Chapter 36
Dahlia
Every mark Xander left on me is a reminder of just how good he made me feel. I want him to keep marking me so they never fade. The feeling building inside of me is becoming increasingly hard not to name.
Marco and Becca said he wanted to coax me. I bite my lip as I make my way through the hall toward the greenhouse. I really want to see how he does it.
My smile falls when I enter the glass room and spot the open window. The stems of the plants beneath it have been cracked. My heart kicks in my chest, a shudder running down my spine, and I have to remind myself that Elliot is dead. Xander killed him, and there’s no way he’s coming back.
I force myself to relax, running my hand along the broken plants. The air from the window lifts my hair, and a shiver rolls through me. Some kind of animal must have come in here, thinking it would be a nice spot for a rest.
A quick check shows the latch on the window’s broken. I huff out a laugh. In hindsight, with the old wood window frames, this would’ve been the perfect spot to escape from. The thing is, now I don’t want to escape. Now I want to see if Xander really means it when he says he wants me to stay.
It would be a lie to say I didn’t want it to be real. That I don’t drink up his words every time he says them, but my life has shown me time and time again that the people who say they care about you are the ones who hurt you most.
The truth is, I want Xander to be different from all of them. I want him to mean it when he says he’ll never let me go.
There’s an ache in my chest, and I take a deep breath, trying to soothe it. Something’s broken in me. Like a ceramic vase that’s been cracked so much it’s barely staying together. Xander’s asking to hold it, promising to make it whole.
What if he can’t? What if the damage is too much to fix?
My life is a series of people leaving, of hearing that I’m too much work. If Xander ever looked at me that way…like I’m a burden…
This time, I’d shatter into pieces.
Lifting a heavy planter, I set it on the sill, pressing it to the frame and holding the window shut. It’ll do in a pinch, but we should replace all the latches.
We.
Maybe it’s already too late.
I push the thoughts away, not wanting them to take over, and find myself walking down the familiar hall, like a magnet pulling me toward him. My breathing doesn’t even out until I spot Xander behind his desk, his sexy glasses slipping down his nose.
His gaze meets mine, and he slides his chair back and gestures for me to come.
“You’re busy.” Even as the words leave my mouth, I know I want him to deny it. “I just wanted to check on you. See if you need anything.”
He rests his cheek in his palm, giving him an almost boyish look. “I do. I need you to come here.”
“You’re supposed to be the responsible CEO who works night and day. Now you’re slacking off?” I say it while I make my way around his desk and let him pull me onto his lap, burying his nose into my neck.
“Whose fault is that?” His breath fans over me, warm and calming, chasing away all of my thoughts. I melt into him as the tension leaves my body.
He lifts his head, searching my face. “Are you okay?”
“Fine. A window broke in the greenhouse, and some of the plants died. Nothing to worry about.”
There’s a tick in his jaw, hand squeezing my hip closer, and then his expression softens. “Another thing for the list.”
It’s been weeks since we started fixing up the greenhouse. At first, I thought he’d be too busy to join me. How could I expect him to find the time when he’s constantly being chased by his employees, always needing one more thing?
Still, every night, he’d appear in the doorway, hair pushed back as if he’d run his fingers into it over and over again.
He’d start out stiff, like he was wearing the weight of the world, but as the night progressed and more tasks were completed, he relaxed, the strain disappearing, and changed from the cold businessman into someone warm, who would rather spend his nights with me.
“I have a surprise for you,” he says, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lip.
Heat pools in my stomach, and I swallow hard. It’s really not fair when he’s simultaneously playful and wearing those glasses. I gently remove them, trying to regain some of my senses.
“What type of surprise?”
He hums, pressing his lips into my jaw. “Wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you.” The low rumble causes a shiver to roll through me.
Before he can pull away, I kiss him. I run my tongue along the seam, and he opens for me willingly. Raking my nails up his neck, I tug him closer. He deepens the kiss, taking over, as his fingers sink into my hips. He grips my nape, tipping my chin up, and devours me fully.
There is a pulsing ache in my core, and I move to straddle him, but he holds me firmly in place. A frustrated whimper escapes me, and he bites my bottom lip, closing his eyes and growling low, before he lifts me firmly off his lap.
He rests his head just below my rib cage and takes ragged breaths.
“You aren’t playing fair, pretty girl.”
I huff and run my thumb over his cheekbone, loving the way he snuggles into me. “I thought it was going pretty well.”
“You have no idea how close I am to saying ‘fuck it’ and locking you in my room until you’re thoroughly ruined.”
I’m about to tell him that it sounds good to me when he firmly pushes me back and stands, placing a simple kiss on my forehead. “God knows I want that, but I want to give you your surprise more.”
“You sound confident that I’ll like it.”
“That’s because I’ve been paying attention, Dahlia. There isn’t a second you’re in a room that you don’t capture all of my attention. I note every smile, every frown. What you like and don’t like.”
“Is this a part of your big scheme to coax me?”
My toes curl when a soft pink flushes his cheeks.
Xander drops his forehead to mine, brushing our noses together. The tension that surrounds him pulls me in.
I don’t fully understand any of it, but his heartbeat thuds steadily beneath my palm, and its rhythm matches my own.
He steps back, putting space between us, and the air feels cold without him. I want to drag him back to me, but his words cut me off.
“Hurry and change into something casual. We don’t want to be late.” He grips me by the shoulder and half guides, half shoves me out of his office. “It’ll be hot in there, so wear something light.”