CHAPTER16
FLYNN
I’m not sure how we managed it, but three days later we are on a private jet heading back to Los Angeles. Louisa managed to convince her father that she should accompany me home because she had some meetings set up regarding their new project. He agreed and offered up the company jet and so here we are bound for home and hopefully the answer that we both desire more than anything.
Over the past three days, we have grown closer, and I have loved spending time with my new family. Louisa has been happier at work now Brad has been warned off and I spent glorious time with my mother while dodging Sienna’s endless invitations to show me off to her friends.
“This is nice.” Louisa stretches out opposite me and smiles sweetly, and I swear my heart skips a beat. I can’t help desiring her. She is everything I love. Funny, smart and completely unaware of her natural beauty that manifests itself every time she looks my way.
We have a connection that we can’t ignore, which is why this weekend is going to be an extreme test of resistance.
“It’s been so long since I went to LA.”
“I didn’t know you had.”
I take a swig of the whiskey offered to me in a crystal glass by the company stewardess.
“Yes, my father had a house there, possibly because that’s where he originated from. Not that they visited much. I’m guessing the bad memories kept them away. We spent the odd vacation there until he sold it and bought a penthouse instead. I’ve never been there. As I said, it’s been a long time.”
I’m grateful he does because now we won’t have to head to my own apartment, which I’m a little relieved about. Not that I’m ashamed of my modern sterile penthouse, but it’s always been my escape from life. Nobody ever goes there, which is what I like. I wasn’t sure how I’d cope with another person in my personal space and it’s best to stay in unfamiliar territory for both of us.
I laugh softly. “I still can’t believe you persuaded your father.”
She giggles, which makes me smile. “Probably because he’s feeling guilty about Brad. He could tell I was upset, and he would never admit it, but he would agree to anything to make me happy.”
“I can understand that.” I stare at her with a deep yearning that I’m hoping I’m hiding well because this is pure torture. More than anything, I want to experience what Louisa tastes like. She is like the most tempting forbidden fruit hanging just out of reach.
My motto has always been one night only for a very good reason. Emotion. I don’t react well to that and yet I’ve always had a deep yearning for a connection with someone, probably because it’s always been denied to me.
Now I have everything I want except for one thing. Louisa could be my cousin and related by blood. Which is why I’m so eager to discover the truth because I stand to gain much more than the relief at not sharing DNA with a psychopath.
By the time we touch down, I’m desperate for answers. This weekend is going to be torturous enough sharing an apartment with Louisa. I’m not sure how I’ll stop myself from touching her, desperate for one lick, one swipe of the tongue to satisfy this carnal urge that is consuming me.
I know it’s not me either. It’s her. She wants me too and I can tell that by the unguarded lust in her eyes when she thinks I’m not looking. The blush to her cheeks as she looks away and the rapid breathing when I brush against her or take her hand. We are dancing a complicated tango and I just hope we get to finish it because how will I recover from this aching need if it turns out I can’t have her?
* * *
Dimitri has arrangeda car and a driver, and we are soon heading into town, and I’m not surprised when we pull up outside the most luxurious hotel in LA and discover Dimitri’s penthouse within its luxurious walls.
Louisa looks tired and, as the doorman helps the driver with our bags, I take her hand and walk proudly beside her inside.
Once we retrieve the key, we take the elevator to the final floor and, as it opens, we step into the purest luxury.
“This is amazing.”
Louisa’s eyes are wide as she stares around at paradise, and I must agree. Obviously, Dimitri appointed the finest designers and as we stare at the modern trappings of success, I’m even more determined to live this life myself.
The finest art and the most exquisite furniture adorn a huge loft style apartment that’s boasts the city as a backdrop, courtesy of the floor to ceiling windows that reveal the city outside.
“I wonder why I haven’t been here before now?” Louisa says with disappointment. “In fact. This is one of several my father owns but rarely steps foot inside.”
“It’s impressive. I can’t argue with that.”
Louisa sighs and looks troubled.
“What?” I’m quick to ask and she says slightly bitterly, “It’s just a waste. All of this money tied up in a museum piece that rarely sees life. How is this right when so many have so little?”
“Says the daughter of a billionaire.”