by Long, A. L.
*****
Rade had been staring out the window for hours. He couldn’t sleep. All he could do was think about Dylan. Even with the amount of alcohol that he had consumed, his mind was filled with despair. He knew exactly what he did. He just didn’t know how he was going to be able to make it right again.
With Richard following her, at least Rade knew she was safe. Richard called Rade about an hour ago letting him know that Dylan was staying at Lilly’s apartment. Finding out where she was, was one less thing that Rade had to worry about. Rade instructed Richard, Peter, and Josh to watch over Dylan by taking turns keeping an eye on Lilly’s apartment building. No matter what happened between them, Rade would forever make sure she was protected.
Rade didn’t know what time it was, but he was finally able to sleep. Stretching the kink he had in his neck from sleeping on the couch, Rade regretted not making it to his bed. Based on the way he felt, he must have drunk the entire bottle of his fifty-year-old scotch. His only regret was that he didn’t have more of it on hand. It was the only way that he could numb the pain he was feeling inside.
Coming to his senses, Rade knew that he couldn’t drink his problems away. He was going to fix this thing with Dylan. Pushing from the couch, Rade headed to his bathroom to bring some life back into his body.
Feeling almost himself again, he put on his gray suit, light blue tie, and black Zelli Aviano shoes. Looking at himself in the mirror, he had to admit he looked pretty good. He almost left the beard, but decided against it. He wanted Dylan to see the man she fell in love with. Heading out, he grabbed the keys to the Martin and got inside the elevator.
It didn’t take long for Rade to reach Lilly’s apartment. He wasn’t sure if the security guard would allow him up, but he had to at least give it a shot. When he entered the building and saw that no one was manning the desk, Rade began to panic. If he could get to Dylan, without being stopped, then anyone could.
Rushing to the elevator, Rade pressed the up button, willing the door to open. When it finally did, Rade hit Lilly’s floor and hoped like hell that Dylan was okay. With Chloe still free, his heart began pounding faster. If Chloe ever got near Dylan again, he would kill her.
Reaching Lilly’s apartment, Rade lightly knocked on the door. Greeted by Dylan, Rade’s heart just about broke. Dylan was no longer the happy, vibrant woman that he fell in love with. She looked tired, with a look of hopelessness spread across her beautiful face. She looked like she had been crying. Rade hated seeing her like this. What he hated more was that he was the cause of her pain.
With his hand, he gently rubbed her cheek. Leaning in, he lowered his lips to hers, only to be denied. Dylan turned her head, rejecting his touch.
Looking back at him Dylan asked softly, “What do you want, Rade?”
Rade ran his fingers through his hair trying to choose the right words. “Can I come in? I really need to talk to you.”
Going against her better judgment, Dylan stepped to the side and allowed Rade to enter the apartment. Once inside, Rade walked over to the window and gazed out to the city, not really seeing anything in front of him. Turning, he set his eyes on Dylan standing with her arms crossed around her waist. The only thing Rade could see was how vulnerable she looked.
Waking closer to her, he again tried to show her how much he loved and needed her. “Don’t, Rade,” Dylan whispered as she walked away from him.
“Dylan, I know that I’ve hurt you. I know nothing I say or do is going to change that. I’m so sorry, Dylan. I thought I was doing what was right. I thought that by keeping what I knew about Michael from you…” Rade paused. “I was afraid that if you knew about Michael, I would lose you. In the beginning, I did seek you out to find out about him, but that changed. I started to fall in love with you. I had to keep you safe. I didn’t know what he was capable of. When he started sending messages, I knew I should have told you. I should have let you know he was alive. I kept thinking, how could he leave you? If he really loved you, why would he be with any other woman?”
As soon as Rade said those words, Dylan looked up at him. “What are you talking about, Rade?”
Instead of explaining it to her, he showed her. Pulling out his phone, he showed her the picture of Michael and the curvy blond he was with in St. Croix. He thought that he could keep this from her, but with her knowing the truth, he needed to tell her everything.
“He was with someone else?” Dylan said, questioning what she was seeing.
“I didn’t want you to show you this, Dylan, but you needed to know that Michael wasn’t the man you thought he was,” Rade admitted.
Slumping onto the couch, Dylan just stared at the picture of Michael locking lips with the attractive blond. Knowing that Dylan had seen enough, Rade pulled his phone from her grasp and sat beside her withdrawn body. Putting his hand on her chin, he turned her face towards him. Looking in her tear-filled eyes, he lowered his lips to hers. This time he was greeted with her pain. He took it all. He vowed to never hurt her again. “I will never keep anything from you again, Dylan. I promise. No more secrets.”
Rade deepened the kiss as Dylan opened up to him. It was like they were kissing for the first time. Feeling the passion that bonded them together. Pulling from her slightly, Rade said softly, “I love you, Dylan. You are my world.”
If Dylan wasn’t an emotional wreck before, she was now. She loved Rade more than anything. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she pulled him closer, placing her mouth over his. Being without him wasn’t going to happen again. No matter how much they fought, she was never going to be without him. He meant everything to her.
Picking her up from the couch, Rade carried her to the bedroom. Laying her gently on the bed, Rade showered her with the love he had for her. He began removing her clothing while keeping his lips on hers. He couldn’t break away. He needed to feel her. Pulling his own clothing off, he regretted having to withdraw from her, even for a moment.
Placing his body over hers, Rade began to worship her. With soft kisses, he layered her body. There wasn’t an inch of her softness that wasn’t cherished. Spreading her legs wider, Rade positioned his body between them. Resting his elbows beside her head, he held her gaze and declared, “I love, Sweetness. I’m going to prove to you every day just how much I do.”
“Mmm, then you better start now,” Dylan moaned with pleasure.
Lowering his hand, he found her clit and began rubbing his finger against it in a circular motion. Sliding his hand lower, he pressed one, then another finger inside her tight channel. “God, you feel so good, Sweetness,” Rade breathed. Removing his finger, he took hold of his cock and gently plunged it inside her wet pussy. Pushing forward with gentle movements, he began driving deeper and deeper inside her. Rade wanted to take it slow. He wanted to harness every feel of her body as he felt the hold she had on him. Feeling the squeeze of her walls, Rade lifted Dylan’s hips, taking her legs and placing them over his shoulders. Deepening his assault, her pussy began tightening, clinching onto his hard shaft the more he moved inside her. Pulling out so that only the tip of his cock was embedded inside her, he repositioned his body, taking her further into paradise. Hitting her sweet spot just right, he heard the sound of pleasure take over as his name spilled from her lips. Feeling the onset of his own release, Rade spilled his seed into her tight channel, never feeling more fulfilled than he did at that moment.
Once at the remnants of their lovemaking had been cleaned away, Rade pulled Dylan into his chest and took in her warmth. Staying that way for just a moment, Rade remembered the reason he came. Getting out of bed, he picked up his pants from the floor and removed the platinum ring from the pocket. Slipping in beside Dylan, he took her left hand and placed the diamond ring on her ring finger. Kissing her tenderly on the lips, he whispered softly, “I don’t want you to ever remove this again.”
With a nod of acknowledgment, Dylan kissed Rade with love before they both fell into a blissful sleep.
CHAPTER TWEN
TY-FIVE
It was the start of a new day and the sun was shining brightly through the window. Dylan was lying beside the man she loved more than anything. Even though Rade had kept things from her, she trusted their relationship together; she trusted that there would no longer be secrets between them.
Nudging Rade awake, she needed to get back to the penthouse. When she left the other day she neglected to grab a change of clothing. She was over wearing the same clothing.
Rade’s eyes slowly began to open. When his eyes focused on her, he knew he was in heaven. Leaning over, Rade captured her mouth. “Good morning, beautiful. How about some coffee?”
“I’ll make it. You stay and just look gorgeous,” Dylan demanded.
Walking to the kitchen, Dylan began making the coffee. Finishing, she poured two cups. Lilly didn’t have her favorite creamer, so Dylan settled on cream and sugar. Dylan walked back to the bedroom with coffee in hand. When she got to the door, she heard the shower going in the bathroom across the hall. Turning, she stepped to the closed door and opened it to find Rade’s naked body on display in the shower. God, he was gorgeous. Placing the two cups on the counter. Dylan slipped off her panties and shirt and joined Rade in the shower. The shower in the bathroom wasn’t big enough for two people, but that didn’t stop them from making enough room.
An hour later they were in Rade’s car and on the way back to the penthouse. Traffic was minimal, so it didn’t take long to reach his building. When they got inside the penthouse, Dylan changed quickly and freshened up her makeup. By the time she exited the bathroom, Rade was dressed and ready to go.
Heading down to the parking garage, Rade took hold of Dylan’s hand while they waited for the elevator to make its final stop. Richard was waiting for them in the Bentley, which he pulled up to the front of the elevator.
As they both slipped into the SUV, Richard watched from the front seat. Safely inside, Richard proceeded out of the garage and on to the streets of Manhattan. Looking back at them in the review mirror, he was glad that they were able to make their amends. Even though he didn’t agree at the beginning with Rade’s plans, he was glad the way things ended.
Richard dropped Dylan off first at the BlackStone building. He waited while they said their goodbyes. Rade had made plans with Dylan to have a quick drink at Riley’s before heading home. It had been a while since Dylan had seen Evan. Last night when they were in each others arms, Rade explained to her how he went to Evan for help when he couldn’t figure out the message she left him. It’s funny how things turned out between them. Rade never thought he would have another brother that he could share his life with.
When Dylan entered the office, Jessica and Lucy were hard at work. With everything that had happened, they were left with more than their share. Now with the new Spectrum building getting ready to open, Dylan needed their help more than ever. Application after application were coming in with people interested in filling the positions that Dylan had posted online. She knew that once she had the initial staff hired, more positions would need to be filled. At least this was a start for her.
Taking the applications that Jessica had pulled online, Dylan headed to her office to weed through them. Sitting at her desk, Dylan began going through them. A lot of what she was seeing was good. More than half of the applications that were filled out held promise. There were some that didn’t have any experience, but then there were those that had more than enough.
By the end of the day, Dylan had chosen about a dozen potential applicants. It was too late in the day to call and set up appointments to meet with them, so she decided to come in tomorrow early and start the interview process.
When Dylan got to the lobby, she was greeted by the most gorgeous smile she had ever seen. Rade was standing, all six-foot-four of him, in the lobby reading some kind of health magazine. When he saw her, he dropped the magazine on the small table and began walking towards her. Taking her in his arms, he laid his mouth on her lips and kissed her. What was meant to be a quick peck turned into a passionate kiss that left Dylan wet between the legs. She was just about ready to forgo their plans to go to Riley’s when Rade pulled away and asked, “Are you ready to go visit your future brother-in-law?”
On the way to Riley’s, Dylan went through her day with Rade. She talked about the abundance of applications she had received and the ones she had chosen to come in for an interview. She also suggested that he help her with the final decision on hiring the staff that would be working at the new site.
“It sounds like everything is going well with the application process.” Rade said.
“I think it is. At least I hope so. There are so many potential candidates. I just hope I can choose between all of them.” Dylan said.
“I have all the faith in the world in you, Dylan.” Rade admitted as he raised her hand to his lips and kissed her.
Richard pulled in front of Riley’s, dropping Rade and Dylan off in the front. Before they exited, Rade instructed Richard to come back in a couple of hours to pick them up. Leaving the car, Rade and Dylan headed inside. It was still early enough in the evening that the place hadn’t filled up yet. Taking Dylan by the hand, they began walking to the back of the bar. Evan’s office door was already open when they got there. Evan was looking at the security monitors on his desk so with a light tap, Rade knocked on his door.
Evan looked up from the monitor and greeted them.”Hey, you two?”
Rounding his desk, he stepped in front of Dylan and pulled her in for a quick hug, while holding his hand out to Rade.
“We thought we would stop by and have a drink and say ‘Hi,’” Rade explained, shaking his brother’s hand.
“Well, I’m glad you did. I had to see for myself that my future sister-in-law was okay,” Evan declared.
“I’m fine. Can you join us for a drink?” Dylan asked.
“I’d love to,” Evan responded with a smile.
Leaving Evan’s office, Dylan walked ahead of them as Rade and Evan continued their conversation. Dylan could hear what was being said. Rade was going through the event of Dylan’s rescue and the death of Michael. Hearing what happened brought tears to Dylan’s eyes. As much as she hated Michael for what he did, she didn’t want him to end up dead. She wished that he had turned himself in.
It was about eight o’clock by the time they left Riley’s. Dylan wasn’t in the mood to go out to dinner, so Rade suggested they order in. When the food arrived, Dylan was just getting out of the bath. Cuddling up behind her, Rade let her know that their dinner had arrived. Dylan’s body was warm and smelled of lavender and vanilla. Rade could have eaten her instead of the Italian food that he had ordered from Russo’s.
“Our dinner is here, Sweetness,” Rade said, kissing her neck between each word.
Turning around, Dylan captured his lips with hers, giving him something else to kiss. Dylan loved the feel of his lips on her. The way he lightly nibbled on her bottom lip. The way he could make her come completely undone with every sweep of his tongue against hers.
Regretfully, Rade pulled from her. Placing his hand on her cheek, he said, “Finish up. I’ll get our dinner ready.”
Rade was dishing the food onto two plates when his cell began to ring. Looking down at the number, he contemplated not answering it, but then decided that it could be important.
“Hello,” he said, greeting the caller.
“Rade, it’s your father,” Garrett began. “When were you going to tell me that you and Dylan were engaged?”
“I didn’t tell you because I don’t want you to have any part of it. Dylan is the most important thing in my life. I’m not going to allow you to take that from me.”
“Aren’t you being a little harsh? I would never hurt Dylan,” Garrett asserted.
“Just like you would never hurt Isaac? Good-bye, Father,” Rade hissed.
“Wait,” Garrett pleaded.
“What do you want?” Rade asked.
“I heard what happened to Dylan. I want t
o help you find Chloe. She trusts me. She also knows our history. Let me help you find her,” Garrett offered.
“Why would you help me? Finding Chloe isn’t going to change anything between us,” Rade asked.
“Because, no matter how much you hate me, you are still my son. You deserve to be happy. Let me help you,” Garrett pleaded.
“I’ll think about it,” Rade said, ending the call. He knew that his father had an agenda in helping him and it wasn’t out of the kindness of his heart.
Just as Rade hung up with his father, Dylan was standing a few feet away. Looking down on her, Rade was pretty sure she heard the conversation, based on the look she had on her face.
“Rade, why won’t you let him help you? The sooner she is caught, the sooner we can live a normal life,” Dylan said, trying to reason with him.
“I don’t want anything from him, Sweetness. Just like with everything else, there’s a reason he is so willing to help,” Rade responded.
“You don’t know that. Maybe he’s changed, Rade. Don’t you think he deserves another chance to make things right? “ Dylan asked.
“No, He doesn’t deserve anything from me.” Rade turned away from her, grabbing two glasses from the cupboard.
Rade and Dylan ate in silence, neither one of them knowing what to say. The only thing Dylan wanted to talk about was Rade’s conversation with Garrett, but given that they had just recently made up, she wasn’t willing to have another fight with him.
Trying to make conversation, she said, “So tomorrow I’m going to begin calling in people for interviews. I would like it very much if you could be there when I interview them.” Dylan confessed, taking a bite of her pasta.
“Whatever you want, Sweetness. Just let me know when and I’ll have Gwen rearrange my schedule,” Rade said looking down at his plate.
Dylan was glad dinner was over. She was thankful, however, that even though she only got a few words out of Rade, at least they didn’t end up fighting. Dylan thought maybe she would reach out to Garrett and have him work on finding Chloe anyway. The only thing that stopped her from doing just that was that she hated the idea of going behind Rade’s back. They had promised to be honest with each other, which also meant no secrets. The last thing she needed was for Rade to find out what she did.
