Chapter 6 Six

Lily's POV

Sleep had been impossible. Exhaustion was all over my body, but my brain would not listen. Every time I attempted to drift off, the images returned. Aiden. These steel-gray eyes searching mine. His hands are hot on my cheeks. The feel of his mouth against mine—hard and gentle all at once.

I sighed in frustration and turned onto my other side, squashing my face into the pillow. This wasn't supposed to happen. I was not going to be some woman who melted at a man with power’s touch. It had taken too much sacrifice, too many years of teaching myself to trust in my own reliance on nothing.

Yet somehow, that kiss.

I dragged myself to a sitting position and trudged toward the little kitchen space. Coffee was essential. Maybe a frigid shower too. My studio was calling to me from across the room, and I questioned whether getting lost in painting could effectively erase last night. I raised my brush and looked upon the naked canvas in front of me. Absolutely nothing. My was only filled with one thing: the feeling of Aiden’s hands.

An hour with nothing but random lines coming to nothing. At last, I threw the brush down.

Someone knocking startled me. I checked the time. Nine already.

"Lily! Let me in! I've got coffee and bagels!" Hannah's voice. Relief washed over me.

I unholked the door, but her grin turned to a frown when she barged in.

"Alright, talk. What's going on?" She set the breakfast items down on my counter and crossed her arms, waiting patiently.

“Nothing,” I tried, but it didn’t sound convincing.

"Lily Monroe, we’ve been friends for five years. I know when something is bothering you.” She passed me a cup. "Try again. What's going on?"

I drank the hot liquid and fell onto my couch. Hannah refused and sat next to me, infinitely patient.

“He kissed me,” I finally confessed.

Her eyebrows shot upward. "Aiden? The billionaire?"

"Correct."

"Well?"

"Well, it was incredible. And frightening. And I'm completely lost." Everything spilled out at once.

"Hannah, he purchased my building. He says he wants to figure out whatever this is between us. He looks at me like there isn’t another person in the room. And I'm absolutely terrified."

Hannah considered this silently. "Did you reciprocate the kiss?"

"Absolutely. Absolutely not. Maybe." I left my coffee and mooched up into my face. "That's exactly the issue. There was a part of me that wanted it so much. But the rational part knows that this is catastrophic.”

"Does he make you feel real?" Hannah asked gently.

I looked in her eyes, tears forming in mine. "Absolutely. Which scares the crap out of me more than anything.”

She grasped my hand firmly. "Here's my honest opinion. I think you should be careful. Men like Aiden Cole are used to getting everything they want. That is, I've never seen a man look at a woman the way he looks at you."

“You think I’m nuts for even considering this.”

"I feel like you gotta guard your heart. But I also suspect he might possibly be exceptional. And promise me you’ll be careful alright?”

I agreed. "Absolutely."

The next hour was filled with talk and bagels, but Hannah’s advice remained resonant. Was it possible that Aiden was actually different?

Around noon, clarity struck. I needed answers, and I could only find them in the open. If it was something Aiden seriously wanted to go for, he had to realise I wasn't going to be manipulated or dominated.

I changed, tied my hair back and picked up my coat. In front of the mirror I gave myself a pep talk.

"You're capable of this. You're resilient. You're self-sufficient."

The taxi to Aiden’s office tower had been over too soon. All of a sudden I was in the immense foyer, with its marble and glass professionals in expensive suits.

I approached the front desk. "I need to see Aiden Cole."

The valet looked me over with thinly veiled disgust. "Do you possess an appointment?"

"No, however—"

“Mr. Cole does not see visitors without appointments.” She turned back to her screen, dismissing me.

Fury ignited within me. “Look, just call him and tell him that Lily Monroe is here.

"I won't disrupt Mr. Cole for anyone on a whim. Depart before I summon security."

I was about to protest when the ele-vator freed Aiden, flanked by suited colleagues. His eyes found me.

Time froze. He spoke to the men briefly, then sent them off. He stepped towards me, and I literally lost my breath. His charcoal suit probably cost more than my yearly rent. Those grey eyes kept staring into my own.

"Lily." He addressed the receptionist. “Ms. Monroe has lifetime access here. Appointments are unnecessary. Always."

He also offered me his hand. "Accompany me."

I hesitated a moment, but then let him take my hand. We got into the lift and doors closed us in.

"Why have you come?" he inquired.

"We require a conversation."

"I concur." The elevator ascended smoothly. "My office."

We walked in silence until we arrived at his computer terminal. It was huge, all glass and modern furniture. The Chicago skyline unfurled outside his desk.

He shut the door and turned to me. "Speak."

“You can’t just buy my building,’” I said. “You are not just gonna kiss me and have everything be different. You can't just decide for me that I continue to exist without talking to me at all.”

" I didn't buy your building to control it. I purchased it for protection."

"I require no protection!"

"Yes, you absolutely do! The building owner had wanted to sell to a developer who intended to demolish. You’d have lost your studio; you’d have lost your home. I couldn't permit that."

"That decision wasn't yours!"

"Perhaps not. But I executed it regardless." As in, he was standing right before me. “I don’t regret getting what I did to care for you.”

"I'm capable of self-care."

"I'm aware. That’s one of the things I love about you.” He raised his hand and tucked away a strand of hair that had come loose behind my ear. "Question me about anything."

"Why such guardedness?" I sounded the query before I could hold it back. "Your reputation suggests coldness. Yet with me, you're altered. Why?"

He turned in another direction and walked towards the window. His expression softened as he spoke at last. Become vulnerable.

"My father was despicable. He married my mother simply for her family social connections, and proceeded to use their marriage to make her unhappy. He cheated on her, lied to her, used his money to control every piece of her life. When she tried to leave, he erased her. She died when I was twenty. Devastated and isolated. I also swore never to behave as he did. But at the same time, I took a sacred oath to not let anyone get close enough to hurt me.

My throat constricted. "Aiden—"

"Then you appeared." He rotated back toward me. "And all of a sudden, for the first time in my life, I craved someone to have access. You inspire me toward difference. Toward improvement."

Words failed me. And all I could do was look as he approached.

"I'm inexperienced at this. But with you, I have no answers. All I know is when you’re near, it feels like life."

There was electricity between us. I sensed the magnetic pull.

"This is inadvisable," I whispered.

"Likely." His thumb glided over my jaw. "Instruct me to stop."

"I'm unable," I exhaled.

He kissed me. Nothing gentle remained. This was unfiltered and desperate. He kissed me harder and then his fingers slipped into my hair. I grabbed at his suit jacket and pulled him closer.

We backed up until the desk stopped my retreat. His hands moved to my hips, placing me on the shiny surface. Installed one leg around his middle. The kiss was turning into something ferocious, almost desperate.

His bulging lips met my neck and I took a sharp breath. His hands slid under my blouse, lighting torches in my blood. His mouth found mine once more and I melted against him. His hand lowered, and I arched into his touch.

My phone erupted.

We both immobilized. It persisted ringing.

“Forget about it,” Aiden muttered against my mouth.

It continued.

I withdrew, breathing heavily. "I cannot. The gallery might need me."

He retreated. I climbed off my desk and picked up my phone.

"Yes?"

"Lily! Finally. We're experiencing an emergency. The opening post of tomorrow is patently flawed. We require your immediate presence."

I shut my eyes. "I'm departing immediately."

I disconnected and observed Aiden. He leaned back, his chest heaving as he observed me.

"I must depart."

"I understand." He cupped my face between his hands. “Come have dinner with me this weekend. An authentic date. Simply us."

I should refuse. But watching his eyes made refusal impossible.

"Alright," I whispered.

He kissed me again, soft and sweet. "Saturday. Seven o'clock. I'll collect you."

I nodded. I grabbed my purse and walked towards the door. When we got to it, I looked backwards.

"Aiden? Gratitude. For sharing your history."

Something shifted in his expression. "Thank you for remaining."

I left his office, my heart still racing. I rode the elevator down to the lobby and stepped out, still in a daze. I was so lost in thought that I did not see the woman until we were about to collide.

"Oh! My apologies," I said, retreating.

The woman was breathtaking. Statuesque, sophisticated, with perfectly arranged blond hair and glacial blue eyes. She was wearing some designer dress that probably cost more than everything in my entire wardrobe combined. She looked up at me with an expression that makes my skin crawl.

“You must maintain the dignity of the artist,” she said, her voice smoothed as silk and double its chilly. "How charming."

Before I could even react, she breezed past me to Aiden’s private lift. She pushed the button as easily if she'd done it a million times before. Like this was her territory. As if she had full knowledge of her destination.

The elevator opened and she got in, turning to watch me again. That frigid grin remained, even as the doors closed.

My stomach plummeted. Who was that woman? And why did she see me as an obstacle to be removed?