Moments In Time: The Complete Novella Collection (7 page)

Before I had the chance to say anything,
another “thank you,” perhaps, he rose and walked back up the lawn,
hands in his pockets. Probably to return to his fiancée.

I slid the bracelet into my purse. This was
comfort enough. For now.

Back home, I wore my bracelet to bed. I
wanted to keep it on and never remove it. But how would I explain
it to Sam and my colleagues? They knew as well as I did that I
could never afford such an expensive piece of jewelry. No, I would
keep it our little secret. Mine and Nick’s. He cared about me. Why
else would he spend so much money on me?

***

My next days at work were spent waiting for
Nick to return. I didn’t even care that he might show up to buy
something for his future wife. I wanted to see him just one more
time, to exchange one more glance. But it took a whole month before
I even heard about him again. It was in a magazine article that
announced his wedding date had been changed, and he would be
getting married earlier than planned. In one week. My heart broke
in places I hadn’t even known existed. I asked for a few days off
from work and locked myself inside my apartment watching
tearjerkers, eating popcorn, and stuffing magazine photos of Nick
into a shoebox.

I slid the cool bracelet from my wrist and
placed it on top of his smiling face in the box. He had probably
already forgotten about it. Here I was, thinking he cared. But he’d
only bought the bracelet because he had too much money and felt
guilty.

The truth was, and it pained me to admit it,
it could never have worked between us. We were too different. He
needed someone beautiful, glamorous, and rich like him.

Someone without baggage.

A hot tear trickled onto my hand as I placed
the lid on the shoebox and shoved it inside my wardrobe. I’d never
buy a magazine again. Or watch TV. It would be torture to watch him
marry Elizabeth—or any other woman.

I wanted to stay inside my apartment and
never face the world again. But I had to continue living, just like
I promised Melisa I would when I left Oasis. It would take a long
time, but I’d get over him somehow.

I was now back on my feet. I had a wonderful
job and a nice place to stay. A life. I thanked Nick for that.

***

“I missed you. And not just me,” Sam said
when I returned to work. “Several customers came in asking for you.
You’re quite popular.”

My head snapped up. “Really? Who?” I cringed
inwardly, hoping I didn’t sound too eager.

“A few ladies.”

“Oh.” I continued polishing the counter, my
hope wilting. “That’s nice.” No need hoping for the impossible.
Nick belonged to someone else.

***

Over the weekend Nick was to marry
Elizabeth, I slept at Oasis, away from TV, newspapers, and
magazines. And I worked myself to the bone.

Out of solidarity, Melisa, who enjoyed some
good celebrity gossip, promised not to take a peek. She, too, was
disappointed. Since the day I told her the man I’d met that day at
Grace Chapel had been Nick Johnson, she’d been excited about
meeting a millionaire in person.

Sunday evening, I returned to my apartment
and enjoyed a long, hot shower. The warm water mingled with and
washed away the tears, and I vowed to let him go for good. I would
forget his touch, his kiss, his eyes. He was a married man now.

The door announcer chimed to signal a
customer entry. I knew my colleagues would swoop on whoever it
happened to be, so I didn’t bother turning around. Since I’d had a
lot of special treatment, I was trying to step back. Not that they
appreciated it.

Ignoring the shuffle near the entrance, I
continued wrapping a jewelry package for a customer who was coming
to pick it up in two hours.

“I’d love for Miss Adams to serve me,
please,” a male voice said.

I wheeled around, and my knees buckled. I
grabbed the edge of a display case to steady myself.

Nick wore a black-and-white motorcycle
jacket, his hair was wind-blown, his eyes as bright as the gems
around us. Tucked under his right arm was a black helmet.

My mouth was a desert. I’d never seen him in
anything other than a suit. He looked incredibly sexy.

I watched as Amanda and the others stepped
back to allow him to pass, their faces shadowed with envy.

“Hi, Carlene.” Nick approached me. He gazed
behind him at my colleagues, and they quickly scattered themselves
around the store, embarrassed to be caught staring. “Can we talk?”
he whispered, pointing at a random piece in a display.

Abandoning my gift-wrapping, I stepped to
the display and unlocked it, as if I were about to show him
something. My colleagues would never keep their mouths shut if they
knew about me and Nick. “There’s nothing for us to talk about.
You’re married.”

“It didn’t take place.”

My hand froze on the slim glass door, and
hope flickered inside me. “There was no wedding?”

“No.” He paused. “That’s what I want to talk
to you about. Give me just five minutes?”

Julie walked by with a customer and gave us
a brief glance.

“Not here.”

“Then let’s go someplace else. Somewhere
more private.” He picked up a pair of pearl earrings, as if he were
considering buying them.

“Where?”

“The Lux Hotel.”

“I’ll be there at six.”

“Perfect. I’ll be waiting for you at the
restaurant bar.” He placed the earrings back, and less than a
minute later he was gone, leaving behind a trail of cologne.

I returned to work with considerably less
focus.

***

The receptionist at the Lux, a
twenty-something woman with a straight bob and teeth so white they
matched the walls, pointed me in the direction of the
restaurant.

I felt like a million dollars walking
through the marbled lobby, past men and women with monogrammed
luggage.

Nick sat on a barstool, his back to me. He
had changed into a brown shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Whatever
he put on, he looked hot.

With every step, my heart beat faster. What
did he want to tell me?

“Nick,” I said when I was close enough to be
heard.

He swiveled around and flashed a dimpled
smile. “Carlene, you came.”

I laughed. “You did say it was
important.”

He hopped from the stool and planted a kiss
on my cheek, which tingled after he pulled away. “You were hesitant
when we spoke. I was afraid you might change your mind.”

“I was at work.”

He placed a hand on my lower back and moved
me forward. “I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. Thank you for
coming. How about dinner?”

I halted. “I don’t think it’s a good idea
for us to be seen in public together.” For all I knew, he was still
engaged. They might have simply postponed the wedding.

“Don’t worry, I’ve reserved a private area
of the restaurant. Apart from the waiters, we’ll be alone.”

I nodded. He escorted me to a part of the
restaurant that was so well hidden, most guests probably had no
idea it even existed.

We sat, and I turned to him. “What did you
want to tell me?” Better to know as soon as possible before I got
my hopes up, only to have them dashed again.

“Shall we order first?” He waved the waiter
over.

I ordered a Greek salad, and Nick the steak
and potatoes.

“Carlene,” he said. “I can’t get you out of
my mind.”

I pressed my lips together and said nothing
for a while. Those words warmed my heart, but I had to be
realistic. “What do you want me to do with this information?” He
would never leave a woman like Elizabeth for me. Best to accept it
and move on. Maybe it was a good thing I came to meet him, to get
closure.

“No woman has ever made me feel this way. I
thought you should know.”

His words reflected my own feelings for him.
“But... Aren’t you still engaged to Elizabeth?”

“No.” He cupped my hand with both of his.
His heat warmed my skin and reached into my very core. “Not
anymore. It’s over.”

Electricity jolted through my body, but
before I could respond, the waiter brought our food. When he left,
I pressed the fork into my salad as Nick cut into his steak. “You
mean...?”

“Yes. I called off the wedding the night
before it was supposed to happen. Elizabeth and I had been together
for four years, but we weren’t right for each other. I know that
now. She was more interested in my money.”

I laughed. “It was obvious when you came to
buy the ring.” I couldn’t help myself. I had to say it.

He nodded. “I couldn’t see how wrong she was
for me until I met you.”

“She was beautiful.”

He looked seriously at me. “That’s not
enough. I don’t want to stay with someone just because they’re
beautiful. I want that special connection. The kind you and I have.
Besides, you’re even more beautiful, Carlene. The first time I saw
you, something inside of me changed.”

I inhaled slowly, breathing in his words. An
involuntary smile formed on my lips, and tears burned the backs of
my eyes. “You mean that?”

“More than anything. I needed to see you. To
see where this leads.”

“Where does it lead?” I whispered, still
unable to believe what was unfolding.

“I need to spend more time with you to find
that out. I know you feel something for me too. I see it in your
eyes. It was unmistakable at the launch party.”

Was I such an open book? I looked down into
my glass of white wine.

Nick put his fork on his plate and placed a
finger under my chin, lifting it. “It’s Friday. Why don’t we do
something crazy, spend the weekend together? Here. We can have time
to talk.”

“That’s crazy.” I wanted to say yes, to
spend more time with him, allow him to sweep me off my feet. “But
we’re still strangers.”

“You still think that? After everything
that’s happened? We kissed. That should make us more than
strangers, surely. But we can get to know each other more if you
accept my invitation.”

“I don’t know.” I bit my lip. Why the hell
was I hesitating? The man of my dreams was professing his love for
me, and I was thinking twice?

“Come on,” he said, his eyes dancing, “spend
the weekend with me. Or just the night.” He paused. “You can walk
away, if I don’t convince you to stay in my life.”

Joy raced through me, leaving warmth in its
path. He’d said it. He wanted me in his life. I turned the words
over in my mind. “I don’t have anything with me...clothes. I’m not
prepared.”

“You don’t need to be prepared. The best
things happen when you stop making plans and follow your heart. The
first time we met, we never planned to kiss. As for clothes, the
hotel has bathrobes.”

A shiver trailed down my spine. Wasn’t this
what I’d dreamed of? Having him say words like these? Wouldn’t I be
a fool not to take my chance? “Okay.” I giggled. “Let’s do it.”

Nick took me upstairs to a romantic suite
with flowers submerged in water-filled crystal vases with tea
lights floating on the surfaces.

“When did you do all this?” I looked around,
mesmerized. No one had ever done anything so romantic for me. Then
again, Chris had been my only boyfriend, and he hadn’t been the
candles and flowers kind of guy. He showed me his love in other
ways. A day spent rock climbing or paragliding was his idea of
romance. I’d never complained. I’d loved seeing him excited to show
me new experiences. When he’d been happy, I’d been as well.

“I wanted to create a nice and comfortable
atmosphere for us to talk.”

I stood at the door unsure of what to
do.

Nick stepped close and removed my purse from
my hands. He hung it on the chair. “Please make yourself at home.”
With a hand around my shoulders, he led me to the couch and sat
next to me. His thigh brushed mine, making the heat rise in my
body.

“This isn’t one of your hotels, is it?” I
asked for want of a safe topic.

“Actually, it is,” he admitted.

I’d walked past The Lux countless times. Who
would have thought it was owned by the man who would change my
life? “It’s beautiful. I read in the paper that you’re expanding to
Asia.”

“That’s true. It’s been a dream of mine for
a long time.”

“Have you ever been to Asia?” I asked, then
cringed inwardly. Of course he had been to Asia. He could afford
to, and he was expanding his business there. He would have wanted
to see whatever it was that real estate developers looked at before
reaching a decision.

He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, as if
it were the most normal thing. Like we were a couple spending a
quiet evening in. “I studied in China, actually.”

“Really? So you speak Chinese?”

He chuckled. “Yes, I do speak Chinese and
also Japanese.”

How sexy. I wondered how he sounded in a
language other than English, but I was too shy to ask him to say
something. “You must love languages.”

“They’ve helped me get my foot in the door.
Now enough about me. I want to know you. More than how you tasted
when I kissed you.”

My cheeks heated and I smiled. “My life is
not as exciting as yours. I only speak English, unfortunately, and
I dropped out of college before getting my marketing and sales
degree. I’ve never been anywhere outside the U.S.”

“That’s a shame. What country would you want
to see one day?”

“I’ve always wanted to visit Greece.”

“Maybe you will one day.” Nick tucked a lock
of my hair behind my ear. “Why did you drop out of college, if you
don’t mind me asking?”

“I couldn’t afford it.” Why should I lie
about that?

“But you’re doing so well without a college
degree. You must be proud of yourself. Lilliana speaks highly of
you.”