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~ Tales of Romance ~
Whispered Promises
Chapter 1
Some days were as predictable as rain. If the sky was gray, and filled with dark, threatening clouds, chances were pretty good, sooner or later; you were going to get wet, and then spend the day wondering why you'd even bothered to drag your tired butt out of bed!
Other days dawned with bright blue skies, the warmth of the sun on your face, a gentle breeze stirring your hair, the birds singing, and nobody giving you the finger as you drove in to work. Granted, these days were few and far between, but every now and again, you fell into one and it left you thinking the world wasn't such a bad place after all.
Today, wasn't one of those days!
Chaos reigned!
Hunter shook his head in disgust, and scowled at the jumbled mess which covered his cherry-wood desk. Not an inch of the warmly gleaming wood showed beneath the scattered papers and numerous folders he sifted through, as he searched for the illusive document he needed.
For nine long months he'd been playing by the rules of the law; dotting every 'i' and crossing every 't' to make sure that Andrew Manning was held responsible for the lives he'd nearly ruined, all in the name of madness. Too many times, people otherwise sane, had found ways to get away with their crimes by calling it a 'crime of passion' or pleading 'insanity'. Hunter intended to see that Andrew Manning paid his dues, and then some, if he had his way. He'd personally been witness to the havoc Andrew Manning had wrought, had seen the violence first hand; had watched as people close to him became personally involved in the madness and had nearly lost their lives because of it.
It had become a defining moment in Hunter's life; the moment it changed his beliefs and redirected he career. Granted, he was still an attorney, but he no longer took on the big name, big deal clients. He'd shifted his sights to those really needing his help; those in peril and pushed aside, those battling not only their situation, but the very society that found it easier to look the other way and pretend it wasn't happening. Without consciously thinking about it, he suddenly found himself fighting for battered and abused women and children, and senior citizens easy to manipulate and cheat. More often, than not, he found himself championing them - pro bono.
The phone rang twice before it was picked up, and answered by a cheery female voice. Hunter listened as his secretary/assistant chatted brightly with the person on the other end of the call. His lips curved into a smile as he realized who his secretary was speaking with when he heard her offer her congratulations to Danielle Rocmanov, America's brightest star and best hope for winning a Gold medal in the upcoming Winter Olympics for figure skating. Simply put, it was her latest victory on the ice. One more medal, this one silver, to add to her collection. Jamie chatted amiably for a moment longer, and then put her on hold. "Hunter, Danielle Rocmanov on line two." Jamie's cheery voice then announced over the intercom.
"Thanks, Jamie," Hunter's deep voice answered, his lips already curving into a smile as he answered the call, pushing the speaker button on the phone, allowing him to continue to search through the piles of papers on his desk. "Hey. Congrats on your newest acquisition. I hear this one's silver," His deep voice stated huskily.
Just hearing his voice made Dani's heartbeat bump up a notch, and she smiled to herself. "Hey, yourself. Thanks. Considering how bad my jumps were, I'm surprised I came away with anything at all. How are things on your side of the fence?"
Hunter cast a disgusted look at his desk. "I don't know why I bothered spending money on file cabinets; obviously every piece of paper I own is on top of my desk, except, of course. the one I'm looking for," Hunter growled.
Dani's cheerful laughter bubbled over the phone. "I thought organization was your forte?"
"It was, once upon a time. Somewhere along the line things got out of control and I haven't been able to find the time to get them back on track."
"I thought Jamie, being your assistant and all, would, well, assist you?" Dani asked with a light laugh.
"I created this mess - not Jamie - it's up to me to see it cleaned up. Jamie's here to make sure I know where I'm supposed to be, when I'm supposed to be there, and see that I'm out the door in time to get there," Hunter offered. The sound of shuffling papers and then Hunter's deep curse as a pile of papers slid off the front side of his desk and fluttered to the carpeted floor in disarray had Dani smiling.
"Then being the efficient assistant you claim she is, I trust she reminded you Saturday night is Mom and Dad's AIDS Charity Gala, and that you promised you would be here?"
"Oh, hell. Is that this Saturday?" Hunter growled in frustration.
"Hunter, don't do this to me. Don't even think about missing this gala. You know Mom and Dad are expecting you to be there. Besides, this would be the perfect time to help Sergei decide on a tuxedo. There's only six months until the wedding; you guys might want to start seriously thinking about what you're going to be wearing. After all, you agreed to be one of Sergei's groomsmen. Remember?"
"Sergei caught me in a moment of weakness," Hunter groaned, running one hand through his tawny hair.
"Hunter, you promised," Dani pushed, huffing out her breath in a clear indication of her exasperation. "Considering how the media is always touting the fact you're such a man of your word and that honor is your middle name, I would think the fact you promised my parents months ago you'd be at their gala would be enough."
"How many times do I have to tell you, don't believe everything you read?"
Dani rubbed long, slender fingers across her forehead, hoping to stop the headache that was starting to throb and decided maybe it was time to change tactics.
"Hunter, we haven't seen each other in months. As much as I enjoy hearing you growl at me over the phone, three times a week, and catching occasional glimpses of you on the television, and in the newspapers, I've really been looking forward to this gala and seeing you again." Dani's tone softened, became sultry and persuasive. "Besides, I can assure you, you'd truly hate to miss the stunning dress I plan on wearing. Dad even gave me a thumbs up on my choice."
"Which means, chances are it's a dress that will be talked about for the next three months. Please tell there's enough fabric in it to at least make a set of handkerchiefs," Hunter pleaded.
"Hunter, you're starting to sound like an old man. I told you Dad agreed with my choice," Dani growled in frustration.
"Well thank God for small miracles. At least your father has good taste," Hunter mumbled distractedly, remembering the understated elegance and style Aleksei Rocmanov preferred. Danielle Rocmanov, on the other hand, took great pleasure in having a style all her own, often surprising her family, and her father in particular, in the process. Case in point, when she'd returned from skating camp fifteen months before, sans her long auburn hair. Instead, she'd arrived home with short, honey colored curls, which had her father threatening to never let her out of his sight again.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Hunter," Dani grumbled softly, trying to stem the anger that was building. "I can't tell you how much better I feel knowing that not only do I have to remind my father I'm not a little girl anymore, but I need to remind you too!" Dani stated heatedly.
"You're eighteen, Danielle." Hunter mumbled in distractedly, trying to divide his attention between Dani and continuing the search for the illusive document he sought.
"Nearly nineteen, Hunter, and age is a number, not a state of being. Besides, you didn't seem to mind my age when we were in that hot-tub together the last time we saw each other!"
He had to give her that. He'd never met a more-mature girl - woman - he corrected himself. She was wise beyond her years, an old soul in a young, beautiful body. A body, he clearly remembered, all too often caught, and held, the eye of all who saw at her. In fact, the image that flashed through his mind of her flushed and wet and wearing nothing but her nearly transparent silk underwear in that hot-tub had Hunter's body heating at the memory. It had been a long nine months!
"Whether age is a number or a state of being doesn't matter. I'm more concerned with having to worry about your clothing covering up all vital parts of your anatomy. I wouldn't want you embarrassing anyone." Hunter stated.
"Are you trying to win the jerk award today, Hunter. Because, let me tell you, you're definitely in contention! The last thing on my mind is ruining Mom and Dad's special night!" Dani fumed. "I'm not a complete idiot!"
"Danielle..."
"In fact, you know, you're probably right. Being as busy as you are, with all your work, I'm sure you don't have time to do something as mundane as attend a charity gala. Tell you what, you keep shuffling your papers back and forth across that expensive desk of yours and if I find the time, I'll just send you an e-mail after the party and let you know how it all went. That way, you won't have to waste your time making the trip down here and risk embarrassing yourself by seen with someone as low-classed, ill-mannered and stupid as me," Dani growled into the receiver. With more force than necessary, she banged the phone back into it's cradle, the loud sound of plastic meeting plastic giving her a small measure of pleasure as she envisioned Hunter rubbing his ear in discomfort. "Jerk!" she hissed at the offending phone.
"Shit!" Hunter's deeply voiced growl reached Jamie's ears and set her to smiling knowingly. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how much Dani meant to Hunter, and she supposed, sooner or later, Hunter would get smart, and give up running from what was probably the best thing in the world for him. But from experience, she knew, some men needed to be hit with a two-by-four more than once to get the hint. Shaking her head in amusement, she continued with her typing, knowing what would come next. Hunter was just too predictable.
"Jamie, what's the phone number for that florist we use again?"
* * * * *
Dani was still grumbling to herself, cursing men in general, and Hunter in particular, when she pushed through the double doors that led to the ice rink. The cold, clean, fresh scent of ice washed over her, classic, romantic music surrounded her and she slowly calmed her mumbled tirade. The scream of laughter, as she watched her brother launch his skating partner, Chloe, into a huge throw had her lips curving into a smile, then quickly dissolving into a grimace, as Chloe's edge didn't hold and she hit the ice with a solid thud.
"Owwww!" Chloe's groan echoed in the cold air.
"That's going to leave a mark," Dani stated quietly to herself, into the chill air, and watched as her best friend rubbed her hip, and was then showered with sparkling ice bits as Sergei came to a sliding stop beside his partner.
Chloe's scream rent the air, and she cast a bemused expression up at him, and the hand he held out to her, a silent offer of assistance. "Is that really necessary?" She asked with a laugh.
"It's a family rule," Sergei answered softly, pulling his partner, and the love of his life, to her feet, and gently brushing the ice off her shapely bottom, ignoring Chloe's half-hearted attempt to escape his wandering hands.
"It's a rule designed, by the men of this family, to take advantage of the fact that they are, more likely than not, going to get to throw ice all over the women in this family," Chloe complained.
"All you have to do is stay on your feet," Sergei offered with a casual shrug of his wide, muscular shoulders, his dark eyes dancing with devilish lights.
"All you have to do is throw me straight in the air," Chloe fired back.
"That's why I'm sticking with singles," Dani put her two cents worth in. "Men can't be trusted!"
Sergei and Chloe cast curious glances at each other.
"Let me guess? Hunter forgot about the gala Saturday night?" Chloe asked cautiously.
Dani's green eyes flared with fire. "I don't want to talk about. It doesn't matter to me if he shows up or not. In fact, I could care less if I ever see the putz again!"
Sergei's snort of disbelief had his sister turning her fiery glare his way. "Sure, that's why there's smoke coming out of your ears and flames shooting from your eyes."
"Can it, Rocmanov! Unless you want to make your fiancee a widow before she's your wife, I'd suggest you back off!" Dani growled at her brother, sent him a look that should have turned him to ash where he stood, and stalked toward the seats to put her skates on.
Chloe silently watched Dani move away from them, and smiled softly as she felt Sergei's arms wrap around her slim form and pull her back against his muscled chest, his warm lips grazing her neck in a gentle kiss. "She really misses Hunter."
"They talk every other day," Sergei countered.
"It's not the same as seeing each other. They haven't seen each other in months because he's been busy trying to make sure that Andrew doesn't walk away from his crimes without being punished," Chloe stated firmly.
"It just seems to be taking a long time to make this case stick," Sergei answered with a shrug.
"Sergei, we're not talking about parking in a handicapped zone; he tried to kill you! You know how much power Andrew's father and his herd of attorneys wield. Hunter's doing everything he can to see the charges stick and that we don't have to spend the rest of our lives looking over our shoulders and worrying if Andrew's going to jump out of every shadow. All that takes time."
"Too much time, if you ask me," Sergei growled, wrapping his arms more tightly around Chloe and pushing aside the memory of Andrew's attack that had nearly cost them their lives.
"The wheels of justice turn slowly, Sergei."
"And sometimes not at all," he countered flatly.
"They will this time," Chloe stated faithfully, then silently prayed she was right.
"If you two are just going to stand there on the ice and snuggle, suppose you move off to one side so you're, at least, out of my way? Some of us have work to do." Dani complained, stepping onto the ice and slowly beginning to circle the expanse of shining white.
Chloe and Sergei watched Dani as she slowly warmed up, silently circling the ice, her form perfect, but her attitude and demeanor defeated.
"I think I'll go give Hunter a call," Sergei stated quietly, watching his sister skate quietly around the ice. Dani was never quiet! Her emotions ran high and hot, and the very fact Dani was so subdued was more than enough to cause worry.
"I think that's a good idea," Chloe agreed.
Sergei cast a considering glance toward his sister on the other end of the ice. "There really isn't a way for you be become my widow without first being my wife is there?" Sergei asked flippantly, his dark eyes dancing with humor.
Chloe shook her head in exasperation and smiled in spite of herself. "Don't be a putz, Rocmanov."
* * * * *
The annual Rocmanov AIDS Benefit Gala was due to start in less than an hour.
Chloe rolled her eyes in exasperation as the ridiculously small cellular phone rang in her beaded handbag that sat on the table beside the door. "Come on, Dani. We were expected down in the lobby ten minutes ago," Chloe complained, reaching for the phone and casting a frustrated glance at the clock on the wall of the luxurious suite they were staying in.
"Do you know what time it is?" Sergei's deep voice asked calmly over the phone line.
"Hello to you too," Chloe answered sweetly.
"What's taking you so long? Dad's ready to drag the two of you downstairs himself."
"You can't rush perfection! It takes time to get ready for an event like this. Why don't you and your parent's head over to the ballroom? Dani and I will meet you there," Chloe suggested.
Sergei cast a look toward his parents and had to smile. His mother, cool and calm as a cucumber, stood patiently watching her husband wear a path in the shining marble floor as he paced back and forth, waiting for the two young women to join them.
"You're going to be that much longer?"
"Not if you get off the phone and let me get your sister moving. By the way, any sign of Hunter yet?"
"He said he'd be here. And you know Hunter, if he says he'll be here, he'll be here," Aleksei stated.
"You're right. He's probably already in the ballroom wondering where we all are," Chloe suggested.
"With any luck. In the meantime, hustle up Dani."
"Will do. Now go, we'll see you shortly," Chloe laughed, and whispered a good bye.
"Chloe? I love you," Sergei called softly, his voice deep and sexy.
Chloe felt herself melt a little at his soft declaration. She would never get tired of hearing him tell her that. "I love you too, Sergei. See you soon," she sighed contentedly, blew him a kiss over the phone line and flipped the phone closed, ending the call.
Five minutes later she was still waiting for Dani to emerge from the bathroom. "What is taking you so long?" Chloe grumbled, knocked once before pushing open the bathroom door and stopped abruptly as she got her first good look at Danielle Janae Rocmanov in all her glory. "Oh my God! Has your father seen you in this dress?" Chloe asked in astonishment, her eyes wide with wonder.
Dani stood draped in form-fitting red velvet. The sensuous fabric hugged her body like a second skin. The neckline was halter-styled, yet cut in a deep square that left the top of her breasts swelling fully over the rhinestone studded edge. Dani's back was bare, but for the strands of gleaming rhinestones that ran in sparkling lines from her neckline to her waist. The velvet hugged her hips then draped into gentle folds that swirled gracefully as she spun in a slow circle for Chloe. "What do you think?"
Chloe stood speechless, her hands fluttering as she tried to find the right words. She opened her mouth to speak a couple of times, then closed it, a small frown appearing between her brows, then finally threw her hands up in exasperation, and blurted out excitedly, "Holy shit, Dani. You're ravishing!"
Dani flinched in surprise, cast a curious glance at the mirror and shrugged noncommittally. "If you say so," she mumbled, casting herself a disgusted look and heaving a dejected sigh. "I was hoping if I at least looked good, I might feel a little better. I so don't want to be here tonight."
"Dani, as it is, your father is going to be totally freaked out when he sees you. If you looked any better, he'd probably lock you in that walk-in closet!" Chloe laughed. "Look at yourself," Chloe urged, turning her to face the ceiling to floor mirror that graced one entire wall in the huge bathroom.
"God, I'm short!" Dani groused, noticing how much taller Chloe was where she stood behind her.
"You don't have your shoes on yet," Chloe added.
"I'd need to be wearing soap boxes on my feet to get me to at least a reasonable height. Was it too much to ask to grow at least another couple of inches?" Dani mumbled.
"Oh you got your couple of inches, they just didn't go to your legs!" Chloe teased, her gaze traveling to the swelling curves of Dani's bosom.
Dani's eyes widened as she noticed, for the first time, how much of her chest was showing above the fabric of her neckline. "Oh hell! Now what? When I got this dress, two months ago, it didn't fit like this," she complained, trying to pull the neckline up higher."
"Like I said, you got your two inches, just not where you wanted them!" Chloe smiled.
"Terrific! Just what I want, bigger boobs! No wonder my jumps have been nothing but misery," Dani complained.
"Stop complaining, you look gorgeous!" Chloe encouraged, pushing away Dani's fretting hands that still tugged at her neckline. "Look at yourself," Chloe demanded, pulling her back in front of the mirror when she turned to leave the room. "Take a really good look at yourself. You're more than just boobs spilling over a neckline."
Dani looked at the reflection in the mirror. Shining green eyes, with dark, long lashes shone back at her. The gold and peach eye shadow she had used cast a seductive shimmer to her eyes, high cheekbones glowed with a soft blush and her full lips were the same shade of red as her dress. After the debacle of her hair at skating camp, she had promised her father she would grow it long for him. Her hair was again its natural color, a shining deep auburn, and pulled up and away from her face. A myriad of spiral curls draped down to the center of her back, tiny rhinestones sparkled within the curls. In her ears were the diamonds her father had given her on her sixteenth birthday. Around her neck, she wore a narrow chain of gold, with a single diamond solitaire, a gift from her mother. "I can't believe I'm wearing this. My father's going to freak!" Dani whispered fretfully.
"You're probably right. Your father is going to freak, but not for the reason you're thinking. He's going to freak because his little girl has turned into a stunning woman and he's going to be spending all his time keeping men away from you."
"Yeah, right. I'm such a hunk magnet, I need bodyguards to keep the guys away from me!" Dani groaned in misery.
"Don't go all maudlin on me now, Dani. Let's go show your father, and all those gorgeous bachelors downstairs what they've been missing!" Chloe encouraged, standing aside and waiting for Dani to make her decision.
Dani cast a final glance in the mirror, still amazed that the reflection gazing back at her was her own. How had she missed the changes in herself? Was she so focused on her skating that everything else around her simply melted into the background? Was it possible to be too focused? How could she have missed the changes in her body? Although, thinking back on it, the difficulty she'd had with her jumps and spins, which she had attributed to a lack of concentration, were now obviously physical and not mental. Maybe it was time to start paying more attention to everything. With a small affirmative nod, she squared her shoulders and walked determinedly into the living room of the suite, picked up the small rhinestone covered purse and headed for the door.
"Oh, Dani?" Chloe called from behind her, holding her shoes in her hand. "You might want these."
"Damn!" Dani muttered, retrieved the shoes from Chloe and slipped the silver, high-heels onto her feet.
"See? Now you're not so short," Chloe stated, smiling down into Dani's beautiful face, still standing more than four inches taller than her soon to be sister-in-law.
The single digit that Dani directed at Chloe had her howling with laughter as the two made their way into the private elevator that would take them to the Grand Ballroom far below.
* * * * *
The Grand Ballroom was just that - grand!
The huge room comfortably held enough tables to seat one thousand people, and still allowed space for a stage for the musicians and a dance floor. The twenty ornate chandelier's overhead cast small rainbows around the room as their beveled crystals caught the light and danced in the slight breeze created by the air conditioning. The calendar might say it was November, but anytime you put a thousand people in one room, there had better be some air circulating.
Thousands of tiny white lights sparkled in the numerous potted evergreen trees that were placed around the perimeter of the room, the scent of pine reminding everyone of the approaching holidays.
The tables sparkled with gleaming silver flatware, fine English china and hand-cut European crystal stemware. Hand written place cards designated seating assignments. Monogrammed hand-embroidered silk handkerchiefs, for the men, and dainty silver bracelets, for the ladies, sat beside each name card. White candles in shining sterling holders gleamed subtly among sprays of evergreen boughs and white roses.
When Chloe and Dani came through the double doors and gazed over the railing of the grand staircase into the ballroom below, their breaths caught in wonder. There, below them, lay a magical fairyland.
"My God," Chloe whispered reverently, her eyes taking in the softly glowing scene before her. "This is how I would have pictured Brigadoon looking as it awakened," she added softly, referring to the Scottish legend where the sleepy village only awoke one day each hundred years so it would never be touched by time.
Dani looked down on the scene below, her heart picking up its pace as she felt excitement begin to build within her, and, surprisingly, found herself looking forward to the evening to come. "Mom and Dad always make this gala magical. Although, I've got to confess, this year, they've really outdone themselves!" she offered softly, not wanting to disturb the magic that seemed to swirl around them.
"Chloe," Sergei's deep voice echoed through the nearly empty room.
A stunning smile curved Chloe's lips as she spotted him at the far end of the ballroom and had her sending him small wave in acknowledgment. "Are you ready?" Chloe quietly asked Dani, never taking her eyes from Sergei as she watched him make his way toward the staircase.
Dani watched her brother as he made his way through the myriad of tables and potted evergreens, his eyes never seeming to leave Chloe's. A quick glance at Chloe had Dani noting she couldn't seem to take her eyes off Sergei either. "I can tell you two are going to need to get a room before the night's over," she stated, rolling her eyes in mock disgust.
"I can only hope," Chloe murmured huskily, a sexy laugh escaping before she could stop it.
Dani's eyes widened in surprise at Chloe's bold statement, but she couldn't help the smile that came to her lips. In the months since Andrew's final attack, Chloe had come into her own and was more open, more expressive, more willing to voice her needs and desires, more willing to voice an opinion, even if it wasn't a popular one. Granted, it drove their coach, Whittaker, crazy, but it was great to see Chloe standing up for herself.
Dani watched as Sergei waited at the bottom of the wide staircase, bedecked in classically tailored tuxedo, the gleaming, white silk shirt, sporting onyx studs. Sergei's shoulders looked even wider as the custom fit jacket stretched across his upper body, when he held out his hand to Chloe and waited as she descended the numerous stairs.
His dark, ebony eyes absorbed her every move, his breath growing shallow as he watched her move ever closer to him, and he envied the sapphire blue chiffon dress that caressed her body each time she moved. How he was going to survive the long evening ahead when all he wanted to do was find a quiet spot and ravish her, crossed his mind, and looking into her shining blue eyes, he read the same thought in her eyes.
Chloe's hand slid into Sergei's, his palm feeling hot beneath her own and she stopped on the step above Sergei, the added height of the step putting them at almost the same height. "May I say you look very dashing tonight, perhaps even a bit rakish," she murmured quietly, her blue eyes burning with a sensual light, her lips turned up in a sexy smile.
Sergei lifted one eyebrow in acknowledgment, noting the elaborate up-swept hair style that left Chloe's neck bare for but a few tendrils that curled enticingly down the pale length. In appreciation, Sergei ran his knuckles slowly down the silken skin of her neck. "As much as I appreciate how lovely you look, and all the trouble you went through dressing for this gala, I wish you had worn your hair down," he stated huskily, his eyes devouring her, before he leaned over and placed a heated kiss where her neck and shoulder met.
Chloe's eyes closed as heat rushed through her at Sergei's touch and she turned her head toward him, their cheeks brushing as he pulled away from her. "And why would that be?" she asked, a bit dazed.
"Because it's going to be very obvious when you return to the party and your hair looks considerably different from the way it does now," he answered deeply, a devilish light burning in his dark eyes.
"And why would it look differently?"
"Because your hair always gets mussed when we make out," he whispered just before his mouth claimed hers in a heated kiss that left her clutching his forearms, for support, as her knees threatened to dissolve beneath her.
Dani watched the interchange between the pair and felt a twinge of both envy and joy for the two. "Why don't you two just skip the gala and go right back to the room now? You can save dry cleaning costs if you hang your clothes up now," she called over the banister.
Chloe's cheeks blushed and Sergei lifted his gaze to send his sister a snappy comeback, only to have his mouth drop open in disbelief as he saw his sister's breasts close to spilling out of the low neckline of her dress as she leaned over the railing. "Holy shit, Dani. Put some clothes on!"
Dani cast a look down at her swelling cleavage, gave her neckline a disgusted tug upward, (not that it did any good), and with a mischievous little smile, flipped her middle finger at him.
Shaking his head back and forth, his plea was a simple one. "God let us make it through this gala alive."*
Copyright © 2001-2002 C.E. Moynihan
*All Rights Reserved