She turns her head to face me and scoffs. “You don’t know that. You don’t know my parents. Margaret and Douglas Wilson have the ability to make grown men cry. Trust me, I’ve seen it happen. Many times.”
Laughing, I lean over the center console in my Yukon and grip her chin. I plant a kiss on her lips and pull back to search her eyes.
“Just take a minute. Breathe. Some hot yoga instructor taught me that in stressful situations, the first thing to control is your breathing.”
Sadie laughs then closes her eyes. I can see the tension leak from her body with each breath she takes. Her leg stops bouncing and her shoulders relax. Finally, she opens her eyes again and shakes her head.
“You must have one amazing yoga instructor.”
I let go of her chin and reach for my door with my other hand. “The best.”
A valet driver meets me as soon as I step out of my vehicle. I hand him my keys and then rush over to open Sadie’s door before she can. As soon as she takes my hand and steps out, I lose my ability to breathe.
Sadie is dressed in a tan colored cocktail dress that stops just above the knee. There’s nothing flashy about the dress but Sadie puts any model on a runway to shame with the way she wears it. It hugs her curves perfectly and even though it’s modest, barely revealing any cleavage at all, my dick is aching in my slacks. She’s an absolute goddess—and she has no idea.
“You look absolutely breathtaking, Sadie.”
She looks at me with a small smile. “Thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself, Cap Daddy.”
I groan. “I’m guessing there’s no way you’re going to forget that nickname.”
“Not a chance.”
We make our way across a bridge—yes, a fucking bridge—that’s covering a pool of water. It’s like a goddamn moat. Who needs this shit?
I notice Sadie fidgeting with her necklace so I give her hand a reassuring squeeze and attempt to lighten the mood.
“Think we should go for a swim before we leave? Maybe they have some pool floaties we could use.”
Sadie chuckles quietly. “Ha. My parents would absolutely love that.” Sarcasm drips from every word, and I can tell she’s getting more nervous the closer we get to the door. Once we’re over the water, I pull her aside and take both her hands in mine.
“Look at me.” Her eyes bounce from the front door to me. “We don’t have to be here. We can leave right now and nobody would know.”
She doesn’t say anything at first. Simply stares into my eyes, trying to decide what she wants to do. Finally, she shakes her head. “No. We came all this way. I can’t let them have that much power over me anymore. I can do this.”
That’s my girl.
“Fuck yeah, you can.”
We turn and make our way up to the house. Before we can even knock, the door opens for us. A butler stands just inside, ushering us in. “Good afternoon. Please make your way to the back patio for cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.”
We both nod and Sadie leads the way. The house is just as ridiculous inside as it is out. The floors are marble and I swear I even see speckles of gold throughout. Crystal chandeliers hang in every room, along with what I assume is very expensive artwork lining the walls. I can’t even tell what half of them are paintings of.
In an attempt to lighten the mood, I lean down and whisper into Sadie’s ear. “That painting over there looks like one Sophia made last week.”
Sadie snorts, and I give myself a little fist pump, extremely proud of myself for making her laugh again.
Once we’re finally outside, I tug on Sadie’s hand and lead her to an empty table at the far side of the patio. Hopefully we’re far enough away from everyone that Sadie can catch her bearings. I can tell by the look in her eyes that she’s still uncomfortable.
“You okay?”
Sadie’s eyes scan the sea of people mingling about. Her eyes land on someone and she immediately turns toward me so her back is facing the crowd.
“I’m fine.”
I don’t believe her but I also don’t push. A waiter walks by with champagne flutes and I grab one for each of us. I hand Sadie hers and she downs it in one gulp.
Laughing, I reach out to hand her mine. “Would you like mine too? You seem thirsty.”
