ADELINE'S POV
"Adrian just messaged me. I've blocked him like three times but he keeps getting back to me with different numbers. How many numbers can one person have?" I say pacing back and forth in my room like a mad person. As if what I did yesterday wasn't embarrassing enough, it seems Adrian Wellington doesn't know how to take no for an answer.
I have a guess that he only wants me more now so he can prove something to himself. This is just another business deal to him and apparently, he's a competitive man. He can't accept that he lost to Dante and that's the only reason he won't let this go. Rejecting him yesterday had a play on his ego and now he'll stop at nothing.
What's bothering me even more is the fact that my parents haven't gotten back to me yet and in the world I live in, silence from my parents after a scandal like that cannot mean a good thing. I'm just waiting for a bomb to drop for a drastic decision that they'll unfailingly take.
"Adeline." Dante's voice stops me in my tracks and I turn to see him watching me with softness in his eyes. "Come here." He gestures with his head and I let out a breath and drop my phone on my bed as I walk towards him. He grabs me by the waist and smiles at me.
"You ever been to an aquarium?" He asks me as his hands trail from my waist to my upper back and then to my shoulders. His hands trail down my arms and I feel goosebumps all over my skin. I instinctively push myself closer to him, placing my hands on his chest for support from how weak he's making me feel in the knees.
"It's been a while." I reply with a shaky breath. His thumb grazes my bottom lip lightly and I suck in a sharp breath, closing my eyes to savor his touch.
"Go out with me today. We can watch the fish while we talk about your parents and this Adrian fellow. It'll make everything seem less depressing." He says and I don't even have to think twice. I'm nod my head happily and smile at him as I wrap my arms around his neck.
He groans when I squeeze against his neck harder, my body pressing against his in a desperate need to feel the heat emanating off him.
"I'm gonna go make breakfast while you get ready, okay?" He says and gently plants his lips on mine. I suddenly realize I haven't kissed him since he got back from his business trip and God, I've missed him so much. I've missed how perfectly his lips fit to mine. The way he holds me unapologetically like I were the most important thing in his life. I missed his smell and his voice. How he would groan while our lips were pressed flush against each other's.
He deepens the kiss and slips his fingers under my top, touching my bare skin and making my body fall into a wave of heat and lust and pleasure. Immediately he lets go, everything becomes cold again. I don't know if my feelings towards him are healthy but I've become so attached to Dante Russo that I can't even think straight when he's not near me.
When my parents came over yesterday, I kept obeying their every order like a five-year-old. Immediately Dante got here, I felt this surge of confidence wash over me and I felt like I could do anything. It's because he was here that I was able to stand up to my parents the way I did.
I had never done that before but because of Dante, I was able to overcome one of my fears. Being a disappointment to my parents. It felt amazing and liberating and I have Dante to thank for that. But being attached to him comes with the fear of losing him.
I want him all to myself. I want Dante Russo and I'm nor scared of admitting that to myself anymore. I want to know everything about him. I want to be his friend and his lover.
Before walking out of the room, he spanks my ass playfully, getting a laugh out of me. He's being cute and everything but I can't help but feel that there's something bothering him. He does a good job hiding his emotions but I'm still a therapist. A person's body language tells me a lot.
Dante has always been hard to read but his body feels a little bit tense and he has a persistent crease in his brow, as if he were lost in thought about something important. I don't want to ask him any questions because I don't even know if he'll answer me. I'm just assuming it's about his business trip. Maybe not everything went as planned.
I also don't want to ask because I want to believe if it were important enough, he would have told me about it. Brushing away the thought from my mind, I start focusing on where he's taking me today. I can't believe he asked me out and I can't wait to spend the entire day with him.
He was right when he said it would make this entire situation less depressing but I'm not that really excited about the fish. I'm just excited I get to be in his presence, to have his undivided attention for the entire day.
I strip and look at myself in my bathroom mirror, smiling as I think of what to wear. Dante makes me want to play dress up for him and it makes me feel like I'm in high school all over again, trying to impress that one boy I had a crush on.
I always want to look pretty and sexy for him. I step into my bath tub and shave every bit of hair present on my body and then I immerse myself in a vanilla scented bath mixed with a hint of chocolate.
Once I'm all clean, I put on a brown skirt that stops mid-thigh, some black boots, a crop top and a brown jacket. I do my brows, apply mascara and put on a pink lip-gloss and for my hair, I tie it into a high bun on top of my head. Satisfied with the way I look, I grab a pair of my favorite black sunglasses and a brown bag and hop happily out of the room.
As soon as Dante lays his eyes on me, a boyish grin appears on his face as his eyes widen slightly. He looks at me. I mean really looks at me and I'm not even talking about only the physical. It feels like he can gaze straight into my soul, unraveling me completely and keeping all the pieces of me to himself.
"You know you're beautiful right?" He says leaning against the island table and taking a bite from a peanut butter sandwich he made. I blush like a child and I feel like this day couldn't get any better and then that's when I see it.
Through his white shirt, I see a stain of something red and my face falls. He's bleeding.