The Things that Belong to Me

I woke up to the warmth of soft moist skin against my face. It felt like bliss, and I moved even further in, inhaling the pretty scent of masculine aroma and cooking. It felt nice, and I smiled, wrapping my hand even tighter around this pretty smelling thing, like if I woke up, it would be gone.

"You lied about hating being touched."

I stopped chuckling to myself, then opened my eyes and looked up. As it turns out, my hand was firmly wrapped around Florian's back, my nails digging into his flesh, my face buried in his chest.

My lips parted, and I started to move, but he pulled me back, a gasp escaping my lips.

"Florian, I..."

"You can stay here," he said, and I could hear him chuckle a little. "You are such a bad liar."

I sighed, slowly adjusting closer to him again. He did smell incredibly beautiful, and there was perfection in the way my hands were around him, his skin soft yet firm.

"I didn't lie," I said slowly, my lashes fluttering against his skin. I felt him jerk a little to the ticklish sensation, and I pulled further, batting my lashes a bit more.

He reacted every time but said nothing to stop me, and it became my favourite pastime soon enough.

"I think you did. I think you always do."

"You lied to me literally just last night, Florian."

"For your own good," he said simply, and I batted my lashes hard against his chest. He jerked but didn't say anything else.

"How many more lies for my own good?"

"As many as I need to keep you here, unbothered about the crazy world out there."

I moved a little, and his eyes darted slowly across both of mine.

"I do appreciate it, Florian, but... I am not going to mooch off you forever."

"You have a plan?"

I nodded. "I will be going to the company tomorrow."

I saw Florian's eyes darken, and I immediately pulled closer to him. His fingers almost immediately wrapped around me, pulling me even closer, and I wondered how we had gotten this way. Or how long he had wanted to protect me. Did these instincts kick in when he saw me getting cheated on?

"I am not going there to reconcile. They have hurt me enough."

He gave a small humming sound. "Then?"

I shrugged. "I have a bit on my credit cards, but I don't want to use any money given to me by them or from the work I did for the company."

Florian slowly released me, and without a word, he got out of bed. I watched as he adjusted the waist band of his slacks, then grabbed the remote and closed the drapes of the room. The lights came on, and he dropped the remote and slowly walked out of the room.

My brows furrowed hard as I sat up in bed, wondering if I had said something he didn't like. Florian was a quiet person, and his face was mostly expressionless. It was expressionless enough to leave me always wondering what was going on in his head.

I had started to flip the sheets away from my body when Florian walked back in. He was holding a small envelope and was now wearing a loose white shirt.

He gave me a small smile before he went around and got on the bed, then placed the envelope between us.

"Here."

My brows furrowed as I reached out. "What is it?"

He shrugged. "A letter of invitation."

I gave a small laugh. "Invitation? What are you inviting me to? A ball? Am I going to dance my heart away?"

He gave a chuckle. "If that's what you want, we can make it happen."

I laughed, not taking it too seriously.

"But for now," he continued, then leaned to tuck my hair away. "This is an invitation to my company."

I looked up, my lips parting. "Florian."

"You are completely capable of going out there and making your own way, but I would be stupid to lose an opportunity to hire you, Roxanne."

I broke into a laugh that was closely accompanied by tears. "Florian, you... you are doing so much for me. Too much."

"And you, Roxanne, are so used to believing you don't deserve it."

I met his eyes, and he leaned even closer, his fingers gently running down my cheeks, the tip of his nose brushing mine.

I closed my eyes, my chest heaving hard. "Thank you."

He nodded. "And stop talking about mooching off me. You are paying me back."

I met his eyes, and he looked dead serious.

"When will I make enough money to pay you for... this room?"

He shrugged. "We will see."

He pulled away again, then turned. "Is there anything you would like for dinner?"

I bit down on my lips. The overwhelming attention from Florian was certainly helping me stay distracted from everything that had wrecked my life, and I wondered how long I could stretch this luck.

I moved a little further, biting down on my lips. "Well... I was... I was wondering, Florian."

He turned to me, his eyes holding a bit of curiosity, but not much else. "Yes?"

"Do you know The Continental?"

He raised a brow. "The elite restaurant?"

I nodded. "I have always wanted to go there, but somehow never did. Damien would..."

"No mentions of Damien, Rox."

I swallowed, then nodded. "I am sorry."

He sighed. "Get ready. I will be waiting downstairs."

My eyes widened. "Are we really going there? For real?"

He nodded. "You want it. Why not?"

I broke into a smile, then stood up, walking o the bed towards him. He walked closer to me, and I wrapped my hands around him, my eyes closing.

"Thank you. I will surely pay you back."

He didn't reply, and I sighed, then leaned away. My eyes caught his, and he looked a little flustered, his eyes dark, unreadable vortices.

I smiled again, then nodded. "Thank you. For taking care of me when you really don't have to."

His eyes darkened by a shade, and he brought the back of his index finger to wipe away tears I hadn't even realized had fallen.

"I do take care of everything that belongs to me, Rox. This house, the company..."

I nodded, then started to turn away when I heard the last part of his statement.

"And you, baby girl."