The Billionaire Princess Page 23

The Sherbrookes sure knew how to throw a party. Over the years he'd attended a few New Year's Eve parties at Cliff House, but it'd been at least three years since the last one. Judging by the scene around him, they put just as much effort into every party they had. The only difference between tonight's party and the ones he'd attended before was the size. Tonight only fifty to sixty people filled the home, while on New Year's Eve the numbers swelled closer to two hundred.

  Christopher sipped his champagne and surveyed the guests in the grand ballroom. He recognized several from past parties. The Sherbrookes were a large family that still remained close. In addition to members of their family, Elizabeth's parents and siblings from England had flown over for the party. Add to that mix some key political figures and powerful CEOs and you had a room full of people worth several billion dollars. If someone had told him twenty years ago he'd be at parties like this he would've thought they were joking.

  His eyes settled on Sara across the room. Deep in conversation with her cousin Allison Sherbrooke, she didn't immediately see him watching her. When she finally looked over and saw him, she smiled. Then she said something to her cousin and started toward him, the smile still on her face.

  He couldn't tear his eyes away as she walked. Since making his first million, he'd dated several beautiful women including actress Riley Walker, but none could hold a candle to Sara, both on the inside and outside. Right then all he wanted was to take her upstairs, ditch the dress she wore, and show her how much he loved her.

  Loved? For a second he stopped breathing. He never doubted loved existed. His parents were an excellent example of two people who loved each other a great deal. And unlike many of his friends, he never went out of his way to avoid it. He just thought it happened gradually over time, not in less than two months. Now that he'd labeled the feelings he had for Sara, he couldn't think of it as anything else. What he felt went beyond a simple physical attraction.

  This new revelation put a whole different spin on things and until he grew accustomed to the idea, he planned to keep the information to himself.

  “What are you smiling at?” Sara asked when she reached his side.

  “You, and how much I am looking forward to spending the rest of the weekend away from here.” Christopher leaned closer and whispered in her ear, “How about we go upstairs so I can help you out of that dress.”

  Standing so close, he couldn't resist kissing her. But, aware of his surroundings, he kept the kiss gentle and hoped it would be enough to tempt her upstairs. “What do you say?” he asked, pulling back.

  Sara took a champagne flute from the uniformed waiter that walked by. “My brothers gave me a hard enough time this morning because we skipped dinner last night. I don't want to hear anymore from them.”

  He watched her raise the glass to her mouth, jealous that she didn't have her lips on his instead. “You need to grow thicker skin.”

  One bare shoulder rose in a gentle shrug. “You don't have brothers, you have no idea how relentless they are, but we can dance. The band is scheduled to start up again in a few minutes.”

  While not what he had in mind, it would do for now.

  When the band started their next set, he led her onto the dance floor. Other guests cast glances in their direction as Christopher pulled her close and they began to dance but he ignored them. One slow ballad flowed into another, as the band in the musician's balcony played. Not once did they break into anything with a faster tempo. Christopher liked it. The slower music gave him the perfect excuse to keep his arms around Sara without raising any eyebrows. Even if his behavior was acceptable, after tonight there would be no room for speculation about their relationship.

  Several times over the past few weeks, their names had been linked together due to their association with Senator Healy and his education initiative, but speculation regarding their relationship never arose. Tonight though reporters from Today Magazine, a national publication, and the Providence Gazette, a local newspaper, had been granted special limited access to the party. Between the two they'd taken pictures of everyone and everything at the party, which meant tomorrow their relationship would probably be front-page news.

  For the most part he didn't mind. In the beginning the paparazzi had bothered him, but now he accepted it as part of his life. Sara was no stranger to the paparazzi either. Still he liked the idea of keeping their relationship under the radar. Who knew what kind of stress the media might cause? He'd seen firsthand how the media could ruin relationships. Jake and Charlie were married now, but they'd almost split for good at one point because of rumors spread by the media. If rumors started flying, how would their relationship hold up? He wanted to believe it could handle anything thrown at it, but he just didn't know.

  Warm, supple lips pressed against his, chasing away thoughts of the media and rumors. “I don't think I said it, but thank you.” Sara drew her head back.

  “For?”

  “Coming with me this weekend. I know my family's parties can be a little stuffy sometimes.”

  “We can discuss how you're going to make it up to me later when we're alone,” he answered, his voice taking on a husky tone.

  She leaned against him, her body aligning perfectly with him. “Sounds like a plan.”

  Tightening his hold around her waist, he lost himself in the feel of her body against his. The music in the background gradually became nothing more than some subtle noise as they moved as one to their own beat. Even if the band switched to a fast-paced song, he wouldn't have noticed or cared, the sense of being exactly where he belonged was simply that strong.

  Sara wiggled her toes the best she could in her heels. The last time she'd danced this much had been at her father's inaugural ball. Judging by the guests around her, she wasn't the only one who wasn't used to dancing this much. Several other guests, especially the older ones, were seated in chairs around the ballroom perimeter while a few had even left. Even though her feet bothered her, she chose not to say anything. She'd always enjoyed dancing even if she didn't have much opportunity lately. Not to mention she enjoyed the security and acceptance she always experienced in Christopher's embrace.

  “The last song tonight is a special request from the President to his wife,” the band’s lead singer announced before they started a classic hit by the popular seventies group Montana.

  Not this song. Sara gritted her teeth to keep from groaning aloud. Can't Live Without You was one of her mom's favorites. At least the band hadn't covered any other songs by the group. If she had a piece of cake, she'd seriously consider stuffing it in the singer's mouth.

  Leaning her head against Christopher's shoulder, she tried to block out the music with very little success.

  “Mind if I cut in, Hall?”

  At the sound of Jake's voice, her head shot up. Other than the brotherly hard time he'd given her that morning after breakfast, they hadn't spoken much since she and Christopher started dating—a fact that was mostly her own fault. Having been afraid of letting something slip before Christopher told him about their relationship, she hadn't made her usual effort to stay in touch. In fact she'd avoided his recent calls and with the exception of this morning when he gave her a hard time after breakfast she'd avoided him here as well.

  Christopher's hands left her body and he took a step back. “Sure, I hate this song anyway.” He clapped Jake on the shoulder. “I'll see you in a few, Sara.” He moved away from her as Jake took his place.

  With little other choice, she stepped into Jake’s arms as they moved to the music. The reason for her brother's sudden interruption nagged at her, but she kept silent. If he planned to voice displeasure about the current situation, she wasn't in any rush to hear it. So far that weekend he hadn't indicated any displeasure with her decision, yet that didn't mean it wasn't there.

  “You two have been inseparable all night. People have noticed.”

  She shrugged. She, like her brothers, learned a long time ago, you couldn't control what other people thought.


  “How's it going?” Jake asked.

  She detected nothing but concern in his voice. How much should I share? It seemed inappropriate to tell her brother she thought she was falling in love with his best friend since she hadn't yet told Christopher. “Good.” Short and to the point.

  One blond eyebrow went up as he looked down at her. “Not very talkative tonight,” he said moving them across the dance flow.

  If she was still ten years old, she would've rolled her eyes at her brother. “It's very good. Is that better?”

  The singer on the stage hit a high note as he approached the final segment of the song and she saw Jake grimace. “I'll never understand why Mom loves this song,” she said.

  “Tell me about it. No man should be asked to hit high notes like that,” Jake said in agreement. Not long after the ear-splitting high note, the music ended for the evening, but Jake remained next to her.

  “Before you go I need to know one thing. Are you happy with him?” Jake asked, the humor she'd heard a moment earlier replaced with concern.

  Sara nodded, a question of her own nagging her. “Do you mind? Christopher made it seem as if there was some kind of law about a guy dating a friend's sister.”

  A full-blown smile broke out across her brother's face. “Perhaps calling it a law is a bit of a stretch,” he teased before his smile disappeared and his face turned serious again. “He's a good guy, Sara. I hope you're happy together.”

  Good, he hadn't gone into overprotective big-brother mode. “Thanks Jake, that means a lot to me.” She walked alongside him as they moved toward the ballroom entrance. “I was afraid that you wouldn't be happy about our relationship.”

  “Like I said, you won't find a better guy.” Jake stopped just outside the ballroom. “What time do you two plan to leave in the morning?”

  “I'm not sure, but probably not too early.”

  Jake dropped a kiss on her cheek. “Then I'll see you tomorrow.”

  Sara nodded and watched Jake and Charlie walk away. The fear she'd held onto for weeks disappeared. Her relationship with her brother wasn't in jeopardy. Eager to find Christopher now, she searched for him among the guests mingling in the hall. With the music over, guests slowly drifted out of the ballroom toward either the grand foyer or their own rooms upstairs.

  A quick scan up and down the hall showed no sign of him. I bet he's in the library. He'd mentioned it was his favorite room in the mansion.

  Turning right she headed down a hallway toward the room. Along the way several relatives she hadn't seen in months stopped her. With ease though she managed to keep the conversations short and in no time, she stepped into the library where numerous guests remained deep in conversation including the one man she searched for.

  He stood on the far side of the room and instantly her stomach clenched tight with raw jealousy when she caught a glimpse of the woman near him. She could only see their profiles, but she recognized the woman as Rebecca Marshall, Senator Marshall's daughter. The younger woman had a tendency to become infatuated with a man and not give up until she got him. The only man Sara knew that hadn't fallen for Rebecca was Jake. He'd actually gone out of his way to avoid her.

  The irrational jealousy twisting her insides slowly built the longer she stood in the doorway. Would anyone notice if she dragged Rebecca out by her hair?

  Even as she took a step forward, she recognized her feelings as unjustified. He had the right to talk to anyone, same as she did. But knowing this intellectually did nothing to her unexpected emotions. She'd never felt jealousy like this before. It surged through her body. It made her want to grab hold of Christopher and shout mine to anyone listening. Too bad you can't brand a boyfriend the same way a rancher brands cattle.

  A second foot followed the first as Sara marched across the room. Before she reached them, Christopher looked in her direction. Without any hesitation he smiled, his face radiating his genuine pleasure at seeing her. Just like that her jealousy evaporated. While he might be talking to Rebecca, he was pleased to see her. No one could fake the pleasure she saw on his face.

  As soon as she joined him, he slipped an arm possessively over her shoulders and she leaned into him comfortable as both friend and lover.

  “You look fine, so I guess you survived the dance with your brother. I expected you sooner though,” Christopher said after greeting her with a kiss.

  “There are a lot of relatives here tonight. I got a little sidetracked on my way.” She ignored the whole comment about her brother.

  Rebecca Marshall's eyes flicked back and forth between them. Sara felt as if she was being sized up as competition. Don't even think about it. Wrapping an arm around Christopher's waist she reached up to kiss him again. Unlike the peck on the cheek he'd given her, she zeroed right in for his mouth and gave him a kiss that told Rebecca and anyone else watching that he belonged to her.