19. James
19
JAMES
T he couture launch deadline was approaching and the crunch was on. That, coupled with the hunt for Clint and Lorraine’s replacements, as well as the upcoming Pantone project, should’ve been enough to grind me to dust, but for some reason I was more energized than usual. It wasn’t hard to figure out the reason.
Natalie .
Even thinking about her made me want to grin. Had I been in a haze since Bernie’s party? A high that made me hum ridiculous Beyonce tunes? Yeah, definitely, because the weekend had been even better than I could’ve imagined. Natalie had charmed each and every person she’d met, but that was no surprise.
The woman was magic.
She’d fit in perfectly. I’d been a little worried that including her in the family celebrations was going to be awkward, but her strong foundation with both Christopher and Bernie meant that they already had inside jokes that made it seem like they’d known one another for ages. And by the end of the weekend, Natalie and my mom were already planning to meet up the next time my mom made it to New York. It was almost as if she already was…well, family.
I actually sort of liked the thought of it.
I could feel the smile on my face as I headed for the elevator, and Frank from accounting gave me an out-of-the-blue high five as we passed one another in the hall. Maybe my upbeat mood was obvious to everyone? The buoyancy I felt was canceling out my habitual poker face, probably making me seem more approachable than usual. And of course, the gossip grapevine was probably working overtime with the news that the big boss had taken an employee to a family function. I’d seen the photos of me and Natalie on the New York Post ’s website, so there was no use trying to hide it.
I had absolutely no reason to pop into the creative department other than the fact that I wanted to see her. I could come up with a concrete excuse for the visit, and I’m sure Lavonte would corner me to press me for feedback as usual, but I knew that Natalie would figure out why I was actually there. I didn’t care. For the first time in my life I wanted someone to know that they’d invaded my brain.
Most women I’d dated probably thought they held that place of honor, since I was good about flowers and such. Or, truth be told, Lorraine had been good at it. But with Natalie, I didn’t want to do the choreographed mating dance. She would’ve seen right through it anyway. And Natalie didn’t care about stuff like a box filled with three dozen rare, imported roses. A new sketchpad and box of colored pencils? That was more her speed.
There was a spot on the creative floor, right before turning the corner, where I could observe everyone without being noticed. As usual, the room was buzzing with music and conversation, with Natalie in the center of it all. She’d been elected the group’s unofficial leader, and despite her love of the job, it was clear the stress of trying to keep a handle on everything all at once was getting to her. I watched her smile as she chatted with Rhea, but the second she walked away, her face fell. She was exhausted.
My girl needed a break, and fast.
I tried to walk in unnoticed, but Calliope spotted me and shrieked with excitement.
“I get him first,” she shouted, running towards me holding her phone in the air. “Nobody move, or I’ll hip check you!”
I chuckled at her exuberance. “Hey, Calliope, what do you need?”
She held her phone out to me. “I want your approval to post this. We all decided that this was going to be our lead image for the couture announcement, but since you’re here, you might as well weigh in too.”
I glanced at the photo and wasn’t surprised to see one of Natalie’s sketches on a woman who looked suspiciously like Skyler Honeywell. The executive team hadn’t made the final decision on hiring the model as a house ambassador, but in typical Natalie fashion, she was making her voice heard whether we liked it or not.
“It’s perfect. Post it.”
“This is going to kill .” Calliope bounced up and down and her oversized glasses slipped down her nose. “Yay!”
Natalie was watching us from her position in the center of the room, wearing a tired half-smile that went straight to my heart. I beckoned her to me with a wave of my hand, and she gave me a sassy look and beckoned me right back.
A standoff. A reminder of the give and take that was a big part of our relationship.
I felt a tremor roll through me at my casual use of the word, because it wasn’t a relationship. Anything beyond casual was a dangerous distraction that would take my focus away from my family and the business—the things that mattered most to me.
But casual could still be a hell of a lot of fun.
Natalie finally wrinkled her nose and stomped over to me. “Hey, stalker.”
“What?” I sputtered. “I’m right here in the open. How is that stalking?”
She leaned closer. “I saw you watching us before you came in. Don’t try to deny it.”
I laughed. “Busted, you got me.” I studied her beautiful face. “Hey, what’s up with those dark circles?”
She winced and her fingertips flew up to touch the skin beneath her eyes. “Oof, do I look bad? I need some concealer.”
“Stop. You looked incredible,” I said under my breath. “But a little tired.”
“ Someone keeps me up late,” she whispered back with a wink. Natalie took a step away from me in an attempt to remain professional. “Now, what do you need, Mr. Branson? Because I’m busy here.”
I glanced at the chaos surrounding us, then Natalie’s pale face, before making an uncharacteristic decision on the fly. “We’re taking the afternoon off. You’re working too hard; you’re going to burn out.”
Her mouth dropped open in shock as she gestured around the room. “Huh? But I… The deadlines… I can’t ! No way.”
“You absolutely can, because it’s boss’s orders. Collect your things and let’s get out of here.” I fixed my eyes on her.
“James, you’re losing it.” She chuckled like she still didn’t believe that I meant it. “Leaving now is a terrible idea. I’ve got six more designs to finalize, Rhea and I have a meeting at three, and I still need to email Christopher back about some stuff. My day is packed.”
“Well, you’re just going to have to delegate. Take a page from my book.”
She snorted. “You? Delegate? Mister I-Can-Do-It-All?”
I grasped her shoulders gently and turned her towards her desk. “Get your stuff. I’ll talk to Rhea and we can call Christopher on the way. No arguments.”
She opened her mouth, and I placed my finger against her lips.
Natalie ducked her head away, glaring at me. “Fine. This makes no sense, but I guess I don’t have a choice.”
“Exactly. I’ll meet you downstairs in five.”
Natalie
I’d dug my heels in when I’d discovered how James wanted to spend our afternoon of hooky.
Sailing. Just the two of us. Out on the ocean.
I wasn’t a huge boat person. I wasn't even a small boat person. It’s not like a foster kid in the city has any opportunity for water sports.
I slammed on my brakes when I saw the gleaming navy and white thing.
“I’m not so sure about this,” I said as James took my hand and led me along the dock.
“We’ll be fine, I’m an excellent captain. Don’t worry.”
I pulled back on his arm. “No, James, you don’t understand. This is embarrassing to admit, but…I don’t know how to swim. No one ever taught me.”
His hand moved to gently clasp my cheek as his eyes searched my face. “I had no idea. Should we skip this? Are you too scared?”
Was I? I mean, usually nothing scared me, but the vastness of the ocean was another story.
“I’m just a little freaked out, you know?”
“Of course.” He drew me closer and gave me a gentle kiss. “What if we try something simple? We can take a quick spin close to the shoreline and check in to see how you’re feeling. If you hate it, we’ll come right back to the dock. If you’re having fun, we’ll keep pushing on. Sound like a plan?”
I nodded, still feeling uneasy. But I wanted to at least try.
It was a perfect cloudless day, and I didn’t want to be the reason why James didn’t get to enjoy it out on the water. He switched into boss-mode as he talked me through my responsibilities as first mate, which allowed me to focus on something other than my worries about sharks and whales and piranhas lurking in the depths.
“You okay?” he called to me as we moved farther from the shoreline. “We can turn back, it’s not a problem.”
There was something about the way James handled the boat that put me at ease. He was so self-assured, so capable, that my fears faded despite the endless blue around us.
I actually felt safe.
“No, I’m kind of having fun,” I yelled back to him. “Let’s keep going.”
Once we were out on the open water I discovered that I very much was a boat person.
At least when James was the one navigating.
“Okay, I’ll admit it,” I said to him, holding my hand over my eyes and squinting at him in the warm sunshine, my hair whipping around my face. “This is exactly what I needed. You were right.”
He reached out to gently cup my cheek, and my heart thumped hard in my chest. Why did this moment feel so different? So… important ?
“I knew you’d love it. But we need to get you some swimming lessons if we’re going to be spending a lot of time out here. I want you to feel one hundred percent comfortable on and in the water.”
I didn’t want to read into it, but it sure sounded like he was planning ahead for us. For a fake relationship, all signs were starting to point to this becoming the real deal.
The afternoon passed in a blur of cool breezes and laughter. Boat James was a different person from Boss James. Freer, more relaxed, but just as confident. I’d worried I’d be nervous once we couldn’t see land, but being with him made me feel invincible. Working together to harness the wind was damn close to an aphrodisiac. We were an incredible team.
And deep down, I held onto the hope that we were slowly becoming more.
Because I was falling for the man. Hard .
“Shouldn’t we get back?” I asked, pointing at the setting sun.
“That depends on what you want to do,” he said, sliding next to me on the cushioned bench. “We could head back to shore and go to dinner, or we could stay out here beneath the stars, feed each other fancy cheeses, drink wine, and then fuck in the moonlight. Your choice.”
I reached out to run my hand along his thigh. His tanned legs speckled with fine, white-blonde hair had been a distraction all day. “Sounds like the decision is already made. I’ve never had sex on a boat.” I paused. “I’m assuming you have.”
“Hmm…” James cocked his head as he considered the question. “Believe it or not, I haven’t . And I think that needs to change immediately.”
I felt the bulge in his pants the second he pulled me onto his lap. I’d worn a flippy black skirt to work and had slid off my panties once we got on the boat without letting James know, so when I brought his hand down to explore between my legs he let out a raspy breath of delight.
“You always manage to surprise me. So soft, so sweet,” he whispered in my ear as he gently stroked me. “I’ve never met anyone like you, Natalie Reynolds.”
James knew exactly how to touch me so I couldn’t find the words to answer him. Instead, I pushed against his hand, burying my face against his neck. He’d barely started exploring me and yet here I was, already close to coming.
“Hold on,” he whispered in my ear. “I’m going to make you beg.”
James swirled his fingers against me for a few seconds longer, bringing me even closer to coming, then stopped abruptly. He leaned back to study my face, a little grin on his lips.
“ James ,” I cried out, agonized. “Don’t tease me like that.”
“You want me to keep going?”
I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him closer, and nodded against his neck.
“Say please,” he whispered, his lips brushing against my ear. “Say it and I’ll give you what you want.”
“ Please ,” I said in a shaky voice.
With that, he picked me up and carried me to the front of the boat. I closed my eyes as he navigated the narrow ledge, and only opened them again once I felt him gently placing me on a cushion.
James draped his body over mine and propped himself up, caressing my hair. “I’ve wanted to make love to you all day.”
A tremor ran through me, not just because I was desperate for him too.
He’d never called it ‘making love’ before.
But it was exactly what it felt like we were about to do. James was tender in a way I’d never experienced as he worshiped my body. The hot sex we’d had in the past was mind-blowing, but our connection in the moonlight felt different. Deeper. When we kissed, it felt like we were giving part of ourselves to each other. I felt connected to James in a way I’d never experienced, and it left me feeling vulnerable and a little scared at the intensity of emotions swirling inside of me.
When I came I didn’t hold back, releasing a scream of pleasure that echoed across the water. James found his release right after me, shouting my name.
We clung together in the afterglow, panting, smiling, and trading kisses.
There were so many things I wanted to say to him, so many emotions that I felt like I had to express to him. The weight of the unfamiliar sensation made me vulnerable, and a little weepy.
James pulled me to his chest, and I could hear his heart pounding.
“You…you do things to me,” he said.
I laughed softly at the vague comment, but my heart knew exactly what he meant. I wanted to soak up the happiness of the moment so I could remember it forever.
James pulled back to stare at me. “I mean it. You make me want to share things that I’ve never shared with anyone. Like being here, on my father’s boat. This was supposed to be my getaway from the world. From everyone. But all I want to do now is be here with you. This boat feels like our place.”
The sincerity in his eyes nearly brought tears to mine. There was no question what I was feeling for the man.
I was falling in love with James Branson.
I almost felt desperate to say the words to him, but I forced myself not to. Not yet. I had to be sure that I wasn’t imagining this connection we were sharing.
But deep down I knew that for the first time ever, I was willing to give this love thing a shot.
The warning voice in my head, the one that always whispered that people were going to get sick of me, that any good thing I found wasn’t going to last, was quiet for a change. I could only hope it would stay that way.