Truth (42 page)

Grinning into her pillow, she recalled
Harry’s prowess between the sheets. Prior to Tony, she’d been in a
sexual slump. Simon was many years earlier, and they were just
children. Between the two, there were a few nameless, meaningless
men. Unquestionably, Tony’s sexual abilities were boundless.
Nonetheless, the daunting reminder of his nonconventional
introduction into her life and bed darkened every positive
memory.

Gratified with Harry’s skills, Claire
snuggled into the soft sheets, enjoyed his warmth and floated in
and out of consciousness. Nearing eleven, Claire stirred as Harry
eased his way out of bed. Her damaged self-esteem waited patiently
for him to return. When he didn’t, she freed herself from the warm
cocoon, shyly wrapped herself in her robe and wandered into the
sitting area.

Tentatively stepping into
the bright room, Claire found Harry standing in the sunshine,
peering through the large window. A glistening vista filled with
buildings and shimmering sea filled the large pane beyond his
silhouette. Despite the beautiful view, Claire’s gaze focused on
Harry’s firm bare torso, trim waist, and perfectly faded jeans.
They were the same jeans from last night and hung perfectly around
his hips with the top button undone. As she admired the vision, she
noted the absence of visible boxer shorts. Suddenly contemplating
their location, her insides tightened.
If
they are still in the bedroom -- it meant -- under his
jeans...

Smirking, Claire shook her head and listened
as Harry spoke on his Blackberry.

“
That’s fine, send the
email to me and I’ll review it.” “No, that can wait until Monday.”
“Be sure Lee knows.” “Yesterday?” “No, I wasn’t aware.” “Have Lee
call me as soon as he’s off the call.” “Thank you Rachel. I’ll
check in later today.” He turned around and saw Claire.

Momentarily she feared her eavesdropping
would upset him. However, Claire’s anxiety dissipated as Harry’s
eyes lightened and a smile filled his handsome face. Slowly he
walked closer keeping his glimmering eyes locked on hers.

Though he spoke into his Blackberry, his
expression revived Claire’s feelings from last night. “Yes,” he
said, “forward everything to my personal email. I can get it from
my phone.” His eyebrows rose as he neared and discontinued his
conversation, “Good bye, Rachel. You know how to reach me.”

He hit the disconnect button and flung his
phone onto the couch.

Harry’s change in
countenance eased Claire’s uncertainties about the night before.
Suddenly her facial expression was beyond control. No longer did
she wear a mask, her cheeks rose involuntarily, and the tips of her
lips moved upward. She remembered Courtney’s question:
does he make you smile
?
She knew the answer and momentarily considered calling her friend
and screaming --
YES, he
does
! However, her desire to remain within
Harry’s grasp prevailed.

“
Hey, Beautiful Lady, I
called room service and ordered coffee.” His wrapped his arms
around her waist. “It should be here soon.” He moved so close,
Claire needed to look up to see his blue eyes.

“
That sounds wonderful.
It’s way too late for my first cup.”

Lowering his lips to her forehead, Harry
asked, “Did you sleep well?”

Her arms encircled the torso she’d been
admiring, and she murmured, “Hmmm, I did. You?”

“
Much better than I
would’ve on that couch.”

Claire grinned into his chest, thinking so
many questions. What did this mean for their friendship?
Truthfully, she wasn’t looking for anything long term. And she
didn’t want to hurt him, but selfishly, the closeness felt
wonderful. Every inch of her craved more of what they’d shared.

“
Harry,” she began shyly,
“maybe we should talk about...” His hand gently lifted her chin,
slowing her words. When their lips connected, her words
ceased.

“
How about we talk
later?”

Claire didn’t reason or think. Instead, she
nodded and her body responded carnally without modesty. His hands
untied the belt of her robe and slowly eased the fabric from her
shoulders. As it fell to her feet, she pushed toward his warmth and
security. From within the confines of his jeans, Claire felt his
straining erection against her hip.

Moving his gaze down her body and back up to
her emerald green eyes, Harry asked, “Do you know how gorgeous you
are?”

She fought the urge to look down modestly
and replied, “You make me feel that way.”

“
You should always feel
that way.” His hands cupped her behind as he pulled her nude body
against him. The rough denim fabric burnished her suddenly
sensitive skin. Their mouths united as Claire welcomed Harry’s
tongue through her parted lips.

This time she remembered the condom. “Do you
have any more protection?”

Harry released his embrace, grasped her
hand, and led her to the bedroom. Going to the bedside stand, he
opened his wallet, and with a triumphant look produced a small
silver square packet.

Claire’s smile and lifted
eyebrows begged the question,
did you
expect this?

“
What can I say? Once a
Boy Scout ... always prepared.” His infectious levity made her
giggle. Harry crawled on the bed and patted the mattress. She
willing followed, unable to restrain the large ridiculous smile
overtaking her face.

Gently easing her onto the pillows Harry
moved to the foot of the bed. With his own devilish snicker, he
allowed his lips to brush the skin of her ankle, calf, knee, thigh,
hips, and stomach. By the time he reached her breasts, Claire’s
expression morphed into a pleasure clouded gaze, and her back
arched as he teasingly suckled each nipple.

Weaving her fingers through his unruly hair,
she asked the question burning in her mind, “How many of those
packets do you have?”

Harry lifted his eyes to hers. “This is my
last one.” She exhaled. “I suppose we’d better make it count.”

The thought alone electrified her skin,
taking her beyond words. She gasped as her head foolishly bobbed in
response.

She heard him say, “I know a few other ways
to utilize our resources,” as his kisses moved back toward her
stomach and south.

Acquiescing to his suggestion, Claire fell
against the soft pillows and allowed her body to enjoy the
excursion.

******

Phillip Roach reviewed the video: 23:42:34
Mr. Rawlings leaves Claire’s suite. Phillip notes she appears
unharmed, perhaps slightly stunned, as she closes the door. Phil
rubbed his temples and ridiculed himself for sending the note.
Thankfully, since he hadn’t heard from Mr. Rawlings, he assumed
Claire managed to hide its existence from his employer. There was
something in Mr. Rawlings’ voice as he waited in that car,
something which alarmed Phil. Now, shaking his head at the stilled
image of Ms. Nichols closing the door while simultaneously looking
into her closed hand, Phil acknowledged Claire’s talent. This
petite woman could influence Mr. Rawlings, in ways few others
could.

The video restarted, 03:17:25, Ms. Nichols
had a crowd at her door. Listening to the dialogue prior to the
door opening, Phil determined Harrison Baldwin to be the one to
gather the group. Baldwin looked and sounded tense while he banged
on her door. As Claire appeared, she looked recently awakened,
having slept in her clothes. Though her face was barely visible
through the crowd and Baldwin’s embrace, she looked
uncharacteristically disheveled.

The others went away while
Baldwin entered the suite. Phil rewound the feed and listened
again. Though difficult to hear everything, it sounded as though
they said something about
charges
. Claire specifically
said
no charges
to the police woman.

The camera didn’t activate again until
11:13:48, when Mr. Baldwin opened the door to allow room service to
enter with a cart, the exchange polite and short. Baldwin wore the
same clothes from the night before.

13:37:16, Mr. Baldwin pushed the cart into
the hall and left the suite. 14:16:32, Ms. Nichols exits her suite
wearing a beach cover-up, hat, sunglasses, and flip-flops and
carrying a beach bag.

Phil decided to get a closer look at
Claire’s suite. He stopped on his way to the pool. When he reached
her door, he found it ajar with a housekeeping cart parked before
her entrance. Casually Phillip Roach stepped around the cart and
waved to the housekeeper, in the bedroom changing the sheets.
Noticing the blanket and sheet upon the couch, Phil grinned and
clicked a picture. Although, it was none of his business, he
suspected Mr. Rawlings would be as happy about this discovery as
he.

Phil clicked a picture of the coffee table
with an empty bottle of wine and three glasses. Next, he nodded
politely to the housekeeper, left the suite, and walked toward the
pool.

Easing into a lounge chair shadowed by a
large umbrella, Phil’s eyes settled upon his new obsession. Despite
her eventful night with multitudes of visitors, Claire looked
rested and relaxed, casually lounging under a deep burgundy
umbrella, her bare legs stretched out before her, wearing a black
bikini. On the table to her left, Phil saw her iPhone, a plate with
part of a sandwich, and a tall glass with amber liquid. The lemon
upon the rim and the small bowl of various colored sweetener
packets indicated the glass contained iced tea. Her sunglasses were
on top of her head as she read from the iPad.

He leaned back, snapped a photo and began
his email to Mr. Rawlings.

******

Claire adjusted her eyes
to her iPad. As long as she kept it out of the sunshine and her
sunglasses off, she could read the screen. Sighing, she reread
Meredith’s blog for the third time. The content wouldn’t change.
She wasn’t seeking new information -- only assessing. The procedure
felt strangely familiar, evaluating each new situation for possible
fallout. She’d lived two years of her life that way, taking-in
everything around her, and gauging if, no not
if --
how
Tony would react. Claire no longer feared physical
retaliation; yet, part of her felt the need to placate Meredith’s
blog, hoping to mellow his response. Claire reread:

Freedom of Speech

While Freedom of Speech is
protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution,
it is not apparently immune to money and influence. I wrote a
retraction scheduled to appear today in
Rolling Stone
and
People Magazine
. It was
a retraction to an article I wrote over three years ago. (Hyperlink
to 2010 article)

As an independent
correspondent, I have experienced the highs and lows of our ever
changing world of media. In the past, I’ve proposed ideas which
have been accepted or rejected in principal. Never, until now, have
I had a publication refuse to print my finished product,
after
first accepting
the concept.

(Hyperlink to Rolling Stone article) and
(Hyperlink to People Magazine article); for the record, my
retraction was to include additional information which these
esteemed publications have since refused to print. A third
nationally recognized magazine refused to print any of my
retraction.

In an effort to inform the
public, as
is
your
right
to know, my blog will serve as the sounding board designed to
reach the masses. Here, as
is
my
right
, I will write what no magazine
was willing to print:

Ms. Claire (Rawlings) Nichols has agreed to
sit down with me and openly discuss her relationship, marriage, and
divorce with Anthony Rawlings. Mr. Rawlings is one of this
country’s leading entrepreneurs and listed as one of the top ten
wealthiest people in the United States. His influence in the world
of business is without bounds. That same influence has been working
overtime to stop Ms. Nichols’ right to free speech.

As of yet, I do not know any details of
their relationship. It is, however, my opinion that since Mr.
Rawlings’ legal team is working diligently to contain her voice,
the final product will be worth writing... and reading!

Continue to follow this blog to learn more
about the TRUTH only Ms. Nichols can share!

Claire looked at her phone
and wondered if she should call Tony. After all, she didn’t want
Tony’s
fine legal staff
presenting Meredith with a restraining order.
Claire tried earlier to reach her old friend, but she was busy in
another interview.

Claire closed her eyes and
debated the effectiveness of
her
case, she would tell Tony:
I was upset after you left last night. You should know that.
I fell asleep before I could call Meredith. The blog was already up
and viral by the time I woke-up.

There were over 300,000 hits. Her planned
words were all true. Claire just wasn’t sure if she could talk to
Tony, after what happened last night with Harry.

Thinking about last night ... and this
morning... caused a smile to sneak onto her face, momentarily
forgetting the blog. She lowered her sunglasses over her eyes,
placed the iPad face down on the small table, and relaxed against
the soft lounge chair.

Absorbing the sunshine, she recalled her
night and morning. When she and Harry finally talked about what
they’d done, Claire was reassured by their like mindedness. Neither
wanted to jeopardize their friendship, and both thought they were
comfortable with the additional benefits. After all, they’re both
consenting adults.