Chapter Nine
Lincoln
Lilah's store is dark when I park out front at almost ten, but I know she's inside. Her car is still in the lot, and I can see her moving around through the windows. I think she'd live in this store if she could do it. She's here more than she's at home.
I kill the engine, grab the document roll from the passenger seat, and hop out, eager to see her.
I was busy all fucking day, trying to get everything in order.
I barely had time to breathe between meetings, let alone call her.
If I'm being honest, I didn't want to have to lie to her if we did talk.
Some things are better said in person. This is one of them.
I just hope she doesn't kick my ass. It's a distinct possibility.
I stride toward the door with my heart in my throat.
She doesn't notice me standing outside, so I stop, just watching her through the glass.
She's so goddamn beautiful, moving from task to task in a way that makes my dick throb just watching her.
But it's more than just her curves or her smile or the blue shade of her eyes or any individual piece of her that drives me wild. It's everything.
I've never met anyone like her—someone so comfortable in their own skin. There's a confidence to her that's rare, like she knows and accepts herself exactly as she is. She doesn't care what anyone else thinks about her or if they like her. She's just living her life. I can't get enough of that.
I can't get enough of her smart mouth, her attitude, or the way she gives me hell, either.
She takes no prisoners, ever. I fucking love that.
I love that she's not afraid to call me out or force me to look at things from a different perspective.
Most people don't even try. They wouldn't dare. But she's always dared, from day one.
She's tough, but she's sweet as hell, too.
She warms up slowly, guarding her heart close, but when she does finally let you in?
Jesus Christ. There's nothing better than the way she looks at the people she cares about, like she'd scale mountains and tear down the gates of hell just to make sure you were okay if she had to do it.
I tap on the glass, drawing her attention. She startles, spinning to face me. The way she lights up has my heart climbing into my throat. I want her to keep looking at me just like that for the rest of my life. If I have that, I don't need anything else.
"Hey," she whispers as soon as she unlocks the door for me. "I didn't think I'd see you tonight."
"I spent last night without you," I murmur, pulling her into my arms. "I'm not sleeping alone two nights in a row, sweetness."
She melts against me, allowing me to kiss the taste from her mouth. She kisses me back the same way, like she's starving for me. By the time we come up for air, her lips are swollen, and her eyes are glossy. I'm half tempted to say to hell with everything else and get her naked.
But I need to do this right.
"You have a minute to look at something?" I ask, stroking her cheek.
"Is it your cock, Lincoln? Because if I look at it, I'm going to want to touch it, and if I touch it, I'm going to want to kiss it." She smirks at me, her cheeks flushed. "If you give a romance reader a cock…"
"Isn't that a kid's book?"
A loud, surprised laugh burbles from her lips. "God, I hope not."
"I didn't mean the cock parts, smart ass." I grin at her, shaking my head. "It's something about a mouse and a cookie. And then he wants a whole bunch of other shit to go with it."
"If You Give a Mouse a Cookie," she says, still smiling at me. "Maybe it inspired me."
"I'm not even going to judge you for your choice," I mutter, beyond being shocked by anything she says at this point. I've been reading the books she likes lately. Didn't know I was capable of blushing over words on a page, but a motherfucker has been thoroughly educated now.
"If you're shocked by that, just wait until you see what they've done to the Grinch," she teases. "Or dinosaurs. Polar bears. Ravens. Beauty and the Beast, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beau—" She laughs wildly against my palm when I place it over her lips.
"I need to show you something before you get naked and demonstrate, so you gotta stop talking," I growl.
She nods against my palm before pulling my hand away. "I'll behave."
"Little liar."
She just grins at me, linking our fingers together to pull me toward one of the tables on the far side of the store. "What do you need to show me if it isn't your cock?" Her gaze lingers on the document tube in my hand. "Is it the contract you signed with the devil for your soul?"
"Smart ass." I shake my head, chuckling. Christ, she's so fucking sexy when she's giving me shit. I love it. I move a stack of books out of the way, then slide the plans out of the tube and stretch them across the table. "Take a look," I murmur.
She bends her head over them, her brows furrowed as her gaze scans across them, trying to make sense of what she's seeing. "What is this, Lincoln?"
"I asked our planning team to draw these up," I whisper, my heart beating so loud I'm sure she hears it.
"Two days after I met you, actually." I swallow when her gaze shifts from the plans to my face.
"My meeting with the mayor and city council the other day was to float this redesign, with your store intact. "
"I don't understand," she whispers.
"I need you more than I need this building, Lilah." I cup her cheek, my eyes locked with hers. "I need you, and I need you to keep your store. I won't be the one who takes it from you, not when it means so much to you. So we're building around it."
"What about your bid?"
"If you'll allow me to do it, this building will be your wedding present," I rasp.
She gapes at me, shock written all across her perfect face.
"I'm in love with you. I don't need this building, sweetness. It's yours. It'll always be yours. I just need my ring on your finger."
"You love me?" she chokes.
"So much I can't breathe through it," I whisper. "I don't give a fuck if we're moving at the speed of light. I don't want to slow down. I know what I want. She's standing in front of me."
"I love you too," she blurts.
"Christ," I groan, pulling her into my arms to take her mouth in a deep kiss. There's nothing slow or sweet about it. It's wild, all lips and tongue and desperation. She's in love with me. The woman of my dreams…actually loves me.
Thank God.
Thank you, God.
I back her up against the wall, my hands slipping beneath her shirt. I need her naked and on my cock, right fucking now. I'm not sure I'll be able to breathe until she's coming all over me again. I need it like I need oxygen.
"Wait," she whispers, trying to grab my hands. "I have to tell you something."
"You have until you're naked," I growl, ripping her shirt off over her head. Her bra goes next, removed at warp speed. I pause for a second—just long enough to draw one hard nipple into my mouth.
She moans, her hands tangling in my hair. "You don't have to buy the building for me. I talked to my dad. He's going to put in a bid for me."
"No need," I growl around her nipple before sucking hard enough to have her crying out my name. "It'll be your wedding present, sweetness. Your name will be the only one on the deed, that way you know it's always and only yours. I won't have a single thing to do with it."
"You…oh God," she groans when I rip her button free and yank her zipper down before immediately plunging my hand inside her pants, cupping her pussy in my palm. She's already so fucking wet and ready for me. "You don't have to do that."
I meet her gaze, my hand still against her sex.
"I want to do it, Lilah. I have more money than I'll ever be able to spend.
And I planned on buying this building in the first place.
My plans for it may have changed, but the money is still there.
Let me do this for you. I don't want it between us, festering like some wound that won't ever heal. This building matters to you."
"You matter more," she whispers. "That's why I called my dad. I didn't want to lose you because this place was standing between us. I'd always regret that, Lincoln."
I groan, kissing her hard and deep again.
When she squirms against me, I flick her panties to the side, placing my thumb against her clit.
I don't stop kissing her while I play with her, thrusting two fingers inside to fuck her with them, and then adding a third, just so she's stretched and full and ready for my cock.
She's coming all over my fingers in seconds, my name ringing out around us. I work her through it, determined to wring every last ounce of pleasure from her perfect body.
As soon as she goes limp, I yank her pants down, kneeling to help her step out of them. And then I throw one leg over my shoulder and feast on her. I can't help it. Her perfect pussy is right there in my face. I need a taste, won't survive without it.
She rides my face like a wild thing, her hands in my hair as she rocks her hips, using my lips and tongue to get her there again. When she falls this time, I'm so goddamn hard it hurts.
I'm on her in two seconds, pinning her to the wall while ripping through my pants to free my cock.
"I love you," I whisper against her lips, "so much that I'm about to imprint my cock in you so you never forget it, sweetness."
Her response gets lost as I lift her, slamming her down on my cock.
"Lincoln!" she screams, her head thumping against the wall.