22. Roman
Isabel was already in bed, looking adorably sleepy. She’d propped the phone up on her nightstand and I had a perfect view of her lovely face as she lay on her side, one delicate hand draped over the nape of her neck.
I didn’t miss the little hitch in her breath when I appeared on her screen. It was ridiculous how good that made me feel. It was even more ridiculous how quickly my groin stirred at the mere sound of her husky voice.
“Are your meetings over?” she asked.
She looked comfortable and cozy, and all I wanted to do was crawl into that bed with her and saturate myself with her scent and warmth.
“I have one more meeting, but it shouldn’t take too long.”
“Then you can get some sleep,” she said. “We both have some sleep to catch up on.”
“And just think tomorrow we can nap to our heart’s content,” I said, meaning every word.
Her soft laugh squeezed my heart to a pulp. “Oh, is that what you call it.”
“You think I’m joking,” I said earnestly. “You have your fantasies, I have mine. And my fantasy is to go to sleep with you and wake up with you. Well, one of my fantasies.”
“For some reason I think I should be a little more awake if we want to explore whatever other fantasies you have in your collection.”
“Yes, it’s probably best to have you fully compos mentos before we do a deep dive into my imagination.”
She giggled into her hand, a sound that sent a jolt straight to my cock. “Roman, now you have me curious. Should I be afraid? At least give me an example of another fantasy to ease my mind.”
“Watching you come probably tops the list.”
That earned me a little gasp and a sweet smile. “You certainly know how to charm a girl.”
A tightness invaded my chest. The mountains I was willing to climb for this woman. “I know, it’s a gift.”
She yawned and from the soft rhythmic tempo of her breathing I knew she was about to fall asleep.
“You’re tired. Why don’t you go to sleep and we’ll talk in the morning.”
“Wish you were here,” she whispered and closed her eyes. “I really do.”
“Me too, you have no idea.”
A few seconds passed before I realized my honey badger had fallen asleep with her phone still on. All I had to do to end the call was push the red button, and – God help me – I did something very selfish and probably, technically speaking, improper. I decided not to end the call. Nothing would give me more pleasure than watching Isabel sleep for a while.
I propped my phone up against a stack of books on my desk and made a few quick notes, preparing for the next meeting. It was still a mystery to me how someone could evoke this incredible need in me to love and protect her.
Ever since that kiss in the bookshop, I’d felt a great awakening, discovering feelings in myself that had been buried under deep layers of apathy and indifference my entire life.
Earlier in the evening, I’d visited Emily in my father’s room and steered the conversation toward her relationship with him. I had no doubt in my mind that the answer to Isabel remaining in my life was ensconced in the agreement Emily had with my father. I’d would get the best lawyers on that, and find a way for us to have a future together. One set in stone.
Even as Emily assured me that it wasn’t nearly as complicated as it seemed, one thing became clear. The sacrifice Isabel would have to make was immense. But everything would fall perfectly into place, I reassured myself. I had nothing to worry about.
Then why was the thought of Isabel not being on-board with any of this terrifying beyond belief? It was as if I’d been given a glimpse into what happiness was, while being told it could slip away at any given moment.
How could I ever settle back into this dreary world of monotony, every single decision based on what was good for the empire and never a thought given to what was good for me?
Even more baffling, how had I been fine with that for so long?
Now I found myself staring at a sleeping Isabel on the screen, my vote split on whether to end the call now or later. My reluctance to press that red button was almost funny, and when I finally decided to sever the connection, I immediately regretted it. It was as if something crucial to my vitality was ripped away. Tomorrow couldn’t come soon enough.
Kayla called on the business phone. The meeting was postponed for twenty minutes. Usually that would irritate me no end, but now I saw it as an opportunity to tell her about the latest developments.
“I have some good news that I think you might appreciate,” I began.
There was a moment’s pause. “Please tell me it has something to do with Isabel.”
I laughed. “Yes, it does indeed.”
“Did you call her?”
“I was going to eventually, but it turned out I didn’t have to.”
I told Kayla how I discovered Isabel was reading for my father. And how things progressed from there. She was less surprised by the way things happened than I expected.
“See, it was meant to be,” she said. “One day I’ll tell you how my parents met under the weirdest circumstances, and within a few days knew they were meant to be and eloped against their parents’ wishes. Next month they’ll celebrate their 45th anniversary.”
“You never told me this.”
“Roman,” she said after a while. “You have not been the kind of boss one would feel comfortable sharing personal details with.”
A feeling of shame surged through me. The more I realized what an unsociable bastard I’d been, the more I questioned myself. What the fuck was my problem? Isabel’s responsibilities were mounting. It was all on her now to make the heir to the empire more human. More approachable. Less of a coldhearted bastard.
“Where do I even begin to apologize?” I said. “You’ve been nothing but patient with me over the years.”
“It’s fine, Roman. I know the kind of pressure you deal with every day. But who thought it would take a pastry chef to show you how to enjoy life a little more.”
“Like Emily said, we should treasure her,” I replied in a lighter tone. “And I have every intention of doing that.”
“If there’s anything I can help with in that regard, just let me know. You know, the girl stuff you might not be overly familiar with. Anyway, the meeting is about to begin. And if I don’t speak to you again tonight, happy birthday, Roman.”
The meeting was mercifully short, and before I knew it my business was finished for the day. Tomorrow morning would inevitably be spent talking to the few people I was on close terms with as they wished me a happy birthday. The rest of the well-wishers would be handled by Andy and Kayla.
Then at noon, the nymph would grace me with her presence, and we’d seal our little bubble off from the world for the rest of the day.
Eventually fatigue got the upper hand, and I finally nodded off with images of a sleepy Isabel in my dreams.
* * *
Next to the bed,the phone beeped a text message at seven 0’ o”clock in the morning. I could count on one hand the number of people who had my personal number, and I knew immediately who it was.
I reached for my phone, perhaps a little too desperately and in a manner not befitting the heir to an empire. But, fuck it, I’d come this far.
It was a video message from Isabel. My screen lit up with her exquisite face, and of course that smile. The smile that could launch a million ships, and probably a million more.
“I just wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday, Roman,” she said in that raspy voice that always managed to seep its way into the center of my heart. “And I’m so happy to be part of your day.”
And if she didn’t go on and sing Happy Birthday to me. Reminiscent of Marilyn Monroe wishing JFK a joyous birthday. But in French. My mind was made up. I was going to have to learn to speak French. The language of love. If only to understand what Isabel whispered in those breathless moments when she came.
I watched that video three, maybe four…okay, six times. It took an ice-cold shower to douse the blazing fire that ignited in my loins. Every orgasm was going to be spared for Isabel. It was seven-thirty in the morning, and I was counting the hours until noon.
Steven was the first to show up at the office to personally wish me a happy birthday, as he had done for the last fourteen years. I still had to talk to him about Isabel and the incredible coincidence of her ending up at Belmont Manor.
But somehow today didn’t call for me to spill my guts. For one, I didn’t feel like defending myself, and if anyone could manage to put me on the defense it was Steven.
Even if his main concern was restricted to my safety and well-being when outside the house, I also knew Isabel’s presence here would demand his attention, and probably not in the most pleasant way should that come as a surprise.
And since she wouldn’t stay a secret for long, it was up to me to break the news without delay. In the next few days, I promised myself. But not today. Definitely not today.
As Steven stood in front of my desk, he was uncharacteristically reserved. “I know all these years you and your father had lunch on your birthday. I’m no replacement for him but if you want to have lunch today, we could certainly do that.”
Steven was right, it had been a tradition for my father to spend an entire lunch with me on my birthday every year. Like my grandfather did with him. I cherished his undivided attention for that one hour a year, if only to convince him of my commitment to fulfill my duties as his heir.
“I appreciate that, Steven,” I said. “But I already have plans for lunch. Thank you for the offer though.”
“There have been no messages about you leaving the estate today.”
“Oh, I’ll be having lunch here at the house,” I said evenly.
If only he knew.
“Well, that’s good,” he said unsuspectingly. “So if there’s nothing else…”
“Everything is fine, thank you Steven.”
As he was leaving, Emily entered my office with a beaming smile. I stood up as she approached the desk. But her smile faded as she crossed paths with Steven.
“Emily,” he greeted her with a slight nod.
“Steven,” she replied in a voice that could freeze molten lava.
And then, as Emily passed him, Steven glanced back, inhaling every square inch of her. In that split second he wasn’t the Steven I knew, but a man besotted with the woman who’d been my mother for most of my life.
I barely managed to hide my shock, wondering how I could possibly have missed that all these years. Not that I’d seen a lot of interaction between them.
And now that I came to think of it, when Steven was trying to explain to me the finer points of falling in love and how to put those feelings away never to be excavated again… Was Emily the person he’d had to erase from his own mind? Not that he’d done a great job of that, apparently.
My eyes met Steven’s and, in that instant, a chill burned his gaze. He squared his shoulders and left as if he hadn’t just pulled the rug out from underneath me.
Emily revived her smile and wrapped me in a motherly hug. “Happy Birthday, Roman!” She stood back and looked at me. “May this be the beginning of a whole new life for you, and also a happier one.”
“Thank you, Emily. And thank you for being instrumental in making it happen. You are the one who brought Isabel into this house.”
“Well, I had a lot of help,” she continued.
“The list of people I need to thank is getting longer.”
“It’s astonishing how hard the Universe was working to bring the two of you together.”
“If you say so. Can’t say I’ve opened my mind toward that sort of thinking… But who am I to question the grand plan of the Universe.”
Emily laughed. “You and your father both. So skeptical of anything that doesn’t have hard data to back it up. Anyway, once Isabel gets here, I’ll have Nelson bring you your coffee and a few madeleines. Isabel texted me earlier, and apparently she went out last night and was too tired to bake anything “fancy,” as she calls it. But she did bake madeleines and she baked you a cake.”
Isabel went out last night?Who did she go out with? A splinter of jealousy pierced my chest. I had many faults, but jealousy wasn’t one of them. It was uncomfortable to accommodate this unwelcome feeling pricking my insides once again.
And I couldn’t say I liked the way it contorted my mind into thinking that Isabel might not find spending time with me as appealing as having the freedom she’d have outside of this estate. To go where she wanted and with whoever she wanted.
I willed those thoughts away and smiled. “She baked me a cake. My honey badger knows the way to a man’s heart.”
“I hope you and Isabel have fun today. I asked Gladys to lay the table in the apartment for lunch, and also the champagne you ordered has arrived. It’s in your private cellar. I put two bottles in the fridge.”
“Thank you,” I said, my voice betraying some of the anxiety I felt.
She patted my arm to comfort me. “You’re a little nervous. That’s not the worst thing to be. This time with Isabel is important to you. If there’s anything you need, just message me. Otherwise I’ll see you at dinner tonight.”
I watched her leave, wondering about the acrimony between her and Steven, and the love-struck gaze he sported for the five seconds his guard was down.
My phone alarm went off. It was time for Isabel to arrive. I’d left poor Andy to field the host of phone calls coming in to wish me a happy birthday. But nothing else mattered until I saw Isabel, perhaps to make sure that she was here in the flesh. To confirm that we were only a few short hours away from getting wrapped up in our own little world.
It wasn’t long before I saw the Navigator’s windows flashing through the trees as it came down the long drive. My heart sped up, and I didn’t even try to suppress the anticipation pulsing through my veins.
Because in the back seat of that Navigator was my lifeline to a world I didn’t know existed until she drifted into the bookshop, leaving the imprint of her soul on mine.