As I opened my eyes, I could see the sunlight peeking through the drawn curtains announcing it was time to start the day. I already knew Silas had a lot in store for us today to begin this pomp and circumstance.
But first, I needed to have Cheri wrapped around my cock.
Rolling over to sample the sweet taste of her essence again, I was stunned to find her side of the bed empty. Was I really surprised? This was Cheri. She ran. I knew this.
“Fuck!” I said out loud, not that anyone could hear me.
I hopped out of bed and walked over to where I had shed my pants the night before and quickly pulled them over my hips. Operating without coffee, I tried to assess the situation. Where could she have gone? Why would she have left again without saying goodbye? Were the feelings going on between us only one-sided? Could I have been reading her all wrong?
The knock on the door had me releasing the breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding. Maybe Cheri had left to find some coffee for us. Bless the woman.
I walked over to the door and opened to Silas… not Cheri.
“Fuck,” I mumbled as I walked back into the room with Silas close behind.
“I’ve been greeted many ways, sir, but that one is certainly a new one for me.”
I bent down, reached for my shirt, and pulled it over my head. “You weren’t who I was hoping to see on the other side of the door.
Silas glanced over my shoulder at the messy, yet empty bed and raised his eyebrows. “Where is Cheri?”
“Not here.” I sat on the edge of the bed and began putting on my shoes. I needed to get out of the room and try to track her down.
“Sir, we have a very busy schedule today. I have tipped off the paparazzi of where you will be at noon. You are to be sipping cocktails at Café Blue while cuddling and kissing Cheri!” Silas bent down, picked up my jacket off the floor, and attempted to shake out the wrinkles. “Today is when the rumors are to begin. And then there is tonight. They will be expecting you both.”
I looked up at the old advisor and glared. “I know, Silas. Don’t you think I know this?”
I’d fucking come on too strong and scared her away. Fuck.
“Do you not know where she is?” Worry replaced the annoyance on his face.
“I have no idea, but I’m hoping I can visit our old spots we loved to go to when we were young, and she’ll be at one of them.”
“Sir, allow me to call security and—”
“I got this,” I interrupted. “The last thing Cheri needs right now is to be hounded by men in suits. She’s already a flight risk, but do make damn sure she hasn’t booked a flight out of here.” I looked over my shoulder. “Did you follow through with the other plans?”
“Yes, sir. Everything is taken care of.”
“Good.”
I grabbed my wallet and keys and headed toward the door, knowing that the change in plans was damn near causing Silas to stroke out. He hated when things didn’t go as planned. Hell… so did I.
I couldn’t get out of Spiked Roses fast enough. I needed to find Cheri before her mind got the best of her. I knew she was scared. And I knew a big part of that was me. I was playing as if I was the biggest bad boy drinking my bourbon. The poor girl probably thought I was the biggest dick. And I was one. Cheri deserved better than me telling her I didn’t really care about marriage but rather just fucking. Hell, the woman deserved caviar, champagne, a ten-carat diamond ring and none of the alpha bullshit I threw at her.
Why the fuck was it so hard with this woman? I felt off my game around her. I never had this problem with women, but with Cheri, I felt as if I had to be more, someone better.
Despite what I’d told Silas, I did have an idea where she would go. A couple, in fact. But my first spot was going to be the New Orleans Yacht Club. That had been the place of our first kiss, and always a favorite spot of ours. Cheri loved the yachts. She used to say that she pictured herself in one and sailing around the world reading books as the setting sun dipped behind the large expanse of open water. My Cheri had always been a romantic dreamer. Though even in our youth, she’d dreamed of escape, and all the extravagant boats were like an answer to her dreams.
Chapter Six
Cheri
Lake Pontchartrain possessed a level of blue today that I hadn’t remembered seeing as a child. It truly was a magnificent sight. I maybe hadn’t seen every ocean or lake, but the life I had lived growing up had afforded me the luxuries of travel around the world, and New Orleans was one of my most favorite places. Which when thinking back about my upbringing, and the words of Tennessee, I realized I really did live a life many would only dream of. So why did I feel the strong need to escape? Why, the moment I recovered from the most amazing sex of my life, did I instantly plan my getaway? Was it Roman?
No.
It was Prince Roman. I didn’t want to be with a prince, and I most certainly didn’t want to marry one. I didn’t want to be a fucking princess. I just wanted to sit in some café writing poetry. I wanted no one to know my name, yet still have the money to sip espresso in cafés in Prague and other bohemian destinations.
I snorted as I crossed my arms against my chest. I sounded like an entitled, spoiled brat. I had the opportunities in life that many would love to have. I was lucky… and yet, for some reason I didn’t feel lucky. Why?
With just a quick look around at all the yachts docked at the harbor, I knew it was very likely that I knew many of the owners of these boats. I knew people who made more money while they drank their morning coffee than I ever would winning some poetry prize, and for some reason, I had always felt their wealth was something to despise. Why was having money a bad thing? Why did I put those rich people in a box labeled bad persons? Were these people—though extremely wealthy—any worse than the barista at the coffee shop serving the coffee? Some were awful people. But I knew poor people just as awful. Why did I judge all the people of my past so harshly? There really was no reason.
“I knew you’d be here,” I heard as footsteps approached the pier I was standing on. I didn’t need to turn around to know it was Roman.
“It’s always been one of my favorite places,” I said, staring at the seagulls flocking over the surface of the gentle waves. The fishy aroma of the lake filled my nostrils, the humid air wafted against my face, and I did feel a sense of home.
“Why did you leave?” he asked, always getting straight to the point. He walked up to where I leaned against the railing and did the same.
“I needed to get out of there.”
“Obviously. But why?”
That was a question I couldn’t exactly answer. “I don’t know. I just needed to.”
“You owe me a better explanation than that.”
“Why? Because we fucked last night?” I asked.
“No,” he snapped before he took a deep breath to calm down. “Because this is you and me we are talking about. Last night was fun, and I plan to do that to you over and over again, but there is more than just a night of fucking between us and you know this.”
Not wanting to fight, and knowing Roman was right, I nodded. “Yes, you are owed a better answer. I just wish I knew what it was. I have no idea why I am so resistant to this life.”