Chapter 10
Arianna
We stayed like that for what seemed like hours.
Just holding each other. Silently communicating our acceptance of each other’s situations, and what they might bring.
It was a gamble. I had learned that life was a gamble.
But you have to chance it in order to experience the highs and the lows. The good will only come if you have felt the bad and it won’t always come in the order you expect. In fact, I had come to expect the unexpected.
Denham nuzzles my shoulder, and sighs into my hair. My big, strong man. My fierce protector with such a gentle heart. His arms tighten around my waist, and I know if one of us doesn’t move soon, we could stay like this the whole evening.
“Denham,” I say softly
“Mmm hmm.”
“Are you okay?”
He doesn’t answer immediately, and I’m about to ask again when he speaks.
“Yes. You make everything okay.”
This makes me choke out a laugh, which strangely enough, lightens the mood.
“I make things ten times worse!” When I say this, I’m not exaggerating. It’s the truth. The guilt for bringing so much trouble to his door stabs at me, but I’m in too deep to run away.
“Don’t say that, Stunner.” Denham pulls back with a frown. “You’ve made everything so much more exciting.”
“Is that what you call it?” My lightheartedness breaks the marred lines across his forehead, and he smiles a lopsided grin, which shows off his dimple. I cock my head to the side and smile back. I love it when he gives me that smile.
“Well, you are a pain in the butt. But I’ll keep ahold of you, for now.” He winks, and I know he’s messing around. “What would you like to do this evening?” he asks, his eyes burning into mine. The subtle shift in his hips tells me what he has in mind, and I feel ripples of anticipation run from my head to my toes. Every time with him is different. Every time I think it can’t get any better than the last, and every time, it does.
I decide to play with him a little. “How about we grab something to eat, and we play a board game. Or cards, you could teach me how to play Blackjack better?” I say with a sweet innocence to my voice.
“You wanna play a game?” he raises his brows, and I giggle and nod. “Sure thing, Stunner. You go freshen up. I need to make a few calls, then I’m all yours.”
“I like the sound of that,” I say, kissing him on the cheek and sidestepping him to go to the bedroom. He grabs my arm at the last minute and pulls me back to him. His lips meet mine, fast and firm and I actually feel my legs weaken. He pulls away justas fast as he pulled me in, leaving me breathless, and wanting him even more than I did before.
“Now you can go.” He smirks, and it takes me a second to get moving again. He slaps my ass as I walk off and I yelp. It doesn’t hurt, in fact the small sting it leaves is more of a delicious tingle, which makes me smile wider, and I shake my head at the way he can turn my mind to mush.
The shower feels wonderful. After a long day at the boutique, my feet are killing me from being squeezed into high, pointy heels all day. My calves ache and my head is tense. The hot water goes some way to making me feel more relaxed, and the thought of the evening ahead, lazing with Denham helps immensely. Although I wasn’t happy initially about being followed around by security, it now puts me at ease to know that we can cocoon ourselves safely up here. The door is locked, there’s no one but Denham and I, and this is fast becoming my favorite way to have things.
I take my time in the shower, shaving everywhere, and making sure every part of my body is buffed and cleansed. Then I hop out, dry off, and take time to moisturize my skin, and comb my hair through. I don’t bother drying it; I just clip the soft damp curls to the side, out of the way.
When I come out of the bedroom, Denham is nowhere to be seen, so I call out.
“Denham?”
I walk through the lounge and he appears in the doorway of the balcony, with a bottle of beer in his hand. In the time it’s taken me to shower and preen, he’s changed out of his suit pants and shirt, and into loose fitting gym shorts. That’s it. No top. No shoes. It’s not like I’ve never seen his body. In fact, I’ve touched every inch of it. But every time I see him looking casual like this, it makes me appreciate his fine form.
“Okay?” he asks with a knowing look on his handsome face.
I grin. “Yes.”
He holds out an upturned palm, and I cross the room, placing my hand in his.
“Come with me,” he orders softly.
