38. Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Dallas
K nowing that Blaire and I never got the opportunity to date each other, I decide to take advantage of the forced proximity. This morning, I left a Bean Haven coffee on her bedside table and scrolled out a message for her that I would see her tonight at five. She didn’t text me, and while I wish she had, I expected her not to, so I tried not to let it disappoint me. I want to get us to a good place again, and hopefully she’ll start to see that I’m not giving up on her.
Creeping into my old bedroom with a large pizza in my hand and a gift bag in the other, I set everything up while Blaire’s still in the shower. I queue up Bridgerton , lay the pizza out on the bed, dump the candy around it, and set the gift bag on her spot. I haven’t ever had a serious relationship before, so buying a gift for a female who isn’t my mom or Kinsey was different. But in a good way. I’m glad that she’s the only one.
The door to the bathroom opens and steam pours out. It’s wild how hot she likes her showers, and I don’t know how she can stand the blazing temperature besides being half-demon. She walks into the room in one of my T-shirts—a navy blue Seattle Kraken shirt that makes her eyes pop. Her skin is flushed from the heat of her shower, and her red hair hangs off her shoulders in wet curls. She’s so beautiful.
“What’s all this?”
“A date.”
“Dallas . . .” she says with a little attitude.
“Blaire. Now that everyone knows I am head over heels in love with you, I’m going to date the shit out of you and you’re going to like it if you know what’s good for you. I can’t take you out, so I’m bringing the date to you.”
Her eyes widen at my underlying threat. Good. She may be in charge, but I’ll be damned if she gets her way one hundred percent of the time. Especially if she’s trying to ice me out. Fuck that shit.
“You don’t have to go through all of this, Dallas.”
“I want to, baby girl. Come open your gift.”
Exasperated and a little timid, she pulls the tissue paper from the gift bag and pulls out a beautiful leather-bound sketch pad and charcoal pencils.
“This is gorgeous, Dallas,” she says, her voice choking with emotion as she runs her fingers over the soft grain of the cover. I scoot closer to her, watching her face and loving that this makes her happy. “No one has ever . . .”
“I figured, baby. But that’s the past. And I’m happy to give you so many firsts.”
She reaches her hand out and scratches her fingertips lightly over the scruff of my facial hair, and I melt into her hand. Any touch from her is a gift I won’t take for granted.
“Thank you. This is the best gift I’ve ever been given.”
“It’s not completely selfish, I have to admit. I’d like you to fill it with sketches, and I’d like to add it to the proposal for the changes to the current structure of the distillery events. You’re so talented, baby, and I want to see you reach your dreams.”
“How would that even work, Dallas?”
“I don’t know yet. It won’t be overnight, but I think you’re right. If we focus on weddings and large-scale events that are scheduled in advance, it puts us on the map as an elite venue. And you and I will both be happier.”
She brushes a tear away from her sweet face. It’s so hard not to kiss her right now, but I know she wants space, as much as it’s killing me.
“You ready to eat?”
She opens the lid to the pizza and gives me a knowing look.
“Really? You hate pineapple and pepperoni.”
“But it’s your favorite, so I’ll eat it. Next time we can get one loaded with meat.”
I hand her the garlic dipping sauce, press play, and we sit together in silence and eat. What was not planned, because I haven’t seen it yet, is that this episode is extremely spicy. It’s difficult to not get hard watching the scene focus on her pleasure. Blaire shifts next to me, rubbing her thighs together slightly and I know she’s just as turned on as I am. Fuck, what I wouldn’t give to be able to release her frustration, my own pleasure be dammed. Hell, I could come just from eating her out.
The downside of having such a highly intense sexual relationship is that you notice once it’s gone and that connection is severed. On the flip side, it’s allowed me to connect with her outside of having sex and only strengthened what I already felt.
As inconspicuously as I can, I rub my palm along my shaft, trying to get the fucker to go down. Her eyes flick down to my hard cock, the outline clear as day through my thin sweatpants.
“You can go to the club, Dallas. No point in holding out.”
My mouth involuntarily drops open, and I have to control my immediate reaction to go off the rails. The audacity of this woman knows no bounds and I’d turn her ass bright red if I could.
“Are you fucking serious right now?”
“Even if I was an option, which I’m not, I can’t have sex for weeks . . .”
She’s so full of shit that she can’t even hear how toxic the words she’s throwing at me are. How hurtful they could be.
“You’re telling me that if I leave you here right now and go fuck someone else you’re fine with that? You want me to touch someone else the way I touch you? Sink my cock inside a wet pussy that isn’t yours? Make someone else scream my name?”
“If you need to take care of yourself, Dallas, I’m not going to hold it against you.”
I’ll give it to her. She doesn’t falter, and she doesn’t let any of her emotions betray her. But I know her better than that and the thought of me being with someone else is ripping her apart. She’s only suggesting it because she’s trying to piss me off and push me away. Jokes on her.
“You’re full of fucking shit, princess.”
“Excuse me?”
“Did I stutter? I’m not going to repeat myself.”
She opens her mouth to argue but then shuts it without a word. I’d never do that to her. If I have to be celibate for the rest of my life in order to have her, I’ll do it in a heartbeat. I’ve felt how she’s pushing me away, but this was the final straw.
“What’s really going on, Blaire?”
She pulls her cheek between her teeth, gnawing at it, her eyes darting everywhere but at me.
“Baby, I love you. I’m so sorry about the file. I never should have gotten it.”
“I know you are, Dallas. I’m sorry, too.”
“Can we move past this? This distance, Blaire? It’s killing me. I know you love me. I feel it. I felt it the night before I left for Mount Baker. Tell me you still feel it and don’t you dare lie to me.”
“Thank you for the date, Dallas. I really just want to go to bed.”
I let my head drop in defeat. At least she didn’t lie.