Chapter Four
So many people were staring at her, and Ellis felt her stomach turn as they spoke and looked toward her, only to speak again. Did they know she was a fake? Rafe hadn’t left her alone, and she stayed by his side, listening as he spoke business to three men.
The red dress he’d asked her to wear hadn’t helped hide her. If anything, she stood out as most of the women wore black or deep blue gowns. She wore the only red gown, and her hair was gathered at her nape with a huge flower clip that kept it in place.
Her makeup was modest, only trying to enhance her beauty. She’d scoffed at the woman who said that.
Still, she looked the part, and she loved having Rafe’s arm around her. That day in the office where he’d touched her ass, she’d felt so out of sorts with his hands on her. Now, she relished his arm on her hip, back, or ass. When he took her hand, it made all the doubts simply evaporate.
She spotted his mother and took a sip of the wine she’d been given, being sure not to drink too much.
The men moved away, and she offered them a smile.
“You’re doing great,” Rafe said, kissing her head and whispering the words so that only she could hear.
“Really, because I feel like everyone is looking at me and laughing. Like they can see through all of this,” she said.
She turned her attention to him and saw the concern in his gaze. “Don’t let them get to you.” He stroked her hip. “You’re better than this. You’re my wife.”
“I can’t help but wonder if there are other women who wanted this position here tonight?”
“Yes, there are, and yes, there are also some exes, but I assure you, you’re the only one I want standing here.”
They’d been together over a month now. A month since he’d spilled coffee on her, she’d married him, and now slept in his bed. That had to be the strangest thing of all, sharing a bed with her husband. A man she’d never had sex with.
“Here comes my mother. Be warned, she has claws.” His hand did the shape of one, and he meowed.
She giggled and stifled the sound as she was right in front of them.
“I see you’re bringing this farce of a marriage everywhere,” his mother said.
“Hello, Mrs. Shawl, such a pleasure to see you here,” Ellis said.
The other woman glared at her.
“What the hell are you doing, Rafe? You bring trash to the boardroom, and now are insistent on doing the same to our circle of friends.”
Ellis wasn’t even going to pretend that it didn’t hurt. She’d been called worse than trash, but with people to hear, knowing they smirked, it was hard.
“Well, I could say that I’m following in my father’s footsteps. I mean, you were known as the whore of the Shawl household. At least my wife doesn’t spread for anyone who offers her a gold watch.”
She tensed at the outrage in his mother’s gaze.
“How dare you speak to me like that?” his mother said.
“How dare you speak to my wife like that? Don’t you dare look at her. I see the way you’ve been glaring at her all evening, spreading vicious rumors about her. She’s mine, Mother, and there’s nothing you or anyone else can do to stop that.”
Rafe moved them away from the woman, and without a backward glance they left the party.
The moment they were inside the limousine, she chanced a glance at him, and saw him running fingers through his hair.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I should be the one asking you.”
“Being called trash is not that bad,” she said.
She rested her head back against the seat, and he turned toward her. His hand cupped her cheek, and his thumb stroked her skin. The light touch was welcome. She’d begun to crave his touch, and didn’t want it to ever stop.
“You’re not trash, Ellis.”
“I’ve been called fat, ugly, useless, a waste of space. I’ve been called worse than trash. Your mother is just trying to get a rise out of you.”
He chuckled. “I’ve never called her out on her shit before. There were always rumors about her and how she cheated on my father.”
“Will this end up badly for you?” she asked.
“She’ll try to find a way to take the controlling shares of the company. My father always had fifty-five percent shares of the company, and the rest is split among the board members. My mother has been trying to buy out other board members, because she wants absolute control. Our shares would be split equally if I don’t prove myself with a wife and family. The problem is, my mother isn’t above using her body to get what she wants.”
“Buying shares?”
“Or blackmailing shares out of the other members. I own fifty-two percent of the company. As the heir of the company, I will always have majority share, but the other forty-eight percent is divided between the other members of the board.”
“It’s giving me a headache,” she said, rubbing at her temple. “I’m awful at math.”
“And it’s boring. Believe me, I hate it as well.” His hand moved from her cheek down to her neck, and she gasped. She really enjoyed his touch more than anything. Their nights together were her favorite time having his arm wrapped around her.
“I’m here for you, Rafe.” She placed her hand against his chest, hoping he got some comfort from her touch.
****
Time spent with Ellis began to fill Rafe’s mind with different kinds of memories, which his father had once talked about. Sure, he spent a great deal of time working, and he was aware of the PI trying to find a hole in his and Ellis’s story. When he didn’t think about that though, he watched as Ellis smiled, or sucked some syrup from her thumb, or even just sat listening to him as they built a world around each other.
Before his father died, he’d told him about love, and how important it was for him to find it. Rafe didn’t really understand it and had put most of his rambling down to the pain of a dying man. A man who’d trusted the wrong woman, and was now dying miserably and all alone.
Late one night, playing a game of cards with Ellis, he was distracted by the opening of her robe. The silk negligee she wore underneath was tempting him. Since she’d walked out of the bedroom they now shared, his cock had been in a permanent state of arousal. Just thinking about sharing a bed with her got him hard. Holding her in his arms was the best part of his day, but come morning, he’d always have to make sure he was the first one up so that she didn’t see what she did to him.
Each day though, it was getting harder for him to not want her.
Even when he worked, he found himself watching her. She’d often read, or do some studying of his company. He loved to watch her walk toward the large wall of books he always kept on hand. She’d place a hand on her hip, which only seemed to emphasize the curve, making him wish he was the one holding her.
“You okay over there?” she asked, placing her card on top of the pile.
“I’m fine.”
“You’re thinking a lot.”
“I’m just curious.”
“About what?” she asked, taking a sip of her water. Her tongue peeked out, and he watched her lick up the drop, making him ache.
“Did you have a boyfriend waiting for you back home?” He’d been so focused on getting what he wanted that he’d not even given her wants or desires a thought.
She laughed. “No, of course not. Do you think I’d marry another guy while I had someone waiting for me back home?”
“Have you dated anyone?” he asked.
“What is all this about?”
“I guess I’m just trying to figure you out.”
“Let’s see, the last guy I dated told me that he couldn’t stand to touch me anymore because my curves were a turn-off. I’ve had two serious boyfriends, but they’ve lasted about six months each.” She shrugged. “When I met you, I’d been in a rough patch.”
“It was kind of lucky for you to find me.”
“If I recall, you were lucky to find me. I’ve even got the clothes to prove it.”
“Did the dry cleaners ever get the coffee stain out of the shirt?”
“Nope. There’s still a brown stain. Kind of scares me where you bought your coffee from. It sticks a little too well.”
He chuckled as they finished their cards. Picking them up, he shuffled again and began to deal them out.
“I need some more water.” She got up, and her scent filled every one of his senses.
Unable to resist, he got to his feet and made his way toward the kitchen. Ellis was adding ice to her glass when he entered. She looked up at him and smiled, and it was that one simple action that spurred him forward.
She took a step back as he advanced into the room until her ass hit the kitchen counter. Reaching out, he stroked her cheek, tilting her head back.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
Ellis didn’t look frightened, and he didn’t want her to be.
“I just need to know,” he said.
“What?”
Running his thumb across her lip, he watched her tongue peek out as if it couldn’t resist either, and had a little taste of him. The action made his cock harden even more.
Without saying another word, he slammed his lips down on hers, holding her close, not wanting to let go. She released a little whimper, but threw her arms around his neck, not pushing him away.
With his free hand, he gripped her hip and pressed his cock against her stomach. He ached all over for the need to be inside her, and only her.
Ellis had gotten under his skin, and now there was no way back. As he squeezed her ass, she gasped, and he plundered her mouth, swallowing her moan.
He wanted her, needed her.
Stroking his hand up to her belt, he opened the damn robe and pushed it to the floor. The negligee only served to enhance her beauty. Sheer lace covered her breasts, and as he pulled back, he got a good look at those heavy mounds.
She was fucking perfection. Large nipples pointed up, begging for his mouth. Kissing from her neck down over her body, he covered one of her buds, sucking it into his mouth through the fabric of her negligee. She gasped, her fingers gripping the hair at the back of his neck as he sucked hard before releasing her. Blowing his breath across her tit, he moved toward the next one, offering it the same kind of attention.
“Rafe,” she said, whispering his name with a moan.
“I want you, Ellis.” Running his fingers down her body, he cupped between her legs, feeling the heat against his palm. She was wet, and so fucking ready for him. Slipping a finger beneath her panties, he teased over her clit and watched as her eyes dilated. Her nipples were already rock-hard, and she couldn’t deny her need for him any more than he could. “Do you want me as well?”