CHRISTIAN/STELLA
CHRISTIAN
She was dreaming. I could tell by the way her lips curved and the soft noises she made in her sleep.
I wondered what she was dreaming about and whether said dream included me.
If not, that was unacceptable.
I pressed a soft kiss to her shoulder and wrapped a possessive arm around her waist.
Whether in heaven or hell, in dreams or real life, Stella was mine.
And I didn’t fucking share.
She stirred and let out a small, adorable yawn before her eyes fluttered open and met mine.
“Good morning.”
A smile touched my lips at her shy tone.
“Morning, Butterfly. Sweet dreams?”
“Mmhmm.” She stretched and snuggled closer to me.
“What were you dreaming about?”
“I don’t really remember. Something involving a boat? I keep meaning to start a dream journal, but I always forget.”
I chose not to ask what a dream journal was.
“Were you alone in the dream?” I asked casually.
“Hmm, now that you mention it, there was someone in the boat with me,” she said. “Dark hair, tanned skin, a bit older than me but really good-looking…”
A smug grin crept over my lips.
Stella snapped her fingers. “I remember now. It was Ricardo!”
She let out a squeal of laughter when I rolled her over and pinned her arms above her head.
“You think that’s funny,” I growled, but a smile threatened to slip free at the sparkle in her eyes.
“I was only telling the truth,” she teased. “Don’t tell me you’re jealous of a dream. I didn’t think you’d be one of those guys who gets clingy after sex.”
“I told you, Stella. I’m jealous of everything when it comes to you.” Something dark and possessive moved through my chest. “And it wasn’t just fucking sex.”
Sex was a transaction, something people did to pass the time and find physical release. Anyone could have sex. But no one could rip me apart and put me back together the way she could.
“I was joking, Grumpypants.” Stella lifted her head and pressed a light kiss on my mouth. “I don’t remember the dream, but if I did remember, I’m sure it featured you.”
“You’re only saying that to make me feel better,” I grumbled.
Her lips twitched. “Is it working?”
“No.” But my shoulders relaxed and I released her wrists as her laugh wound its way through my chest.
I thought Stella would’ve lost her mystery by now. We’d lived together for two months; I should’ve already gotten bored and moved on.
But the more I got to know her, the more she embedded herself into my being.
She was a study in contrasts, the most fascinating puzzle I’d ever come across—strength and vulnerability, calm and chaos, innocence and debauchery. The woman whose gentle smile soothed the savage beast inside me was the same one who unleashed it with her cries and pleas for more. For me to take her and mark her as mine.
Stella Alonso had consumed my world in a way that made it impossible to go back. There was only before her and after her.
We lay there for a while and soaked in the comfortable silence before she spoke again.
“I wish we could stay longer.” Her wistful sigh tugged at my heart. “I don’t want to go back to the city yet. I haven’t even explored the island. It’s just been Delamonte stuff the entire time.”
“So let’s stay.”
I made the decision without thinking. It seemed my default setting was giving Stella anything she wanted.
I hoped no one ever discovered this weakness. It would be catastrophic for me and for her.
Her eyes widened with delight before she shook her head. “We can’t. You have work, and you’ve already been gone for three days.”
I had more than work. I had a fucking mess that required immediate handling.
The cold, rational part of me insisted I return to D.C. today as originally planned. Staying in Hawaii was the worst decision I could make, and I hadn’t built an empire by making bad decisions.
But it was Stella’s first time in Hawaii, and despite her protest, I could see the glimmer of hope in her eyes.
She really wanted to stay, and I would rather lose an empire than see her sad at my hands.
Whispers of the secrets I’d kept and the lies I’d told crept up before I smashed them.
“It’s the weekend,” I said. “We’ll leave Monday. Two extra days won’t hurt.”
Hopefully.
Her face lit up. “Okay. I mean, if you insist.”
My mouth curled into an indulgent smile as she rambled on about all the things she wanted to do.
Last night, our kiss on the beach…
I’d come to terms with my choice. I wouldn’t hold myself back from what I wanted anymore.
And no matter how much I’d tried to deny it in the past, this was what I’ve wanted since I first saw her. Stella in my arms, happy and safe and mine.
But as perfect as everything was with us now, I knew that if she ever found out the truth, she would hate me.
Which was why she could never find out.
* * *