Page 9 of Crossing the Red Line
“You’re dragging her away?”Corinne questioned, looking up at her brother.
“I am.It’s not too often we get to spend the nights together, if you catch my drift.”He winked.
“Ugh, please, I don’t want to know anything about your sex life,” Janice said, holding up her hand, causing me and Corinne to laugh.
“That’s good, because I wasn’t sharing,” he answered.
“Okay, so we will see you guys at Christmas then,” Janice and Corinne said at the same time.
I smiled and nodded, but out of the corner of my eye, I caught the look on Lucas’s face.In my heart I felt bad, because I knew this was all fake, and I had always really liked his sisters and his mother.
“Actually, we should get together tomorrow and do some shopping,” Corinne said, looking at her mother and sister.
“That is a great idea,” Lucas’s mom said, looking at the pair of us.
I looked up at Lucas and waited for his lead before I agreed to go.He paused for a moment, almost like a deer in headlights.I was certain he had figured tonight would be fine and then tomorrow we would just go back to being Lucas and Ella.He nodded and then smiled down at me.
“Lucas, you better be there tomorrow,” Janice said, standing up to give her brother a hug.
I watched as Lucas hugged Janice, then Corinne, and then his mother.It warmed my heart knowing he had such a caring family, something I wished I had.My father had always supported me, but if my mother had stuck around, perhaps he wouldn’t have become so bitter.
“Ella, darling, I’m happy to see you are back in Lucas’s life.He missed you, and I know you are the right choice for him, even if he didn’t see it the first time,” Dorothy said, pulling me in for another hug.
Chapter Four
Lucas
“She’s a gem,darling.Don’t let her go this time,” my mother whispered as she hugged me one more time.
I’d been proud of how well Ella coped in such an awkward situation.She’d surpassed all of my expectations.Like before, she hit it off with my mother and she’d shown that we were ‘the real deal.’She also smoothed things over with Corinne, which wasn’t ever an easy feat.
In fact, she’d sold the idea of us so well with each brief touch, brief whisper, and smile that I even had to reel myself in throughout the night.I was so grateful to her for helping me with this and selling the entire relationship idea, I wasn’t even sure I knew if what she’d asked me to do would be enough to repay her.
We stepped out of the restaurant and began walking toward the elevator we’d come down in when I stopped and turned to her.
“Are you tired?”I questioned.
Ella smiled at me and shook her head.“Not in the slightest.”
“Feel like going out for a couple of drinks?”
She glanced around at the people walking past us and then shrugged her shoulders.“Not sure.I’ve never been to Vegas.”
“What?You’ve never been to Vegas?Guy Larson’s only daughter has never been to Vegas?”I questioned.
She laughed.Maybe my surprise sounded silly to her, but this wasVegaswe were talking about.How had she never been?
“Nope, never.”She shrugged.
I grinned.“Well, you are definitely in Vegas with the right Dominator.I love it here.”
“Why does it sound like I should be afraid of that?”she asked, giggling.
“Not a thing to be afraid of.Let’s go,” I said, taking her hand in mine and pulling her toward the exit door of the hotel.
We headed to a quiet little place the boys and I had found one of the last times we’d come to Vegas for a game, and the pair of us snuck inside.We grabbed a table near the back of the bar and ordered a few drinks.
“I can’t believe you’ve never been here,” I said again as I passed her the drink I’d ordered for her.
