Next to Forever: Shattered Innocence Trilogy Book Three

by Long, A. L.

  Consumed with emotion, Dylan pulled from Rade’s embrace and headed down the hall to the bedroom. Stripping off her clothes, Dylan walked to the closet and pulled one of Rade’s dress shirts from the hanger. Putting in on, she pulled the collar to her nose and breathed in his scent. Just the thought of not being with him made the tears fall. Once they began, Dylan couldn’t control them. Slipping into bed, she grabbed Rade’s pillow and pulled it to her chest. With one last tug of air, her eyes fell shut.

  Rade was in his study trying to think of ways he could make this up to Dylan. He needed to let her know that no one mattered to him as much as she did. As he took a sip of his Glenfiddich, his cell began to ring.

  “What is it, Richard? I’m really not in the mood to talk,” Rade admitted.

  “Sorry, sir, but I think you’ll want to hear what I have to say,” Richard paused. “Some new information surfaced while you were away with Ms. Adams. We got a tip on the guy who delivered the packages to Ms. Adams. He’s the same guy in the photos you showed to me of Ms. Dupree. He’s also the same guy we spotted in front of Mr. Wu’s place in Chinatown.”

  “How did you find out about him?” Rade questioned.

  “It’s the funniest thing. My navy buddy at the NYPD told me. He said his body washed up under the Brooklyn Bridge. Based on his body’s decomposition, he’s been dead for at least a week, tattoo and all,” Richard explained. “I don’t know about you, but with this information, it’s looking like Ms. Dupree’s skeletons are beginning to come to life.”

  “I knew it would only be a matter of time. If we could just tie her to my kidnapping,” Rade cursed.

  “There’s more, sir. You were right about the key. It does belong to a safe deposit box. We just need to figure out how to get inside the bank to retrieve its contents. We are certain that it is from World National Bank.” Richard explained.

  “Do whatever you need to do. Even if you need to open an account to gain access,” Rade demanded.

  It was getting late and Dylan was still asleep. Rade decided it was best to check up on her. When he got to the room, his heart tore in two. Dylan was laying curled up holding his pillow close to her. He knew the news of the paternity test had been a great blow to her. If he could take what happened back, he would. His only hope now was that with the information Richard shared with him, they would be able to nail Chloe for everything she did, not only to him but to Dylan. He no longer cared if she was pregnant.

  Dylan must have heard Rade enter the room, because her eyes slowly opened. Walking up to her, Rade lowered his body next to hers on the bed. Pushing away a strand of hair from her face, Rade lowered his lips to hers. They were so warm, he couldn’t help but take her in. Pulling her closer to deepen the kiss, he noticed that she had put on one of his white dress shirts. Unbuttoning it, Rade slipped it slowly off her, exposing her beautiful pink nipples. As much as he loved seeing her in his shirt, he loved seeing her naked more. Taking in her beauty, he pulled his mouth from hers and captured her pink nipple in his mouth. The warmth of her body sent a burning ache down his body. Rade felt her arms wrap tightly around him, cinching him closer to her body. When he felt her body tremble, Rade pulled away to find the torment in her eyes. “What is it, Sweetness?” Rade asked, worried.

  “I’m afraid that I’m going to lose you,” Dylan cried.

  “Oh, Sweetness. You can never lose me. My heart will always be yours,” Rade said as he kissed her swollen lips.

  The passion between them ignited with such emotion that Rade finally understood what it really meant to love someone, heart, body, and soul. He would die if he ever lost Dylan.

  With vehement love, Rade took Dylan’s sweet mouth to his and kissed her with intense passion. Even the gods above couldn’t separate them. Reluctant to release her, he quickly removed his clothing. His only desire was to be inside her. To feel every inch of her body next to his. Leaning over her body, he sweetly whispered in her ear, “You are my everything, Sweetness. I will never stop showing you how much I love you.” With those words, Rade lowered his lips to hers and once again kissed her with all the passion and love within him.

  Aligning his body between her legs, Rade gently spread them wider so he could consume all of her. With a gentle thrust, he slid his shaft inside her wetness as he continued his assault on her mouth. Taking in her warmth, he slowly began moving his hips back and forth while his tongue played a rhapsody with hers. He would never get enough of her. Dylan whimpered softly as she began feeling the onset of her arousal. With added movement, she slowly rocked her hips to the beat of Rade’s shaft as he continued his slow movements inside her.

  This was where she wanted to be. Like this, with him. Forever. A breath escaped her, feeling the loss of Rade’s body on hers. When she opened her eyes in search of him, she found him kneeling in front of her. His hand was on his cock, stroking it like a finely tuned instrument. Dylan watched with desire, needing to touch him. Rising to her knees, she moved closer to him. Placing her hands on top of his, Dylan too began stroking his length. She needed more. Lowering her head, she kissed the tip of his shaft while still continuing to stroke along with him. Tasting a drop of pre-cum, Dylan knew that he was close. Gently removing his hand from his beautiful manhood, she took him in her mouth. The velvety softness felt like heaven as her tongue began lapping up and down his length. Unable to take him fully, Dylan wrapped her small hand around the base of his shaft and began caressing him. Dylan could feel the pulsation of his cock, hear his moans of pleasure. “God, I love your mouth, Sweetness.” With a few strokes of her tongue, his seed hit the back of her throat. When Rade was fully drained, he lifted her onto his lap and eased inside her, still needing more of her. With fervent desire, Rade took her with no mercy. Thrust after thrust, her tight walls milked him. It was only after she screamed his name that Rade realized what their undying love meant. His seed mixed with her sweet nectar. For a single moment, he wished it was Dylan having his child. Then the memory of loss crept in and he remembered how long it took him to get over it. All he needed was Dylan. Only her. The woman he loved more than life itself. His Sweetness. The one thing he vowed never to lose.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Dylan woke the next morning not feeling any better than she did the night before. She felt now more than ever that Chloe was going to be the center of her life with Rade. She had yet to learn about the lifestyle he was accustomed to, at least the one he once shared with Chloe. Dylan needed to change this. She wanted to be everything that Rade desired.

  Dylan knew that this newly found ambition of hers needed to be carried out soon. With only two weeks till their trip to London, this didn’t give her much time. It was then she decided to mention it again to Rade, only this time it wasn’t going to be forgotten.

  Slipping on her robe, Dylan made her way to the living area in search of Rade. With her head held high, she spotted him sitting at the breakfast bar reading the morning copy of the Wall Street Journal. Taking her place next to him, Dylan took a sip of coffee from his cup.

  Rade could feel her presence as soon as she entered the room. He knew because his shaft came to life. It was like sonar the way it hardened when she was close.

  “Good morning, Sweetness. How did you sleep?” Rade asked, still reading the stock report.

  “Wonderful. Thanks for asking.” Dylan replied. “Rade, can I ask you something?”

  Rade wasn’t sure where this was going, but he went along with it. “Sure, Sweetness, you can ask me anything.”

  “When is your birthday?” Dylan inquired, setting her plan in motion.

  “January 24th. Why? When is yours?” Rade asked. He realized that despite all the time they had been together, he didn’t know her birthday either.

  “September 15th,” Dylan answered in a mischievous voice.

  “Dylan, that’s only ten days away. Why didn’t you say something sooner?” Rade said, perturbed that she hadn’t told him.

  “It's not a big deal,” Dylan said uncon
vincingly.

  “When it comes to you, Sweetness, everything is a big deal. I can’t believe you didn’t say anything,” Rade blurted, standing from the barstool. “What do you want to do? You name it and we’ll do it.” This was the least Rade could do for her. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembered knowing her birthday. It was on the background check he had done on her when he first laid eyes on her. Of course, he could never let her know that.

  “Really, anything!” Dylan said, surprised.

  “Anything, Sweetness,” Rade confirmed.

  “Then there is only one thing I want.” Dylan wasn’t sure how she was going to lay this on him, so like every other woman, she began seducing him. Placing her arms around him, she positioned herself between his legs and began kissing him on the neck.

  “Whatever you want, Sweetness,” Rade moaned.

  “The Castle. I want to go to The Castle for my birthday,” Dylan confessed.

  Rade took her arms from around his shoulders and held them to his lips. He wasn’t expecting her to ask this of him. Even though he said he would give her anything, he had second thoughts about giving her this. “Dylan, I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. Isn’t there something else you want?”

  “You said anything and that’s what I want.” Dylan said, standing her ground.

  “I know we’ve talked about this, but I’m beginning to think maybe we should wait. Just a little longer, Sweetness.” Rade wanted to put off their visit to The Castle as long as he could.

  “I have waited. It’s been five months since that night. I need to know I can go back there without any flashbacks,” Dylan pleaded.

  “Tell you what, Sweetness, Let’s get this trip with Chloe out of the way and then we can talk about going. Now, what else do you want?” Rade asked, hoping she would agree to his proposal.

  “Nothing,” Dylan answered, pulling her body from Rade’s embrace.

  Dylan was hoping that Rade would agree to take her back to The Castle. Somehow she needed to get him to take her there before they left for London. She had less than two weeks to think of a way to change his mind.

  *****

  Dylan was so happy to see Keeve back in his office when she got to work that she almost forgot about her disagreement with Rade yesterday morning. Dylan learned that the doctor released him while she was with Rade on their weekend getaway. Unfortunately, it would be a while before Mason would be coming back to work. Even though he was no longer in ICU at Mount Sinai, he still had a long way to go. Keeve thought that he would be able to leave the hospital in a couple of weeks. The most important thing to Dylan was that he was alive. Nothing mattered more than life.

  The IRS investigator was finishing up his review of the BlackStone’s financial records. He only found a few discrepancies in the accounting, but nothing to warrant a full inquiry into the company. This was a relief to Keeve. The last thing he wanted was to have the IRS following their business transactions for the next five to ten years.

  Dylan was working on a spreadsheet when Keeve entered her office. “Excuse me, Dylan, but do you have a few minutes to talk?” Keeve asked.

  “Sure, Keeve, have a seat,” Dylan said, watching him as he took a seat in front of her desk.

  “I know you have been working really hard while Mason and I have been out. I just wanted to thank you for everything that you’ve done for BlackStone Industries. I don’t know what we would have done without your help,” Keeve confessed.

  “You know you don’t have to thank me, Keeve. I love working here. I care about this company,” Dylan stated. “I do have one question, though.”

  “What’s that?” Keeve questioned.

  “When the investigator was reviewing the financial records, he came across an amended partnership contract between BlackStone and Garrett Matheson. It stated that if any of the partners, namely you two, ever entered into a business agreement without the other’s knowledge, then the provisions of Garrett’s contract would become void. So my question to you is, did you?” Dylan asked hesitantly.

  Dylan knew there was something up by the way Keeve ran his hand through his hair.

  “You have to understand. It was nothing against Mason. He is the best partner I’ve ever had. I just couldn’t pass this opportunity up. I knew he wouldn’t agree to it. He would have thought it was too risky, so I took a leap of faith without his knowledge. To this day he still doesn’t know. You can’t let him know, Dylan. It would kill him,” Keeve confessed.

  “This changes everything, Keeve. What you did allows Garrett to take controlling interest in your company. I’m afraid of what will happen to Spectrum once Rade finds out. He has to be told. I can keep this information from Mason, but I can’t keep it from Rade,” Dylan admitted.

  “I understand, but before you tell Rade, please let me tell Mason. I don’t want it to be a surprise to him when Rade backs out of the Spectrum deal,” Keeve insisted.

  “Okay, but don’t wait too long to tell him. I don’t know how long I can keep this from Rade.”

  When Keeve left Dylan’s office, she was torn between doing what she knew was right and protecting her boss. She wished Keeve had come clean in the beginning about his business transaction and the revised secret partnership contract with Rade’s father. Everything could have been out in the open without having to keep secrets from one another.

  Dylan hadn’t heard from Rade all day. She started to think it may have been because of the way she left their conversation about The Castle. Even last night, when she went to bed, Rade stayed up till who knows when. Dylan suspected that he didn’t even make it to bed. She knew this only because his side of the bed looked to be untouched when she woke. Finding him gone only added to her regrets about their conversation.

  When Dylan got to the penthouse, she was hit with silence. She called out for Rade, but knew he wasn’t home. Calling him on his cell, her effort went straight to voicemail. Exhausted, Dylan decided to go to bed. It was after midnight and she was too tired to wait until Rade decided to come home.

  *****

  Getting herself ready for work, she thought about not having Rade next to her. His touch on her as the water spilled on her body. Caressing her skin as the water streamed down their bodies. She knew she wouldn’t have this because once again, she woke alone.

  Within minutes she was showered and ready to start her day. Even though she missed sharing her morning with Rade, she knew she needed to get to work and work on a game plan. She needed to work things out with Rade. His disappearing act was getting old. She also knew eventually she needed to confront Rade about what Keeve had told her about his business agreement.

  When Dylan left the penthouse, she was greeted by Richard, who was waiting for her in the parking garage. She wasn’t sure how early Rade had left, but was determined to find out.

  “Richard, did you take Rade to his office this morning?” Dylan asked, not sure what answer she would receive.

  “I’m sorry, Ms. Adams, Mr. Matheson didn’t request my service this morning. He only requested that I be available for your transportation,” Richard confessed.

  “I thought for sure you might have taken him to work. When I woke this morning, he was already gone.” It was unlike Rade to leave the penthouse without letting her know. And for it to happen two mornings in a row was beginning to piss her off.

  Pulling her cell from her purse, Dylan called Rade to find out what was going on. The call went right to voice mail. Dylan left a message letting Rade know that she wasn’t happy that he left this morning without saying good bye.

  Dylan arrived at work a little later than she had wanted. Jessica and Lucy must have been busy elsewhere because when Dylan stepped into the office, neither one was manning the front desk. Not thinking too much about it, Dylan headed back to her office. Settling in, Dylan booted up her computer and began working.

  Most of the morning went by without a hitch until Rade appeared at her door. When Dylan looked up and saw his appearance, she wondere
d if he had even gone to bed at all over the last couple of days. He looked exhausted.

  “Rade, you look horrible. What’s going on with you?” Dylan asked with concern.

  “I needed to clear my head,” Rade said.

  “For two days? I was worried about you,” Dylan confessed.

  “I didn’t mean to worry you. I’ve done some thinking about your birthday request. I think it would be a much better idea if we stayed away from The Castle for a while.

  “How long are we talking about, Rade?” Dylan asked.

  “I don’t know. All I know is, it might be better if we never go back,” Rade said.

  “Rade, did something happen? You seem different. Distracted,” Dylan asked.

  “No,” Rade blurted out.

  Dylan wasn’t sure what was going on with him, but there was no way she was going to let this go.

  “I don’t believe you. Something is going on with you. It’s not like you to leave for two days with no word. I’ve never seen you like this before,” Dylan said, looking at Rade’s tired eyes.

  “It’s nothing, Dylan,” Rade barked.

  The last thing that Rade wanted was for Dylan to find out the real reason behind his mood change. When he left Dylan the morning of their argument, he received another threat, this one more threatening than the last. He knew it could only be Michael. The text message came in from an unknown caller. Your days with Dylan are numbered. Soon she will be mine and you will never find her. Soon it will be my name coming from her lips. Rade read it over and over trying to figure out its meaning.

  Rade thought if he left early enough, he would be able to get in touch with Chris to find out where these threats were coming from. Rade requested Chris meet him at the office the minute he received the text. They worked on it for two days, only to end up with nothing. So after two days, Rade finally told Chris to go home and get some sleep. They were both utterly exhausted. Michael was smarter than Rade had initially suspected. The text messages were untraceable. With no sleep and no answers, the strain was taking its toll on Rade. Wherever Michael was, Rade needed to find him before something bad happened to Dylan. Each threat Michael made was becoming more aggressive than the last.