Once Upon A Time Read online

  “Sixty-two thousand,” she said nonchalantly, as if that amount of money was about as common as a cold. “And a few cents.”

  My eyes felt as though they were about to bug out of my head. Sixty-two thousand dollars? Who the hell pays that much for a dress?

  “Breadsticks or dollars?” I paused, eyeing the dress once more. “Please say breadsticks to take my mind off the fact I’m currently wearing something more expensive than our apartment!”

  Kylie chuckled and shook her head; she was used to my flipping out over money, especially when it came to expensive clothing.

  “It’s a one of a kind Vera Wang!” she announced, as if I could really forget where I was standing.

  “It could be a one of kind trash bag and I still wouldn’t pay that much money for a fucking dress!” I said, rubbing my temples as my heart rate elevated. “My god, I’m going to have a heart attack right here in Vera Wang.”

  Quinn rolled his eyes before placing the empty glasses on the table beside the door. Picking a small piece of lint from his baby pink shirt, he glanced at Kylie before nodding once.

  Oh for fuck's sake, what were they up to now?

  Quinn turned on his heels and left the room. My heart rate was hitting all new levels when I looked at Kylie, who wore the most mischievous smirk on her face.

  “The hell have you done?!” I screeched, my Southern drawl coming out in waves.

  Kylie threw her hands up defensively, stepping back before retreating out the door. Throwing my hands up in the air, I sighed hard. I needed out of this dress, quickly. Standing on the podium, I, not so gracefully, unhooked the bodice and lowered the zipper as far as I could before shimmying it down to my waist.

  But before I could move it any further…

  “Oh my holy fuck!” I screeched, pulling the dress over my chest, mortified someone had walked in.

  Stupid really, I should’ve walked behind the screen instead of shedding it like a second skin just to get out of it as quick as I could.

  Turning towards my intruder, my breath caught in my throat.

  Standing a couple of feet away from me was the reason I was in this stupid place.

  Gabriel.

  “Please don’t stop on my account.” He smirked, stepping behind me and staring at me through the mirrors before me. “The show was just getting good.”

  “You’re a pervert. What the hell are you doing here? I thought you weren’t talking to me.”

  It was a bitchy move but I was still freaking mortified and a little pissed at the whole situation.

  He chuckled deeply, the vibration running straight between my thighs.

  Damn it.

  “Pervert? Yes. Not talking to you? No.” He paused, pulling at the material now hanging from my body as I cupped the dress to my bare chest. “Quinn called. He said you were freaking out.”

  Hooking the bodice, his hands went to my shoulders, squeezing gently. My breath caught in my throat and I swore if I didn’t swallow I'd choke on thin air. Our gazes met in the mirror and for the first time I think I truly saw him.

  Not Gabriel Black, the millionaire and businessman.

  Not Gabriel Black, my client.

  But Gabriel Black, the man who drove me crazy, aggravated me, pushed me, tore me open and unraveled me like I’d never been before.

  “Is this a game to you?” I whispered, looking him straight in the eyes.

  His gaze darkened somewhat as I waited for his answer. I had no idea why that fell from my lips, but I did know it would ultimately seal our fates.

  “I don’t play games, Payton.” He growled as if I’d really offended him.

  His gaze moved down to my exposed back and his hands drifted from my shoulders, leaving goosebumps in their wake. Why did he have such an effect on me?

  “What you need to understand is...” He paused, moving the zipper slowly upwards until it came to a stop at the very top. My hands fell away from the dress as his gaze came back to me. “When I want something, I’ll stop at nothing until I get it. And Payton?”

  His hands moved back to my shoulders, the touch sparking something I couldn’t control. He turned me fluidly, his body crushing mine as our breaths mingled together.

  “I want you.”

  I averted my gaze as a lump formed in my throat. What the hell was happening to me?

  “I feel like a damn hooker in this dress,” I whispered, trying to move to conversation away from where it was heading.

  His fingers grasped my chin, pulling me back towards him and stared me straight in the eyes.

  “This isn’t Pretty Woman.” He growled, the intensity in his eyes catching me off guard. “I’m starting to understand how warped your perception of love is. Fairy tales and movies don’t depict real love, Payton, merely what we desire it to be.”

  “You talk like you’ve had some experience.”

  “Once upon a time,” he admitted solemnly, managing to shock me momentarily.

  “Why are you doing this?” I asked, then decided to change the direction of the question. “What are we doing?”

  “Like I said, I want you.” He smirked, leaning in closer, his lips so close to mine. He rested his forehead against mine and I had to fight the urge to close my eyes. “You look stunning.”

  “I feel like a walking advertisement for money,” I admitted, more to myself than him.

  “You could wear anything and you’d still look a million dollars.”

  “We can’t do this,” I whispered, closing my eyes as if the words pained me in a way I wasn’t ready to admit.

  “You say that but do you really believe it? Because right now I think your body’s having different ideas.” I opened my eyes and my gaze met his, a smile gracing his lips. “I can smell how much you want me, how much you want this to happen.”

  “It doesn’t matter how much I want this to happen, all you need to know is that it can’t.”

  He stared into my eyes for a long moment before nodding his head. Releasing me, he moved towards the door.

  “Wear the dress, I wasn’t kidding when I said you look stunning,” he said before walking out of the room, leaving me with far more questions than answers.

  THE MOMENT GABRIEL LEFT, in walked in my best friends, both wearing a nervous expression. With a sigh, I forwent my modesty and stepped out of the dress without a word. I dressed in silence as Kylie hung the dress back up on the hanger and walked it out of the room as I stepped into my shoes.

  I tried to block out the thoughts taking over my damn mind as I stepped out the room but they came rushing back the moment I saw the look on Quinn’s face. I’d made it clear I wasn’t wearing the dress; if not with words but body language. It wasn’t me and I didn’t want it.

  “Honey, don’t freak out,” Quinn said calmly.

  Don’t freak out? The minute anyone says that, of course, you’re going to freak the hell out.

  “Oh shit, what now?” I sighed. I just wanted to get out of here.

  Kylie quickly came into my line of vision as she walked towards me with a very large box in her hands.

  “So, Gabriel may have given you his Am-Ex but he already paid for the dress. You now own a one of a kind Vera Wang.” He cringed, noticing the look on my face.

  He did what?!

  My eyes widened as Kylie stopped in front of me, smiling awkwardly as she handed me the box.

  “Meshia said if you plan to wear it and it needs altering, just to come back here and she’ll deal with it. But I told her you probably won’t be here again, not because you won’t wear the dress but because it doesn’t actually need any alterations,” Kylie explained.

  “I’m so pissed right now, there’s actually no words to describe just how much I want to cut Gabriel a new one for this.” Shaking my head, I walked past my friends and out of the building without a backward glance.

  The moment I exited the building, I rolled my damn eyes. Standing next to the black town car was Leo, Gabriel’s driver. He gave me a sad smile bef
ore taking the box from my hands and placing it in the trunk then opened the door for me.

  I heard Kylie and Quinn squeal from behind me. We all climbed into the back of the car before heading back to our apartment.

  Stepping into our building, Quinn huffed as he carried the box up to our floor and into our apartment.

  “I’ve done makeup for Beyonce and Pink and I’m carrying a box for you. There’s something very wrong with this picture.” Quinn sighed, placing the box down gently on the dining table.

  “Stop being so dramatic!” Kylie laughed, pulling out three wine glasses and grabbing a bottle of red.

  She’d read my mind.

  “Vo—”

  “Vogue should hire you. Yes, we know,” I interrupted, shaking my head as we took a seat at the dining table, the box very much the elephant in the room.

  “You know he isn’t going to take that back, right?” Kylie gestured with her now half-full glass of wine at the offending box.

  “I know,” I said simply. “That’s why I’m going to wear it.”

  Quinn’s head whipped around, shock written all over his face.

  “Sorry, I think we’ve just entered the twilight zone. Can you please repeat that?” Quinn coughed, seemingly choking on wine.

  I took a big swallow from my glass, smirking as I did.

  “Look, two can play his game. He knows my hatred for all things love, romance and fairy tales yet, he’s been pushing them on me since we met. Now I’m going to shock the shit out of him and wear the dress.” Kylie squealed, a little too high-pitched for my liking. “What?”

  Quinn and Kylie shared a look, one I knew I should instantly fear.

  “MAKEOVER!” they both shrieked.

  “Over my dead body. I’m wearing the damn dress, isn’t that enough?”

  “No?” .

  I sighed; when it came to makeup, hair and fashion, it was like they were in tune with each other. It was damn frightening.

  “Look, I’ll wear the dress but no makeover. If you mention it again, I’ll pour wine all over that thing.” I pointed to the box, my tone deadly serious.

  Kylie looked as though she was about to cry, whereas Quinn stared at me in shock. What the hell?

  “What?!” I asked.

  “That's… that’s blackmail! That’s like telling a gay man he can wear a pink shirt but the canary yellow jeans have to stay at home, or he can’t have a side of cock with his cocktails. It’s just not done, sweetie!”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “You’re stereotyping again!”

  “I’m gay!” He pouted. “I can say that.”

  “No, you’re gay, therefore you shouldn’t say that.”

  “I’m fabulous.” He raised his brow. “I can say that.”

  “You’re a lost cause, Quinlan.” I sighed as he chuckled.

  “Anyway... what’s the plan for the week?” Kylie interrupted. “I mean, do you have to deal with Gabriel before the event?”

  I sighed.

  “Yeah, I need to have him sign a couple of things but I can just email those.”

  “So have you seen his place yet?” Quinn butted in.

  I looked at my friend quizzically; where the hell did that come from?

  “Er, no. Why?” I asked, curious where the conversation was going.

  “Maybe you should head over to his place and, you know, ask him to sign your contract.” He winked.

  “Ew.” I cringed. “I’m not even going to go into the ridiculous euphemism you just used. Even if I wanted to see his place, I have no idea where it is.”

  “I do!” Kylie said, raising her hand like a high schooler.

  “I’m not going over there. And where the hell did you get his address from?” I asked.

  “Like I said, I did some poking around after we found out Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Dangerous was a client. Mitchell did some digging for me.” She shrugged.

  Mitchell was one of her father's trusted employees. Being a senator meant you needed to know those around you; Mitchell was the man you went to if you needed to go digging into someone's past, and he was skilled at his job. You could have a clean background, but that DUI back in college? Yeah, he’d find it and it seemed Kylie was using her father's connections to her own advantage… or mine, whatever that meant.

  “I’m sure between you and Mitchell, you probably broke a couple of state, and maybe a few federal, laws getting that address.” I pointed, raising my brow.

  “Hey, love is worth being penalized!” She smirked.

  Quinn choked on even more wine, losing most of it out of his nose.

  “You said penis.” He chuckled, finally catching his breath. “This is why we’re best friends.”

  I stared at him in disbelief.

  “Dude, she said penalized. You need to get laid.”

  “Po-tay-toe, po-tat-oh.” He waved me off, his words a little slurred.

  Looking down at my glass, I quickly realized just how much alcohol we’d consumed in such a short space of time. Add the champagne from Vera Wang to the mix, and my foggy head started to make sense.

  A giggle came from Kylie as she looked me in the eyes, clearly thinking the same thing I was.

  We needed more alcohol.

  Deciding to move to the living room, Kylie grabbed another bottle of red as Quinn and I took a seat on the sofa, laughing as we did. The alcohol was quickly going to my head and I was already going over Quinn’s question about seeing where Gabriel lived. Sober, I wouldn’t even really think about it. He’s a client, someone I couldn’t get involved with. But a little tipsy, I was curious.

  “I think you should call him.” Kylie giggled as she sat down on the sofa, filling up our glasses.

  “Yes!” Quinn squealed. “Drunk dial him!”

  “Ha! Yeah right.” I shook my head, noticing the silence between my friends. Wait, they were serious. “Hell no!”

  Clearly noticing my lack of enthusiasm, Kylie’s eyes quickly scanned the room before she literally made a flying leap from the sofa and made a run for the dining table, all while nearly spilling red wine everywhere.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I yelled after her, before I realized my cell was on the dining table. “Kylie Jackson, I’ll kill you!”

  Handing my wine glass to Quinn, who was more than happy to receive more alcohol while he sat back and enjoyed the show, I moved from the sofa and made a run for my best friend, who was frantically searching through my cell.

  “Don’t you dare!” I scolded, trying to reach my phone.

  Kylie threw her hand into my face, pushing me back as I pushed forward. I was going to kill her. She yelled out as I tried to kick her ankles, catching her right heel and causing us to tumble down to the floor. Quinn was shouting, “Pull her hair! Use the manicure! Scratch out her eyes!” while giggling into two wine glasses from behind us.

  “A ha!” Kylie shrieked, bringing the cell to her ear as I straddled her waist.

  “Kylie, I’ll burn your entire shoe collection and that pretty little pink dress that you hide in the back of your closet if you don’t end the call!” I yelled, my voice muffled from her hand which had slid down my face and sat over my mouth.

  “It’s ringing!” she announced, turning her head away while I tried to grab the phone from her.

  “I’m reliving college all over again.” I groaned but quickly stopped talking the moment Kylie’s eyes widened.

  Oh god.

  She smirked before removing her hand from my face and handing me the phone, the sound of Gabriel’s voice coming through the speaker making me scramble from Kylie and put the phone to my ear.

  “H-h-hello,” I stuttered, smacking Kylie in the shoulder as she tried to listen into the conversation.

  “Have I fallen victim to a drunk dial?” Gabriel laughed into the phone, the sound alone sending lust between my thighs.

  “Uh.” I shook my head at my lack of vocabulary. I cleared my throat, hoping my slurring wouldn’t be so obvious. “Maybe…”r />
  Wow, I really needed to brush up on my drunk dialing skills.

  He chuckled darkly. “Just how drunk are you, princess?”

  “I’ll have you know I’m as sober as a judge!” I announced theatrically, proving I was a little more drunk than I originally thought.

  “Payton.” He paused. “How many sober judges do you know?”

  “Er…” I chuckled. “I can’t think of any right now, but I’m sure the city is full of them!”

  He laughed once more; clearly I was a highly amusing drunk.

  “How many fingers am I holding up?” he asked.

  I squinted my eyes for a moment before answering. I had no idea why I did it, considering I couldn’t actually see Gabriel’s fingers.

  “Two. Wait, no. Five!” I laughed.

  “Oh, princess. You really are drunk. This I’ve got to see.”

  The line went dead and I stared at my cell for a moment before turning to Kylie, who was grinning next to me.

  “He wants to love you… he wants to marry you… he wan— Ooof!” She yowled, rubbing her shoulder. “What was that for?!”

  “I think he’s coming over!” I cried, jumping up from the floor while knocking over a very drunk Kylie in the process. “Quinn, help us!” I yelled, finding him snoring on the sofa. Turning back to Kylie, I smacked her in the arm once more. “Kylie, this isn’t funny, stop laughing!”

  “I… can’t… too… funny… sooooo… drunk,” she said through howling laughter, as I managed to stand on my feet without killing myself.

  “We need to clean up and wake sleeping beauty!” I shrieked, making a dash for the empty wine bottle and glasses.

  “I like you drunk, you use fairy tale analogies.” She laughed, standing to her feet. “Wait, a-n-a-l-o-g-i-e-s.” She spelt out the word before bursting into laughter. “ANAL!”

  Even in my inebriated state, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and laugh at the same time. Ha. Anal.

  “Will you stop taking about anal and help me!” I yelled, throwing a cushion at Quinn. He snorted hard and looked around the room before his gaze landed on me, my hands on my hips.

  “Shit. What did I miss?” He laughed, looking towards Kylie, who was bending over laughing behind me.