31. Lucy
Chapter 31
Lucy
T he quiet at Toni’s place didn’t feel oppressive, it felt like freedom as I walked around in nothing but a t-shirt and cotton panties, a pair of wool socks covered my feet as I skated across the hard wood floors. There really was a difference between being alone and lonely. After a long week of keeping my distance and putting on a good show for Dante’s parents, alone time was just what I needed.
I spent Friday evening not out painting the town red and drinking too much, instead I did laundry, stocked the fridge and made a big pot of stew and a loaf of sourdough bread. It was a relaxing evening and I only thought about Dante, oh about five times every hour. It was progress though, and today I was determined to beat that record.
My phone rang and I picked it up without looking at the screen since I’d already dodged calls from my parents and my sister. “Hey Toni.”
She laughed in response. “Are you bored out of your mind yet?”
“Absolutely not! I have clean clothes, a clean living space and a big pot of stew and a fresh loaf of bread to eat. What are you up to?”
“Oh, nothing much, just hiding from a nerdy gamer who I’m pretty sure hates my guts.”
I frowned. “What? How is that even possible?” Toni was tough and she was also a smart ass, but she was great.
“Bad taste?” She laughed and I closed my eyes, leaning back on the sofa. I could almost see her laughing. “Are you okay Luce? You don’t sound like yourself.”
“I’m fine,” I assured her. “Or I will be. My heart isn’t broken or anything, but I’m just sick of not being enough, you know? It’s not like I was expecting Dante to propose or fall in love with me or anything, but I also wasn’t expecting whatever the hell this was.”
“I know, and it does suck, but Lucy you have to know that it’s his loss.”
“Maybe.” A knock sounded on the door and I frowned. “Did you send me something?”
“I would have if I’d thought about it. Open the door, and if it’s a stripper text me sixty-nine. If it’s an axe murderer, scream and I’ll send the police.”
I laughed and reluctantly got off the sofa. “You have quite the imagination Toni.”
“You should see what I come up with during naked times,” she laughed.
A quick look through the peephole and I gasped. “It’s Dante.”
Toni sucked in a breath. “What? Why? What does he want?”
“I don’t know,” I whispered. “I haven’t opened the door.”
“Well open the door!” she shouted over the phone.
I gave myself ten seconds of deep breathing before I pulled open the door. “Dante, is Lena all right?”
He smiled and my knees wobbled. “She’s fine. These are for you.” He shoved a bouquet of flowers at me with the smoothness of old sandpaper.
“What did he bring you?” Toni’s tinny voice echoed and I rolled my eyes and raised the phone to my ear.
“I’ll call you back Toni.”
She laughed again, loudly. “Alright, I want all the details.”
“Goodbye Toni.” I ended the call and turned my gaze back to Dante, standing in the hallway with an uncertain expression on his gorgeous face. “Dante. What’re you doing here?”
He sighed and then he smiled and sighed again. “Can I come in? Can we, ah, talk?”
Everything within me screamed no, told me to shut the door in his face and wait until Monday to deal with him. But when he stood there looking all beautiful and vulnerable, I couldn’t deny him. “Yeah, sure. Come on in.” I took a step back and waved him inside.
Dante looked around Toni’s place for a few moments before he turned to look at me. “You’re wondering why I’m here.”
“I am.”
He flashed a sexy grin and dropped down on the sofa. “I’m here for you Lucy.”
My heart raced at his words. I wanted to believe them. Desperately. It’s as if he was finally saying what I always wanted him to say. But, I was a big girl, and that kind of thinking was just fairytale nonsense.
“We talked about this, Dante.”
He shook his head. “No, you talked and I listened. I didn’t agree to anything.” His gaze was serious and that stopped any joke that I might have spit out to ease the tension.
I nodded and leaned against the wall on the other side of the room, leaving a coffee table and another sofa between us. “All right,” I sighed. “I’m listening.”
“First I want to start with an apology, because I owe you that, and don’t even think I’m apologizing for the incredible sex. I’m not.”
“Good to know,” I told him with a small smile.
He flashed a smile of his own. “You caught me off guard, a lot actually. Hell, maybe all the time if I’m being honest.” Dante raked a hand through his hair with a long sigh. “I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing and let you believe the wrong fucking thing.”
I folded my arms and arched a brow. “What is the right thing?”
“I like you Lucy, and clearly I want you. But it’s been a long time since I’ve done this with a woman and I’m horrible at it.”
Dammit, why did he have to be so hot when he was being vulnerable?
“I know you wouldn’t hit on Alex.”
“You know that now, but at the time you honestly believed it.”
He nodded. “I did, but it had nothing to do with you, I swear. You have to understand Lucy that very few women are attracted to me for me.”
“You mean they don’t like you just because you’re gorgeous with a great body?” I found that hard to believe.
His grin split his face. “No. I mean sure that makes it easier to fuck me, but with my money and influence, those are always the main attractions.”
“So you believe that’s all you bring to the table?” I found that hard to believe too.
“No, but I think it’s what most women want from me.”
“Your ex?”
“Definitely. Only I didn’t realize it until she got pregnant. She started spending money like crazy, and then it turns out, she hated being a mother. Didn’t like the mess or the responsibility.” He laughed. “Even my money wasn’t enough for her to stick around.”
Damn, that was terrible, and my heart went out to him. “So we’re all guilty for her sins. Got it.”
There was a flash of temper before Dante leaned back against the sofa. “No.” He shook his head. “That’s not it at all. Like I said, I’m bad at this and I can’t seem to get it right with you Lucy. But I want to get it right. You’re worth it.”
I sighed heavily as my heart thundered inside of my chest at his words. No other words could have possibly touched me more than those three words. You’re worth it. Had I ever been worth it to anyone in my life? The answer was a simple, no, I hadn’t.
But here he was, Dante Rush, telling me that I was worth a guy like him making an effort to be better. “Dante.” I didn’t know what to say. My hands trembled and my legs wobbled as emotion clogged my throat.
“I know it’s a lot to ask Lucy, believe me I do, but I think we work well together. We shouldn’t, but we do.”
“You mean we shouldn’t because you’re a world class grumpy jerk most of the time?” I moved around the living room and took a seat at the other end of the sofa with my back pressed against the arm so that I could look at him.
“I guess,” he grunted.
I laughed. “And I’m entirely too chipper?”
“You can say that again.”
I couldn’t help it, I laughed again. “But you still want me?”
“I don’t just want you Lucy, I need you. This isn’t just sex, though that part is pretty great.” His lips curled into a contagious grin.
“It is,” I agreed honestly.
“But that’s not all, Lucy. I need you to know that. I’m not sure what we will become or what we can become, but I’d like time to explore it.”
Hell yes. “What does that mean?”
He smiled. “It means we spend more time together,” he answered and scooted over to the middle sofa cushion. “Go on dates.” He slid over a little more. “Sneak in kisses when we can.” He slid over until he was pressed against my side. “Get to know each other.” His hand cupped the side of my face as he lowered his mouth to mine and the kiss was so sweet it brought tears to my eyes. Within that kiss was a million promises, and my heart was hopeful that Dante wanted to fulfill them all. I slid onto his lap and speared my fingers through his hair, melting into his kiss and his touch.
“Dante.” My words came out breathless and I pressed my forehead to his. “I want you too.”
He huffed out a laugh and gripped my hips tight. “Good, because I want you right now, so fucking bad I’m not sure I’ll last very long.”
“As long as we both get what we need, I don’t care. Let’s go to the bedroom, Dante.” He did and we stayed there for the rest of the night.
And a good part of the next morning.