Page 49 of Corrupted Empire

Alexis descends in a shimmering black gown that clings teasingly to her ample hips and bosom. The cowl neckline reveals just a little bit of cleavage, enough to make my mouth water. Her hair is twisted back in an elegant bun, leaving her swan-like neck and shoulders exposed. When my gaze lifts to her face, I find Alexis smirking at me. Her lips are ruby red and her eyes are dark, making the blue of her irises look electric.

Alexis reaches the foyer and pauses.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

She blinks. “I’m waiting for you to offer me your arm. Duh.”

“Duh?” I mock, but extend my arm for her anyway.

She sticks her tongue out at me, and when she takes my arm, I wrench her close to my chest, squeezing her forearm. I glide my other hand around her waist and pull her in tight so that I can feel her breasts squashed against me and the shape of her thighs through her dress.

Alexis looks up, lips parted. Her pupils spill out into her irises.

“You look good enough to eat,” I drawl, cocking my head to the side to examine her. “Perhaps that’s what we should do tonight instead. Leave the society cretins to their crudités, and spend the night devouring each other instead.”

Her lips lift into a sensual smile. “Promises, promises, Mr. Bellucci.” Her hand tugs at my fingers, and she backs out of my grasp. “But you know that if we’re not photographed together at this event, Carmen is going to have a conniption.”

I sigh. She’s right. I just really don’t want to go to this fucking thing. At least I will have Alexis there with me.

I offer her my arm again. “Come on, then.” When she hesitates, I grin. “I promise I won’t bite.”

* * *

We glide across the dance floor, thousands of fairy lights twinkling overhead. As we circle past the back of the room, I see the serving staff pouring a bottle of champagne over a meticulously arranged champagne pyramid. Then we sail toward the stage, where a six-piece jazz band is crooning timeless favorites.

It’s not a bad ball, as far as balls are concerned.

“You want to know something funny?” Alexis asks. “I keep thinking how this feels refreshingly normal. Before I met you, this would have been the most insane thing I’d ever seen.”

I guide her away from an older couple who are swaying together closely in their own world. The woman’s silver head rests on the man’s shoulder, and he has his eyes closed as they sway to the beat of the music. I feel like an intruder for even glimpsing their intimate moment.

“Do you regret your new normal?” I ask. “Do you miss how vanilla things were before?”

Alexis presses her full lips together in thought. Then she gives a short shake of her head.

“I’ve never bothered much with regret,” she says. “I figure it’s pointless to start now.”

I chuckle, and we continue dancing. I could dance with her all night. The gentle sway of the music, her soft scent filling the space between us, her eyes on mine, searching. We have fucked a few times since she came back to the mansion. This is the most intimate we’ve been in a long time.

I open my mouth to say something perhaps much less guarded than I normally would, but my gaze sticks on the couple who have just entered the dance floor behind Alexis.

The man looks worn, but not in the weathered way a stony cliff does after being beaten by the winds and the rain for decades. Rather, he looks like a deflated balloon—droopy, wrinkled, and sad. The woman, on the other hand, is radiant. Her short blonde hair gleams in the low light, and her eyes sparkle bright blue from across the sea of bodies.

I swear under my breath.

“What?” Alexis asks.

“Kevin Lynch and Felicity Huffman.”

Alexis clicks her tongue. “Well, shit.”

That isn’t quite the reaction I anticipated from her. Felicity and Kevin cut through the crowd to arrive in front of us. She is wearing an attention-grabbing floor-length pink gown. Kevin’s tux is pressed and neat, yet he seems unkempt somehow. There is a shadow of gray stubble on his cheeks, and his eyes, that bright Walsh green, look dim and distant. He doesn’t want to be here.

“Well, hello,” Felicity purrs. “I was hoping I would catch you here.”

I grit my teeth, and the hand on Alexis’ hip tightens. “I’m not in the mood, Felicity.”

Alexis turns and stands at my side, giving my hand a reassuring squeeze as she does.

---