*William*I held the bridge of my nose while the four analysts in my office read off our recent numbers. Then we rehashed why the deal was taking so long to close in Toronto. I wanted concrete solutions, and all I was getting was excuses.Grace interrupted the meeting to let me know I was meeting with my marketing executive and friend, Jim, at 11:00. “Okay, we are done here!” I said. “Team, I want this closed by the end of the month.” They all began talking at once, and I almost slammed my fist on the desk. Instead, I said, “That will be all.” I rarely lost my temper at work, but the evening with Eva and Lily still had me rattled. Neither of them had reached out to me so I thought I would give it time and try calling them in a few days. The event forced me to involve my ex-wife, something I desperately tried to avoid, but Eva was unpredictable. I had to tell Victoria what happened and explain to her about Lily. I didn’t think it would be too serious, but I needed someone to keep
*Lily*Was this classy woman some real estate agent asking me about the apartment?“I’m Victoria Shaw,” she said, turning to face me, and my eyes bulged.Oh, shit. What had I gotten myself into now?With her handbag strapped to her arm, she leaned toward me, not waiting for me to recover. “May I see your work?”Stunned, I nodded. “Yes, certainly. Of course, my latest pieces were still at Tony’s gallery.” Thank God she wouldn’t be able to see the ones of William. His portrait was in the bedroom closet since it was too painful to look at.“That’s all right. I just want to see what all the chatter is about. Everyone has been talking about your art.”I took her over to what I had been working on. The truth was that I had lost my mojo, my inspiration. I couldn’t seem to get excited about anything—still, she lauded me.“These are lovely,” she said. “Honestly, when David, my friend from Vancouver called me, I wasn’t sure, but I really love your technique. He said he wants to c
*Lily*William took my hand in his, and we climbed another marble staircase. We passed a museum worker who nodded to William. I smiled at him, wondering what I ever did to deserve his adoration.“William, how?” I spun around, taking in everything I loved about this museum, which was literally one of my favorite places on Earth. “How did you know? Degas, Monet, Boudin, all my absolute favorites are here! It’s one of the most famous museums in the world.”“You don’t say?”We toured all my favorite galleries, and I pointed out what I loved about Edgar Degas’ The Dance Class.“He’s a French Impressionist known for his ballerinas.” I felt like twirling around the room. “He painted over six hundred ballet scenes. He said natural light was too easy and criticized painters who painted outdoors. And here Vermeer was called the Master of Light.”“How do you know all this?”“I soaked it all in during school,” I said. “And you know, Pollock painted on the floor so he could apply the
*Lily*I held William’s hand as we walked up the spiral staircase to the master bedroom. I was still a little shy around him sometimes, though usually not once we got started. He took my face in his hands and kissed me as he backed me slowly up to the bed. He brushed my tender neck with more kisses; his lips were hard and firm.I opened my eyes, looking into his as I removed his sweater, and pushed him back on the bed, straddling him. All of my shyness was gone now.He put his hands under my dress, and as he lifted it, it caught on my chin, causing us both to laugh. I wasn’t wearing a bra. I slipped off my shoes and bent over him with my long hair falling on either side of his face, running my fingers up his chest.“You are so beautiful,” he told me, shaking his head.He sat up and pulled my panties down, kissing between my legs as I kneeled over him. I couldn’t help the moan that left my lips as I held onto his shoulders. Then I pushed him back onto the bed and straddled hi
*Lily*When I entered my apartment, I saw that Grace had sent over a batch of new art supplies and a manilla envelope with my typed name on the front. I ripped it open immediately, worrying it might be from Victoria, but it was a contract for my services with LiVo Technologies that included a monthly stipend for living expenses, supplies, and $5,000 in addition to my paid rent.I only had to produce a total of four paintings per quarter, an unbelievably low quota for what I was used to creating. There was a quick note from Grace asking me to sign and return the document if I found the terms acceptable. The terms were amazingly generous. I’d be a fool not to sign.My trip to the MET with William inspired me to paint my subsequent work using oil paints. Like a child with a new present, I opened numerous canvases that varied in sizes and textures.William also got me thinking about how I missed attending classes. It was probably too late for summer school, but I would have to look
*William*Eva popped into my office an hour into my workday, asking if I had a second. Despite our confrontation before, when I’d told her to stay out of my love life, I enjoyed seeing her in the office. It had been a long-standing hope of mine for Eva to work alongside me. It must have been some primal desire for me to ensure my legacy. I fought the idea that one day when I retired, I’d have to sell the company. Sure, I knew my family and their future generations would be taken care of, but to pass it down to my heirs in a way that my father, and his father before him, had—“Sure, come in, come in. You know you don’t have to knock.”“I just wanted to run a few ideas by you,” she said. “I think we should get moving on your social media campaign. As soon as this deal with White Out happens, we need to blast it from the rooftops.”“Okay. I thought we should keep the name too,” I said. “Definitely, everyone knows and loves it—William Shaw to run White Out.” She moved her han
*Lily*The call with Victoria stirred up emotions about my own mother I hadn’t felt in years. I ended the telephone call with her abruptly. Her tone remained kind and questioning when I thanked her for the offer, but I wanted to concentrate on my creations—which was true. There was no mention of William, our relationship, or our arrangement.The contract I signed and returned to Grace gave me the security I needed to keep working, confident in my abilities. Once again, I decided to throw myself into my work to take my mind off my personal life.Patrick and Adam lived in the DUMBO section of Brooklyn. DUMBO stood for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. It was known for its delectable eateries, gourmet pizza, and high-end boutique stores. When I’d first arrived in the city, I’d taken a walking tour of the celebrated bridge, where I learned about the extraordinary structure and how it contributed to the city’s expansion. Walking across the Manhattan Bridge provided some of
*Lily*The late morning sunlight slanted through the coffee shop windows and bounced onto the oak floor. I sat at a table beside a red brick wall and bookshelf with more knick-knacks on it than actual books. I ordered two vanilla lattes with skim oat milk, Eva’s favorite. I knew she would keep me waiting; she kept me waiting when we were friends. Now that I was her proposed enemy, dating her father, the wait could be up to thirty minutes. Rude as she could be, it was important to me to attempt a reconciliation, no matter what kind of a long shot it might be.Just as I was about to leave, around 10:35, Eva strolled past the window, wearing her stiletto heels, long blonde hair extensions, and a slim-fitting gray suit with a black turtleneck underneath. She looked ever the young business executive.I pushed my judgemental thoughts away and tried to smile when she sat across from me. I moved the coffee in her direction. She sniffed, then took a drink. “It’s cold.”“Well, it was
*Lily*With the wedding day already here, I felt jittery as I prepared to walk down the aisle toward my beloved, William. It had been a busy morning filled with preparations for hair and makeup and I was more than ready to get the show on the road. I could feel the excitement in the air surrounded by our friends and family. My excitement was apparent too, with adrenaline pumping throughout my entire being.My heart had been pumping fast as I stepped into the foyer, waiting for the doors to open so I could make my debut. My heart was also overflowing with love for William and the joy he brought me. As tradition usually went, we hadn't seen each other that day yet and I missed seeing his face. I couldn't wait to embrace him and marry him. I heard the organ start its tune, the music carrying to the foyer where I was waiting. We had picked out our songs together and I recognized it immediately. The doors opened slowly and I saw the audience members stand and turn to face me. Holy sh
*Lily*Sometimes life just needed a welcome distraction. I knew my life had been a roller coaster lately, and I gladly jumped at the chance for a change in routine. My mission today was to find a wedding dress.This was all surreal to me. Little old me marrying a handsome and amazing man like William. I needed to find the perfect dress!I couldn't keep our engagement a secret with the tabloids already running many heated articles about us. I had called friends and family to tell them of our engagement, hoping that I’d reach them before the news articles had. I would have rather them hear from me or William directly. I wasn't sure if I'd ever get used to this much publicity.Having run to a nearby coffee shop to meet my dear friend, Farrah, I awaited her arrival sipping on a caramel latte. I had been apprehensive to look up on Google what the current fashion wedding dress trends were. I wasn't the most fashionable person in the world, and Farrah had helped me often in this realm
*William*After spending the night together making love, I found myself at work the next day still somewhat happily in shock. On Lily's finger rested the ring that I had given her when I asked her to marry her. I was lucky to find a woman like her at my age. She was everything I wanted and more. The second my foot stepped over the office threshold, Grace Kim smiled over at me with a knowing look. She had known about the dinner plans, but she must have found out either from Lily or Jim about our engagement with the way she grinned at me. She licked her lips and had just finished up a phone call placing the receiver back in its holder.She stood and greeted me, smoothing her dress. "Mr. Shaw, congratulations are in order! I've heard the wonderful news about your engagement to Ms. Lily Matthews. I hope you both are happy and spend many long years together. I had a feeling she was the one the minute I heard about her.""Well, thank you very much, Grace. Your kind words mean a lot
*Lily*As we walked into our front foyer, we kicked our shoes off and William eagerly watched me as I took my jacket off. He seemed to groan out loud watching me stretch out of the fabric and before I could hang it, he pushed me up against the wall groaning against me. His erection was thrust hard against my soft thigh as he breathed in my ear.Whispering softly he said, "I have to worship you, my love, stay right here. My new little fiance.""But William, I want to make you happy too," I whined but he shushed me holding a finger to my lips.I gasped as he encouraged me to flatten against the wall behind me and then seized my lips with his own, roughly kissing me. I kissed him back feverishly, placing my hands on his pecs, starting to feel his muscles and massage him. He felt amazing with his sexy, hard body against my own. I wanted him badly and wondered what plans he had in store for me.William pulled my dress over my head and continued kissing me. He kissed down my neck a
*Lily*Looking into William's eyes I could hear his voice trembling with anticipation. No wonder he had been so distracted today. He slowly brought a velvet-covered box out of his suit pocket and my eyes widened in shock. This was it, it was really happening. It had to be exactly what I thought it was, a marriage proposal.I couldn’t believe my eyes. He wanted to marry me? Little old me?William smiled at me as he spoke, "I've often wondered what our future would hold. And then I realized we have power over our future, and I took control of it. Lily, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want your love, support, and time. I want to be with you forever."My heart seemed to jump in my throat as I eyed the box and looked back at him. My mouth opened incredulously. I was at a loss for words, the joy exploding in my chest."Lily Matthews, will you do the honor of marrying me? Would you be my wife? Would you spend the rest of your days with me?" William asked as his voice
*Lily*The fall of my footsteps clicked on the pavement as the sidewalk lay before me. I was on my way to meet William and was excited to share the news. The interview I had with the magazine was finally published! It had been released today and potential client inquiries had come pouring in through my phone. It was an amazing day, I couldn't help but feel thrilled that my work inspired others and caused them to reach out.I clutched a copy of the magazine in my hand proudly. I felt like I was on top of the world, or rather on cloud nine. I couldn't wait to show William the magazine article.I stared into the tall windows of the Italian food restaurant where William said he'd meet me. It was extremely elegant with long tall blue curtains swept off to the side. I could hear the typical Italian music playing and it sounded so romantic. The wait staff bustled around inside with pressed white and black uniforms with a professional air about them. This was a stunning and fancy restaur
*William*After arriving back in New York, Lily wanted to focus on her paintings. I could do nothing but oblige because it must have come as a welcome distraction. Paris had been a dream until Jean Laurent ruined our visit. That mother fucker got what was coming to him. I was glad to put even more distance between him and Lily. I'd protect her with my life if I had to, I wouldn't lose her again.Pretty much the second we were back in the States, my friend Jim asked me to go golfing with him. Jim and I had been longtime friends, practically since young teenage boys. We had been through some interesting times together pranking classmates, causing mayhem for our parents, and throwing some wild parties. Now that we were older we mainly smoked cigars or played golf. We weren't as wild as we had been once upon a time.I owed him after the favor I called in while I was in Paris. I knew he’d risked a lot by sharing information with me but it was what helped me confirm Jean Laurent’s iden
*Lily*I fully submerged myself in the warm water to wash the slime out of my hair. Having no shower or real toilet for those hours I was with Jean had taken its toll on me. I squirted a large amount of shampoo and conditioner into my hair, scrubbing hard. William swatted my hands away as he began to massage my scalp and temples.."I said I want to help, I'm not leaving you alone another second," he said sitting on the edge of the tub focused entirely on me.I blinked with surprise and dropped my arms back into the warm, bubble-filled water. I hadn't taken him seriously but I chastised myself now knowing when William said something he meant it. I felt spoiled knowing most men just said whatever women wanted to hear, while William always followed through with his words and put them into action. I sighed feeling his fingers scrub away, and I could finally rest comfortably."I'm so happy you are back with me," he said, plunging his hands into the water to wash away the suds. "You
*Lily*I sighed with relief hearing Jean Laurent being placed into the cop car. I didn't register what all of the voices were saying around us. Only William. His hands hadn't left my body, touching me everywhere as if to make sure I was actually there. We hadn't said a word about our previous fight, it had been forgotten.I still couldn't believe I was out of the basement. I had been rescued by the exact person I had wanted to see. William and I were finally reunited, our embrace had offered me a sense of safety and solace in the midst of the chaos. His arms had felt so large as they tucked me closer into his body. I was safe again.I frowned trying to remember what had happened, like the trauma was already being blotted from my memory. From what I could recall, William had thrown Jean off of me in a fit of pure rage. I had never seen William like that and if it had been a different circumstance I would have been shocked. I realized now how much William cared for me the more time