Page 32 of Rogue Romeo
I raise our joined hands to my lips, pressing a kiss to the back of Alex’s before stepping around a clearly affronted Krista.
But something takes hold of me, forcing me to stop at her side and whisper in a honeyed tone filled with as much condescension as I can muster, “Have fun with Ralph’s saggy old man balls.”
We step onto the elevator, and Alex hits the button for forty-six. Krista’s stunned face is the last thing I see before the doors close silently.
Alex’s howl of laughter fills the car, and he throws his head back in abandon. “Oh shit, that was priceless, Rey. Absolutely fucking priceless.”
I shrug as I chuckle. “Well, one of the rules is not seeing anyone else. Obviously, I washelpingyou stick to the rule you set.”
He sobers, leveling me with a look before he steps closer and palms my cheeks. His hands are warm, singeing my skin as his eyes pierce my soul before his words permeate my heart.
“That is one rule I would never,everbreak, Reyna. I can’t promise to make all your problems disappear, but Icanpromise that I’ll be here to share the burden with you.”
His eyes travel along the contours of my face, and in this moment, I feel precious, safe, and cared for.
Things I have not felt for a long,longtime, and I can’t help the flash of fear that shoots through me at the thought of all of this falling apart.
Because despite only finding the beauty and strength of this manyesterday, I’m getting altogether too reliant on how he makes me feel.
Your intuition is your gift, mija. Listen to it!
My abuela’s words of comfort soothe my anxiety, and all I can do is hope that he doesn’t leave me more broken than he found me.
Having reached our destination, the elevator doors ping open to reveal a cavernous apartment with a double vaulted ceiling and huge Monolithic windows looking out onto the city beyond.
My gasp of delight is muted by Alex’s laughter. “It’s quite something, isn’t it? It’s owned by the company. My own taste would be far less ostentatious.”
I step from the elevator, spinning a full turn to take in the entire space. “Wow! It’shuge.”
“That’s what they all say.”
I shoot Alex a playful glare, to which he just grins. “Incorrigible, pretty boy.”
“So you’ve told me, Rey.”
He strides forward into the open-plan kitchen to pluck an envelope from the counter, quietly murmuring, “That was fast.”
Ripping it open, he slides a black credit card from within. He presents it to me with a flourish and my eyes bulge as I note it’s in my name. “It’s limitless. Buy whatever you’d like.”
He glances upward in thought, lips scrunched into a pondering pout. “Well, it’s limitless within reason – Henry would blow a fuse if he needed to explain away the purchase of a small country in the company’s income tax returns.”
My gaze flicks from Alex to the card and back again as I blink owlishly.
“I—I—” I swallow harshly and try again. “You don’t need to do this. I—”
“Iwantto. That’s the difference.” He comes closer, smiling down at me before locking me in his embrace. “You haven’t had the ability to put yourself first since you moved to New York. Let me put you first. Let me take care of you the way you deserve, Reyna. Let me be your person.”
He presses a kiss atop my head, and the simple gesture has my stomach turning somersaults as I inhale his woodsy scent in deep lungfuls.
“Tomorrow, we’ll go shopping and get everything set up for Friday.”
My words are muffled against his shirt. “What’s Friday?”
I can feel him tense up slightly before he answers. “Liv and the boys arrive tomorrow, and we’re having lunch here with them on Friday.”
Nerves rush through me, and he blows out a breath. “Time to get this party started, Sunshine.”
CHAPTER9