“Because I’ve been really happy, and she knows that’s because of you.”
She continued to eat, but there was a softness to her eyes, an affectionate haze to her features that showed how much that meant to her. “I’ve been really happy too…and that’s because of you.”
I walked her back to her apartment, but I hoped the night wouldn’t end on the doorstep.
She got the door unlocked and opened it, but Charlie was sitting on the couch, so she closed it again to say goodbye.
I didn’t want to walk away and sleep alone. I wanted to feel her back against my chest, listen to her breathe as I fell asleep. I wanted her hair all over the place, even in my face, her smell heavy in my nose.
“Thanks for dinner.” Her hands moved to my stomach before slowly gliding up.
“Thanks for letting me pay for it.”
The corner of her mouth rose in a smile. “I get to pay next time.”
“Alright.” I knew she would never change, that she didn’t want me to pay for everything every time we went out. That just wasn’t who she was, and while I didn’t want her to spend her money on me, I wanted to respect her wishes, even though it was hard sometimes.
“Well…goodnight.” She was in her flats, so she had to rise on her tiptoes and grip my shoulders to kiss me.
I pulled her into me and balanced her as I kissed her, giving her a goodbye kiss instead of a heated embrace. But her lips were so soft and full…and she was such a good kisser. She knew how to give and take, let me have her all I wanted before she reciprocated.
She moved away and lowered her feet to the floor.
It was impossible to leave her. “Can I stay over?” The words came out of my mouth easily, of their own accord. I didn’t want anything physical from her, just to feel her soul wrap around mine like it had on the couch.
Her eyes shifted back and forth as she looked into mine.
“Just to sleep.” My hand moved into her hair, keeping it back from her face.
She gave a slight nod. “Okay…” She turned back to the door and walked inside.
We moved past the living room and headed for the hallway.
Charlie ignored us, watching TV with a beer in hand.
We entered her bedroom.
My eyes immediately went to the headboard, where I’d secured her wrists and took her hard. Bondage wasn’t particularly my thing, but when she asked me to do it, it was the hottest thing in the world.
My dick got hard at the memory.
But I pushed the thought away because that wasn’t what I wanted to do now.
Her fingers went to the bottom of my shirt and slowly pulled it over my head.
I let her undress me, felt the cotton move over my head and tug on my hair. My heart started to race a little because it was hot, watching her remove my shirt.
Instead of dropping it to the floor, she held it in her hands. “Do you mind if I wear this?”
And then she made it even hotter. “No.”
She moved toward the door. “I’m going to brush my teeth and wash my face. I’ll be back.”
“Alright.” I watched her go until the door was closed behind her. I wasn’t sleeping in jeans, so I took them off and left my phone on her other nightstand so it would be within my reach. I changed my alarm to go off a little earlier than usual, so I had time to head back to my penthouse and get ready for the day.
I pulled back her covers and lay there, looking through the blinds of the closed window.
She returned minutes later, her face free of makeup, her hair having a kink in it because it’d been in a ponytail in the bathroom. My shirt was almost to her knees, practically a potato sack on her, but she looked sexier in that than she did in the black lingerie.
With one hand behind my head, I stared at her, watched her walk into the room, gorgeous in makeup and just as gorgeous without it. She turned off the lamp then got into bed beside me.
Once she was under the covers, I turned to face her, pulling her leg over my hip, bringing us close together, her chest to mine, our heads on the same pillow. It was so comfortable, like we fit together perfectly despite our height differences. My hand slid underneath the shirt and up her bare back, finding the ideal place to rest against her spine.
I stared at her beautiful face in the dark, the light from the cracks in the blinds coming in and hitting parts of her cheek. The entire thing was a turn-on because this was the most desirable woman in the world, but my dick remained soft because my pure intentions overrode my biological reaction. I didn’t want more than this. It was more than enough, gave me more satisfaction than the hard sex we used to have. She was far more beautiful like this, free of makeup, her heart on her sleeve instead of locked behind a cage.
Her arm slid around my torso, her hand against my back. Her eyes moved down to my lips, but she didn’t kiss me. She stayed still, fought the same urges I felt.
“Goodnight, sweetheart.” My hand glided up until I brushed the hair out of her face, my fingers keeping it pinned back as they slid farther into the curtain of softness. I closed my eyes a moment later, feeling the peace I’d been searching for my entire life. It was the first relationship I’d had with anyone where I didn’t have to question why they were there. It wasn’t because of my wealth, my status, my connections. We didn’t meet at a charity gala, spotting each other across the room. She wasn’t part of that fast life at all. Hers was slow, easy, real. The heaviness in my heart was both painful and bittersweet. The way I felt about this woman made me realize what I felt about Rose had never been real, even when our relationship was good. There wasn’t this deep connection, this level of friendship, a relationship where the person wasn’t just your lover, but your best friend.
She whispered back. “Goodnight, Dax…”
My driver pulled up to the restaurant.
I looked at her in the seat beside me. “No reason to be nervous.”
She turned to me, her eyebrow arched and high. “Nervous? Honey, I don’t get nervous.” She opened the door, flipped her hair, and stepped out of the car.
I grinned slightly before I joined her on the sidewalk. She was in a red dress, which looked lovely with her dark hair and fair complexion. The sleeves fell down her arms, and she wore black pumps. “I’m sorry we have to go to a fancy place. I’ve been told you hate pretentious food.”
She grinned. “Don’t worry about it. I know your sister and William like this sort of thing, so it’s three to one. And now that I know there’re two billionaires at the table, it doesn’t bother me so much.”
My arm circled her waist, and I pulled her close. “You look beautiful.”
Her eyes softened at the compliment. “Thank you.”
In truth, she looked incredible, sexy as hell, and I missed our alleyway fucks for a second.
“But you’re the beautiful one.”
That made me want to roll my eyes because no one noticed me when I stood beside her. My lips moved to hers, and I kissed her, careful not to ruin her red lipstick, but once our mouths were combined, the fire started.
I had to force myself to pull away and guide her into the restaurant. After I checked in at the desk, I was led to the table where Renee and William were already waiting. His arm was over the back of her chair, and he was pivoted toward her, giving his full attention to the woman who’d stolen his heart. He was in a sports jacket, and he was listening to her talk. Renee had her hair pulled back, and she was in a simple black dress.