“The cleaning service is on their way over now, so please stay away from all of the glass in the living room. They’ll have it taken care of in no time.” He continues to ignore my objections while we dry ourselves off. I am walking toward the closet to dress when he captures my hand before dropping to the bed and pulling me into his lap. He is wearing a pair of form-fitting, black boxer briefs and I’m in a light blue bra and panty set. “I need to tell you something else, but first I need to know that you’re okay. I’d pour you a drink first, but we seem to be fresh out of glasses.”
Maybe we both have a sick sense of humor, but the laugh that his joke brings forth from both of us is a much-needed tension-breaker. “I don’t know what happened to me. First, I couldn’t accept that he was actually dead after tormenting me all of these years, then I got so angry at myself and at him when I realized that I’ve still continued to let him run my life. Almost every decision I’ve made since that monster came into my life has been influenced by him.” I find myself choking up again, as I admit, “I never got away. Don’t you see? I was living on borrowed time and deep down I knew it. I just didn’t want to accept it. He was always going to come for me, just as he said.”
I take his face in my hands, looking into the eyes of the man who has put his own pain on the back burner to help me deal with mine. “Loving you is the first real thing I’ve done just for me. Everything else has just been out of necessity. You are a dream I never dared to dream because my mother, then my stepfather, took that ability from me. That was another reason why I was so angry. He took everything from me, and I didn’t even understand that until today.”
Lucian wipes the tears, which are once again falling from my face with his thumbs, before kissing first my mouth, then my nose and finally my forehead. “No matter what he took, he never broke you. You are the wonderfully talented, intelligent, driven, and loving woman you are despite him, not because of him. I’m in no way worthy of you, but I lay my heart at your feet because you own me, baby.” My heart skips a beat at his words. He is saying he loves me. Maybe not in the standard way, but there is no mistaking his meaning. If my life thus far was what I had to endure to find this man, then I would go through Hell again and again just to end up where I am now…in his arms.
“I love you, too,” I say softly, wanting him to know I recognize and return the feelings he is trying to express. We kiss again, both getting lost in the moment before he pulls back with a frown.
“I almost forgot what I needed to talk to you about…That seems to happen a lot when we’re together.” He looks nervous, which in turn makes me anxious. “The police want to question both you and me this evening about your stepfather’s death.”
I jump to my feet and immediately begin pacing. Can he not just be gone? “What? Why? I don’t want to relive what happened to me with them again!”
He comes to his feet, taking my shoulders between his hands. “Honey, it’s not that. It’s just that you’re the only remaining family, other than your mother, and I’m your boyfriend. According to Max, it’s just a formality and the police need to go through the motions for their paperwork. You don’t have to worry; I won’t let them upset you.”
What is wrong with me today? I seem to be going off the deep- end over everything. It is a lot to take in, though, and I had mistakenly assumed that his death meant everything to do with him was over. Apparently, not quite yet. I need to get a grip and calm down. If Lucian isn’t worried, and he doesn’t appear to be, then it’s fine. After it’s all over tonight, I can regroup and truly move forward for the first time in my life. “Oh, my God,” I gasp, “poor Debra! I need to call her. She is probably completely beside herself over my earlier freak-out.”
“That’s a good idea,” Lucian agrees wryly. “I think she was in shock when she left here. I guess she’s never seen you on a rampage before?”
My face flushes as I quickly walk toward the closet and pull on jeans and a sweater. Lucian is dressing when I step into the living area to find my phone. My jaw drops in shock as I take in the sight before me. Dear Lord, he wasn’t kidding when he said we were out of glasses. I can hardly believe that I’ve completely wrecked the bar. He comes up behind me, plucking me effortlessly off my feet. “What’re you doing?” I ask in surprise as he carries me through the wrecked room and into the kitchen before setting me on the countertop.
He tweaks one of my toes and shakes his head. “You don’t have any shoes on, Lia.”
“Oh, yeah, I didn’t think about that,” I admit as I look at my bare feet. “So, when is Detective Michaels going to be here?” I try to act as if I’m not nervous, but I know he sees it.
“I’m going to go grab a pair of your shoes for you and then I’m calling Max to see if we can meet them somewhere else.” Before I can ask why, thinking I’d much rather do this at home, he adds, “I doubt the living room will be cleaned before the police arrive, and right now it looks and smells like a scene from a bar brawl. They’d probably lock my ass up because there is no way they would believe you did all of that.”
I look at him in amazement, unable to believe he’s actually laughing at his assessment of the wreck in the other room. I am completely appalled to have done something like that to his home. He should be kicking me out, not shaking in laughter. Despite myself, I am unable to stop the grin from fully forming on my mouth. “It’s not funny,” I attempt to scold both him and myself. “It’s going to cost a lot of money to clean and replace everything I’ve broken.” He just continues to laugh until I add, “I mean it; I’m paying you back. I’m all healed except for my wrist and fingers, so I can start cleaning again.” His laugh morphs into a scowl before I can complete my sentence.
“Don’t even start that with me, baby. You aren’t my housekeeper, and you’re not going to be.” When I start to protest, he suddenly looks serious. “Please don’t worry about paying for some broken glassware. What you bring to me just by being in my life is priceless. Hell, baby, I owe you if anything. I should be your housekeeper because I’ll never be able to repay you for what you’ve given me.”
“No, no, no,” I whisper as my eyes water. He lifts a brow, looking bemused by my reaction to his sweet declaration. “Um…sorry, I just don’t want to cry again. It seems like that’s all I do anymore. You’re just so sweet to me.”