DAHLIA ALDRIDGE
“Wait, what are we doing?” I asked Dermot, unable to stop myself from smiling as he wrapped a firm arm around my waist and pressed a kiss to my lips, one that was hard and persuasive, as if I would somehow say no to him. The Ross men seemed constantly convinced that they would have a battle with me, and I could tell them with one hundred percent surety that I usually wanted to do whatever they had planned.
Especially if it was something hot.
It had been a long afternoon of lounging around, and now that it was early evening, my boys were relaxing on the large terrace of the property while drinking and talking. I had spent a solid fifteen minutes on Sterling’s lap, allowing myself to soak in the moment, and realize that this could easily be the rest of our lives. Plus, now it seemed like Dermot wanted to make my night even better.
His voice was rough and played against my ear. “Just a little trip. I promise we won’t be gone long.”
I nibbled my lip, seeing the excitement in his gaze as I nodded, unable to resist giving into his request. I let out a surprised sound as he surged forward and picked me up, his hands gripping my bare legs as my sundress fell around me. After lunch, I’d taken a long shower and freshened up. The moment of solitude was nice before I got lonely while putting on my makeup. That was when Stratton had showed up and leaned against the counter, watching me curiously while keeping me company. I had a feeling that Stratton had watched me far more than he let on, because there were little things he seemed to know about me that had me feeling almost high off of his attention.
The boys didn’t ask where we were going, so I assumed they knew. Dermot carried me through the house and towards the helipad, making my eyebrows go up. I wasn’t positive what I’d expected, but it wasn’t that he wanted to go up in the air.
I loved it.
My eyes widened as Dermot opened the door and helped me into the second-in-command seat before walking over towards the other side, holding a pair of keys. I saw him send a message on his phone before he hopped up and flashed me a smile.
“Where is the pilot?” I asked, but he just winked and leaned over to grab a headset, settling it on my head before putting on his own and starting the aircraft up. I buckled myself in quickly, finding myself fascinated by another talent that Dermot seemed to have…flying a helicopter.
It was loud around us, but it was muffled by the headset, and when the system turned on all I could hear was Dermot saying, “You good to go, baby girl?”
I nodded and then let out a squeak as we lifted up from the helipad. Surrendering to the moment and knowing that Dermot would do anything he needed to keep me safe, I relaxed and watched the way he confidently navigated the aircraft, rising high above the luxury properties that filled the landscape. My eyebrows went up as I felt my breath catch, looking down at the vision that was Monaco at twilight.
The skies were painted an ombre of blue and purple, darkening over the sea scattered with yachts that were now glowing with light. The sight was absolutely stunning, almost picture perfect, and I found myself reaching over to squeeze Dermot’s arm in excitement.
“It’s gorgeous!” I exclaimed through the headphones, wishing I had my camera with me.
His chuckle at my obvious excitement was comfortable and sexy, making me look over at him, his eyes lit up with authentic happiness. I was caught off guard in that exact moment by the overwhelming wave of emotion I felt for him, and I tried to not stare like a total creep but failed, his handsome profile outlined against the night sky.
After about five minutes of flying, I realized he was lowering us, and it wasn’t by the house. In fact, it almost appeared like we were on a large cliffside over the water, and if it wasn’t for the lights that were scattered along it, I would have wondered if he had landed here by accident. When he finally touched down and turned off the helicopter, I took off my headphones and looked around the peaceful location.
“Where are we?” I asked softly.
“One of the villas right outside Monaco.” He didn’t explain further but got out and rounded to my side, opening the door and lifting me out. Obviously it was a very nice villa since the helipad here seemed like it was purposefully built to solely access this villa and nothing else.
I didn’t bother asking any more questions, wanting to be surprised by what he had in store, as he intertwined our fingers and walked us up a small hill that was lined with lanterns. When we turned a small bend, there was a gorgeous small villa bathed in glowing light, and outside of it was a table facing the sea that looked set for dinner.
“Dermot,” I whispered in awe.
He squeezed my hand, offering me a small smile. “Figured if we are over here talking about marriage and babies, I should probably take you on an official date.”
“Oh yeah?” I grinned. “I suppose we did skip a few steps. One might even say we rushed it—”
He dipped down and seared my lips.
“Wouldn’t want it any other way, baby girl,” he admitted. “Can’t slow this shite down when it comes to you. Wouldn’t want to even if I could.”
“Mr. Ross!” A French-accented voice had me looking over to an older woman standing right outside the villa. “I’m so glad you were able to make it.”
I offered him a questioning look as he squeezed my hip gently.
“Thank you for having us on such short notice, Natalie. I wanted to show Dahlia the best of Monaco, and you guys have it.”
She flashed a smile and came up to me, tugging me into a hug. “Of course, any friend of the Ross family is a friend of mine.”
I offered her a small smile when we pulled back. “It’s wonderful to meet you.”
“Come sit.” She waved us over to a table. “We are almost done!”