Page 71 of His Wife

Small and helpless as she looked, there was a strength to her; a determination that he admired. Later, in conversation he learned that she was completely on her own in LA, going to school while working at a low-paying job. Yet she insisted on dealing with and paying for her car herself. She was an enigma: feisty yet delicate, friendly but guarded, naïve with a kind of natural sophistication. He was intrigued; fascinated even. And the rest was history. It was ‘meant to be’ they believed. Six months later they were married.

Now, Lisa decides to spend the afternoon at the spa getting a massage, facial, and her nails done. Then she goes to the organic food store and gets some things for a dinner for one. She doesn’t mind eating alone, knowing that whenever Harvey is in town, he spends every available minute with her…

Chapter Two

As Lisa pulls into her beachfront mansion, the beautiful home she shares with her husband and a bevy of staff, she takes a moment to breathe in her changed situation. There are moments during her day where she needs to just inhale, and then exhale the beauty that is her current life. Lisa is fully aware of the fact that she really is the luckiest woman alive!

Walking into the house, she is greeted by the head housekeeper. “Hello, ma’am… How was your day?” Sophia asks, as she takes the bags from Lisa’s hands.

“Sophia… It was good thank you. Mr. Weinstein is out of town for the night, so I’ll be eating alone. I’m just going to throw a salad together, so don’t worry about fixing dinner.” Lisa says, letting Sophia take the items to the kitchen while she makes her way to the bar to pour herself a glass of wine.

She takes her wine onto the terrace, and enjoys the afternoon breeze lightly brushing her face. Looking down at the beach, and then over onto the horizon, she marvels at the colors that seem to dance where the ocean ends. The sky is turning a beautiful red, pink and blue. Everything seems to have come together to create the perfect afternoon and early evening. The only thing missing is her husband, of course. The phone rings, and she picks it up, sitting back on a lounge chair to talk.

“So, tell me! Harvey! When do I get to meet him?” It’s her best friend, Heather. Since she lives on the other side of the country, she’s only heard from Lisa about this multibillionaire that she’s managed to bag .

“You know you’re welcome anytime. You just need to let me know when. You’ll like him. He’s exciting and full of life; lots of fun but with depth, you know? We can talk for hours . . . I forget that he’s so rich …” Lisa has a definite look of nostalgia in her face, in her eyes, as she speaks to her friend on the phone.

“Look, from what you’ve told me, it is hard to forget that he is a billionaire,” Heather says, remembering when Lisa told her about the Aston.

“I have been going on about it haven’t I? I promise I’ll stop. It’s just so different you know, from…” Lisa says, stopping just short of mentioning her ex-husband’s name.

“Well I’m just glad that you’re happy. And I’ll take you up on that visit very soon, as soon as I’ve got free time. Things are hectic with the promotion you know?” Heather says, reminding Lisa of something that had slipped her mind.

“Oh yes, did I congratulate you? I did didn’t I! Oh god, did I?” Lisa asks quickly, not sure suddenly if she had congratulated her friend on making partner at her law firm. Ohmygod! I can’t believe how spoiled and self-absorbed I can be!

“You did. Don’t worry about it!” Heather says.

The two of them talk about everything. They talk about the intimate wedding that Lisa and Harvey had, again, with just four friends in attendance. They talk about Heather’s lack of a love life, but Lisa understands that with her current job, making any real connection is a little difficult. They talk about Harvey some more, and the fact that he doesn’t have any children. His first wife hadn’t wanted any, and he’d been so busy building his business that it just hadn’t happened.

She has no children either, and she is sure that this makes her relationship with Harvey just that much easier.

Lisa throws her salad together after ending her conversation with Heather. During the chat, she went through three glasses of wine, and has a fourth one in her hand now, throwing the various ingredients she bought today into a large bowl. She will eat what she wants, and seal the rest for her brunch tomorrow, she thinks. Lisa takes her salad upstairs with her to her bedroom, and eats in bed, knowing that Harvey will call in a little while to check on her.

After his call, she finishes with her salad, and gets into the bath. She relaxes amid the bubbles, the wine playing a little havoc with her head. She has never been good at handling her alcohol, but with the many parties and events she has had to attend since she met Harvey, she has had to. So she practices often, drinking more wine that she ever would normally, and she is definitely getting better at it! Again, not a great sacrifice!

Four glasses in relative quick succession, though, is really proving to be too much.

The next morning, she wakes up with a bit of a headache, but nothing that can’t be sorted out by a few aspirin and a cup of coffee. The coffee is brought up to her bedroom, so she doesn’t need to move at all, not until her first meeting with the ladies from Malibu, to discuss that year’s golf day. The meeting is at 11:00, so she has time for a bit of a lie in. Sinking deep into her Egyptian cotton sheets, she starts to go through her day in her head, casually, creating points of reference for all the things that will keep her busy until her husband’s return that night.

When she finally stirs from her bedroom, dressed in what really has become her signature Chanel, she stands at the top of the landing, and looks over her house; the way it opens itself to a double volume area down a beautiful set of stairs, and seems, as it rises towards the heavens, to split itself into a multilevel monstrosity. For its size though, it is so well furnished, so well decorated that it feels very intimate.

She makes her way out of the two gates leading off her property, and out of the secured area that separates her part of Malibu from the rest of LA, and makes her way down to the country club.

Chapter Three

Lauren walks into the offices of Weinstein enterprises, self-assured, ready to assume her position as assistant to the PA to Mr. Weinstein himself. It is just before midday, but she isn’t late. This is when Joan, the PA, said she should come in, so that she could meet Mr. Weinstein on his return from his out of town meeting. Harvey is really not in the mood to meet the assistant, but it has always been his motto to make everyone feel welcome at his company.

What he really wants is to be home, making love to his wife, but she mentioned something about a meeting for some fundraising event, so he can give up a few minutes to meet Lauren Prescott. He pours himself a cup of coffee in the staff-room, as Joan enters, followed by a young woman.

“Mr. Weinstein, this is Lauren. She is going to help me keep you in line,” Joan says, smiling.

“Hello sir, it’s an absolute pleasure,” Lauren says, her face brimming with a smile that lights up her whole face. My god he’s handsome! she thinks to herself, as she looks into his bright blue eyes, etched with just a few laugh-lines. She tries not to stare too long, but looking at his strong cheekbones and his chiseled jaw covered with just the slightest bit of dark stubble makes something stir deep inside her. When he holds out his hand she shakes it, feeling an instant spark.

“Miss Prescott, hello. And welcome” His voice is deep and sexy, “I’m sure you’ll have no problem adjusting to the way things work around here…” Harvey says, trying very hard to control the frog that is suddenly lodged in his throat.

He feels breathless. Jesus Christ, she’s stunning! She is a redhead, her hair the color of fire, flaming atop her perfect, heart-shaped face. Her complexion is smooth and milky, making Harvey just want to reach out and touch it. He doesn’t, though, stuffing both hands in his pockets. Her breasts just hint at their presence through her silk blouse, her ass perfectly rounded under her pencil skirt. Her thighs seem to beg to be let out from under her skirt, the parts of her legs that are visible screaming, too, to be touched. Whatever words are spoken between them are a jumble in Harvey’s mind.

He clears his throat, and takes a deep breath. “Well, it was nice meeting you, Lauren. I wish you all the best. You’ll keep me posted on her adjustment, Joan?” Harvey asks, his eyes finding it difficult to peel themselves away from Lauren.

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