Trust (18 page)

She pulled back, and I noticed her wiping moisture from her eyes.

“Hi, Lily.”

Lily smiled and then glanced over at Stephan. I followed her gaze. He hadn’t moved from his position near the door. The look on his face confused me. Did he not want to see me?

“I guess I should get back to the party,” Lily said, sounding slightly disappointed. “Will you call me?”

I nodded and watched out of the corner of my eye as she swept back out of the room, only pausing to whisper something to Stephan. He bobbed his head up and down minutely but never took his eyes off me.

Jade stepped forward, and behind her, I saw Cal looked uncertain. “We’re gonna go downstairs, Anna. I’ll be back to get you around noon tomorrow. If you need anything, you just call, okay? We’re only one floor down.”

“Room 304.” Cal appeared to be attempting to burn the words into Stephan with his mind rather than relaying the room number.

Again, I nodded.

The two of them left, closing the door firmly behind them and leaving Stephan and I alone. He still hadn’t moved, and I was getting nervous. The muscles in my throat constricted, and my heart raced. Maybe this hadn’t been the best idea.

As if some sort of switch had been flipped, Stephan took a step forward. Then another. Before I knew it, he was standing directly in front of me, only inches separating us. I looked up into his eyes and gasped. They held an intensity I’d never seen before from him. It both excited and frightened me. If it had been anyone else but Stephan looking at me like that, I would have been running for the nearest hiding place I could find. Because it was Stephan, I remained frozen, waiting.

Slowly, he lifted his right hand to my face. I closed my eyes and leaned in. His touch sent tingles down my spine. Warmth spread from his fingers down my neck to the pit of my stomach where the butterflies circled furiously.

He stepped closer, bringing our bodies in line with one another. His right hand never left my face as his left slid around my waist, holding me against him.

I itched to touch him, too. It had been so long. Lifting my arms, I wrapped them around his waist.

Stephan took this as a sign and pulled me against his chest. As he encircled me in his arms for the first time in four months, his chest heaved beneath my cheek before he released a ragged breath.

We stood there holding each other for a long time. I had no idea how many minutes passed—it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he was here. With me. Holding me. I didn’t ever want him to let go.

A strange sound caused me to glance up at him. He looked down, meeting my gaze, and I realized he was crying.

Reaching up with both hands, I used my thumbs to wipe the moisture from his cheeks. He’d gotten choked up that time he told me about his parents, but this was more than that. Fresh tears were streaming freely down his cheeks.

My gut twisted in response to his pain. I’d done this to him. My leaving had done this to him.

Before I could lower my hand, he captured my wrist, trapping me.

A split second later, he lowered his head, and his lips brushed against mine. I couldn’t help the noise that escaped—something between a sigh and a sob. I’d missed this . . . him.

Taking my reaction as encouragement, he released my wrist and cupped his hands around my head. He threaded his fingers through my hair as his mouth increased its pressure on mine. As if they had a mind of their own, my fingers sought out his hair and held tight.

He moaned and increased his grip on my hair, pulling slightly. I opened my mouth in reaction, and he took full advantage, sliding his tongue inside. I kissed him back with all the emotion I’d been storing . . . saving just for him.

Tears streamed down my face as we continued to kiss. When he realized I was crying, he placed soft kisses along my cheeks, wiping away the tears. I breathed deep, feeling the calm of being in his arms once more.

Satisfied my tears had stopped, Stephan rested his forehead against mine. I closed my eyes briefly, leaning into his touch as he caressed my face. When I opened my eyes again, I saw how concerned he was. “I missed you. So much.”

Stephan smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ve missed you, too.” He paused, his fingers continuing to work their magic against my skin. “You know I’m not going to let you go again, don’t you? It nearly killed me. I can’t do it a second time.”

I nodded. There was still so much going on in our lives, but he was right about one thing—staying apart was no longer an option. I didn’t think my heart could take it. Not again.

He looked down and took a deep breath. “Where did you get that dress? It looks absolutely amazing on you.” As if to solidify his words, Stephan took hold of my waist with both hands and squeezed.

Even to such a simple gesture, my body reacted. I was still his. He still wanted me.

“Jade helped me pick it out.”

As soon as I’d seen the dress online, I knew it was the one I wanted. It was gray, not a color I normally wore, but I loved how it hugged my torso and flowed from my waist to the floor. I’d also remembered what Lily had said about Stephan liking strapless dresses. If the look in his eyes was any indication, he liked the dress a lot.

“You look stunning in it.”

I felt my cheeks heat in response to his compliment.

He chuckled and stepped back. Taking hold of my hands, he led me across the room to the sofa beside the bed. He sat down and pulled me into his lap. I folded my body into his, laying my head on his shoulder and reaching for the buttons on his shirt. As soon as I realized what I was doing—that I’d ruin his shirt, and he needed to be presentable to go back to the party later—I snatched my hands away.

To my surprise, he stopped me. “You can play with my buttons, love.” I looked up at him, confused. “I don’t care if you ruin my shirt. I can always get another one.”

“But the party—”

He kissed my forehead. “I’m not going back to the party tonight.”

“But you have to.”

Stephan raised an eyebrow. “I do?”

I looked down at my lap sheepishly before glancing back up at him. “Don’t you?”

He brushed his fingers up my arm until he reached my face and tilted my head to look at him. “No. I’ve done my part. Lily can take care of the rest.” He placed a chaste kiss on my lips. “I’m all yours for the rest of the night.”

Smiling, I hugged him.

He laughed and hugged me back.

This felt so good. I hadn’t been this happy since the day I’d left his condo.

Settling back into my favorite position, I began playing with the buttons on his shirt again, this time not caring about the potential damage.

Time slipped away as we sat there holding each other. He never stopped touching me. It was as if he had to remind himself that I was real, that this was real. In many ways, I was feeling the same way. Being with him again after so long apart felt more like dream.

A rumbling in my stomach broke our quiet moment. He tilted my chin up and looked me in the eye. “You’re hungry. When was the last time you ate something?”

“About one o’clock.”

He scowled. “Lunch? Why didn’t you eat dinner?”

I tried to look down, but he held tight to my face. “I was too nervous. About seeing you again. I didn’t know . . .”

“Continue.”

“I didn’t know if you’d be mad at me.”

His scowl became a frown.

Stephan released my chin, reached into his jacket pocket, and removed his cell phone. After punching in several numbers, he held it up to his ear. “Are you able to get away for a few minutes?”

He paused.

“Brianna hasn’t eaten dinner. Can you get something from the kitchen and bring it up to the room for her?” He nodded, although whoever he was talking to couldn’t see. “We’ll see you in a few minutes, then.”

Placing his cell phone back in his jacket pocket, he patted my leg, indicating he wanted me to stand. I had some difficulty in the dress, and he helped so I wouldn’t rip the beautiful garment.

Once he knew I was safely on my feet, he strolled into the bathroom and returned with a glass of water. He handed it to me. “Drink. My guess is that if you haven’t eaten anything since lunch, you haven’t drunk anything either. Am I right?”

Feeling guilty, I looked down as I took a sip of the water. “Yes, Sir.”

Stephan sighed and brushed a strand of hair away from my face. “I thought I told you to take care of yourself.”

“I’ve been trying to eat better, but today . . .”

“You were nervous.”

“Yes.”

“That I would be upset with you.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yes.”

Before he could respond, there was a knock on the door. “We’ll address that in a minute.”

I didn’t have to look to see the scowl had returned to his face.

Staying where I was, I waited for him to come back. I heard Lily’s voice in the hallway, and I realized she must have been the one Stephan had called to bring me food. He thanked her and closed the door, making sure it was locked. In his hands, he held a tray with what I assumed was food.

Without a word, he laid the tray down on the coffee table and helped me to sit back down on the couch. I loved this dress, and Stephan seemed to as well, but I wasn’t used to wearing clothes like this, and I felt as if one wrong move would destroy it.

He removed the lid covering the food, and my mouth began to water. Chicken, in what looked to be a rich cream sauce, along with asparagus and mashed potatoes filled one plate. Beside it were a salad and a slice of cheesecake. It was more food than I’d eaten in months at one time.

When I didn’t immediately start eating, Stephan picked up the utensils and handed them to me. “Eat your dinner, Brianna.”

To my amazement, I ate more of the food than I’d thought I would, even devouring over half the delicious cheesecake. Stephan sat beside me as I ate, not commenting. When I was finished, he replaced the cover and carried it over to the desk out of the way before returning to sit beside me on the couch.

He draped his arm over my shoulder and held me against his side. “Thank you,” he whispered.

I burrowed my head on his shoulder, pressing my nose against the column of his neck, inhaling his scent. It was one more thing I’d missed about him.

His chest vibrated with amusement, and he squeezed my shoulder. “Stop trying to distract me, Brianna. As much as I’d love to skip to more pleasant things, we have something we need to talk about.”

A lead weight formed in my stomach, and I stopped my movement. Was he going to yell at me? Should I apologize even though I’m not sorry?

“Tell me why you thought I’d be upset about you coming tonight.”

Swallowing, I reached for the buttons on his shirt. They were my comfort. They grounded me. I’d missed them, too. I’d missed everything about him. “Not about me coming. I thought . . .” I paused. “I thought you’d be mad about my agreeing to testify.”

He tensed. “Ah. That.”

Stephan didn’t say any more, and neither did I. There was a tension that filled the room, though—tension I’d never felt before when I was with him. My anxiety level rose again, and the air coursing through my lungs felt heavier.

“Breathe, Brianna.”

He increased his hold on me, lifting me onto his lap. I clung to him.

Sighing, he brushed his lips across my forehead. “I wasn’t happy about the agreement you made. I’m still not happy. However, there isn’t anything I can do about it. What’s done is done. My only fear is what it will mean for you. I would’ve rather spent the rest of my life in prison than see you hurt, and I know reliving that nightmare will cause you pain. It kills me that I can’t protect you from it.”

I reached up and cupped his cheek. He looked down, the pain he was feeling etched on his face. “I’ll be okay.”

His only response was to cover my mouth with his. The kiss began slow and gentle but soon increased in intensity. I gripped the lapels of his jacket, and his fingers dug into my waist. It was as if we couldn’t get close enough to each other.

After several minutes, to my disappointment, he pulled away. We were both breathing heavily, our chests rising and falling rapidly. “Maybe you being on my lap isn’t such a good idea. I seem to be having trouble controlling myself. We’ve been apart too long.”

It was my turn to frown. I wanted to be here, on his lap. It was my favorite place in the world.

He leaned back, bringing my head down to rest on his shoulder. I relaxed a little when he began running his fingers through my hair. “Who am I kidding?” It almost sounded as if he were talking to himself and not to me. “There’s no way I can let you go.”

Chapter 17

Stephan

I felt as if I were dreaming. Brianna was really wrapped in my arms,
resting against my shoulder. I could smell her coconut shampoo as I laid my cheek on top of her head. There was so much I wanted to ask her, but I didn’t want to break the spell. For the first time in four months, my world didn’t feel as if it were tilted off its axis.

Brianna’s appearance had rocked me so much that I’d completely forgotten about Sarah. My date for the evening hadn’t crossed my mind until Lily whispered on her way out the door earlier that she and Logan would make sure Sarah got home safely. I should have felt guilty, but I was so overcome with joy at having the woman I loved here with me that I couldn’t muster a single ounce of regret.