Sadie
As we drove down the long, winding driveway of the estate, I couldn’t help but stare out the car window with my jaw dropped. Holy crap! This place was huge!
The house looked like an English manor, with a gray roof and a red-bricked facade. It was three stories high…at least that’s what I could tell by the windows. There was probably an attic and underground levels as well. The rest of the property was perfectly kept. All the hedges were trimmed, and the grass looked freshly cut.
“You all right, Sadie?” Cyrus asked, stealing my attention from the window.
I turned to look at him. He sat next to me, while Megan sat in front of us in her booster chair, asleep.
“Yeah,” I nod, giving him a bashful smile. “Just…uh…enjoying the view.”
He looked over my shoulder and out the window. I watched his expression. Of course, he didn’t experience the same wonder looking at his own house. He shrugged and looked back at me.
“I suppose it’s pretty impressive,” he said with a smug grin.
I rolled my eyes but chuckled. “Humble, I see.”
“Always.”
The car came to a stop in front of the house, and Cyrus moved to gently wake Megan up. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. Blinking, she looked around, and then, her expression lit up when she spotted the house.
“We’re here!” she yelped.
I smiled at her excitement.
“Do you like it here, Megan?” I asked her.
Nodding, the little girl declared, “I love it here! There are horses, and puppies, and a pond with ducks and swans!”
“Oh, that sounds so fun!” I replied, clapping my hands together. “Will you show me?”
“Yes!” Megan exclaimed. Looking to Cyrus, she asked, “Can we show her, Uncle Cyrus? Can we?”
“Of course.” Cyrus nodded with a grin. “We can give Sadie the tour. How’s that sound?”
“Yay!” Megan cried in delight.
We got out of the car and took our baggage inside. Then, Megan and Cyrus proceeded to give me a tour of the gigantic house as well as the grounds. There were stables with horses and kennels with dogs, just like Megan had said. We played with the puppies for a bit before they took me to an adorable pond surrounded by willows.
It was magical, really. I felt like we’d stepped into some fairytale or a Jane Austen novel. I felt safer within the first few hours of being there, and Megan blossomed, shedding the remains of her fear from the incident back in New York.
Once the tour was over, we went back to the house to get unpacked and settled. Then, we had dinner, and I went to put Megan to bed.
“Did you have a good day, sweetie?” I asked as I tucked her in.
She blinked, clearly exhausted, but she gave me a tired smile. “Yes, I did. It was a good day…”
Her words trailed off and her eyes slid closed. She fell asleep right then and there. I smiled down at her and brushed my fingers through her hair. I carefully stood and made my way out of her room, gently closing her door.
Releasing a long breath, I wandered down the hall, but I didn’t head toward my bedroom. Instead, I made my way to the library. I wanted to do a little more exploring on my own. Earlier, when Cyrus and Megan had shown me the grand room, I’d been stunned. Two levels of bookshelves with a balcony and several seating areas with couches and cushioned chairs made up the majority of the space. Floor-to-ceiling windows had allowed natural light to flood the room.
I just wanted to find a book and curl up on one of the couches and forget about everything else that had happened. Reaching the doors, I paused when I found them slightly ajar. The lights were on inside the room. Frowning, I pushed the door open and stepped inside to find Cyrus standing at one of the windows, staring out over the grounds.
“Cyrus?” I asked with a frown. “What are you doing?”
Chapter 41
He turned to me with a start. “Oh, Sadie…I didn’t hear you come in.”
I closed the door behind me. “What were you thinking about? You looked like you were lost in thought.”
Shaking his head, he turned back to stare out the window.
“Just considering everything that’s happened,” he murmured. “Trying to decide what I do next.”
There was an emotion in his voice that was very close to despair. It made my heart ache. He looked as though he had the weight of the world resting on his shoulders. I wanted to comfort him so badly. Wanted to wrap my arms around him and ease his worries.
I hesitated to go to him, though, remembering the last time we had touched each other. His rejection still stung when I thought about it. I was still so confused as to why he would push me away like that.
When he released a long breath, something inside me snapped. Suddenly, I didn’t care about his rejection. At that moment, I just wanted to give into my desire for him. After everything we had been through, didn’t we deserve that? Didn’t we deserve each other? To find comfort and pleasure in each other?
Before I gave myself the chance to change my mind, I crossed the room and wrapped my arms around his waist. I hugged him tight, pressing my face between his shoulder blades.
Cyrus tensed and let out a surprised breath but, thankfully, he didn’t try to free himself from my grasp.
“Sadie?” he murmured. “What are you doing?”
“Cyrus,” I whispered. “You know what I’m doing.”
He released a soft growl. “I’m not good for you, Sadie. You shouldn’t want this.”
“I want you,” I insisted. “And I know you want me. Why should we keep fighting this?”
He placed his hands over mine and squeezed, but he still didn’t push me away.
“Sadie,” he muttered. “You will regret this.”
“No, I won’t,” I told him. “I know my own mind, Cyrus. Please, don’t turn me away.”
He was silent for several moments, and I felt a stab of fear that he might actually reject me again.
Just when I was certain this was going to fall apart, he pulled my arms away and turned to face me.
“Cyrus…?”
He cupped my face and drew me in for a kiss. I sagged against him in relief and slid my hands up his chest so I could wrap them around his neck. I parted my lips, and he swept his tongue into my mouth. Reaching down and cupping my backside, he picked me up off the floor. We continued our kiss as he carried me to one of the couches and laid me on my back. He followed me down, covering my body with his.
I clung to him as he reached down and pushed the skirt of my dress up to my waist. He moved his lips from mine and began working his way along my jaw and down my throat. Continuing to work my dress up over my breasts, he slipped it off of me completely. Tossing it to the side, he immediately cupped my breasts through my bra and kissed along my cleavage.
“Cyrus,” I gasped, running my fingers through his hair. “That feels so good.”
“I’m going to make you feel even better,” he promised me. He slid his hands beneath me to get to the clasp of my bra and worked it free of me as well.
His mouth found one of my nipples and latched onto it. I arched my back with a gasp as he began to suck, massaging my other breast at the same time.
I groaned as heat spread through me. My skin grew flushed and my breathing shallow. I wanted to touch him, too. I had yet to make him fall apart the way he always made me. Biting my lip, I ran my hand down his torso and cupped him through his pants. He let out a hiss of breath.
“Christ, Sadie,” he gasped. “You were right before. I want you so badly. I want your hands on me.”
“I want to touch you,” I admitted. “I want to make you feel good the way you always make me feel good.”
He chuckled, the sound strained.
“Do you know what you do to me?” he rumbled before he reached up and tugged his shirt off over his head. “Do you know how crazy you make me?”
I smiled at him and let out a breathy chuckle. “I drive you crazy? Hmmm, I kind of like that.”