The flight to Beijing was long and uneventful, as far as Sarah was concerned. But for Ethan it wasn't long enough. He was completely enthralled by Daisy. And not even the presence of Sarah could break the spell.
After several failed attempts to get Ethan's attention, Sarah requested a blanket and went to sleep on the couch.
Daisy was enjoying herself. She liked the effect her premeditated moves were having on Ethan. She knew it was only a matter of time before she had him eating from her palm.
By the time the jet touched down in Beijing, it was already dark. They went through immigration without many questions. The hotel Lucy booked for them, sent a chauffeur-driven limousine to pick them up at the airport.
By the time they got to the penthouse Lucy had reserved for them, Ethan and Sarah were both very tired and hungry. Ethan ordered room service, while Sarah took a shower and changed into a silk lingerie that complimented her figure.
They ate in silence, partly because they were both tired and partly because Ethan was still thinking about Daisy.
After the meal, Sarah put a call through home, but the call went to voicemail. She guessed Amy had already gone to bed. She wondered what the time was in New York now. She dropped a voice message for both Amy and Edward, promising to call back the next day.
Finally, they crawled into bed and Ethan finally had her time. They made love that night, but it was far from what Sarah had expected. Ethan seemed absent and a bit uninterested.
Sarah lay awake in bed, while Ethan slept peacefully beside her. Dreadful thoughts flooded her mind, causing her to toss and turn.
She didn't remember dozing off, but she woke up by 7:20 am, panting heavily from a terrible nightmare. She couldn't recall the dream, but she knew it was about Amy. She noticed Ethan's space on the bed was empty.
Getting out of bed, she made her way to the palatial living room. Ethan was on the floor, doing pushing-ups. Sarah's heart seemed to skip a bit when he rose and planted a light kiss on her forehead.
She was falling deeply in love with Ethan, even though every cell in her brain was screaming for her to be careful.
"Good morning beautiful," Ethan said, as she enveloped Sarah with his arms.
"Good morning handsome," Sarah replied, blushing.
"I hope you rested well?" Ethan asked, as his blue eyes penetrated Sarah's lingerie.
"Yes, I did," lied Sarah.
"Great, 'cause we are going to be taking over this city once I get back from my meetings today," Ethan said, picking Sarah up.
He pinned her around a couple of times, causing Sarah to laugh heartily for the first time since they arrived in Beijing.
When he finally put her down, Sarah wrapped her hands around Ethan's neck and pulled him down for a kiss.
They ended up making love again on the couch in the living room. But this time around, it was both heated and passionate.
Sarah loved it. She felt like she had Ethan back to herself.
***
Back at the office in New York, Lucy didn't have much to do since Ethan was not around. She had a million thoughts on her mind. It took all of her willpower to keep from calling Daisy. She had planned out this mission and she didn't want to blow it up with her own hands.
To keep herself busy, she decided to log in on Facebook. She checked her DM and replied to a couple of messages. She noticed she had some new friend requests.
Clicking on the friend request icon. She scrolled through them lazily, scrutinizing all the requests, declining most and accepting a few.
Stumbling on Edward's friend request, she noticed his last name which prompted her to click on his profile. Scrolling through his pictures, she discovered he was Sarah's husband.
Lucy could not believe her luck. She accepted his friend request and sent him a "hello" when she noticed he was online.
"Hi," came Edward's response.
"Are you by any chance related to Mrs. Sarah Dean?" Lucy asked
"If you mean Sarah Dean of Beau Frank Cosmetics company, then yes, I'm her husband," replied Edward.
"Then I think we have a lot to talk about," Lucy said.
"Okay. You've got my attention," Edward said.
"Not online. We've got to meet somewhere we can talk." Lucy replied.
"I'm free now if you are."
"Meet me at Wellmarts parking lot, in 30 minutes," Lucy replied.
***
Ethan spent the day holding meetings with business partners and some potential business partners. He was taken on facility tours and proposals were discussed. He had lunch at a Chinese restaurant with some of his Chinese partners.
While he was away, Sarah put a call through. Amy was already at school. Edward picked up and assured her they were doing fine. Even on the phone, Edward remained cold towards Sarah. She wondered if they could ever work out their marital problems. She wasn't even sure she wanted to try anymore.
Sarah spent the day, lounging in the penthouse. She ordered herself a five-course meal for breakfast and ate till she could eat no more. She dozed off on the couch in the living room and slept like a baby.
When she woke up by 3 pm she took a bath in the artificial sauna in the penthouse. For 45 minutes Sarah firebathed in the sauna. Emerging from the sauna, she dressed up in a chic white t-shirt and blue jeans.
Finding her way to the restaurant on the ground floor, Sarah ordered an exquisite meal that comprised rare seafood and crustaceans. When she left the restaurant, Sarah went shopping on a shopping spree in some of the designer stores in the hotel.
When Ethan finally got back in the evening, he took Sarah out for dinner in a five-star restaurant recommended by one of his partners. Sarah felt so free and alive in Ethan's company.
Ethan proved himself a gentleman, by giving Sarah his undivided attention and showering her with compliments. Almost cracking Sarah's ribs with his inexhaustible repertoire of funny jokes and stories, Sarah laughed till her belly hurt.
Oblivious of Lucy's plans and plots, Sarah kept on having the time of her life in Beijing. During the day, she either lounged in the penthouse or went shopping. At night she went clubbing with Ethan. They were almost inseparable and Lucy was becoming convinced that Ethan felt something for her apart from lust.
Finally, their stay was over and it was time to head back home. Ethan was happy with the outcome of his negotiations with his partners and the agreements reached. He was also glad he brought Sarah along with him. They had crazy sex every day, whenever they wanted and however they wanted.
Checking out of the hotel on Saturday, Ethan and Sarah made their way to the airport in one of the hotel cars. Glad that they had been able to spend quality time together, away from prying eyes and jealous lovers. But little did they know that things were about to fall apart for them.