Page 18 of The Perfect Lie
I knew of one way to help ease the soreness of my muscles. Climbing out from under the comfort of the 600-thread Egyptian cotton sheets, I got to my feet and went to the bathroom. While I waited for the large jacuzzi tub to fill with water, I took a quick glance in the mirror. My hair was devilish, and tiny red marks lined my breasts. In all reality, I had never looked better. Laughing at myself for my wanton thoughts and how I loved Davian controlling my body, I checked the water’s temperature with my foot before dipping inside.
Basking in the warm water, I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the rim of the tub. It was truly heaven, and already I felt the soreness of my muscles ease. As I let my mind drift in the silence, something about how relentless Davian was with me last night played back in my mind. All the times that we had made love he had never shown that much animalistic desire. If I hadn’t known better, I would have thought that he was afraid of never getting the chance to make love to me again. In the length of time that I’ve known him, he never lost control. Maybe my little stunt yesterday caused his behavior.
My guilt settled in the depths of the water and pierced my heart. I was the cause of his pain. Davian was afraid he would lose me. It couldn’t be further from the truth. He would never lose me. Davian meant everything to me. Why, at every turn, did I go against his wish to protect me? There was no excuse for my actions, even if I was afraid of losing him. I put my life in danger.What the hell was I thinking?
Sinking my head beneath the water to shut out everything around me, or rather, wash away the guilt, I held my breath as long as I could before I had to surface. Before I could wipe the water from my eyes, a strong pair of arms lifted from the tub. “Davian, what are you doing? You’re going to get all wet.”
“When I saw you go under… I don’t know what I thought.” Davian shook his head, and I could only imagine what he must have thought when he found me immersed underwater.
Davian pulled a towel from the warmer and wrapped it around my soaked body. As he pulled it tight, his eyes remained on the red marks circling my breasts. We were quite the pair. His three-thousand-dollar suit was ruined. “I’m sorry about your suit.”
“I have others,” he said while touching the small marks with his fingers, tracing each one. “Sorry about these. I hope I didn't hurt you.”
“It’s okay. I’ll be fine.” I hid my shame by pulling the towel tighter around my body. Davian gave me a half-smile as he reached behind him to grab another towel.
Taking the initiative, he gently began working the towel over my head to dry my hair, which was hard for him to do considering I was still sitting on his lap. It was only after he felt it was dry enough that he allowed me to stand.
Standing between his legs, he pulled me toward him. “How about you get dressed, and then we can have breakfast? I left a bag for you on the bed.”
Before Davian took two steps, my stomach decided to make an awful sound. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I turned to face the mirror, hoping that Davian didn’t hear my stomach’s protest for food.
Excited to see what he left for me on the bed, I exited the bathroom. My eyes focused on the bed, where a beautiful pink bag sat. When I opened the bag, inside was a pair of designer jeans, a pink sleeveless knit sweater, and a white bra and panty set. It was funny. Looking at the clothes, I realized Davian knew exactly what I liked. As I dropped my robe to the floor, once again, my stomach made its hunger known. “Would you be quiet already?” I laughed, kneading the skin of my belly between my fingers.
After I was fully dressed, I headed out of the bedroom. I caught a glimpse of Davian standing outside on the balcony dressed in a black designer suit and a crisp white shirt. He was the definition of power. Gazing across the room to the dining room, the food Davian ordered sat on the table untouched. I could start without him, but just like everything else, I wanted to share our first meal back together with him
The breeze was blowing lightly, which forced the sheers to blow freely through the glass door. Pushing them to the side, I stepped out onto the balcony. The air was warm, and I could feel the warmth of the sun against the glass as I stood near the doorway. There was no denying that Davina was in deep thought. The last thing I wanted to do was startle him. Stepping near the railing where he stood, I wrapped my hands around his waist from behind. “Thank you for the clothes.”
Placing his hands over mine, he gave then a gentle squeeze. “Are you ready to eat?”
“I was ready to eat a while ago,” I replied, holding him tighter while I breathed in his masculine scent.
“Come on, let’s eat before it gets cold.”
Davian took me by the hand and led me inside, pulling the glass door closed behind him. When we reached the table, Davian pulled out my chair before taking his place at the head of the table. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought we were getting ready to enjoy breakfast together, but I did, and something was off with the way Davian was acting. The extent of the conversation surrounded events on the news, the upcoming holiday weekend, and how well the market was doing. Davian said nothing about us, Gwen, or even my father, for that matter. These topics alone were cause for conversation.
I knew I was exploring the unknown, but I needed to know where things stood between us. “Are we okay, Davian?” It was a simple question. One that could be easily answered if he felt the same way about me as I felt about him.
“Everything between us is more than okay.” Wiping his mouth with the cloth napkin, he pushed away from the table.
“Davian, where are you going?” We had barely sat down for breakfast, and already he was leaving.
Kissing me on top of the head, he whispered, “I’ve got to get something.”
Twisting in my chair, I watched him walk back to the bedroom.What the devil was he up to?Stretching my neck as far as it would go, I tried to see what he went to fetch. He was taking much too long, and my curiosity was getting to me. Placing my napkin on the table, I was about to go after him when he appeared. As far as I could tell, there was nothing in his hands. Maybe he couldn’t find whatever it was he wanted. Either way, he had my attention.
Something changed from the moment we sat down for breakfast and when he left for the bedroom. It was like I was dealing with two different men. His eyes softened, and his face gleamed with happiness. All the seriousness from moments ago was gone. “What’s going on, Davian?”
~13~
Davian
This morning when I left the suite while Reyna slept, my mind couldn’t have been clearer. More than anything, I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. She meant everything to me. Once upon a time, I thought Gwen meant the world to me, but too much time passed between us. Yes, I still cared for her and would do everything in my power to keep her safe from Salko and her father, but my heart belonged to Reyna.
So, after picking up a few things for Reyna, I decided to make one more stop. The jewelry store a block from the Four Seasons was one of the best in the city and would carry the perfect ring for Reyna. Any ring would have been perfect in her eyes since it was coming from me; nonetheless, it had to be as perfect as her.
I wondered what Reyna thought when I left the table for the bedroom. Soon we would be joined as one. Okay, maybe it was a bit premature. Any fool, including me, knew that she had to accept first. I knew she would, so why the hell was I so nervous? It wasn’t like I hadn’t proposed to a woman before. Then again, I had never proposed to a woman like Reyna.
I opened the velvet box to take one last look at the five-carat princess cut diamond before taking it from the box and placing it in my pocket. I only prayed that the next four words I said to Reyna would be returned with a ‘yes.’
