Stiletto Secrets (10 page)

“What?”

“If you actually had a date for this little shindig. But it’s too late now.”

Right at that moment, Nicholas caught a glimpse of Emma walking past the entrance of the dining hall, and a little light bulb went off inside his head.

“Adam, you are fucking brilliant. I could kiss you right now.”

“Please don’t.” Adam actually looked afraid there for a second, but Nicholas quickly shoved past him and darted out of the hall.

“Emma!” he called after her as she rounded the corner. “Emma, wait!”

Emma stopped and turned toward him, big blue-green eyes staring at him. For a moment they actually rendered him speechless.

“Mr. Blake?”

“Nicholas, remember?” He smiled.

Emma just nodded, but he noticed that she seemed a little nervous, which she wasn’t the first two times they had met up.

“Is everything okay?” he asked, concerned.

“Everything is fine, Mr. Bl—Nicholas.”

Nicholas placed his hands in his pants pockets. “Good. Now, I need a really big favor.”

Her eyes narrowed. “What kind of favor?”

“A huge favor,” he replied and then slowly moved his gaze down to what she was wearing. “A favor which will require you to get out of that uniform.”

“YOU
want me to do what?”

“Please. I would you owe you big time.”

Emma stared at Nicholas like he had just grown a third eye right in the middle of his forehead, a beautiful forehead at that.

Emma shook her head. “Nicholas, I’m a maid. Plus, I don’t have anything to wear besides this.” She tugged at her uniform. “And the pj’s I packed for the night. So unless you would like me to wear my Hello Kitty flannels, I can’t help you.”

Nicholas lifted an eyebrow. “You wear Hello Kitty pajamas?”

“Shut up.”

Nicholas snickered and then gave a step toward her. “I really need your help. Please.”

Emma instinctively gave a step back. She had managed to successfully avoid running into Nicholas so far this week, up until now. After their very intimate
get-together
Saturday at Twisted Fable, she had avoided Nicholas like the plague. Emma wanted to kick herself for being so damn stupid. She knew that she had a fragile heart and that she would lose it easily, especially to a guy like Nicholas. But she wasn’t naïve enough to think that he would ever want more from a girl like her. All a guy like Nicholas wanted was sex with no strings attached. Emma wasn’t like that. Besides, even if he was a guy with good intentions, she would never be good enough for him.

“I can’t,” she said and turned around in a bid to walk away.

“Emma, wait.” Nicholas reached out and grabbed a hold of her wrist. Emma’s heart almost leaped out of her chest the second he touched her, and she could feel her body, her soul and her mind loving the feeling. “Please, Emma. I’m desperate here.”

Emma closed her eyes knowing that she just wasn’t strong enough to deny this man anything. Why couldn’t she just walk away and not spare him a second thought?

She turned back around to face him, staring straight at those captivating blues which clearly had magical powers since she no longer possessed the strength to say no. “Tell me again why you want me to do this.”

Nicholas continued to hold her wrist in his hand and she had to concentrate really hard to pretend like his touch didn’t do things to her.

“My control freak dad has this twisted idea of hooking me up with this woman who I cannot stand. I’ve been trying to avoid her the entire night, but I’m running out of steam.” Nicholas seemed and sounded exasperated, and Emma actually felt kind of sorry for him.

“So you want me to pretend to be your date?”

“Yes.”

“But your dad will recognize me, Nicholas. He knows who I am.”

“That he does. But he wouldn’t out you or call our bluff in front of all his guests. He’s too proud to cause that kind of embarrassment.” Nicholas smiled mischievously, and Emma couldn’t help but notice how cute his little smirk was.

Emma loosened her wrist from his grip since her skin started to feel like it was melting away in his touch, and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Even if I agree to this, where am I supposed to get a gown now?”

An alluring smile crossed Nicholas face, and Emma felt her cheeks blush.

“I’ve got that covered.”

“What do you mean?”

He lifted a cocky brow. “Are you in?”

Emma looked at him through narrowed eyes. “You promise I won’t get fired because of this? I need this job, Nicholas.”

“I know. And yes, I promise. I will handle my father, and I guarantee you will not lose your job.”

Emma thought about it for a second, and then noticed how Nicholas was staring at her. “What?”

“Do you always do that?”

“Do what?”

“Scrunch up your nose whenever you’re deep in thought?”

“I do not scrunch up my nose.”
She totally did.

“Yes, you do. And it’s kind of cute.”

Emma froze. She had no idea what to do with that. But when she looked into those magnetic blue sapphires, she felt herself slowly slipping into that intoxicating feeling of exotic and entrancing desire that only he could evoke inside of her. Emma stared at his almost angelic, gorgeous face, zeroing in on his luscious, hauntingly enticing and shapely lips. All she could think about was how it felt having them pressed firmly against hers. It was ardently exquisite. Emma knew that she would never experience that kind of kiss with anyone ever again. A kiss like that only happened once in lifetime. She just wished that it meant the same to him as it did to her. That he knew it was her, Emma, and not Cinderella.

Emma pulled her fingers through her ponytail and tried desperately to not focus on his eyes too much. “Okay. But unless you have a fairy godmother I’m not aware of, I’m posing as your date in a maid’s uniform.”

Nicholas smiled. “I told you, I got you covered.”

“Why do I feel like I should be scared?”

He just laughed and took her hand, leading her down the hall.

Within an hour Emma stared at her reflection in a mirror that stood in one of the huge, elegantly decorated spare bedrooms.

“You look beautiful, Emma,” Beth said as she, too, stared at Emma’s reflection.

“Remind me again why I’m doing this?” Emma was nervous.

Beth placed both her hands on Emma’s shoulders. “Nicholas is a good boy, Emma. I’ve known him his entire life, but his father had lost his way and Nicholas is struggling to keep his own.”

Emma turned to Beth. “Why doesn’t Nicholas just tell his father that he doesn’t want anything to do with this woman?” Emma had no idea why, but she hated the thought of Nicholas being with another woman.

Beth smiled. “Mr. Blake is a stubborn old man. And Nicholas has his own reasons.”

Well, that was an evasive answer if Emma had ever heard one.

Deciding not to push for more, she turned back to the mirror, and softly glided her hands down the silk of the dress. Beth had given her a smoky gray strapless dress, with a sparkling waist strip that gave it just a touch of elegance. It was beautiful. Plain, but exactly what Emma would have chosen for herself.

“Where did you find the dress?”

Beth walked over with a few bobby pins in her hand, and started to pull Emma’s hair up, away from her neck and pinning it together in an elegant bun.

“Nicholas might be a good boy, but he has his weaknesses.”

Emma jerked her head to the side. “You mean this is one of his girlfriend’s dresses?”

Beth shrugged. “It was a long time ago. Be thankful she left it behind otherwise you would have to wear one of my old dresses. And I can assure you, none of them are as beautiful as this one.”

Beth placed a few more pins in Emma’s hair. “And we’re done.”

“Um.” Emma turned around and then held out her bare foot, wiggling her toes. “I think we missed something.”

“Oh.” Beth walked over to the bed and picked up a white box and held it out to her. “Nicholas asked me to have you wear these.”

Emma eyed the box and watched as Beth opened it. When Emma saw what was inside, she sucked in a breath.

“Oh my God. They are exquisite.” Emma gaped as she slowly removed the shoes from the box. It was a pointed-toe stiletto heeled shoe, but what made them so uniquely beautiful was the fact that it was clear, creating the illusion that it was made of glass. The only color it had was the little heart of diamonds on the back of the heel.

“Oh, Beth, these are beautiful.”

“They were his mother’s favorite shoes.”

Emma looked up, shocked. “He wants me to wear a pair of his mother’s shoes?”

Beth nodded. “Nicholas was sure the shoes would fit. Let’s hope he’s right.”

And then someone knocked on the door. “Emma? Beth? Are you ready?” It was Nicholas.

Emma bent down and slipped on the shoes, and they fit perfectly.

“You look beautiful, Emma.” Beth stepped back to get a better view.

“Thank you, Beth.” Emma cocked a brow. “Why exactly are you going along with this?”

Beth just smiled, but there was a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Let’s just say I’m a sucker for a fairy tale.”

Emma wanted to ask her what she meant, but Beth had darted off and opened the door.

Nicholas came walking in, and Emma suddenly felt shy and a little out of place. “About time, everyone is starting—” And then he looked up, and their eyes met. A brief moment passed while they just stared at each other. Nicholas didn’t say a word, and Emma felt a little nervous.

Finally Nicholas spoke while his gaze swept over her. “Emma, you look beautiful.”

Again, he managed to make her blush with just a few words. It wasn’t the dirty banter she got from him when she was Cinderella and he was blindfolded. It sounded like a real, sincere compliment, and she loved it.

“Thank you.” Her gaze fell to the floor and she lifted her dress a few inches. “These are lovely shoes, Nicholas.”

Blue eyes stared down at her feet, and Emma noticed Nicholas biting his bottom lip. “They fit perfectly.” He continued to stare at the shoes on her feet.

Emma blushed. “They do.”

The atmosphere around them started to sizzle and Emma’s heart was racing. There was the faintest feeling of fluttering butterflies right in the pit of her stomach and she hoped that he didn’t notice how she was affected by him.

Emma took a moment to admire Nicholas looking so handsome in his black suit, his midnight-black hair styled to perfection. No wonder the women adored him, all vying for his attention.

“Come on you two.” Beth’s voice broke the static. “Nicholas, your father is already searching for you.”

Nicholas stepped forward and held out his arm toward her. “Are you ready to be my date, princess?”

And Emma thought there was no way he could make her blush more than he already had. Her cheeks felt warm as all the blood rushed to her face.

“Are you ready for your father’s wrath?”

A roguish grin spread along his face. “I’m more than ready. In fact, I look forward to it.”

Emma just shook her head, amused, and hooked her arm in his. Something about standing by his side just felt…
right.
Emma couldn’t help but think about what it would be like to be by his side
permanently
. But she couldn’t lose focus. This was only pretend. Nicholas had only asked her to be his date to get his father and this woman off his back. He didn’t ask her because he had feelings for her, or because he liked her, or even just because he wanted to. He asked her because he was
desperate.

As he led her through the halls, Emma kept on telling herself not to see anything more, not to want anything more from a man like Nicholas. But her heart kept on hoping, causing her to want so much more from him.

A maid and a stripper falling for a millionaire playboy.
What a cliché
.

They reached the dining hall and Nicholas glanced at her. “So, how good an actress are you?”

Emma smiled despite herself. “If you only knew.”
Yeah, if he only knew…

“Here goes.”

Nicholas opened the doors and suddenly every eye in the room was on them. Emma’s heart hammered behind her ribs and for a moment her stomach churned. Her grip on Nicholas’ arm tightened.

He placed his palm over her hand, but it did nothing to still her wildly beating heart. As a matter of fact, his touch just made it worse.

Nicholas squeezed her hand. “Breathe, Emma. Just breathe.”

With small, slow steps he led her into the room. A few hours ago Emma had helped decorate this room, putting everything in place to create the most elegant and refined dinner party, fit for the rich and famous. Now, Emma was walking among those rich and famous as a guest and as Nicholas Blake’s date. As a little girl her parents had hosted tons of these kinds of parties, and she used to love them. But it had been years since she had attended a prestigious party like this one, other than being a waitress, or the maid.

Nicholas leaned down to her ear. “Are you okay?”

Shivers travelled all the way down her spine as his warm breath skidded across her cheek.

“If I faint, will you pick me up?”

“What kind of date would I be if I didn’t?”

Emma looked up and met his gaze.

Just as she opened her mouth to say only God knows what, a young dark-haired man stepped up to them.

“Nicholas, where the hell have you been, man?” And then he noticed Emma. “And who is this gorgeous flower?”

Nicholas rolled his eyes. “Adam, has anyone ever told you that you suck at giving compliments without sounding like a complete pervert?”

“Many times.” Adam kept his leering gaze on Emma.

“Emma, this is Adam, my obnoxious self-absorbed friend, and also self-proclaimed man whore. Adam, this is Emma.”

Adam’s gaze flitted up to Nicholas. “Emma? As in the
eight
Emma?”

“Oh my God, Adam, you really don’t have a filter do you?” Nicholas stared back at Adam, slack-jawed.

“You know I’m known for a lot of things, my friend, having a filter ain’t one of them.” Adam turned his head and gazed back at Emma. “But, Nicholas, I have to say you had it so fucking wrong.”