The Happiest Day (4 page)

He captured her
fingers and brought them to his mouth.  He didn’t kiss them, he simply held
them against his lips, his head bent.  “I have to be in court all week.  I
won’t see you again until the rehearsal dinner.”

“I prefer to think
of it as my birthday dinner,” she teased.

“Double
celebration.  What would you like for your birthday?”

“I already have it. 
We’ll all be together then.  That’s all I want.”

He did give her
fingers a kiss then and released them.  Standing, he said, “Sleep well, Rae. 
I’ll see you at the end of the week.”

While Rachel
slept, Peter made his way out to the stables and up the steps to the stable
manager’s apartment.  Phelps looked surprised when he opened the door.  “Mac,
is something wrong?”

“Not yet.  But I
need a favor from you.  There’s a horse auction in Kentucky next week.  I want
you to send someone ahead to do some scouting.”

Phelps nodded. 
“Sure thing, Mac.  We’ve got plenty of men with a good eye.”

Peter leaned
against the door frame, deceptively casual.  “How about Toby?”

The day of the
wedding arrived and it was a glorious late spring day.  The sky was crystal
blue and there was a gentle, warm breeze from the south.  The ceremony was held
in the early afternoon, after which the bridal party returned to the Thornton
estate for a luncheon and a few hours of rest.  In the early evening, they
attended the reception at a downtown location with a spectacular view of the Ohio
River.  It was a magical night, Rachel thought, as she stood on the terrace
outside, watching the river slide silently past her.  She still wore her
bridesmaid dress.  It was a mid-calf length silk dress with fringe starting at
her hips.  Sleeveless and beaded on top, it was a daring dress for Rachel, and
she had felt Frederick’s eyes on her throughout the ceremony.  She knew a
confrontation with him was coming.

“You’re being
anti-social, my dear.”

She froze and
stiffened.  She had been successful in avoiding Frederick this week, claiming
wedding duties were keeping her busy.  Now, however, there was no running
away.  The next wedding to plan was her own.

“Just getting some
fresh air.” She turned and looked at her fiancé.  He was handsome, there was no
denying that.  But there was cruelty to his face and a tightness to his body
language that set her on edge.

“You’re very
beautiful tonight.”  He came closer and ran the back of his fingers down her
face.  “We haven’t had a chance to talk for several days.”

“What would you
like to talk about?”

“Did you have a
conversation with Norris?”

“Yes.”

“Did he confirm or
deny what I told you?”

“He confirmed it. 
I’m going to marry you Frederick.  I won’t hurt Norris.”

Frederick laughed
but there was no humor in it.  “Your white knight.  Even now, when you know
he’s done something horrible, you’re protecting him.  If only he cared as much
for you as you do for him.”

“Don’t speak
against him.  He saved my life.  He saved my brother’s life.”

This time,
Frederick threw his head back and laughed.  “You are innocence personified. 
God, it turns me on.”

A shiver ran
through Rachel.  “Frederick…”

“Come on, don’t
freeze me out.”  He cupped her breast through her dress.  “You are gorgeous
tonight.  It’s been weeks since I’ve been able to touch you.”

“I don’t think you
were suffering for company.”

He raised his eyes
from her breasts to look her in the face.  He didn’t look remorseful.  “This
thing with Helen…it’s just physical.  If you would just-”

“No.  We agreed we
wouldn’t do anything, at least not until we’re married.”

His hand squeezed
her breast painfully.  “I’m tired of waiting, Rachel.”  She tried to pull out
of his grasp but he yanked her closer.  “What do you think of making our first
time right here?  Every time we come to the club, we’ll look at the terrace and
remember.

“Frederick, let me
go.  Now.”

He reached down
and snaked his hand up under her dress, not hesitating before reaching into her
underwear and stroking her intimately.  “God, yes,” he groaned.  “I’m already
hard.  Undo my pants.”

Rachel tried to
squirm away from him but he held her in a vise grip.  “Stop it!  Let me go!”
she cried, her voice shaking.

He used one hand
to jerk her head up by the chin and stared down into her eyes.  “Listen to me. 
The game is over.  I am making the rules now.”

“You can’t force
me.”

“Then how about I
walk into that party right now and make an announcement?  I’ll sit back and
watch the Thornton family fall like a house of cards.”  He felt the fight leave
her body and he chuckled in response, and then resumed stroking her.  “Undo my
pants.  Now.”

With trembling
hands, she reached between them.  She felt his substantial erection against her
fingers and he groaned.

“Hurry,” he
muttered.  “I’m going to come before you ever get me out if you don’t hurry.”

“Let her go.”

A wave of relief
washed over Rachel.  She had not talked to Peter since she had discovered that
he was behind sending Toby away.  She had been beyond angry with his heavy-handed
interference but right now she had never been so happy to see anyone.  She
tried to pull her hand away from Frederick but had her locked in place against
his body.

He looked over his
shoulder.  “Get the hell out of here, MacGregor.  What I do with my fiancée is
my business.”

“Fiancée or not,
she obviously doesn’t want this.  Let her go.”  No one moved for long, tense
moments then Peter said, “Now, before I rip your fucking head off.”

Frederick removed
his hand from Rachel’s underwear and turned to square off with Peter.  “You’re
like her watchdog, aren’t you?  What are you going to do when she’s my wife?”

“If I have my way,
that’s never going to happen.”

Frederick’s eyes
narrowed.  “You have no power to stop it.  Now, why don’t you go back to your
wife before she finds someone else to entertain her?”

“You’d know all
about that, wouldn’t you?” Peter asked with deadly calm.

Frederick looked
momentarily surprised.  “She told you about that, huh?  Women can never keep
their mouths shut.”

Rachel gasped
quietly.  “Peter, I’m sorry.”  She knew it was ridiculous to apologize but felt
responsible for Frederick’s role in Blanche and Helen’s adulterous acts.

Peter’s eyes
didn’t leave Frederick.  “Rachel, go inside.”

“No.  Only if you
go in with me.”

“Stern and I have
business to take care of.  Go inside.”

“You’re going to
assault me, MacGregor?” Frederick asked.  “Try it and you’ll find yourself in
jail tonight.  How ironic would that be?  Everyone’s darling prosecutor, in
jail for assault of an innocent man.”

“It would be worth
it.”

Frederick looked
over his shoulder at Rachel.  “You may want to tell him to control himself or I
will have to make an announcement.”

“Peter, please,”
Rachel begged, fear coursing through her veins.  “Please stop this.  I’m O.K.  Just
go inside so I can be alone with Frederick.”

“Rachel,” Peter
bit out, shock and anger on his face.  “What the hell is going on?  You don’t
want him to touch you.  Not here, not like this.  He was practically raping
you.”

“Listen to the
girl, MacGregor.  She’s telling you to leave us alone.”

“I won’t.”  Peter
had a stubborn set to his jaw that Rachel recognized.  He wasn’t going to back
down.  Her heart sank.

Stern shrugged. 
“Then you can stay.  Enjoy watching virgins get deflowered?”

A growl escaped from
Peter and he charged Frederick like an angry bull.  The two men began pummeling
each other, falling to the concrete.  As much as Rachel wished that Peter could
beat Frederick to death, she knew that this could only end badly.  She tried to
intervene, but got shoved for her attempts.  She felt helpless and wasn’t sure
how to stop the violence.  She didn’t know whether to feel relieved or
terrified when she saw Norris step onto the terrace.

“Stop this now!”
he bellowed, causing the two men on the ground to stop and look up.

Frederick shoved
Peter off of him and pulled himself up, wiping the blood from his nose. 
“Thornton, you can thank your son for what is about to happen.  I’m about to
blow up your life.  It ends tonight.”

Norris stood
quietly but Rachel could tell that his mind was moving rapidly, assessing how
he could regain the upper hand.  “Peter, take Rachel home.  Stern and I have
some negotiating to do.”

Rachel rushed to
Norris, hanging onto his arm.  “Norris, let me fix this, please.  He just wants
me.  That’s how this started tonight.”  She looked over at Frederick.  “I’ll
leave with you right now, Frederick.  Let’s go back to your home.  I’ll do
anything you want me to.”

Peter stood as
well and strode over to where Rachel stood.  He grabbed her roughly.  “Stop
it!  Stop this madness.”  He looked at Norris furiously.  “I’m getting her out
of here now.  I expect you to fix this mess.”

“I will,” Norris
said quietly.  “Rachel, go now.  Peter, throw her over your shoulder if you
have to.”

Peter complied by
leading Rachel away but found that he was dragging her.  She was pulling
against him, trying to return to Frederick.  “God damn it,” he bit out, “we are
leaving.  I will make a scene if I have to but I would think that you wouldn’t
want to ruin Maryanne’s night.”

“You don’t
understand!” Rachel cried.  “Frederick is going to ruin Norris!”

“Norris can handle
it.  We’re leaving.”

“Peter,” she cried
in despair.  “Peter, please…”  She began shaking uncontrollably, probably the
after effects of Frederick’s attempted assault and the fight between him and
Peter.

Peter’s anger
melted away and he drew her into his arms.  “Oh, Rae,” he muttered.  “I’m
sorry.  It’s going to be all right, I swear.”  He ran his hands up and down her
bare arms, trying to comfort her.  He bent his mouth to her ear and said,
“Don’t fight me anymore.  Let me take care of you.”

“You don’t know
what you’re doing.  Everything will be ruined.  Please let me go back to
Frederick, Peter.  Please.”  She looked up at him with tears in her amber
eyes.  “If you ever cared about me, you’ll let me go.”

“I do care about
you and that’s why you’re coming with me.  You’ll thank me someday.”  He kissed
her above the ear where her hair was pulled back by a lace covered headband. 
“Come on, Spider.  Let’s get the hell out of here.”

“What about
Blanche?”

“She’s fine. 
She’ll find her way home.”

He didn’t take her
home.  Instead, he took her just a few blocks away, to his private apartment
near the courthouse.  Rachel was mildly surprised, but in too much shock from
the evening’s events, to comment.  Peter moved around the apartment, turning on
low lights and opening the terrace door to let fresh air into the room.

“Sit down,” he
ordered.  “I’m going to fix us a drink.”

She held the glass
of whiskey he gave her and looked up at him with raised eyebrows.  “Should I
even ask where you got it?”

“I could tell you
but then I’d have to kill you.  Just drink.”  He sat down across from her and
took a long swallow.

“I didn’t even
ask, are you O.K.?  Did Frederick hurt you?”

He looked at his
right hand and shrugged.  “My hand hurts like hell but I think I’m all right.”

She took a
tentative swallow of the clear liquid and coughed.  It felt like fire going
down her esophagus.  “How do you drink this swill?” she asked, putting the
glass down.

“I don’t drink it
for the taste, I drink it for the effect,” he answered wryly.  “It’s time we
talk, don’t you think?”

“I still can’t
tell you anything.  I really don’t know much.  I just know that Frederick knows
a secret about Norris and he’s threatening to expose him.”

“Norris didn’t
tell you anything?”

“No, he admits
that there is something but I don’t know what it is.”  She picked up the glass
and attempted another swallow.  It didn’t burn quite as badly this time.  She
was starting to feel warm inside and the shaking had stopped.  “I am so angry
at you.  You didn’t have any right to send Toby away.”

“I didn’t want you
to do something you would later regret.”

“If you hadn’t
have come across Frederick and me tonight, that would have been my first time,
instead of with someone that loves me.”

“You don’t love
Toby, though.  It wouldn’t have meant as much as you think it would have.”

“When did you
become a relationship expert?  Where’s your wife tonight?” she asked meanly,
but knowing he wouldn’t take offense.

“Probably screwing
your fiancé,” he said bluntly.  “I overheard her talking to one of her friends
earlier today.  She’s been sleeping with Stern for months.”

“I’m sorry,” she
said again.  “Why do you stay married to her, Peter?”

He stared into his
glass.  “I don’t know,” he finally said.  “Maybe because she’s all I deserve.”

“What a ridiculous
thing to say.”

Peter looked up at
her in disbelief.  “Look at what you’re marrying!  Don’t you think you deserve
better?”

“I’m trying to
protect our family!” she replied hotly.

“Now, sure.  But
when you got engaged to him, you weren’t in love with him.  You settled for the
first man that paid attention to you.  Jesus Christ, you’re engaged to a man
old enough to be your father.  How fucked up is that?”

“About as fucked
up as you being married to a woman just like your mother,” she replied calmly,
saying the vulgar word for the first time in her life.  She liked the way it
felt rolling off of her tongue.  Maybe she shouldn’t drink the whiskey, she thought
belatedly.

Peter wasn’t
offended by her language.  He laughed and the tension in the room dissipated. 
He laid his head back against the headrest of the chair.  “We are two fucked up
people, I guess.”

They were both
lost in their thoughts for several minutes.  Finally, Rachel said, “Unless
Norris finds a way out of this mess, I’ll be Frederick’s wife in less than four
months.  Peter, don’t stop me from seeking a little pleasure before that
happens.”

He drained his
glass before speaking.  “Not Toby.  He’s a boy.  You can only break his heart
in the end, and damn it, he’s a good stable hand.  Phelps will kill me if we
lose him.  Besides, he’s going to be offered a job in Kentucky that he can’t
refuse.”  He chanced a glance at her and saw that she didn’t look angry.  The
look on her face told him she knew she had been beat by one more crafty than
herself.  “Rachel, you have to trust me when I say that I’m not going to let
this wedding happen.”

“I believe that
you think that,” she said, “but you didn’t see Norris when I told him that
Stern would expose him.  He was scared, Peter.  I’ve never seen him like that.”