The Wicked Wife (Murder in Marin Book 2) (6 page)

Additionally, he was a man of great personal discipline. With his unimaginable wealth, fine dining could have been a nightly delight, but often he was happy just to have a bowl of soup and a light salad for dinner, followed, perhaps, by a single serving of sorbet.
 

On a long flight to London for an event promoting her signature perfume, Willow sat as the lone passenger on the private Lear jet provided for her use by Harrods’ Department Store. She passed the time considering the needed steps to achieving her ultimate goal of making William Adams her husband and adding the security of at least a portion of his vast fortune to her far more humble assets.
 

First, she considered the life and unexpected death of Fran Adams. It was apparent, even now, that William missed her. It was equally apparent that Willow wasn’t Fran’s intellectual equal. While Willow considered herself to be intuitively bright, and while Marin Academy is an outstanding preparatory school, Willow had never been on a college campus except to do a photo shoot or make a personal appearance. Fran, on the other hand, had earned a doctorate in law from Berkeley.
 

Listening carefully to William in one of his vulnerable moments, it appeared that the sex life he shared with his beloved Fran was quite clearly dull and unimaginative. Perhaps she would be wise to gently introduce William to some of the mystical and erotic pleasures of the Kama Sutra, to see if under his subdued exterior there was a buried soul possessing more carnal appetites.

Second, and perhaps more important in achieving her ultimate goal, Willow knew she had to integrate herself into William’s social circle, and eventually his professional circle as well. No union between them would ever be sealed, she reasoned, if she failed to become a presence in his life outside of the bedroom.

 
Third, Willow thought it wise to give Mr. Adams a taste of the exciting and intoxicating world of glamor, to get him out of the stodgy world of San Francisco law firms and Silicon Valley nerd farms, and, if possible, bring him to Paris for a few days of savoring the life of a super model.
 

In fact, later in the month, Willow was scheduled to be a guest on a
Project Runway
special from Paris. Why not let him spend a night or two in her domain? Let him meet LeBon and some of his eccentric play pals and he’ll understand why she was more than ready to step aside from the frenetic life of fashion and its never ending demands.
 

By the time her Lear jet lightly touched the tarmac at the private London City Airport and slid silently to its remote location where a limousine driver and a customs and immigration officer waited to greet her, Willow had outlined her design for the future Mr. and Mrs. William Adams. If her plans went well, in six moths Willow would begin her transition from the world of super models to the world of the super rich.

Three days later, when she was back in San Francisco, following a highly successful visit to London, Willow called William. “How about dinner at my place? I’d love to cook for you.”
 

This was a side of Willow he’d never seen. How could he refuse?

Yes, she knew which cupboards held the pots and pans. And in case of emergencies, the housekeeper had taught her how to turn the knobs on the La Cornue Grand Palais Range that was the centerpiece of her penthouse’s kitchen. All that was left to do was to send her driver to pick up two dinners from their favorite Mission District restaurant, Lo Linda. The manager, Louis Concha, was used to this drill, and boxed dishes individually, with a note that provided a link to online photographs showing the most desirable presentation of the dishes when served.

By the time William arrived, she was ready to present all the food as her own creation.
 

There’s something about lean, perfectly prepared medallions of beef that bring out the beast in a man. William was no exception to the rule. He wasn’t sure if it was the light jazz playing on the Bose sound system, the candlelight, the superb meal, the marvelous pinot noir wine she poured or the featured attraction, a stunningly beautiful woman who he had begun to think of as a living breathing work of art, but it all combined to lift him to dizzying heights that he had never before experienced.
 

As Willow had hoped, that one night marked a breakthrough in their relationship. Afterward, William never shied away from leaning in to kiss her, regardless of whether the location was private or public.
 

Before Willow went to London, William was merely smitten with her. Soon after her return, he was deeply in lust with her.

And being the ever-hopeful romantic, his lust quickly turned to love.
 

“Why not?” he explained to James as they both stared out from a fortieth floor conference room window with views of San Francisco’s financial district and the blue waters of the bay beyond. “I’ve earned a life of my own. I thought the rest of my years would be with Fran. But God had other plans for both of us. I’ve spent too much time thinking about what others might think of me for being involved with a younger woman. I’m just going to set those concerns aside.”

James nodded in agreement, feeling a tinge of jealously as he fantasized having his own afternoon play dates with Willow. His wife, Jade, had been a solid life partner. But Willow embodied nearly unimaginable possibilities in the all too brief trysts he had shared with her.
 

He would be more pleased if she shared his bed on a nightly basis, but having her close, he reasoned, was the next best thing. “You should do what you think is right,” James insisted. “What are people going to do, call her a gold digger? I’ve managed her business affairs for the last five years. Willow is worth approximately twelve million dollars. She could spend the rest of her life in considerable comfort if she married you or a hapless painter who never managed to sell a single canvas,” James said, as he put one hand on William’s shoulder. “I really do think she loves you for you.”

“I keep wondering if people will say I’m a fool?” William said with an almost painful shyness.

“We’ve been attorneys long enough to know that there are people who can and will say anything. Some will be confused, some will think you’re crazy, and some will just be happy for you. Speaking for myself, I’ll be insanely jealous.”

“Come on,” William said. “Jade is an exceptional and beautiful woman.”

“She’s not an internationally recognized super model.”

“Only a few women in the world are.”

“William, you are one lucky bastard,” James said with a broad smile as he gave his partner a reassuring pat on the back.
 

As William patted her dry after their shared shower, Willow reveled in the thought that part one of her plan had gone exceptionally well. Both were spent after passionately pleasuring one another in a marble shower the size of a small bedroom. Afterward, its unique set of multiple showerheads washed, relaxed and refreshed them from every imaginable angle.
 

William led her into the bed, where they fell quickly into a sound sleep.

Willow awoke early to find him softly kissing her slender shoulders. However, he was dressed and ready to leave for work. “Good morning, darling,” she said.

“I was thinking it would be fun if we had a little party next Saturday at my place,” William said in a casual tone. “No more than thirty or forty people. I want some of my friends and neighbors to meet you. Are you available?”

Willow sat straight up in bed. “Why, of course! That would be fun. I hope they like me, William.”

He placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her in close. The sheet that had been covering her fell and exposed her bare body down to her narrow hips.

He thought of her as a rare, exotic, and delicate flower. Nevertheless, he kissed her forcefully.

As he stood, he looked at her silently in loving admiration. He smiled and then said, “They had better like you, or it’s time for me to get some new friends.”
 

The second stage of her plan had fallen into place. Willow silently congratulated herself. And how easy it had all been! Without any subtle hints on her part William had suggested a formal introduction to his friends. She was indeed becoming a significant part of this fantastically wealthy man’s life.
 

For the first time, she felt quite certain that the ultimate goal of being the second Mrs. William Adams had moved within her grasp.

CHAPTER SIX

“Now what?” Holly Cross, the
Standard Community
Newspapers
’ production manager, bellowed to no one in particular. The phone had rung several times since she arrived in the office a half hour ago.
 

No doubt about it, this was going to be another busy week. Thank goodness, the heavy tread of her boss—the newspaper’s publisher, Rob Timmons—could be heard as he bounded up the Victorian walk-up two steps at a time.
 

Grabbing the phone yet again, she answered sweetly, “Good morning, Standard Community Newspapers, how can I direct your call?”
 

Hearing her, Rob snorted. The greeting was their private joke. He and she were the only two full time staff members in the Standard’s two-room office suite. Holly made it sound like she was in the middle of the newsroom at the
New York Times
.