Their Million-Dollar Night (11 page)

Fear gripped him by the throat. He knew sooner or later this would come up. “I'm giving you all I can.”

She swallowed. “I've always wanted a different kind of relationship.”

“What kind?” he asked, knowing that this was the key to Roxy. The key to really understanding her.

“The kind I've never had. That perfect dream family I wanted as a child, the kind that I'd look at when I was at a shopping mall and long to be a part of.”

“There's no such thing as perfect,” he said. He cradled her closer, wanting to undo all the wounds that life had dealt her in the past. He would give her this if that's what she needed to be happy with him. “This isn't a fantasy or a dream. I'm a real man and I want you in
my life. I want you to marry me so that everyone who sees us will know that you belong to me.”

She took a deep breath as the car pulled to a stop in front of their hotel, then put her hand on his arm as the driver came around to open the door. “I want that, too.”

M
ax lifted her into his arms when she stepped out of the car and carried her through the lobby, drawing the attention of everyone they passed. But he didn't linger or say anything except to tell her to push the elevator button when they arrived at the bank.

She did, and then hit the button for their floor. Max lowered her down his body, his mouth finding hers. She wrapped her arms around him and clung to him, a feeling of complete rightness swamping her, making her feel like the choice she'd made was the right one.

The car stopped on their floor and Max lifted her into his arms again. She'd been carried before in a
couple of shows and in ballet class, dancing a pas de deux. But this was different. Max's mouth was on hers, his arms tight around her, and even though he hadn't spoken of love or affection, she felt the commitment in his embrace.

“There isn't going to be champagne or photographers. You caught me by surprise,” he said, setting her on her feet to open the door.

She remembered how much effort he'd put into his first proposal and knowing him as she did, she knew he liked every detail planned. It said something to her that he'd kept pursuing her even though she'd turned down his orchestrated proposal. “I don't need those things. I just need you.”

“Me neither. I need you, too, Blondie.”

He carried her over the threshold and kicked the door closed behind them. A lamp from the living area of their suite was lit and the room was cast in its soft glow. The drapes were pulled back and the lights of Vegas were spread out in front of them. And she felt like this time she'd get the emotion she'd been wanting from him.

“I know I should take this slow, give you a romantic evening to remember, but it's been too long since I've had you.”

He found the zipper at the back of her dress and lowered it. She caught his hands and waited for him to look at her. No man had ever looked at her with as
much passion as Max had in his eyes at that moment. “Every moment I spend with you is one to remember.”

He twisted his hands in hers until he held both of her wrists in his grasp. “Me, too. I don't have the words I know you'd want to hear. Let me show you how happy I am that you've finally agreed to become my wife.”

A feeling of joy and playfulness filled her. Nothing in her life had prepared her for the depth of her feelings for Max. She wanted to be with him more than she'd ever wanted to dance and be on stage. She wanted him more than she'd craved a family as a child or security as an adult.

He was an all-consuming passion that welled up inside her and spread everywhere. But he was also a soft and gentle breeze that brought peace and acceptance to her, something she'd never had before him. Sure the other girls in the show had accepted her, but they were all struggling the same way she'd been.

Only Max saw her, flaws and all, and accepted her. She hugged him tightly, her emotions bubbling over. She was so afraid to let him see how much she needed him in her life. Afraid to trust him with the depth of her love.

She bit her lip realizing the truth she'd stumbled on. She was marrying Max but letting him believe
that she really wanted just this picture-perfect life when what she was afraid to ask for was his love.

He brought his mouth down hard on hers, his hand tangling in the hair at the nape of her neck, forcing her head back as he plundered her mouth in a kiss that left no doubt in her mind that he was staking his claim on her body. But what about her heart?

She stretched her fingers in his grasp and felt the fabric of his shirt. She skimmed her fingers over it until she could slip her fingertip under the button and feel his warm flesh.

He inhaled sharply, his hand leaving her neck and unknotting his tie. She watched him as he brought her hands up to his mouth and kissed each palm. “Take your dress off.”

Was this the way to win him? What if this backfired on her?

She took her dress off and felt so naked with her newly acknowledged emotions flowing through her. She hesitated as she stood in front of him in the lamplight wearing only her panties and strapless bra.

“Turn around,” he said, his voice gruff and commanding, sending shivers down her spine. She loved the way he sounded when his civilized demeanor dropped away and left behind just the man.

She pivoted on her heel, glanced over her shoulder at him. And felt a moment of intense pride in the
body that she'd thought was flawed. Because the look on his face was a combination of lust and awe. Where was the love? And was she asking for too much to expect that?

He reached out and touched the skin of her back. “Lace your fingers together.”

She didn't want to play sex games with him. She wanted him to drop the facade and show her what he really felt. “What are you doing?”

“Making you behave.”

She shook her head. “I can't do this, Max.”

Immediately he pulled her into his embrace. His hands rubbing down her back as he held her tightly to him. “What's the matter, Blondie?”

“I don't want to be an object to you. I need to know that I'm more than sex.”

He framed her face in his hands and looked down at her. “You are.”

“It doesn't feel like it.”

“You are my life, Roxy.”

He kissed her deeply, arousing her to the point where she stopped thinking. He finished undressing her.

He unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it on the floor on top of her dress. He pulled her into his arms, the hair on his chest abrading the tips of her nipples. She tried to shift in his arms, to move her aching breasts against him, but he held her still.

His mouth moved down her neck, suckling at the
pulse point. She shifted her legs, wrapping one around his thigh, trying to get closer. She needed him. She needed to believe that this was an expression of his affection for her.

He reached between them, lowering his zipper and freeing himself. She shifted against him.

He grabbed her waist and lifted her up. “Wrap your legs around my waist.”

She did and felt him slide into her body. He cursed and pulled out. “Forgot something.”

She held on to his shoulders, nibbled at his neck while she felt him reach into his pocket. He ripped the condom packet open with his teeth and sheathed himself with one hand.

She looked down into his eyes as he positioned himself and slid into her body, taking her deeply and completely. His gaze held hers as he leaned back against the wall and used his hands on her hips to control both of their movements. She rocked harder against him until she felt everything in her body reaching for her climax.

She fought it off as long as she could, waiting for him. He thrust harder and quicker and then leaned down and bit the tip of her breast as they both came together. She clung to him, holding him tightly.

But as their breathing slowed and he carried her to bed, she realized that she might have taken a high-stakes gamble that she wasn't ready to pay out on
when she'd agreed to marry Max. Because she knew without a doubt that she loved him—and she had a hard time believing he felt the same.

 

Max had an early-morning meeting and got out of bed before Roxy. He left her a note telling her to be ready to make wedding plans that afternoon. He wanted to marry her before she had a chance to change her mind.

He glanced down at her sleeping in his bed. Damn, he wanted to see her in his bedroom in Dunwoody, not in a hotel bed. But the ring on her left hand reassured him that she was his.
His.
He knew she'd object to that statement, but it felt right in his soul.

He left their suite a few minutes later, getting on the phone to start making arrangements. His dad was in Napa visiting his family there and his mother was in Beverly Hills, but both would be in Vegas tomorrow for the wedding. Hayden was happy to make all the wedding arrangements. Duke had agreed to be his best man and was flying out with his wife Cami and their two children.

Max felt like all the pieces of his life were falling into place. He had a full day ahead of him and wanted everything cleared from his agenda so he could take the next two weeks off and fly to Hawaii with Roxy. Spend time, just the two of them in the same time
zone. For a minute last night he'd felt her slipping through his fingers. He wanted to make sure she didn't.

His phone rang as he was walking through the lobby. “Williams.”

“Hey, it's me,” Roxy said, her voice soft and deeper than usual. He had no trouble picturing her sexy body in bed.

“Hey, you. What's up?” he asked.

“I'm trying to figure out what part of ‘I don't want to sit around and wait for you' you didn't understand. Hayden just called and gave me the next few days off.”

He should have guessed she wouldn't like the way he'd handled this morning, but to be honest, he couldn't concentrate while she was around. He needed to be one-hundred-percent at work.

“Blondie, I heard you, but I have to finish a few last-minute things. I thought you could use the time to get ready for our wedding.”

“Are we really going to get married tomorrow?” she asked.

He exited the hotel into the sunny Vegas morning. His driver, Carl, pulled the rented limo up to the curb and got out, opening the door for him.

“Yes. I asked Hayden to make sure Tawny and Glenda are off the schedule for tonight and tomorrow. You should pick out dresses that you'd like them to
wear. Let my assistant know and I'll make sure they get the sizes they need. Can you hang on a second?”

“Sure.”

He pressed the mute button on the phone and turned to Carl. “I'm going to MacNeil's hotel—he's staying at the Golden Dream. While I'm there, I need you to go to the airport and pick up a package for me.”

“No problem, boss.”

Max slid into the car and opened his briefcase, pulling out his laptop to start downloading the numbers and e-mails that had come in the night before. He un-muted his phone.

“Sorry about that. I'm back now.”

“You're doing too much.”

He heard the concern in her voice and it warmed him. Even his parents never said anything about his work schedule. But then Roxy noticed things about him that no one else ever did. She noticed the details.

“This is what I get paid to do,” he said lightly, not wanting her to realize that she'd touched on one of his weaknesses.

“Then do what you're getting paid for—running Pryce Enterprises. Let me handle the wedding details. You concentrate on finishing whatever you need to at the office.”

“I want you to enjoy this wedding,” he said, carefully. It was a character flaw of his that he hated to
let go of any part of a project. And he knew he could make the wedding a fantasy dream come true for Roxy. It was that important to him. He knew her life had been hard and she'd worked hard for everything she had. He wanted to surprise her with a complete dream wedding. Although, to be honest, he had no idea what a woman dreamed of for her wedding.

“It's your celebration, too. I can take care of this. I want to do this for us.”

“Thank you,” he said.

“Silly man, we're in this together. This is what I was talking about. Compromise, remember? We're stronger when we both work together.”

“I know you're right, but if you are struggling I can't promise not to step in and make things easier for you.”

“That's one of the sweetest things anyone has ever said to me, Max.”

“I'm glad.” They hung up a few minutes later and he got out of the car at MacNeil's hotel with a lingering fear in his gut that he hadn't covered all the bases he needed to with Roxy.

 

Her wedding day was picture-perfect. Her dress was a lovely white creation that she never would have chosen if she wasn't marrying Max. It was slim-fitting and formal. The neckline plunged low between her breasts, but covered her entire back.
She'd looked at several lovely gowns that had low-cut backs but in the end she still wasn't ready to appear in public with too much skin showing. She was nervous about walking down the aisle and having her limp observed by everyone in attendance. Yet she hadn't found the words to tell Max.

She'd had barely three hours of sleep the night before and hadn't had a minute alone with him. Max's friends had thrown a party in their honor and she'd learned a lot about her soon-to-be husband. Especially that he was the solid one in his group, the man they came to when they needed anything.

It had amazed her, all the different things he was to so many different people. It was clear they all liked him, but just as clear that Max had carefully manipulated the relationships so that they all owed him a favor. He was never in anyone's debt.

She wanted to be his partner in that. She liked the man he was and realized that he had created his own family from his friends. His parents were more concerned with their own worlds than their son's. Roxy had been surprised, because as a child she'd always imagined that having two parents would fix all of her problems.

“Gosh, girl, you look good.”

“Thanks, Tawny. Thanks for agreeing to be my maid of honor, too.”

“It's my pleasure. I'm just glad to see you smiling again.”

Roxy appreciated her friend's comments but they made the doubts plaguing her more real. Gave them more substance, because a part of her wondered if she was simply marrying Max because he'd helped her get past her scars.

But she knew she loved him. The depth of the emotions she held for him scared her sometimes. Last night she'd been unable to sleep, afraid if she closed her eyes she'd wake up and find that Max, and her relationship with him, was only a dream.

She swallowed hard as Tawny moved off to check her makeup one last time. As Roxy sank down on the padded chair in the dressing room, her hands were shaking.

Who would have thought a wedding would be so nerve-racking? She'd seen many pictures of brides and newly wedded couples at the hotel, and they'd seemed so blissful. But then from Roxy's point of view those brides had been living the charmed life she'd never had.