CHAPTER 13 ALEXIS
I cling onto him as we both pant in the afterglow, and eventually he slips out of me but doesn’t let me go. His hot come slides out of me, making an absolute wreckage of the kitchen counter, but rather than worry about cleaning it up tonight, we’ll deal with it tomorrow.
He carries me upstairs and through the bedroom to the shower, where we stand together under the hot spray of water as his mouth finds mine. He kisses me slowly, his arms linked around me as he holds me close, and I’m not sure I’ve ever felt more content than I do in this moment.
It’s this intimacy we share that I’ve never had before, and it’s the very thing I hold onto in the moments when we can’t be together.
I’ve never been kissed like this before—like the man kissing me is worshipping me, and it’s not about publicity or money or fame, but it’s about the intense connection we share.
This kiss is our expression of the love and adoration we both feel, this beautiful and perfect love neither of us has ever shared with anyone before.
And it’s that exact feeling that helps me through the dark times—it’s that exact feeling that drives this understanding in me that somehow, we will figure this out.
We will fight whatever battles we need to in order to end up together because this is where we belong.
He dries me tenderly and hands me one of his Vegas Heat t-shirts to sleep in. It’s soft and smells like him, and I climb into his bed feeling utterly happy.
I smile at him as he climbs in beside me, and we face each other, heads on pillows as his eyes meet mine.
“Are you tired?” he asks.
“Exhausted,” I admit. “Brooks had about a million questions today about the wedding, none of which I wanted to answer.”
“Then why did you?”
“Because I have to.” I lift the shoulder I’m not laying on as some of the happiness and contentedness seem to dampen. “I have to get this over with. The sooner it’s all done, the sooner you and I can finally be together.”
He narrows his eyes for a beat and opens his mouth to say something, but the words don’t come out. Instead, he seems to think twice about it and then asks, “What kinds of questions did you have to answer?”
“Which dress I liked best of the three options my father gave me. Playlists for the reception. Most of the choices were made for me already, but my dad wanted me to feel like I had some hand in the plans. I don’t want a hand in the plans.
I don’t want to do it at all.” I keep my eyes steady on his so he knows I’m speaking from the heart.
It’s hard saying the words. I’m sure it’s even harder to hear them.
His brows push together, and I get the sense he’s not saying something again.
“What?” I ask.
“If you don’t want to marry him, then…don’t,” he says.
I sigh. “It’s not quite that simple. If I do this, I get my masters back.
I get a new agent. I make my dad happy, and he’s worked hard his whole life to make me happy.
I just have to do this one thing.” My voice is subdued as I say the words I keep thinking.
Danny is the only person I’d ever actually voice any of that to.
“It is that simple, Lex,” he says softly. “You only get one life. You should get to make your own decisions.”
I press my lips together. “I am. And this is what I’m deciding.”
“But there has to be another way, don’t you think?” he presses.
“I guess I just…feel like I’m out of options at this point.
Maybe there is, but my dad landing in the hospital put it in perspective for me.
I have to do this. What if I lost him? What if he never got to see his dreams through because he died in that hospital room?
” I feel the pulse of heat behind my eyes.
“He didn’t, though. He’s still here fighting another day. And it’s not fair for you to give up on your dreams at the expense of his.”
He’s right. Deep down, I know that.
But that doesn’t mean I can change any of it.
“If you’re willing to stick by me through this, however long it takes, then I’m not giving up on my dreams,” I say. “I’m just delaying them a little so in the end, we can all benefit.”
“Except for me,” he says softly.
I tilt my head forward to press my lips to his. “I’m sorry, Danny.”
He closes his eyes and draws in a deep breath, and I hate that I feel this wedge between us. I thought he was okay with all of this, but clearly…he isn’t.
And I’m not sure how to fix that since opting out of the wedding at this point feels completely out of the question.
“I love you,” he says softly.
“I love you, too.” I press my lips to his again, and then we both attempt to fall asleep.
I don’t sleep at all, though.
Instead, I toss and turn as I search for some solution that will fix all of this.
When daylight dawns, I’m no closer to any answers.
And when my alarm rings at five, I see I have a text from Gregory.
Gregory: Your call time was changed to noon. I’ll pick you up at ten-thirty unless I hear from you.
I turn off my alarm and try to get some sleep, but it’s useless. I head down to the kitchen, where I spray some bleach onto the counter and clean up from last night.
I find some bacon in the fridge, lay it on a baking sheet, and put it in the oven.
Danny saunters down a little before six looking both very sexy and very sleepy. “I felt like I was in one of those old cartoons where the bacon scent wafts up the stairs and the character follows his nose down to the kitchen.”
I giggle. “It’ll be ready any minute.”
“Do you have any idea how sexy you look wearing just my shirt?” he asks.
I glance down doubtfully at the huge shirt that looks like a potato sack on me. “Really?”
He chuckles as he walks over to me and slings his arm around my neck, pulling me in close. “You really are the best, do you know that?”
I lift a modest shoulder.
He presses a kiss on my cheek. “I think you might just be my favorite person in the whole world.”
For some reason, his words cause tears to spring to my eyes. Maybe it’s because I realize for the first time that I feel the exact same way.
He’s not just my favorite person.
He’s my person.
We feast on bacon paired with scrambled eggs, and I get dressed even though I sort of want to stay in his shirt forever.
It’s inching closer to ten-thirty, and Danny holds me in his arms about ten minutes before Gregory is scheduled to arrive for pickup.
He presses a soft kiss on my forehead. “I’ll stay away today, but let it be known I don’t want to.”
“I don’t want you to, either.” I tighten my arms around his waist. “But I’ll have Gregory bring me back here as soon as filming wraps for the day.”
“I’m holding you to that. I’ll be waiting.” He shoves his hips against mine. “And I’ll be horny.”
I laugh. “Same.”
A knock sounds at the door, and I look up at Danny and make a sad face, and he kisses my pouty lip. Then he turns me around and swats my ass, sending me toward the door where Gregory waits.
I throw it open with a laugh, only…
It’s not Gregory standing there.
My brows dip as the man standing there most definitely recognizes me, shock on his face as his jaw drops. My eyes reach his as his jaw closes and his lips curl into a menacing smile, and the first thing I notice is that his eyes are the exact same blue as…
“Dad?” Danny breathes, disbelief in his tone. “What the fuck are you doing here?”