They took it slow.  Kari was lying on top of him, stomach to stomach, and he was inside of her.  As Kari laid her head on his chest, and closed her eyes to enjoy the sensations, not only of his dick inside of her, but his big, powerful hands all over her.  Alex was rubbing her ass, and her back, and her ass all over again.  He was squeezing both cheeks so hard that it made those sensations intensify.  He was a master of control when he wanted to be, and Alex was in control that night.

Alex was in new territory that night as well.  As he stroked inside of her, and slid along her wetness and ridges, he was becoming more rigid and thicker the deeper he penetrated.  And he was feeling the heat.  Not the heat of their sex.  He was well familiar with that kind of heat.  But the heat of being with somebody who made his heart feel lighter.  Who made his shoulders slump in a relaxation that took away all the burdens he bore, even if just for that moment in time.  Who made his mind wander to possibilities that just months before would have been absurd to him.  He was in what he could only guess was love territory.

Alex Drakos could not admit it out loud, but he privately felt that he just might be falling in love.

He closed his eyes, enjoyed what it felt to be making love to the woman that just might be the one he never thought would ever be, and imagined the possibility.  Karena “Kari” Grant.  Kari Grant.  Kari Drakos.

He opened his eyes, a little shaken by the thought.  He knew it would certainly be a thousand steps up from Linda Drakos.  He knew he would be proud to parade around a woman of her character and goodness as his woman.  He knew he would be filled with that kind of joy that he always thought would elude him for life.

But what would it do for her?

How would he enhance her life?

He had baggage.  So much baggage!  How could he put that weight on her?

But he wanted her.  How could he not?  Because Alex Drakos always had a knack for getting exactly what he wanted.

Except when it came to love.

He pulled Kari tighter into his arms as his strokes began to increase.  He knew he was going deeper into that web of love with every stroke he put on her, but he kept stroking anyway.  The idea that some Hollywood whore like Natalie Corman would tell the world he had asked her to be his wife, would normally have been mildly amusing to Alex.  The idea of that vicious lie being spread around now, hurting this woman in his arms, the woman his dick was impaled inside of, wasn’t funny anymore.

He held Kari tighter and tighter, and fucked her harder and harder at just the thought of hurting her.  And when she had her orgasm, and lifted her head and looked her hooded eyes into his hooded eyes as she came, his heart squeezed with the joy her eyes displayed.  And he didn’t even cum that night.  Just seeing Kari happy, and satisfied, was all the cum he needed.

Alex Drakos was falling in love. 

 

Later that night, as they lay arm in arm, Kari was feeling some kind of happy way too.  She even began smiling.

Alex looked at her, and couldn’t help but smile too.  “What’s so funny?” he asked.

“Nothing’s funny,” Kari said.  “But it seems so quiet now.  Every time I came over here there was always so much noise and activity and the sound of machines doing what machines do.”

Alex smiled.  “That’s over for now.”  Then he thought about it.  Now was as good a time as any to tell her, he decided.  “I’m having a house built here in Apple Valley,” he said.

Kari was surprised.  She looked at him.  “A house?”

Alex looked at her.  “Yes.”

What did that mean, Kari wondered?  And being Kari, she had to ask it.  “Does that mean you plan to move to Apple Valley?”

Alex exhaled.  “I don’t know yet,” he said truthfully.  “But just in case.”

Kari smiled.  “Just in case you may move here, you’re having a house built here?”

“That’s right.”

Kari shook her head.  “You are one odd hombre,” she said.

Alex laughed.

When the laugher died down, she moved closer against him.  “It’ll be great if you did move here,” she said.  “I know two people who will be very happy.”

Alex knew it too.  He pulled her closer, and kissed her on her forehead.

After another pause of silence, Kari remembered what he had said.  “You’re going to Greece,” she said.

Alex nodded.  “Yes.”

“When?”

“After the Meet and Greet.”

Kari looked at him. “What Meet and Greet?”

Alex was surprised.  “You didn’t get an invite?”

“No.”

“That’s what happens when you leave it to politicians.  I guess the mayor is inviting only those he wants to attend.”

“What is it about?”

“It’s meant to be for vendors who already have secured contracts with the hotel and casino I’m building.  But also for vendors who want contracts.  I’ll be meeting and greeting both.  It was supposed to happen later this week, but I had to push it up for tomorrow at noon.”

“Because you were coming to town?”

“That, yes,” Alex responded, “and because I need to get to Greece.  Speaking of which,” he added.

When he didn’t say anything else, Kari looked at him.  “What?” she asked.

“I want you to come with me.”

Did Kari hear him right?  “Come with you where?” she asked, to clarify it for herself.

“To Greece,” Alex replied.  “I want you to drop everything tomorrow afternoon, come with me to the Meet and Greet, and then board my plane and come with me to Greece.”

Kari was stunned.

“I think you should meet my family,” Alex said.

“You mean the gangsters?” Kari asked with a smile.

Alex looked at her.  No smile.  No sugarcoat.  “Yes,” he said.  “That’s why I’m going.”

“What do you mean?”

“I heard something disturbing about my brother.  I need to find out if it’s true.”

Kari wanted to ask what was it that was so disturbing, but she held her peace.

“Will you come?” he asked her.  “Benny and Faye will see after Jordan.  Dezzamaine will take care of Maid for Mom, I’m sure, while we’re gone.”

But he could tell Kari was waffling.  He decided to make himself plain.  “It’s been years since I’ve been home,” he said.  “I was lost, and adrift while I lived there.  I need you with me, to anchor me.  To remind me . . .”

“To remind you of what?” Kari asked.

“To remind me that I’m not that person anymore,” Alex said.

Kari felt a lump in her throat.  This man, this strong, powerful man, was saying something to her that nobody had ever said to her and she believed him.  Alex was saying that he needed her.  To want her was one thing.  Lust was built on want.  But to need her was a different ballgame.  Love was built on need.

And somehow, Kari didn’t fight it.  He needed her, and just like he was there for Jordan, and for her so many times already, she was going to be there for him.

“It’ll be my honor to go meet your family,” she said.

Alex pulled her into his arms.  “They’re fucked up,” he said.  “They are not what Americans might call a Brady Bunch kind of family.  But we’re used to that, too.”

Kari laughed.  “Yes, we are,” she said happily, as he held her.