Chapter 15
15
JULIAN
PRESENT
W hile Honor is sleeping, I have Grey double my security team. They still have no explanation for how someone managed to sit in that ballroom undetected to take pictures of us. In truth, I expected to know within an hour, and my blood pressure seems to be rising the longer I go without answers.
I’m used to this. God knows this isn’t the first security breach I’ve faced and, as much as it infuriates me to accept, it likely won’t be the last. I signed up for it, but Honor? If something happened to her because I came here and inserted myself into her life, I would never forgive myself. She’s innocent in all this, and this incident has my protective instincts dialed up to fifteen.
Despite getting only a few hours of sleep the night before and having a very physically and emotionally eventful day, I struggle to turn my brain off. For hours, I drift in and out, occasionally lunging for my phone to fire off an email to some unfortunate staff member, or a text for Riley to ignore.
I’ve called her no less than half a dozen times, and each has been sent to voicemail. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. I thought I would have time to work on my relationship with Riley before taking a sledgehammer to it. Instead, I’ve handed my already angry kid all the ammunition she needs to hate me for the rest of my life.
If someone told me, even a few months ago, that I would be embroiled in a sex scandal with a woman half my age, I would have laughed them out the door. I am though, and while the circumstances are hardly ideal, I can’t bring myself to regret coming here.
This is happening, and now, I need to show her that fast doesn’t necessarily mean bad. Honor is cautious by nature, and being thrown headfirst into any relationship would make her nervous. The fact she’s still here, curling into my arms as I return from another bout of pacing the living room just after dawn, speaks to just how strong her feelings for me are.
My throat is clogged with emotion as I kiss her temple, enjoying the sensation of her warm, naked body pressed against mine.
“Were you bossing people around?” she murmurs sleepily, her fingers drifting back and forth over my collarbone.
Chuckling quietly, I kiss the crown of her pale hair, wondering at the sense of completeness I’m filled with just by holding her in my arms. It’s just past eight, and cool winter sunlight is spilling through the bedroom curtains.
“I ordered us breakfast. It should be arriving any moment,” I tell her reluctantly, as her bare thigh drapes over my hip, making my cock twitch.
Jesus. I’ve been well acquainted with my right hand for so long, I’m finding myself unprepared to have the woman of my dreams naked in my bed. If I want to make her mine permanently, however, we can’t spend every waking minute in the bedroom. With two days left, I need to make sure she walks into that ballroom at my side because she wants to, not because she’s afraid of what the world will think if she doesn’t.
Honor groans playfully as I get up and take her hands, dragging her into a sitting position at the edge of the mattress. She’s dressed only in a pair of panties and makes no attempt to hide her body from me as she gets to her feet, stretching. “You should know I wouldn’t have left that bed for anything other than the promise of food.”
“Comfortable?” I manage to ask, averting my gaze as she pushes her arms through the sleeves of the fluffy hotel robe. Already, my willpower is hanging by a thread, and one more second staring at her almost naked body would have me abandoning all the plans I made for us today.
“Very,” she sighs, and I peer up cautiously to find her gazing at me, a sly smile curving her lips. “Is something the matter?”
Yes. I went nearly a decade without having sex, and now my dick is throbbing for relief only a few hours after it was last inside her. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I chuckle, closing the distance between us. I lift my hand, allowing my fingers to cradle the base of her skull.
“Maybe.” She inhales sharply, her lips parting as I gather her hair in my fist, forcing her chin up.
“You like knowing what you do to me?” I press my erection against her stomach, cataloging the way her breathing changes and her pupils dilate. “You like knowing how much I want you?”
Honor nods, her chin tilting up a little further, silently begging for a kiss. Instead, I release her. Standing back, I gesture toward the bedroom door, trying not to feel too smug about the little pout this earns me. “We have things to do, Valentine,” I remind her with a chuckle. “There’s a gala in two days, remember?”
She bites her lip, a flash of apprehension playing across her pretty features. “I’ll need to call my boss to tell her why I’m not coming in...”
“I’ve already handled that. I emailed her personally this morning, informing her you would be needed here to assist The Ballard Fund’s staff.”
Honor’s eyes go wide. “But if she’s seen the stuff on the internet, which I’m betting she has, she’ll know, won’t she? That we’re in a relationship? That you gave them the donation because of me?”
“Does it matter if she knows or doesn’t know? They’re still getting a very large check from me, and I’m confident the guests in attendance tomorrow night will be very generous. I’m betting she will overlook what her event coordinator is doing for the next few days.”
“ Who she’s doing, more like.”
I laugh as I take her hand, pulling her out into the main living area. A selection of breakfast foods has already been set up at the dining table, and Honor allows me to kiss her pursed lips before we sit down across from each other. “I have a board meeting at noon, but apart from that, you’ll be showing me the party planning ropes.”
“Event coordinating.”
“You see? I have a lot to learn.”
She takes a bite of pastry, still pretending to look irritated. “Why do you want me to do it, anyway? I’m positive you have more qualified people waiting to ask how high when you ask them to jump.”
There’s some truth in that, but it’s irrelevant in this instance. “I want this organization to feel like yours, too. It’s my money, but I want you to be making the decisions about what to do with it. At least until I can free myself from the shackles of corporate America to help you.”
Honor’s hand falls back to her plate, and she chews slowly, her eyes on my face. “It’s just…” She gazes at me, apparently struggling to find the right words to express the way this sentiment has made her feel. “I just don’t understand how you could be so sure. About me? In a romantic capacity, and to run The Ballard Fund. I feel like the most ordinary person alive.”
My chest burns with anger at every single person who ever made her feel that way or believe that about herself. Including my own kid. Reaching across the table, I take her hand. “Valentine, you have more love and goodness in you than anyone I’ve ever met. There’s no one I trust more.”