Page 73 of Strictly Business
David would never have given me the option — if he felt like I needed to wear something in particular, I was wearing it. I thought that was normal. Appreciated it even because I didn’t want to embarrass him or myself. Barnes had thrown a Christmas party last year and I felt an enormous amount of pressure to look and act perfectly considering not only was it the first time I’d be meeting his boss, co-workers, and staff, but we had just gotten married. I had spent the entire day getting dolled up: hair, makeup, nails…I had even hired a stylist to pick out my dress.
“Michaela Reed, you’ve outdone yourself,” I said staring into the mirror. “Pretty as a peach, Daddy would say.” The elegant, off-the-shoulder velvet dress fit like a glove, hugging me in all the right places. I had specifically asked for an emerald color to match the tie I had gotten David for the event. He had been with Barnes most of the day, which left me to get ready without interruption.
“Mic, I’m back!” I heard him enter the apartment. When he had gotten the job with Barnes, we decided he should get an apartment for when he was in Washington, and let’s say, it was obvious a woman didn’t live there full-time. It was more of a bachelor pad than the actual bachelor pad he lived in before we moved to New York. The only semblance of a relationship was one of our wedding photos that sat on his desk. Stepping out of the bedroom, I prepared myself for some kind of reaction that would tell me just how good I looked. “Where are you— Oh, what is that?”
“What?” I looked down at my outfit hoping I hadn’t gotten anything on it already.
“That. The dress. Why are you wearing it?”
“Because we’re going to a Christmas party.”
“Yes, I know, but why are you wearing that dress? I got one for you; it’s hanging in the closet.” He never told me he had bought me a dress. I followed him back into the bedroom and watched as he pulled out a simple, short-sleeved burgundy-colored dress.
“Oh,” was the only thing I could say. “You don’t think this is a little more…appropriate?”
David looked between them before letting out a deep sigh, “I suppose it’s sufficient.”
Sufficient?
“I mean, I guess I can wear that instead, I just—”
“I want you to be comfortable, y’know? I think you’d be a lot more comfortable in this.”
I took the dress from him and walked into the bathroom hanging it on the back of the door. I sat on the edge of the tub and stared at it. Under normal circumstances, I’d think it was pretty and I might even buy it, but this wasn’t a normal circumstance. Not only was this party the first one I’d been invited to, but it was our first one as a married couple.
A knock on the door after a few minutes, “You ‘bout done? We have to go.”
When I opened the door, David’s lips pulled into a small smile, “There, doesn’t that feel better?”
“Yeah, so much better. You were right.”
He pulled me to him and kissed my forehead. “Let’s go, we don’t want to be late.”
When we walked into the party that night, I wasn’t surprised to see every other woman in a dress similar to my emerald one, hell some of them were dressed fancier. I’d felt extremely underdressed in the dress he chose, but David didn’t seem to notice. His hand never left its place on my lower back all night, guiding me through the crowd and introducing me to his friends, colleagues, and finally Senator Barnes. Despite the smiles and polite interactions, I couldn’t shake the looming feeling I was the talk of the party — and not in a good way.
“You mean that?” I asked Finn, pulling the dress out of the box, unsure if he really meant it or was trying to coax me into changing into this insanely gorgeous black one-shouldered dress with an incredible asymmetrical neckline that transformed into a cape off the right shoulder. Talk about a showstopper.
“Of course,” Finn said. “You can wear whatever you want, Shortcake. Either way, it’ll end up on the floor.”
“Finn!” He chuckled before hanging up without another word leaving me to face the impossible decision of what to wear. Was it a test, or could I wear the one I had picked out? I hung the black dress on the closet door and stared at it. It’s not a test, I told myself, he just wants to do something nice for you. That was something I wasn’t used to.
“And, I want to rip it off and ravage you right here in front of all of New York City,” Finn says, his breath hot against my ear as his right hand trails down my hip to the slit in my thigh. His fingers are like fire on my skin when they slip under the material. “Show them who you belong to.” My small gasp urges him on, and his hand travels closer and closer to my throbbing core that has been craving his touch since he left three days ago. Fingers graze the material of my underwear before pushing it aside.
“Sir,” Tony clears his throat and Finn’s hand retreats. Damnit, Tony. “If we don’t leave now, we’ll be late. Traffic is a nightmare.”
“You ready?” Finn asks as if he wasn’t about to finger me on the sidewalk. I nod, unsure I trust myself to speak at the moment.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
FINN
BEFORE TONY CAN COMPLETELY roll up the partition, I pull Michalea’s mouth to mine. Fuck, I missed her. I missed her more than I want to admit. I was only in Charlotte for three days, but it felt like an eternity. I’ve never felt like this about someone before, not even with Amanda. I thought I loved her, but I’ve realized what I felt for Amanda was far from love.
My hand accidentally tugs the earring dangling from Michaela’s left ear and she yelps in pain. “Shit,” I release my hold on her, “I’m sorry.”
“I know they weren’t the ones you picked,” she laughs and pulls the earring from her ear, “but maybe we don’t rip my ear in half trying to get them out, huh?”
My cheeks burn with embarrassment.