The Billionaire’s Burden(21)

"It means enough to me." He responded, his vagueness forgiven by my yearning for his kiss.

Too weak to resist any longer, I pulled his face down to mine, softly gasping against the feel of his tongue sweeping my lower lip. I nibbled his own lip softly, head thrown back as he gripped the zipper of my dress, nimbly shedding me of all clothing.

I lay below him, too hungry for his body to be shy. His mouth once again devouring my own with his lusty lips.

Had you asked me, I would have been sure I was in heaven. His knowing hands were everywhere, expert mouth following delicately. Every inch of my body was worshipped and devoured. Explosions of lust rocked us through the night.

When I woke the next morning, I could have sown up and down that it was a dream, save for the fact that I was naked - and extremely satisfied - in Sebastian's bed instead of modestly clothed in my own.

I held my breath, tentatively peeking over my shoulder towards the other side of the bed. Nothing but a cold and empty spot stared back at me. Sebastian had already left for his trip.

I rolled onto my back, extending my hands in front of me and watching as the sunlight glinted off the huge diamond engagement ring on my hand.

Had it really meant anything last night? Sebastian had been evasive on the subject to say the least. Was it nothing but lust and alcohol, or did it mean something more?

The thought of his naked body moving against my own, the thought of his warm lips touching mine... it all sent butterflies shooting through me. It made me feel as though I were dizzy.

But was that enough?

With a sigh, I climbed to my feet, grabbing a robe that hung from Sebastian's closet. I could only hope we could have a real conversation when he got back.

Wrapping the soft cloth around me, I padded to the bedroom our, creaking it open carefully. I glanced up and down the hall, wary of an untoward conversation with my mother in law, before sneaking into my bedroom.

By the time I was showered and dressed, I was starving. We'd never ended up eating dinner last night, just drinking.

A smile played on my lips as I thought about his drunken laughter, the touch of his hand against my cheek.

My fingers grazed my lips, wishing I could still feel that warmth.

I walked into the dining room, still in a blissful reverie.

"I see you've finally woken, Macy." Karina scolded, nibbling the end of a scone, "You didn't even see Bast off, and he won't be back for an entire month."

"A whole month?" I echoed after her, frowning as I slid into the chair. I poured a cup of coffee, slowly sipping it.

A month without explanation of what happened, a month without hearing his voice or feeling his kiss.

"He left a note for you." Karina added, pushing a miniature envelop towards me.

Frowning, I took it, breaking the seal of the letter and pulling out a tiny card from inside. I almost congratulated my mother in law on not giving into her nosy urges and opening the letter herself. It was slightly surprising to see the seal untouched.

Or perhaps she had carefully watched him write with her little eagle eyes.

"I won't wait two weeks to call you." It simply said, small letter 'S' scrawled below it.

For some reason, those his words were short and his message simple, I could feel something bloom inside of me. Something excited, something optimistic.

I still wasn’t sure what I wanted from my billionaire husband, but I was sure we could sort it out together.

To know that Sebastian would be thinking of me while he was gone, to know that something, even something small, had shifted in our relationship gave me hope.

Everything was going to be alright.





Chapter Twelve





For the first three weeks of Sebastian's absence, things continued along just fine.

Day to day, there was nothing out of the ordinary, and I certainly didn’t see that changing. Unfortunately for me, fate tends to have other plans.

I’d quickly made it a habit to stop by the bakery and see how Harry and Lewis were doing, and was thrilled to find that they had dug out some of the old decor and interspersed it with the new more chic thins Alissa had chosen. It was rather refreshing to see such a mix.

Though I’d been nervous about interacting with Lewis, he and I tended to keep our distance for the most part, though it was difficult. I could feel him watching me sometimes, or the occasional brushes against my arm were just a bit too tender, too yearning.

I just did my best to keep my mind on the business. Harry was a hit, of course. Though he was a bit more shy than my parents had been, Lewis was quick to befriend curious guests.

Sebastian and I spoke every few days on the phone, mostly when he had a break from meetings or was driving to a new location. The conversations were short and rather shallow. We did not talk about that night and we definitely did not talk about our feelings to one another.