Taking him, p.2
Taking Him, page 2
Hearing the door slide open—and James’ exclamation of cool!—she stepped into the elevator vestibule with a smile.
‘Good afternoon,’ she said cheerfully, internally cringing at the false happiness in her voice. The two Blake brothers both turned to her, James with eager excitement in his eyes, clearly desperate to be free of his brother’s vice-like grip on his shoulder so he could immediately run and explore, and Cormac who looked wholly unimpressed by the grandeur of the private lobby.
If a penthouse apartment with a private lift didn’t impress him—or at least outwardly appear so—then perhaps he didn’t need as much training as she thought. She made a note to mention such to her assistant, Kirstie, later.
‘Hey, Victoria!’ James practically shouted, waving to her enthusiastically. ‘Is this our place? I thought this was our place. Why are you here? Are you staying here too?’
‘Dude, be chill,’ Cormac said with a roll of his eyes. But Victoria merely chuckled at the boy’s eagerness; it was nice to see someone who appreciated things. Too often, she was surrounded by people who were so used to such luxury that they took it for granted, for simply the norm. After visiting their much humbler abode this week, Victoria had been looking at her own surroundings and needs rather differently.
‘It’s okay, Cormac. You want a tour, James?’
‘Do I!’
Victoria held out her hand to him, and James went to her willingly, sliding his own tiny palm into hers and gazing up at her with a bright, genuine smile. She couldn’t help but return it, feeling it fill her and soothing the butterflies she’d been feeling all morning.
She made to lead him into the living area when James pulled back on her hand.
‘You haven’t said hello yet.’ His little face frowned up at the two adults who stood a fair distance apart still.
‘Hey,’ Cormac said with a wave. She managed a smile to him. Okay, so he’d need some work.
‘Hello.’
James’ head swivelled between them, his frown deepening.
‘You’re supposed to kiss her, Corrie.’ His young face pouted. ‘Boyfriends and husbands always kiss their girlfriends or wives on their cheeks when they come home. And they say something like Hi, honey, I’m home!’
Cormac’s brows raised as he stared down at his little brother and Victoria had to bite her lips between her teeth to stop herself from laughing.
‘Where’d you hear that?’
‘Duh,’ James said with an eye-roll so dramatic, Victoria briefly wondered if he’d met Alexi already. ‘It’s in all the films, and on the telly.’
‘Is it now?’ Cormac’s tone said he wasn’t convinced by James’ reasoning, but he approached Victoria anyway. Her smiled faltered, recalling vividly how she’d felt the last time he’d kissed her cheek in the back of the car, how she’d wanted him to pounce on her and show her what he really wanted to do. She practically salivated at the thought of being swept up in his arms, tasting him properly as he crushed her tightly against his chest and ran his hand down her back, under her bottom and grabbed her leg to bring up around his hip as she felt-
‘Hi, honey, I’m home.’ Cormac’s lips pressed gently against her cheek and she felt his smile form as her breath hitched in her throat. ‘Later, princess,’ he murmured in her ear as he moved away. She caught his heated gaze as he stepped back, that lopsided smile of his curling up one corner of his mouth again, making promises she’d have to ensure he kept.
‘Um,’ James’ little voice interrupted their moment together. He stared up at the two, clearly knowing something was happening, but not understanding exactly what it was. He looked adorable and Victoria couldn’t help the little laugh that escaped her, making James frown even harder.
She gently pulled the young boy’s hand, coaxing him to finally move. ‘Come on, I got my honey and my kiss, now I’ll show you around.’ Her companion came willingly, his little legs hurrying to keep up with her naturally longer stride.
‘So, this is the living room.’ She held up her free hand to gesture around. It was an amazing room, decorated so tastefully that she was already making notes on when she finally got a chance to decorate her own place. Having lived in a royal residency most of her life, she’d never had a chance to put her own stamp on things. And she’d begun to realise she had no idea what she liked or wanted in a home.
‘Whoa.’ James dropped her hand and ran over to the floor-to-ceiling windows.
‘Impressive, huh?’ she said as Cormac came and stood beside her, his eyes fixed on the unimpeded view over the few buildings between them and the bay. She spied the Queen Mary 2 carefully navigating the long strait that separated the beautiful golden beaches of the north side, twisting from the small city of Daven up towards the Continental highway, from the south side, home to tall sheer cliffs, that provided the deep waters ships needed to enter the pool and enabling them to dock in the capital city. The giant ocean liner’s bow cut its way smoothly through the crystal clear, deep waters, heading to Avon’s docks so its passengers could disembark for their day trips.
‘Can’t believe you rented the penthouse.’ Cormac’s voice was quiet, making Victoria glance over to him to ensure he was speaking to her and not just muttering to himself. His eyes cast her way as he waited for a response.
‘The other suites were a little snug,’ she began, keeping her own voice as quiet as his. ‘I didn’t think you’d want me on top of you guys as you adjusted.’
‘Victoria, this is the biggest suite in all of Avon, hell, in the entire country. There are others out there that aren’t as big and still would have given us room to spare. The Avoy, for example, has a presidential suite that’s half this size, that would have suited fine.’
Although she was surprised by his knowledge of hotels, she considered his words, trying to pick out what he was really trying to say. Was it too extravagant for him? Did he think it a waste of money? He would obviously see money differently to the way she did after scrimping by all these years.
‘The monthly rate is well within our housing budget,’ she said with a hopeful lilt to her voice. Cormac opened his mouth to speak before closing it again, and she could see this time he was trying to fathom her meaning. She jumped in before he could say anything.
‘Cormac, you don’t need to worry about money anymore, let me take care of that.’ She realised it was the wrong thing to say straight away as his confusion turned into outright annoyance.
‘You don’t have to waste money just because you have it,’ he said. ‘Somewhere less ostentatious would have been more than adequate.’
‘I didn’t mean—’ She cut herself off as James glanced over at the two of them, his hazel eyes narrowing at the pair. She didn’t want him to know that this was not the perfect little image he had from his TV shows and movies.
She chewed the right side of her lower lip as she considered the man next to her, who stood so close and was yet so far from her reach. How did she keep getting this so wrong? There had to be a way for Cormac to ease into her life and for her to somehow make him comfortable here… But that was the point; she was trying to make him fit into a lifestyle of hers. If she was going to be stepping out of the royal shadow, did she need to maintain the kind of life she had now? Could she find somewhere for them both to fit together?
He was right; just because she had such a large fortune, didn’t mean she had to use it all… Maybe they could take up a smaller house than the ones she’d been looking at. Did they really need sixteen bedrooms? Ten would more than suffice, surely? She winced internally at the thought that Cormac might think they only needed three—one for each of them. But then, where would guests stay? How would their family grow?
‘You’re right,’ she said quietly. ‘This place is a little… unnecessary. I just…’ She sighed and took a seat on the beautiful purple and white sofa. ‘This place is out of the way. It’s secure. Only those with key cards can get up here and the only people with them are you and I, and the penthouse butler—’
‘And the manager and security and—’
‘No.’ Victoria shook her head. ‘None of them have access when there is someone in residence. Even the lift attendant can’t get up here.’
Cormac rubbed his forehead as he took a seat on the opposite end of the couch. ‘So, what if there’s a fire?’
‘That depends on where it is—on the north side, there’s an escape room with a slide that goes down three stories to where the stairwells begin, and on the south side there’s a stairwell that goes all the way to the middle of the building, where you again join the main escape plan. Both have no way into those sections at all. The doors are hidden and can only be opened on the inside.
‘The lift up to this floor has only three access points other than the ground floor and the entrance way. The staff lift in the back is the same—different floors though—and that can only be called from up here.’
‘Wait—so someone always lives here?’
‘Yes, there has to be someone up here to call for the staff lift. When there’s a resident here, there is always a butler present and only he can call up the staff lift. He’s the only one with the key.’
‘So, he lives with us until we check out?’
‘Yes, he lives her permanently—it’s why he’s so well-paid.’
She watched as Cormac shook his head. ‘Rich people,’ he said with disgust. She took that as her opening.
‘We should probably talk about our ideas for the future.’ That got his attention as he looked towards her. ‘Like the type of house we might be interested in…’
‘Yeah, I guess.’
‘Cormac!’ James’ startled voice caught both their attentions and Cormac was out of his seat and moving to him, before he realised his little brother was simply stood looking intently at the mantle above the fireplace.
Ah, he’d spied her surprise before she’d had the chance to reveal it herself.
She pushed herself to her feet and stepped towards the silent pair who were both openly staring at the pictures she’d set out just before their arrival.
Cormac moved forward and gently lifted the crystal frame she’d agonised over the placement of. It was the beautiful image of his parents on their wedding day, his mother a twenty-something beauty stepping down from the church steps on the arm of his father, laughing and smiling, not paying the camera the slightest bit of attention, too caught up in each other. It captured their love perfectly.
It made Victoria both smile and ache in longing and loss. She’d dreamt of a love that true and pure all her life, imagining looking at her own husband on her big day in a similar way. Now, she’d be lucky to get through the ceremony with a smile from him. But Cormac was already going above and beyond, giving up his freedom just for her. Asking for him to fall in love with her as well was clearly asking too much of her luck. And while she found him attractive—really attractive—who knew if she’d ever be able to fall in love with him either? They still had no idea who each other were, but at least they had time to find out.
She watched as he ran his finger over the delicate framework. She’d picked that one because it was simple yet elegant; it didn’t detract from the beauty of the image, but it didn’t do the photo a disservice either.
‘How did you…?’ Cormac asked, turning suddenly to her.
‘I had William take a diversion,’ she admitted. ‘Made sure he took the busier routes over the quicker ones the removal van took…’ His brows raised at her confession.
‘I’m so sorry,’ she hastened to add. ‘I just wanted there to be some part of home here waiting for you both. James’ toys and books are already in his room, and your clothes and personal belongings are also away and… Well, the frames…’ Most had been in hideously thin, cheap wooden frames that were more tape than wood. She’d had to get help to get the one of his parents out of the ratty frame because of the amount of tape on the corners and on the back, securing it in place. She hadn’t wanted to damage the print.
Merryweather was a godsend.
‘I recognised they were very precious to you. The removal men said that you wouldn’t let them touch that particular box and were hesitant to even put it in the van. I completely understand your reluctance; they’re all beautiful pieces.’ She waved towards the rest of the room where some of his other treasured images were now sitting in their own beautiful frames, while the ones he couldn’t see here, were proudly dotted throughout the rest of the suite, intermingled with her own.
‘I didn’t think the frames were going to hold up, so I had Merryweather send a staff member out for some new ones, that’s when William may have taken a few roads he hadn’t needed to…’
Cormac stared across the room at a few other pictures before glancing back down at the one in his hand. Victoria played with her necklace, pulling and sliding the pendant along the delicate chain as she waited for him to speak, to say something either way.
‘Thank you,’ he whispered, and she noted the small catch in his throat. ‘It had originally been in a pretty frame—solid silver. I- I had to pawn it…’
‘If you’d prefer it in silver…’ She turned to reach for the intercom to call the butler when Cormac quickly said no.
She turned back to him to see a bright smile on his lips, his eyes shimmering a little, and Victoria had to swallow down the sudden lump in her own throat.
‘This…’ He held the picture to his chest. ‘This is perfect. Thank you.’
‘You’re welcome, Cormac.’
And in that moment, Victoria had hope that the dreams she’d carried as a child, may still come true…
It was late and James was starting to drift off at the table after such a long and exciting day. They’d had lunch on the terrace not long after their arrival and he and James had discovered the penthouse came with its own pool that ran the width of the building, splitting into two wider infinity pools at either end. And despite his previous misgivings, Cormac couldn’t help but wonder if it was possible to add a pool to their wish list when looking for their home; just because he didn’t think they should blow all their money didn’t mean he couldn’t have a few wild luxuries.
James loved to swim, and he began bouncing as soon as he saw the pool running along next to their perfectly set up table. He’d had to promise his brother they’d take a dip after they’d eaten, and thus after lunch—and once their stomachs had settled—their swimwear had miraculously appeared in the little changing huts on the other side of the pool. The next three hours had been spent chasing James around the pool and entertaining him… After Cormac had got over his initial reaction to Victoria in her bikini.
He’d walked out of the changing hut and seen her lying on a lounger already, her peachy skin radiant in the hot afternoon sun. Her breasts were barely concealed in tiny scraps of fabric that constituted the top and the bottom part… Well, there was no bottom when she’d turned over to catch the sun on her back. He’d had to swim for a few minutes to calm his raging hard-on after noticing the perfect globes of her arse on display for all to see. He was going to have to speak to her regarding such outfits. Around adults, not an issue—hell, he’d seen far more when stripping!—but around James, a six-year-old, she needed to wear a little more.
Then after some more food and seeing the giant TV the living room offered, James had plonked himself there, and they’d ordered several child-appropriate films. Now he had a sleepy little brother tucked in his arms, head lolling against his shoulder as they climbed the stairs to the second floor of the suite.
The top of the stairs opened into another large sitting area with bookcases filled from floor to ceiling with all sorts of books. He itched to look at the titles on the volumes and see if they had anything interesting. He’d love to be able to lose a few hours in a good book now he was unemployed…
Crap, that was another thing he had to figure out. What was he going to do with his time?
‘This is the snug,’ Victoria said to him quietly. ‘I suppose it could also be counted as a library.’ But she didn’t sound too impressed by that thought. Cormac imagined she had a library as big as the one in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast back in her castle or wherever it was she lived. He supposed not much could impress you if you lived in a castle, a palace or… what had she said? A hall? He’d have to look up what exactly a hall was.
His list of things to learn was growing quickly.
‘And this is James’ room.’
‘Where are you going to sleep?’ the young boy asked groggily as he lifted his head to look at the door to his new bedroom.
‘Cormac is in the room next door to you.’ She pointed down the hallway to a door that faced them. ‘There’s a bathroom that joins your rooms together. If you need him in the night, you just have to walk through the bathroom and open his door.’
That comment made James pull back from Cormac to stare at Victoria as she stood poised to open his bedroom door in a ta-da! moment.
‘And you? You’ll sleep there too?’
‘Um, my room is just over there.’ She motioned to a door on the opposite side of the hallway that was about midway between the two brothers. Cormac watched James’ face take on that befuddled look he got when something inside his brain couldn’t connect the dots to something he knew he should understand. It was basically when his big brain was about to drop Cormac in it with someone.
‘But you’re getting married,’ the boy said, all traces of sleepiness gone. ‘And husbands and wives share a room. Right, Corrie?’ He turned to Cormac, his frown so pronounced that Cormac swore the kid was going to have wrinkles before he hit puberty.
‘Err, well—’
James’ hazel eyes narrowed as they darted between the two of them.
‘Of course,’ Cormac finished and Victoria did a double take at him. ‘It’s just Victoria thought you’d want me to sleep next to you for a while just in case—’
