It was a long time before Terence came back. He threw me a passport. “That’s the best that I could get.” He turned away. “It’ll do. The checks going out of the country aren’t as rigorous as they should be.”
I opened the passport and looked inside. I was an ordinary German man. Hans Bluther. No longer an English aristocrat. I smiled. Maybe it was better like this. His photo even looked vaguely like me.
“Come on, it’s time to board.” Terence took charge again, and we trooped obediently over to the check-in desks. Terence stood and watched the staff for a few moments. “There,” he said. “Him. He’s not checking properly.”
It was no time at all before we were on the plane. Thankfully, they even fed us, although the meal wasn’t very appetizing. But I was hungry, and I managed to eat well.
It had been a long night and a busy day. As the plane crept out over the ocean, seemingly motionless, I found myself getting sleepy. Terence next to me, was already snoring. I leaned back and stretched out my legs.
It should be good to land in the warmth and welcome of the Philippines. The people were friendly and helpful. I could contact Father, get a duplicate credit card sent to the Embassy. I smiled to myself. He’d be surprised I was in the Far East. The world was a smaller place than when he’d been a boy.
Soon I was asleep.
* * *
Something made me stir. Something wasn’t right. I struggled to come to as the engines didn’t sound right. I opened my eyes just as the oxygen masks fell into our laps. What was going on? Someone screamed behind me. The plane seemed to be diving very fast. We couldn’t be there yet.
James
The weekend dragged past. I found myself roaming the house, unable to concentrate, waiting for it to be Monday. Toni took center stage in my thoughts all weekend, and I had to fight the urge to call her, find out what she was doing in those few hours she had free when she wasn’t working.
The meal out on Thursday had made me question what I was doing. I couldn’t understand the way my body reacted to her. I’d never experienced the type of instant attraction that I felt towards her. I wanted to bring her home, take her to my bed, fuck her hard and see her come apart under my hands. It had been even more difficult when I could see that she felt the attraction too.
It had only been my shame, really, that stopped me from taking advantage of her that night. My shame that I knew perfectly well that she thought I was hinting that I wanted her to become my wife and not Edward’s, and my shame that I let her think that. I knew that if I said I was looking for her to marry Edward, she’d walk away. I could sense her attraction to me, but I was ashamed that I used it to keep her attention on what I was proposing.
It was just as well that I’d be sending her to Switzerland. But despite my shame, my mind had spent the last few days making covert plans. I had my eye on a cozy little chalet nestled into the side of a mountain near Lausanne. It was close to the finishing school. I was sure I could run my business mostly from there for a while, and I told myself it would be fun to teach her to ski, too.
I went to my suite, leaned against the door, and looked at my bed. I breathed in, closed my eyes, imagined myself lifting her naked body and placing her in the center of the bed. I stood over her, seeing her eyes wide as she watched me strip, her lips parted, swollen with our kiss. I could almost smell her arousal, her desire, and I groaned as my cock swelled in my jeans. Fuck! I had to have her. Nothing else mattered.
Thank God part of her training would include utter discretion, and once she was out of my system then I could pass her on to Edward, and she’d become my sister-in-law. I grinned. She’d always be there for me, and probably glad of a diversion from him.
I pushed down the distaste at the thought of him pawing her, taking her. I reminded myself that it would be after I’d tired of her, resenting having a woman in my life. I always tired of them. I always wanted to be free, and I could never wait long to move on.
I drew a deep breath. Smiled. Before I tired of her, she was going to be amazing. I could already imagine taking her, molding her into the woman I wanted.
* * *
It was time. I went back to my study, flung myself in my chair, and took a deep breath. I took my phone and called her.
She answered, her voice preoccupied.
“Good morning, Toni. It’s James. How are you this morning?”
“Oh.” She sounded as if she almost dropped her phone. “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting you to call just yet.” She sounded hesitant. “I didn’t know it was your number. I’ll have to add it to my contacts.” She was babbling, making inane remarks.