The Billionaire Princess (16 page)

Not a conversation she wanted to have, Sara wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned into him.  She knew just how to distract him.  “Just a little uncomfortable, but I'm fine now.” She placed a kiss at the base of his neck then started to make a path upward.

“I could tell.  Have you ever...” Christopher stopped and a low groan escaped from his mouth as Sara reached his ear lobe and sucked on it.

Empowerment surged through her when he couldn't finish his sentence.  Pulling back, she looked up at him with a coy smile on her face.  “Have I ever what?” She reached for the first button on his shirt and undid it.

By the time he answered she had three more buttons undone.  “We can talk about it later.”  Christopher tried to undo the top button on her blouse, but the tiny buttons wouldn't cooperate with his large hands.  “I give up.  Either you do it, or I'm ripping the damn thing off.”

As if she hadn't heard him, she pushed his shirt open and placed a hand on his chest. Through the cotton fabric of his undershirt, she could feel the rapid beat of his heart.

“Sara.”  His voice came out as a half groan when she kissed his neck.

“You're impatient.  Do you know that?” She'd worn the blouse enough times to know exactly how to work the annoying little buttons free.  For a second she contemplated doing it slowly to see how he'd react.  She dismissed the idea almost right away.  Sara wanted to feel his skin against hers probably as much as he did.

In moments their clothes were in a pile at their feet.  Inch by inch Christopher's eyes traveled down her body, making it throb.  At the same time his hands caressed her breasts then traveled down her stomach to her waist.  “Perfection,” he
said, his voice low and purposefully seductive.

Sara opened her mouth to say the same thing about him, but didn't get the opportunity. Instead Christopher pulled her against him,
then set out to turn her brain to mush as he worshiped her mouth, all the while moving them back toward the comfort of her bed.

***

With one arm lying across his waist and her head resting on his chest, Sara remained perfectly still content to stay in bed while Christopher slept.  During their time together she'd learned just how busy his life was.  He wasn't a CEO who sat behind his desk all day while others took care of everything.  He thought nothing of flying to two or three different states in a day for meetings.  If he slept now his body must need it.  Dinner wouldn't be served for another hour.  As long as they left themselves enough time to dress, there was no need to rush now.

Then again maybe they could skip dinner.  The idea held merit.  If her parents were around, she wouldn't consider it.  While her mother assumed she'd been intimate with men, she didn't like it flaunted in her face.  She'd felt the same way with Jake and Dylan.

How much of a hard time would Jake and Dylan give me in the morning if we don't show up for dinner tonight?
  Jake would be the worst.  He'd always been the one to tease her unmercifully.  Most of the time she tried to avoid it.  This time, however, it might be worth it.

Glancing up, she expected Christopher to still be asleep.  Instead she found a pair of eyes staring back at her.  “You're awake.”  Sara pushed herself up on one elbow.

Christopher’s finger traced a path along her jaw.  “Your powers of observation are outstanding.” He tried to keep from smiling, but the corner of his mouth inched upward.

Without a second thought she stuck her tongue out at him.

“I wouldn't do that unless you plan on using it.”  This time a devilish smile spread across his face.

“We don't have time.  Dinner is in an hour, unless you want to skip it,” she said hopefully.

His eyes scanned her face and she wondered what he hoped to find.  “I'm fine with either, but I'm guessing you'd rather skip dinner with the family tonight.” Christopher's expression turned serious.

She felt him place a light kiss on the top of her head and lost another piece of her heart to him.

“I'd be happy right here all weekend.” He tightened his hold around her.  “I don't think I'm the reason you want to stay up here though.  You looked pretty uncomfortable in the library.”

Damn
.  She thought she'd done a good job of not showing how she felt today.  “You know about my relationship with Callie.”  The hand gliding down her arm left a path of heat in its wake, which started to spread through the rest of her.

“Have you tried apologizing?  Maybe if you sit down with her and explain everything, you can clear the air between you.” His tone contained a degree of warmth and concern.

Not him too.
  Did her brother and Christopher realize what they were asking?  Sara sat up, the heat she'd felt moments before gone.  Sure she could apologize, but what if it didn't matter to Callie?  Then not only would she have made a fool of herself, but one more person would know how stupid she'd been.  Who would want to open themselves up like that?

“Now you sound like Jake.”

Christopher moved so he sat alongside her, his back leaning against the headboard.  “Don't tell him I said this, but sometimes he has a good idea. Not often of course, maybe once a year.”

Suddenly the blanket on the bed became the most fascinating thing she'd ever seen.  “What if she doesn't forgive me?  That would be humiliating.”

“It's possible.  But what if she does?  What do you have to lose by trying?  A lifetime of afternoons like today?”

What she wouldn't give for a smart reply. “I'll think about it. I'm not promising anything.”

“I won't mention it again unless you bring it up.”  Christopher covered her hand with his.

Sara breathed a mental sigh of relief, once again appreciative that he never pushed his views or desires on her.  While he may voice both so far he always left it at that—a rare quality in successful, powerful men.  Or at least the ones she knew.

“So what do you say?  Should we skip dinner or not?” he asked, his index finger slowly drawing a line up her arm.

For a moment she paused and again considered the hard time her brothers would likely give her in the morning.  In this case anything they dished out would be worth it for more alone time with Christopher.  “Let’s skip it.  Why don't we relax here for a little longer and you can tell me what Jake said.  Then later we can head out somewhere for dinner—maybe The Spiced Pear.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Christopher agreed before recounting his conversation.

The Sherbrookes sure knew how to throw a party.  Over the years he'd attended a few New Year's Eve parties at Cliff House, but it'd been at least three years since the last one.  Judging by the scene around him, they put just as much effort into every party they had.  The only difference between tonight's party and the ones he'd attended before was the size.  Tonight only fifty to sixty people filled the home, while on New Year's Eve the numbers swelled closer to two hundred.

Christopher sipped his champagne and surveyed the guests in the grand ballroom. He recognized several from past parties.  The
Sherbrookes were a large family that still remained close.  In addition to members of their family, Elizabeth's parents and siblings from England had flown over for the party.  Add to that mix some key political figures and powerful CEOs and you had a room full of people worth several billion dollars.  If someone had told him twenty years ago he'd be at parties like this he would've thought they were joking.

His eyes settled on Sara across the room.  Deep in conversation with her cousin Allison
Sherbrooke, she didn't immediately see him watching her. When she finally looked over and saw him, she smiled.  Then she said something to her cousin and started toward him, the smile still on her face.

He couldn't tear his eyes away as she walked.  Since making his first million, he'd dated several beautiful women including actress Riley Walker, but none could hold a candle to Sara, both on the inside and outside.  Right then all he wanted was to take her upstairs, ditch the dress she wore, and show her how much he loved her.

Loved? For a second he stopped breathing.  He never doubted loved existed.  His parents were an excellent example of two people who loved each other a great deal.  And unlike many of his friends, he never went out of his way to avoid it.  He just thought it happened gradually over time, not in less than two months.  Now that he'd labeled the feelings he had for Sara, he couldn't think of it as anything else.  What he felt went beyond a simple physical attraction.

This new revelation put a whole different spin on things and until he grew accustomed to the idea, he planned to keep the information to himself.

“What are you smiling at?” Sara asked when she reached his side.

“
You, and how much I am looking forward to spending the rest of the weekend away from here.”  Christopher leaned closer and whispered in her ear, “How about we go upstairs so I can help you out of that dress.”

Standing so close, he couldn't resist kissing her.  But, aware of his surroundings, he kept the kiss gentle and hoped it would be enough to tempt her upstairs.  “What do you say?” he asked, pulling back.

Sara took a champagne flute from the uniformed waiter that walked by.  “My brothers gave me a hard enough time this morning because we skipped dinner last night.  I don't want to hear anymore from them.”

He watched her raise the glass to her mouth, jealous that she didn't have her lips on his instead.  “You need to grow thicker skin.”

One bare shoulder rose in a gentle shrug. “You don't have brothers, you have no idea how relentless they are, but we can dance.  The band is scheduled to start up again in a few minutes.”

While not what he had in mind, it would do for now.

When the band started their next set, he led her onto the dance floor.  Other guests cast glances in their direction as Christopher pulled her close and they began to dance but he ignored them. One slow ballad flowed into another, as the band in the musician's balcony played.  Not once did they break into anything with a faster tempo. Christopher liked it.  The slower music gave him the perfect excuse to keep his arms around Sara without raising any eyebrows. Even if his behavior was acceptable, after tonight there would be no room for speculation about their relationship.

Several times over the past few weeks, their names had been linked together due to their association with Senator Healy and his education initiative, but speculation regarding their relationship never arose.
Tonight though reporters from Today Magazine, a national publication, and the Providence Gazette, a local newspaper, had been granted special limited access to the party.  Between the two  they'd taken pictures of everyone and everything at the party, which meant tomorrow their relationship would probably be front-page news.

For the most part he didn't mind.  In the beginning the paparazzi had bothered him, but now he accepted it as part of his life.  Sara was no stranger to the paparazzi either.  Still he liked the idea of keeping their relationship under the radar.  Who knew what kind of stress the media might cause? He'd seen firsthand how the media could ruin relationships.  Jake and Charlie were married now, but they'd almost split for good at one point because of rumors spread by the media.  If rumors started flying, how would their relationship hold up? He wanted to believe it could handle anything thrown at it, but he just didn't know.

Warm, supple lips pressed against his, chasing away thoughts of the media and rumors.  “I don't think I said it, but thank you.” Sara drew her head back.

“For?”

“Coming with me this weekend.  I know my family's parties can be a little stuffy sometimes.”

“We can discuss how you're going to make it up to me later when we're alone,” he answered, his voice taking on a husky tone.

She leaned against him, her body aligning perfectly with him.  “Sounds like a plan.”

Tightening his hold around her waist, he lost himself in the feel of her body against his.  The music in the background gradually became nothing more than some subtle noise as they moved as one to their own beat.  Even if the band switched to a fast-paced song, he wouldn't have noticed or cared, the sense of being exactly where he belonged was simply that strong.

Sara wiggled her toes the best she could in her heels.  The last time she'd danced this much had been at her father's inaugural ball.  Judging by the guests around her, she wasn't the only one who wasn't used to dancing this much.  Several other guests, especially the older ones, were seated in chairs around the ballroom perimeter while a few had even left.  Even though her feet bothered her, she chose not to say anything.  She'd always enjoyed dancing even if she didn't have much opportunity lately.  Not to mention she enjoyed the security and acceptance she always experienced in Christopher's embrace.

“The last song tonight is a special request from the President to his wife,” the band’s lead singer  announced before they started a classic hit by the popular seventies group Montana.

Not this song.
  Sara gritted her teeth to keep from groaning aloud.  Can't Live Without You was one of her mom's favorites.  At least the band hadn't covered any other songs by the group.  If she had a piece of cake, she'd seriously consider stuffing it in the singer's mouth.