I begin pacing as I wait. Every time I look in the mirror and see the way I look, it gives me the confidence I have longed for. I pray I can portray it as well. About an hour and a half go by, then I hear a knocking at the door. I open it to find Jeffery, who lets me know it’s time. With a deep breath in and out, I follow him down the hall to the staircase. He tells me to go on. I hear all the music and noise of people talking. It sounds like a successful party. Once I put my foot on the stair to descend, I take another needed deep breath, realizing this is it: the first night I meet my future husband.

I head slowly down the curved staircase, trying not to falter. Presenting myself as graceful and elegant, all the while I’m a bundle of nerves. I look up and see people have now taken notice of me. I’m greeted at the bottom of the staircase by a smiling Catherine.

“My dear, I have people for you to meet. Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s not keep the wolves waiting! Shall we?”

I answer by saying, “Lead the way.”

Catherine walks me through the room. All eyes are now on me. She introduces me to people as we make our way to the great room.

Once there, we stop and she says, “Let’s stand here for a minute. Let them come to us.”

I’m introduced to so many people, I will never be able to remember all their names.

“Fallon, I would like to introduce you to Senator Rodney Rollins and his son, Miles.”

“Hello, Senator. It is a pleasure to meet you and your son.”

Senator Rollins asks, “Fallon, is it? It’s a pleasure to meet you as well. Do I know your family?”

“No!” Catherine interrupts. “She’s a friend of my side of the family. She has never been to this part of our world. I am taking it upon myself to introduce her to society, as a favor for her mother.”

“Oh, well in that case, I hope you enjoy our little part of the world,” Senator Rollins says. “My son Miles, I’m sure would enjoy showing you around. If you’re interested.”

Miles looks at me with want in his eyes and says, “I would love to show you more of our world, Ms. Fallon. I’ll call you if you don’t mind, and we can set something up, at your convenience of course.”

“Yes, thank you. I will need to see how my schedule looks. Catherine has me already engaged in so many different events.”

Senator Rollins looks at Catherine and says, “I am sure, Catherine, you could allow the girl some time to explore with my son.”

“Well, we will see, Rodney!”

As they stare at each other like as if they are at a standoff, another person walks up to us.

“Mother.”

I turn to look, and all of a sudden, I’m trembling. My mystery man from the poker game is here, standing in front of me.

“You!” I say.

He gives me a devilish smile and says, “Mine!”

Catherine comes to my side and says, “Fallon, I would like to introduce my eldest son, Gabriel.”

I whisper, “Gabriel.”

“Yes, my dear. This is one of my sons I so frequently speak of. Gabriel, this is Fallon, the daughter of an old friend.”

“Mother, I believe we have already met.”

“Really? Where?”

“At the casino. We played a game of poker, and your Ms. Fallon here won a hefty amount from me.”

“Oh, yes, I remember that night. Fallon told me all about the game. I’m afraid to tell you, I was her benefactor.”

“Well, Mother, you placed your money in very capable hands.”

I’m so entranced by the shock, I don’t realize there is a tall blonde woman standing next to him.

But she breaks my trance by clearing her throat, “Hello, I’m Angelle. I’m Gabriel’s girlfriend. I see you have already met my father and brother.”

She turns and gives Senator Rollins a kiss on the cheek, then says, “Father, it’s good to see you tonight.” She then nods her head towards her brother and says, “Miles.”

Catherine says, “Angelle, how good of you to come and celebrate Fallon’s birthday with us.”

“Well, thank you, Catherine. I wouldn’t miss a night out with Gabriel, and you know when you call, we show. So how old are you today, Fallon?”

Catherine answers for me. “She turned twenty-one today.”

Angelle remarks, “So young?”

Gabriel jumps in the conversation with, “Angelle, you are only twenty-four.”

“Yes, but Gabriel, I’m a mature twenty-four-year-old, and Fallon here seems so innocent. Like a child, don’t you think?”

“No!” Catherine says. “Innocent, yes, but certainly not childlike. Fallon’s already a gorgeous woman who has seen so much.”

As they interact, I am still there standing in complete shock of him. He has grown a beard. Not a full one, but one shaved close to his face. I feel so small next to Gabriel’s massive frame. I am a modest height of 5’6”, but he is extremely tall, around 6’3”. As I’m sizing him up, I can hear people talking, but all I can see are his eyes staring back at me.

My concentration is broken by Miles asking me if I would like to dance.

“I…I...yes, Miles, I would love to dance. If you will excuse us.”

Miles leads me to the dance floor. He starts to speak of his family, but I can’t think of anything else other than Gabriel. How could she not tell me he was her son? I’m so attracted to him, but I’m so scared of him, too. I thought about how I had believed this man was beyond my level of skills. I know he can destroy me if I let him. I never expected to be in this predicament. I never allowed myself to believe one man would be able to evoke so much emotion from me all at once.

My thoughts are interrupted by Miles stopping our dance. I look up to see Gabriel standing next to us. He tapped Miles on the shoulder and asked for the rest of my dance. Miles reluctantly gives up his hold on me and passes my hand off to Gabriel.

When he touches my hand with his, electric currents pass through my body. He smiles and stares down at me with intensity. He pulls my body closer to him and wraps his arm around my waist. I feel instant heat from him. I wonder if he can feel it, too. We meld so well together, I hope the song never ends. I find myself not wanting him ever to let me go.

“So,” he says, “you turned twenty-one today?” Instantly breaking my train of thought. “So, that made you twenty when we played poker?”

“Yes, I guess I was. I hope you don’t mind. I would hate to be reported for underage gambling.”

“Well, lucky for you, I happen to be the boss.”

“What?”

“My family owns the casino. Didn’t Mother tell you?”

“No, she didn’t.”

He chuckles. ‘’Don’t worry, Fallon. I won’t report you, and with the skill level you played at, I hope to see you again for another game.”

“How old are you, Gabriel?” I find myself asking.

“Twenty-nine. By the way, Fallon is a beautiful name, but I think I like ‘Mine’ maybe a little more.”

“Thank you.”

“Will you be staying here with my mother?”

“Yes. Do you mind?”

“No, I don’t think I mind at all.”

Knowing it’s time to snap out of my shock and start working my charms, I tell him, “Well, I think your girlfriend might mind.” I tilt my head to the side to show him she has been staring at us with hate in her eyes.

With another chuckle, he says, “Ah, yes, Angelle minds everything. She’s not my girlfriend, but she will never allow anyone to see her as just a date.”

“I don’t think I would ever want to be one of your dates.”

A confused look crosses his face as he asks, “Why?”

“On both occasions we’ve met, you have had two different dates, and neither one of them has had your undivided attention. You don’t seem too interested once you get them to go out with you, do you?”

He laughs. “I guess you’re right. I never thought about it, but I promise if you ever were my date, I don’t think you would have a problem holding my attention.”

He leans down into my neck and I let out a giggle. He looks at me with a questioning look.

“Sorry, it’s your beard. It tickled my neck.”

“Oh.” He touches his face, rubbing his hand around his beard. “I’m sorry if you don’t like it. I can shave it.”

“No, no, don’t on my account. I like it. It just took me by surprise, that’s all. You were handsome before when we first met, but now...I like it this way even more.”

As I reach up to touch his beard, we’re pushed by another couple on the dance floor. I stumble over, but Gabriel catches me with an even tighter hold around my waist, sending a sudden surge of intensity through my body.

With our eyes locked on each other, the song ends and we stay just as we are for a few more seconds until he breaks away and leads me back to Catherine.

I see Frederick and Carlos, the men we met in Spain, talking to Catherine. They greet me like we are old friends.

“Happy Birthday, Fallon,” Frederick says. “It’s so good to see your lovely face again.”

“Frederick, you too, And Carlos, how have you been? I hope you are enjoying your new island.”

Carlos, looking devious, says, “Yes, and remember you are more than welcome to come with me anytime you’d like. I would love to show you the island, and so many other things.”

Gabriel makes a noise like a growl and says, “I am sure you would, but it seems Fallon will be too busy with my mother for any adventures with you, old friend.”

I find his response to Carlos’ invitation to me odd, especially since he has no clue what Catherine might or might not have planned for me.

Catherine tells him, “I don’t know, Gabriel. We might have time in our schedule to allow for a short trip with Carlos. That is, if I am invited to tag along?”

Carlos quickly answers, “Always, Catherine. I wouldn’t think of not having you come with Fallon. Please, anytime. I can always adjust my schedule for Fallon and you.”

“Lovely, Carlos. See, Fallon, there are still true gentlemen out in the world.”

“I think I would enjoy that, if Catherine can seem to fit it in. I have the perfect bikini that needs a beach,” I tease.

Kissing my hand, Carlos leans in and says, “I would buy all the beaches in the world just to see you in nothing more than a bikini.”

“Okay, Carlos, don’t get carried away,” Fredrick tells him while Gabriel looks at the floor.

Catherine laughs out and says, “That’s enough, gentlemen. I believe Frederick and I were talking about him investing in our newest casino project.”

“Catherine, please, I don’t think right now is the perfect time for business. It’s a birthday party, after all,” Frederick tells her.

I notice how Catherine isn’t happy with Frederick not wanting to discuss business, so I ask, “Oh, please. Tell me all about it. I don’t mind a little business talk.”

Frederick proceeds to tell me Catherine would like for him to invest a small amount of money to purchase some land for a new casino in England.

“That sounds marvelous! I do so hope you invest. What a great idea for you to be put in on the project from the ground up. It’s so exciting. The casino they have here is so grand. I’m sure to love the new one just as much.”

“Do you like casinos, Fallon?” Frederick asks.

“Yes, I love Catherine’s. The detail she put into the one here attracts so many women. You can tell a woman’s hand was involved in it. Do you know most casinos put women off? Most think it’s all about the men, but when I played poker in her casino, I felt like I belonged, too. Women should flock in droves to a casino like that in England, don’t you think, Frederick?”

Frederick ponders what I said, then says, “Well, now I think I just might. I never thought about it quite like you put it, but you’re right. Now, if you agree to come with me as my escort to the horse race this week, I am sure to sign on the dotted line.”

Acting coy, I ask, “Frederick, are you trying to blackmail me?”

“I play just a little dirty. How about it, Catherine? Does Ms. Fallon have time to come with me this week, then later we can put the finishing touches on our deal?”

I look over to Catherine, and I can see she is very pleased.

“Yes, Frederick, I think we can manage that, since we were already going to the races. I warn you, Frederick, Fallon is on my watch, and you will act like a gentleman.”

“Of course, Catherine.”

Catherine’s attention has turned from Frederick, and she yells out, “Boys!”

Two very handsome and striking men walk up. One is built like a beast and the other is not quite as large, but they are both equally impressive.

“Hello, Mother.”

They both kiss her cheek, then turn to me to be introduced.

“Fallon, these are the rest of my sons, Zander and my youngest, Liam. Boys, this is my ward, Fallon.”

They begin to roam me with their eyes from head to toe; I feel like I’m on display just for their pleasure.

“Mother, you didn’t tell us about your new house guest,” Zander says. “Odd, don’t you think?”

“Nonsense, boys. I recently decided to invite Fallon here. She’ll be staying with me. After all, I do get lonely in this large house, and I enjoy her company; she’s becoming like a daughter to me.”

“Well, if you’re lonely, Mother, I will be glad to stay with you, too, for a while,” Liam says.

“Me, too,” Zander counters.

Laughing out loud, Catherine tells them, “If I knew all it took was a beautiful girl to get you all home with me, I’d have every room filled with them.”

“Gabriel, will you be staying, too, my darling?”

Angelle jumps and says, “No, Catherine, not tonight. We have plans, right Gabriel?”

“I don’t know. I am rather tired, Angelle, and my bed sounds really good right now. I think we might stay. It’ll be like old times. I’m sure, however, your father would be happy to see you home tonight.” He then announces, “Mother, it looks like you have your wish granted. We will all be one giant family tonight.”

“Wonderful, boys. I will start looking for my harem.” Everyone breaks out into laughter, except for Angelle.

The rest of the night is spent dancing. It’s the best night of my life. I dance the night away. Frederick and Miles take turns dancing with me, then Zander and Liam tag team me on the dance floor to an upbeat tune, spinning me around and around between the two. Everyone has gathered around us, and in return we put on a show. I’m in heaven, and after the song is finished, Liam takes my hand and leads us into a slow song.

He tells me, “My brother has been watching you all night.”

With the questioning look I give him, he nods his head to the side and I see Gabriel staring in deep concentration. I instantly feel warmth all over my body from his stare.

“Be careful. I have never seen my brother react to anyone like this before, and he can be rather intense.”

“I don’t think it’s like that, Liam. He has Angelle, and I’m nothing like her.”

“Exactly, Fallon, you are nothing like her. She will never hold his attention like you have tonight.”

“Is that a warning? Should I worry about Gabriel?”

“You seem like a nice girl, Fallon. It’s not that you should be fearful for your life, but I will say he is a lot like our mother. When he wants something, he will get it, and he doesn’t care who or what stands in his way. He can be a dangerous man. So, you should stay away from him unless you’re just looking for some fun, because I don’t think Gabriel will ever settle down, and like I said, you seem like a nice girl.”

I look up at him. “I like you, Liam. I could use a friend.”

“I like you, too, Fallon, and I would love to be your friend.”

Liam and I finish our dance and return to meet with everyone. A few minutes later, Gabriel joins us and holds up a glass of champagne for me. I take it and thank him. Angelle looks ready to explode. The conversation leads into many different directions. As the party starts to come to an end, I lose my footing and Gabriel is there to save me again from falling.

“Are you all right?” he asks with concern.

“How embarrassing. Yes, I’m fine. I think I just had too much champagne, and to be honest, my feet are killing me in these shoes, but thank you. You seemed to have saved me from a fall again. Are you trying to be my hero?”

“Afraid I’ve never been accused of being someone’s hero.”

“Well, you were mine tonight.”

He looks baffled. At the end of the party, I announce that I am going to retire for the night. I go on to thank everyone for coming and tell them it was a pleasure to meet them all.

As I ascend up the stairs, I can still feel the warmth of Gabriel’s stare. Halfway up, I turn to see he is still watching me.

I’ve watched her all night; I just can’t get over seeing her again. The night of the poker game, I asked for her name because I had to know who she was. I had never met a woman like her before. I knew I had to see her again, but then she told me her name was “Mine.” It felt like she was telling me she was indeed mine. I admittedly asked around about her, and of course, no one had any information on the girl named Mine. That night she became a mystery to me, and I have not stopped thinking about her since.

I couldn’t help watching her mingle and dance all night. All I could think about was how she said she wouldn’t want to be my date, yet she agreed to a date with Frederick. She also seemed interested in Miles showing her the city. Then, of course, there was Carlos, who drooled on her all night. I wanted to break his hand when he kissed hers and told her he would buy all the beaches in the world just to see her in a bikini. How dare he touch her. He knows not to fuck with me; I guess he’ll need a reminder. My brothers were no exception. They danced the night away with her and put on quite a show. Well, they had their fun; now it’s over, and that won’t happen again.

When I had her in my arms, I never wanted to let go, and the way my beard tickled her neck, my cock got as hard as a rock. I had to move a little so she wouldn’t feel it. Thank God for that couple pushing us, because I thought I might have to take her out of the room. The warmth of having her in my arms was too much for me to handle. That’s why I never asked her to dance again. Then I had to listen to Angelle bitch about the one dance I did have. When will she learn? I am not hers, and never will be. She is a means to an end, that’s all. Tonight that means I might take her for a hard fuck while thinking of Fallon.

Thinking back on the moment I saved her from the slight slip of her feet, she called me her hero. I never wanted to be anyone’s hero, but I find myself wanting to be exactly that for her. How does she need saving? All she needs to do is tell me and I’ll be right there.

Wow, I’m getting in over my head with this girl. I don’t know anything about her, where she comes from, or who she truly is. My mother never does something for nothing, so by her taking this girl in, it must lead to some end game for her. I’ll figure it out, and maybe have a little fun along the way. She’s just another girl. I have to keep telling myself that. Just another girl, no one special. One day soon, I will get my fill of her and she will end up being just like all the rest.

As she tells us she is going to retire, I watch her ascend towards the stairs; she’s so beautiful. Her dress opens to show off both her legs, and every man has been watching them all night. I’m going to dream about those legs and her full breasts all night long.

Mother comes around to me as I’m watching Fallon walk up the stairs and asks, “Isn’t she lovely?”

“Yes, she is. Who is she, Mom?”

“Gabriel, I already told you, and everyone, she is the daughter of an old friend.”

“Mother, why is she here?”

“As I said, I have been lonely and she’s a beautiful distraction. I’m enjoying her company very much, and she is welcome here for as long as she wants.”

“What kind of game are you playing, Mother? A girl suddenly appears because you are lonely. Come on, Mom; you have never been that lonely. What is your end game? What do you want from her? And exactly what are you expecting from all of this?”

“Gabriel, you think I’m that devious to use a young girl like that? I don’t want anything from her. I just want her to be happy here, and hopefully she can meet the right people.” She looks at me, bewildered. “Gabriel, why are you so concerned? Do you like her? Is that it? What’s your game, son?”

“What do you mean, you want her to meet the right type of people?”

“Funny how you didn’t answer my questions, but continue to question me. I just mean Fallon is a young and very beautiful girl. She can hopefully meet a nice gentleman that she’ll find interesting. She sure does have a lot of them interested in her just after one night. I don’t think it will be too hard to find a suitable suitor for her. Don’t you think?”

Well, that just pisses me off.

“Does she know who we are or what we do? What about what kind of woman you are? Does she know how dangerous a woman you can be if there is something you want from her and don’t get it?”

She laughs at my words and touches my face. “Don’t make me laugh, son. She has an idea of who we are, and she knows who I am. Don’t make a mistake and underestimate her, son. She might be young, but she is not as stupid as you might think. She has been well-versed in life and can withstand more than you know. She is well-cultured and has the ability to hold her own in any room. As you could see from tonight, she is very captivating, don’t you think?”

“Yes, she is very captivating.”

“Are you going to answer my question now, Gabriel? Do you like her? Did she somehow captivate you?”

I turn, not answering her question, and simply say, “Goodnight, Mother. I will see you in the morning. I’m going to have a cigar, then retire for the night.”

I kiss my mother’s cheek and start to walk off, but she stops me. “Oh, Gabriel, Angelle wanted me to tell you she went to your bedroom for the night. I will see you in the morning. Sleep well, my love.”

“You, too, Mom.”

I walk onto the outside porch, light my cigar, and take a seat. The night sky is lighting up with heat lightning. I love nights like this. Kicking my feet up on the table, I enjoy the show. My brothers interrupt my peace and take a seat.

“Well, what a night,” Liam starts.

“What do you two want?” I ask.

“We just figured we would enjoy the sky with you, like when we were little kids,” Liam answers.

Zander interrupts, “Here, I brought you a drink, Gabriel. So, big brother, what were you thinking? I bet I can guess.”

“Really? What do you think I’m thinking about, Zander?”

“Mom’s little house guest, of course. I think every man in that room was thinking about our little Fallon.”

With a growl, I say, “She is not ours, Zander!”

“Well, maybe not now, but I might take a crack at her.”

With a harsh voice, I tell him, “You won’t touch her, Zander. Do you hear me?”

“I heard you, brother, but why are you interested in her?”

“I’m just being cautious. We don’t know anything about this girl, and I don’t want any trouble.”

They both laugh out loud.

Through his laughter, Liam says, “Wow, Zander, did you hear Gabriel? He’s going to try and deny he wants the girl. Oh, brother, come on, everyone saw how you watched her all night. Angelle definitely saw you watching her. Why do you think she went to bed so early? I bet you didn’t even notice when Angelle walked out of the room.”

“Shut up, Liam, and both of you leave her alone. I’m going to bed.”

As I walk away, they both continue to laugh at me. Assholes! They’re lucky they’re my brothers, or I would have beat the shit out of them.

Going up the stairs, I remove my jacket and start to loosen my bow tie. Walking towards my room, I open the door.

“Oh, shit! I’m sorry! What are you doing in my room, Fallon?”

“What do you mean, your room? This is my room!”

“Well, it is my room, or was. Sorry, I guess my mother moved me into another room. She must have forgotten to tell me, and she obviously redecorated.”

I truly didn’t even notice the room. Here Fallon stands in my bedroom, and I could barely breathe. It’s like the gods had delivered her to me on a silver platter.

My mother’s surely playing some game, and now I think I might be one of her game pieces.

Fallon shakes her head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I can move to another room.”

“No, it’s fine. I barely spend time in here anymore. I’ll go. Goodnight, Fallon.”

As I’m nearly out the door, I hear her call out my name. “Gabriel?”

“Yes?”

“Can…do you think you could help me? My zipper seems to be stuck, and I can’t get out of my dress. I thought I was going to have to sleep in it. Would you mind trying the zipper for me before you leave?”

What the hell? She’s trying to kill me.

“Umm...yeah, I should be able to help.”

I throw my jacket on the bed and walk to her as she stands there watching.

I whisper to her, “You have to turn around.”

“Oh, yeah, sorry.”

“No problem.”

She turns around, and I help her by moving her long hair to the side of her shoulder. I take a deep breath as I look at her now exposed neck and shoulders.

“Gabriel?”

“Fallon?”

“Here you go playing my hero again.”

I’m frozen by her words.

“Is there a problem, Gabriel?”

“Huh? Oh, no. I’m just...here we go.”

I try to pull the zipper and realize it’s indeed stuck. It won’t budge.

“Fallon, looks like there might be a problem. The zipper won’t move at all.”

“What? It has to! I can’t sleep in it all night, and I don’t want to ruin it. Your mother bought it for me.”

“Well, in that case!”

I rip the back of the dress right down the center, and it tears in half all the way down. She grabs the front of the dress while making a shrieking sound. Her back is totally exposed to me. The energy in the room has now shifted to a sexual one. I can’t help staring at her back end. She is wearing a matching lace, all in one lingerie piece. Low on her back, and high on her hips. Her full round ass is a work of art. I can’t help myself. I touch her back with the back of my hand and start to trail downward.

In a husky voice, I whisper her name, “Fallon.”

“Gabriel, I...”

As my hand slowly grabs hold of her tiny waist, I turn her to face me. With her eyes on me, I take the dress from her hands, letting it fall to the floor. My eyes roam her body in her lace corset. It pushes her breasts up to a perfect curvature on top. I take my finger and start at her shoulder, then slowly run it down to follow the swell of her breasts. She begins breathing heavily now. Her chest is rising hard and fast. I stop abruptly when she opens her mouth.

“Don’t...” she whispers.

I look at her, trying to understand why she’s asking me to stop.

“Gabriel, I...I...”

“Goodnight, Fallon.”

I turn and walk out of the room before I wouldn’t be able to stop.

This woman almost had me begging. I decide not to go looking for Angelle; she wouldn’t even be a decent substitute for Fallon. I go looking for the nearest room I know won’t be occupied and slam the door shut.

Why would she want me to stop? It doesn’t make sense. I know she felt it. The charge between us was on fire. Was she scared to get burnt? There is a sudden deep need for me to have this girl, but I’m going to play the game. I’ll be patient and wait for now. I’m going to see where all the pieces fall before I act. Strength and patience are two of my best qualities.

Sleep takes forever to fall upon me, but when I do, I dream of her. Her crystal green eyes, her mouth, her body. In my dream, I show her what I could do to her. How I can control her body in every way. I take her with everything I have. I wake up with the hardest dick I’ve ever had. I go to the shower and start to jerk off to the memory of her, images of her beautiful breast and her perfect ass still etched in my memory. I kept replaying it over and over. It doesn’t take long before I spill onto the shower floor. I wish it made me feel better, but it doesn’t. I dress and get ready for breakfast with the family, and Fallon.

I stroll downstairs to find everyone already there, except Angelle.

“Morning, everyone,” I tell them.

I kiss my mother’s cheek, nod to my brothers, then take a seat right across from Fallon.

“Good morning, Fallon.”

“Good morning, Gabriel.”

I look toward my mother and ask, “Where’s Angelle?”

“She left early this morning; she didn’t seem happy at all. She said you never made it to bed last night. What happened?”

With a raised eyebrow, I tell her, “It seems like you moved my room and forgot to tell me.”

“Oh my God, Gabriel, did Jeffery not tell you I gave the room to Fallon?” She then turns toward Jeffery and asks, “Jeffery, did you not tell Gabriel about the room change?”

I know this is all for show, but I continue to watch it all.

“No, madam, I never saw Mr. Gabriel before I retired for the evening. I apologize, sir.”

“It’s all right, Jeffery. I didn’t want to wake everyone in the house searching for Angelle, so I just slept in the first room I found empty. I’ll explain it to her later.”

Mother smiles and says, “I’m sure she’ll understand.” Now she addresses Fallon, “I sure hope Gabriel didn’t scare you entering into your room unannounced.”

Fallon answers, “No, Catherine, it’s fine. I wasn’t indisposed.”

I chime in wickedly, “Actually, it was a good thing I stumbled into the wrong room. Fallon needed assistance with her dress. It seemed the zipper had gotten stuck.”

“Oh my, Fallon, I hope Gabriel was able to help?” Mother frantically asks.

“I was, Mother, but I’m afraid the lovely dress didn’t survive.”

I look up after buttering my toast to see Fallon staring daggers in my direction.

We all continue to eat and talk of nothing particularly. When everyone is done, we all stand and say our goodbyes. I stay a little longer to get a few more minutes with Fallon. She waits for everyone to walk out of the room, then walks over to me and slaps me across the face.

Stunned I ask, “What the hell was that for?”

“How dare you mention the dress, then allow them to presume you got a look at me?”

“I did get a look at you, Fallon, and it was a great view.”

She goes to slap me again, but I stop her by her wrist. “Don't!”

I use the same word she used on me last night; let’s see if she likes it. She just stares at me as she fumes.

I let go of her wrist and tell her, “Goodbye, Fallon.”

I start to panic...how dare he mention the dress? I don’t want Catherine thinking I moved too quick, that I made it easy for him. I overhear her saying her goodbyes to her sons. When I look up and see Catherine staring back at me while leaning on the door opening.

I start, “Catherine, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for the dress incident to happen!”

She shushes me to stop talking, then I see a huge grin on her face.

“My dear, dear girl. I know. I planned it that way.”

“What?”

“Yes, Fallon. I asked the stylist to set the zipper up to stick, and I purposely set you up in Gabriel’s room, then sent him there to find you. It worked out perfectly, don’t you think?”

“Catherine, how...never mind. More importantly, why didn’t you tell me he was your son? Instead, I was thrown off guard. What if I would’ve done something for him not to want me? I was so dumbfounded. I could have messed it all up for us both.”

“Fallon, your reaction was perfect. I needed you to be just as shocked as him. If you had acted like you expected him to be my son, he would know something was up. He would have suspected it was a setup.”

“I still wish you would have warned me.”

“Why, Fallon?” She squints her eyes and asks.

I look toward the floor and admit, “I’m nervous around him. He throws me off my game, and he scares me a little. Maybe if I was prepared –”

“You what, Fallon? Would you have left or stayed? Which is it, because I don’t have time for you to decide now it’s not worth it?”

“It’s not like that, Catherine; I didn’t expect to be attracted to him this much, is all. I told you the night of the poker game how I felt, and you never said anything. Why?”

She walks over to the table and takes a seat. “I needed to make sure that night. I needed to see if he found you intriguing and if you would be interested in him. Do you want to know what I saw that night, Fallon?”

I nod my head.

“I saw sparks! The energy you two gave off was highly charged. I saw the physical attraction right away. When the both of you started to interact in conversation, it was like no one else was in the room. I knew that night beyond a shadow of a doubt, you two were meant for each other.”

“I worry, Catherine. I think I could fall in love with him, and it scares me. I never expected for love to be part of the end game.”

“I hope you do fall in love with him, Fallon. If you love him, you’re more likely to protect him. The more you will be willing to forgive his failings and comfort him when needed.” She tilts her head. “Now, from woman to woman, if you do fall in love with him, I will feel sorry for you. Because only when you love someone do they have the power to destroy you.”

I sit down, thinking about what she’s telling me. I knew this was what I was so scared of: Gabriel would have all the power.

“Fallon, I never required you to love him. I knew, though, when you would have children for him, the love you would feel for them would secure your future with this family. You would never leave them, and you would want only the best for them, which Gabriel can provide.” The smile disappears from her face, and she begins again. “Listen to me, Fallon. I have come to care for you greatly, and I don’t want to see you hurt. I know this will work, and I am so glad you like Gabriel, but don’t allow yourself to be at his beck and call. If you fall in love with him, you must learn to guard your heart. As his mother, of course, I wish for him to find love, but you will need to be cautious.”

I look up. “Did you love Gabriel’s father?”

“Yes and no. I loved William, but not as a wife should have. But he didn’t marry me for love either. He wanted the idea of me. I became his possession. After Gabriel was born, I thought love was possible, but it wasn’t. William was larger than life and more handsome than any other man I knew when I met him. I wanted to be loved by him, but he allowed his possessiveness for me to drive him crazy. He became a man I didn’t recognize anymore; he became weak. As far as my children, they became everything, and that’s the only love I needed. In the end, I did love him because of my children, but not as I should have. Not as he deserved. And it ruined the both of us. Don’t worry, Fallon, my sons are nothing like their father. I made sure of it.”

“Catherine, did you ever fall in love?”

She looks up at me, then stands and walks out of the room without answering.