Billionaires, Bad Boys, and Alpha Males (96 page)

“Not at all,” Erica said.
 
“I don’t dwell on the past like some
do.
 
I’m just happy to be here with
you two lovebirds now.”

Watching Red interact with his mother,
Nicole felt as though she were watching a bullfight.
 
Erica, the matador, was poking Red with
her dagger, leaving one hole after another, and yet Red was still on his feet,
staggering.
 
You hardly noticed the
wounds, they were so small, and Erica was so fast in delivering the blows.
 
Yet they wounds were there, if you
looked closely enough.
 

Nicole felt helpless to intervene.
 
This was a dynamic that went all the way
back to the beginning of Red’s life, and the interplay between the two of them
was far too subtle and confusing for her to get in the middle of, especially
after just meeting the woman.

At the same time, she could see Red was
already worn out after just a few minutes in his mother’s company.
 
Nicole took his hand in her own, even
though he resisted at first.
 
She
squeezed firmly to let him know he could count on her.

He gave her a squeeze in return and they
exchanged a knowing smile.

Nicole noticed that Erica was watching
them with an enigmatic expression.
 
The older woman smiled in a robotic way, her gaze darting down to where
Red and Nicole’s hands were clasped.
 

The silence in the limo was getting
uncomfortable again, but thankfully they arrived at the Lyceum Theatre.
 
Just above the entrance, Nicole saw the
title of the play in big bold letters.
 
VENUS IN FUR.

It was such a strange title, she
thought.
 
It told you absolutely
nothing about the play itself.

Red instructed the driver to be back and
waiting for them in an hour and a half.
 
And then they were heading into the theatre, which was already bustling
with people.
 
The Lyceum seemed like
an older, more intimate setting than what Nicole remembered when she’d attended
Wicked and Legally Blonde.
 
The
stage seemed small, and the seats were tinier and closer together.

They were escorted to the front row of
the balcony.
 

Erica seemed to think it was a wonderful
view, reminding her of the opera, she said.
   

They had the playbills now, which was the
first time Nicole or Red had a chance to find out what this show was even
about.
 
When she read the
description, Nicole had to stifle a gasp.
 
The first thing she saw was that it was called one of the “sexiest”
shows in history.
 
And the last
thing she wanted to do was go to a
sexy
show with Red Jameson’s mother.

Then she saw that the play was loosely
based on an “erotic novel.”

Her eyes widened.
 
Next to her, she could feel Red
stiffening with frustration as he also read the playbill.
 
He turned to his mother, sitting to his
right.
 
“What kind of show did you
bring us to?” he hissed.

“It’s gotten rave reviews.”

“You said that already.”

“Have you turned into a prude, my dear
boy?
 
With all of your wild parties
and the stories in the tabloids about you and your young lady friends, I never
imagined you’d blush like a schoolgirl over a racy stage play.”

“It’s rude to bring people to a thing
like this without at least asking them,” Red told her.
 

Nicole heard Erica’s tittering
laugh.
 
“Don’t act so innocent,
Red,” his mother said.
 
“You could
probably have written this yourself, using your own memoirs.”

“What are you trying to insinuate?” he
said, his voice rising ever so slightly.

“Nothing.
 
I’m just poking fun.
 
Please don’t make a scene.”

“Fine.”
 
He turned away from Erica, crossed his
legs and grabbed Nicole’s hand in his own, leaning in and whispering.
 
“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be, it’s fine,” she replied,
smiling and kissing his cheek.

And then the play began.
 
Someone came out on stage and asked
everyone to turn off their cell phones, because cell phones would actually be
used on stage during the performance.
 

A moment later the curtain came up and it
started.

Nicole was surprised to find that the
play was actually enjoyable.
 
At
first, she wasn’t sure what to think of it.
 
The entire performance consisted of just
two characters and very little in the way of props or scenery to transport you
into the world they inhabited.
 
And
yet, through their amazing chemistry and dialog, the two actors managed to do
just that.

Although she was truly enjoying the play,
Nicole was all too aware that just a seat away, her future mother-in-law was
watching this very same piece.
 

Venus in Fur was spicy, it was erotic and
it got psychologically dark near the end.
 

The fact that the play centered around
sadomasochism, and the desires of a man to be either victimized by a woman, or
to enslave a woman—did not go over Nicole’s head.
 
She knew that Red’s mother had
intentionally chosen this play to send a message, to push her son’s
buttons.
 
Perhaps she’d meant to let
them know that she was all too aware of Red’s extra curricular activities in
the bedroom.

Whatever the case, Nicole decided not to
let the woman get to her.
 
Nicole
actually
liked
this damn play,
whether she was supposed to or not.
 

On the other hand, Red was positively
fuming.
 
Nicole could feel the heat
and anger radiating off of him throughout the show.
 
He was sitting in his seat, unmoving,
unsmiling, simply waiting for it to end.

And when it ended, he got up and started
for the exit without comment.
 
When
they got outside to where the limousine waited, Erica asked him if he’d enjoyed
the play.

“I was blown away,” he said with obvious
sarcasm. “How did you know I’d love it so much?”

She shrugged.
 
“A mother’s intuition.”

“I thought they called it manic
depression these days,” he snapped.

Erica ignored his cutting remark.
 
“Did Venus in Fur give you and Nicole
any interesting new ideas?” she asked, with a raised eyebrow.
 
“It must be difficult to keep things
fresh after years of playing Don Juan with every available woman from here to
Los Angeles.”

Red was about to retort, but Nicole cut
him off.
 
“I’m so glad you brought us
to see Venus in Fur, Erica.
 
It was
a wonderfully acted play.
 
I was
riveted.”

Erica sniffed.
 
“Such a nice young girl.
 
Red should count himself lucky to have
snagged you.”

Nicole squeezed his hand again, letting
him know he didn’t need to defend either of them to his crazy mother.
 
This seemed to calm him slightly.
 
He gestured to the car.
 
“Should we head back to the house now?”

“I am getting a little tired,” his mother
admitted, relenting and getting into the car.
 
When the three of them were inside, Erica
patted her stomach.
 
“I didn’t
realize pornography would make me so hungry.
 
Do you find it works up the appetite,
Nicole?”

Nicole smiled back at her.
 
“I don’t really understand the
question.”

“She’s very coy, isn’t she?” Erica said.

Red didn’t respond.
 
His eyes narrowed and the color was
blooming in his cheeks.

Nicole felt herself getting angry, mostly
on his behalf.
 
The more time she
spent with Erica, the more she realized what he’d had to deal with his entire
life.
 
“I’m not being coy, Erica,” Nicole
said, after a moment.
 
“I truly
didn’t know what you were asking me.”

“Never mind.
 
I’m so glad we all enjoyed the
show.
 
I was certain the two of you
would relate to the material, and I’m trying to be more open-minded these
days.”

“Enough,” Red said in a low growl.

“What?” His mother looked shocked at his
tone.

“I said, enough of that talk.”
 

She opened her mouth again, but from the
look on Red’s face, seemed to reconsider.
 
Instead, she laid her head back and closed her eyes, folding her hands
on her lap.
 
“Some people can be so
touchy,” she muttered, as the car headed for Connecticut.

***

“I want her gone,” Red said, when the two
of them finally had some privacy.
 
They were in the master bedroom, and Red was changing into a pair of
dark Armani pants and a white dress shirt.
 

Nicole was about to go to the master
bathroom for a nice shower.
 
But Red
was suddenly in the mood to vent, after a sustained uncomfortable silence that
he’d maintained the entire ride home.
 
He’d spoken but once or twice, telling his mother where her room was
located and helping her with her things.

 
“Didn’t you say you’re leaving for
Germany tomorrow morning anyway?” Nicole reminded him, running a hand through
her snarled hair, trying to untangle it a little.

“I don’t want to listen to any more of
her little digs.
 
Didn’t you hear
her?” he asked, buttoning his shirt.
 
His eyes were blazing.

“I did.”

“And taking us to Venus in Fur as a
little snide comment on our sexual proclivities?”

Nicole laughed.

Red stared at her.
 
“You think it’s funny.”

“A little bit.
 
I liked the play, I didn’t care what
your mother thought it implied about me.”

“You haven’t dealt with her yet—not
really.
 
This is just the
beginning,” he fumed, fixing his cuffs.
 
“Once she senses your weakness, she’ll chip at you and chip at you.
 
She never stops, it’s in her nature to
pick at other people’s wounds.”

“Then why do you even deal with her?”

“I don’t honestly know anymore,” he said,
thinking about it.
 
“I try to limit
the contact.
 
Like I said, she’s
close with my brother, and I don’t want to strain my relationship with Jeb.”

“Okay, then,” Nicole said, moving closer
to him and putting her hands on his arms.
 
“So why make trouble for yourself now?
 
Let’s just get through a few more hours
and be done with it.”

Red smiled at her.
 
“What did I do right in a past life to
deserve you?”

“Maybe you did something right in the
present.”

“Maybe I’m just the luckiest guy in the
universe.”

“Damn right.”
 
She grinned.
 
“I need to hop in the shower before
dinner.”
 

Red continued getting ready as Nicole
started the water, disrobed, and stepped into the enormous glass encased shower
area that was large and steamy and luxurious, with black tiles along the floor
and walls.
 

Closing her eyes, she let the hot water
run all over her body, releasing the pent-up stress that had been there since
the morning.
 
This life with Red was
so confusing, alternating between states of bliss and ecstasy and moments of
total fear and anxiety.
 
It was a
high-stress, fast-paced world that he lived in, and Nicole was still trying to
wrap her mind around it.

Just as she was starting to decompress,
she heard the shower door creaking.
 
Startled, her eyes popped open and she spun around, instinctively
covering breasts and crotch.
 

She found Red standing there, completely
naked, smiling with glee at her shock.
 
“Did I surprise you?” he asked, stepping into the shower and shutting
the glass door behind him.

“You scared me!”

“I couldn’t let you out of my sight so
easily,” he said, his voice low and sexy smooth.

“I need to get ready for dinner,” she
said, trying to hide her building excitement at Red’s bold nudity.
 
His body was like something a painter
would study, a sculptor would take months to mold and carve out of marble.
 
He was so strong, and as he reached out
to touch her, every nerve ending danced in anticipation of his skin against
hers.