Page 38 of Allured (Love and Burlesque #1)
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
EZEKIEL
A particular kind of love.
A fter agreeing to bring Alek to my home and texting Emma to let her know he would be staying at my house tonight, I practically had to force more water and a snack bar down his throat so that he would sober up a little before our ride.
“They don’t even have the tasty granola bars,” Alek pouted but ate the bar all the same. He made me smile. He always has.
I was only separated from him for a week, but after the events of today, it was like I was seeing him after a lifetime had passed. I despised the feeling. I wish it would have never come down to this. To the point of Alek shedding tears over my mistreatment of him. Whether or not it was intentional of me to do so, I did hurt him and I must atone.
“Are you ready?” I ask softly, holding my hand out so I can get rid of his trash before we depart. Alek nods and stands up, walking over to the entrance of the apartment and lifting an overnight bag off the hall tree by the door.
As I am locking the door, I feel Alek step closer, his chest so close to my back the heat rolls off in waves and absorbs into my body. A nuzzle of his chin on my back has me sighing so deeply that my back pushes against his chest.
“I missed you,” he murmurs into my skin and stays there for a moment, only moving away once he ensures the apartment door is securely locked.
The moment may be over but the promise from the display of affection has my heart leaping into my throat. I know I can still save this. While I am wholly undeserving of his touch, and his forgiveness, Alek has proven to be a gracious man.
He waits for me at the stairs that lead down into the parking lot and I join him, descending step—by—step. Little droplets of rain fall on us as we walk down the stairs. It feels like we are moving in the right direction with every damp stony step we put behind us.
“Peaches was screaming at me earlier today,” Alek comments as he places his overnight bag into the back seat. “It’s like the damn cat was trying to warn me to stay away until tomorrow.” He laughs, though his smile is not as radiant as normal, and then shakes his head before dropping down into the passenger seat and buckling himself in. I follow suit and get myself situated for the short drive home.
“She has quite the dramatic flair to her, doesn’t she?” I respond, speaking fondly of my little deviant at home.
“She good with other people?” Alek asks, his hands fidgeting with the dampened ends of his shirt, wet with his tears. The marks on the shirt are nothing compared to the stains his crying left on my heart.
“Peaches can take some time to warm up to others but I have a feeling she will easily adore you,” I reply and offer my right hand, palm up on the dividing console of the car.
Alek breathes a little easier, grasping my hand and weaving his fingers through mine in a grounding grip.
“I am excited to see your place.”
“We’ll be there soon, baby.”
I see his body relax at the pet name and I am thankful that my presence and my words are having a calming effect, even with all I’ve put him through today.
We sit in silence for a few minutes before turning onto my street. The silence should be awkward but just as I am comfortable with over—sharing information with him, I am also comfortable merely sitting in a quiet car with him.
The soft strokes of his thumb against the skin of my hand tell me that Alek feels the same. My sweet boy anchors himself with touch and I am more than willing to provide it for him.
Pulling into the driveway, I park the car and turn toward Alek.
“Any questions you have, anything you’d like to see, I will give it to you, Alek. Please let me.”
Taking our joined hands, I place Alek’s knuckles on my lips and brush a soft kiss on them, all while keeping my eyes on him.
“Show me your home, angel.” The small smile he gives me reaches his eyes this time. He does not say it aloud, but I believe his statement implies he wants to see more than just my home. He wants to see my heart.
And I am ready to tear myself open.
Alek hasn’t let go of Peaches since we came inside. The traitor is now curled up on his shoulder as he holds her like an infant being burped. Not a touch of jealousy is in my mind but I am truly surprised that Peaches warmed to him within seconds.
Though, it is fitting in a way, for my cat to love Alek so suddenly since I took to him so quickly as well.
We’ve toured the downstairs living area, den, dining area, powder room, and guest suite but we spent the majority of our time so far in the kitchen. Alek’s eyes shine brightly in the recessed lighting that lines the ceiling. I will admit I have never had much of a mind for cooking so I do not have the same appreciation for the area as Alek does. My parents had this house built with a big family in mind. Sadly, it never came to fruition for them, or me.
Alek looks like he belongs in this space, like he belongs here with me. This is all his and he doesn’t even know it yet. I am more than willing to give him everything I have.
“Would you like to come upstairs?” I ask after having ensured he had enough time to look around the kitchen and wet bar area.
“I’d love to, angel.” Alek sets Peaches down on her bed in the living room and begins to follow me to the stairs. Before I can make it to the second step, I turn around, my eye level slightly above Alek’s in a height reversal.
“Thank you for opening up to me.” Alek’s rough hand cups my cheek as he brushes his thumb against the stress lines I assume are showing full force underneath my eyes.
“Thank you for giving me a chance to right my wrongs.” My hand tangles in his hair for a moment, holding the back of his head as I lean forward to place a soft kiss on his forehead.
A rumble of contentment sounds from his chest, echoing as I lower my hand into his and guide him up the stairs. Once we reach the top, we see the loft area that looks over the den and foyer. As we stare down, I can imagine family gatherings in this house with Alek’s siblings and my own family mingling and enjoying each other’s company.
I think Alek imagines it too but the wistful smile on his face tells me he is not fully believing it could happen.
Without letting go of his hand, I show him to the rest of the second floor. A few rooms, the ones that had belonged to Elizabeth and her hobbies, sit empty now. Sadness lines his features as I explain how the house had felt empty, even when my ex—wife had lived here. I explained how there were times when we hadn’t seen each other for weeks with our busy schedules, and over time, we discovered that we simply wanted time away from each other.
“I’m sorry, Ez,” Alek sighs beside me as we continue down another hallway, true concern in his voice for what I divulged.
“I do not want to sound horrible saying this but much of our marriage felt like an obligation in the last few years. Elizabeth had mentioned that it felt like we were robots playing house when she first brought up the idea of divorce. I couldn’t find it in me to fight for our union because I knew she was right.”
I stop us in front of a set of dark mahogany doors.
“Alek, I need you to believe I have found closure and I’d like you to know a huge part of my healing journey started when I met you. You are not my rebound, as you stated earlier tonight. You are my reason to fight.”
“I believe you, angel.” Alek dares to blush at the moment as if he didn’t already know I felt so strongly for him. The pink tinge of his cheeks has me desperate to pull him into my arms and kiss him senseless.
“I would be honored to show you my favorite room, if you allow.” I free my hand from his, only to push open the double doors of my study. During our video call, Alek had peeked glimpses of my most sacred space, but now, he is one of the only few people I’ve allowed in my sanctuary in years.
“Holy shit, I knew you were a nerd but damn, Ez. There’s gotta be thousands of books in here.” The shocked look stays on his face as his gaze roams over my bookshelves.
“Truthfully, I lost count of my collection about ten years ago.”
Alek lets out a full body laugh and it has me giddy with emotion.
“Don’t tell me you’ve read all these books?” He looks at me, eyes wide and mouth agape in a look of a mix of fear and admiration.
“Well, no. I’ve read a good majority,” I admit, walking along the shelves on the opposite side of the room. “But it is not as if they expire anytime soon. There are books for reading and there are books for collecting. Many consider them to be separate hobbies.” My fingers roam over a small pile of books on the corner of my desk. They are the ones I wish to read within the week.
Alek catches my movement and walks over to see what books are in my pile.
“The Theory of Dance, and a post—apocalyptic romance?” Alek questions, taking the two books at the top of my stack. “Scratch that, post—apocalyptic, reverse harem romance? Sounds fucking hot.”
“Quite so, actually. I would be happy to read it to you sometime.” My tone is dangerously at the edge of flirtatious and of course, Alek picks up on it immediately.
“Maybe we should set this down in your bedroom, then.” Alek tucks the book at his side, his way of letting me know he’s ready to see my bedroom. Though it is not the last room I need to show him.
“The door behind you leads directly into the bedroom,” I motion toward the lone door off the study. I follow Alek closely as he steps into my bedroom. The room is undressed for the most part. Once Elizabeth moved her things, redesigning the bedroom had been the last of my worries.
“How’d my stuff get up here?” he asks, looking over his shoulder as I close the door behind me. When I turn back around, I see him set the book down on the bed beside his overnight bag.
“I brought it up while you were taking ten minutes to admire the pot filler in the kitchen,” I playfully remark.
“Oh c’mon, you don’t see those in houses really often, you can’t blame me.” Alek explains.
“It is yours to use, Alek.” I step closer to him, removing his hand from where he was rubbing it nervously against his head. “There is one more room I would like to show you before the night is over.”
Alek responds with a nod in agreement. My hand finds its place within his once again as we walk out of the bedroom and into the far end of the hallway. I open a slim door that leads to another set of stairs.
“Seriously, you have a whole other fucking floor?” Alek asks incredulously.
I simply lead him up to the wide and open area. Mirrors line the wall of the simple dance studio. There are ballet barres on parallel sides of the room and a speaker system that lines the back wall.
“Ez? What is this?” Confusion takes over Alek’s expression.
“It was originally my playroom when I lived here with my parents. As you know, after their passing, I lived with my Aunt Harriett and Knight. Harriett had been able to arrange for the upkeep of my family home as she raised both Knight and me. When I came of age and moved back here, the playroom no longer sat right with me. I had it changed into a simple room that we mostly utilized for storage while Elizabeth lived here.”
Alek follows along patiently but I see the curiosity burning in his eyes.
“I wanted to show my commitment to you by giving you a permanent space within my home as you have taken a permanent space within my very being.”
Tears are forming in his eyes again and I am afraid I may have done something wrong.
“I am sorry if I’ve overstepped, Alek, you could convert it to a gym, an extra kitchen, whatever you would?—”
My rambling is cut off by Alek’s plush lips colliding with mine. It was only hours ago that I was dreading never getting to feel his lips on mine again and now I am drowning in his show of affection.
Surrounded by the sound of the pattering rain from the building storm outside, I think to myself how forgiveness has never tasted so sweet.