Chapter 19 – Drake
DRAKE
Igot into the elevator and inserted the special keycard into the slot on the wall. A panel opened, allowing me to enter the passcode that would take me to the hidden fifty-first floor. Apart from my security team and a handful of scientists, no one knew it existed.
Standing at my office door, I unlocked it by typing numbers into a digital keypad on the wall. I could never be too careful with The Lucaya Group breathing down my neck. My top priority was securing my office and the private lab that occupied the entire floor.
I stored Lovelace on servers at my corporate office and server farms around the country. It was the only way to keep Lovelace safe from my enemies. Without all the pieces, they could never make her work.
I walked over to the bar on my right and poured a scotch. After last night, I wanted to drown my sorrows. By pushing Olivia away, I made a horrible mistake. But what stung more was her rejection this morning.
Would she have gotten into the shower with me if I hadn’t been such a dick? I’d already seen her naked. And since I leveled the playing field, we had no layers between us.
I offered Olivia a drink.
She shook her head, frowning. “I’m not getting drunk on my first day. You really shouldn’t be drinking, Drake. What is going on with you lately?”
She watched my every movement, unable to take her eyes off me. I hated to see the sad expression tugging at her face and the disgust that followed.
“Are you okay?” Olivia put her palm on my cheek and inspected my face. “You look sick. Do you want me to call the doctor?”
“No, I’m fine.” I stepped out of her grasp. “I developed a new game. Just for you.”
Her eyes narrowed. “For me? But I don’t play video games.”
“Well, let’s just say you were my inspiration.”
Her sullen look quickly transformed into a bright smile. “Really?”
I nodded and extended my hand. “Come see.”
When our skin touched, my skin prickled with bumps. Electricity skated up my arm and went straight to my cock. She paused as if she felt it, too.
Gripping her wrist, I yanked her toward the couch. She fell into me, placing her hand on my chest to regain her balance.
“Drake,” she whispered in that deep, sexy tone that made my cock hard. “I’m your assistant.”
“Oh, I’m well aware.”
“We’re at work.”
“And alone,” I reminded her. “I don’t see anyone here. Do you?”
“Stop playing with my head.” Olivia shoved her palms into my chest, knocking me off balance. “You can’t keep doing this to me.”
I advanced toward her. “What am I doing?”
“Messing with my emotions. Making me think you want me, only to withdraw the second we get too close.”
“You left me,” I reminded her. “I didn’t force you to live on campus.”
“Because you keep too many secrets, Drake. Even now, I feel you pushing me away. But I don’t think you want to. What are you hiding from me?”
“You’re my best friend,” I challenged, determined to make her listen. “I care about you. I’m attracted to you. But there are things about me you don’t know.”
Olivia threw her hands in the air, frustrated. “Then tell me, you ignorant ass. You’re not protecting me by keeping me in the dark.”
She was right.
But I wasn’t ready.
Besides, it wasn’t my secret to tell. Until Tate decided he was ready, he wouldn’t be okay with Olivia and me being together. And the issues with The Lucaya Group didn’t help. Now that Olivia was fully back in my life, she had the same target on her head.
“I made a character for you.”
Her eyes widened. “Now, this I have to see.”
I set her on the couch in front of a large flat-screen television. On the walls, monitors flashed the latest stock market updates. Other news outlets announced my deal with the Department of Defense.
Some reporters called me out on the ethical and moral issues my software posed. A computer that could control the world with one click of a button was frightening to people who didn’t understand how it worked. They were terrified robots would eventually take over the world.
I plopped onto the couch beside Olivia and handed her a gaming controller. She looked up at the massive screen in front of us.
“In the tech world, is having a big TV another way for men to overcompensate?” Olivia giggled. “You know, like how men buy big trucks.”
I tapped a button on the remote, shaking my head, a smile in place. “Video games are best played on the largest screens money can buy. It’s about the experience, not the size.”
“So you’re saying size doesn’t matter?”
I hit a few more buttons and smirked. “Are we still talking about TVs?”
Olivia blushed ten shades of red.
“From what I remember, you were more than happy with my size.”
Her face reddened at my comment. I loved the instantaneous effect I had on her. But the deep shade of red quickly faded, and as she sat up straight, I saw the change in her demeanor.
Olivia tossed the controller onto the table and climbed onto my lap. Like in my dream, she straddled my thighs and ran her fingers through my hair. “Push me away, and I’ll never speak to you again.”
I grabbed her hair and pulled her mouth to mine. She breathed through her nose as our eyes met, chest rising and falling rapidly. Olivia was like an open book, the usual desire written on her face. Our feelings for each other were palpable from the day we met.
As our lips collided and our tongues tangled, she moaned into my mouth. This beautiful woman was everything I wanted. One day, I would make her my wife. But first, I had to tell her the truth, which would have to wait until… later. Or never.
“Drake,” she whimpered when I peppered her neck with kisses.
She rocked her hips into my growing erection, desperate to create some friction. Reaching between us, she unbuttoned my pants and slid down the zipper. Her tiny hand rubbed up and down my thick shaft.
“I stayed away because of Tate. And because I was mad at you for not fighting for us. But I’m done waiting.” She leaned forward, fisting me tighter, her nose brushing mine. “Fuck me. Please.”
I flipped her onto her back and slowly inched the pencil skirt up her thick thighs. She reflexively covered herself as I bared her to me.
I swatted her hand away. “Don’t hide from me. Let me see you.”
I kissed her inner thigh, and she shivered, more moans pouring out of her. With my mouth inches from her pussy, she tugged on my hair and moved my face closer.
“You’re so beautiful,” I said and rolled my tongue up her inner thigh, needing to know how every inch of her tasted. “So fucking perfect for me.”
I reached behind her to unzip her skirt, and she wiggled her hips to help me slide it down her legs. Then, I yanked on her panties until they tore away from her body.
Olivia gasped. “Drake, what are you doing?”
“Don’t worry, baby.” I rolled my tongue over her clit, and she whimpered. “I’ll replace them.”
Once more, I dove in for another taste and tried to savor this moment. After years of dreaming about her delicious body, she was finally mine again. Even my filthiest dreams didn’t do her justice.
She squealed when I thrust two fingers inside her. To get a better angle, I tossed her leg over my shoulder, ripping a scream from her lips. Obsessed with the faces she made and the sounds pouring out of her, I watched as Olivia’s eyes slammed shut.
She licked and then bit her bottom lip as I added another finger. When I sucked her clit into my mouth, she screamed. Clutching her thighs, I forced my tongue to go deeper and deeper until she writhed beneath me.
“Oh God,” she mumbled, throwing her arm over her eyes and panting with each flick of my tongue. “I’m so close, Drake. Fuck, that feels good.”
At the peak of her climax, her skin broke out in tiny bumps of pleasure. Her breathing intensified, and she clutched her chest. My name poured out of her mouth, over and over, and she screamed for me.
Begged me for more.
Told me not to stop.
Keeping my gaze on her, I watched her intently, loving how she said my name as she came. For me. Her legs shook so fiercely that I held her down until the last of her spasms ceased, spent from the orgasm.
“Damn, baby.” I lifted my head to look at her. “You taste even better than I remember.”
Turning a shade of red, she sat up and shoved the loose strands of hair off my forehead. “You’re the first and only man I let do that.”
I sat up between her spread thighs, one eyebrow raised. “Really? You didn’t hook up in college?”
She shook her head. “I couldn’t get a certain someone out of my head to move on. No matter how hard I tried.”
Her confession took me by surprise. We never discussed our love lives. That topic always seemed off-limits, given our feelings for each other. As a general rule, I never brought women home out of respect for Olivia. Besides, none were worth the headache.
From day one, Olivia was it for me. She was still the prettiest girl I had ever met, even the day I brought her home, dirty and untamed. I saw right past what was on the surface.
I slid my hand under her chin and pulled her attention back to me. “I want you, Liv. But not like this. Not in my office with Tate two floors below us. He could come up here at any moment.”
“I’m sick of waiting for my brother to change his mind. You’re the best man I know. Most guys would kill to have their sister date someone like you. I don’t understand the issue.”
I wanted to tell her everything. The words stung my tongue, but I forced them back.
“In my line of work, I can’t afford attachments. You know what we do here, right?”
She nodded. “You sell weapons and artificial intelligence.”
“It’s not just my business. What I do for The Devil’s Knights is dangerous. Most of it is illegal. We work with criminals and have a lot of enemies. That’s why Tate is so protective of you.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“No, you don’t know everything. All of my friends have had attempts on their wives’ lives. Alex Salvatore was kidnapped and listed for auction on the Dark Web. I don’t want that to happen to you. Neither does Tate.”