Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

Lucian

Ihad never overslept in my life, not like I did that morning. I awoke from my bed with the daylight fast streaming through the window, cursing myself…only to find Elaine Constantine in my bed next to me.

My little doll was in my bed next to me.

I stared in shock at the figure at my side, curled up tight with her knees to her chest, sleeping as soundly as I had been. My first instinct was to shake her the fuck awake and drag her the fuck out of there, but I didn’t. I fucking didn’t. I just stared at her like a fucking fool.

Elaine Constantine was in my bed.

In my fucking bed.

Nobody was ever in my bed, let alone a fucking Constantine.

It was when I twisted and reached for my phone on the bedside table that she stirred beside me. It was when she stretched out her arms, still dressed in my shirt, that I realized just how fast asleep she had been. It appears she was going as damn fucking crazy as I was, choosing to sneak into her soon-to-be destroyer’s bed in the middle of the night.

She rolled over, and that’s when she tensed and leaped up in bed. She was terrified in that moment, eyes wide as she registered just how hard I was staring at her.

“I, um…” she began. “The room down there was…”

“Was what?” I asked, my voice gruff with sleep.

“It was, um…”

I pointed a finger at her. “We’re not having a fucking sleepover, Elaine.”

She looked annoyed at that, throwing the covers off and moving to get out of there, but I took hold of her arm before she managed it. “I’m sorry, alright?” she said in her usual snarky tone, then tried to wrench away from me, but I wouldn’t let her.

I yanked her back around until she was facing me, and I couldn’t work out what she was thinking as I met her eyes, still trying to squirm her way from my grip. “You must be insane,” I said. “Climbing in bed with me. Absolutely fucking insane.”

“Yeah, well, I probably am,” she said, and gave up the fight.

She slumped down and let out a sigh, and I found myself staring at her in a whole new way. Brave woman. She had climbed into bed with me. Next to me. Because she wanted to, not because she was dragged there. She really did have some fire in her.

My phone vibrating on the bedside table pulled me back to my senses. Crap. Eleven missed calls from various people at Morelli Holdings…and one of them was my father.

“We’ll talk about this when I get back,” I growled at her.

“Why don’t you drop me off in the city on your way there?”

I scoffed at her. “Like I’m ever going to drop you back in the fucking city, Elaine. I’m not letting you go. Ever. So get that idea out of your head. Nothing’s changed because we had a bit of a chat in the kitchen last night.”

“And ate some pasta,” she added, and there it fucking was again, that cheeky smile. “Don’t forget the wonders of slicing salami just right, Lucian. We’re almost besties now.”

“Fuck you,” I said and pulled my pants on.

I left her cross-legged on my bed, in my damn shirt, with her messy blonde curls, looking like a conquest, even though I’d never had one. Elliot Morelli would make fun of me if he knew.

I didn’t say goodbye and neither did she.

Traffic was insane as I made my way into the city, and I tried to play it cool as I returned the calls on my phone. All except my father’s. I didn’t return the call from my father.

My gut was twisted up as I neared Morelli Holdings. I had no idea what the hell I was going to say to my father when he started asking questions.

As it turned out, I didn’t have all that long to think about it.

He was already waiting for me when I arrived.