The Life She Wanted: A Novel(49)

Finally, he took her hand and led her to the bed.

“Are you sure?” he asked when they lay down. She ran her hands along his well-muscled arms and the smattering of blond hair on his chest.

“Completely sure.” Pandora nodded.

Archie kissed her slowly. His kisses were probing; she felt them in her stomach, between her thighs. A moan caught in the back of her throat.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Archie whispered.

Pandora guessed that Archie sensed she was a virgin. It didn’t matter. Every part of her body was on fire; she wanted him more than ever.

“I want you,” she whispered. “Please, now.”

He kissed her again, harder this time. She was drowning in his kisses; she wanted them to last forever.

“I love you; I have always loved you.” The vow escaped Archie’s lips. But she decided she had imagined the words. Then he gently rolled on top of her. She felt a pleasure and pain that was almost too much to bear.

Her body arched to meet his, and she couldn’t remember feeling so light and free. Archie began to move, and Pandora rose higher, then tumbled down an invisible cliff.

Afterward, they sat against the headboard. Archie pulled the sheet around them.

“Are you all right?” he asked anxiously.

“I’m fine. More wonderful than I could imagine,” Pandora said truthfully.

Archie was silent. He touched her cheek and kissed her head.

“I’m lucky to have you in my life,” Pandora said.

She wiped a trickle of sweat from his chest. He turned to her and smiled his boyish smile.

“Tonight, I’m the lucky one,” he replied. “You’re a beautiful woman, Pandora. I’ll never forget this.”

Pandora thought of the perfectly planned life with Harley that lay ahead of her. It seemed so removed, as if she were gazing at a painting. But she was now ready. Nothing had changed, and she would move forward into her bright future.





Chapter Twelve


June 1927, Hyde Park, New York

Everyone warned Pandora that her wedding day would pass in a blur. She had not stopped thinking about her night with Archie, but now she would set the memory aside. Later, she would examine her feelings of guilt mixed with passion. But not now. She was determined not to miss a single minute of the day.

She woke up to the breakfast tray that Willie left at her door, with a note that the bride shouldn’t eat in the kitchen on her wedding day. Virginia joined her, and together they packed her suitcase for the honeymoon.

Before the service, a Rolls-Royce Phantom picked up Pandora and Willie and took them to the church. Milton had imported it from England. It was the same make of car that drove King George and Queen Mary and their children around at Buckingham Palace. Virginia’s jaw dropped when she saw it. Pandora would certainly make the wedding pages in the New York Times now.

Later, Pandora sat in a dressing room behind the chapel, enveloped by more chiffon than she had ever seen in her life. She couldn’t believe the day had actually arrived. When Adele gave her the diamond earrings she had worn on her wedding day as something borrowed and a sapphire brooch as something blue, Pandora burst out crying and ruined her makeup. Adele had to reapply Pandora’s powder and fix her lipstick.

“The best thing about your marriage isn’t that Milton is so thrilled or even that you make Harley so happy.” Adele stepped back and admired her handiwork. “It’s that I’m gaining a daughter. Besides Annie, of course, but she lives all the way across the country.”

Pandora was so touched. She would have hugged Adele, but she worried about crushing her wedding dress.

The best moment of all was when Pandora walked down the aisle. Her father handed her over to Harley, and she saw a look of such love in Harley’s eyes, and Pandora thought she heard a few of the guests gasp. She cast a quick glance at Archie standing behind Harley. He smiled back, and she knew that he would always keep their secret.

She told herself that the way Archie made her feel when she looked at him, the sudden warmth between her thighs, the shiver that ran down her spine, was only natural. They had made love; she was no longer a virgin.

For a moment, she wondered if Archie felt guilty too. But Archie didn’t have anything to feel guilty about. Pandora had asked him to make love to her. She cast the memory out of her mind and locked eyes with Harley. She was in love with him, and they were getting married.





After the ceremony, Pandora stood on the balcony at Blythdale as the band played a selection of Al Jolson songs and waiters passed around champagne and hors d’oeuvres. She was about to join Harley on the lawn when Owen and Lillian approached her.

Lillian wore a feathered headdress and held a pearl fan. Pandora noticed the diamond wedding band sparkling next to Lillian’s engagement ring.

“Owen told me you’re going to Lake George for your honeymoon. My parents used to own a cabin there; it’s quite pleasant except for the mosquitoes.” Lillian looked at Pandora with large, innocent eyes. “It’s too bad you and Harley aren’t coming to Europe. We could have met up and had fun.”

“Unfortunately, we can’t be gone all summer. Milton is eager for Harley to take over more responsibilities at the bank,” Pandora explained.

“I can’t wait to get to Italy; I need a change of scenery.” Lillian sighed. “We spent the entire spring looking for houses and haven’t found anything.”