Page 70 of Dirty Money
She ran her arms around his neck and laid her head on his wide chest. “I’m not about to do that. You’re the only thing I have in my life right now I’m certain about. I went to visit my dad and his new wife. A woman who’s around my age. She’s a real piece of work from what I saw.”
“That had to be rough. So, it went kind of badly?” he asked as he took her to the bed and sat down, holding her on his lap.
“I wouldn’t say that. There was no drama, so that’s good. But all my hopes of having my family back have been dashed. And the fact they’re naming the baby my name is a little upsetting.”
“Your name?” he asked her then chuckled. “That’s weird.”
“It is,” she agreed. “And I am to be called, Old Aulora. So can’t wait for my little sister to call me that.”
“I bet,” he said then kissed the top of her head. “How about you strip and so will I and we can climb right back into this bed and love the rest of the day away?”
“If you think that’ll help,” she said with a giggle.
“Oh, it will. Believe me!”
She got off his lap and pulled her clothes off as he took his back off and then they climbed into the bed and covered up, settling into each other’s arms. “I feel so comfortable with you, West.”
He ran his hand up and down her arm with gentle strokes. “Me too.” With a kiss to the side of her head, he whispered, “We need to make some decisions, you and I.”
She groaned and turned in his arms to face him. “Why do we have to do that? So much has changed, West. It’s all a bit dizzying. Making more decisions right now would stir an already overflowing pot.”
“I can see why you’d think that but I’m talking about making decisions about what it is you want. I can see that I’ve pushed you to do things maybe you weren’t ready for and now your parents are too. I want to stop doing that and I want you to know I’m in your corner and here to help you be you.”
She sighed and kissed his plump lips. “And that’s why I love you so much. No one has ever looked at me the way you do. You can see right into my heart and soul, I think. You can tell this way of living just isn’t me, can’t you?”
“You’re so uncomfortable here,” he said with a chuckle. “This place doesn’t look like a home you’d make for yourself.”
“Because it’s a home my mother put together. I do have one member of the staff who I really like. The head chef, Laura. She’s all about getting to know me and what I want. And I can see keeping her on. I don’t need the tons of other staff. The butler isn’t necessary. The place is huge, so a couple of maids should be kept on. Other than that, I see no need to keep the rest.”
“What about finding another place. A place where you’d feel at home?” he asked her then kissed her forehead. “A place we could call our home, peach.”
She shivered with his words. “Our home, West?”
“I want you and I to move in together.”
She took in a breath and held it as she thought about what he wanted.
Did she want that too?
She felt at home in his arms. She felt whole when he was around. To have him in her life, really sharing it, would be more than nice. “What kind of place do you seeing yourself living in?”
“Anywhere you are,” he told her then kissed her with a deep kiss that told her he wasn’t lying about that. “I could live in a ditch as long as you were with me, Aulora.”
“Well, we won’t have to go that far,” she said then giggled. “I could sell this place, couldn’t I? I’m not stuck here. As if anyone would consider themselves stuck in a Fifth Avenue penthouse. You know what I mean, though.”
He trailed one hand up to cup her chin and looked deep into her eyes. “I can see you do feel trapped. I don’t want you to let that happen to you. Why not think about some place that will help you be the artist you want to be? We could get a vacation place anywhere in the world. And we could get a place near New York too. That would be a necessity for my work and your artwork to be sold.”
She nodded and sighed. “You’re so level-headed, West. So, on top of things. I think I could be happy right here in this place. I just need to change the décor, you know. We could keep this place and get a vacation house somewhere. Maybe Paris.”
“I like that idea.” He kissed her again, this time with a fervor that told her their discussion was over. Their plan had been made, now to consummate their new arrangement!
She felt it too. The shift in what they would be to one another. They were going to move one step forward and live together. He’d help her to push away the things that had been tossed at her and replace them with things she wanted and liked.
Aulora had no idea that anyone could do that for another person. Step in and help them be who they longed to be. She had always wanted to be an artist. The loss of money got in the way, slowing that goal down for her. But the money was back and she could use it to help her move ahead in her career much faster than she’d been doing.
When their bodies connected, she felt a heat surge through her. They locked eyes as he moved slowly, letting her feel every inch of him as he made his strokes. He took her breath with his beauty, inside and out.
“I love you more than you will ever know,” he told her.
