Page 126 of How to Belong with a Billionaire

“Then you’ll have me for a long time,” I said. “Me and a really exceptional, queer-friendly, kink-friendly therapist.”

He arched a brow wryly. “You’re bringing other parties into our relationship already?”

“The therapist is nonnegotiable. We can’t do this alone.”

For a moment or two, he offered no response and I started to freak out a little bit. But then he smiled. “As you wish.”

Ack. Help. Melting. And all it took was a smile and aPrincess Bridereference. I was midway through a flurry of kisses when I remembered there were still things to be mature and sensible about. Reluctantly I pulled back. Then changed my mind and gave him another kiss. Before finally getting myself together.

“There’s more,” I told him. Which would have sounded a lot more dignified if I hadn’t still been breathless.

He gazed at me steadily, the stern set of his lips still softened by his smile, and my kisses. “Anything.”

“Okay. It’s…” I was kind of out of my lane here, but fuck it, for all I knew, the whole road was mine—“I need you to sort things out with Ellery.”

“She hates me, Arden. She’ll reject any overture I make.”

“She doesn’t hate you. But yeah, she’ll probably reject whatever you do. At least the first…fifty…sixty times you try.”

Caspian’s worry line was back. “And you still want me to do it?”

“I can’t make you. But I think you owe her the attempt. The attempts. I mean, this shit’s complicated and can’t be fixed overnight. But she shouldn’t have to live believing she’s worthless to you.”

“You’re right. Of course you’re right.”

“And”—apparently I wasn’t done—“you should offer Bellerose his job back. At, like, twice the salary.”

“Twice the salary?” Caspian looked genuinely startled. “You do realise that would make him one of my highest paid employees.”

“I don’t care. You can afford it. Besides, you suspended him for asking a perfectly reasonable question about your well-being.”

“I admit, that was unworthy of me.”

“Anyway, I don’t think he’ll take it. At least, I think he shouldn’t take it. He cared for you way more than you ever acknowledged or valued, and it wasn’t good for him.”

“On the contrary,” said Caspian, with a depth of regret that eased a knot I hadn’t realised had been stuck inside me, “I valued it deeply. But I also questioned it, as I questioned everything touched by Lancaster.”

I shivered, remembering all too vividly Steyne’s hands on me, marking every place they’d landed like paint splatter. Maybe someday I’d tell Caspian what had happened, but right now, it felt too much like giving Lancaster Steyne what he wanted. “He’s not the centre of the fucking universe. Sometimes it only matters what things are, not where they came from.”

“I’ll try to contact Bellerose tomorrow.” Leaning in, Caspian kissed the tip of my nose, that tiny flicker of warmth enough to render Steyne as insubstantial as dust. “Now, is there anything else I can give you, my Arden? It’s a little early for my hand in marriage. And you already have my kingdom at your feet. My heart for yours.”

I could feel the heat creeping up my neck, making me blush like a schoolboy at his first prom. Caspian had once told me he wasn’t romantic. It was something else he’d got beyond wrong. “I…I…guess a ride home would be nice.”

“Of course.” He stood, taking me with him, that heedless, effortless strength of his making me feel protected and overwhelmed and cherished all at once…“The warehouse?”

“Or…” Old worries—worries from another lifetime—dug their way zombie-like from shallow graves and made me awkward. “Or your place?”

“Certainly.” Now it was Caspian’s turn to hesitate. “I wonder, though, have you forgotten the…I believe you called it a sentimental declaration that I asked for?”

Ohhhhhhh.I had to fight incredibly hard against the goofy smile that tried to shape my lips. “I thoughtyou’dforgotten.”

“I haven’t.”

“You might have to remind me.”

He gave me an outraged look. “You just indicated that you remembered.”

“Who? Me?”

---