Hailey
“Do you mind if I ask why we’re suddenly shopping today?” I asked as he led me inside the store, his hand wrapped around mine. I didn’t know why such a small gesture felt so heartwarming, but it did-it sent warmth coursing through me, making my fingers tighten instinctively around his. But the longer I stared at our interlocked hands, the heavier the realization became.
He was Damien Black.
A man who had hundreds of women at his beck and call. A man who made everyone feel special.
So this? I forced myself not to read too much into it.
“Yes, I mind,” he deadpanned without even sparing me a glance as he strode toward a rack of dresses.
“Hey! That’s fucking mean,” I huffed, narrowing my eyes at him. Not that he noticed.
“Well…” He finally turned, fixing me with a condescending look. “Didn’t I warn you beforehand that I’m not one of those typical nice guys?”
“Yeah, but that tiny disclaimer doesn’t give you a free pass to be an ass whenever you want!”
“Oh, but it does,” he chuckled, beckoning one of the salesmen over before inspecting the dresses. His expression was unreadable, but from the way his gaze skimmed over each piece with disinterest, I could tell none of them matched his taste.
Not that I knew what his taste was.
But I did know one thing-Damien was the kind of man who preferred his women bare before him. The kind of man who’d fuck you like a sinner behind closed doors and worship you like a queen in public. Or maybe… sometimes, even at home.
Forget it. What was the point of trying to figure him out? He’d always be a fucking enigma.
I opened my mouth to speak, but he turned to me first, stepping closer. “For example,” he mused, voice low and teasing, “if I wanted to fuck you right here, in front of all these people, I could. And even if you didn’t like it, you wouldn’t stop me. Wanna test that theory?”
My brain screamed at me to take a step back, but I didn’t. I just stared at him, my pulse hammering, unsure if I should dignify that with a response.
“Damien…” I tried, but he only leaned in further.
“So,” he murmured, his breath brushing my cheek, “if you’re going to judge me based on your subpar experiences with those other guys, you’re in for a disappointment, Bunny.” His lips curled into a wicked grin. “But this?” He gestured between us. “It has its perks, too. I’m not so disappointing in other cases, am I?”
The innuendo laced in his words sent heat rushing through me. I wanted to glare at him, but instead, a telltale blush crept up my cheeks.
Fuck, Hailey. Get a grip.
“Sir, how can I help you?”
Thank God for the salesman’s interruption. I exhaled, relieved, while Damien simply smirked, stepping away.
“Yes, please show me your best collections for my girlfriend here,” he said smoothly.
My heart stuttered at the word girlfriend, a fluttering sensation sweeping through me before I shoved it down. He was just playing the part, nothing more.
“Of course, sir,” the salesman nodded before turning to me. “Please come this way, ma’am.”
An hour later, one of the store employees was loading bag after bag into Damien’s car as per his instructions. I stood there, still in shock at the sheer amount of things he’d bought for no reason at all.
“Damien, this is too much,” I insisted for what felt like the hundredth time. “Can we at least return some of these?”
“I don’t return what I buy, Hailey,” he said casually, opening the car door for me. “So either you accept them, or you can throw them away. But there’s no third option. Now, get in the car.”
“Then you shouldn’t have bought so much stuff!” My voice rose slightly, frustration creeping in.
His jaw ticked, and he raked a hand through his hair. “I don’t get what’s wrong with you. Shopping makes women feel better, doesn’t it? Distracts them from shitty things? So what the hell are you made of?” He looked at me like I was some kind of anomaly. “You don’t like shopping?”
“I do,” I muttered, crossing my arms. “But this is too much. You shouldn’t waste your money like that, and-”
I stopped mid-sentence as realization struck.
Shopping lightens women’s moods.
That’s what he’d said.
And then it clicked-he’d done this for me. After that conversation about my father, I’d curled up under his blanket, trying to force myself to sleep. He must’ve been watching me, silently, for half an hour before deciding to drag me here.
He did this to make me feel better.
God, I wished it were harder to believe. But no-it was right there in his eyes.
“You brought me here to make me feel better?” I asked, my voice softer now, my irritation slipping away.
Something flickered across his face-realization, maybe regret. Suddenly, Damien Black, the ever-confident, untouchable Damien Black, looked the most uncomfortable I’d ever seen him. His jaw tightened, his fists clenched and unclenched at his sides. Why was it so damn hard for him to admit the truth?
“No, that certainly wasn’t my intention.” His voice lacked its usual sharp edge. “But if this makes you feel better… then I suppose I’m happy about that.” He shrugged, as if that might downplay the weight of what he’d just confessed.
I stepped closer, sliding my arms around him before he could retreat. His body stiffened, but I held firm, looking up at him with a knowing smile.
“Why is it so hard to accept that you did something nice for me?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Hailey, you’re overthinking,” he muttered, already trying to put distance between us. “I had no such intentions. I was bored, so we came here. That’s all.”
“As if.” I tightened my hold. “If that were true, you could’ve shopped for yourself too. But you didn’t. You only focused on me.”
His body tensed.
Not such a great liar when nervous, are we?
“Because I have enough stuff already,” he blurted out after a beat, and a small chuckle slipped past my lips.
“So, we’re not as great at lying as we are at fucking,” I mused, lifting a hand to trace a slow, deliberate line along his jaw. A smile tugged at my lips-I couldn’t help it. He was adorable like this. Vulnerable. And for a fleeting moment, I forgot about the other Damien Black-the cold, untouchable one. Because right now, as I looked into his eyes, there was no mystery, no walls. Just something else entirely.
“Are we?”
His jaw clenched, and then-
In a blur, my back hit the car door, the slam echoing in the silence. Before I could react, he was on me, pressing me against the cool surface, his body taut with frustration. One hand gripped my jaw, the other pinning me in place at my hip.
“Don’t test my patience, Hailey,” he warned, his voice low and edged with something dangerous. His teeth clenched as he spat out the next words, each one sharper than the last. “When I say it meant nothing-I fucking mean it. So shut your mouth and believe it. I don’t do weak men stuff.”
Weak men stuff.
I should’ve seen it coming. Of course, there was only one reason Damien would rather bury this moment under anger and irritation-because to him, kindness was a flaw. A scratch on the armor of his carefully crafted image. His fortress. His cage.
“Yes,” I whispered, my voice softer now, my hands moving on their own as they cupped his face. For a fraction of a second, I saw it-the anger in his eyes flickering, weakening. His breathing was heavy, and he looked like he had so much to say, but I knew better. He wouldn’t say a damn thing.
“You don’t do weak men stuff, Damien,” I murmured, leaning in just enough for my lips to brush against his, an instinctive attempt to soothe whatever battle was raging inside him. “If you were weak, you would’ve ignored me lying in your bed, forcing myself to sleep. You would’ve gone about your day, untouched, unaffected. But you didn’t. You brought me here, took care of me, made me feel special.”
I felt him freeze under my touch, his breath catching.
I didn’t know why it terrified him so much-to be seen as good. Why he clung so desperately to the image of the bad guy. Maybe he was a red flag, maybe he was dangerous, but what he did today?
It was beautiful.
And whether he liked it or not, I was going to give him the credit he refused to take.
Yet, at the corner of my mind, a thought lingered-almost absurd, but stubbornly there.
What if Damien was better than he let on?
But I quickly shoved it aside. I couldn’t afford to let my imagination run wild, to build illusions that would only pave the way for heartbreak.
“You try to find good in everything, Hailey,” Damien muttered after a tense silence, his eyes locked onto mine. “One day, it’ll either get you seriously fucking hurt, or you’ll end up becoming someone you’re not.”
A small smile tugged at my lips.
I pulled him closer, my voice a whisper against his lips.
“We’ll see about that later. For now-kiss me.”
He let out a quiet curse, but he didn’t hesitate.
He did exactly as I asked.