23. Chapter 23
Chapter twenty-three
Dax
Watching Lucy’s tongue swipe along a spoonful of the gelato I’d made for her, right after I just fucked her senseless, was the single most erotic thing I’d ever seen in my life.
Those lips.
The way her eyelashes fluttered.
Jesus fucking Christ.
Even though I tried to deny it, I had given a lot of thought to what being with her would feel like.
I’d imagined how she would look beneath me, her flushed skin and bright eyes beneath those thick lashes.
I’d jerked off to the fantasy of what she’d look like coming apart around me.
What I hadn’t planned for was the relentless, burning need that only grew stronger as I took her to my room in the lake house.
It was something primal, so addictive, that one taste was enough to get me hooked.
Enough to make me haul her into my arms and take her again before her hips hit the mattress.
Then again as we somehow sank onto the floor, panting, ravenous and desperate to keep that explosive high alive.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed as we lay together, sated.
Her breathing slowed to a calm pulse as she lay naked in my arms. Her skin was still slick against mine with the aftermath of the climaxes we shared.
Her back was pressed against my chest as I inhaled that intoxicating scent of her hair.
I savored it. Relished in it. If I could have drowned myself in it, I would have.
My hand lazily trailed circles atop her bare thigh, her breaths becoming heavier as she drifted into sleep.
She nestled in the crook of my arm, and I didn’t want to move her even when it became slightly numb from the stillness.
This wasn’t like any of my past sexual escapades.
I didn’t feel the urge to set her aside and disappear forever.
Instead, I became overwhelmed with a new sense of conviction. Time was of the essence. Lucy’s life had been uprooted, but I couldn’t let those fuckers ruin her future.
I told her she would be at that interview, and I would make damned sure it fucking happened.
I lifted my arm from under her head, pulling myself away carefully.
I drew the soft duvet up to her shoulders before quietly moving away to dress myself and head back into the lake house’s kitchen.
The laptop I’d been working on earlier was still perched on the edge of the island.
I logged onto it and pulled up the private messaging app.
Me: This is taking too long. Come here. Bring everything we need. I’m going in on this.
Emile: It’s 2:00 in the fucking morning.
Me: I don’t give a shit. Need to be back in SF by Tuesday, and CIPHER obviously can’t manage this on its own.
Emile: You’re not my fucking boss, Dominic. Ask Clay to be your errand bunny.
Me: He’s occupied.
Emile: FFS. I’ll be there when I can.
My hand clenched over the keyboard before I slammed the laptop shut.
I hated this, but it’s exactly what I asked for when I decided to exile myself from CIPHER in the first place.
I didn’t want to be involved. Take my money and tell me nothing.
That’s what I’d wanted. Now it had all gone to shit and was coming to bite me in the ass.
I glanced across the open space, moonlight shining through the windows.
It caught on a fragment of broken glass near the table where Lucy gave herself to me earlier.
Despite my irritation, a flicker of satisfaction licked through my chest. That table was officially my favorite spot in this entire house.
I spent a bit of time cleaning up the mess we’d made together.
Pushing a broom across the floor was cathartic, collecting those little remnants of our frenzy.
It was one of those simple tasks that kept me grounded—just like so many I’d done at the restaurant the past few years.
Though it was Lucy’s words from the night before that echoed through my mind as I put the place back together.
I think you’re going to take those pieces and turn them into something beautiful.
Beautiful wasn’t something I’d ever been capable of. I was built from destruction and chaos. Pain. However, in those moments with her, something about it felt so harmonious. Balanced. It might have even been beautiful.
Despite my efforts to be quiet, Lucy stirred as I slid back into bed beside her.
“Dax?” she asked sleepily.
I smoothed out a strand of her hair across her pillow, placing a kiss below her ear. “I’m here,” I whispered. “Go back to sleep, Luce.”
She wrapped her arms around me, relaxing into my embrace. For the first time since I could remember, I found myself slipping into a deep, contented sleep.
When we woke, Lucy followed me to the kitchen where I made her breakfast. Her hair was mussed and she wore one of my T-shirts, which reached just above her knees.
Despite the world crashing all around us, there was something so domesticated about watching her perch on the barstool, hot coffee in-hand, as I flipped eggs over a frying pan.
I had half a mind to lift her up and fuck her against the countertop, but somehow managed to keep myself in check as I watched her eat slowly.
I envisioned what could be—in a separate life, a separate universe.
One where this would be our everyday. Something we’d take for granted because it was our normal.
It was like a portal into a simpler, sweeter, less dangerous life.
Just like the one that was ripped away from me as a child.
That wasn’t reality. The world we lived in was a dark and dangerous place. I couldn’t forget that. Despite the explosive chemistry we shared, we were only there because of the evil that sank its claws into her version of that simple life.
I would do my best to get that back for her, even if it meant we’d never live it together.
I didn’t know if her light could coexist with my shady existence, but I couldn’t help savoring every minute of our time together.
That was why I excused myself after breakfast and encouraged her to keep working on her portfolio.
Afternoon had already morphed into evening by the time Lucy emerged from the library. She was wearing another dress I’d ordered for her; a simple white tennis-style number that showed off her smooth skin. She carried her notebook under her arm.
“How’s it coming along?” I asked from where I stood preparing dinner.
She walked up to me, and I set down my knife, meeting her halfway for a delicate kiss. Fire erupted under my skin the moment our lips touched, but I forced myself to pull away after a moment.
“I’m almost done with it. I’m-I’m worried it won’t be enough.
There’s so many talented designers who would kill for this opportunity.
I’m up against some pretty stiff competition…
” Her voice trailed off nervously. I didn’t like to see her like this.
It wasn’t the fiery girl I’d come to know over the past couple weeks.
She was the kind of woman who singlehandedly tried to track down dangerous predators to avenge her loved one.
She had grit. Knew how to get her hands dirty.
I was worried it was all piling up on her, breaking her down, just when she needed that confidence most. She couldn’t lose that fire after everything she worked for. I wouldn’t let her.
“Can I see?” I asked. I wanted to see everything that fascinating mind of hers created. I was sure that it wouldn’t be anything less than fucking amazing.
She looked like a deer caught in headlights.
But after a moment, she slowly nodded her head.
She passed me the notebook, and we made our way across the room to the sofa in front of the fireplace.
The warm glow of the flame was illuminated by the soft glow of the sunset across the lake.
She sat next to me on the couch as I opened her book.
Intricate sketches of buildings, houses, bridges, and structures lined its pages.
Detailed floor schematics with delicately drafted, precise inkwork showcased the elaborate, sophisticated concepts she had designed.
I didn’t have a ton of experience with architectural design, but I knew quality craftsmanship and attention to detail when I saw it.
Her ideas were timeless, meticulously drawn and one of a kind.
The sketches looked like they belonged in another time, unlike the newer, modern, and sterile buildings that kept seeming to pop up in cities throughout the world.
I paused on a double spread of a building with ornate details that reminded me of a French chateau, but it had a live roof with a full greenhouse and park area.
Her strokes against the pages were lively and complex.
“What’s this?” My hand traced the paper.
“Oh, um…” The blush that formed on her cheeks made me want to kiss her again, but I refrained while she answered.
“It’s this concept I have, for this…place with a program.
Not really a school, but kind of like a shelter…
but more than that. A place where women who have been in rough situations can go to stay, but also to learn.
It would have education programs, for people to learn new skills while they get the help they need.
” She flipped the page over and showed me the next several.
“It would operate sustainably. The live roof would give access to gardening with different rooms for different purposes. It could be a place where people could find some peace and get a new start on life…I don’t know.
It’s silly. Architects get a job and design buildings around their clients’ needs and goals, not the other way around.
It was just something I thought about after Tara, and… I don’t know. I started drawing.”
I flipped through the next few pages of the concept, my heart stammering unpredictably.
It was beautiful, yes, but the designs showcased how it could work even in an urban setting.
The integrations she imagined used modern technology and building processes, but it came through on the pages with elegance and even a touch of whimsy.
It was the type of place that needed to exist in this crooked world.
I flipped through the rest of the pages, deep in thought. Only she could experience such trauma and spend her time thinking about ways to help others. And not just the basic ways, but the most inspiring, solicitous way possible. It was more than I’d even imagined.
Finally, I closed the book. Her eyes met mine as she fidgeted with her hands on her lap.
I reached over and trailed my hand across her jaw, to the back of her neck as I tilted her face up to mine.
“I’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of places, Lucy.
I’ve seen everywhere from ancient ruins to trendy cities and everything in between.
There is nowhere on this planet nearly as exquisite as the places that exist in your mind.
I’m so grateful you shared them with me, and seeing this has only made me more certain.
You are going to make an incredible impact on this world, and I can’t wait to watch it happen. ”
A smile lit up her face. It was the kind of smile I hadn’t seen from her before.
Not spiteful or sarcastic. Not nervous or weighed by the force of lust. It was a pure, happy smile.
It was the kind of smile that could dim the stars and make sinners fall on their knees in prayer.
She was radiant. Even if only for a moment, it stilled my heart and sent shockwaves through my system.
I wanted to tell her that. Needed her to know I meant every word I said. I—
A chime sounded throughout the space around us, shattering the moment between us. I’d been expecting it, but that didn’t ease the annoyance that lurked in my throat.
It was about fucking time.