Page 65 of Room Service
I stare at her, not sure what to say from the unexpected flip in conversation.
“You’re special, Elise, and I know that may sound weird coming from someone you barely know, but Dorien needs someone special, and I’m pretty sure he’s found it in you.”
Her words bring unshed tears to my eyes. I’ve never been called special. I’ve never been loved for just being me, so hearing her say something nice is throwing me all off.
“I don’t mean to make you upset,” she says, her tone now sounding worried.
“I’m not upset,” I tell her as I swipe a hand under my eyes. “It’s just… I’ve never really felt like I’ve belonged before. My parents made me marry my husband, and they did it for their own gains. They always made me feel like I was never good enough, and now you’re saying nice things and it’s just hard to hear after so many years of nothing.” And now she’s going to think I’m a silly twat for spouting all of that to her when, like she said, we hardly know each other.
“None of them deserved you, Elise.” She reaches across the island and takes my hand in hers. “Truly, they didn’t deserve your beautiful soul.”
Fucking hell, now there’s no stopping the tears from falling. “My parents haven’t even tried to contact me since Dorien threw my mother out of this hotel.”
“He threw her out?” she asks, shocked.
“Yeah, when she came here with Derrick and tried to make me go back to him.”
“Oh damn, you gotta tell me that story at some point, because I’ve seen Dorien pissed, and I can only imagine how he told her to ‘do one’.”
“Oh yeah, it was, um…”
“So Dorien?”
“Exactly,” I reply, my tears subsiding as I laugh quietly.
“He’s a hard man to love, Elise, but when he lets you in, it’s so worth it. And I say that just as a friend, because I’m madly in love with my husband,” she reiterates, but I never thought anything of the sort. Their close bond was apparent the first time I saw them here.
“I’m scared, Chantel,” I whisper, because she fucking knows him and she probably has more of an idea of what he feels for me than I do. My head is all over the place with the whiplash I’m giving myself over whether he feels what I do.
“But sometimes, that’s the best kind of feeling, because it shows you just how much you want it, and when it’s returned, it’s magical.” She’s speaking like she knows, and maybe she went through something with Gabriel before they figured it out so she’s speaking from experience. “Be fierce, Elise, and never settle.”
Be fierce.
Never settle.
And the first step to doing that is to admit to myself what I’ve been trying to ignore for a while.
I am totally in love with Dorien Dukes.
Chapter Forty-Eight
DORIEN
“Elise,” I call when I get through the penthouse door. I’ve got food being prepared to be sent up here for us, and I need to ask her a question that has been on my mind all day.
“Yeah?” She pokes her head out of the bathroom, and I fucking drink her in. She’s so fucking gorgeous. And so fucking mine.
“Come, I need to talk to you.”
“Is everything okay?” she asks warily as she makes her way towards me.
“It will be,” I say before I swoop down and kiss her lips. Fuck, I’ve missed her today. Just another confirmation that this woman has my dick in a vice. Her hands find the back of my neck, her fingers delving into the hair at the nape, and I pull her flush against me, taking my time reacquainting my tongue with hers. And then a bastard knock comes to the door.
“For fuck’s sake,” I grumble, and her answering chuckle has my dick ready to stand to attention. I know it will be the food I ordered, but still, crappy fucking timing. I pull open the door and take the trolley from the porter, saying thank you and waving them away quickly.
“In a rush, are we?” she says as I close the door and wheel the trolley over to the table by the windows.
“Yes, because I’ve not had my cock in you since the early hours of the morning and I’d like to remedy that,” I admit. It’s been a fucker of a day, and losing myself in her is the best way to unwind.
