LUCIEN

 

IT'S BEEN A week since Adeline found out about the cameras in her old room.  Frankly, she garnered a lot of information that day in my office.

She knows about her file and the emails and the fact that Giovanni is the one that sold her and that I kept that from her too.

She knows everything.

And yet she's not angry.  Even more importantly, she still loves me.

In a way, I'm glad Jackson let her into my office.  A huge weight feels like it has been lifted now that Adeline and I have no secrets between us.

And it seems as if our relationship has taken another dramatic shift.  Even though I still can't say those three magical words, I treat her like a magnificent treasure.  I treat her like my one and only.

We eat our meals together, sleep together every night and practically spend every waking moment together.

I can't get enough of her, and I know that I never will.  Adeline came into my world like a tornado, shredding through the tough, exterior shell that was keeping me locked away from the outside world.  She ripped open my chest and squeezed that cold, black muscle, until it started beating again, bringing me back to life.

And my heart beats for her and her alone.

Adeline woke me up and did the impossible — she freed me.  And I want to make her mine.

Forever.

"You're meeting the jeweler at five o'clock," I tell Jax for the tenth time today.

"Yes, yes.  For fuck's sake, Luc, we've gone over this a million fucking times this week."

I pace my office, my fingers raking through my hair and pulling at the ends.  I've never been so out of my element before, so fucking nervous, so fucking…petrified.

And when I glance up at Jax, he's lounging in one of the armchairs, completely relaxed with a smirk on his face.  I stop pacing and glare at him.  "What?" I snap.

"You.  You just look so…"  He taps his chin as if deep in thought.  "Normal," he says finally.

"Normal?  This is normal?" I exclaim, throwing my hands up in the air, completely exasperated.

"Yes," he says with a nod.  "Guys are always this nervous before they pop the question."

I scrub a hand down my face.  "What if she doesn't say yes?"

"She will," Jax says, so sure of himself.  If only I could have an ounce of his optimism right now.

"But what if she doesn't?" I insist with my hands spread out before me.

"Then she doesn't," he says with a nonchalant shrug.  "But you don't need to worry about that, because she's definitely going to say yes."  He winks at me, and I want to tear out his fucking throat at his cocky, casual attitude.

"How do you know?"  I don't understand why, but I need his reassurance on this.

He gives me a serious, level look before he simply says, "I just know.  Trust me on this one, Luc."

I sigh loudly and shake my head.  "Here are the directions," I tell him before handing him the paperwork.  It's going to take a couple hours by plane and a few more hours by car to reach his destination.  "Have you decided if you're going to stay the night or not?"

He shrugs again.  "I don't know.  It's been a long time since I've tasted the local cuisine," he says while wriggling his eyebrows suggestively.

I roll my eyes.  "Just wear protection.  Lord knows the world doesn't need any little Jacksons running around."

He chuckles and claps me on the back.  I'm quick to notice that I don't even flinch at his touch.

Then he tells me, "I'm heading out."  He tucks the papers under his arm.  "Gonna prep the plane and do an engine check."

"Take Wraith with you," I suggest.

"No.  He should be here on the island.  Where he belongs," Jax says with a serious tone.  "Besides, that fucker gives me the creeps," he tells me with a dramatic shudder.

Now it's my turn to laugh.  "He's just good at his job."

"Being a creepy motherfucker?  Job well done," Jax says with a smirk.  He turns and walks towards the door.  "Text me if you need me," he calls over his shoulder.

I watch Jackson leave, and then I collapse into my chair.  Putting my elbows on my knees and my head in my hands, I stay in that position for a long time thinking about what's going to be happening soon enough.

I'm going to propose to Adeline.

I haven't even thought about how I'm going to do it yet, but I figured I'll take her to Italy or Greece and do it the proper way.  There's no way in hell I'm just going to ask her over dinner here at the mansion or anywhere on this island, in fact.

I want it to be somewhere romantic; somewhere she'll remember for the rest of her life…a life that will hopefully have me by her side.

A knock at the door pulls me from my thoughts, and I check the security feed on my monitor.  Adeline stands just outside, and I'm quick to open the door for her.

"Hey," I say with a smile on my face.  I always seem to be smiling around her.  It just comes naturally now.

"Hey you."  She leans up on her tiptoes and places a chaste kiss on my mouth before settling back down to the floor.  "Where's Jax going?  All he would tell me is that he's on a secret mission.  Whatever that means," she says with a grin.

Damn it, Jax, I curse him internally.  It's almost as if he gets a kick out of making this even harder on me.  Hell, he probably does, knowing him.  "He's going to the mainland for something or other.  He'll be back late tonight or early tomorrow.  You never know with him."  My words come out sort of in a rush, but I hope they're believable enough.  Clearing my throat, I place my hands on Adeline's hips and stare into her gorgeous green eyes.  "How are you feeling?" I ask.  It's almost ten in the morning, and she's just now out of bed, fresh from a shower.  For the past week or so, she's been under the weather, and she's been more tired than usual.

I know I should get Jax to check her out and maybe run some tests, but I'm too damn stubborn and, more than anything, too fucking jealous to let him lay a finger on her.

However, Adeline has been suffering with some kind of sickness.  So I need to push my jealousy aside and let Jax examine her the moment he returns…with me in the same room…and right next to her…watching his every move.

"I'm feeling a little bit better than yesterday.  I don't know if I have a stomach bug or if maybe I just need to get used to the fancy, Mediterranean dishes Maria has been cooking up."

I grumble under my breath.  I told Maria to stop showcasing her talents on Adeline's poor stomach.  She's definitely toned down the meals as of late since Adeline can barely tolerate bland foods let alone the spicy creations Maria is always concocting.

"Yeah, well, she's not going to try her cooking skills out on you ever again.  She knows now just to stick to the basics," I say.  Then, grumbling, I reluctantly tell her, "I'll get Jax to check on you when he gets back in case it's some type of virus."  I lean down and place a kiss on the top of Adeline's head, inhaling her peach-scented hair.  Fuck, she always smells so damn good.

I'm glad I spent so much money on all her flower and fruit-scented shampoos and lotions.  It was totally worth it.  Her diverse scents drive me crazy…and make me instantly hard as a fucking rock.

Adeline squirms against me, no doubt feeling the sudden hardness against her belly.  Looking up at me, she grins and asks, "You really want Jax examining me?"  She places her hands over mine and moves them up and down the length of her sexy body.  "Putting his hands…all over me?"  Then, she looks up at me innocently and flutters her long, dark lashes.

However, she's anything but innocent in this moment.

It's been days since I've been inside of her, and it feels like a fucking eternity.  I've been trying to give her the space and time she needs until she feels better, but, fuck, if she's going to tease me like this, she obviously is ready for me too.

"Do you want his hands on you?" I ask her, curious for her answer.  I would never share her, not even with Jax, but I wonder if she wants that.  I don't think I could ever deny her anything…except for that.  Just the thought of someone else touching what's mine enrages me.

Her eyes widen when I release a deep growl.  "No," she whispers quickly. "There's only one man I want to touch me.  The only man who knows just where to touch me," she purrs like a seductive, little kitten.

My hard-on strains against my pants, and it takes every ounce of my willpower not to tear off her clothes and fuck her against the hardwood floor right fucking now.

"Fuck, Adeline," I curse, squeezing my eyes shut.  "You're in no condition for the things I want to do to you right now."

Her hand cups my hard length through my pants, and my eyes snap open and find hers.  "Do I have to show you how much I want you?"

This is a new and different side of Adeline.  And I fucking like it.

Nodding, I sink my teeth into my lower lip as I watch her drop to her knees.  I bite back a groan as she undoes my belt, unzips my pants and takes out my cock that feels like it's made of solid steel at the moment.

The instant her tongue touches the tip, I'm a fucking goner.  Shoving my hands into her hair, I force her to take more of me into her warm, wet mouth.

It feels so good that I'm lost in sensation as she sucks me like a little whore.  "Fuck," I growl, grasping her head and fucking her mouth while her fingertips dig into my ass cheeks.  I want this to last forever, but it's just too damn good.

And before I can stop or hold off any longer, I'm coming down her fucking throat and yelling obscenities at the top of my fucking lungs.

It takes me a while to come down from the high of the powerful orgasm.  My fingertips are still speared through her hair.  And I gently caress her face as her little, pink tongue flicks out and licks another drop of essence from the tip of my cock, making me shudder and groan.

"Fuck, Adeline," I moan.  Hooking my hands under her armpits, I pull her straight up and into my arms.  Her legs hook around my waist, locking her ankles around my back, and I claim her mouth.  Hard.

I kiss her like I'll never be able to get enough of her.  And that's because it's the truth.

The more I have her…the more I want her over and over and over again.

Carefully, since my pants are down around my shins, I carry her to the couch and unceremoniously drop her onto the soft leather.

"You really shouldn't have done that, Adeline," I warn her with a deep, stern tone.  "I haven't had you in three fucking days," I hiss, standing over her and looking down at my beauty.  "And now I'm going to make up for the time we lost."

Dropping to my knees beside the sofa, I pull her legs open and stare at her shaved, pink pussy.  "I'm not going to stop even if you beg," I tell her.

And as I lick, bite and fuck her into orgasm after orgasm, I keep my word.

I don't stop…even when she begs me to.