Chapter 20

Gemma

I had never been to California before; I had never been anywhere outside Washington. What struck me first was the weather. I’d had to ditch the back sweater long ago, and now I remained in my pink top and the jeans I had been wearing for the past three days. The heat was getting to me already.

“Thank you,” I said meekly when I stepped out of the black, chauffeur-driven Mercedes that had been waiting for us at the airport. I looked up at the house in awe, struck by how big it was, how much bigger than the cabin we had been shacked up in for the past few days.

“Welcome to my home,” Vincent said with a smile as he gave me his arm. I clung to him tightly as he led me up the gravel path toward the beautiful red-brick house we were about to enter. A man was holding the door open for us, smiling at Vincent and me politely. Everywhere I looked, I could see lush green grass, decorated primly with flowers and trees. There was even a fountain in the middle of the driveway where the car was parked.

I felt suddenly small, my neck heating quickly with self-consciousness. I hadn’t known what to expect, but not this much opulence.

“Do you live alone?” I asked him in a whisper, as though someone might overhear us.

Vincent gave out a short laugh and nodded. “I do, yes, I know… what a waste, right?” he said, in his usual calm and friendly way. He led me up the marble steps to the man at the door.

“Good morning, Tim,” he said, to the man who must have been his what… butler?

“Good morning, sir. I trust you’ve had a good trip,” the man said, swinging his gaze from Vincent to me. If he was surprised by my presence, he was hiding it well. Or perhaps he wasn’t surprised at all, and Vincent turned up with a woman on his arm every other morning.

“This is Ms. Ramsey; she will be staying with us for a few days,” Vincent told Tim as he led me into the house.

I nearly gasped as I stepped inside the palatial foyer. The walls were a rich ivory, with thick red curtains hanging from long French windows. If the cabin was cozy in its luxury, Vincent’s own home was overtly grand and sophisticated. I immediately felt dirty and underdressed, but I had nowhere to hide.

“I wish I could give you the tour, Gemma, but I have that meeting to go to,” Vincent said, gently letting go of my hand.

I nodded, looking around me in awe. He had a pleased expression on his face when our eyes met again.

“I shouldn’t be long, but Tim will show you up to my bedroom so that you can settle in,” he said, turning to Tim, who was still standing with his hands behind his back.

I nodded again, my words stuck in my throat. I didn’t even want to know what Tim thought of the whole situation. About the fact that Vincent had just commanded him to show this stranger up to his bedroom.

“Of course, sir. Come with me, madam. Do you have any bags?” Tim asked, passing me by with a ramrod straight back.

“Umm… no,” I said, blushing as I threw a look at Vincent.

“Change into something fresh if you like. Raid my closet.” Vincent smiled at me, pushing his hands into his pockets. I was still blushing, still at a loss for words. I was so afraid of saying the wrong thing or doing something horrifically stupid.

“I’ll see you in a bit, Gemma. Make yourself comfortable,” Vincent said before turning to the front door again.

I turned to Tim, who was waiting for me at the foot of the spiral stairs that disappeared somewhere upstairs. This was going to be a weird day.

****

I sank low into the marble bathtub in Vincent’s master bath, allowing my hair to soak through completely. I had been in this house for close to four hours and had nothing to do. I hadn’t heard from Vincent either.

My cell phone was lying on the little table next to the tub, and I was eyeing it suspiciously from the corner of my eye. I had to make that call at some point. It was better to do it now that Vincent wasn’t around, I thought, and reached for it.

When I switched it on, I ignored the volley of texts that came pouring in again and just called Mom straight away.

“Gemma!” Her voice sounded strained. “Where are you, girl?” she asked, answering within the first two rings. It was like she had been sitting next to the phone all day, waiting for my call. Maybe she had. A pang of guilt shot through my body.

“I’m trying to sort out my life, Mom,” I said, overwhelmed by both mental and physical exhaustion.

“What is that supposed to even mean? When are you coming home?” she asked in a voice that sounded like she was close to giving up. She wasn’t screaming this time. I could see why she was confused; I had never done anything like this before.

“I don’t know, Mom, not for a few more days, I think,” I replied, dragging my fingers through the soapy hot water in the tub.

“I sent your cousin Billy out looking for you,” she said.

I sat up in the tub and water splashed out on the marble floor. “Why would you do that?” I snapped.

“Because we were worried for you. We don’t know where you are, who you’re with. Billy said that the last place you were seen was at the diner and that you left with that strange man,” I could hear Dad coughing in the background, and I was guilty again. I knew they needed me. I knew they were worried. But for once in my life, I was living for myself.

I squared my shoulders and shut my eyes tightly closed. “I’m still with him.”

She gasped. “Are you being held against your will?”

“No, Mom, I’m just spending some time with him,” I replied, taking in deep breaths to calm myself.

“Spending time with him? Like, you’re in a relationship with him?” she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper. She didn’t want Dad to hear this.

“I don’t know what it is; we’re just getting to know each other, Mom,” I told her, dropping my voice, too. I didn’t want Vincent walking in and catching me talking about him.

“Who is he?” she asked.

“I can’t tell you that,” I said, growing tired of this conversation now. It was going nowhere. I had just wanted her to know that I was well and fine so she wouldn’t worry.

“Why not? Where does he live? Where is he from?” Her questions were incessant.

“I’ll explain when I see you, okay?” I snapped at her again.

Mom’s voice was rising; she was growing angrier. “When are you coming home? Why do you have to spend so much time with him?” She was screaming into the phone now, and I clenched my jaw.

“I said I don’t know when I’ll be home. I’ll text you when I have a better idea,” I said, but she wasn’t about to listen to me.

“You come back home this instant! You have a job to get back to. Billy has already spoken to Big Mike, and he has said he’ll think about—” she was saying, but I hung up on her again. I didn’t want to listen to her, or hear about the diner anymore. Just talking to her for a few minutes had brought me back to reality, reminding me of the life I had to go back to. That all this, the marble on the floor, the gold candle holders, the luxurious scented creams and soaps… were a dream. It was going to end soon, when this vacation ended.

The door swung silently open, and I looked up with a jerk as Vincent entered the bathroom.

“I was wondering where you were,” he said, striding over to me. I dropped the phone back on to the table beside me and smiled up at him.

He looked handsome, even though his eyes looked slightly tired. We were both exhausted.

“Long meeting?” I asked and raised a leg up through the foamy water. He studied my exposed leg, a look of hungry lust in his eyes. It was like he was suddenly reminded of what he had been missing.

“Too long,” he said and knelt beside me. “I hope you’ve been enjoying yourself,” he said, bringing his lips close to mine. My mouth parted when I got a whiff of his masculine musky scent. I wanted him again; it had been too long. We hadn’t spent this much time apart in three days. I had forgotten how to be by myself.

“Come in,” I said, spreading my legs in the water. He could see the tops of my folded knees and knew exactly what I meant by that.

“Don’t tempt me, you saucy devil! We have somewhere to be now,” he said, standing up suddenly from my side.

“Where? Both of us?” I asked, sitting up in the tub again. This man was full of surprises! I thought we were going to be cooped up in this house now, instead of the cabin.

Vincent was smiling at me, unbuttoning his shirt at the same time.

“My college fraternity has organized a party,” he said, flicking his shirt open so I could see his smooth bronze torso again.

“So, all your Yale buddies will be there?” I asked, my heart beginning to thump. Why would he want to subject me to that? I could already feel my cheeks burning again.

“Yeah, some of them have found out I’m back in town, so I can’t miss it. It’ll be good; you’ll get to meet my best friends,” he said, turning away from me and walking over to the mirror.

“Vincent, I…” I really didn’t want to go. I was convinced that I would end up embarrassing him and myself. But he wasn’t looking at me. He had picked up his shaving brush and was proceeding to lather his jaw.

“Don’t worry, Gemma. It’s just a party, nothing more. And didn’t I promise you I’ll show you a bit of LA?” he said, smiling at me through his reflection in the mirror.

Couldn’t he read my face? Couldn’t he see how desperately I didn’t want to go? Being exposed in public like that? I’d had a hard time as it was, trying to keep myself well-mannered around him. What was I supposed to do around other people?

“Vincent, really, I don’t know…” I began to say, but he interrupted me again.

“If you’re worried about what you’ll wear, I have a surprise waiting for you on the bed,” he said, smiling at me. He had a surprise for me? When did he have the time to stop for a dress?

“Now, time for a quick shower and then we’ll be on our way. C’mon out of the bathtub, lazy bones,” he said, raising his brows mockingly at me.

How could I possibly resist a man who looked at me like that?