The Mistress of Black Grove Manor (101 page)

              It drove Lida crazy to watch the other girls fawning over her fiancé and the man she was secretly in love with. She’d realized earlier that morning that she and Malcolm hadn’t used protection, and had been internally stressing out about this all throughout breakfast. Every couple of minutes one of Wyatt’s family members would lean into Lida’s ear and ask if she was okay.              

              “I’m fine,” she would say politely, staring down at her plate full of food. She’d lost her appetite due to stress and confusion.

              As for Malcolm and Wyatt, they seemed to both be vying for her attention. She’d never had this much male attention before and wasn’t quite sure how to handle it. While Wyatt was more on the romantic side, Malcolm was cunning and constantly shooting her looks. She caught him winking at her over his pink champagne, or nudging her knee with his foot ever so slightly. The slightest touch from Malcolm or quip from Wyatt sent her reeling. She had to figure out something to do and quick or else she would wind up back in Russia all alone.

              “Where will the wedding be held?” asked one of Wyatt’s cousins.

              Wyatt shot Lida a glance which instantly froze the heart in her chest.

              “We plan on getting married at St. Peter’s chapel,” Wyatt said.

              Lida excused herself and rushed off to the bathroom, confused by Wyatt’s shift in attitude.

             
Does he know?
She thought to herself.

              Suddenly Malcolm appeared behind her in the dimly lit hall.

              “What are you doing here?” she asked. “We’re going to get caught!”

              “Which is exactly why I followed you,” he said coyly. “An audience is always fun.”

              “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said but was quickly engulfed in a kiss from Malcolm. He took her breath away, pressing her against the wall and pinning her to a painting.

              “What are we doing?” Lida asked. “This is wrong.”

              “Do you really feel that way?” Malcolm asked, looking deep into her eyes.

              “I don’t know what I feel anymore,” she said.

              They continued kissing until a waiter interrupted them, needing to sneak past.

              “We should probably get back to the table,” Lida said. “We’re going to get in so much trouble.”

              “You get back. I’m going to smoke a cigarette and pretend that’s where I’ve been the whole time.”
              He kissed her on the forehead before disappearing through the kitchen and out the back door.

              Lida couldn’t believe what was going on. How had they not been caught yet? Even at the table, Malcolm had been flirting with her nonstop. He was attentive, and so handsome that he’d begun to haunt her dreams. When she got back to the table, Wyatt asked why her face was so red.

              “I was just talking to one of the waiters and he was teasing me,” Anna lied.

              “And where did Malcolm get off to?” Serena asked, cocking an eyebrow at her.

              “I think he passed by and said something about going out for a smoke.”

              Serena chuckled to herself before digging back into her bacon and eggs. Lida spent the rest of breakfast without an attitude. And when she got home later that day, she fell asleep in her bed and took a long nap.

              For the next few weeks up to the wedding, Lida proceeded to lose her appetite before gaining it back full force. Every day she tortured herself over the fact that she was secretly in love with Malcolm. She found she couldn’t stay away from him, and they stole away with one another every chance they got. Even Wyatt could tell that they cared about each other a little too much. And on a stormy night about a month before the wedding, Wyatt cornered her in the kitchen to ask her what was really going on.

              Lida had woken up in the middle of the night with an insane craving for hot cocoa. Fearful to take a pregnancy test, she’d avoided it and the growing bump in her stomach. She was in the middle of stirring miniature marshmallows into her drink when she realized she wasn’t alone.

              “Hi,” Wyatt said, startling her. There were small blue lights illuminating the kitchen, an invention from Eva of all people. She’d become weirdly obsessed with decorating in the past few weeks, and the house was now filled with strange plastic seashells and colorful fairy lights.

              “Hey,” Lida said. She made to kiss him on the cheek but he pushed away from her.

              “We need to talk,” he said but his tone was surprisingly gentle, kind even.

              Lida swallowed once, hard. She wasn’t sure what to say or how to begin to apologize for what had happened. Luckily, she didn’t need to speak for Wyatt already had a lot on his mind.

              “I know you’re in love with Malcolm,” he said.

              Lida’s face turned a million shades of red, which became purple when mixed with the blue lights.

              “Did Abby say that? Because you know she likes to gossip—”
              “Lida stop. No one had to say it to me. I noticed it. It’s the way you’ve been acting around him. Even when you’re not together, I can tell you’re subdued, thinking of something else.”

              “But I don’t care about him like that. It’s nothing, I swear. I’ll be a better wife to you I promise.”

              “I know you’ll make the perfect wife someday,” Wyatt said, smiling down at her. His smile was a genuine one, and confused Lida.

              “Really?” he asked.

              “Yes. You’ll make the perfect wife to my brother.”

              “What?”
              “I know you’re crazy about him and he’s crazy about you, too. So why not admit it to each other? We don’t have to call the wedding off.”
              “But what about my parents?” She asked, her eyes wide with fear.
              “Already taken care of,” Wyatt said.

              “What?”
              Wyatt went on to explain that he’d already paid the dowry and had wire-transferred the money over earlier that day. Lida couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Every word Wyatt spoke was like a blow to her heart. He had to be the kindest, sweetest man she’d ever met. And he was supporting her and Malcolm’s union. She no longer had to hide anymore. Just the other day she and Malcolm had made love to each other in the broom closet, as they knew no one would be going in there any time soon. They stole kisses when no one was looking, and held hands underneath the table whenever they could. Lida was in love with Malcolm, but every time he’d asked her she’d lied.

              “It’s just pre-wedding jitters,” she told him over and over again.             

              “Then why do you keep coming back?” Malcolm would ask, swallowing her up in a passionate kiss.

              “I…” Lida would begin, the words at the tip of her tongue. But she didn’t know how to say it.

              “I am in love with him,” She confessed to Wyatt in his kitchen.

              “I’m happy you were finally able to admit it,” he said with a huge grin on his face. It had been difficult for Wyatt to form affection for Lida because of their situation. But with Malcolm, it had developed honestly, slowly. The feelings they felt for one another were pure and stress-free. It was all Wyatt could have wanted for his baby brother.

              “I just want you to be happy,” Wyatt confessed. “I’ve come to care about you so much. But the truth is, I’m in love with someone else as well. I’ve always had feelings for Eva.”

              “Wow,” Lida said, practically choking on what was left of her cocoa.

              “And while we’re discussing the truth, you should probably take this,” Wyatt said, handing Lida a pregnancy test.

              She protested, giving him the same lie she’d given Malcolm dozens of times. But it was time to face the truth. Lida was pregnant with Malcolm’s child. She hadn’t slept with Wyatt once, mostly because he claimed he wanted to wait till after the wedding. In reality, Wyatt had been stressed out over the situation with Eva. She’d recently left her boyfriend but had been staying away from him so as not to stir the pot. Luckily for Wyatt and Lida, everything was about to work out for them.

              “I thought you’d want to cancel the wedding,” Lida said. “We’re still going to have it?”

              “We are,” Wyatt said, a large grin spreading across his face. “We’re actually going to have a double wedding.”

              “Oh my god,” Lida said. She couldn’t help how excited she was. She raised her hands to Wyatt and embraced him, congratulating him on his newest engagement.

              Wyatt thanked her, giving her a celebratory kiss on the cheek. As they spoke to each other about their plans and the fact that her parents would still be attending the wedding, a figure appeared in the doorway. It was Malcolm, wearing not his pajamas but a three-piece suit with a bright blue tie.

              “She’s all yours,” Wyatt said, hugging his brother.

              Lida looked up at Malcolm, confused as to what was going on.
              “What are you doing?” she asked.

              He chuckled, smiling at Lida. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you for the past week but I couldn’t find the time.”
              He got down on one knee and reached out for Lida’s hand. Malcolm explained to her that since the moment they met, he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. She’d been the most beautiful woman to grace his presence and even though she was supposed to marry Wyatt, he couldn’t let that happen.

              Malcolm explained that he’d always been a player and that he’d dated around before but his past relationships meant nothing compared to Lida. As he spoke, she felt hot tears rolling down her cheeks. His words shifted something deep within her core, making her realize that there were people outside of her family that cared about her unconditionally. Without warning, Malcolm lifted from his pocket a small felt box. He opened it only to reveal an enormous pink diamond.

              “Lida…I know our situation is unconventional and that we only just met but I’ve never fallen harder in all my life. I can’t waste another moment of my life without you as my bride. Will you do me the honor of making me the happiest man alive?”

              “Yes,” she said, laughing through her tears. “Absolutely yes.”
              He leapt to his feet and lifted her into the air, twirling her around the kitchen in the stale blue light. Lida felt like she was Cinderella and had finally found her prince charming. She’d been transformed from an impoverished girl from a different country into the soon-to-be wife of a multi-million-dollar family. But she wasn’t after their money. She was after the compassion and brilliance which was Malcolm.

              As he looked down upon her in the light of the kitchen, heavy rain pounding the walls around them, he thought of how lucky he was. He’d told Serena earlier that day that things just weren’t working out between them anymore.

              “How did she take the news?” Lida asked, curious about Malcolm’s well-being.

              “She took it fine. I think she knew it was coming, especially because of how we were acting at brunch the other day. She packed her bags earlier today and flew back home.”

              “Wow,” Lida said. “I can’t believe you left her for me. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world.”

              Malcolm’s soft lips curled into a grin. “You were already the luckiest girl the second you walked onto the Stone premises.”

              He walked over to the fridge and fished around for a bottle of champagne. Finding only white wine, Malcolm shrugged and uncorked the bottle regardless. He also grabbed a canister of whipped cream and a case of strawberries. He sat down on the floor and motioned for Lida to do the same. Lida grabbed two mugs from the sink and placed them between her and Malcolm’s legs.

              That night, they consumed almost two bottles of wine and the entire crate of strawberries. Malcolm also found a case of chocolate-covered blackberries in the back. Giggling, Lida placed a raspberry in Malcolm’s mouth. They kissed and everything tasted like chocolate and fruit. Malcolm undid his tie and shed his jacket, the muscles in his chest protruding through the satin of his dress shirt.

              He pushed her onto her back, kissing down her collarbone and exposing her breasts on the cool tile floor. It was still late enough that the other guests were sound asleep and would not be waking for several hours. Lida was wearing a pair of purple satin pajamas that slid out from under her with ease. Malcolm loomed over her body like Tarzan observing Jane, wondering where he would strike next to claim his woman.

              “I love you,” Lida whispered into his ear as he entered her. He gasped and gripped her shoulders.

              “I love you, too,” he said, licking the inside of her ear with such ferocity that she started to squirm beneath him.

              “You’re so cute when you moan like that,” he said, dragging her lower lip out between his teeth. She was beautiful and surrounded by a halo of fruits. Malcolm remembered the whipped cream and sprayed it mercilessly on her breasts. He licked it off as if he hadn’t eaten in days, sticking a finger in her mouth so that she could taste the sweetness.