Chapter 18
Eighteen
LULU
I’m in the middle of eating an entire pizza by myself—I’m so hungry—when a woman waltzes into the penthouse, pulling two racks of clothes, and then another woman follows, also pulling two more racks of clothes.
I stop chewing and stare. Rome left after the pizza came and told me to make myself at home, so I’m sitting at the dining room table, still in my sleep clothes, legs crossed under me, and I’m no longer alone.
“You must be Lulu,” woman number one says with a bright smile. “I’m Shelly. This is my sister, Sheila.”
Now that I get a good look, I see that they’re twins.
“Hi,” I reply, setting my slice of pepperoni down. “You’re early.”
“I know,” Shelly says, brushing a lock of her red hair out of her eyes, “but Mr. Alexander mentioned that you have to work at nine, and I wanted to give you plenty of time. Men don’t understand that this can be time-consuming.”
“Nice to meetcha,” Sheila says with a wave.
Abandoning my plate, I cross to where the women are fussing with the clothes, but I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. I’m not a stranger to shopping, I’ve done plenty of that in my lifetime, but the store has never come to me.
“I think we got your size right,” Sheila says with a nod. “And if anything doesn’t fit, but you love it, we can exchange it.”
“I don’t really have a big budget,” I inform them.
“Oh, honey, don’t worry about that. Mr. Alexander already paid for everything.”
I shake my head and take a few steps back just as the door opens, and Rome walks in. He surveys the scene and nods at the women.
“Ladies,” he says. “Does the living room work, or would you rather use the den?”
“I’ll change in the bathroom,” I say as I cross to him and grab his hand, linking my fingers with his. He glances down at our hands but doesn’t pull away from me. “Can I please speak with you privately?”
“Of course,” he says, leading me toward his office.
“We’ll start with work wear,” Shelly calls out to me. “And we’ll meet you in the den.”
“Thanks,” I call back, then prop my hands on my hips when we get to the office. “You can’t buy me all of those clothes.”
He leans back against the desk and crosses his arms, then rubs his finger over his lips. “Why not?”
“Because that’s … ridiculous.”
“Fine. You pay for them.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “I’ll buy a few things, but you just wasted their time, Rome.”
He shakes his head and pushes away from the desk to cross to me. “Are you always this difficult?”
“I’m not being difficult.”
“Yes, you are. You’ll take whatever you like. It’s all been paid for, so don’t worry about that.”
“But—”
He shuts me up by wrapping his arms around my shoulders and pressing his lips to the top of my head. It’s the nicest way I’ve been shut up, that’s for sure. This is the nicest a man has ever been to me in my life.
And I can’t believe it, but I trust it.
“Are you buttering me up with cuddles?”
“Is it working?”
I sigh and wrap my arms around his waist. “Kind of.”
He chuckles and tips my chin up so he can kiss the tip of my nose.
This man still hasn’t kissed my lips yet. And man, do I want him to.
“They’re just clothes, firefly.”
“Those are expensive. I didn’t look at the labels, but I know expensive clothes when I see them. I wore them once upon a time.”
“And you’ll wear them again, but they won’t come from your father.” He drags his fingertip down my cheek to my neck.
Suddenly, all I can picture is his hand around my throat, forcing me to my knees, and holy shit, that’s my new goal in life. I wonder if I can manifest that?
Except he hasn’t made any moves on me at all.
I don’t even know if he’s attracted to me like that.
“What?” He skims his finger over my eyebrow.
I bite my lip. “I’m struggling to see how this makes sense, Rome. You were a stranger only hours ago, it feels, and now you’re cuddling me, when I’ve never been cuddled by a man before. And … are you even attracted to me?”
Fuck, I feel like a fool. Of course, he’s not. Maybe he wants a pet. I’ve read romances where the alpha hero just wants a pet.
His eyes darken, and his hand slides into my hair at the back of my head. He makes a fist and tugs my head back more.
“You’re in my home, slept in my bed, in my arms, and I just brought all of the ready-to-wear items in the city for you to choose from. Why would you think that I’m not attracted to you?”
“You haven’t even kissed me.” It’s a whispered confession, and his eyes immediately drop to my lips.
“Not yet,” he murmurs and leans in, but his lips land on my forehead. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life.”
I can’t stop the “psh” that pushes through my lips. “Right.”
That hand loosens, letting go of my hair, but he holds the back of my neck.
“Since the moment I saw you, I wanted you. I want to get you naked and fuck you so hard and for so long, you’ll only ever remember me.
I want to kiss you for days. I want to listen to you laugh, and talk, and anything else you want to do until we fall asleep, and then do it all over again.
I don’t deserve one minute with you, but I’m going to take them all. ”
I swallow hard. I don’t know what to say. All of the words have left my brain, and my blood has pooled between my legs.
“I’m going to kiss you,” he murmurs, staring down at my lips again, “but it won’t be a sweet peck, and it’s not going to be when there are two women in my house, when I never let women into my house, who are waiting for you.”
I lick my lips. I never let women into my house.
“A simple ‘Yeah, I’m attracted to you’ would have worked.”
His lips quirk up into a half smile. “No. It wouldn’t have. Now, go choose some clothes. I don’t want you to be late for your shift.”
He takes my hand and leads me out of the office and through the living room to the den, where a three-way mirror has been magically set up in the middle of the space.
“Don’t fuck around,” he says to Shelly and Sheila. “I don’t want you here longer than you need to be.”
He turns to me.
“I’ll see you later, beautiful.”
“Where are you going?” I ask him, then feel my eyes widen. “Don’t answer that. It’s none of my business. I’m sorry.”
In front of the two women who are watching unabashedly, Rome steps over to me and grips my hand, and gives it a squeeze.
“I’m your business, firefly. There’s nowhere in this building that’s off-limits to you except for the basement.
If you feel the need to venture down there, please talk to me first. Anywhere else, you’re welcome.
Even my offices. You don’t even have to knock, but don’t be offended if we pause the conversation upon your arrival. Now, I’ll be downstairs. Have fun.”
With one last kiss on my forehead, he turns and saunters out of the room, and I can’t help that my eyes fall to his ass.
It’s a supremely gorgeous ass. Especially in dress pants, with his white shirt tucked in. Even with the gun at the small of his back.
Let’s be honest. Every inch of Rome should be illegal.
“Wow,” Shelly says with a sigh.
“We’ve known him a long time,” Sheila adds. “I’ve never seen him like that.”
I turn to them with a frown. “How is he usually?”
“Grumpy,” they say at the same time, making me smile.
“Yeah, he can be grumpy. Okay, I have to work in two hours. Let’s do this.”