The Fifth Lesson (The Bay Boys #2) (37 page)

And when they eventually hung up—he had to head to work—she felt at ease.

THIRTY-ONE

Adam tugged at his collar for the millionth time that night, eyeing the people around him.

He hated crowds.
 
He hated these posh parties where everyone thought they were better than everyone else.

But here he was.
 
In his best tux, making small talk with people his mother introduced him to.
 
He adopted a polite expression, laughed when appropriate, but all he wanted was Christie by his side.
 
He’d seen her flitting around, making sure the catering was attentive, smoothing over any guest list problems, and addressing any concerns Joseph or Viktor Kent had.

He was proud of her.
 
She was obviously very good at her job.
 
But he selfishly wanted to steal her away, leave this place, and go make love to her in his bed where he could hold her the rest of the night.
 
Just the two of them.

Patience
, he reminded himself.
 
They would be doing that.
 
Just later.

But he could hardly keep his eyes off her.
 
He was always aware of what part of the gallery she was in.
 
Dressed in a simple, but elegant, form fitting black cocktail dress, Christie was the most breathtakingly beautiful woman present.
 
The back of the dress, all the way down to the small of her back, was all black lace, her smooth skin visible underneath.
 
It was classy for an event like this, but sexy enough that every man in the gallery was taking notice.
 
Especially with her stilettos.
 
The kind he wanted to feel digging into his back as he moved inside her.

Adam was having difficulty simply staying calm.
 
Especially when men made it obvious how much they desired her.
 
One particular man even smiled at her.
 
Adam caught his eye a moment later and gave him a killing look.

Look but don’t touch, bastard.
 
She’s mine
.

“Adam, you remember Robert Wells of Wells Technology.
 
And his beautiful wife, Clare.
 
You met them at our holiday party last year.”

He inwardly groaned, but put on a friendly smile.
 
His mother was standing by his side, clutching his arm as she put on a show.
 
The couple standing just opposite of him were handsome, perfectly matched.
 
Wells Technology dabbled in cyber security.
 
He remembered Robert because the man had tried to recruit Adam for an open position at his company, which he’d, of course, declined.
 
But Robert had been persistent.

He remembered his wife too.
 
Long blonde hair, blue eyes.
 
No expression.
 
When Adam first met her, he figured she’d had one too many botox treatments.
 
He also remembered that when she laughed, it looked like she was grimacing because her skin stretched so tight.

He stared at her now, his brain telling him something was wrong.
 
She seemed familiar, not in the sense that he’d met her last year, but something else.
 
Something he felt he should remember.

Adam shook off the feeling and greeted both of them.
 
Robert was once again asking about his work at Connex.
 
He not so subtly dropped a hint that they were looking to hire an engineer in the early fall and that if he was interested to let him know.
 
Adam smiled and thanked him politely.
 
But he had no intention of taking him up on it.
 

“Clare was just telling me that they’re thinking of hosting a dinner party in a couple months.
 
Doesn’t that sound fabulous?” his mother asked, smiling.

Adam made a noncommittal noise, his eyes already shifting to the side to seek out Christie.
 
She’d told him that once she got through the first couple hours, she’d be free to join him.
 
Only a little while longer before he could whisk her away and never look back.

She caught his eye across the room and smiled.

Shit.

His breath stopped for a moment and he glanced down at his watch again for the hundredth time this evening.
 
Twenty minutes and then they were out of here.
 
He could hardly wait.

He grinned back at her as his mother gushed over Robert and Clare’s view.
 
Apparently, they lived very high up in Mountain View so they had an excellent view of the Bay.

Christie glanced around and then looked back at him.
 
She smiled again and then tugged her head towards the back of the gallery where they could find some privacy.

He couldn’t extricate himself fast enough.
 
He murmured something to his mother about needing to say hello to someone and made his apologies to Robert and Clare before hurrying towards Christie.
 
Adam’s mouth watered when he caught sight of her lace-covered back as she was rounding the corner in front of him.

As the sounds of the party drifted and calmed, Christie slipped inside a door to his left and he glanced over his shoulder before he followed her inside.
 
It was dark in the room and from what little Adam could see, it was some sort of storage closet.

But he didn’t have long to take in his surroundings because Christie’s hand was tugging the lapels of his tux towards her.
 
Her stilettos brought her closer to his height so she simply leaned forward to capture his lips.
 
His hands wandered her back, her waist, hips, before settling on the swells of her ass, dragging her closer.

“Sneaking into storage closets, Adam?” she breathed against him.
 
“Naughty boy.”

He groaned, hardening in his slacks.
 
Christie felt it and pressed her hips at just the right angle to drive him crazy.
 
“Didn’t want you to forget me.
 
All these men slobbering over you is making me lose my mind.”

“You know you’re the only one, Adam,” she whispered, smiling.
 
“Always.”

“I know.
 
But I still want to beat my chest and drag you back to my cave where I can thoroughly ravish you,” he deadpanned.

She snorted with laughter and broke away.
 
Adam was thankful because he needed time to get his body back under control.
 
He didn’t want to return to the party with a raging erection.

“Tonight, you can do that,” she murmured as he wrapped his arms around her.
 
She rested her cheek on his shoulder, her head turned so that he could feel her warm breath on his neck.
 
“You look so handsome though.
 
I couldn’t help but sneak in a quick kiss.”

His lips quirked.
 
“You like me in a tux, huh?”

“Mmm, I like you in anything.
 
And nothing at all, especially.”

He grinned.

They were quiet, soaking in the only moment with each other they could manage.
 
“How’re you holding up?” he asked her.
 
She’d had to work late last night so he hadn’t seen her at all.
 
It was the first night they’d spent apart since Adam confessed he loved her.

“Just tired.
 
I missed you last night and I didn’t sleep well.
 
I just can’t wait until we can leave.”

“Soon,” he promised.

She sighed and pulled away.
 
“I have to get back before Joseph realizes I’m gone.
 
I’ll come kidnap you once I’m free.”

Giving her one last kiss, he murmured, “Deal.
 
But don’t be too long.
 
Or else I may have to kidnap you myself.”

“I’d look forward to that,” she winked before smoothing down her dress.
 
Opening the storage room door, she peeked out and then, apparently satisfied that no one was around, ventured back towards the party with Adam at her side.

They were passing the hallway which led to the ladies’ restroom when Christie stopped dead.
 
She’d been telling him about Joseph’s stress breakdown the night before at the gallery but then suddenly her voice died in her throat.
 
It took Adam a few seconds to realize that she’d stopped walking and he frowned, jerking his head around.

“Christie,” he started, but then fell silent when he saw how the color had drained from her face.
 
Concerned, he backtracked to her, briefly noticing her gaze locked on something over his shoulder.
 
“Christie?
 
What’s wrong?”

She opened her mouth to speak, but she was only able to emit a choked sound before giving up.
 
Adam whipped his head around, towards the party and saw that Christie’s eyes were locked on his mother and the Wells.
 
They were still where Adam had left them.
 
He watched as his mother threw her head back and laughed at something Clare Wells said.
 
Adam was happy his father declined to come or else his mother would’ve been much more reserved.

He turned back to Christie, his hands cupping the sides of her face.
 
“What is it?”

“It’s
her
, Adam,” she whispered.
 
“That woman.
 
It’s
her
.”

Her soft words were said in disbelief and shock.
 
And even though Christie had hardly said anything, Adam knew exactly what she was talking about.
 
His heart froze in his chest.
 
He realized why he’d given Clare Wells a second glance.
 
Even beyond the plastic surgery, he’d recognized Clare’s features, because he’d been memorizing them in Christie for the past seven months.

Before Adam could say anything, Christie was rushing past him, towards his mother…and her mother.

Adam cursed and followed after her.

*
   
*
   
*

Time slowed.
 
The laughter and noise of the fundraiser faded in her ears, replaced instead by rushing blood.
 
Christie couldn’t believe that
she
was here.
 
But then again, Christie always figured she’d see her at a party like this.
 
Surrounded by the people she’d so desperately sought to be like.
 
Surrounded by money and rosy champagne, probably drenched in the expensive perfume she once couldn’t afford.

It was weird to think that she no longer knew her own mother’s name.
 
Christie had known her as Clare Allaway all her life.
 
But then again, Christie had stopped thinking of her as a mother a long time ago.

She honestly didn’t care what her last name was now.
 
Like Adam said, all she wanted was closure.
 
And she intended to get it tonight.

Mrs. Thornton spotted her first as she approached the group.
 
“Christie, sweetie!
 
Adam!
 
There you two are.”
 
Just as Adam touched Christie’s arm, Mrs. Thornton turned to Clare and a man by her side that she could only assume was her mother’s new husband.
 
“Christie here is Adam’s girlfriend.
 
And not to mention, she’s been working night and day with Viktor and Joseph putting together this fundraiser.
 
Christie, this is Robert Wells and his wife Clare, family friends of ours.”

Family friends?

She wanted to laugh.
 
Her mother knew the Thorntons?

Adam tightened his grip on Christie’s arm and bit out, “Mom.”

Something in his tone made his mother look at him more closely and fall silent.
 
Christie perceived Mrs. Thornton turning a studying gaze to her, but her focus was centered on the woman standing directly in front of her.

Clare had changed.
 
Her nose looked thinner, her cheeks fuller.
 
Christie always thought her mother had been beautiful, but now, done up with expensive makeup and her hair perfectly styled, she was breathtaking.
 
But staring back at Christie, she was looking quite pale.
 
She looked as though she’d seen a ghost.

Clare probably had, at least in her mind.

The whole group fell silent, sensing the tension between the two women.
 
Christie could feel Adam’s warmth, his support.
 
He knew she needed to do this, so he didn’t intervene.

Christie, her throat tight, her veins pumping, spoke first.

“You look beautiful,” she said, her voice quiet.
 
“You look like everything you wanted to be.”

Her mother flinched as though Christie had struck her.

The weight of the bracelet had never felt so heavy.
 
Christie’s fingers fumbled with the clasp since she was shaking so badly, but she eventually managed to pull it off.
 
Her wrist looked foreign without its heavy gold band, but Christie had a feeling she’d get used to it in no time.

She held it out to Clare, who took it numbly.
 
An automatic response without even knowing what it was.
 
Christie watched as she looked down at it, watched as Clare’s head snapped up, her skin growing paler at the sight of what was once her most prized possession.

Christie swallowed past the lump in her throat.
 
“I kept my promise, even if you didn’t keep yours.
 
I just wanted you to know that.”