Chapter 30
Kian
Maybe you just never met the right person. The one who made you want more.
Her quiet words cloud my mind as I help her out of the bath and wrap a towel around her, then grab one for myself.
I always thought I would settle down one day.
When I turned thirty, I still hadn’t had a relationship that lasted for more than two weeks because I would always end it when the woman started asking for more.
As soon as the “what are we?” question popped up, I ran for the hills and buried myself in work.
Eventually, I just stopped trying to date and started hooking up with tourists every now and then.
And once the night was over, I never thought of them again.
Until Ace.
Part of me feels like I owe Luciano an apology. Then I remember he cheated in my casino to lure me in. I’m not apologizing for shit. I dislike him less, though. Maybe I won’t kill him. For now.
He was there for her every day during rehab after her accident and has tried to be there for her since. Though he shouldn’t have given her a choice. He should have forced himself into her life so he could have protected her from her mother.
That bitch will answer to me for the way she treated Ace. I do everything possible to avoid hurting women, but she deserves whatever is coming her way.
Once we’re both dry, I lead her into my closet and pull open a drawer. “All my T-shirts are here.” Then I pick one and tug her towel free before I drop the top over her head.
When she crawls into bed, I catch a glimpse of her bare pussy, and my cock twitches.
Jesus.
I feel like I’m in my twenties again. My dick has never been this enthusiastic about someone before.
As I climb in beside her, a sense of calm settles over me. This is the only place I want to be. Next to her.
With an arm wrapped around her, I pull her into me, curling around her soft warmth. When I bury my face into her hair and breathe in her sweet, fruity scent, it’s like a hit of something strong. My pulse races and my heart pounds. My mind goes blank, and all I feel is her. And us.
“Do you miss ballet?” I ask, watching her face under the dim light of the bedside lamp.
She stares into the distance, her eyes glittering with wetness. “No. I don’t miss it like I used to. When I started it as a kid, I did it because it felt magical, and I felt like a princess every time I twirled. It was fun and playful and expressive. Before my accident, I was barely surviving.”
Silently, I study every freckle and line on her sweet face, allowing her to talk.
“Besides,” she says with a soft smile. “I still get to do ballet. The fun kind that feels magical. Twice a week at my studio.”
“You have a studio?” I ask, caught off guard.
I’m not sure I like that she’s working two jobs.
Especially if she’s in pain all the time.
That’s something I need to have looked into.
Given how advanced science and medicine are now, there should be something that can help her.
Ace has experienced enough fucking up her life.
“Yeah. As soon as I moved here, I bought a vacant building. It’s a studio for low-income families who can’t afford tuition for their kids’ dance classes. I find donors to cover all their costs. I teach the ballet classes, and I found a few other instructors who teach hip-hop and cultural dance.”
I’m fucking speechless.
Staring down at her, this woman, who has been controlled all her life and has every right to be as selfish as she wants, is using her fortune to help little kids. And, fuck, I bet they love her. It’s kind of starting to feel impossible not to.
“Kiss me, angel,” I murmur.
Without pause, Ace rolls onto her back and slides her arms around my neck, pulling me down to her. As I capture her soft lips with mine, I shift onto my elbow and then situate myself between her legs, my cock thick and hard.
She opens for me, her tongue dancing with mine as she lifts her knees, so the head of my dick is lined up with her warm, wet pussy.
Thrusting into her, I swallow her cry and kiss her harder as I rock into her, her fingernails scraping against my neck.
When I release her mouth, we lock eyes and gaze at each other in the soft light.
Vanilla sex has never been my thing, but damn, I’ll fuck Ace any way possible.
Nothing about her feels ordinary. There’s not a vanilla thing about her. She truly is an angel.
“Daddy,” she whimpers, her breathing becoming rapid as she runs her fingertips over my chest.
Her body writhes as her orgasm looms. She squirms and pants, and when she digs her heels into my ass, I fuck her harder and deeper, curling my body over hers, my hands clasped above her head, protecting her while I pound into her pussy.
“That’s my girl. Come for me, angel,” I growl into her ear, nipping at it before I move my mouth to hers to kiss her again.
She screams, thrashing around as she flies over the edge while I chase my own orgasm.
“Daddy, oh, God,” she moans, and that’s all it takes to send me over right along with her. “Kian, fuck, don’t stop.”
I couldn’t stop if I tried. This beautiful woman, inside and out, has me in a fucking chokehold, and I barely know her.
Her pussy clenches, and I groan, my balls drawing up tight as I shoot my come deep within her walls.
When she goes quiet, I stop and keep my cock lodged inside her, roll us over so she’s on top of me, then pull the blankets around her shoulders before I slide my hands over her back and gently stroke her soft skin.
“Eat this,” I say, handing Ace a breakfast sandwich I just pulled out of the microwave.
She eyes it and then looks at me. “What is it? Usually, I have coffee first thing and don’t eat until lunch.”
My eye twitches, and I hold the sandwich up to her mouth with a stern look. “It’s an egg white and turkey sausage breakfast sandwich with cheese and spinach. My housekeeper made them. It’s good morning protein, which helps prevent migraines.”
Ace freezes, her eyes darting from the sandwich to mine and then down as they start sparkling with tears, but she quickly blinks them away like she’s been training how to hold in her emotions all her life. Then she opens her lips and lets me feed her a bite.
As she chews, she watches me move around my bright kitchen, pouring her a steaming cup of coffee before I set it on the counter near her.
“This is really good.” She picks up the sandwich and takes another bite. “Thank you. How did you know it was good for migraines?”
I grab a carton of half-and-half, a bottle of vanilla creamer, and a bottle of oat milk from the fridge and set them by her cup for her to choose. “I researched them all night while you were sleeping.”
“You didn’t sleep at all?” She reaches for the vanilla creamer.
My chest warms. That’s the one I suspected she’d choose, but I wanted to have my bases covered just in case.
Shaking my head, I lean against the counter and cross my arms over my chest. “No, angel. I was worried to death about you. You were in so much pain before you fell asleep, and watching you get so violently ill, it scared the hell out of me. So I watched you sleep and monitored your breathing.” I pause and smirk. “That sounds unhinged as fuck.”
Ace half laughs as she throws her arms around my waist and snuggles into me. “I don’t mind it when you’re unhinged. It’s sweet and it makes me feel cared for.”
Pressing my lips to the top of her head, I give her a gentle kiss. “You are cared for, angel.”
More than she fucking knows.
“We should get going. I don’t want to be late for work. Jordyn was already so sweet to give me two days off,” she says after she downs half her cup of coffee and eats less than a third of her breakfast sandwich.
“Fine. Bring that with you. I want you to eat the entire thing.”
She rolls her eyes, making my palm twitch, but she picks up the sandwich without argument and follows me out of the house.
“Do you like your job?” she asks casually as I drive down my driveway.
Her question makes me tilt my head as I think about how to answer that. Do I?
“I like being part of something with my family,” I reply thoughtfully.
“My brothers and I have always been close. We’ve had fights and shit, but they are the three people I trust the most. I’m proud of our empire and of the things we do to give back to the community.
But being in the office every day is what it is.
Cash and Xander are always fucking around with their wives, and Beckett is just Beckett. I never know what the hell he’s doing.”
Ace hums, and I glance at her, wondering what she’s thinking, but I don’t have time to ask as we drive up to her house. Irritation stabs at me as I park next to Luciano’s SUV.
Asshole.
He was supposed to leave.
I told him to get out of my city or else, and I meant every word.
After cutting the engine, I get out of my car and round to the passenger side just as Ace climbs out. I crowd her until she tips her head back to look up into my scowling face.
“Angel, if you ever open your own car door again when I’m with you, you’ll feel that wooden spoon on your ass again. Any door, for that matter.”
Her pupils dilate, and she swallows before she slowly nods. “Yes, Daddy,” she whispers.
I don’t know what the hell I ever did in this life to deserve a woman like Ace’s submission, but I’m so fucking thankful for it.
“Good girl. Thank you,” I reply, then take her hand to lead her up to her house.
“Daddy,” she says nervously before we get to the porch, tugging me to a stop.
Turning, I stare at her as she takes a deep breath.
“I know you don’t like Luciano. I also know he’s… difficult. But he’s the only person in my life who loves me. So, will you please not kill him? You guys don’t have to be friends, but I don’t want to lose him.”
Ah, fuck.