The Man's Outrageous Demands (5 page)

Marabeth stopped and turned towards him. secondly, I can’t imagine anything terrifying you. Please don’t patronize me.”
“First of all, I’m not beautiful and So just cut the act, Mr. Montrose.

Sam stared down at the incredible beauty in front of him and was shocked that she didn’t understand her appeal to the opposite sex. She was stunning in a soft, very feminine, very sexy way. And he liked just about everything about her. Even the stubborn chin that was currently jutting out in frustration right now.

“You’re incredibly beautiful and yes, many things terrify me.”

“Like what?” she asked, dismissing his compliment but instantly curious about what could possibly scare a man of his size and strength.

“Spiders,” he said quickly.

Marabeth was expecting something profound. So that single word made her laugh. “I don’t believe it,” she said, shaking her head and turning to continue walking down the hallway.

“Oh, believe it. I hate them. Whoever marries me will definitely have to be the spider killer,” he said, walking beside her with his hands behind his back.

“What else?” she asked, curious despite herself.

“Poetry,” he said.

“Excuse me?” she asked, stopping again to look at him.

“Poetry. It scares me. Never could understand it. Shakespeare, sometimes, but E.E. Cummings, totally confounds me.”

“I don’t believe it. What else?”

Sam thought for a moment. “I probably wouldn’t like mice very much, but since I’ve never run into them, I can’t be sure,” he said, nodding his head for emphasis.

She waited for him to continue with his list but he stopped. and mice are the only things that scare you?”

“Is that all? Spiders

“Well, and trying to talk to a beautiful woman,” he clarified.

“Ah.” She started walking again. “So you’ve said.”

“You’re going to be my date at the reception, correct?” he asked.

Marabeth sighed. “Not your date. I’ll accompany you and introduce you to the various guests,” she clarified.

“And you’ll be dressed in a beautiful dress, preferably red, and I’ll be able to hold your hand and hold you in my arms as we dance through the night, right?”

Marabeth’s heart fluttered at the picture he presented. It was too tempting by half. “No. I’ll be by your side, introducing you to the old guard, running interference and helping you traverse the mine field the press can be. And I definitely will not be in a red dress.”

He stared down into her soft, blue eyes. “Pity,” was all he said, his broad shoulders blocked out the rest of the world, even the lights overhead as he continued to look at her.

“I have to get back to work,” Marabeth said softly, trying to come out of the trance his gaze seemed to be able to put her under.

“I look forward to your assistance on Saturday,” Sam said softly behind her.

Marabeth moved down the hallway to her suite, her knees barely taking her to her rooms, she was so nervous. What was it about the man that made her heart beat so wildly and her legs become like Jell-O? He was just a man, albeit an incredibly attractive one with a great smile and a great body. But she’d been around lots of men that were handsome. They didn’t affect her like Sam did.
Chapter 4

“You look lovely,” Sam said and the admiration in his eyes emphasized his words.

Marabeth smiled shyly but tried to pretend she wasn’t affected by his compliment. “Shall we go?” she said and started walking towards the ballroom where her mother and father were already in attendance with the five hundred guests here to welcome Sam in as the new Minister of Defense.

They walked in and the butler announced Sam’s arrival. Marabeth’s hand shook as she placed it in the crook of his arm. Her fingers were warmed by his large hand that settled over hers. It was a casual gesture, but she liked it nonetheless.

They descended the stairs together and were blinded momentarily by the lights flashing in front of them by the press. It seemed to Marabeth that there were more flashes tonight than usual, but it didn’t surprise her. Ever since her father had announced Sam’s appointment, the press had been drooling over him. There were numerous stories of his heroism during his military service as well as stories speculating on his personal wealth because of his private security company and, overriding all of them in numbers was the speculation on his girlfriends.

Marabeth had tried not to read the stories, but she found herself opening the paper each morning and immediately skimming the headlines for more news about his previous life. She read anything she could get her hands on, telling herself it was only to learn what was happening within the government. But late at night, when she remembered his gentle touch and laughing blue eyes, she admitted that she was jealous of all the women who had dated him and were now telling their stories to the press.

Thinking to put some mental distance between them since physical distance was not possible at the moment, she brought up all the women he’d dated in the past and was rumored to be dating currently. “You’ve been a popular boy lately,” she mentioned while still smiling for the cameras.

“What do you mean?” he asked, nodding politely to a photographer, waiving to what seemed to be an acquaintance as he led her down the red carpeted stairs slowly, allowing the press to get their fill before stopping at the bottom. It was more to let their eyes focus than anything else but it provided the press a chance to yell out questions before Marabeth and Sam slipped into the masses of people where the press were not permitted to go.

Sam smiled broadly as they stopped, ignoring the questions being shouted towards the two of them. “Were you reading all the articles?” he asked, bending his head at an intimate angle, as if she’d just asked him a question.

Marabeth smiled as well, looking up at him and wishing it didn’t look like she was telling him a secret. “Of course” she replied. “I try to keep up with current events. Occasionally people ask me an intelligent question. I prefer to be prepared rather than the latest gossip on the useless princess.”

“I’m flattered that you consider me a current event. The way you’ve been avoiding me lately, I was thinking you’d forgotten about me. Besides, I don’t think anyone has ever accused you of being a useless princess. I’ve read many articles about how the people of Cordova adore you. So why have you been avoiding me? Trying to forget me?”

“I wish,” she said under her breath.

“What was that?” he asked, bending down so he could hear her better.

“Nothing,” she said and smiled to one of her father’s other cabinet members. She ignored the deep chuckle that emanated from him. She gritted her teeth and plastered a smile on her face for the press as well as the other members of the party.

From that moment on, the night was difficult on so many levels. The press were more relentless than usual in their efforts to get a picture of Sam and Marabeth became irritated with their prying eyes for the first time in her life. Being a royal, she’d been born with the press hounding her. It was part of her life and she accepted it. What she didn’t like was how much they wanted a picture of Sam. She felt jealous each time they asked. It was odd though because they wouldn’t let her step out of the picture when they snapped their cameras. It was as if they wanted both of them together. But that didn’t make sense to Marabeth since most of the press were in a fury to find out who his current girlfriend or mistress was. He was a hot commodity and she thought it would be better for the sale of their papers if they got him alone rather than with her by his side.

As the evening progressed, she was eventually able to dismiss the press form her mind and focus on the party. Sam impressed Marabeth with his political and social skills. He handled each person that came over to him with dignity and finesse regardless of whether they agreed with his policy changes or hated them. If they disagreed, Sam seemed to have an uncanny knowledge of how to persuade them to his side of the argument. If they were for his changes, he treated them as if they were friends of an inner circle, making sure that the person knew Sam would return the support in the future.

Meanwhile, Marabeth worked the crowds, determining when a private conversation was needed versus when a group setting was better for the topic. She quickly moved people so they were able to speak to him individually when the need for one on one conversations arose. While he was talking, she would carefully shield him from the others and engage them in another conversation while she surreptitiously listened to when Sam was finished and the others could engage in the conversation as a group.

She also kept the women away who only wanted to entice Sam. This was more of a political evening for Sam she told herself as she herded yet another romantic hopeful in another direction. Marabeth didn’t feel catty in her efforts to keep Sam away from the ladies with a hopeful eye. women if he needed to. following her mother’s instructions. She decided that he could socialize another night with these

She told herself she wasn’t being jealous, just practical and

Several long hours later, Sam stopped the conversation and turned to smile down at Marabeth. “Come with me,” Sam’s voice said close to her ear.

Marabeth turned and looked curiously up at him. There were several other people who wanted to talk with Sam and she didn’t understand what he wanted.

She found out soon enough when he spun her expertly onto the dance floor. “Don’t you want to talk with Lord Winters? I know he’s one of your primary supporters. It would be beneficial for your plans if you could increase his support.”

He pulled her closer and spun her, forcing her to hold onto his muscular shoulders and lean into him. “I know. But I wanted to dance with you,” he said.

“Why? This isn’t a night for dancing,” she said, looking around worriedly, keeping her fingers carefully away from his hair and neck. “You should be rounding up your supporters and convincing your opponents. This is the ideal scenario and you were doing so well.”

“And I wanted to dance with you. I was tired of talking with boring old men who think it is their right to tell everyone what to do. And you look beautiful.”

She followed his lead but wished she could escape. The hand holding hers was warm and strong and the one resting against her waist was creating havoc with her mind. “You should…”

“Stop,” he interrupted. “Just relax and dance with me. The arguments will wait a few more minutes. And I don’t think anyone would fault me for dancing with one of the loveliest women in the room,” he said and pulled her closer to his large frame.

Marabeth felt his legs brush against hers and she liked it too much. “I’m sure there are several women in the room who would like to dance with you. Perhaps you’d like to ask them,” she said, starting to pull out of his arms.

But he wouldn’t let her. His grip tightened and he only pulled her closer. “Why are you afraid of me?” he asked, looking down into her worried green eyes.

Marabeth quickly looked away. “I’m not afraid of you,” she said defensively. “I just don’t want to dance. You’re right, it has been a long evening and I’m a little tired.”

Sam twirled her to the edge of the floor, then quickly tucked her hand into his arm, escorting her off the dance floor and then out the door onto the dimly lit patio. There were candles placed around the edges of the patio but they didn’t penetrate too deeply into the night. Sam led her off the stone steps and into a pretty veranda that offered them a little more privacy from the guests at the party.

“What are you doing?” she asked nervously.

“I’m giving you a break, just as you asked,” he said and moved closer to her.

She couldn’t see his eyes in the darkness but she suspected that he might be laughing at her again.

“I didn’t mean that you needed to be with me,” she said and started moving towards the light again.

He laughed softly as his arm reached out and wrapped around her waist, pulling her against his body. “Relax. I promise I won’t bite,” he said. “At least not where it will show tomorrow,” he continued.

Marabeth instantly pushed against his rock hard chest but she was unable to put even an inch between the two of them. “This isn’t proper,” she said breathlessly, not because of her exertions but because of the feelings his body was creating within her.

“I know. But you’ll run away if I let you go. Besides, you feel very nice.”

“Minister…”

“Don’t even think about calling me anything but Sam,” he said softly. “And stop fluttering your hands around.”

Marabeth was too flustered. “What do you want me to do with them?” she demanded.

Sam laughed. “That’s a very provocative question but in deference to your nervousness, I’ll just reply that you can put them anywhere you’d like.”

“I’m not nervous,” she reiterated but finally settled her hands on his chest. It was where she wanted them to be anyway so she enjoyed having permission to leave them there.

“That’s better,” he said when she’d settled slightly. “Now, about your lips,” he started.

“We weren’t talking about my lips,” she said, her hands instantly pushing against his chest again in an effort to put more space between the two of them. “Please, we need to get back inside before people start noticing that we’re not in the ballroom.”

Sam didn’t bring up the fact that just about everyone in the ballroom had either watched them leave or had been told that the two of them had left together by now. The speculation had started the moment he’d entered the ballroom with her on his arm. He was sure that the press was already linking his name to hers and normally that would irritate him. But he liked being linked to her. In fact, he’d encouraged it which confused him on one level. He knew he’d have to go back in to the ballroom, but he’d been too distracted by her lips all evening. As she’d spoken to the various people, he’d been wondering if her lips were as soft as they looked with her pretty pink lipstick.