Page 76 of Only If You Dare

I’d fallen asleep in the tub when there was a light knock on the bathroom door. I flinched and opened my eyes.

“I knocked on the door but didn’t get an answer,” he said.

True to his word, Julian made his entry anyway. I sat up, and the water poured off my shoulders. I shuddered when a cool draft covered me.

“What time is it?”

“Six,” he said.

My eyes bugged. “Oh my god, I’ve slept too long.” I stretched, and water sloshed over the side to the floor.

“You’re good; you must’ve needed the rest. Running from me was wearing you out.” He smirked, and I twisted my lips. “I ordered you dinner. I’m going to pack my things and have them sent over to the jet.”

“Julian, I don’t want you to leave, you still have things to do here.”

“Have you forgotten, Desiree?”

I looked bewildered.

“I’m the boss. All the scenes have been wrapped. Kelsey is perfectly capable of handling things from here. These last few days in Dubai were purely for us to tie up loose ends, and rest before making our way back to the states. And,” he said before I could think of some other reason he should stay. “When I returned to Forward Kitchen, Donald informed me that Antonio’s parents were home and waiting for him. He was excited and told me to tell Ms. Steven’s, he’d miss her.” Julian smirked. “Lacey, too.”

I warmed all over and pulled my knees up to my chest for a hug.

“Thank you,” I said.

“No thanks necessary. Now get dressed before I come over there and ravage you. It’s taking extreme willpower not to pull you out of that water and suck a slippery nipple into my mouth.”

My stomach clenched, and my nipple tightened.

“It’s the last, and only time, I’ll ever ask you to get dressed.”

I hid my head in my knees, giggling and Julian left the room. I fell back against the ceramic tub and let out a contented sigh. Was this all a dream? Would I wake up in the morning and still be on the run from Julian? Had Julian really told me he loved me? Did I tell him, I loved him, too?

The memory of that moment was still jarring, and the next morning when we boarded the flight, I was still pondering on them. Although yesterday had been more relaxing than ever, with Julian and I eating dinner, flipping through channels and laying in each other’s arms, the early morning flight still put me right to sleep. I’d had a croissant and coffee before I was in dreamland all over again.

When I rose, Julian and I were pretty much in the same position we’d been in on the ride over; with me stretched out on the sofa with my head in his lap and he sitting up with both hands thrown over the top with his head back.

I pulled to a sit and coached him into reversing positions. Surprisingly, Julian didn’t do much putting up a fight, but I could tell he was still sleeping. He positioned himself on his back with his feet crossed at the ankles on the edge of the sofa and his head in my lap. I stared down at his beautifully edged facial features. Thick eyebrows, perfectly carved nose, full lips and strong jawline. Could he belong to me? His words yesterday reversed through me.

“All mine.”

Was I incredibly dumb to fall for a man like Julian? I sighed softly and silently willed myself not to kiss his lips, going for the remote control. I flipped through the channels and settled on the Lifetime Movie Network. It wasn’t long before we’d made it back to Houston. And now that we were there, I was ready to get on with it. But there was still that lingering question. How could Julian and I move forward with any kind of relationship, when I was broken?

The Houston Report was busy as usual. Phone’s ringing, conversations at the water cooler, and I could tell security had been beefed up since the incident with the crazy guy. I made a beeline for Fredrick’s office but was cut off by Santana.

“Oh no you don’t pass right by me like I’m not here,” she said rising from her seat. “You look like a woman on a mission, where are you going?”

I pulled my resignation letter out and waved it around.

“This is officially my last day.”

“No two weeks?” Santana said hopelessly. “I need two weeks, or I won’t get a letter of recommendation.”

“Yes, you will.”

Santana perked up. “And you know this because?”

“Because I’ve got something he wants and he has something I want. It’s a simple trade off that would be in the best interest of the newspaper. And you know how much Fredrick’s always looking out for the best interest of the Houston Report,” I stated sarcastically, moving past her to Fredrick’s office.

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