Billionaire Blaze, page 41
“Thank you.” She stopped in front of me and looked up at me with those sweet eyes. I wanted to pull her into my arms and crush her against me. To press my lips against hers until I didn’t know where I ended and she began. Instead, I gulped.
“You’re welcome. I hope it makes up for some of my stupidity.”
“You think you were stupid?” she asked, her eyes widening in what appeared to be genuine surprise.
“Sarai and Daniel told me what really happened with Peter. How you rejected him and sent him on his way before I ever said a word to you about witnessing it. I should have trusted you.” I shook my head. I couldn’t look at her. Couldn’t hope for anything other than she would at least hear me.
“They told me about Jennifer. How she used you for money. I can understand your fear. I’d have appreciated being trusted, but I can at least understand why you ran scared of a repeat.” She sighed and I looked up finally.
She wasn’t looking at me, but down at her hands. Again I had to fight the urge to sweep her into my arms. I didn’t have that right.
“Can you forgive me?” I asked instead.
“Yes, if you’ll forgive me for not responding well.”
“You responded exactly the way an innocent person would have. You have nothing to be sorry for.” I shook my head, so sure she had been an angel that I couldn’t let her say sorry to me. I just couldn’t.
There was an awkward silence and she looked up at me again.
“Is there any way I can make it up to you? I know you asked if I wouldn’t be where you were on this project, and if the answer is still no, I promise I’ll accept it and never ask again, but if there is anything at all I can do to show you exactly how sorry I am, I would do it in a heartbeat.”
“Anything?” Kit asked, her hands finally going still.
I nodded, not sure what she was going to ask me to do, but I was almost certain I would. Hope fluttered in my heart as she considered my words. Fear had told me she would reject the offer outright. Could she actually give me the chance?
“There’s nothing I can think of for sure that would show me you were truly sorry. I...” Kit shrugged. “I assumed you wouldn’t want to talk to me again. You’ve set up this project for me and made it very clear that I’m to expect a cut of money forever. If you wanted to make it up to me, in that sense, you already have.”
It was the most unexpected reaction she could have given me. I had assumed there would be a long list of ways I would need to grovel, and here she was telling me I had done everything already and more than she’d hoped for.
“You really don’t think of life the way other women do, do you?”
“I can’t tell if that’s a compliment or an insult.” The corner of her mouth twitched up.
“It’s supposed to be the former. It’s…refreshing. But...” I stepped forward and gently took one of her hands. It took all my control not to do more, but I wanted her to know she was safe with me again. I had to prove that to her. “If you’ll let me, I’d like to do something anyway. I want you to know I’m truly sorry and willing to do what I can to put it right. Will you give me the chance to show you how sorry I am?”
She studied me, and it felt like her eyes saw right through to my soul. I hoped she could see the truth of how I felt.
“All right, but mostly because I’m curious about what you intend to try. I won’t promise anything beyond that.”
My throat tightened and I nodded, unable to speak for a moment. It was a start, but she was clearly not sure she wanted a relationship with me.
I knew I had to nail this next part. She let me keep her hand in mine and I wasn’t about to let go of it.
“Shall we start by getting out of here?” I asked.
“All right. But I said I’d catch Sarai later for food. And Daniel. They want to do something to celebrate signing this contract at dinner.”
“I’ll have you back before you turn into a pumpkin.”
She smiled again at this, and it helped to break the ice a little. It was everything I needed to get going, and I led her down to my car. Thankfully, Henry and I had driven here separately, so there was no way I was leaving him stranded or would need to make sure to have him picked up.
I opened the door for her and helped her into the car. She gave me an amused smile, and I tried not to feel like a small boy excited that she was letting me treat her like royalty. So far so good.
I wasn’t going to ask her what she wanted to do. This had to be something I figured out all by myself. Thankfully, I had considered the possibilities multiple times. It was difficult to know exactly what to do, but I had some ideas.
Every time I built an apartment block, or a residential area with several houses in, I had my company insist that at least one plot, apartment, or section was given to us as part of our payment. Even when I wasn’t involved with the project beyond overseeing it and making it work, the company still gained from it.
Over the years it had built up a second revenue stream, each unit rented out or used to host visitors and anything else we needed. We had just gained possession of a new little house in a pretty area of Chicago, and I was fairly sure Kit would love it.
It needed furnishing and there were no tenants lined up. She could do as she pleased with it and then she would have her own space. I hoped, if nothing else, it would feel like home to her.
She clearly didn’t have any idea where we were going and she leaned closer and closer to the window as we drove into the residential area. When I pulled up outside the house and opened the door, she looked at me with raised eyebrows.
The house wasn’t the largest in the area, but it wasn’t the smallest either. It was too big for just her, really, but that gave her space to have her friends visit if she wanted.
I helped her out of the car and paused to let her look around the brand new street. It was well finished and people had begun moving in around this house, so there were signs of life.
“Where are we?” she asked as I walked her toward the house.
“My company and some of the architects I’ve trained worked on this project under my supervision. I asked to keep this one. While you’re here, it’s yours. If you’d like it.”
Kit’s face was a total picture. She looked between me and the house until I took her inside.
CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED
Kit
I didn’t know what to say as Lukas showed me around the largest house I had ever been in.
“It needs to be furnished and you can change the color scheme to anything you like.” Lukas smiled as we stopped back in the kitchen. “Sorry, all the counters and floors have been done, but if you wanted to change any of that as well, I can foot the bill.”
Again, I looked around in disbelief but before I could even begin to form all the questions in my head into a complete sentence, Lukas pulled out a small tablet and pulled up an app.
“If you buy furniture on here and take this credit card, you can get anything you want to make the place how you like it.”
“You’re really letting me do and get whatever I want?” I asked as he held out both a card from his jacket pocket and the tablet.
I tried not to show all the emotions I felt. This was way beyond anything I’d expected. It wasn’t owning a house, but I had free rein to spend as much money as I wanted on it.
After all this, I knew he wasn’t going to worry about money again. This was far more of an apology than I’d expected.
“This is far too much house for just me.”
“So have some friends visit now and then. Or family.” He grinned again, as if he’d already thought of this.
I didn’t know what to say or do. While we were waiting for everything to go ahead near New York I would have my hands full and be able to live here how I wished.
“What about when the next project begins?” I asked. “I’m not going to be here for a while then, at least.”
It was a question he considered for a moment, and I tried to anticipate what he might say.
“We’re likely to be going back and forth more. Weekends here and things like that. It’s close enough, and we can fly.” He shrugged, and I got the impression he also hoped I would be spending some of that time with him, but it gave me a safe space that would be all mine.
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were trying to keep me here in Chicago. Get me to consider staying in your country longer-term.” I couldn’t keep myself from smiling. Lukas had made a mistake, and for a few weeks, it had torn my heart open, but there was still one matter that hadn’t been rectified. I didn’t know how to bring it up, however.
Lukas was studying me intently and it made me blush at the thought of him being a dominant in my life again. I had been uncomfortable the last day I had been with him and not been able to seek comfort from him, but I understood what had happened then as well. To some degree.
I looked away, not sure how to put into words how I was feeling. It didn’t seem to matter that I knew why he’d cut me loose, I still remembered how difficult it had been. It was the one blip I didn’t know if it could be fixed with apologies and kindness, or romantic gestures.
While I tried to sort through my feelings and decide if I could let something like this go or it would be too difficult to forget, Lukas reached out and stroked my cheek with his thumb.
“I know I was awful to you. And I know I have no reason to hope you’d forgive me, especially after acting the way I did. I betrayed your trust in me and I was careless of your needs. It’s a mistake I’d like to try and put right, if you’ll give me another chance.”
Although I was screaming on the inside to say yes, I hesitated. Fear had filled me when he had been so cold.
“Will you change again the next time something goes wrong? Or I don’t behave the way you want?”
“No. I...” Lukas looked down. “I can’t promise to be perfect. And I won’t. But I know I’ve let past hurt get in the way of how I feel about you and I just ended up hurting more, and even worse, hurting you as well. It was far worse to realize how much I had hurt you than it was to know I hurt myself.”
I exhaled and leaned into his thumb and hand as he continued to stroke my cheek. The contact felt good. For a few seconds I closed my eyes and simply allowed myself to feel.
This was perfect. I didn’t feel nervous or scared, and the gentle motion of his skin against mine soothed away my worries.
“All right,” I replied, looking up at him. “I can give you a second chance.”
He cupped my cheeks with his hands, still gentle as he kissed me. Passion raced through me, desire for him. I wanted to give in. To see where it went.
The kiss grew more intense. I leaned in and pressed my body against his. Heat pooled between my thighs, taking me by surprise. He picked up on my desire and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me in tight against him.
I lifted my hands and reached for him, wanting more. Wanting him. I ached for him, surprised by the intensity of my feelings. Now that I wasn’t fighting them, they pushed forward in a rush.
To my surprise Lukas took my hands in his and pulled away. He held me at arm’s length.
“Not yet,” he said. “I want to enjoy you and take my time. If you have a dinner engagement, then we should make that. Do you know where Sarai was planning to take you? If not, I’ve got a really good idea.”
I shrugged. I wasn’t sure what she’d thought of. Sarai almost always knew where she wanted to go and what she wanted to do.
Lukas appeared to have other plans, and he walked away from me to pull out his phone and message her. I took a few deep breaths, feeling frustrated he hadn’t wanted to screw me yet. Another look around the room brought me to my senses.
There wasn’t a bit of furniture in the entire house. No bed, and nothing else that could be considered comfortable. Not that it had stopped Lukas every time. He’d fucked me in a restroom before.
I blushed as I thought about it. He certainly made life more interesting.
Before I could do more than consider what might follow if I let it, Lukas took my hand and led me back out to the car again. I brought the tablet and card with me, tucking both into my purse. If I got a chance, I’d begin by setting up the place. I’d start with the bed and work my way out from there.
I hadn’t expected to get to do something so fun, but I certainly wasn’t going to complain. This could be something I got used to. If he gained a property every time his company finished a project and they rented them out as a mix of vacation rentals and longer-term residences, I could help furnish some of them, I was sure.
As we drove I considered asking where we were going to go, but I began to suspect once I recognized where we were. Once again, Lukas was taking me to the restaurant with the fries and shake we’d tried together. It was the third time we’d been to it and the first time Daniel would.
I knew he’d orchestrated it but to my surprise everyone else was already there. They were sitting at one of the larger booths near the back, and Lukas took my hand in his as we walked down the length of the building. Although I was surprised he wanted to be so public about us being together again, I didn’t pull away.
Sarai and Daniel both noticed, but they weren’t the only people there, and no one said anything.
“Perfect. Now we’re all here, let’s celebrate,” Sarai said. “We’ve got a bright future, and we know where we’re heading. Thank you all of you for making this happen. It has been a dream to work with you all and I know we’re going to love working together again.”
I lifted my glass, feeling happy among the new friends I had made. When I had gone to Juno’s wedding, I had thought only of not sticking out or appearing too awkward. I never dreamed it would lead to so much more.
EPILOGUE
I opened the box and pulled at the vase I’d ordered. It was one of the last pieces I had wanted for the house, and I placed it on the center of the side unit in the living room. As I stepped back, I smiled.
The house was finished. It needed flowers, but those could be purchased any time and I could imagine them for now. The place was perfect.
It had taken almost two weeks of constant work and hunting for all the right pieces, but Sarai had let me get a few things from the spares of the project and I’d used the internet where I could around meetings and similar tasks to get the bulk of the furniture.
The rest of the time I had been in the same little markets, hunting out items with the right unique aesthetic. I had finally found the perfect vase in a market I loved near the vacation park.
Feeling pleased with myself, I took a picture and sent it to some of my friends to let them know I was done. All of them had been excited about the thought of staying with me while I was here and seeing more of the area, especially when I was here in between stints in New York.
Because there would be a lot more similarities between the different vacation homes on this second project, I would be able to do a little more of the process from here and buy in bulk a lot of what I wanted.
I was considering showing Lukas a photo when I heard his car on the drive. While I had been working on it, I had refused to let Lukas into the house. He’d obliged me, but I wasn’t surprised he was here as soon as he could be.
Eager to show him around, I opened the door before he could knock.
He handed me a big bouquet of flowers and I noticed he had a bottle of champagne tucked under one arm and strawberries in the other hand.
“Apparently there’s a vase that needs those,” he said, pointing to the flowers he’d handed me before sweeping in as well.
Stopping in the hallway, he glanced through the open doorways at the different rooms and his mouth fell open.
“You’ve transformed this place.”
“You did ask me to.” I grinned, more than a little pleased that he was so surprised.
Although I didn’t take him straight on a tour as I’d intended, we soon had the flowers in the vase, the strawberries in a bowl, and a glass of champagne poured for each of us.
“To the skills of the most amazing woman I know,” Lukas said as he raised his glass.
“I couldn’t think of any more beautiful houses for me to work with,” I replied, knowing we made a great team. He made the outside look good and thought about how the houses should be laid out. Then I took over and filled them full of the right furniture and knick-knacks to make them feel like a home.
“To teamwork.” We both said the words together, almost entirely of one mind.
After that, I tried to show him around, but we didn’t get any further than the bedroom. I’d chosen a dark-wood four-poster bed for the main suite, and there was a large bench at the end of the bed. It almost looked like something out of a fairy tale, but it was understated enough, and there was enough light streaming in from the large windows that it fit the room well.
Lukas took the champagne glass out of my hands and set both of them down on the bedside table. I was about to ask what he was thinking of when he pulled me into his arms and pressed his lips to mine. Almost immediately his hands began to roam.
I moaned into him as he touched parts of me that had yearned for him. Even though we’d been back together again for two weeks, he hadn’t taken me yet. Each time we’d come together he’d ramped up the desire. He’d kissed me more passionately than I had thought possible at times.
Yet his hands he had kept to himself. Until now. It was like he couldn’t hold back any longer, and neither could I. Within another second I was unbuttoning his shirt, wanting to get at the man underneath.
He lifted the T-shirt I had on and quickly pulled it over my head. It broke our kiss long enough that I got a good look at him. Desire shone in his eyes and I could see an obvious bulge in his pants.
We kissed some more, but this time he was more controlled, and when I tried to take his pants off, he stopped my hands and held them in his.
“I don’t want this to be a quick fuck,” he said. “I’ve been waiting for the right moment. Wanting you to know I can be controlled and dedicated to your needs and give you time to trust me with you again.”
