CHAPTER 14
NOW
NICKY
Her body seems to soften as she melts a little further into me, and I’m instantly rewarded with the reminder of how incredible she feels. My mind seems to slow, a welcome reprieve from the rapid-fire assault that is my exhaustive train of thought. I focus on where we’re connected, my skin sparking wherever our bodies meet, the sensation allowing me to map the length of her form.
She looks breathtaking as always, and I truly wonder if she’s actually growing more gorgeous with age, or if the complex cocktail of neurochemicals released into my brain when I see her has driven my obsession to new heights. Though I know I should stay away, I could never cut Daphne out entirely. As crazy as she makes me, my mind slowly begins to unravel in her absence. Day by day, the various threads of my intellect unwind from the spool that is my sanity, yet I soldier on. I push it off as long as I can, until practically all functioning has ceased in the presence of the madness that has formed. Only then do I seek her out to restore order, and even then, I only allow the briefest glimpses or slightest encounters, just enough to untangle the chaos inside my brain, only to start the process all over.
Yet as I was cutting her free from the bindings of her dress, I realized no matter how far I’ve attempted to space out our run-ins, it does little to dampen the pull that draws me to her. The way it felt to have my hand curling around the inside of her thigh felt all too natural. Like it belonged there. Like she was mine.
“Daphne.” A stern voice addresses her from our side, causing her to jump in response.
It’s times like this I tend to rethink my position on not believing in a higher power. There very well may be a God fucking with us for his own amusement because it’s hard to believe the universe is naturally this ruthlessly ironic.
Daphne claws at her lower back, her nails digging into my flesh as she scrambles to escape me.
“Lucian!” she squeaks.
I take pity on her, loosening my hold so she’s able to back away and over to the man she actually belongs to.
Lucian Devoreaux.
The world-class fuckboy stands to my right, eyeing me like he just walked out to recess late to find me playing with his favorite toy. Daphne smiles, her manufactured expression painfully overexaggerated while she attempts to placate him.
I bet he doesn’t even realize that isn’t her natural smile.
“What are you doing here?” she asks, pulling him into a hug.
“I got out of work earlier than I thought and decided not to waste an evening I should be having with my best girl.”
I scoff, knowing full well Belinda Burke must’ve called him the second I came within three feet of her daughter. That woman is the fucking bane of my existence, which is saying something considering the shit show I’m navigating on a daily basis.
My small act of insolence doesn’t go unnoticed, garnering me the attention of her walking, talking douche of a fiancé. It’s obvious he doesn’t care for me—the scowl he struggles to tamper is evidence of that—but Luc’s far too big a pussy to do shit about it. Aside from the fact he has a better understanding than most of what I’m capable of, I’ve made his father so much money over the years, he’d stand to be disowned if he ever did anything to jeopardize our working relationship.
He finally manages to school his expression, extending a hand to me in greeting. “Nick.”
“Devoreaux.” My palm grips his, giving a firm shake. I squeeze harder than necessary, the force of my grasp eliciting a slight wince, though he recovers quickly enough.
“So,” he clears his throat, “what were you two talking about?” Lucian eyes us skeptically, his gaze shifting between the two of us.
“Sound effects,” I reply, earning me a scathing glare from Daph that turns me on more than it should.
“Sound effects?” Confusion colors his features, though Daphne doesn’t allow me to clarify.
“Ignore him. I’ve learned to.”
Oh, you filthy little liar.
Lucian looks like he has more questions, but his attention is suddenly drawn downward. Brow furrowing, he takes in the sight of her skin exposed by the strategic slit I cut only minutes ago.
“What happened to your dress? That wasn’t there this morning when you had it hanging on the closet door.”
“It tore,” she responds quickly. “I improvised.”
“Jesus, Daphne.” He steps back to gain a better look. “What did you do? Blow a seam?”
“You insinuating something by that, Devoreaux?” I step forward, my swift advancement catching him off guard and causing him to flinch in retreat. Lucky for him, Daph steps between us, planting her hand to the center of my chest. Like a dog obeying its handler, I heel.
Once Lucian’s confident I’m not going to shoot him, he relaxes. Fidgeting with his tie, his posture straightens to full height once again. His eyes fixate where her palm is pressed to my heart, briefly darkening with discontent before shifting to her with adoration.
“You look beautiful, Daphne. You know that.” He takes hold of her hand just as the music changes tempo, pulling her into him and effectively robbing me of the warmth of her touch. Luc strokes a finger down the length of her nose before playfully bopping the tip in a sickening show of over-the-top affection. “How could you not while wearing this?” His hand dips lower to the base of her throat where a strand of emerald cut diamonds snakes around her slender neck.
I track the movement of his fingers as they graze across her skin, mapping the near exact path my tongue has traveled on more than one occasion. Jealousy stokes a burning rage within me, the flames of envy simmering just beneath the surface as I’m forced to watch him freely touch what I so desperately crave. I imagine peeling the skin from his hand, stripping away the various layers of epidermis until only his bones remain, leaving him unable to appreciate how soft she is.
“Did you show Nick your necklace?” Lucian’s question calls me to attention, interrupting the vision I was just starting to enjoy.
Daph shifts in his embrace, glancing at me with a sense of unease from the corner of her eye. “That’s really not necessary, Luc.”
“Oh, stop it. It was your birthday present. I want you to show it off.” He spins her to face me, gently brushing her hair back behind her shoulders, exposing the choker of glistening diamonds.
Daph glances down to the floor, clearly uncomfortable with the attention being drawn to the flashy piece of jewelry I know she didn’t choose for herself. Much like the massive rock adorning her left hand, it isn’t her style.
“Ten carats.” Lucian practically fucking preens.
I stifle a snort at his pathetic flex. The piece probably set him back fifty grand tops. Chump change like that? I could buy her one for every day of the year. It would be pointless, though, considering she wouldn’t want it.
Jesus, he doesn’t know a thing about her.The thought crosses my mind just as the next statement leaves his mouth.
“It’s her favorite necklace.”
I scoff a laugh, scrubbing a hand over my face as a sinister smirk slips into place. “No, it’s not.”
My hand shoots forward, the expanse of my palm covering the precious stones as my thumb and fingers wrap around the slender curve of her throat. My grip tightens, and with one quick tug, I’m pulling her into me.
I secure her in place, staring at her with fierce intensity as her pulse races within my hold. Leaning down, I position my face alongside her ear as I lock eyes with her red-faced bitch of a fiancé behind her. “Is it, demon?” I flex my fingers, giving a light squeeze to the column of her neck.
She shudders at the gesture, allowing the slightest of gasps to sneak past her lips. The sound may be faint, but it travels directly to my dick, which now threatens to punch through the fabric of my dress slacks.
The smile that slides across my face is so wide, the expression feels almost unnaturally foreign. I pull back slightly, recapturing her now hooded gaze. “Like I said,” I whisper so only she can hear, “you just don’t do it with him.”
“Daphne!”
I glance over her shoulder to see her mother barreling for us, her face contorted into a look of pure outrage. As she closes the distance between us, her arm extends.
“Fucking touch her, Belinda. I dare you.”
She halts, still clearly seething, but not dumb enough to doubt my willingness to cause a scene. The party’s now in full swing, but we’ve still managed to capture the attention of some of the surrounding attendees.
Slowly dragging my attention back to Daph, my grip loosens, shifting to slip around to the nape of her neck. Sliding my hand up into her hair, my fingertips tighten at her roots, tilting her head back to stare up at me.
“Nicky!” My mother’s voice speaks up behind me. “I think I’ve had my fill of high society for the night. What do you say we go grab some burgers and FaceTime your sister?”
“Sounds like a plan, Ma,” I call out over my shoulder, though I continue to hold Daph’s stare. Accepting my time with her has come to a close, I begin to remove my arm from her waist, but not before tightening my grip on her roots one final time.
“In case today is one of those days where you forgot… You’re perfect, Daph.”
Her virid eyes grow rapt with a familiar hunger I crave, though I force myself to release her. I spin, extending the crook of my elbow to my mother so we can take our leave. She obliges, and I escort her from the ballroom. Yet, the further I get from Daphne Burke, I know this time is different.
Because while she may have untangled the chaos, she also wound me so tight, every thread just fucking snapped.