AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I tripped down the stairs, landing on my ass in the doorway to the kitchen. The dishwasher rushed over, but I excused myself before anyone asked questions.
When I made it to the bar, I did a quick survey and didn’t see Lia, or her doppelgänger. I was going crazy. Lia wasn’t in the club. She wasn’t a club sort of person, if I had to guess. I shook my head and ordered a drink.
“Gin and Tonic. And make it a strong one.”
Carl, the bartender, nodded and got to work. He didn’t know it yet, but he was our new employee of the month. The rest of the staff wanted to give me special attention while I stood at the bar, but I shooed them away. I loved my staff, but this wasn’t the time.
I made my way to the booth seating around the corner. If Lia was really in the club, she wouldn’t answer her phone. But on the off chance it wasn’t her, I pulled out my phone as I approached the tables. The seating area blocked a lot of noise, and the lighting was better. Calmer than the throbbing dance floor.
It was deserted in the seating area. I approached the closest two seater and moved to sit, only to discover someone tucked into the corner. She was so tiny, I almost missed her.
Lia.
In my club. Right now. As I was about to text her to see if she wouldn’t mind a late meetup.
“You really are all business, aren’t you?”
Her smile went straight to my cock. There was something hidden in her eyes, and she took me captive.
“I’m, uh, done with everything a day early. I was about to call you. Do you want to spend tomorrow with me?”
“Tomorrow.” She nibbled her lower lip. “Would we be moving the meeting up?”
Was she nervous? Did that mean she was unprepared? Would I be keeping her from vital work for Experience Shoreview? I pushed those thoughts from my mind and met her eyes. Kendall was right. Lia first, Experience second.
“That won’t be necessary. We’ll keep our agreed schedule. Tomorrow, though. Do you want to spend it with me?” I looked into those mesmerizing eyes some more. “And while we’re at it, tonight?”
Lia’s silence went on for what seemed an eternity. My neck pricked with heat and nerves.
I moved closer still to Lia and leaned into her, brushing her pouty lips with mine. Her arms coiled around my neck, erasing the remaining distance. I moved my head to the side so I could whisper in her ear.
“Wanna get out out of here?”
Chapter Twenty
Lia
Even though I thought seeing Raph was nothing more than a fantasy, he spirited me away from my outing the minute I was alone. Had he been watching somehow? His arm cradled me possessively as we made our way outside, leaving the thumping energy of Aire behind us. I grinned, I couldn’t help my elation. Even though I had no idea where we were going, I didn’t care.
When Raph was around, my heart fluttered and danced its way up my throat, thrumming under my flushed skin. It was getting hard to remember what life was like before I felt so alive.
Monotony as far as my mind’s eye could see; there was no chance I wanted to go back to that. It would destroy me, ripping my heart from my chest.
Thinking about my heart wasn’t safe, either. Raph and I had only a few days left. I wouldn’t spoil the last best moments of my life gearing up for the consequences. Even though we found each other every day since we started this, the ending couldn’t change.
Could it?
Once I retrieved my coat, Raph took us down a short flight of stairs behind the coat check into a quiet hallway that ran the outer edge of the building. I could hear the clatter of the kitchen ahead of us, but we took a right out a metal door into the chilly night air.
As Raph guided me toward his black Mercedes, I pulled my phone from my coat pocket to message Shell.
Lia: I bailed. If you think about it, you know where I went. See ya sometime. Xx.
I slipped my phone back into my pocket, and climbed into the car with Raph, ready to go wherever he took me. I didn’t care where that was; the energy pinging back and forth in the car kept me occupied.
He drove in silence, hands clenched around the wheel and jaw set. My imagination wove the most intimate imagery. It had barely been a day, but I craved the man in the worst way.
“I missed you,” he said, reading my mind.
