Chapter Three

  I’ve spent the last four days paying Derek back what I owe him. 

By paying back, we’ve been hanging out with each other every day.

 He has taken me to the city’s park and aquarium, and we’ve been to a lot of fine dining restaurants, and we’ve been avoiding alcohol because of the last time. 

If this was his idea of paying him back for throwing up in his car, then I was ready to keep paying him back. 

I know it’s just been a few days but I looked forward to seeing him. 

Contrary to how cold and dangerous he looked, he was really sweet. 

He knew the right things to say to make me blush and we were almost always laughing. 

   It wasn’t supposed to be like this, I know. It was supposed to be a one-time thing, but now, I was staring out the window like a teenager in love, waiting for his black Ferrari to pull up in my driveway.

The second I spotted his car down the street, butterflies erupted violently in my stomach.

I adjusted my sundress and reapplied my lip gloss. 

I hated how my stomach churned whenever he was near. 

I hated how excited I was to see him and I wished I could control it. 

I wondered if he felt the same way whenever he saw me. 

We hadn’t put a name to what was going on between us, we were just two adults enjoying each other’s company. 

  The soft buzz of my phone pulled me away from my thoughts.

DEREK: Stop stalking me and come downstairs.

My mouth dropped open in embarrassment. I hurried away from the curtains immediately.

ME: I wasn’t stalking you. I just wanted some air.

Three dots appeared instantly.

DEREK: El, the curtains moved.

I liked how he was the only one who called me El. It made me feel special. My family and friends at home called me Ellie.

I grabbed my purse and headed downstairs.

The evening breeze was cool against my skin when I stepped outside. 

Derek was leaning against his Ferrari like a model. His sleeves were rolled to his elbows, tattoos peaking out. 

God, this man.

 “There she is,” he smiled a little.

My heart did the embarrassing flip it does whenever he’s around.

  “You’re very annoying,” I said as I approached him.

  “Your face says otherwise,”

I rolled my eyes but my smile betrayed me.

He opened the passenger door for me as usual.

The drive through the city was smooth and quiet. I caught myself staring at him as he talked. He was perfect.

  “You’re doing it again,” he said suddenly.

  “What?” I raised a brow.

  

    “You’re staring at me like I’m dessert,”

God, I wanted to wipe the smirk off his face. Preferably by kissing him.

I looked out the window to hide my embarrassment from him. I’d never felt this way about a man before, I was drawn to him like a magnet.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled into the driveway of a beautiful house sitting near the water.

   “Is this yours?” I gasped.

 “Yes. I come here when I need to clear my head. I’ve had a lot on my plate recently,”

My shoulders dropped and I felt sorry for him. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He shook his head.

 We never asked personal questions and I had no problem with it because I didn’t want to tell him why I moved all the way here. 

  “Are you secretly rich?” 

I was in awe of how magnificent the house was. I never asked him what he did for work but he had a lot of money and he was humble about it.

  “Are you trying to kidnap me?” he joked.

I snorted. 

My attention was on the large glass wall overlooking the ocean.

   “Oh wow,”

He watched me instead of the view.

  “You like it?”

I nodded. “It’s beautiful, like something out of a movie,”

  “You should see it at sunrise, it’s magical,”

Something about the way he said it made my heart flutter.

He disappeared into the kitchen and returned with two plates and a bottle of sparkling water.

  “No alcohol still?” I teased.

He shook his head. “None for you, my lady.”

  “You’re scared I’m going to throw up in your car again?”

Derek laughed. 

I liked making him laugh. It had only been a few days with this man I knew nothing about.

 Derek made it easy. 

It was easy to talk to him, to talk about stupid things I couldn’t even remember.

And maybe it shouldn’t terrify me, but it did. I was breaking my own rules by talking to this man consistently.

Hours later, after lunch, we ended up outside, near the water.

  “It’s really peaceful here,” I said quietly.

He gave me a small smile. “That’s why I came here,”

I looked over at him.

He didn’t have his usual lopsided smile. He looked kind of tired.

 “What?” he asked when he noticed me staring.

  

   “Nothing,” I shrugged.

  “Liar,”

I smiled softly. “I didn’t just expect you to be like this,”

   “Like what?”

I searched for words but I couldn’t exactly find any.

  “You thought I was going to be an asshole?”

I laughed. “Okay, maybe I was judgmental, but I know now that I was wrong.”

  “What do you think of me now?”

He stepped closer.

I swallowed hard as his cologne filled my nostrils. 

  “I think you’re making me lose focus,”

His eyes dropped briefly to my lips before meeting my eyes again. 

I held my breath when he placed his hands on my hips. 

  “You can stop me whenever you want,”

Him saying those words, giving me a choice, made me want him more.

Instead of stepping away, I closed the gap between us. 

A little part of me knew I should cut it out before it was too late, but how could I resist this sexy man in front of me?

Derek kissed me slowly, almost like he was giving me time to change my mind. 

The second I kissed him back, he deepened the kiss. 

  “Eloise,” he murmured against my lips. “Tell me if you want me to stop.”

I was breathless. I shook my head immediately.

  “Please don’t stop,”