Hold Me (5 page)

“I’ll brush my hair and then you can help me lift it up and make sure it doesn’t look like a bird nest.” I start for the dressing table, but Caleb’s hand on my arm stops me.

“No, go sit on the bed,” he says, heading for my dressing table, and my insides clench at the memory of what he did the last time he’d told me to do that. I settle myself on the edge of the bed and squeeze my shaky legs together, which only increases the heat pooling inside of me.

He picks up my brush and comes toward me. “You have beautiful hair,” he says.

“Thanks.” The bed shifts under his weight as he sits next to me, then gently places his hand on my shoulder.

“Turn your back to me.”

I move slightly and straighten my shoulders, bracing myself as Caleb’s fingers touch my hair. Whenever someone combs my hair, they usually pull a couple of hairs out since it tangles very easily. But as I hear him run the brush through my hair, I can’t feel anything because he’s gently holding the strands between his fingers. “You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”

He’s quiet for a moment, and I don’t think he’ll answer. “Yes, for a friend,” he finally says. “She’s always too nervous to do it herself.” As he moves the brush to the top of my head, he slowly and carefully runs it through my hair.

“Why?” I ask. “Why is she nervous?”

Caleb’s grip on the brush falters and he nearly drops it. “Because of her... job,” he quickly says.

“Can I know what she does? Is she a model?” I don’t know if I’m asking questions that are too personal, but I’m still curious. If she were a model, then wouldn’t she have people doing her hair for her?

“No, she’s... a singer. She sometimes performs in bars and going on stage can be scary for her.”

Wow, it’s so sweet of him to do that for a friend. Or maybe she’s his lucky girlfriend.

He gets to his feet and puts the brush back on the dressing table.

“My hair accessories are in that drawer. There’s a silver band somewhere in there.” I point my finger at the left drawer of the dressing table. He rummages through it until he finds what I want and comes back toward me. I sit still as he busies himself with my hair.

“There. All done.” He pulls back and I get to my feet, going for the mirror. My hair is tied into a perfect loose bun, one strand falling freely on the left side of my face. “Do you like it?” he comes to stand behind me, and all I can see in the mirror are his dark eyes.

“Yes,” I say, breathless. He’s so close to me now that he could touch me, but he doesn’t.

“Good.” He crosses his arms, a pleased expression on his face.

I take a seat in the chair in front of the dressing table and pick up my mascara. “I can do the rest by myself. Thank you.”

He nods, a smile stretching his lips. I can feel his presence behind me like a wave of heat. When I finish applying my mascara and eye shadow, I reach for my pink lipstick, but then I see Caleb shaking his head in the mirror.

“What?” I hover the lipstick above my lips.

“Red is better.”

I eye the lipstick for a moment, then put it down. I rarely use the red one, but maybe Caleb is right. I can always wipe it off if it doesn’t look good. After I finish, I smack my lips together and look at myself in the mirror.

“You look absolutely breathtaking,” Caleb says, and I can’t help but smile because he looks sincere. I almost feel as if he were really my boyfriend, except I know almost nothing about him, and what I do know is probably just a part of his act.

“We’re going to be late. Let’s go.” I pick up my black purse and Caleb offers me his arm. As I slip my arm through his, I take a shuddery breath. Mark has never been so nice to me. And I know he and many other men would have rather jumped off the top of a building than help a girl with her hair or makeup, but Caleb seems different, and part of me wants to believe that this side of him is real. As we walk through the door, I hope I’ll find out.

I can’t hide my smile as Caleb and I enter the restaurant where my father’s party is being held. The restaurant is closed for anyone other than the invitees, and my dad made sure that the staff who usually takes care of his parties is here. The room we enter is completely in golden tones, and it’s not too big, but enough for dozens of tables. There’s also a big table with food in the middle.  A dance floor is more in the background, and soft music is playing.

“Honey!” my dad says, a broad smile on his face as he approaches me. “You look lovely.” He frowns when his eyes fall on Caleb. “And this is...?”

“Caleb,” I say.

“Pleasure to meet you, sir.” Caleb extends his hand to my father. My father nods at him as they shake hands, the smile never leaving his face, but he casts a questioning look in my direction. My dad never cares much about who I date, but he’s probably surprised I haven’t brought Caleb with me before. Still, he doesn’t ask anything else.

“Well, I have to attend to some things. I hope you enjoy yourselves.” He strolls off, and I let out a sigh of relief. But when I spot my mother’s suspicious face across the room, I want the earth to swallow me. She strides toward me, her red hair flying around her, as fast as her high heels let her. She’s wearing a tight silvery dress that reveals her still perfect figure.

“Lilith, can I talk to you for a second?” Her fingers wrap around my arm as she flashes a fake smile in Caleb’s direction.

“Sure.” I glance at Caleb. “I’ll be right back.”

He just nods, and I let my mom drag me all the way to the end of the room.

“Who’s that?” she hisses.

“Caleb,” I say. “My new boyfriend.”

My mom rolls her eyes. “Did you really have to bring him with you? Mark’s going to be here!”

“Mom, in case you didn’t notice, Mark and I broke up, and he’s bringing a date too.”

“I know you’ve had your differences, but he’ll come round when he sees you. Men like to have fun until they find the right woman. He’s just not ready for you yet, but he will be.”

I pick up a glass of champagne from the nearby table because I’m not sure I can listen to this without alcohol. “What are you talking about? I’m not in love with Mark anymore. We’ll never get back together.”

She pats my shoulder. “You’re still so young. After you both have your fun, you’ll find a way to each other. I’m sure of it.” What she’s actually trying to say is that if Mark and I get married, his father’s and my father’s company will possibly merge one day. That would be a whole lot of money and a very secure future.

Maybe I should tell my mom exactly why Mark and I broke up. I was too embarrassed to talk about it to anyone at first, so when she asked, I told her Mark and I had a huge fight. Mark’s always been nice around my mother and she got to really like him, so I doubt she’d believe me if I told her the truth now.

“I think you’ve had too much champagne.” I take a big gulp of my own drink. “Caleb is much better than Mark will ever be.”

“Really? And where did you meet that boy?” She eyes Caleb across the room, her lip curling. “I haven’t seen him before. He looks dodgy. Are you sure he isn’t with you just because you’re rich?”

I nearly choke on my drink. She couldn’t be more right, just not in the way she thinks. “He’s a law student,” I say.

My mom scoffs. “Get rid of him before Mark comes.”

I shake my head, put the empty glass back on the table, and walk away. My mom’s intentions might not be bad, but I don’t want Mark anywhere near me ever again. And if my mom knew the truth about Caleb, she’d probably freak out and be relieved at the same time. I could partly understand my mom’s paranoia about me ending up with the wrong guy.

She came from a wealthy family too and was lucky enough to find my father, but her sister didn’t find such happiness. My aunt fell in love with a drug addict who used her money to pay off his debts and get more of his fix. He even got her hooked too. I doubt he ever loved her, because he sure as hell didn’t bother to get her to the hospital in time when she overdosed. I suppose what my mom likes most about Mark is that he doesn’t smoke or do drugs, as if that somehow magically makes him a good person.

“Are you okay?” Caleb asks, concern written all over his face.

“Yeah, it’s just my mom. She still wants to hook me up with my ex.” I sigh and look for another glass of champagne, but Caleb takes my hand.

“Would you like to dance?” he asks, and I gape at him. Sure, the music is nice and slow, and the guests are gushing around my father and eating, and I don’t really want to get involved with that, especially because someone could ask about Caleb, but dancing on an empty dance floor? The corners of Caleb’s lips are tilted upward, and I can see the challenge in his eyes.

“Okay.” I take his hand and let him lead me to the dance floor. Putting my arms around his neck, I feel warmth rushing through me as he wraps his arms around my waist. I don’t know how long we’ve been dancing when I notice someone staring at me, and I lift my eyes. Mark is standing not far from us, holding his date’s hand, his face deadly serious. My whole body tenses, and I’m glad my moves are automatic or I’d have stopped on the spot.

“Your ex is here, I presume,” Caleb whispers into my ear.

“Yeah.” I keep staring at Mark over Caleb’s shoulder. Mark’s date is excitedly chatting about something to him, but it doesn’t look like he’s listening. Finally, he gives her a quick kiss on the check and sends her to take a seat at one of the tables, which she obediently does. As he starts toward us, my heart skips a beat, and I suddenly want to run. What will Mark come up with now?

“Do you want to talk to him or not?” Caleb asks.

“No.” Caleb’s grip is the only thing holding me up.

“Then follow my lead and just relax.”

Before I can figure out what he wants me to do, his lips close over mine, and we stop dancing. I know Mark now has the perfect view of our kiss, so when Caleb parts my lips with his tongue, I let him. His hands lower down my back, cupping my bottom.

“Come.” He briefly breaks off the kiss and tugs at my hand. We go behind one of the columns, hidden from everyone’s view except Mark’s, who’s still coming in my direction, but his steps are much slower. Caleb nips on my earlobe and then pushes me until my back collides with the column. His hand ends up on my bare thigh and he lifts my leg up, his fingers inching under my dress.

“Tell me if you want me to stop,” he whispers, and I throw my head back, a moan escaping my lips as he licks my collarbone, his hand sliding under my dress. I can feel Mark’s burning gaze on me, but I don’t care. I just run my hand over Caleb’s back and pull him to me for another kiss. In the corner of my eye, I can see Katherine has joined Mark, and he’s glaring at her as she laughs. They finally both turn around and walk away. I should probably tell Caleb that our show is over, but I don’t want him to stop.

The music dies down and I hear my father’s voice. Shit. I have to come out and be there for his speech. “Stop,” I say, and Caleb immediately pulls back, his mouth red from my lipstick. I put my hand over my chest, trying to catch my breath. “How do I look? I can’t go out there like this!” I try to straighten my dress as best as I can, my stomach doing a nervous flip.

Caleb pulls out a handkerchief from the pocket of his suit jacket and lifts it toward me, dabbing around my mouth. When he’s done, he helps me fix my hair.

“You’re good to go,” he says after giving me a once-over. “I’ll be right there with you.”

I nod and head toward the main table where my father is still speaking, his glass raised. Warmth fills my cheeks when Katherine winks at me from one of the tables, her glass tipped toward me. I don’t see Mark anywhere as I take my seat at the table. After my father finishes his speech, Caleb emerges from behind the column and confidently strides toward me, a ghost of a smile tracing his lips that are still slightly red from my lipstick. The room seems to stop for a moment, and I can see people glancing curiously at him, but he doesn’t seem to notice or care. He slides into the chair next to me and leans forward, his lips brushing my cheek.

I finally spot Mark across the room, his jaw set, his eyes hard. Picking up my glass, I raise it toward him, then turn back to Caleb, my smile broader than ever.