“Oh, this tortellini is the best. It is simply to die for,” Robert Walters said as he finished his dish. He pushed back from the table and held back a burp until he was satisfied.

Angela was only mildly grossed out, but she was pretty much used to this. They were eating dinner at Da Vinci’s—her father’s favorite Italian—and so far everything had been going pretty smoothly. Her mother was prattling on about this engagement and that engagement that she presently had in the works and how well the new fragrance was doing that they had just launched. It had been her idea and her pet project. Robert had been a bit hesitant to make the slight leap from fashion to fragrance, but he left Jane in charge of it and it had been a fairly successful launch.

Angela was a bit shocked that her father and mother had asked her to dinner on a Sunday night, especially at the last minute, but it turns out the Guernsey’s were suddenly unavailable due to some illness in the family and they’d had to rush out of town. Angela felt pretty certain that was a total crock and she had a feeling her parents knew it too, but it was rather unspoken. The Guernsey’s had been their closest neighbors in all the years they had resided in Manhattan. Angela knew them quite well. They were nice people, but they were in fact painfully boring as hell. But for some reason, every so often her parents felt the need to have dinner with them. It was very odd.

“It was very good. I usually don’t care for tortellini, but I thought this was splendid,” Angela’s mother said.

“I’m surprised you ate any pasta. Aren’t you totally averse to carbs, mom?” Angela asked. She loved to kid her mother about her constant inability to stick to any one diet. She was always on some new diet plan and after a week or two she would chuck it for another flavor of the month weight loss plan that was destined to work. Of course, her mother was barely a size six and didn’t need to lose weight unless she wanted to disappear, but it was true that once a model—always a model. At least in the mind. Her mother still ate like she was getting ready for a big photoshoot.

Angela wondered if she would have to start monitoring every ounce of food that went into her mouth soon. Nick had called her earlier and told her that one of the agencies he did work for loved her pictures. They felt that there was something raw and pure in her that they had not really seen before and they knew that she could be a new up-and-coming talent. Angela had almost wet herself with joy. She instantly phoned Richard who offered his congratulations. It felt so sweet to have his approval and she thanked him profusely for setting it all up. If it hadn’t been for him then she never would have taken the plunge.

Now she just had to break the news to her parents.

“So, you played some golf today, dad?” Angela asked. She figured that talking about her father’s greatest passion might be a good lead in.

“That I did.”

“How did you do?”

“Not bad, not bad.”

“How did you know I played today?”

“Oh, I ran into Richard Kane at the country club this morning and he mentioned you guys were playing.”

“Oh, yeah. I meant to talk to you about him,” Robert said.

“Yes?” Angela asked nervously.

“I think he has designs on you,” Robert replied.

“What? What are you talking about?” Angela asked.

“Robert, don’t go jumping to conclusions,” Jane added.

“I’m not. The man tells me today when we were playing golf that he helped Angela get a modeling portfolio together. The only time that man goes out of his way to help a beautiful, young woman out like that is when he is interested in her romantically.”

“That’s preposterous. You can’t judge something like that,” Angela said.

“Are you denying that he is interested in you?”

Angela was quiet a moment. She figured it was now or never.

“So what if he is?” Angela asked.

“Angela, surely you can’t be serious,” her mother began.

“It’s disgraceful,” her father chimed back in.

“Why? Why is it disgraceful? What is wrong with it? He likes me and I like him.”

“The man is my age. That is very strange, don’t you think?” Robert asked.

“No, I don’t think it’s strange at all. He’s an attractive and successful man who seems to think that I am very special.”

“He thinks all beautiful women are special.”

“You really don’t know him as well as you think you do.”

“Really? So he really thinks you have what it takes to be a model?” her father asked.

“Yes. As a matter of fact he does and so do I. And so does Nick the photographer Richard introduced me to and Madeline Cale.”

“Madeline Cale? What are you talking about?” Robert asked.

“Nick sent my pictures to The Cale Group and Madeline responded back that they are very interested in me. That’s right—they loved my pictures.”

“Well, honey that is great. I am very happy for you,” Jane said.

“What about you, dad? Are you happy for me too? Are you eating your words about now?” Angela said. The anger was really welling up deep inside of her now.

“I’m happy for you too,” Robert said. “That is terrific news.”

“I don’t believe you. All my life I’ve dreamed of being a model and you both steered me clear of it. You would never even let me speak about it growing up. Why? Did you not think I was good enough?”

“It’s not that; we knew that you could be anything you wanted to be. You have the brains and the beauty to conquer the world, sweetie,” Robert said.

“Then why? Why did you refuse to ever give me this chance?”

“We were trying to protect you. This business chews people up and spits them out. It’s not the type of environment we wanted you to become a part of,” Jane said. “I’ve been there; I know what it’s like. We wanted something better for you.”

“I don’t believe it. You never thought for a moment to let me make that decision for myself?”

“We wanted what was best for you. We love you and like your mother says we were trying to keep you safe,” Robert said.

“I could understand that when I was a child, but not now. When I grew up, when I turned eighteen you wouldn’t hear of it then either. You just dismissed it anytime I thought of it until I had almost forgotten about the dream entirely. Until Richard Kane revived it in me.”

“I don’t want you to see that man romantically,” Robert said. “He is a womanizer. He will throw you aside when he gets bored with you. Just wait and see.”

“He is one of your closest friends. How can you think so lowly of him?” Angela asked.

“He is a good friend to us. We’re not impressionable young girls that he is trying to woo into bed.”

“That’s ridiculous. I know his history. I know that he has a reputation, but I also know that people like to form opinions of others to make themselves feel better and they are hardly ever fully accurate. I am old enough to decide what goals I pursue and I am old enough to decide what man I want.”

Angela threw down her napkin and stormed out of the restaurant. She didn’t want to make a scene but she wasn’t able to keep her voice down to a low level anymore and it was going to end up a huge embarrassment if it went on any further. She really wished she had waited until she got the two of them alone, but she didn’t want to go back home with them and with her having her own place now she realized it might not be something that could happen anytime soon.

The air outside had an instant calming effect on her and she took several large, deep breaths. She felt the sudden urge for a cigarette and dismissed it quickly. She had not picked up a nasty cigarette since she was eighteen and she didn’t intend to break her streak now. It had been silly to give into peer pressure when she was fifteen and while there were a lot of worse things she could have become addicted to, she hated every single time she put one of those cancer sticks in her mouth. But during times of great stress, she found herself wishing for one and the calmness that followed a good smoke.

She hailed the first cab she could and gave the cabbie her address. As she rode in silence, ignoring the cab driver’s lame attempts at conversation, she thought about the heated exchange between her and her parents at the restaurant. She would probably call them later tonight or in the morning and they would smooth things over.

It was easy to understand where they were coming from on both counts, but the way her father said things—as if she was a little girl and she was going to be sent to her room if she didn’t do exactly as he said—set her off and she found the rage overwhelming. It had always been that way between them. Any time she had decided to step up and place a limit or a boundary to the level of control she was going to let her parents have over her it was a bit of a power struggle. She didn’t know if it was normal or if it was just something unique that her family did. Her friend’s had much worse relationships with their parents, so she assumed that she was actually pretty lucky. But it was still very difficult at times.

The second she walked through her door she grabbed herself a vodka tonic and sat down to rest. It was funny the way that stepping into her house really was like stepping into a sanctuary where all of her problems just melted away.

She was in that very chair that she was now sitting in when she had received the phone call that was possibly going to change her life. Nick had phoned her to say that Madeline would be calling her in the next day or two and they were going to talk about their interest in her and the portfolio.

She wasn’t sure she was going to be able to sleep that night. The excitement that was coursing through her veins was non-stop adrenaline. It was the type of giddiness that one might feel on their wedding day or the night of the big Prom date. She had replayed the conversation with Nick over and over in her mind. She didn’t think that it would ever leave her.

She wished that Richard had been there with her. Being with him would have made it all so complete. She wanted him so badly. The way he made her feel was too intense for words and despite what her parents said, she knew who he was much better than they did. She could see behind the man’s disguise that he wore to present to the outside world.

Ten minutes later Angela found herself sitting in her Jacuzzi upstairs. She loved to end the day with a nice drink and a hot Jacuzzi bubble bath. It had been calling her name all evening and now it was definitely hitting the spot. If only Richard had been there to hit all the other spots…

She thought about calling him. She glanced at her phone and just wondered what he would think if she called him up and invited him over for a hot Jacuzzi bubble bath. She doubted he would turn her down.

Oh, it was so tempting and inviting, but she couldn’t do it. She would no doubt lose all control and just surrender to him. She really wanted the time to be right. As she thought more about it, she realized perhaps for the first time, that she didn’t want to lose it to anyone but the person she was married to. It was really old-fashioned thinking and she was not at all opposed to premarital sex for moral or religious reasons, but she loved the romance of it. She loved the idea that she belonged to just one person—mind, body, and soul. Was Richard Kane that person? She hoped so. She found herself constantly dreaming of it happening. She wanted everything to get better and better between the two of them.

* * *

The next morning Angela awoke with the burning thought in her mind that she had to tell Richard the decision she had made. She had never told anyone that she was a virgin and now that she had actually decided to wait until marriage, she couldn’t string Richard along like that. He had to know and she had to know if he saw enough of a future in what they had to wait and continue to pursue this relationship knowing that it may never have full physical fulfillment.

It was just after seven in the morning, but she figured that he was up. A man like Richard was probably already doing business. He didn’t strike her as the type of man who slept in very long. She admired his commitment to the important things in his life; it was one of the sexiest things about him. Even if he was not rich and powerful, just seeing the passion that he had for anything he did and the desire to reach his goals was a very attractive quality. Angela had always been turned on by such things in a man.

“Hello?” Richard answered. He sounded slightly out of breath and for a moment Angela thought the worst, but then she heard traffic in the background.

“Richard?” Angela asked.

“Hey, how’s it going? Strange hearing from you this early,” Richard said.

“Is this a bad time?”

“No, I’m just out for my morning jog. I could use a quick break.”

Angela felt a sigh of relief and she instantly felt stupid for thinking that Richard might be in the middle of carnal pleasure with someone else. But then again, even if he was they had not committed to being in a relationship with each other yet anyway. She hoped that would change soon.

“I was hoping we could have dinner tonight? I really need to speak with you,” Angela said.

“Sure. Why don’t you come over to my place at seven? I’ll have my butler whip up something fabulous. We will make a great night of it.”

“Okay, that sounds good.”

“Great. I’ll see you then, beautiful.”

“Okay,” Angela said as she ended the call. She loved it when he called her beautiful. She knew she was very attractive and the fact that she was on the budding cusp of a career in modeling was really solidifying that, but hearing that from his mouth always made her blush.

She took several deep breaths as she got out of bed. Richard was already up at this ungodly hour and he was finishing a jog. It had been a while since she had been jogging. It used to be something that she did all the time, but as her college years went on and she became more and more comfortable with sleeping in, she decided that she didn’t care for it anymore.

But that was about to change. Knowing that she might have a real chance in realizing her dreams of being a top model she had to start to adopt the lifestyle and habits of a model. She was not concerned with being anorexic and having the scrawny eating-disorder-look that used to be popular, but she could be a bit more toned and maybe drop a few pounds. Too many parties and too much champagne could really wreak havoc on your body if you didn’t pay attention to it.

Before she knew it, she was ignoring her instincts to grab a bagel and load it with cream cheese while having her morning coffee; instead, she was lacing up her running shoes and hitting the pavement. It was beautiful outside and she was glad she had made this decision the second she stepped outside.

Her conditioning was not quite as bad as she thought it was, but she still felt that she needed to be in much better shape. After about a mile her legs felt like they were ready to fall off and the pain in her side was becoming almost unbearable. She had not stretched nearly enough and she was quickly learning that lesson, but it was a valiant effort for her first day back to jogging. As she walked back to her apartment she made the vow that she would start jogging at least two miles every day and hope to have that stretched up to five miles with six weeks. It was a lofty goal, but she was dead set on it. It would feel good to achieve this.

* * *

The day flew by and before she knew it she was arriving at Richard’s luxury, penthouse apartment. He greeted her at the door and the instant she stepped inside she could smell the amazing food that had been prepared. She wondered if Richard’s butler was as good in the kitchen as her parent’s butler, but from just the aroma of the food that he had fixed, she was going to have to say ‘yes’ to that one.

Angela had actually spent the entire day pampering herself, mostly as a distraction from watching the clock all day as she nervously awaited Richard’s response to what she had to tell him. She also realized that she had been neglecting a few of the bare essentials that any self-respecting model had to stay on top of.

First, she went to Nail City to get a manicure and a pedicure. It had been a few months and she could instantly feel what she had been missing. The stress of life just seemed to wash out of her as the staff went to work on her.

After her nails were taken care of she went to the beauty salon for a touch-up. Her hair just needed a trim and she wondered if her regular guy, Alejandro, could work some magic and make something special happen. Of course he did. He was a master at doing very little and making something pop in an unexpected way. Her hair had the same style but there was some obvious life breathed into it.

Finally, she had treated herself to a spa day with a deep tissue full body massage and a paraffin dip on her hands and feet—it was spectacular. After all of this, she had time to run home and grab a quick two-hour nap before she had to get ready for her date with Richard.

Now here she was in his apartment wearing her best dress. She knew that she looked good enough to awaken a man from a coma and she could tell by the way that Richard’s eyes popped out of his head at the sight of her that he felt the same way.

“Well, hello,” Richard said.

He instantly wrapped her in a warm embrace and kissed her gently on the lips. It was a soft, sweet, greeting kiss but it was still as electrifying as she remembered it being in the hansom cab.

“How are you?” Angela asked.

“I am much better now. You look even more incredible than usual. How is that possible? It’s blowing my mind away,” Richard said.

“Well, thank you. I have to return the compliment.”

“I’ll accept,” Richard said with a smile. Only he could pull off a statement that cocky. She couldn’t help but smile at the cheek of it.

The dinner was fantastic. The butler, Daniels, prepared a luxurious four-course banquet: caviar with crab, potato and crème fraîche to start; pan-seared scallops with a cauliflower purée; a slow-roasted lamb rump that was so succulent it melted in the mouth; and a delicious salted caramel tart with quince curd ice cream. Angela had not indulged in such amazing food—and certainly not so much—for a long while and she realized that it might have been counterproductive to her new commitment to health and fitness.

After dinner, she and Richard retired upstairs to his billiard room. He had told her of his love for this game and she had to admit that she had always been a fan as well. But she wasn’t prepared for exactly how good he. She was starting to see a pattern here; Richard was apparently better at everything than everyone else. But he was not the least bit cocky about it—that was what she loved.

It had been a while since she’d had the stick in her hands, but she came back to it naturally and she actually won a few rounds, though she had the feeling that Richard was holding back some for her benefit. She thought that was rather sweet.

After the game, they sat down on the leather sofa on the side of the room near the mini bar and Richard mixed together a few martinis. As they sipped their drinks, Angela felt the part of the evening she had been both dreading and looking forward to.

“So, I sense that something is on your mind. You did say there was something you wished to speak to me about,” Richard said as he sat down with his second martini. Angela was still on her first.

“Yeah, this isn’t easy for me to say,” Angela began.

“Just out with it. That is the easiest way to say something difficult. There’s no reason to let it build within you where it’s doing damage. Let it out,” Richard said.

Angela took a deep breath. “I really like you, Richard. In fact, I find myself falling very strongly for you, and I hope you feel the same way as I do.”

Richard sat his drink down and held her hands in his, “I do, Angela.”

“I’m so glad to hear that, but there is something I have to be truthful with you about,” Angela said. She took a deep breath, “I’m a virgin.”

Richard flinched for a second, but it was more of a look of surprise than shock or judgment.

“I see,” Richard said. “You aren’t experienced in the ways of love.”

“No, not that way.”

“There is nothing to be nervous about,” Richard said.

He leaned forward and kissed her softly. His lips were magnetic, drawing her whole body towards him as his hand gently nudged her closer, resting on the small of her back. Her body began to get warmer as her thoughts swirled around her head.

His kiss was getting stronger and deeper—she loved it. His hot mouth pressed on hers, his tongue entering and grazing across her own tongue. It was all too much and she felt her entire body begin to give in. She wanted this so badly. She needed this. It was everything that she had ever thought it could be and it was all right here and it was ready for her right now. All she had to do was surrender herself to it and just let go. Let go Angela. Let go. The voice echoed in her head but she knew that was not the real her, and she just could not allow herself to listen to it any longer.

Angela pulled her head back and stood up, pacing in front of the couch. She tried to catch her breath and allow her body and hormones to return to their normal state.

“What’s wrong?” Richard asked.

“I can’t do this. I have to finish telling you what I came to tell you.”

“Are you putting an end to us, Angela?” Richard asked.

“What? No. I don’t think so. I don’t want that. I’m falling completely in love with you, I’m sure you can feel that,” Angela said.

“I think I do.”

“But there’s more I have to tell you if we’re to continue on with this,” Angela said.

“Okay, I’m all ears,” Richard said as he leaned back on the couch.

“I want my first act of physical love to be on my wedding night.”

Angela breathed heavily, relishing in the weight that she had just taken off her shoulders. She waited for Richard’s reaction. His face was neutral; his eyes were calm, yet serious. She wasn’t getting a real read on him here and the silence was unbearable as he squinted slightly as if he were deep in thought.

“I understand,” Richard said.

“Really?”

“Yes, of course. I understand how you feel and I absolutely respect that.”

“I’m so glad to hear you say that,” Angela said. “But what does that mean for us?”

“What do you mean?” Richard asked.

“Well, do you still want to pursue us? I mean, it is possible that what we have might never reach that level.”

Richard smiled at her warmly, “Angela, I feel closer to you than I’ve felt to any woman in so long. I don’t just want your body; I want you. I think what we have is special. I know that given enough time it can turn into something that most only dream of. I trust that enough to give up the physical pleasures of the flesh for what we have.”

Angela wiped her eyes as the tears began to fall down. She could not believe those words were leaving Richard’s lips. Was he really serious?

“Oh, wow... that is such a relief,” Angela said.

Richard stood up and wrapped her in his arms. He kissed her softly on the lips again and held her face to his. His warmth was so sweet and kind. Angela felt that when she was in his arms like this that there was nothing in the world that she couldn’t do and nothing in the world that could harm her. It was the safest she had ever felt. She had not even realized that she felt insecure a lot of the time until she was being held by Richard and this overwhelming sense of peace was washing over her.

“Has this been worrying you? You should have talked to me sooner,” Richard said.

“Well, we only just started to make our romantic feelings known to each other. I like to take things slow and I was sure that you would turn from me,” Angela said.

“Well, I guess I still have a few surprises up my sleeve to keep things interesting for you,” Richard said.

He pulled a small remote control out of his pocket just then and pressed a button, flooding the room with romantic music. Angela had to laugh; Richard was right—he was full of surprises.

As they danced the silence between them was sweet and warm; it was not the least bit awkward or strange. After everything that had been discussed, Angela thought it would have been a bit tense but it was as smooth as silk—it just felt right. Richard was the guy she thought he was; she was beginning to understand that now. She could sense the slightest bit of hesitation that was dwelling deeply inside of her starting to retreat. With everything that everyone had told her about him all these years and with what she herself had seen from him in public, it made sense for her to harbor some reservations about him, but since they had become romantic her expectations were repeatedly blown away.

“I have an idea,” Richard said as she looked deeply into her eyes. His smile was as inviting as always and there was a playful curiosity dancing behind the beauty of his eyes right then.

“What’s that?” Angela responded playfully.

“How about we go away for the weekend? I have a beautiful home in Hawaii and I haven’t been there in a while. It’s been crazy at work for so long that I’m getting a bit burnt out; I could use the break and I could really use the company.”

Angela thought for a moment. This could be serious, “It sounds enticing, but what about what we just spoke about?”

“What about it? I have plenty of space there; you will have your own room. It will be a blast: we can surf and enjoy the fine food on the island. Have you ever been?”

“Once, when I was eleven. I loved it. They have the bluest, clearest water I’ve ever seen. It’s like another world down there.”

“That it is. What do you think? Will you accompany me?”

Angela mulled it over for a few moments, but Richard’s charm proved to be too much for her to say no.

“Okay, but you behave yourself,” Angela said as she kissed him.

“Oh, I’ll be on my best behavior,” Richard said between kisses as they continued to dance. Her head started to spin a little bit again, but she smiled at the feeling. It was something she was probably going to have to get used to with this perfect specimen of a man she was falling in love with.

She closed her eyes and listened to the music moving their bodies back and forth. Angela rested her head against Richard’s strong chest as they danced slowly. It was the perfect end to a perfect evening.