars?”
I nearly choked on the shrimp I had just forked into my mouth. What the hell was he up to now?
“Alexander…” William cut in, scolding him. “That’s hardly appropriate.”
“Just checking out my future stepmom, Dad,” he replied in an amused tone. “Hard not to believe everything the tabloids say when I’m half a world away.”
“You know that shit is garbage. Plus, Mackenzie isn’t anything they bring her out to be.” He turned and smiled at me reassuringly, letting me know he didn’t believe them either.
“One week I’m too fat, the next I’m too skinny,” I cut in. “They obviously have no idea what they’re talking about.”
His eyes rolled down my upper body and smirked. “Well, whoever is writing the articles must be fucking blind.”
I blushed at his words, wishing I could kick him from under the table without causing a disturbance.
“It’s all about the money, Alexander. Whatever will sell their dreadful paper,” William retorted, focusing on his plate in front of him while he cut into his steak.
I bent my head down again, but I could feel Alex’s gaze. It was as if there was a magnetic charger attached to my body and his eyes were glued to it.
Just then, William’s phone rang, startling me. “Excuse me, darling. I have to take this.” He stood up and kissed the top of my head before making his way down the hall.
I waited until William was out of earshot before speaking. “Stop staring at me,” I snarled, not moving my eyes as I scraped my fork alongside my almost empty plate.
“Why should I?”
“It’s distracting.”
“So?”
“So I’d like you to stop.” I finally lifted my head to meet his daring eyes. “It’s inappropriate to gawk at your future stepmom,” I added, throwing his words back at him.
He burst out into quiet laughter, dropping his fork alongside his plate. He brushed his napkin slowly across his face before laying it back down and leaning toward me. “Sweetheart, I will never stop looking at you. As long as I hold the memory of us, what we did, and how your lips taste against mine, I will never stop looking at you.”
My cheeks heated at his bold words. He wasn’t going to make this easy on me.
Of fucking course not.
Asshole.
“Fine…stare all you want, Alex. But it’s never happening again.
Never
. You can look, dream, fantasize all you want. But it’s William’s bed that I’ll be in tonight.” It was a bitch thing to say, but he wasn’t getting my point. He wanted to play dirty—I’d play back.
Instead of getting pissed as I had hoped, he leaned back in his chair with an overly-amused grin. “We’ll see, sweetheart. I have no problem taking the queen away from the king.”
I scowled. “I don’t even know what that means.”
He leaned toward me again and whispered, “According to Life & Style Magazine, you and William are “Manhattan’s royalty couple,” he explained. “Prince William married Kate Middleton, a girl next door, not from a royal background. Sound familiar?” He tipped his head at me. “Except this William isn’t going to marry his Kate…”
“You’re pretty ballsy entertaining me with all your empty threats,” I snarled right back.
Before he could respond, William walked up behind me, cupping my neck as he leaned down and kissed the top of my head again. “My apologies. What did I miss?” he asked as he took his seat across from me.
Alex and I both smiled, mine completely fake, as I shook my head saying, “Not much. Alex was just talking about his time in Europe.”
We spent the rest of dinner and all of dessert listening to Alex talk about graduate school, his weekend adventures and comparing their economy to ours. I tried, for William’s sake, to act interested, but I was ready to get the hell out of there.
“Well, son. I believe my fiancée is ready to fall asleep at the table. I should get her home.” He smiled at me, caressing my cheek in a sweet manner.
“Sorry, long week at the office has me exhausted,” I lied.
“No worries. We’ll have plenty of time to catch up when Alex moves in next week.”
Huh? When was that discussed?
“Next week?” I repeated.
“Yes, didn’t you just hear us?” he asked a tinge of annoyance in his voice.
“No, sorry. Guess I’m more tired than I thought.”
William stood up and grabbed my jacket from the server behind me. I hadn’t even seen him call him over. Shit, I needed to stay focused.
“Alex’s things are being shipped to the apartment. He needs somewhere to stay while he looks for a new place. Is that all right?” he asked with concern.
I looped my arm into my jacket, my heart racing while he waited for my answer.
“Absolutely! The more, the merrier.” I smiled wide, praying I’d suddenly have a heart attack or something. There was no way I could live in the same house as Alex!
“Great.” He smiled in return. “He’ll keep you company when I’m gone next weekend.”
“Wonderful,” I said, praying for anything to prevent that from happening.
I was ready to die. C’mon, God. An aneurysm? A stroke? Anything, really. I’m not picky.
“Make sure you make him feel at home. It’s been a few years since he’s lived there and coming back after all that time might be strange,” he whispered, trying to be discreet, but Alex heard every word.
“I’m sure she’ll make me feel right at home, Dad. No worries.” He smirked, patting his dad on the shoulder. William smiled in approval, having no idea of Alex’s twisted words.
William wrapped his arm around me, guiding us to the front. I turned slightly and scowled back at Alex, warning him to cool it. He only laughed and mouthed, “Not gonna happen, sweetheart.”
I STOOD IN
the bathroom in just a lace nighty, staring at myself in the mirror as the memory of how I met Alex the first time resurface in my mind. My body tingled and my heart began to race as flashes of that night started to come back to me…
As I danced to the upbeat rhythm vibrating through the speakers, I felt strong hands behind me. They crept to my hips, moving and grinding behind me. I kept swaying, inviting the stranger to dance with me.
“I couldn’t help myself. You just looked so gorgeous dancing all by yourself over here.” His voice was husky, low. His breath was hot against my neck, sending a shiver down to my toes.
I smiled to myself since he couldn’t see me. I responded with inching my body closer to his, feeling his chest to my back. He was built from what I could tell. His chest hard and his arms toned. They engulfed me, pressing against my body in a securing gesture.
We danced to the music, one hand moved to my arm, rubbing up and down in an affectionate manner. It was oddly comforting; his movements were sweet but secure.
“What’s your name?” He dipped his head down, pressing his lips against the flesh of my ear. My body tingled with how close his mouth was. His entire body was cemented to mine, and I had yet to see his face.
“Mac,” I answered, turning my head slightly so he could hear me. “What’s yours?”
He spun me around, his hands securely gripping my upper arms. My eyes opened wide to see him, but the lights were dim and the dancing of colored lights moved in a quick rhythm. I could partially see him—his jawline and his mouth. His eyes were hooded, not giving me a good view of them. His hair was short on the sides and longer on top, but I couldn’t see what color. Everything was dark.
“Alex,” he finally responded. His lips turned up into a handsome grin, giving me a full view of his perfectly straight teeth. I didn’t know what to say, so I just stared at him, letting the alcohol swim in my veins. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mac.”
One hand continued to grip my arm while the other strolled down to my hip. He squeezed gently, waking me up from my trance.
“It’s nice to meet you, too, Alex.” I smiled, feeling like we were the only two people in the entire club. The music silenced, the other dancers faded, and soon, my vision only zoomed in on this enticing stranger.
“Can I buy you a drink?” He leaned in again, close to my ear. It was so deep, soothing almost, as the silk of his voice vibrated against the warmth of my skin. Butterflies consumed my stomach at the way my body was responding to him. It was innocent really, but the way his lips lingered was a sure sign it wouldn’t stay that way.
“Sure,” I answered anyway. My body felt hypnotized. I was stunned by the effect this stranger was stirring in me.
His hand ran down my arm until it reached mine and he linked our fingers together as he guided us to the bar. I nervously looked around for my friends, wondering if they were still at the same table we had been at earlier.
“What’s your poison?” he asked playfully, leaning one arm on top of the bar. I stood in front of him, getting a much better visual of his face. His jawline was firm and strong, but it didn’t match the rest of him. He had one of those soft baby faces, the ones that look like they never age. His eyes were brown from what I could now see and his hair was a dark shade of brown. He was every girl’s wet fantasy, but he couldn’t be mine.
“I’ll take a Cranberry Vodka.”
“A girl who can drink her liquor…” His lips curved up in one of the sexiest smirks I’d ever seen. His lips were thin but delicious looking. “I like that.”
“I’m sure you do.” I smirked, enjoying the attention he was giving me. He could easily have a dozen other girls in this club, so I didn’t know why he was wasting time talking to me.
“Actually…” He inched his head down lower, almost whispering. “I don’t really go out much. I just flew back to New York. I was actually supposed to meet a friend and apparently, they blew me off.”
That surprised me. He looked like a guy who went out every weekend, at least.
“Is that what you tell all the girls?” I mocked.
He laughed, lightly brushing his hand through his hair. He grabbed the drinks from the bartender and threw a twenty on the bar. “No, it’s the truth.” He smiled. “I saw you earlier standing at the table with your friends. You were laughing and smiling…you looked so carefree and full of life. I find that to be a very attractive quality in a woman.”
“All right.” I lingered, circling my straw in my glass as his words circled around in my mind. “Well, I haven’t been out in months. It’s my friend’s bachelorette party, actually.”
“Really?” His eyes roamed over my body, admiring the way my dress squeezed my curves. “You seem like a girl who likes to have fun…often.”
“Well, you know what they say about allegations…” I grinned, gripping the straw between my lips. I leaned in, whispering inches away from his mouth. “Unfortunate disappointments.”
“I’d be willing to bet my right testicle that you would be anything but a disappointment, sweetheart.” His voice stayed deep, firm. His eyes embedded into mine, letting me know exactly what he was after.
“Well, get ready to lose that bet.” I smiled confidently. “I need to get back to my friend before she thinks I ditched her.”
“Ahh…the nice blow off…” His eyes held mine, daring me to leave.
“I’m not blowing you off,” I insisted. “It’s just…it’s a girl’s night,” I explained.
“Oh, girl’s night…” He let the words out easily in understanding. “Well, if you get lonely and decide to make it a fun evening, you’ll know where to find me.” He winked, gripping my elbow in his palm. He pulled me forward and pressed his lips to my cheek. “Enjoy your evening, Mac.” Tingles riveted throughout my entire body—a sensation I hadn’t felt in months. It was uncanny for someone I had just met.
“Thanks…you, too,” I finally managed to say. I spotted Staci finally and took off with my Vodka Cranberry in my hand.
Alexander Lancaster.
The son of multi-millionaire, William Lancaster. Manhattan’s most influential businessman and voted to win the Tenley Leadership Award ten years in a row. He didn’t use his power for bad, over-the-top things; rather William was different. He was good. He wanted to be a role model and continue teaching his employees under him. It’s one of the things I loved most about him. He’s entirely selfless.
I finished rubbing the moisturizer all over my body, wondering where that flashback had come from. I blew him off…so how in the world did I wake up in his bed the next morning?
I guess the only way to know was to ask Alex.
But would he even tell me the truth? Did I
want
to know the truth?