Where You Belong: Chapter 24

I check myself in the mirror. My hair is done, I have on a dark blue suit with my brown leather shoes, and my cologne is sprayed.

Alexis still insisted on picking the restaurant tonight, but when she told me she was going to text Allen, I left the room and called him. It was a little strange to have to admit to him that Alexis and I were an item, but it felt kind of nice to speak the words out loud.

He gave me a protective father kind of talk, which I actually appreciated. I didn’t realize he looked at Alexis like a second daughter.

In the end, he agreed to suggest the restaurant I want to take her to—Marble Room. The downtown venue is set in an old bank with marble walls, hence the name of the restaurant, and large Corinthian columns adding to the Renaissance style of the room. It’s a pretty spectacular area to dine in, with the rich history oozing from every direction your eye takes you.

I convinced Alexis to let me pay for the evening so we don’t have to worry about prices or expenses. The winner of the bet gets to pick the restaurant, not pay for the evening.

When I get to the kitchen, I see her wearing a gold dress that has long sleeves and shows off her killer legs. She’s laughing with Mia as they lean against the island.

She looks up at me and smiles.

“Wow,” I tell her. “You look…stunning.”

I kiss her cheek. When my hand reaches for her lower back, I notice that I don’t feel any material. I steal a glimpse and find that the dress is backless all the way down to her ass.

Fuck me! I’m gonna be hard all damn night.

“Thank you.” She blushes as she glances shyly between Mia and me, hopefully not noticing how quizzical Mia looks.

“Thanks for watching Sienna tonight,” I tell Mia.

“No problem. You two get out of here and have fun. Sienna and I have some trouble to get into.”

I smile but give her a stern look so she knows I’ll be less than amused if she does anything I wouldn’t approve of.

As we drive downtown, I start to think that tonight might be the perfect night to tell her that I’m falling for her. Maybe even tell her I want her to stay here with me. It may be sudden, but it feels right.

After I give the car over to the valet, I take her hand and lead her inside.

“This feels weird,” she says before we enter. “I won the bet and picked the restaurant, but you’re the one who booked the reservation and knows where to go.”

I smile and turn my back to the door as I stop.

“Confession,” I tell her.

Her eyebrow lifts as she waits for me to continue.

“I may have called Allen and told him what restaurant I wanted him to refer you to.”

Her eyes open as wide as saucers. “Gabriel Giannelli. You are one sneaky man.”

“And I’m not sorry. I wanted tonight to be as special as you are.”

She lifts herself up and kisses my mouth. “Thank you.”

“Also, you don’t get a reservation the night before at a place like this without knowing somebody.” I wink at her before opening the door.

She rolls her eyes at me. “You’re sweet, but not modest.”

“I’m just saying, I may know a few people because of what I do. One thing I can promise you, you’re gonna love the wine.”

“I’m sure I will.” She licks her lips.

I know that look she’s giving me. She’s thinking about our first night together.

“Behave,” I whisper in her ear with my hand on her back. “If I know you’re having those thoughts while wearing this dress, I’m not going to be able to contain myself.”

“I don’t think I want you to contain yourself,” she says flirtatiously.

“I’ve created a monster,” I chuckle.

I give the hostess my name, and then we are being led to a booth off to the side to give us some privacy. I watch Alexis’s eyes gaze around the room as she takes in the columns, marble walls, and the grand ceiling which adds to the luxurious feeling the place gives off.

“This place is incredible,” Alexis says in awe as she takes a seat in the booth.

I follow and scoot in close to her, my body never wanting to be far from hers.

“It’s the best indoor dining view you’re gonna get in the city,” I tell her. “But the architecture is only half of what makes this place so wonderful. The food is out of this world.”

“Gosh, I can’t wait. Thank you so much for picking this place.” She beams in delight.

I look at her until she realizes what she just said. When it dawns on her, we share a laugh.

“Thank you for being overbearing and a control freak and making me pick this place,” she corrects herself.

“It’s my pleasure. I just didn’t want you to miss out on this place,” I admit. “So, I’m not going to be some controlling prick who tells you what food to order, though I’d be happy to offer my opinion if you’d like, but would it be okay if I picked the wine for the evening?”

“I appreciate you asking, but of course, you can pick the wine.”

“Great, it’s a Bordeaux,” I tell her, then give the waiter our order.

“So, tell me something I don’t know about you,” she requests.

‘Hmmm, that’s quite a question to start the night,’ I say.

‘I want to know more about you.’

I lean back and rest an arm on the back of the booth as I think about what I could tell her.

‘I wanted to be a professional baseball player growing up,’ I finally admit.

She leans in. ‘A baseball player, eh? I can get behind that. You certainly have the butt for it.’

My head falls back in laughter. ‘Thanks. That’s the only reason I wanted to. To show off my ass.’

‘Did you play baseball in high school?’

‘I did. I actually played in college, too. But that’s when my passion for wine and starting a business began. In the end, I knew I would prefer to have a more stable life. The constant traveling I would have to do in the league just started to appeal less and less to me.’

“I can respect that. Do you ever wish you went for it?”

“Not at all. I have Sienna, and she wouldn’t be here if I went another direction.”

“Sienna is worth everything,” she agrees, grinning at me.

Those words spoken out of her mouth are just confirmation that telling her tonight is the right move.

We stop our conversation for a minute to look at the menu, and she asks, “What do you prefer here?”

“I like to get a steak and add lobster.”

“Mmmm. I don’t know if I’d have room for dessert if I had both. I’ll stick with the bone-in rib eye.”

“Excellent choice. I’m gonna go for the bone-in New York strip with lobster. Care to share some sides with me?”

“Only if we get the potatoes au gratin for one,” she replies cheekily.

I chuckle. “Yes, ma’am. And they are to die for, nice choice. Are you good with the crispy brussel sprouts for the other side?”

With her approval, I put the order into the waiter as he pours our wine for us.

“Cheers.” I hold up my glass to her. “To an amazing summer.”

“Cheers.” She clinks me.

“My turn for a question,” I tell her. “Where do you see yourself in the future?”

She looks at me thoughtfully.

“I guess that’s been the question of the summer for me. I’ve struggled with the answer. I just get so in my head. Honestly, my whole life has been a battle of getting somebody—anybody—to love me…to pay attention to me. It’s hard for me to think only of myself.”

I know we’ve had this conversation, but that was before she and I started sleeping together. Before I fell in love with her. It feels bigger now. It’s hard for me to believe that someone as amazing and selfless as Alexis can struggle to see herself as important enough to decide her future for herself.

“Did spending time with Sienna give you the break you needed to take the pressure off?” I ask.

She sighs. “It definitely took the pressure off for the summer. I suppose I got so distracted living your life with you and her, that I forgot to think about what I need for myself. I know I still need to make that decision. It’s looming in the background every second, but I’m still putting it off for some reason. I don’t know why.”

Her answer is like a stab straight to my heart. She’s been living my life for me, not one for herself.

Am I holding her back from making a decision?

I know I am. How could I not be? She basically just admitted it.

“Why do you think it’s so hard for you to make that decision?” I ask, my heart racing as I wait for her answer.

The food comes and temporarily distracts us.

“This looks amazing.” She eyes her steak appreciatively.

I know this conversation isn’t over, but I also know I don’t want to ruin our meal by forcing it to continue, I let it slide. I try to keep the conversation as light as possible while we eat, but I have this looming feeling hanging over me that this night will no longer be ending the way I had originally thought it would.

“I’m stuffed,” Alexis places her napkin on the table and leans back, “but that was incredible.”

“I’m glad you liked it.”

“I loved it.” She smiles at me.

I pay the tab, reaching for her hand to help her out of the booth and not letting go until we have to separate at the valet to get in my car.

“Thanks for an amazing evening,” she says in a silky voice.

“It was my pleasure, Alexis.”

As I drive, I think back to the question still lingering in my brain.

“You never answered my question,” I say in a hardened voice.

“What question?”

“Before our food came,” I remind her. “I asked you why you think it’s so hard for you to make decisions for yourself, with just your happiness in mind.”

I steal a glance at her to find her worrying her lip.

“Who really knows why they do things? It could be because I just don’t really know what I want to do. Or maybe it’s because of my family.”

“Have you always wanted to stay in Ohio?”

“No, actually. For a while, I thought about California,” she says carelessly.

California? The state my ex left me for to pursue a happier life. And if I ask Alexis to stay with me, how long before she changes her mind and takes off for the golden state?

I think I fucking hate that state. Why do all the women in my life want to move there?

What does California offer that makes my love and commitment not worth it?

There’s no way the two of us could work. Even if I asked her to stay and she agreed, would I want to be the reason Alexis didn’t go for her dreams? Absolutely not.

Whether I want to admit it or not, Alexis is special to me. I do want her to be happy, and I’m afraid if I tell her how I feel, she’ll stay and go against what she really wants to do. She deserves to make a decision for herself and her own happiness.

I owe it to her to let her have that clarity without my responsibilities weighing her decision down.

“Are you okay?” she asks.

“Huh?” I look over at her concerned face. “Oh, yeah. Sorry. I was focusing on the road.”

I know she doesn’t totally buy my response, but she doesn’t say anything further. The rest of the ride is quiet as I think about letting her go on Saturday.

Three more days together.

Although I know this is the right decision, anger starts to grow. By the time we are pulling into the garage, I’m gripping the steering wheel until my knuckles are white as I try to suppress the fury.

I’m on autopilot as I thank my sister for watching Sienna and usher her out the front door. When the click sounds, I look up at Alexis before taking calculated steps in her direction and catching her off guard when I wrap my arm around her with force and drag her body against mine.

My mouth slams down onto hers as I ignore the end of the evening. Right now, I just want to feel her in my arms, feel her lips against mine, hear her breaths of pleasure when she comes on me.

This kiss…it’s powerful. My mouth claims every bit of hers as my tongue finds its way into every crevice of her mouth. When I pull away to take a breath, she looks up at me.

“I thought you were angry with me,” she tells me.

I don’t respond. I just take her in my arms and carry her up the stairs and into her room. I already know I can’t bear to have her sleep in my bed again without it being too much for me.

When we get into her room, I close the door with her still in my arms before I place her down on the bed.

“Tonight, I’m going to take you hard, Alexis,” I warn her.

She bites her lip and nods her head in agreement.

“Now take your dress off for me,” I demand. “I want to see those perky tits.”

As she reaches for the bottom of her dress and starts to pull it up her body, I grab my belt and start to strip.

There’s no time for undressing each other or making this romantic.

She sheds herself of her dress, and I get the view I wanted of her breasts. She’s lying in front of me in nothing but her white underwear.

I get rid of my shirt so I’m only in my boxer briefs.

“Touch yourself, baby,” I growl. “I want to watch those delicate fingers slide inside your wet pussy.”

Her jaw falls at my words. I step forward and let my finger graze her hip until it comes down to one of her knees. I bring my hand behind it and lift her leg up and to the right so she’s spread wide, revealing an already wet spot on her underwear.

“You fucking want to touch yourself, don’t you?” I accuse her. “Look how wet you are, you’re soaking through your underwear. You can’t wait to show me how you like to touch yourself. I’ll show you how I like to touch myself too. Do you want that, Alexis?”

“Yes,” she breathes out.

I use my finger to pull her underwear to the side. Her pussy is glistening, and part of me wishes I could just push my dick inside.

“Let me see it,” I tell her.

Her hand comes down to her pussy. She runs her fingers through her folds then brings them up to her clit where she starts to rub circles. When her fingers slide inside of her, I’m gone. I drop my briefs and pump my dick.

It only takes a minute before I know I need to feel her.

“Get on your hands and knees. I’m going to fuck you from behind.”

She follows my command and is in position in an instant.

“Good girl,” I encourage as I step close.

I glide my dick around her slickness and slide inside. I pump inside of her as my fingers grab onto her hips, squeezing hard as thoughts of this possibly being our last night together start to form.

The more those thoughts haunt me, the harder I fuck her. If this is possibly my last time with her, I want her to remember me.