Nicole: Star Crossed Lovers (A Wish for Love Series Book 2) (7 page)

"Shall we dance?"

She hesitated.  It was one thing to enjoy his company while they sipped wine and spoke idly and another thing entirely to be in his arms, to feel his sinewy body beside hers.

"I don't think it's such a good idea, Daniel," she murmured, but he clasped her hand and drew her to her feet. 

"Come!  Relax and enjoy yourself.  I won't harm you."  He led her away from the table as the dramatic and exhilarating music of the tango swirled about them.  With the first sensuous steps she lost any desire to resist.  In this dance a man was a man and a woman a woman. The air was charged with intimacy.  They whirled in perfect unison and she surrendered to the ecstasy of his body so close to hers.  His hand moved from her back to her neck.  Before she divined his intention he released her barrette and ran his fingers through the golden curls released from all constraint.

"I've wanted to do this all night.  To see that marvelous hair frame your face, fall from your shoulders to your back," he said into her ear. "It always reminded me of a cascade of shimmering gold coins."

She lifted her head and found herself looking straight into his eyes. They were as opaque as blue velvet.

She was overcome.  Her body melted into his, her lips thirsted for his.  His arms
embracing her, they danced to distant spheres, consumed in a frenzy of desire.  When the music stopped she remained motionless in his arms which refused to release her. 

"Daniel," she whispered.  She stepped back and he let her go.

Her legs barely carried her as
she sank into a chair and tried to catch her breath. 

He stood still, looking at her. "I know you want me.  You can't run any more.  You...” He stopped in mid-sentence and Nicole could have sworn the expression on his face was one of consternation.  The room brightened and She turned around.

Marie, Joseph and James stood in the doorway holding an enormous cake with twenty-nine candles.  Before she could utter a word they burst out singing 'Happy Birthday To You'.  Marie placed the cake carefully on the table and they formed a small semi-circle around her. 

"Happy birthday, Nicole," Daniel smiled at her. 

She wanted to thank them and tell them how they had touched her but the words refused to come out.  She looked at them and back again at the cake and two large tears dropped onto her cheeks.

"Why are you crying, dear?" asked Marie, concerned.

"She is crying because she's happy," Daniel repeated the explanation he had been given eight years ago.  "You're happy, aren't you?" he asked gently and Nicole nodded. 

Relieved, they laughed.

"Now you can blow out the candles and make a wish," said James.  "We can't wait to taste this luscious cake Marie has been baking all day long."

Nicole blew out all the candles in one long breath and her small audience clapped hands delightedly.  It was like celebrating with a real family.  She felt loved and important and clung to the moment even if it should prove illusory.

Daniel handed her the knife and Nicole cut the cake, giving every one a thick slice.  They sat around the table and the conversation was lighthearted.  James recounted amusing anecdotes of service with his former employer, an eminent English lord, and they applauded with enthusiasm when he imitated the nasal accents of the British aristocracy. 

After a short while Marie and Joseph cleared the table and James bid them all good night.

"The coffee will be ready in a moment," Marie said as she and Joseph left the room.  "Where would you like to be served?"

"In the living room," Daniel answered, "it's getting chilly."

Nicole and Daniel went indoors and Nicole was suddenly aware of her loose hair.  What would they think?  The thought embarrassed her but it was too late to do anything about it, and besides, everyone had acted as though it was perfectly all right.  Maybe they hadn't noticed.

The living room, which Nicole had seen fleetingly as she walked through, was large but informal and unpretentious.  The lamps glowed softly and the oversized sofas looked inviting.  Daniel removed his blazer as Marie entered carrying a tray with coffee.  "I'll see you tomorrow, dear.  If you want, I'll give you a tour of my kitchen."

Nicole waited for her footsteps to die away before lighting into Daniel. 

"You take everything for granted, don't you?  I have no intention of spending the night here.  I want to leave right now."  She suddenly felt foolish and childish.

"And where will you go?"

"I insist you take me home," she said weakly, knowing she had already capitulated.

"That's impossible, and besides, it's early yet.  It's only ten-thirty and I still haven't given you your birthday present."

He walked over to the black cabinet near the wall and opened one of the drawers.  He returned and sat by her side, presenting her with a box wrapped with a gold ribbon.  She looked at him protestingly, intending to spurn his gift, but something held her back.

Now she understood!  He hadn't intended to impress her.  He tried to make an old dream come true and give her the feeling she belonged to a warm and loving family.  He wanted to pamper her. 

She opened the box and cried out in surprise.  It was a necklace.  Colombian emerald, aquamarine and tourmaline set in various shapes and sizes.

"I love buying you emeralds. It's your stone."

"It… It's…"

"Just don't start crying again," he entreated and she caught the impish gleam in his eye.

"I don't know what to say.  This is the most enchanting jewelry I've ever seen but I really can't accept this from you."

"Why not?"

"It's so beautiful! And so expensive!"

He looked at her uncomprehendingly for a moment and then burst into laughter.  A happy, uncomplicated laugh.  "You haven't changed a bit."

She pushed him away in mock anger with a spontaneous movement and as he fell backwards, he drew her closer.  She found herself lying on top of him, her hair brushing his face and her lips just inches away from his.

"Stay here tonight," he said, his mesmerizing eyes never leaving hers.  "I want to wake up in the morning with you at my side.  I want to feel your warm body next to mine.”  He drew a deep breath. "I need you so badly."  He gently lifted her hair from her face. 

She knew she must decide.  She must make the timeless choice between the heart and the mind.  She longed to be part of him, to feel once again the passions only he could arouse.  She craved his love.  But she knew his love was for one night only.  Tomorrow he would forget her and she would be alone once again.

A swift movement and he turned over, his arms pinning her beneath him.  His eyes were two shining sapphires as he declared, "I won't leave you again, Nicole.  You're part of my life."

He didn't declare his love for her, but it was enough.  Her body relaxed and all her defenses fell.  She pulled his head down, with a desperate need to finally assuage the hunger that tormented her.  One arm slid under her head as the second found her throat.  His lips were hot and voluptuous and she met them willingly.  His tongue separated her lips and met hers.  Time stood still.  She moved beneath him and pushed her knees up between his legs.  He held her close, his mouth continuing to arouse her red hot
desire.  She could feel his hardness pressing the center of her erotic desire and increased her urgent pressure.  He groaned and lifted his head as she opened her eyes and met
his, enflamed by ardor.  He freed himself from her embrace and stood up.  With a swift gesture he lifted her in his arms and carried her into the bedroom.  He pushed the door open and put her down in the middle of the room.  The porch lantern cast a subdued light.

"Wait!"  She disengaged herself.  "Turn around until I tell you to look."

He complied.  She ran to the living room and scooped up the chain and the earrings in her purse.

"You can turn around now."

He opened his eyes and stared at her.  He was silent for a long minute and raising his hand to her earlobe, touched the green stones, and then lowering it, touched the chain at her neck.

"I wasn't sure you'd remember," he said, his eyes moving slowly from her face to her throat to her naked body.  She stood before him, stripped of her clothes except for the narrow lace underpants hugging her hips.  She was exactly as he remembered her.  Delicate and at the same time daring and sensual, aware of her femininity and its power over him.

This was the woman he loved.

The palm of his hand continued its slow glide downwards.  He could feel the hammering of her heart and the tremor of desire.  She moaned softly as he sat on the wide bed behind them, pulling at her hips until she stood between his legs.  He kissed her smooth, flat belly and his teeth bit lightly at the velvet skin above the lace.  She ran her fingers through his hair and lifted her head, closing her eyes.  Pleasure spread through her body in ever-widening circles.  His mouth kept moving around the thin lace of the underpants as his hands removed the last barrier between her and his lips.  She was under his spell.  She saw and heard nothing.  She only felt the ecstasy coursing through her until it reached the hidden point between her thighs, lifting her to heights she had never known till now.  She was lost in a paradise of pleasure.

"Daniel," she repeated his name, "oh, Daniel."

His hands left her hips and he swiftly removed his shirt and divested himself of the rest of his clothes.  She could neither speak nor move, only stare at his perfect physique with eyes drunk with sensuousness.  He lifted her and lay her down on the bed.  She drew him close as her body arched.  Her hands moved over the muscles rippling on his back, finding the indentations of his pelvis. He stroked her hair, pushing her head back, kissing the throbbing vein in her neck.

"My love," he groaned. 

He deliberately slowed his movements and she opened her veiled eyes.

"Tell me what you want," he commanded softly and she obeyed.

"I want to make love with you."

He raised himself and penetrated her.  Her body stiffened suddenly, unused to the sensation.  He lifted his head, a look of surprise in his eyes.

"I haven't been with anyone for a very long time."

He said softly, "I won't hurt you."

He moved within her, at first slowly and gently, letting her set the rhythm of their desire.  Her wanton movements stoked the fire that devoured him, and they united as they gave themselves up to the rapture of the ancient ritual of love.

The sun's rays crept over the horizon when they finally fell asleep in a close embrace.

Long past dawn a shaft of sunlight caressed Nicole's body as she awoke.  Her eyes still shut she stretched, allowing the warmth to enter.

"Good morning," a motherly voice said. 

"Good morning," she shyly replied to Marie’s greeting.  What must Marie think of her?   But Marie looked at her affectionately as though it was the most natural thing in the world to find Nicole in her employer's bed.

"What time is it?"

"Almost eleven."

"Where is Daniel?"

"He went for a dip in the sea.  He said he'd be back soon.  His instructions were that I bring you toiletries and a choice of clothes.  We thought you would be glad to wear something clean and fresh as you didn't bring a spare set of your own."

Almighty God!  Did he really think she would agree to wear the cast-off clothes of his former lovers?  "No thank you, Marie, I prefer to wear my own." 

Marie seemed flustered.  "I'm very sorry but I sent your clothes for dry-cleaning into Port Vila and they won't be delivered until this afternoon."

"Really?"  Nicole was stunned.  The nerve of him.  "I appreciate your thoughtfulness but I think I'll wait here until Daniel returns."

Marie looked perturbed but made no comment.  She left the room and Nicole, still in bed, looked around.  The room was flooded with light that poured in from the outsized windows.  Recliners and ottomans in various designs and stripes of beige and cream were smothered with soft pillows, vases were filled with orange and white flowers and the tables were piled high with books, magazines and albums.  On the dresser was a nineteenth century camera. A large painting hung over the sitting area and Nicole stood, wrapping the sheet about her, to see it better.  Dated 1852, it was by Thomas Rossiter and portrayed a young family - father, mother and two children - in front of their house, which was set high on a hill by the shores of a lake.  A sudden ache gripped her chest.  Those young parents could have been Daniel and herself.

"You like the painting?”  His voice was close to her ear as he hugged her from behind, his bare chest pressing her back.

"Yes.  It's easy to respond to the serenity of this family portrait."

Daniel could hear the anguish in her voice.  He slowly released her and she turned until she faced him, her hand still holding up the sheet. 

Her hair was unruly, her eyes like green dewdrops. "They could have been us!"

"Why didn't you wait for me?  I told you I would come back."  His voice was low but commanding.

"Wait for you?" she said bitterly.  "Wait for what?  For what kind of life?  I'm a big girl now, Daniel.  I've grown up.  I know you wouldn't have been content with one woman and with the kind of close and tight-knit family life I crave.  You'll always seek stimulation and thrills.  You'd never have stayed faithful.  Our child would have seen you once every few weeks or months and when he grew up…" her voice wavered a minute, "I didn't want him to feel betrayed by his father as I did.  I wanted a healthy and happy child with parents like everybody else."

"You're mistaken," his voice was cutting and his eyes metallic.  She knew he was angry but she was conscious of something else in his eyes.

He looked almost as if he was offended.

"You provide me with all the excitement and gratification I need.  You exhilarate me.  You fascinate me.  I'm drawn to you as to no other woman I've ever met.  I don't need other women.  I don't know what you think you saw in New York.  I swear that until I heard you were married I was with no other woman.  Anyway, no other woman meant anything to me.  They just filled the void you left.  When I heard you were married I nearly went out of my mind.  I can't count the women I've had since but I never felt anything but emptiness with them.  You're the only one I ever wanted.  And the only one I couldn't have!"

"Why did you slink away?" she insisted on knowing.  "Why didn't you take me with you?"

"How could I take you with me?  I was penniless and homeless, with an uncertain future in a cruel and competitive world.  I knew I was talented, but the earth is filled with talented people and only one in a million is a success.  My plan was to return to New York, find work, and then when I'd earn some money, to bring you over."

"Why didn't you discuss any of this with me?  You never said a word."

He left her side and stood staring out the window.  A mischievous ray of light danced across his face, blinding him.  His finely chiseled features were hard and cold when he spoke again.  "That's just what I intended to do.  I went to the bungalow and when I couldn't find you there I walked up to your parents' house.  I knew you wouldn't be pleased because you shut yourself in like a snail whenever I asked you anything about your parents and because you never invited me into the house, always meeting me in the studio or other places.  As I neared the entrance I heard screams and hesitated.  I thought I might be interrupting a fight between your parents.  The voices moved closer and I hid behind some bushes.  The front door opened and I saw you flung out on the stairs.  My first instinct was to attack your father who appeared, drunk and cursing in the doorway, but then you spoke and by the faint light I could see the bleeding on your lip."

Nicole felt the blood drain from her face and a cold sweat cover her forehead.  The memories brought on the old nausea that crawled from her stomach to her throat.  She remembered the occasion so clearly because it was the next day she discovered Daniel's curt letter announcing his departure.  She could see her father's distorted face and smell the alcohol on him. 

*  *  *

He returned home, bursting into the kitchen where she and her mother were busy preparing supper.  He pushed aside her mother who cringed in the corner and grabbed Nicole by the hair throwing her backwards until she fell on the table, breaking the plates piled up at the edge.

"Filthy whore," he yelled, "I'll kill you."

Nicole steadied herself, her hands defending her face.  "What do you want?" she asked scornfully.  "You're drunk," she said in disgust.

"Shut up," he barked.

Still shaking with fear, her mother tried to intervene.  "Leave the child," she whispered.

"You stay out of it," he ordered, "or I'll take care of you as well."  His bloodshot eyes swiveled again to Nicole.  "The whole town is talking about you, sleeping with some fucked up loser," he shouted.

She curled her hands into tight fists, trying to control herself. "It's none of your business," she retorted, "I'm past the age when you can tell me what to do.  I'll sleep with whomever I please."  She saw the two veins on his forehead swell alarmingly, threatening to burst.  His heavy palm landed on her face, tearing the skin.  She felt the blood oozing down from her upper lip into her mouth.  He picked her up from the floor and began dragging her along the hallway to the entrance.  He opened the door and threw her down the stairs.  "Get out of here.  Go back to that riffraff you've been hanging out with these past months."

She tried to get up and felt a sharp stab of pain in her hand.  She crawled to the steps and with a supreme effort managed to rise unsteadily to her feet.  She felt a red sheet was being waved before her eyes.  "I'm not going anywhere.  It's my house! Registered in my name!  You're the guardian of my house only until I'm twenty-five.  You think I'll go and let you kill my mother?   Forget it, you stupid drunkard."  Hatred removed all trace of refinement.  "I'm staying here to watch over her.  You can be sure of that.  I'm not going anywhere.  I won't let you steal the roof over our heads."  He made a step in her direction and she spit blood that had gathered at her mouth on his shoes.  "Another step and I'll call the police."

Daniel could see the courage and determination in her straight back and upraised face.  Clearly, this was not the first time she had confronted her father.  To his surprise, her father hung his head and his shoulders heaved as he cried noisily.

"Forgive me.  I don't know what got into me.  I'm only trying to do what's best for you."

Nicole stared at him coldly.  "The only thing you're interested in is my money."  She passed the sniveling figure and paused at the entrance.  "You're a sick man.  I'm warning you, I'll follow every move you make.  If you so much as raise your hand against my mother I'll go straight to the police."

*  *  *

"When you disappeared into the house I heard him mutter, 'if only she'd leave I could get back everything that belongs to me'.  He walked out of earshot to the other side of the house and I couldn't hear the rest of what he said.  What I felt then was shame." Daniel sighed.  "I was helpless.  There were so many pieces missing but two things were clear to me.  First, that you couldn't leave your mother and your house and go away with me to America, and second, that you had made an enormous effort to hide these things from me.  I had to do something.  To find a way to help you and your mother escape your father's malevolence."

"Why didn't you call?"

"I did,
a few times but it was always your father who answered and I hung up.
I did email once or twice and never got a
reply."

"I was angry that you left me. I thought that if I didn't answer I'd
be able to get you out of my head and move on. Childish, I know, but I was in such pain."

"I thought you were angry at
me for leaving without saying goodby and
I didn't blame you for that. The only problem was," he smiled mirthlessly, "that after a few months it was clear to me that I couldn't bear living without you.  I meant to come back to you.  I thought that if we got married I could find work in Australia.  I was ready to abandon the success I was beginning to enjoy.  I knew I would find a way.  I phoned your parents', hoping you or your mother would pick up the phone but as always it was your father who answered.  Although we'd never met he guessed who I was.  He told me it was too late, that you had married the month before.  He obviously relished telling me that your husband was one of the richest men in town.  I went out of my mind with grief.  I couldn't believe you would do this to me.  I knew you loved me.  Only me.  But as your father made very clear, it was too late.  I had let you go and now had to bear the consequences.  In a frenzy, I began working day and night barely stopping to eat and drink.  Just working.  The rest you already know."

He moved closer and she felt a pang of excitement.  She longed for him to gather her in his arms again but he hadn't finished what he had to say.  "The irony was that within a year I was making more money than I had imagined possible in my wildest dreams.  I could have bought all the houses in the world for you and your mother.  You wouldn't have been dependent on him.  But it was too late."

She let the sheet drop to the floor.  "Let's not talk about it.  We're together now and that's what's important."  She placed her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.  She took a deep breath of his male smell of soap and sea and brushed her lips against his.

"You're right," he murmured, "let's not talk."

It was past two when they got up.  Daniel showered quickly and left the bathroom to her.  When Nicole finished she remembered she had nothing to wear. "Whatever crossed your mind when you sent Marie with all those clothes?" she asked annoyed.

"What?" he exclaimed, surprised at this sudden attack.

"I'm ready to forgive all those women in your life, but how could you think I'd be ready to wear their clothes?  What do you take me for?"

"What do I take you for?" he repeated, trying to grasp just what the problem was.  When he understood he smiled.  He strode to her and hugged her.  She resisted and hit his chest with her fists trying to free herself from his grip.

"What do you take me for?" he mimicked her tone, "what do you take me for?"  He pressed her against the wall and spread his arms on either side of her, imprisoning her between them.  "Those are my sisters' clothes.  They come here occasionally with their children and there's a room full of clothes that only the devil knows what they do with them all.  I thought they wouldn't mind if you wore some of them.  The clothes Marie chose are brand new."

Nicole was abashed. 

He laughed and kissed her. "I wouldn't dream of giving you clothes that my ex-girlfriends left me as souvenirs."

She bent and slid from his embrace, inspected the clothes hanging over the armchair and chose a light yellow dress and open sandals that, amazingly, were a perfect fit. 

As she prepared to wear them he said, "you can go barefoot."

He wore washed jeans and a blue shirt that matched his eyes.  "Let's eat and I'll show you around the island."

They walked into the well-equipped kitchen and Marie handed Daniel a picnic basket. They crossed the lawn and walked to the beach.  The white, fine sand was warm to the touch of their bare feet and the quiet waters reflected an endless array of blue and green hues.  They wended their way until they came to a shady corner beneath a grove of coconut trees.  Daniel spread a summer blanket and took a crisp bread Marie had baked out of the basket, followed by seafood, salads, cold cuts and French cheeses.

"Perfect," he said as he poured the chilled wine.
 

They devoured the delicious food as they chatted and laughed.

"Marie's apple pie is out of this world," a sated Nicole declared, as she lay supine on the blanket.  Daniel pulled her up to a sitting position.  "Come on, lazybones, I'll give you a tour of the island."