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“I didn’t even take it yet!” I protested, holding the phone just out of his reach.
“Creating memories,” I said innocently, lifting the phone to frame his face. “Come on, give me your best scowl.”
“And you’re just telling me this now?” The tension in his voice was unmistakable.
Part of me wanted to argue that I wasn’t a child who needed naptime, but the steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath my ear was too comforting to resist. “Just a few minutes,” I murmured, already feeling my eyelids grow heavy.
“You’re right,” I admitted softly. “I should have told you. Old habits die hard, I guess. “Just one picture,” I pleaded playfully, trying to capture the moment.
“I can’t just take a nap in a restaurant,” I protested weakly, even as he pulled me down beside him.
Damien’s eyes remained stormy. “What else aren’t you telling me?”
“It wasn’t a confrontation exactly,” I defended weakly. “I just wanted to see them. To look them in the eyes knowing everything I know now.”
“How so?”
His eyes softened. “That’s all I ask.”
“I’ll take that as a yes,” Damien said, signaling the server who had discreetly remained outside. “They can reheat everything.”
“Some friends, some business associates. Nothing formal,” he assured me, though his casual tone didn’t quite hide the significance of the invitation.
“What?”
I stopped short, staring at him. “A gathering? With your friends?”
“I’ll try,” I finally whispered, forcing myself to meet his gaze. “I can’t promise to be perfect at it, but I’ll try.”
“How long was I asleep?” asked, sitting up and smoothing my rumpled hair
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My annoyance faded as quickly as it had come. He wasn’t controlling me; he was worried about me. There was a difference.
“Hey, I have an idea,” I said, pulling out my phone. “Let me get a picture of you looking all broody and serious. It’s quite attractive, actually.”
Instead of answering, I stretched up on my toes and pressed my lips to his. I felt his momentary surprise before he responded, his free hand coming up to cup the back of my neck. The phone slipped from my grasp, forgotten as Damien deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding against mine in a way that made my knees weak.
Damien stepped back slightly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “You’re exhausted, aren’t you? I can see it in your eyes.”
The air between us still felt charged, Damien’s gaze heavy with lingering concern. I needed to lighten the mood somehow.
“About what?” I repeated, feeling my heartbeat quicken at Damien’s inscrutable expression.
Damien’s posture instantly stiffened. “Harrison is out? On what grounds?”
“It’s a private room, and I own the place,” he reminded me, arranging us so that my head rested against his chest. “Just close your eyes for a few minutes. I’ve got you.”
My stomach growled in response, making us both laugh.
“That was the plan,” I admitted with a grin.
“Make me,” I challenged, breathless.
“You fight dirty, Ms. Ashworth,” he whispered against my lips.
After we finished our meal–which was just as delicious the second time around- Damien settled the bill with a generous tip and helped me into my coat.
His fingers stroked gently through my hair. “Just a few minutes,” he agreed.
I looked up at him, trying to mask my apprehension. “Are you sure about this?”
“Tonight is Little New Year’s Eve,” he said as we walked toward the exit. “There’s a gathering in the evening, let’s go join the fun.”
I stretched, feeling remarkably refreshed. “Sorry about that.”
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I felt a flicker of annoyance. “I can handle myself, Damien. I’ve been doing it for years before you came along.”
I bit my lip, considering his words. The truth was, opening up completely terrified me. Every time I’d made myself vulnerable in the past, I’d ended up hurt. First by my father who chose Eleanor and Ivy over me and my mother. Then by Julian who threw away six years of our relationship for a “dying wish.”
“Next time you plan to walk into a potentially dangerous situation, you tell me first. Even if you decide to handle it alone, at least I should know where you are.”
But Damien wasn’t them. He’d proven that time and again.
Some of the tension left Damien’s shoulders, though his expression remained troubled. “Promise me something, Hazel.”
“You went to confront Harrison and Eleanor… alone?” Damien’s voice had dropped to a dangerous whisper.
As we walked to his car, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this evening would be another test–not just of how well I could fit into Damien’s world, but of how ready I truly was to fully let him into mine.
Chapter 145 – Whispers of Forgiveness, Echoes of a Feast
“Damien Sterling, don’t you dare-” I began, but he moved swiftly, cornering me against the wall.
“Never apologize for trusting me enough to fall asleep in my arms,” he said simply, helping me to my feet. “Are you hungry? You barely touched your food earlier.”
“About sharing your problems with me,” he said, his voice softer now but no less intense. “I want to know if you’ll let me in, Hazel, Really let me in.”
He chuckled, the sound vibrating through his chest against mine. “Consider me thoroughly distracted from whatever it was I was upset about.”
With lightning–quick reflexes, Damien lunged across the table and grabbed for my phone. I jerked it away, laughing as I twisted in my seat.
“Delete that,” he growled, though there was no real heat in his tone.
“Come here.” He guided me to the plush sofa in the corner of the private dining room.
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“Rest for a bit before we leave.”
“They wouldn’t try anything in a cemetery in broad daylight,” I argued.
I thought about Ethan being there too, about Eleanor’s scathing comments, but decided those details could wait. “Nothing important. Just that seeing them again… it didn’t affect me the way I thought it would.”
He stood up and came around the table, his eyes gleaming with predatory intent. I scrambled to my feet, backing away with the phone clutched to my chest.
I smiled up at him, tracing my finger along his jawline. “Only when necessary, Mr. Sterling.”
“I expected to feel rage or satisfaction at seeing Harrison so diminished. But honestly? I felt nothing. They don’t have power over me anymore.”
“Last chance,” he murmured, his lips inches from mine.
His eyes darkened at my words. In one fluid motion, he pressed me against the wall, his body flush against mine. I gasped as his hand wrapped around my wrist, not painfully, but firmly enough that I couldn’t pull away.
My stomach clenched with sudden anxiety. I had never met Damien’s social circle before, apart from his family. These were people who had known him for years, who moved in the same elite circles. What if they saw through me? What if they thought I wasn’t good enough for him?
“Hey,” he interrupted gently, taking my hands in his. “These people will love you because I love you. And your dress is perfect for the occasion.”
“A little,” I confessed.
I nodded slowly. “I promise.”
“About forty minutes,” he replied, checking his watch. “You clearly needed it.”
Damien ran both hands through his hair, a rare display of agitation. “Do you have any idea how dangerous that could have been? Harrison may be sick, but that doesn’t mean he’s not vengeful. And Eleanor has proven she’d do anything to hurt you.”
I nodded slowly. “I found out yesterday. That’s why I went to the cemetery today. I knew they’d be there to visit Ivy’s grave.”
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“Hazel…” There was a warning note in his voice, but I could see the corner of his mouth
twitch slightly.
When we finally broke apart, both breathing heavily, his earlier frustration had been replaced with something much hotter, much more intense.
I drifted off to the feeling of his lips pressing a soft kiss to the top of my head.
The abrupt change of subject caught me off guard, but he was right. The emotional toll of the day–confronting my father, the revelations with Damien–had left me drained. “Damien, I don’t think I’m prepared for that,” I said, hating how uncertain my voice sounded. “I’m not dressed for a party, and I don’t know what to expect, or who these people are, or-”
His eyebrow arched. “What are you doing?”
“Absolutely.” His confidence was unwavering. “It’s time they met the woman who’s captured my heart.”
“That’s exactly what I’m talking about!” He pushed his plate away, frustration evident in every line of his body. “You act like you’re still alone in this world. Like you don’t have someone who would move heaven and earth to keep you safe.”
“You don’t know that.” His voice was sharp now. “These people destroyed your mother’s life. They’ve been trying to destroy yours. And you just waltz up to them without telling anyone where you were going?”
When I woke, the subtle shift in lighting told me more than “a few minutes” had passed. I blinked up at Damien, who was watching me with tender
usement.
“Give me the phone, Hazel,” he said, his voice low and dangerous in a way that sent shivers down my spine.
I took a deep breath, deciding there was no better time to start than now. “Actually, there’s something I should tell you. My father was released from prison yesterday.”
“Medical parole. Apparently, he’s very ill. Terminal cancer.”
