I Want (3 page)

 “That
is not exactly what I meant, but I am not sure we should incorporate business and
pleasure. The press would have a field day that you had only given me the job
because we were friends."

“But your participation
in the campaign is simply as a one off. You are not going to be on the
permanent payroll of my company, whereas, I hope the pleasure side of our
friendship would last a lot longer than a one off! I think you would be foolish
to turn down such an opportunity, as it can only increase your exposure to
further work.”

“Perhaps,” She knew it was a fantastic
opportunity, and could not truly afford to turn her nose up at it simply
because she had the occasional dinner with the head of the company. “Would you
at least agree to keep our dinners quiet whilst the promotion is going on?”

“I am not indiscreet about who is in
my personal life anyway.” He felt affronted that Elle thought he would be openly
discussing their relationship with just anyone.

“You seem to be wilfully misunderstanding
what I am saying, William.”

“That was not my intention. I only
think the project would be beneficial to both of us – just hear me out about what
it entails before you make your final decision.”

“Fine, I am listening.”

William obliged her by running over
a choice of his ideas he would like to get her involved in. Elle had to admit
what he proposed could only be positive exposure for her career. She experienced
a twinge of guilt for letting her prejudice against him blur his honourable
intentions.

Elle remained silent, as the door opening,
and their waiter making an appearance, interrupted them. 

“Good evening,” He addressed them both.
“Would you like to order some drinks before I take your food orders?”

William looked over at Elle. “Do you
want some wine?”

“A red would be nice.” Elle said relieved
at the interruption.

“We will have a bottle of 2001 Gaja
Barbaresco,” William requested without even needing to consult the wine list.
“Do you know what you want to eat?” He asked, turning back to Elle from the
waiter.

“Steamed dumplings, followed by the
crispy shredded beef,” Elle responded directly to the waiter.

“I will have the scallops, followed
by duck in black bean sauce, with chow mein and egg fried rice on the side.”

The waiter repeated back the order
before departing to get their wine, leaving them alone once more.

“Ok, I will tentatively agree, with
the final agreement depending on seeing the contract, but I still think maybe
we should not have any further dinners until it has been launched.”

William frowned. “You mean not see
you for a month?”

“At least not out in public, unless
they are business oriented.” She tried to concede.

“A month of intimate dinners in the
privacy of my home sounds like a delightful alternative perhaps?” He suggested
in a teasing tone.

She blushed, trying to think a witty
response.

“That sounds like the perfect compromise
to me.” He continued, trying to tease the seriousness from her stance, noting
how she remained edgy around him, even though she gave the notion of enjoying
his company. He deeply regretted how the poor impression he had given her,
still hung between them. 

“We will have to see if you behave
yourself well enough tonight, to see if there will be another dinner.”

“Do I take that as an invitation to
open the champagne?”

She gave in, and nodded.

The rest of the dinner was a haze of
bubbles, as she enjoyed a couple of glasses of champagne.

Taking heed of her wish to avoid the
press, William arranged for them to leave the restaurant from the back of the
kitchen. After saying their thank yous to his chef, he guided her to the waiting
car, which was parked in a quiet street near the restaurant.

He felt that, despite the hesitation,
she showed at times in his company, that they had made significant progress.
She enthralled him, making him even more determined to convince her of his
integrity, as he wanted her in every aspect of his life, and William Dexter
always got what he wanted in the end.

Behind the darkened glass of the passenger windows, and the
privacy screen separating them from his chauffeur, he finally made a move to kiss
her. Placing a hand either side of her cheek, he leaned in and pressed his lips
softly onto hers. “I have wanted to do that all night.” He whispered huskily,
as he moved his lips onto her earlobe and proceeded to nibble it gently, before
drawing her soft upper body towards him in a tight embrace. “I will get my
assistant to liaise with your agent over schedules, so we can finalise the
agreement quickly.”

“Ok.” She replied softly. Her heart
was beating so fast from the kiss. She was sure he must be able to hear its
booming sound. She could not think straight in his arms, but the sensation was
all too consuming of her sanity to want to break the moment, so allowed herself
to surrender to it proceeding to snuggle into his chest silently for a few
minutes.

All too quickly, the luxurious car
slowed to a stop outside her house. It was raining so, as Edward opened the door,
he handed an open umbrella to William, who exited the vehicle first. Holding
her close to his hip, he ran her up her steps quickly, the large brolly protecting
them both from the worst of the wind and drizzle. “Do you want to come in?” She
asked shyly, feeling both a sense of apprehension and excitement at the same
time.

Using his free hand, he touched the
side of her hair affectionately, as he stared down at her face, his thumb rotating
over her cheekbone. “I had better not. I have a breakfast meeting starting at
7am, but I will be in touch, as soon as I have a quiet moment.”

She nodded, kicking herself for perhaps
appearing overeager to invite him in.

“Until next time…” He breathed, brushing
his lips to hers in the lightest of touches.

April 2002

In spite of
many tries for William, Elle, and her agent, Lauren, to make space within their
busy schedules to sort out the contract signings during the following three
weeks, no progress was made, with each one of them having to cancel at least
once, due to other pressing matters. With Dexter Media’s PR department in the
driving seat of the deadline, Lauren earned her commission well by negotiating
favourable clauses in Elle’s absence.

Despite their hectic diaries during
the daytime, William managed to steal several evenings in Elle’s company. He
had taken her to a couple of country pubs situated on the river in Berkshire,
where they had less of a chance of the lurking paparazzi spotting them. They
talked about everything from books, to travelling, to their love of ballet.

After their night at Netherfields,
they had established a pattern of texts and phone calls most mornings and evenings,
when they could not be together. He also began sending fresh flowers to her
home so often, Jess and Cate had begun to remark that it was like living in a
florist shop.

Elle seemed to have warmed up to him
fourfold in comparison to their shaky start. He felt each evening together, was
taking them closer to the conclusion of finally being able to wake up next to
her in his bed, instead of the void that greeted him now.

She was brilliant and gorgeous, with
a disposition that challenged him on all levels. He enjoyed that she was not
afraid of standing up to him. Where most people might bow and scrape to his every
word and whim, even if they did not agree with his opinion or conduct, she
would always put him straight. It was this spirit, kindness and natural ability
to make people comfortable in her company that pulled him to her so compellingly.

With the serious negotiations complete,
it just left the placement of the inked scrawls of Elle and William on the
papers, during a private dinner at his house.

This would be the first-time Elle had
stepped foot into his London home. He had organised for his housekeeper Mrs.
Button to do anything she felt necessary to make the meal a success. His intention
was to seduce her with an intimate home-cooked meal with a lavish and romantic
setting. He hoped tonight would be the night that they could venture further
than just kisses, and he wanted it to be perfect.

William had planned to be at home;
all showered and changed when she arrived with his chauffeur, Edward, but his back-to-back
meetings overran considerably, and put pay to that plan. By the time, he
escaped from his office, time was too tight for Edward to drop him off before
heading back to collect Elle. 

His presence on the journey was a pleasant
surprise for her. She had been feeling nervous arriving at his home alone, so
in reality, she felt relieved to be going there with him instead.

He drew her soft upper body towards
him in a tight embrace as they maintained a contented silence for few minutes.

 “I hope you haven’t gone to sleep,”
he teased gently, as he unwound her grip from his torso a little, to look down
at her.

“No, I am just resting my eyes,” she
murmured, her eyelids fluttering open.

 “Have you been working long days
since I last saw you?” He said concern etched on his features, as he carefully
brushed a few wayward curls from her cheek. If only pressures of business would
lighten enough, he would whisk them to Derbyshire and live a life of leisure.
He wanted to be able to take care of her in every way. He wanted to be her
everything, friend, companion, and lover.

“No, I am not tired; I was merely enjoying
a quiet moment in your arms.” She smiled reassuringly, as he silently stared
into her eyes. She sensed he wanted to kiss her again, but was hesitating for
an unknown reason.

“Well, if you are sure you aren’t overdoing
it.”

“Very sure,” she said, pushing herself
up off the seat slightly to touch his lips with hers. Her initiation of a kiss
took him by surprise, but he soon recovered, and it quickly deepened in its
intensity. His tongue eagerly pushed against the slight parting of her lips,
seeking her acceptance of him into her mouth, as a dance of pleasure began.

His hands began to explore the small
of her back through her dress. His hard chest pressed up against her soft mounds,
as they leaned into each other. Parting to recover his air supply, he spoke in
ragged breaths, “I think it’s safe to say you have bewitched me.” Before she
had a chance to utter a response, he tilted towards her, to capture her mouth
once again.

The sound of the car rolling over the
gravel echoed, as it slowed down considerably and then, came to a stop. “We are
here,” he said, sighing against her lips. They drew apart reluctantly, and Elle
swept a hand self-consciously through her mass of curls, trying to smooth out
the unkempt look; she was sure she now wore.

Edward opened the door, and William
stepped out first, stopping by the side of the car door and holding out a hand
to aid Elle in slipping from the car.

The house was set back in its plot,
and surrounded by a dimly lit, walled garden It was of old Georgian style, with
large sash windows that glowed with a welcoming ambience of lighting, when
standing in the driveway looking in. As they made their way up the stone steps,
to the wide front door, a smartly dressed woman greeted them. “Mr. Dexter, I
hope you had a pleasant day,” she uttered, before turning to smile at Elle.
“Ah, and Miss Benedict isn’t it? Welcome to Pembridge House, I am Mrs. Button,
the housekeeper.”

Elle returned the woman’s smile warmly.
“Thank you Mrs. Button.” She stared in awe at the hallway that had marble on
the floor, and a large old-fashioned wooden staircase that swept up to the
above floor in a wide arc. A grandfather clock stood against one of the walls,
showing the time of ten past seven.

“Mrs. Button is considerably more than
a housekeeper, much like a beloved family friend. I have known her since I was
seven,” he explained, as he ushered Elle into a large room, with high ceilings
and decorative cornicing, that was bedecked with modern furniture. “I hope you
are hungry, Miss Benedict.” He took her hand, and guided her into another
adjoining room that appeared to be a second reception room, then into a small
corridor before finally entering another room.

“Ravenous,” Elle laughed, thinking
of another form of hunger entirely.

The room continued the theme of high
ceilings and cornicing features, alongside dark wooden floorboards complemented
by neutral walls and focal wallpaper patterns. Along two of the walls were two
pale-blue chateau French designed sideboards, adorned with freshly arranged
flowers. Double doors opened outward, into the garden with sheer voile
curtains, flickering in the early evening spring breeze. Just beyond the double
door, into the patio area, was a small circular table laid for two, with a
bottle of champagne cooling in the ice bucket beside the table. 

It was a cloudless, starry night, so
William had wanted them surrounded by the aromas of the garden, as they ate beneath
the twinkling beauty of the night sky. Despite being late April, there was
still a slight bit to the evening air, so both of the tall patio heaters were
placed nearby to keep his special guest warm.