“Did you really hear everything?” I arch an eyebrow, hoping beyond hope that he didn't.
“I heard everything that matters.” Croix rests his back against the closed door of my office. It feels like a barrier meant to keep Derrick and I separated. He's probably halfway back to his car by now. He didn't stay after making the comment about paying me double. He knows I still have his number saved in my phone. I cared about him too much to delete it.
Everything that matters? I doubt Croix heard everything that mattered to me. My heart still throbs from the pain of thinking about what could be. I know better than to go running after Derrick again, though. Despite the fact that I still want him, I know he would destroy me.
“Thanks for coming in and scaring him off,” I say with a sigh.
“You're not considering his offer, are you?” Croix eyes me warily.
“No.” I shake my head. “I'm done being used by him.”
Croix steps away from the door and walks to the window, looking out over the ocean. “People don't want The Billionaires Club here as it is. They're not going to welcome a competing club either.”
The change of subject is welcome, but I'm not quite sure what he's getting at. “That's not our problem.”
“No. It's really not.” He glances back at me for a fraction of a second. “I don't want you going back to him.”
“There's no worry of that.” I rub my temple, trying to massage the stress away.
Croix turns to me abruptly. “I'm serious, Raven. You're mine now. He can't have you. He had his chance.”
The sudden tension in his voice is endearing. I can't help but smile at how intense he sounds.
It was strange when Derrick was in my office. For a while, it felt like we were the only two people in the world—like I was trapped in my past. Not knowing where Croix and I stand romantically makes it easy to see other options.
“I'm yours now, huh?” I muse.
“You are.”
“You make it sound like there's exclusivity attached to that.”
“There is.” He doesn't hesitate.
“On both sides?” I swivel my chair to face him.
“On both sides. The thought of another man touching you...” He closes the distance between us, reaching up to run the back of his fingers across my cheek. “I won't have it.”
I turn his hand around and press his palm to my cheek, leaning into his touch. “That's exactly what I needed to hear right now.”
“And I need to hear that you're not going back to him. I need to know for certain that I have nothing to fear from him having come here. I don't want him stealing you as an employee, and I damn sure don't want him stealing you as a lover.”
My glance slips past him to the window. Somewhere not that far off, Derrick is driving away with fragments of my heart in his pocket. I want those fragments back. I want to heal from him, but the only way I'll be able to do that is if I allow myself to move on. I deserve better. Someone who won't use me and throw me away. I want that someone to be Croix, but even if it's not, I can't go on letting my memories of my time with Derrick affect me.
“There's not enough money in the world to make me want to have anything to do with that asshole again.”
***
There's no doubt in my mind that we both need this. Almost as soon as I told Croix that I'd be exclusive to him, he was whisking me away to one of the guest suites. He couldn't even wait until we got there. As soon as we stepped into the elevator, he was slamming me against the wall, kissing me with such desperation that I melted in his arms.
Now we're on a bed, both naked, our bodies entwined. I'm convinced that by the time The Billionaires Club opens, we will have fucked in every room in this resort.
I lie beneath him, feeling the hard planes and ripples of his muscles as he glides on top of me. He fucks me with rhythmic, fluid motions. Watching him on top of me, seeing how sexy he looks, erases all the desire I had for Derrick only moments ago.
Even after Croix has found his release and thrown the condom away, he takes time worshiping my body with gentle kisses that cause my heart to flutter. Breathless, he pulls me back against him, and I rest my head on his chest. He strokes my arm affectionately, reminding me of what connecting with a man on an intimate level is supposed to feel like. If he were Derrick, he'd be rolling over to pass out right now; I would practically be forgotten.
“Go out on a date with me this weekend.” Croix nuzzles his face into my hair, inhaling my scent.
“A date, huh?” I turn to look at him with a smile.
“A real date.”
“And where would you take me on this date?”
“Somewhere fun.” He takes my hands and entwines our fingers, playing with them.
“What's fun to you?” I quirk an eyebrow, immediately thinking of skydiving. He seems like the risk taking type.
“Theme parks.” It sounds more like a question than a response.
“Is that just an excuse to see me in a bathing suit? The only theme parks around here are water parks.”
“Why would I need to see you in a bathing suit? I've seen you in less.” He grins, his eyes raking up and down my naked body.
“You're so bad.” I slap at his chest playfully.
“What?” he laughs. “I'm being honest.”
I settle beside him. “So if not a water park, then what did you have in mind.”
“We could go to Orlando.” He screws his face in an expression that I can only describe as utterly adorable.
“Orlando is three hours away.” I wrinkle my nose, not really thrilled about the drive.
“Almost,” he corrects me.
“That's a long way to drive just to go to a theme park.”
He draws my hand up to his lips to kiss my fingers. “I figured we could make it an overnight trip.”
“That sounds like fun.” I shift my weight to get more comfortable.
“It would be. We could hit up Universal Studios or Disney. Whichever you prefer.”
“I'm a Disney girl, personally. The rides at Universal Studios give me motion sickness.”
I'm not sure what happened, but as soon as I hit my twenties, my body decided to start having a violent reaction to anything that involved looking at a screen up close and being jostled around. I can't even read in a car without getting sick, at this point.
“Disney it is, then.” Croix smiles at me.
I sigh, gazing up at the ceiling. I've only ever been to Disney World once, but I remember it being such a magical place. There's so much nostalgia attached to it. “I haven't been to Disney since I was seven years old.”
“Then it's high time you went back.” Croix pulls me on top of him. I can feel his erection pressed against my leg. I'm squishing it down, but he definitely seems ready to go again.
“I want to ride It's A Small World and The Haunted Mansion and the Jungle Cruise,” I say excitedly.
“And once we're done at the theme park, we can go back to the hotel, and you can ride me,” he teases, wiggling beneath me.
“That's the best ride of all.” I purr, sliding off of him so that I can grab his dick and give it a few cursory strokes. “But do I really have to wait that long to ride it again?”
“No. You most certainly do not.” His lips brush against mine before pressing into me more hungrily.
***
I squeal like a small child when we walk into our suite at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge. As soon as Croix opens the door, I abandon my suitcases in the bedroom and rush out onto the balcony to watch the giraffes graze across the savanna. When Croix finds me there, I'm practically jumping up and down with excitement. He wraps his arms around me while I point to the giraffes like he's blind.
“I don't think I've ever seen anyone get so excited to see a giraffe before.” He grins at my jubilance.
“They're so close, babe.”
The day is long. After dropping our things off in the room and getting settled in, we venture out into the park. Croix makes sure that we hit up every ride I had listed off to him. Then we circle the park in a strategic fashion, taking in as much of it as we can before the sun sets and it's time to go watch the fireworks display at The Magic Kingdom.
Croix buys us some ice cream and we try to find a place to sit away from the throngs of people, which is easier said than done with the park being so packed. We cuddle together despite the heat, eating our ice cream and watching the fireworks burst above the castle. It's a truly magical night.
I couldn't ask for a more perfect day with a more perfect man. As we sit with his arm draped over my shoulder, my heart begins to swell. The wonder in his eyes as I watch the reflection of the fireworks in them is almost as captivating as what's taking place around us. I'm sad when the grand finale signals the end of the show, but happy for other reasons.
Croix turns to me, giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Did you enjoy yourself?”
“More than you'll ever know.” I gaze up at him like a swooning idiot.
“I'm glad.” He smiles warmly.
“The night isn't over yet, though.”
“It's not?” Croix quirks an eyebrow.
“No. There's one more ride you promised me.”