coldhands_warmheart © 2013
The sequel to Prince of Darkness v Prom Queen 1 & 2
Chapter 1 Hooray for Hollywood
The calendar was watching him. Every time he glanced up it was staring at him, reminding him of the date of his first wedding anniversary. It was like one of those paintings, the ones with the creepy eyes, following him around the room. He tried to focus on the file in front of him. It was important, one of the biggest deals he'd ever worked on; it needed his undivided attention which it would have if the damned calendar would stop sneering at him.
His first anniversary. Donovan Corbett had never really expected to have a first anniversary, at least not one that meant anything. Marriage was not something he thought about as a realistic part of his life. He supposed maybe one day, in the far distant future, he might marry for the sake of companionship but the concept of spending his life with one woman was slightly abstract and completely unimportant.
Donovan's world used to be orderly and routine, structured, ruled by rules. He worked. He made money and more money. He read mostly work related materials but sometimes for pleasure. He traveled the world visiting places he'd read about. He recognized and developed his talents as a Dominant, training both submissives and sex slaves. He was mostly solitary, not really living life, but rather existing under a solemn, quiet and almost isolated grey cloud.
And then, along came Laci. His world unexpectedly exploded in chaos, sunshine, and rainbows.
He had known her for just over two years. He had loved her for most of that time although it took him a little while to figure it out, which seemed entirely fair since he was still trying to figure her out. He wasn't sure he'd ever manage to completely understand her but he was having the best time trying.
Whatever it was he believed marriage was going to be like, it most definitely wasn't that way with Laci. Yes, she was beautiful. Absolutely, she was sexy. She was also smart, grasping some of his most complicated business concepts as quickly as he did. She fit so effortlessly into his life; he could hardly remember when she wasn't there. He never knew what to expect and was constantly surprised. She was incredibly caring, and the best part of his day was having her fly into his arms when he got home, or she got home. It never mattered who got home as long as they found each other.
Maybe that wasn't the best part. The morning sex was pretty remarkable. Afternoon sex wasn't bad either. Lunchtime sex was impressive, and who knew there could be such merit in sex at teatime? Then there was pre-dinner and post dinner, late night, and midnight. Her energy level was astonishing.
As was her method of submission. Donovan was a Dom, ergo, he required a sub. The rules between Doms and subs were established long before Donovan ever considered entering the world of BDSM. Laci knew there were rules but created an addendum to each one. She was no traditional submissive but when she decided to submit to him, he usually couldn't walk in a straight line for the rest of the day. There would be one hell of a lot of happy Doms in the world if all subs used the 'Laci Method'.
Laci Grace Corbett was amazing. Donovan supposed most men felt that way about their wives, but Laci was almost perfect. If men had a place where they could gather, each assembling the components of an ideal woman, the world would be flooded with reproductions of her. Some might be taller and some might have red hair, but when it came to heart, soul, loving, and understanding, Laci was what every man secretly wanted.
She knew Donovan like no one else. She knew when he wanted her by his side, but she also knew when he wanted to be alone. He'd been on his own for a long time and she understood how sometimes he needed his quiet time. She knew when his work day had not gone smoothly and was there with hugs and words of encouragement or support. She knew when he'd accomplished something wonderful and her methods of celebration made wonderful even better. She didn't completely agree with or understand his need to maintain absolute control as a Dominant, but she accepted it as part of his job and part of who he was as a person. That, alone, made her extraordinary.
Sometimes he found himself almost intimidated by her and all she could do. Donovan had grown up not knowing how to do anything for himself. His instincts were unparalleled when he was dealing with business, but his instincts about simple things were almost nonexistent and he paid people to do what he couldn't. When Laci came along, she showed him how to do all kinds of things. He may have taught her about business but she taught him about life and how to really live it. Incredibly, she never made him feel foolish for not being able to do things. She was patient and laughed with him but never at him. She scolded him occasionally when he was being a little compulsive, but habits were hard to break and sometimes he did things just to annoy her since it so often worked to his advantage in the best possible ways. Who but Laci could 'insta-fuck' anytime, anywhere, and hardly get a hair out of place?
Everything seemed easier or better when she was around. Sharing things with her made him feel like he was experiencing them for the first time. She never nagged or complained. She never demanded anything. She had no expectations or entitlements. She didn't judge him and even if she didn't always agree with him, she never really tried to change who he was. She made him smile. She was always cheerful, bringing sunshine into his cloudy world. She made him happy and seeing him happy made her happy. He couldn't recall a time when he was ever as happy as he had been since Laci came along.
When he proposed to her he gave her a blue diamond, partially because it matched her eyes and because blue was her favorite color, but it was also because blue diamonds were special and rare, and so was Laci. She loved her ring, but extravagance wasn't important to her. It was almost frustrating because Donovan could have afforded almost anything she desired and would have given her anything she asked for, but none of that mattered to her, in fact the only thing she told him she ever wanted was his love, his respect, and mutual trust. She wanted to be able to trust him and know he trusted her.
Could he really have gotten that lucky? Could someone as perfect as Laci really exist? His life could not have possibly been better, until the day he decided to do something monumentally stupid and fuck it all up. He had to pat himself on the back and give himself a standing ovation. Ever the over-achiever, when Donovan Corbett fucked things up, he did it better than anyone else.
He supposed he could blame Trent Nichols.
Why the hell was Hollywood mega-star and actor Trent Nichols friends with Laci? Weren't actors supposed to hang around with other actors, swapping actor stories, bragging about actor accomplishments, and sharing actor idiosyncrasies? Did all Hollywood mega-star actors have another man's wife's number on their speed dial?
Trent came to town to film a movie. He got to know Laci when she asked to interview him and before long, she was off on a California adventure with her new best friend. She said she was only going to be gone for a couple of days but it seemed like forever and Donovan missed her. For the first time in his life, Donovan Corbett missed someone and that was an emotion he had never experienced. With the possible exception of Victor, everyone in Donovan's life was expendable until Laci came along. That was the first time he started to realize how much she mattered and how much he cared.
