The Vessel Read online

Show you off.

  But as I let those words sink in, as reality finally settled inside me, I knew our worlds were so different. I was so different.

  He was used to the rich and famous, models dripping with diamonds, their social standings and the way they were raised putting my meager upbringing to shame—in their eyes at least.

  And that’s what Lucius had known and grown up around.

  But he wanted me. He touched me like he was starving, like I was the oxygen he desperately needed.

  “Hey,” he said softly and cupped the side of my face with one of his big, warm hands. He stroked his thumb along my cheekbones, looking into my eyes, his face so close all I smelled and felt was him.

  I closed my eyes for a moment and breathed out slowly. I didn’t want whatever this was between Lucius and me to end. It was like a fairy tale, my own happily ever after. But I also wanted to be realistic. I opened my eyes again and looked into his bright blue ones. They seemed darker in the interior of the car, the buildings blocking out the sun, the shadows from the skyscrapers on either side of us dimming the inside so it gave everything a murky appearance.

  “I’m not like the other women who run in your circles, Lucius.“

  His brows pulled down low as if he were confused by my words. “I know,” he responded. He kept stroking my cheek with that lone digit, continued to stare into my eyes and let me finish.

  “I’m not rich, not beautiful like the ones I’m sure you’ve been with all your life.” Something flickered across his face, and a second later, he leaned back against his seat, his hand falling from where he cupped my face. I saw the way his jaw worked under his smooth, masculine, square-cut jaw.

  He was upset. At me.

  For long moments, he said nothing as he stared out the front windshield. I was feeling awkward for even bringing it up as the silence stretched on.

  “You think I don’t know who you are, where you come from, or the fact that you’re unlike any of the women I’ve been surrounded with all my life?” he finally responded. My body was tight despite his words being softly spoken, gentle.

  I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing at all.

  “I know what I want. I know I want you, Elise. And I’ve never wanted anything more in my life.” He exhaled slowly, roughly. “I’ve had anything, everything I’ve ever needed or wanted at my fingertips, but it has all been empty. I work hard for where I’m at in life, make sure the people around me are taken care of.” He was silent for a second. “But I’ve never wanted anything more than you.” He looked at me then, so much truth in his eyes, in his tone, that I gasped from it. “I’ve never wanted anything more than you,” he said again, softer this time.

  “You understand me, Elise? You understand what I feel for you, how deep it runs?”

  I swallowed, knowing he spoke the truth. I felt it. “Tell me,” he demanded. “I need to hear you say you understand that what this is between us, how I know you feel this connection too, is real.” His gaze was penetrating, intense.

  Tell me, he said—roared—without saying the words again.

  “Because you feel it, too. I know you do, don’t you.” He didn’t ask it as a question. He leaned forward an inch. “Because anything but an affirmation from you is a lie, Elise.”

  I wouldn’t lie. Never. Even if I worried things weren’t supposed to be how it was between us because of how different we were, I did want Lucius. I cared for him, and it was clear he cared for me too.

  “I won’t lie,” I whispered. “I want you, Lucius.”

  His smile was slow, satisfied. “And you’ll let me take you out, show you off?”

  I couldn’t help but smile in return as I nodded. “Okay,” I said just as softly as he had so many times during this exchange.

  This was more than just what was on the surface. This went so deep there was no coming back from it. And that sounded pretty incredible to me.

  18

  Lucius

  “You’re sure about this?” Michael asked with incredulity in his voice and covering his face.

  I leaned back in my office chair and nodded. “Yes. I won’t be forced to have a child just to save the business. That’s not how I want this done.”

  He gave a tight nod and started gathering his paperwork. “This is going to rock everyone, Lucius.”

  I had no doubt it would. Hell, it rocked me to my core. “Above all else, I want you to make sure every single employee is taken care of and their job is secured. I want them to know there is always a place at Blacksmith—or whatever it’ll be called in the future—for them.”

  I had him take notes while I went through the process of selling the company. He put everything in his briefcase and stood. “I think you need to think on this more.”

  Michael’s heart was in a good place; I knew that. He’d been in my life for a very long time and knew how hard this was for me.

  “There’s no way I will abide by my father’s demand to produce a child. He may have done that for himself, but I’m not him and never will be.”

  “I know you’re not him, Lucius.” He gave me a smile.

  “When I have a child, it’ll be because I love their mother and she’s mine. I want a family, not a pawn.” I stared out my office window, and Elise came to mind instantly. I wanted those things with her. “So the old man still fucked himself over, because the legacy of the Blacksmith business will no longer be.”

  Although it was a hard pill to swallow, there was also a little part of me that felt resolve with my decision. I didn’t feel animosity toward any of it anymore. I just felt... this was how it was supposed to be.

  “I understand.” I looked at Michael then. “I’m not going to expedite this through, because there’s no need. But once it’s made public, the offers will start pouring in. I want to really sit down with you and discuss each company’s pros and cons so we can make sure Blacksmith won’t get screwed.”

  I nodded and smiled back. “Good. That’s why I have you on my team. You see my vision and know what I want.”

  “I better for what you pay me.” We both laughed at his teasing tone.

  Michael left, and I sat there staring out the window. Elise had been a constant on my mind, and not even getting rid of the company could’ve pushed her from my thoughts.

  Tonight was our first date, and to say I wanted this to be memorable for her was an understatement. Because whether she knew it or not, this date was the first of many.

  This date was the first of her being mine irrevocably.

  19

  Elise

  I was floating, seriously floating through the day as my excitement consumed me. I felt a constant smile on my face, felt my coworkers’ curious glances in my direction. Let them stare though. I was on cloud nine.

  All I could keep thinking about was my interaction with Lucius in his car, as we sat in the alley, as he kissed me and told me I was who he wanted. That had only been two days ago, but it seemed like a lifetime. And although our physical paths hadn’t crossed since then, his busy work schedule keeping him at the office late and having him go in early, the communication between us was strong and thick.

  He called me every night, and we talked for hours. I could easily fall for him just listening to the deep rumble of his voice. And the text messages he sent, ones that made me blush, others that made me smile and feel warm, were never inappropriate, but they were laced with sexual heat and promise. And he made no secret that he desperately wanted me.

  His words were like poetry in how he described thinking about me, kissing me... how it made him feel. His words heated my body and made me tingle in all the right places, yet they weren’t filthy or obscene. It was just the way he said it.

  Our date was set for two days from now, on my day off. And although Lucius wanted to go out sooner, to just give me the time off so we could be together before the official date, I liked that we waited. It made the anticipation and excitement build. Besides, I didn’t want special treatment just because
he was my boss and made the rules. And although this was all so fresh and new, I’d never felt anything more real in my life, had never experienced a more powerful pull toward another person like I felt with Lucius.

  I looked at the clock, getting ready to end the day, excitement moving through my veins at the prospect of Lucius being the one to take me home. I enjoyed that time we had together, leaving his house, going through the city. He held my hand the entire ride, the conversation light as he asked about me. I felt like I talked so much about myself, but he encouraged it, even told me he wanted to hear more. And so I divulged everything, all the little bits I could remember, things about my childhood, all the way through high school. I told him about the few classes of community college I’d taken, how a structured schedule like that had given me anxiety.

  I wore a no doubt goofy smile on my face as I cleaned up my items and headed to the storage closet that kept the majority of the cleaning items. Merla was already in there, and when she heard me, she turned, her dark eyes locked on mine.

  She wore this serious expression, and I didn’t have to think too hard on what she was about to say. I felt like she saw everything, even the things that weren’t obviously spelled out, as in Lucius and me being in a relationship.

  The times Lucius and I did pass each other at the estate, there wasn’t anything obvious to indicate we were in a relationship. But there were gentle touches, his fingers moving along mine as we passed, or even the way he leaned in close to brush the tip of his nose along my hair.

  A chill raced up my spine, but I pushed it aside. I felt uncomfortable thinking about Lucius and those things around Merla. They were private, just for him and me.

  “Excuse me, Merla,” I muttered as I slipped past her and started putting the items away on the shelves. I could feel her gaze on me, but I ignored it. Maybe it was my own paranoia settling in, this feeling like I was doing something wrong, even though I knew I wasn’t.

  “The staff is talking,” she finally said, and I stopped what I was doing to turn to face her and look her in the eye.

  “What do you mean, the staff is talking?” I wasn’t going to be intimidated, but Marla was one hell of an intimidating woman on the best of days. When she had suspicion, she was downright terrifying.

  “About you and Mr. Blacksmith.”

  I curled my hands into tight fists at my sides and shrugged. “I don’t participate in workplace gossip.” I wasn’t going to confirm or deny anything. The fact was, she didn’t make the rules. Lucius did, and he was more than happy to break them. I was coming to realize… so was I.

  “It’s not appropriate, Elise, and you being a newer employee shouldn’t be an excuse.”

  I felt my anger grow. “Thank you for your concern, but what I do with my personal life is no one’s business, and I find it tasteless my co-workers are discussing it behind my back.”

  Nothing was said for long moments, and I wondered if she was surprised I hadn’t just rolled over and submitted. I was just about to walk by her when a dark shadow passed across the opening of the storage room. And then there was Lucius, looking so damn sexy in that three-piece suit of his, his pose muscular and imposing as he took up the entire space of the doorway. He had his hands shoved in the front pockets of his slacks as he looked between Merla and me.

  She looked over at him, and I saw her eyes widen momentarily as she realized it was him who stood there. She straightened and took on her stern, professional demeanor. “Mr. Blacksmith,” she said in a polite albeit monotone voice.

  “Everything okay in here?” Lucius asked, and I knew he was directing it at me. I had no doubt he heard what Merla said.

  “Everything is fine.” I meant that. Now that I’d given myself over to my desire for Lucius, not caring that we were breaking rules—even if they were the ones he made—I’d come to the realization that I didn’t care much about what others thought. I didn’t care if they saw this as wrong, inappropriate, or even trashy.

  I didn’t care if they thought I was sleeping with the boss to get ahead. None of that was the case. All I cared about was how I felt and how Lucius made me feel.

  And at the end of the day, that was all that mattered.

  20

  Elise

  If I ever thought of an ideal, fairy tale date, Lucius far exceeded my fantasy of that. He’d taken me to a small boutique restaurant, one that served authentic French cuisine. We sat out on the patio, the string lights above us giving an almost ethereal, fairy light quality. I drank two glasses of white wine, something I normally never did.

  But I realized with Lucius, I enjoyed the whole atmosphere that went with enjoying a good meal and exquisite wine coupled with perfect company.

  I probably talked far too much, but Lucius sat there almost transfixed with me, with everything I had to say. He wanted to know everything about me, all the little details, all the things that made me tick.

  And I divulged everything. Because I wanted him to know.

  For dessert, we shared a clafoutis, with black cherries arranged in a buttered dish and covered with a thick flan-like batter. It had been rich and delicious and like nothing I’d ever tasted before.

  After dinner, we’d taken a stroll down the street, this part of the city like a world all on its own, a little piece of France transplanted right in the heart of America.

  Little shops were at every corner, boutiques, flower shops, even mom-and-pop-style bakeries. The street vendors were by far my favorite. I was used to hot dogs, ice cream cones, and cans of your average soda as the only option. What I wasn’t expecting were crepes of every kind, homemade macarons, and other French delicacies to pick from.

  I stopped and looked at one of the flower shops, the display right outside the front windows showing an array of beautiful, colorful roses. I leaned down and inhaled a red rose, the fragrance so potent I actually hummed in pleasure. I opened my eyes, not realizing I closed them, and looked to my left to see Lucius focused on me. His expression was so intense, his eyes taking in every inch of my face. I slowly straightened and turned to face him, but before I could say anything—if I even could have—he leaned in and kissed me. He did it right there in front of everyone, stealing my breath, my very sanity. I melted against him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders, pressing my body to his. He was big and hard, strong and masculine, and I felt so vulnerable and innocent, so petite against him.

  I felt the tingles of that kiss from the tips of my toes to the very top of my head, and the longer we kissed, the more the world faded around me. I didn’t care who saw. I didn’t care what anyone thought. All I could hear, feel, and smell was Lucius. And it was glorious.

  By the time he broke away, I was gasping for air, clutching at him just to stay upright. My lips felt swollen and sensitive, my cheeks hot. When I slowly opened my eyes, I could see he already watched me, this almost drowsy expression on his face, his eyes hooded, his mouth slightly parted as he breathed in and out slowly.

  “God, Elise… you’re going to be the death of me,” he said softly, so low only I could hear. He leaned forward, and I thought he was going to kiss me on the lips again, but instead he brought his mouth to the center of my forehead, giving me a soft, almost endearing kiss.

  I closed my eyes for a moment and just absorbed it. I’d fallen fast and hard for this man, tumbling over the edge of a cliff for Lucius, and it had never felt more perfect.

  He stared into my eyes, my arms around his shoulders, his fingers curled against my waist.

  He leaned in close, his lips brushing along my cheek and jaw, down my neck, and settled at the shell of my ear.

  “I’m so lost in you, Elise, so lost that I never want to find my way back.”

  I closed my eyes and just let all the wonderful emotions wash through me. I’d never be the same. I knew that. I embraced it.

  21

  Elise

  The ride back to my apartment was done in pretty much silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable, not with the feel of Luciu
s holding my hand, or of his thumb moving along my wrist, right where my pulse point was. It was soothing, relaxing, and I found myself resting my head back on the seat, feeling this lulling sensation move over me.

  Although I was content in that moment, my body was on fire. I glanced over at him, the lights from the dashboard mixing with the shadows that cast over his profile. He looked so masculine, with his square-cut jaw, his full lips, and his straight nose. His short blond hair looked darker in the shadowy interior of the car.

  He must’ve felt my stare, because he looked over at me then, giving me a small smile before he lifted our joined hands and brought them to his lips, kissing my knuckles. All I could feel was Lucius. All I could smell was the intoxicating, masculine cologne he wore. My body was on fire, every erogenous zone in me heightened, tingling. I knew what I wanted, and that wasn’t to go back to my house and spend the night alone.

  We were halfway between his house and mine, and I felt a surge of desire move through me so strongly I was about to do something I never envisioned myself doing before.

  “Everything okay?” he asked and gave my hand a light squeeze.

  I licked my lips and nodded slowly. Everything was more than okay, and I hoped the next sequence of events made it even better.

  “I’m not ready to go home yet, Lucius.” He slowed to a stop at a red light and glanced over at me.

  “Okay,” he said softly and gave me a smile. “I’ll take you wherever you want to go. I’m never ready for the night to be over when I’m with you.”

  My heart raced double time at hearing him say those words. How did I get so lucky? It took me a moment to answer, because I wasn’t quite sure if I had the courage to actually go through with it, but I didn’t want to wait another moment. I didn’t want to prolong this. I just wanted Lucius.