Chapter 36
Chapter Thirty-Six
Drea
Tonight was a night of firsts, not only for Blair and me together, but for me personally. I’d roped Mackenzie into helping me plan my first official date with Blair at the aquarium, which was a success.
It had been absolutely perfect, even with Houdini clit-blocking me. He was so adorable, and Blair fell in love with him, so he was forgiven.
And now I was sitting on my couch with her. Skylar was the only woman I had brought back to my house, and it took me over a year of being with her to do that.
Yet, I was sitting at home with Blair, completely comfortable and at peace. I couldn’t quite place it, but there was just something different about her. How I felt when I was with her, it wasn’t even worth comparing her to my previous… situations with women. None of them held a candle to her.
“What did they give you that you didn’t want?” Her question left a sharp pain in my chest. I hated talking about myself. I didn’t want anyone else to see how fucked up I was, especially since I was almost thirty.
I sighed, not wanting to talk about my family, but not wanting to ignore her question either. She had already buried herself this deep into my skin, and I would’ve given her anything she asked for.
“My parents are far from perfect, no matter how much they pretend to be. They were married for almost fifteen years before they divorced, proving to me and my three sisters that nothing is forever. I learned that lesson pretty early on, so I’ve kind of kept everyone at arm’s length.”
“But why? I mean, you have an amazing group of friends, and you’re doing well for yourself, so why hide so much of yourself from new people?”
She was so cute, and her genuine care for me made something in my chest soften. I had never felt this way about another person, platonic or otherwise. I never wanted to open my eyes and not see Blair smiling at me.
“I’ve found it to be a better solution than letting someone in only to inevitably be hurt in the end.
My father taught me to never show weakness.
Opening yourself up to vulnerability and the potential to be hurt is weak.
” I shrugged, as if it were a normal fact that was spilling from my lips and not a fucked-up thing to tell a child.
She took my hands in hers and caressed them sweetly, calming the storm brewing inside me. “That’s dark, Dre. I’m sorry.” I didn’t hide my smile at hearing her call me Dre. It was the first time, and it sounded heavenly.
I shrugged as if it weren’t a big deal. “Enough about me.” I put my hand on her leg and relished the grin she gave from the contact. “I’ve been a terrible host. Can I get you something to drink?”
“I would love some water.”
I led her to the kitchen, and she took a seat at the island. We’d definitely be utilizing it later. I handed her a bottle of water, and we both sat there, silently hydrating ourselves.
“Are you hungry? I think Charlotte put some leftovers in the fridge.”
She blinked at me. I wasn’t sure what I had said—
“Oh… Charlotte is my chef. Not my… I’m not… Blair, I’m not with anyone else.”
I blushed, so embarrassed at my rambling, but I needed her to know. She was the only woman I wanted.
She nodded slowly before letting out a breath.
“That’s good, and no, I’m fine, thank you.
I… for the record, I’m not either. And of course you have a chef.
Do you have a butler too?” She chuckled and shook her head, and I was glad for the mood shift.
This night had been perfect, and I wanted to keep it that way.
I laughed. “No, but I have a housekeeper, Stella. She only comes twice a week. None of the staff live here if that’s what you're worried about. It’s just us.”
She blushed, and I loved the sight. “I wasn’t worried, but that’s good to know.
I just can’t believe I didn’t know any of this about you.
You live in a mansion, and you have ‘staff.’ I feel like we’re so different.
I… I feel like I don’t know where I fit into your world here.
” She gestured around the large space, and I frowned at the worry on her face.
I set the glasses down and walked over to where she sat so perfectly perched on my barstool. I took her face in my hands and looked into her stunning hazel eyes.
“Blair Sterling,” I started before I leaned in and captured her mouth in a sweet and gentle kiss.
Like so many of our kisses before tonight, I treasured every swipe of our tongues as if they were the last. Every second we were connected was a second I wanted to last forever.
I was reverently hers with every passing moment in time.
Reluctantly, I broke the kiss and smiled at her rapid breathing and flushed face. “You fit in everywhere. Please know that. If there was a part of my life you felt like you didn’t fit into, I would simply change it.”
She pulled me in for another kiss, and I instinctively placed my hands on her thighs, desperate to get those tights off. She pulled back and chuckled at my pouting expression. I wasn’t ready to let her go.
Still, she hopped off the stool and handed me a glass of water while holding on to the other as she led us back to the living room.
I watched her make herself comfortable on my couch once again, and I couldn’t help but smile at seeing her in my home. “So, what’s your story? I mean… I know about your parents, but what about after that? Where did you go?”
The smile quickly fell from her face and she shifted, sitting up a little straighter on the couch.
“Well, my grandmother, Amelia, took me and my brother in. He was fourteen at the time. He was with her at the time of the accident, so thankfully he wasn’t hurt.
She raised us until we left for college.
She was amazing. We spent every Sunday baking in the kitchen.
Christopher and I always put on little plays for her, and she never once rolled her eyes or seemed annoyed. ”
Her eyes started to fill with unshed tears, and I wanted to reach out and wipe them away, but she kept going.
“She was so supportive when I told her I wanted to be a writer. I was nineteen, and she had all the faith in the world in me. She bought at least three copies of every book I released for the first three years of my career before… before she passed.”
Her eyes had released the pools of water they held, and I leaned over to wipe some of them away. I hated seeing her like this. I would’ve given anything if it meant she was never sad again. God, I had it so bad for her.
“I’m sorry, darling. She sounded wonderful. I’m sure she knows what an amazing job she did raising a perfect woman.”
She huffed out a sobbed laugh. “I don’t know about perfect, but she was pretty wonderful.”
I reached for her, grabbing her chin and tilting her gaze up to meet my soft eyes. I needed her to hear every word I was about to say and really believe them.
“I need you to listen very carefully to me, Ms. Sterling,” I said, using my other hand to caress her side. “You are as close to perfect as a person can get, do you understand?”
She blushed and looked away, but I knew she didn’t believe me. I would just have to take matters into my own hands and show her just how I felt about her.
Without another word, I grabbed her chin again and turned her head toward me. I needed her to look into my eyes and believe my truth. I stared into her eyes for a few seconds, hoping to convey everything I was too afraid to say.
Finally, I had enough of torturing myself, and I leaned in to kiss her. Feeling her lips on mine, her hands on my thighs, felt otherworldly. I needed so much more in that moment. I needed everything.
My hands left her face as I grew more desperate to explore the rest of her. Both of us were wearing too many clothes, and I was going to fix that very soon.
Blair broke the kiss as my hands started roaming underneath her shirt. “Dre,” she whispered while licking her lips.
“Yes, darling?” I loved calling her that, and I loved the response it got. My voice was a similar decibel as hers, as I was still trying to catch my breath. I tried to show that nothing affected me and I had a tough outer shell, but for Blair Sterling, I was a total mess.
“Take me upstairs.” I didn’t have to be told twice. I would’ve taken her anywhere she wanted to go.
“You know I love how needy you get.” She chuckled and kissed me again, making me forget everything we had been talking about.
I broke the kiss, but not before taking her tongue and sucking on it like I knew drove her wild. She let out a little moan and gripped my arms tighter. I grinned, knowing that little move would be rewarded later.
We stood up and made our way up the stairs. It was times like these that I regretted not living in a studio apartment. We got halfway up the stairs, and I had to stop us. “Stop, Blair.”
She turned around and frowned at me. “Is everything okay?”
I shook my head. “No, it’s not. Take off your tights. Now.”
She took her bottom lip into her mouth and grinned, doing as I commanded and removing her bottoms and showing me all of her.
I groaned and kissed her. She melted into the kiss, and I sat her down, knowing her legs were about to become very unstable.
We were only feet away from my bedroom, as it was the one at the very top of the stairs, but I didn’t care. I needed her, and I was going to have her right there on the stairs.
“Drea.” She gasped when my impatient fingers found their way to her already drenched pussy. I was rubbing slow circles around her clit, making her grip me tighter.
“I love when you say my name, sweetheart, but I’d rather hear you scream it instead,” I teased before I entered two fingers inside her.
She was so ready for it they went in with ease, and I could feel myself growing wetter by the second at the feeling.
I wanted to put my whole hand inside her.
I wanted to go as deep as possible. I wanted to be as connected to her as a person could be.