Chapter Twenty-Three
Normally,I would take the lead, but I want to see what Lia will do. I let her guide me towards the center of the floor, her movements already easing into something practiced and elegant.
When she spins to face me, there’s a flame in her cheeks, a new spark in her eyes.
She’s definitely in her element.
She starts with a steady sway, working her way into the rhythm of the thrumming electronic music. One shoulder rolls back, then another—she spins in a swift circle, hair lifting into a soft blonde halo. Fucking ethereal. I need my hands on her, but I also can’t help feeling entranced by the way she moves independently of me. She’s a goddamn vision under the false starlight, and she doesn’t even know it.
The music lulls for a moment, the song at its end, and she smiles at me—really smiles for the very first time. Not a smirk or a shy, hastily corrected tilt of the lips—a full-on grin, dazzling in its purity.
“Come on, Ryker,” she urges. “Don’t you feel the music?”
Oh God, do I ever.
A new, more upbeat rhythm spills from the speakers, and when she extends her hand, I’m quick to take it. She pulls me close until my chest brushes hers, and for a moment her lips are all I can see—then she’s whisking away again, her hand slipping from mine as her arms arch high above her head.
My hands glide to the soft curves of her hips as I pull her towards me, her ass fitting snug against my crotch as I force her to slow down her movements, falling in sync with my own. Every beat of the music causes her hips to sway against me. Her hand falls back against my shoulder as my lips brush against her neck.
Against the darkness on the dance floor, no one else can see what she’s doing to me. But I know she can feel it. How hard she has my cock strained within my pants. How my fingers are applying more pressure to her hips as I hold her in place, relishing in the way she feels pressed close to me. How she moves against my body.
Proximity. Heat, flushed skin, salty sweat. The pain in my ribcage is all but a memory. I can feel my heartbeat in my ears, twice as fast as the music. Her eyelashes form perfect dark crescents over her cheeks; her plush-pink lips are parted as if to drink in the rhythm. I’m on fucking fire.
Mine. My thoughts are frenzied with desire. Mine, mine; I’ve chosen you to be mine, and nobody else will ever dare to approach you without my express permission.
I don’t know how long we dance. The songs feel continuous, each one melting smoothly into the next, and, damn, I feel like I could stay here forever. I’m not tiring out—instead, my energy is building, transforming me, almost.
But no matter how good it feels, I have another purpose for being here.
“Why don’t you continue dancing?” Pulling my hands from her waist is like fighting gravity, but I have to do it. I can’t forget the other reason I’m here. “I’m just gonna grab a drink and I’ll be right back.”
She nods, her body still swaying without a care in the word as she dances by herself while I slip away towards the bar. The bartender”s eyes shoot up to mine.
“Another?” he asks the moment I reach the sleek bar counter.
“Yes.”
While he busies himself with making my drink, I turn my eyes towards the dance floor. Lia seems oblivious to my gaze, lost within the music. Her motion is like a physical pull, a siren song, luring me closer…
“You’re a lucky man.” My drink clinks onto the countertop. When I look back, a slim smile is curling the bartender’s lips.
“In some ways, maybe. Others not so much. You know what they say—every rose has its thorns. Take the owners of this place, for example. They’ve got their share of skeletons in the closet, right?”
His eyes sharpen at my words, and he leans closer, pretending to busy himself with wiping down a glass. “Suppose so. What’s been troubling you, then?”
I take a sip of my drink first, savoring the way it scalds my throat. “My interests might overlap with theirs. You’re a friend of the family, yeah?”
“I’ve had the pleasure of making their acquaintance,” he says carefully. “Why do you ask?”
“There’s a girl I’m looking for. Young, pretty; you know the type. I hear she’s a big deal in certain circles… but other than the family’s last name, I’ve got nothing to work with. Thought you might be able to give me some help.”
He chuckles softly, shaking his head. “That’s not a road you want to go down.”
“Why’s that?”
His eyes meet mine once more, then glance around, double-checking for eavesdroppers. “Look, I don’t know much. Nobody does—from what I hear, not a soul’s laid eyes on her since she was a baby. Other than her daddy, of course, and you don’t need me to tell you to steer clear of him. Word of advice, kid— if you’re smart, you’ll stay far away from that entire situation.”
I don’t usually take kindly to people calling me kid, but I brush it aside for now. He knows something more than he’s letting on, and I’m not letting him off the hook just yet.
“Say I’m not smart. Hell, say I’ve got a death wish. Then what would you have to tell me?”
He heaves a breath and tosses the rag over his shoulder, shaking his head; when his eyes rise to mine, their playful glint is nowhere to be seen. His next words are blunt and direct. “Last person stupid enough to mess with the Lombardis was Armondo Trovato. You don’t need me to tell you how that ended up.”
He’s right. I may not know all the gory details, but I’m no stranger to the fate of the Trovatos.
“Wow. I need a drink,” a bright and cheerful voice says next to me.
I straighten up just in time for Lia to prance up to my side, her eyes shining. The ice has melted in her drink, diluting it to a pale gold. But that doesn’t seem to bother her; she snatches it up and downs it in a single long swallow, leaning back to expose her throat, before lowering the glass and grinning towards me.
“This place is electrifying… I never thought…” She shakes her head. “My father always made everything seem so… either boring or terrifying, with nothing in between. But that’s not really the case, is it? Places like this… you can just go to them whenever.”
Whenever. My gaze flickers around the club, coldly taking note of the many men whose eyes are lingering on her. Lia going to clubs, letting loose, showing off her stunning body on the dance floor… the prospect is enticing. Too enticing. If I weren’t here to stake my claim, they’d be slavering after her like hungry wolves.
“No,” I growl quietly. “Not whenever. “Not without me to look out for you.”
“Look out for me,” she replies—and smiles again, just as dazzling as before, a teasing glint in her eye. “Why would I need you to look out for me? You think I can’t handle myself?”
“Easy there, dove. Nightlife has a hell of a siren song, but I’m not ready to lose you to it just yet.”
“Mm.” She drains her glass. “Don’t take me home. Give us a little longer, at least. Please.”
Please. The way that word grips my heart—to say nothing of my cock.
“Fine. But I’m starving after all that. I’ve got a place in mind—somewhere that should still be open.”
“We can’t eat here?” She casts a longing glance back towards the dance floor.
“Afraid not. We can always come back another time.”
Her eyes flash up to mine, a playful smile upon her lips. “Promise?”
Promise?
An innocent word on her lips, but an impossibly heavy one on mine. I can’t promise her anything. Not unless I want to fuck us both over. Hurting myself is one thing, but the risk of any harm befalling Lia… it’s too much.
“I’ll do my best,” I say instead.
She’s unsatisfied, and makes no effort to hide it. Still, she accepts the hand that I offer to her, and stays close by my side as I lead her past the dance floor, through the blue-curtained door, and out into the night.
I don’t know what time it is at this point—don’t want to know. For now, I can pretend that this will never end, that I won’t be back in my bed in the GODs house before dawn comes. I won’t always be stuck in this cycle, dragged back again and again to that nightmare of a place called Crimson Elite Academy… but for the time being, I’ve got no choice.
Never in my life has anyone I’ve ever met made me want more than the mundane existence I currently have. Yet, the more time I spend with Lia—the more consumed by her I become.
And all I want is to consume her in return.
Still, under the star-studded velvet sky, with Lia’s hand in mine and the tang of sea salt in the cool air, I let myself pretend.
This time, her arms slide around me automatically when I settle onto the bike in front of her. The sensation is already growing familiar—dangerously familiar. I can’t let myself relax into this feeling. It’s too close to contentment. And contentment, as I’m constantly reminding myself, is not a luxury that I can’t afford.