by Dee Garcia
No, it’s not.
Call me selfish, but I wasn’t willing to risk him. His life was more important to me than ridding this world of Vic Kane.
“It’s okay—I’m okay!” I tried again.
“It’s not okay, no, you’re obviously not okay either! You just pushed me away because of it!”
“I didn’t mean to! The memory flooded me out of no where and I freaked.”
“Do they happen often?” he questioned testily.
I shook my head. “No. After it happened, I spiraled for a short period. Started having day terrors again, night terrors too. But they stopped suddenly…”
“What made them stop?”
The silver-lining.
I’d never been more thankful for our obsession with one another until that very moment.
“You,” I admitted, closing the distance between us, my arms coming around his middle.
Rome’s head nearly snapped off his neck. “Me?”
“Yes, you. Dealing with you, with my confusing, underlying feelings for you, literally kept it all at bay. I guess that’s why I spazzed just now. Being here, on the desk, even in a completely different situation, sprung it to the surface with a vengeance.”
“Is this why you two weren’t on speaking terms?” he pressed on, sliding his hands to the back of my neck.
I nodded.
“So why not just fire him then?”
“I didn’t know how. I was afraid he’d snap, run to the cops.”
“I get that,” Rome sympathized, “but you need to fire him, baby. I don’t want him within a foot of you.”
Neither did I, but again, it went back to the fact that Vic would flip his shit, whether or not he’d been around much lately. The man was a vengeful bloke, and knowing our history—a history I was not about to share with Rome right now—he’d try to destroy me in every way he could.
Imagining the havoc he could wreak in mere hours was truly frightening.
I could lose everything I’d worked so hard for.
End up in prison…
“Rome, I can’t. He’ll ruin everything, I know he will.”
“Make Roscoe do it. He’s technically your right hand man now, correct?”
Another nod.
“Then tell him to get it done, stat,” he deadpanned.
It wasn’t up for discussion.
“I’ll text him tonight, okay?” I promised. “Now, let’s get out of here. How about we go have a few drinks at Blackbird first, then go home?”
Rome tipped his head and pulled me closer, brushing our lips together. “I could fucking use one.”
Blackbird wasn’t overly packed by the time we arrived—thank god. I suspected it was likely due to the fact we were in the middle of the workweek, but in any case, I was grateful for the chill vibe.
Chill is exactly what Rome and I needed right now.
The hostess greeted us and sat us over at the bar where we were tended to right away, our drinks ordered and served within minutes.
It was great, and while we didn’t talk much, I was glad we’d stopped in before going home.
I wasn’t really in the mood to chat anyway, and I knew for sure Rome wasn’t either. What transpired earlier was enough to exhaust us both—mentally, physically. I didn’t need forced conversation just for the sake of it, for the sake of pretending everything was alright.
Yes, we as couple were fine, but I knew Rome was raging inside; processing, analyzing, debating whether or not he should react on my behalf.
Keeping him calm was all I cared about—so if that meant just being there with him, hanging on his arm, and relishing his company as soft jazz played in the background, then so be it.
I’d do it a thousand times over if I had to.
It’s not like it was difficult or awkward. It never was. Our ability to be comfortably silent with one another was actually one of the things I loved most about our relationship.
We could sit in silence for hours and it was nothing but serene.
Like now—possessive hand on my thigh, his thumb rubbed back and forth tenderly over my pencil skirt as he stared into the amber liquid within his glass. Every so often, he’d peek over at me and offer a lopsided smirk, leaning in for a chaste kiss that left me humming in bliss.
This right here was all I needed.
And the bathroom, too—two drinks in and I was about to piss myself.
“I’m gonna run to the ladies room really quick. I’ll be right back,” I said to him, leaning over to peck his cheek.
But he turned his face in entirety, catching my lips with his own instead. A smirked twitched somewhere between us as his hand threaded into my hair, cupping my head. “Hurry—I’m about done here.”
“Already?” I grinned, prompting him to nod as he sucked on my bottom lip.
“I need you.”
“On the desk again?” I quipped, because although I’d freaked on my work desk, I wouldn’t mind him fulfilling that damned fantasy on my home desk.
“The desk, the couch, in the kitchen, on the bathroom floor. Wherever you want, however you want. I just need you before I lose my shit,” he gritted out, flooding me on the spot.
Pussy clenching as those images unfolded in my mind, I hummed lasciviously and pecked his lips one last time. “Three minutes, baby. Get the bill settled.”
A tip of his head.
An encouraging swat to my ass.
I squeaked and snatched my purse off the bar top, literally scampering down the dim corridor on the balls of my pumps, both from my bladder on the verge of an explosion and my libido racing into overdrive.
I couldn’t get into the stall fast enough.
Couldn’t piss fast enough.
Wash my hands fast enough.
All I could think about was the tsunami that was about the go down the second we stormed through the doors of my flat. I whimpered a little as I pulled a paper towel from the dispenser on the wall.
The drive home was going to fucking kill me.
A quick scan over my reflection and I was off, squeezing the shit out of my clutch in anticipation.
But as I emerged from the hallway into the main room, I tripped over my feet and stopped short at what I walked in on.
Lilac—one of Rome’s hurricane sluts.
She was all over him, standing between his legs, her arms around his neck. I couldn’t see his face, but I could see hers, and I recognized the fire in her eyes.
It’s the same fire that had burned within my own just seconds prior.
I watched fiercely for several moments, my blood boiling, but when he made no move to fend her off, I’d had enough. I couldn’t watch anymore.
I wasn’t even going to bother confronting them.
Didn’t have the energy for that.
Not to mention, I’d likely beat her to a pulp, and I wasn’t looking to walk out of here in cuffs.
So, I retreated slowly instead. Walked right out the front doors without a glance back to my G-Class.
Once I was behind the wheel, I pulled out my phone and sent Rome a quick text.
The last text I’d be sending him for the night, too, and possibly tomorrow as well, depending on how I felt after a night’s rest.
This was Lux Mercier in all her petty glory, people.
Me: I’d say I’m surprised, but I should’ve known better. Hope you and Lilac have a wonderful evening. x
♫ Mine - Bazzi ♫
Me: Answer, please.
Me: This is all a misunderstanding.
Me: I swear to you, baby, nothing happened.
Me: I didn’t touch her. She came on to me and I declined.
Me: Lux, please listen to me. Answer me. I can explain everything.
From last night to this morning, I’d sent Lux over fifteen text messages and called her a dozen times, if not more.
Every message went unanswered.
Every call was sent to voicemail.
I was anxious, pissed right the hell off, too. H
ow to the fuck was I supposed to fix this mess when she was giving me the cold shoulder?
Unrightfully so, I should add.
What she saw from her vantage point, what her mind had obviously led her to believe, was not what happened.
Not even close.
Azalea had completely caught me off-guard when Lux ran off to the restroom.
I was stewing after the Vic revelation, consumed by thoughts of both murdering him with my bare hands and burying myself in Lux straight through next week. It was all I could see on the glistening surface of the whiskey in my glass.
But then a small hand draped over my arm from the other side of the bar…
“Why so miffed, handsome?”
Snapping my head up, I’m met by regal gray eyes. I recognize them immediately, the long lilac waves of her hair too.
“What are you doing here?” I ask her.
Azalea looks at me like I’m clueless. “I work here, silly. I must have been on my break when you walked in.”
“I see,” I nod, taking a sip from my glass.
“So how’ve you been?” she presses, keen on continuing our conversation.
I, on the other hand, would rather not.
“I’ve been better,” I grate dryly, hoping she’ll take the hint.
“I figured. You look like—”
“Yo, Zay!” A voice from somewhere behind me interrupts her. “Table five needs refills; two Corona’s and a Blue Moon!”
“Coming right up!” she answers, then goes on to squeeze my arm, flashing me a coy wink. “I’ll be right back.”
I would prefer she didn’t, am about to tell her as much, but she’s gone to the other end of the bar before I can utter two words. Perhaps seeing Lux at my side when she returns from the ladies room will warn her off from approaching me again.
Minutes later, there’s a tap at my back. I swivel around, expecting to see my Queen, but it’s Azalea. She settles herself between my already spread legs and throws her arms around my neck.
“As I was saying, you look like hell. I can make it better, though,” she coos.
“I’m going to pass,” I deadpan, trying to move her off me, but she holds on tighter still and pushes me back against the ledge of the bar top.
“C’mon, Rome—let’s finally finish what we started during the hurricane. And this time, you don’t have to worry about Kelsey. Just me.”
“Again, I’m going to pass, Azalea.”
“I’ll put the pep back in your step, babe. Suck your cock so good you won’t even remember what you’re so angry about.”
“Third times the charm perhaps? I said I’ll pass. I have a—”
My phone vibrates in my pocket, pulling my attention away from the woman trying to seduce me.
I fish it out and the message on my lockscreen rises every hair on my body in a panic.
My Queen: I’d say I’m surprised, but I should’ve known better. Hope you and Lilac have a wonderful evening. x
See?
She had it all wrong.
It looked terrible, I know, but fuck—hadn’t I proved myself to her? Hadn’t I proved that she was it for me?
That she was all I wanted. All I needed.
I tried putting myself in her shoes, tried thinking about how I would’ve handled seeing some wanker all over her, and while I definitely would’ve felt the green-eyed monster possess me from the inside out, I never would have jumped to conclusions.
Never would’ve left her there with nothing but a text.
But Lux was a woman, a damaged woman who’d never experienced a real relationship, so I couldn’t bring myself to blame her.
Did her silence play on my nerves?
Absolutely.
But I wasn’t going to push her.
I’d done my part. Now, all I could do was wait for her to come around.
She had twenty-four hours.
Otherwise, I was taking it back into my own hands again before this spiraled into something worse.
I didn’t hear from Lux until later on that evening, and I was no where near my phone when the calls started. I’d been out in the pool, swimming laps to ease my mind from the stress of the last almost twenty-four hours.
When I got back inside, I was surprised—and a tad unnerved—by the amount of calls and voicemails clogging my lock screen. She’s been calling as frantically as I had, and it appeared that, for every call, there was a voicemail that went along with it.
Most of them were of her singing, very drunkenly, to one of Rihanna’s more vintage sounds. She wasn’t alone either, cajoling Suki into singing along with her at some point as well. Each voicemail was literally a continuation of the last, and by the time I listened to the last one, I was in stitches.
Relieved.
Showering and dressing in record time before I jumped in the Benz and called her back.
“There you are,” she said lazily.
“Do you enjoy serenading people in a drunken stupor often?” I joked, gunning it down I-95.
“It’s only fun when they”—hiccup—“answer the phone.” The smile tugging her lips was utterly palpable.
I couldn’t help but laugh despite knowing she’d been drinking, very likely, because of what went down last night. “Christ, you’re fucked up.”
“Am n-not.”
“Okay, pissed out of your mind is more like it.”
“Rome!” she whined, to which Suki mimicked in the background. “Knock it off! I’m not pissed!”
“You were earlier,” I pointed out, and I wasn’t referring to alcohol anymore.
I hadn’t even meant to say it. It just…came out.
The line fell completely silent, so silent, in fact, I found myself glancing at the screen to ensure the call hadn’t dropped.
“Lux, you there?” I asked.
“I’m here… And I know,” she admitted softly, the volume of the music fading dramatically. Then a door clicked shut. “It was stupid and immature, and just… Ugh. I’m sorry.”
Flipping on my blinker, I cut off some old geezer—who was driving 30 miles per hour—and dropped a gear, the engine roaring powerfully beneath my foot flooring the gas. Hearing her apologize was a relief. Not that I needed an apology, but it served to confirm this tiff was nothing. “Don’t be. If I caught some bloke blatantly trying to get so chummy with you, I’d have done the same, too.”
“Worse, maybe.” Lux laughed, but I could tell it was only half-genuine. Not a word followed the dismal sound either, drowning the line in another thick bout of silence.
Silence drenched in guilt, more specifically.
Personally, her jealousy spike was nothing short of adorable. I loved the fact that she was possessive in her own way.
But this wasn’t a game anymore.
She was mine, and I was hers, and propriety wasn’t something either one of us took lightly.
“I know Suki’s there,” I said after a beat, finally easing onto I-95 with nothing but determination and urgency thrumming through my veins. “But do you need anything?”
“You,” she whispered meekly.
One word.
That one little word was all I needed.
All I wanted.
Mine.
“I’m on my way,” I warned her, weaving in and out of light traffic in a hurried fashion.
Horns blared above Imagine Dragons as I cut people off and I could give all of three fucks.
A man on a mission was a force to be messed with.
Honk, wankers.
“Really?” she squeaked.
I nodded regardless of the fact she couldn’t see me. “Fuck yes. Don’t fall asleep. .”
“I won’t.”
Damn right you won’t.
“And Lux?”
“Yeah?” she drawled.
“Get Suki the hell out of there. I know she’s probably blasted, too, but call her an Uber or some shit,” I growled, flipping off another twat through the passenger window.
“What? Why
?” she queried, clearly befuddled at my request.
A delighted, sinister smirk colored my expression. “Because I highly doubt she’ll want to hear your screams carrying through the walls.”
Click.
The drive was nothing more than a restless blur of muttered expletives and my hand slamming down on the wheel in frustration at each red light that held me back from Lux a little longer. I was dying to get to her and these American cunts had not a clue how to drive. Miami wasn’t nearly as chaotic as New York, but nonetheless, it was maddening in its own way, and my patience had about reached its end.
Especially after almost thirty minutes just to arrive at her damn flat.
I couldn’t get out of the car fast enough, hustling from my seat to the revolving doors in an equally blind trek, fueled by fierce adrenaline and a desperation I didn’t know my heartless soul was capable of. I didn’t even acknowledge the cheery doorman, brushing past him like a bat out of hell.
My thoughts were on Lux, and Lux only.
But yet again, the extent of my patience of was put to the test. It seemed that, the more I smashed my thumb into the call button, the longer the lift took to arrive.
And when it finally did, it fucking lagged all the way up.
The second the doors peeled open on the penthouse floor, I ambled my ass through the foyer to the front doors as though sweltering flames threatened to incinerate the floor behind me. With no neighbors to alarm, I banged the side of my fist against the door twice, bouncing on the tips of my toes in anticipation.
Time stood still as I waited…and waited…and waited.
My heart banged furiously, pulse racing faster than a speeding bullet. I hadn’t been this nervous to see her in what felt like ages. What the hell was taking her so long? Had she fallen asleep? Was Suki still here? Christ, I hoped not. My dick was screaming in fucking agony.
C’mon, Lux—open the door.
Less than thirty seconds later, the locks were coming undone. My chest instantly deflated with a breath I hadn’t even realized I was holding, my palms stinging from the force of my nails embedding into my skin.
Then the door flew open and I couldn’t move, gaping at her like a mindless imbecile. Just the mere sight of her in her little black robe was enough to undo me, a lovesick bastard unraveling piece by piece.
