Tattooed Emotions Part 20

"Thank you," I finally murmured at last, unable to stay quiet.

"For what?"

There were so many reasons that I was thankful for the way he'd handled William tonight-for not sending him back to an abusive home, for opening his own home to a scared teenager, regardless of the consequences of his actions, but most of all, for vowing to help William and keep him out of harm's way.

Damien might not have told me much of who he was, but tonight, he'd shown me the kind of man he was. And it was the kind of person I admired deeply.

I said none of those things though because there would be another time to talk about them. Right now, all I could say without bursting into tears was, "For being you."

I hadn't seen Damien since Sat.u.r.day morning when I kissed him good-bye, so he could continue to work things out with William without me being in the way. Damien had tried to reason with me to stay, but something inside of me had told me that they needed some alone time together. It had been a hard decision to make, but it felt right. William needed his uncle.

Damien had kept me up-to-date with phone calls and texts throughout the workweek. He'd conversed with his attorney and with William's mom, Suzanne, once William had agreed to fill her in. She had come to Damien's house, alone, so they could all talk on neutral ground. She'd agreed to let William stay with Damien for a week while she contacted her own attorney about how to proceed with her husband's abuse toward their son.

The whole ordeal saddened me dearly. It had to have been such an unbearably traumatic experience for William. I hadn't pried for any details on the subject since I was trying to respect everyone's privacy. I'd let Damien tell me only what he wanted, and I'd let him know that I was there for him in any way that he needed me.

In truth, I missed him more than I'd ever thought possible, but I completely understood that William and his mother needed Damien more than me.

Friday morning had come and gone in the blink of an eye as Tim and I tried our best to keep up on all the clients of Adam & Jennings, including Cale's accounts, too. I had yet to hear a word from him, but at this point, I was counting it as a blessing because I was beyond stressed.

Tim and I were knee-deep in searching through accounting records for a new client when a knock sounded at my door.

"Come in," I said, glancing up at the clock to see that it was nearly one in the afternoon.

The biggest grin spread across my face when Damien entered the room, carrying a clear bag in his hand.

"I have a private Subway delivery for a certain s.e.xy sandy-blonde haired girl who happens to be mine," Damien hummed from the back of his throat with a grin. Then, he instantly paused several feet away from me when he took in the piles and piles of doc.u.ments surrounding Tim and me on the floor. "Wow. That is a lot of paper."

"Careful. Don't knock any of them over." I laughed and quirked a brow at him.

He hadn't mentioned anything to me about stopping by today.

"You brought me lunch?" I asked in awe, realizing I was on the verge of starving.

"It's not a five-course meal or anything, but it's food," he countered, stepping in between the stacks of doc.u.ments to get to me. "Where in the h.e.l.l are we going to sit?"

I was in desperate need of some alone time with Damien even if we just ate our sandwiches together, so I kindly told Tim, "Why don't you go take a lunch break, and we can dive back in when you return?"

Tim frowned and argued, "But, Raelyn, we still have to finish this new account."

"Yes, but we need to refuel, or we won't get much accomplished."

"But the clock's ticking, and Mr. Kline wanted to hear back from you tonight."

"And he will," I stated.

Damien gave Tim what I presumed to be a don't-f.u.c.k-with-me glare and said, "Take a hike, buddy."

Tim leaped to his feet and peered down at me. I could tell he was stifling his irritation at the intrusion.

"All right. I'll be back by one thirty," Tim said.

"Two," Damien countered, domineering as ever.

Tim looked at me for confirmation, so I said, "Two o'clock, Tim."

Tim gave me a curt nod and sighed. "Two, it is."

"Wise choice," Damien murmured under his breath.

Tim left the room and closed the door behind him. Damien backtracked to flip the lock. I almost asked him why he'd locked it, but I figured that he wanted me all to himself with no interruptions.

I still couldn't help but grin at him as he closed the s.p.a.ce between us. "Has anyone ever told you that you're extremely stubborn and determined?"

"All the time." Damien's expression reflected my own, but his was slightly more devious as he lowered into Tim's former spot.

"I'm not surprised," I teased, s.n.a.t.c.hing the Subway bag from him to peek inside. "What did you bring me?"

I pulled out two subs. Damien gently took his from me, and we both began to pull off the wrappers.

"Well, I know that you love anything with chicken, so I ordered you a chicken, bacon, and ranch sandwich." He smiled gently at me. "I hope you like it."

"You can never go wrong with that combination. Just the thought of it is making my mouth water." I took a big bite off the end.

Damien watched my mouth as I chewed. His eyes darkened with unmistakable heat. "Don't say things like that to me when I haven't buried myself in you for seven long days."

I rolled my eyes and kept eating. That was such a guy thing to say. "I'm sure you'll survive."

"I won't...for much longer, so I suggest you eat fast," he demanded. Then, he engulfed a bite of his sandwich.

"You'd better be joking." I gaped at him as if he'd lost his mind.

He ignored me as he continued to devour his sub. Then, he said, "Oh, I can a.s.sure you, I'm not."

Deciding it was better to let it go than to argue with him, which would undoubtedly lead to him taking me in my office, I went back to satisfying my rumbling stomach.

Once we were finished, we put our empty wrappers back into the Subway bag. I was thrilled to see that I still had Damien for another forty minutes until Tim returned.

Damien moved our garbage off to the side. Then, he picked up a stack of papers in the middle of us and lifted them to place them on the side of my desk behind us.

"So, what's with all the accounting papers? And why does a new client expect you to be finished by tonight?" Damien asked, scooting closer to me.

"Mr. Kline has made some hefty demands." I groaned in exasperation and laid my head in Damien's lap.

"Then, tell him no." He ran his fingers through my hair.

It felt so good to feel his hands on me after going so long without his touch.

"I would have if he hadn't offered me such an outrageous sum of money for rushed services."

"Then, you've dug your own hole, gorgeous girl." Damien chuckled.

I couldn't argue with him there, so I sighed and told him, "I sure did."

I closed my eyes and reveled in his touch, perfectly content in his arms, even though I should have been getting back to work. It was going to be a long afternoon. Hopefully, with Tim's help, we'd maintain a steady pace and be done by six or so.

"Do you have plans for tomorrow night?" Damien asked out of the blue.

"No."

"I was hoping you'd accompany me to a charity that I have to make an appearance at."

"I'd love to." I smiled, excited to spend time with him tomorrow. "Do you attend many of those?"

"No, Heathman Enterprises makes regular donations to many, but I don't have the time to go to them all." His eyes seemed to drift off until he finally added, "Only a select few."

The fact that he wanted me with him at this particular one piqued my interest, but then I thought of his nephew being alone, so I asked, "What about William?"

The slightest stiffness that spread throughout Damien's body did not go unnoticed by me. "He's leaving with his mom in the morning."

"Oh." I frowned, hoping he'd elaborate just a tiny bit. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes. At least, I hope so. Suzanne and William are going to her sister's house in Orlando." He propped his back against the desk. "Suzanne filed for a divorce from my stepbrother this week, and she also filed a restraining order for her and William."

"Is that what William wanted?" I asked, unable to bite my tongue.

"Yes. William loves his mom, and over the past week, I've witnessed her undying love for her son. William also got Suzanne to confess that Drake had been abusing her, too. Suzanne and William both want to move on and start a new life together, so I helped them take the proper actions."

That was the first time I'd heard Damien say his stepbrother's actual name. "Drake? That's your stepbrother's name?" I asked gently.

Damien went from being a little stiff under my body to hard as a rock in a flash. I had a feeling that his hatred for his stepbrother went deeper than what had happened with William. I feared Damien's animosity toward Drake originally stemmed from their childhood.

It was as though an eternity pa.s.sed before Damien finally responded with, "Yes, but I don't want to talk about him." He maneuvered me onto my back.

"Damien!" I protested weakly, laughing. "Don't mess up my doc.u.ments for work!"

It was too late. The pile on the left had toppled over.

He straddled my waist and ordered, "Then, stop squirming, so I can kiss you."

I linked my arms around his neck and smiled up at the handsome man towering over me. All the while, I defiantly shook my head at him, so he couldn't make his move.

"You seem to have a gift for distracting me," I said, wishing he would tell me more about his stepbrother.

"I'm going to take that as a compliment." He grinned devilishly.

I arched a stern brow, ignoring his s.e.xy dimple that had appeared at the corner of his mouth. "It's not."

He closed the small gap between our mouths and nipped at my lower lip. My heart rate skyrocketed as my body went to mush under him, overheating from his touch.

"I think it's one of the things you love about me," he breathed, brushing his lips across mine.

Wicked heat blazed in his eyes and settled between my thighs.

The heavy weight of his statement left my mind reeling. Love was not a word to be used lightly, yet I couldn't help but revel in the way it'd sounded coming from him.

Feeling trapped in his stare and desperately yearning to escape it, I gave myself over to the desire coursing through me and yanked him down on me for a pa.s.sionate kiss.

I hadn't tasted him in days, so I poured myself into our embrace. I wanted him to know just how much I'd missed him. His eagerness matched mine as our tongues caressed and stroked one another's.

His hands glided up my shirt and teased a trail from my stomach to my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. They were heavy and full, aching to be touched, so I arched into him. I gasped when I felt his hardness pressing into me.

I wanted him here, in my office, but my sense of reason suddenly made a hasty appearance, and I drew back, gasping for air.

"Damien, we can't," I panted. "Not in my office."

His hot breath came to my ear. "Do you think that would stop me?" He nipped at my lobe. "Any place, anytime, Raelyn. I'll take what's mine." He kissed his way down my bare throat while working his hand beneath my bra to tease my taut nipple.

I drew in a swift breath.

He chuckled. "After all, you started it."

I bit my lip to stifle my groan when he gently rolled my nipple between his thumb and index finger, sending a ma.s.sive wave of pleasure from my breast straight to my groin. I clenched my thighs together to ease the building pressure.

"Then again, antic.i.p.ation can be so much sweeter than giving you what you want now." He pressed his lips to mine one last time and then stood to his feet with a great big smirk on his face. "And I need more time for what I have in mind for you."

He was trying to mask the heat in his gaze, but I could see right through him. He was just as affected as I was.

"What are you doing?" I tried to keep my tone even as I sat up.

But it was useless. He's just going to leave me all hot and bothered? The jerk.

"Leaving." His eyes danced with mirth. "I have an important meeting at two thirty with the CEO of Grandsboro International about a possible merger with two of our companies. It's a great opportunity for Heathman Enterprises to expand its horizon and go abroad."

I was quickly distracted by the fact that he was offering information about his job. It was something he had never done, outside of Cale stealing from him.

"Oh, good luck." I smiled genuinely.

"Thank you." He smiled almost shyly.

This had to be some appointment if it made Damien nervous.

He made his way over toward the door and unlocked it before pausing to glance over his shoulder. "And, Raelyn?"

"Yes?"

"A surprise is waiting for you at your apartment. Be dressed in lace by eight." He winked, and then he was gone.

Lace? I wondered what that was all about.