Obsession

by Linda Verji

  He dragged in a deep breath to ease his racing heart before looking over his shoulder to say. “Hold on tight.”

  She nodded.

  He revved up the machine and set it in motion.

  * * *

  LEX SMELT AMAZING and his back was warm. So warm that the wind that whipped around her as they rode down the highway didn’t even have an effect on her. He was like a warm fire on a cold, winter night, and so comforting that Freddie found herself setting her head on his shoulder. Before she knew it, she was crying again.

  Six months! Six months!

  She’d wasted six months with a man who thought that faithfulness didn’t apply to him. How had she not caught it? She was hurt, but more than anything she felt like a fool. People always said that women had instincts that told them when things just weren’t right. Well, Freddie must not be a woman because she’d completely missed the signs even when they were blinking like neon lights right in front of her nose.

  God! She was an idiot.

  But better to be an idiot than an asshole. How in the world could Wesley live with himself after what he’d done? He’d deceived her for six months straight. What for? If he indeed believed that men were not created to be with one woman, why had he promised to be faithful to her? What was in it for him? Or had he just been having fun all this time? Trying to see how long it would take stupid Freddie to catch on.

  The thought sent more tears spilling down Freddie’s cheeks. It was lucky that she was wearing a helmet otherwise she would’ve ruined Lex’s leather jacket. Along with her sadness came embarrassment. As grateful as she was that Lex had saved her, she also hated that he’d seen her at her weakest point. Still, it was better that he was there rather than Ari.

  Ari would’ve blown this whole situation into a wildfire. Reasoning with Ari when he was righteously angry was like trying to explain nuclear physics to a cat. A waste of effort! Right now, they’d all be sitting in cells while Wesley waited for a plastic surgeon to fix his face.

  Yeah, it was much better that it was Lex. With a sigh, she tightened her arms around his waist. Immediately, she felt the muscles there flex perceptibly. All her senses came alive as they noted how firm his stomach was and how his muscular thighs pressed against the insides of hers.

  She’d never been quite this close to him and for some reason that thought sent an odd thrill through her. The low hum of the engine below her and the little bumps as they rode only added to the weird intimacy of their position. Too intimate.

  Still, she couldn’t help cuddling even more into his body. So what if they were too close? After everything she’d been through today, she deserved some consolation. She closed her eyes and set her head on his back. They rode like that for quite a while until the scent in the air changed to something a little saltier. They were near the ocean.

  By the time they cruised into the parking area closest to the beach, darkness had already set. Lex brought his bike to a halt then waited for her to clamber off before he got off too.

  “Why are we here?” Freddie asked as she took off her helmet.

  “Fresh air,” Lex returned simply as he got rid of his helmet, shaking his hair out as he did so.

  Fresh air was indeed just what she needed. Lex may not be a good talker but he could hear even words that weren’t said. Freddie smiled as she watched him.

  Objectively, Lex was a fine, fine man. His dark hair was long enough that he had to push the silky strands behind his ear to keep them from obstructing his sight. Heavy dark brows framed brown eyes that seemed to look past a person and right into their soul, while a light evening beard framed his lips. However, it was his body that had her attention.

  Lex was a tall man, so tall that even in her heeled ankle-boots, her head barely touched his chin. Plus, he was slender. When he was younger, Ari and his other friends had nicknamed him Skindiana Bones. These days he’d put on a little muscle but he was still on the leaner side of human. Freddie had never asked him how much he actually weighed because she was too scared that she might find out that she weighed more. She chuckled at the thought.

  However, her chuckle didn’t fool Lex. As soon as he got a good look at her face, he frowned. “You were crying again.”

  “Was I?” She’d almost forgotten about Wesley for a moment there. With a sheepish laugh she pulled a handkerchief from her cross-body purse then swept it over her cheeks. “Sorry.”

  “You don’t have to apologize.” He looked like he wanted to say more but he didn’t. Instead, he took her helmet and his and locked them on the motorcycle. When he started walking along the paved path, she followed along quietly.

  Despite the late hour, there were several people still out and strolling along the beach. Young old, male, female, couples…. Watching the happy couples was like getting stabbed again and again. Once upon a time… heck, just a few hours ago, she’d been just as blissfully happy as them. Blissfully ignorant.

  Maybe it would’ve been better to never have caught Wesley and his model. Maybe then Freddie wouldn’t feel this bitterness that had settled in her throat. Maybe she wouldn’t feel this hollowness that had taken the spot where her heart was supposed to be.

  Six months. Six wasted months.

  Maybe this was her fault too. If she was more of the kind of woman Wesley’s kind of man dated, maybe he wouldn’t have felt the need to have a side-chick. She should’ve worn more make-up, tried those fake nails that Winter was always trying to convince her to give a go. Maybe she should’ve taken her mother’s advice and gotten rid of the jeans and tailored shirts. Would skimpier clothing and higher heels have kept him?

  Ugh! What was she even thinking? If even the Kardashians had gotten cheated on, who was Freddie to imagine that showing off her admittedly chunky stomach would somehow keep her man from running around?

  “He’s not worth it.” Lex’s deep voice cut into her thoughts.

  “Hmm?” Freddie gave him a sidelong glance.

  Lex said, “Don’t cry for him.”

  “I’m not cry-” Freddie paused when she realized that indeed her cheeks were wet again. Damn it! She dug into her purse for her handkerchief and wiped her face. She and Lex walked in silence for quite a while before she asked, “Did you hear it all?”

  Lex gave her a questioning look.

  “What Wesley and I were fighting about?” Freddie clarified. “Did you hear it?”

  Lex shook his head.

  Relief shot through Freddie. At least he didn’t know. But in that same instance, the urge to confess squeezed at her and she found herself revealing, “He cheated on me.”

  Lex immediately stopped walking. Freddie could’ve sworn that she felt the air crackle with his anger as he turned to her. The rage in his eyes was accompanied by disbelief as if he couldn’t believe that Wesley had cheated on her.

  “Yup,” Freddie emphasized. “He cheated on me.”

  Lex stared at her for a while as if to confirm that she was really telling the truth, then he abruptly turned and started walking away. Even without him saying a word, she already knew what he was planning to do.

  “You can’t beat him up.” Freddie raced to grab his arm. “You don’t even know where he lives.”

  Lex stopped walking to glare at her. I’ll find out, his eyes said.

  “Then?” Freddie held on to his arm tightly. “Am I supposed to bail you out for assault? Once the two of you are arrested, everyone will know. You’re a high profile CEO, he’s a star. It will be everywhere. My name will be everywhere. I’m already embarrassed enough without all of this blowing up into something bigger.”

  Lex’s jaw tightened perceptibly. “Am I supposed to just let him go?”

  “Yes.” She forcefully turned him so they were back to walking along the path they were on before. Though reluctant, Lex let her lead him. She added, “I didn’t tell you about it so you could go beat him up.”

  “Then why did you tell me?”

  “I don’t know.” Freddie shrugged. “I guess I
just want someone else to agree with me that he’s a bastard.”

  “He’s a bastard.” Though Lex’s voice was low, it was filled with so much venom that Freddie had to smile.

  “Good, good. That’s it.” She teasingly nudged the side of his body with her shoulder. “After that you’re supposed to hug me and tell me that I’ll find someone better.”

  The shock that filled Lex’s face was enough to make her laugh aloud.

  “I’m kidding, Lex.” She chuckled. “You don’t have to hug me. I know how much you hate-”

  She didn’t get to finish the sentence. One second she was teasing him, and the next he’d drawn her into his arms. Freddie was so surprised that she was rendered motionless even as her body welcomed the unexpected warmth of his. When he gathered her closer and slid his hand across her back, she couldn’t help the strange skip of her heart or how her feet instinctively brought her even closer to him. Before she knew it, her arms were around his waist and her head was buried against his chest.

  The world and everything disappeared until it was just the two of them cocooned in their private space where no words were needed. Judging by his personality, she expected him to end the embrace quickly. But he didn’t. He just held her.

  His hands swept along her back, soothing her sorrow away even as his heart beat against her ear, reminding her that she didn’t have to go through this alone. Freddie dragged in a deep breath and got a nose-full of his masculine scent. It was so intoxicating, so comforting that she found herself breathing in more of him and tightening her hold around his waist.

  Even without speaking, Lex was just the pain-reliever she needed. The heaviness that was in her heart eased a little as she stood in his arms. Soon, something new came in to occupy that space. She wasn’t sure when it started. One moment she was leaning heavily into him because she wanted his comfort, and the next it was because her whole body felt… odd.

  Suddenly, she noticed just how hard his chest was pressing against her breasts, how firmly his thighs were pressing into hers and the lump that was pushing against her tummy. A weird warmth slowly slithered through her. It strummed at all her nerves until she felt breathless with anticipation. As if she was waiting for him to do more than just pat her back.

  Wait! Was she… was she getting aroused?

  Freddie immediately stepped away from Lex. Her eyes flew up to his face to see if he’d noticed. However, his face was a mask of detachment. No, he hadn’t noticed.

  She forced a smile. “You’re getting better at this.”

  Lex raised an eyebrow questioningly.

  “The comforting thing. You’re getting the hang of it.” Laughing, she lightly punched his chest (her way of reminding herself that they were nothing more than friends) as she added, “I almost forgot that I was heartbroken.”

  Lex just shrugged. His way of saying ‘I’m glad I could be of help’.

  Now that she was out of his arms, it seemed to have gotten colder. Shivering slightly, Freddie pulled her blazer tightly around her. Lex immediately noticed and shrugged off his jacket.

  Freddie gave him a surprised look. “What are you doing?”

  Instead of answering, he set the jacket over her shoulders.

  “No.” Freddie immediately shook it off and handed it back to him. “You’ll be cold too.”

  “I don’t mind,” he said despite the fact that his thin, black t-shirt was no match for the breeze.

  “Well, I do. You’re not getting sick on my watch.” She lifted on tiptoes to set the jack back over his shoulder. Before he could protest, she started walking back towards the parking lot. “Come on. We’ve stayed out here long enough anyway. Let’s go back.”

  She didn’t need to look back to know that he’d follow her.

  When they got back to his bike, he handed her helmet. As she put it on, she asked, “Could we stop by a convenience store first?”

  He didn’t ask why. He just nodded.

  Within minutes, they were back on his bike, cruising down the road. As requested, Lex stopped his bike in front of the first convenience store he saw. He waited outside while she went in. Once in the store, Freddie headed straight for the alcohol aisle. Though she wasn’t a big drinker, tonight was an exception. Alcohol couldn’t get rid of her heartbreak but it could help her forget it for at least one night. She dumped a pack of beer and several bottles of vodka in her basket before heading to the counter.

  It was only as she was paying for her loot that she realized that she still had Lex’s wallet. As soon as she was outside the store, she held it out to him.

  Stuffing the wallet into the back of his denim pants, Lex trained his gaze on the white bag she was holding. “What’s that?”

  “This?” She held the bag up. It was transparent enough that one could see the alcohol inside it. She grinned. “My medicine.”

  Lex glanced at the bag then met her eyes again.

  “What?” She stared right back at him. “Are you going to tell me that alcohol is not the answer?”

  His eyes said that that was exactly what he was thinking. But all he did was shrug before saying, “You’ll have to carry them though.”

  She nodded. “That’s okay.”

  He held the bag so she could put on her helmet and get on the bike. Once she was on the bike, he asked, “Where to?”

  “Your place,” she answered promptly.

  His eyebrows immediately arched upwards.

  She explained, “You don’t expect me to get drunk at my parent’s house, do you? My mom will kill me.”

  “Winter’s place,” he suggested.

  “She’s out of town.”

  “Ari?”

  She guffawed. “Are you kidding me?”

  Lex was all out of options now but he still looked reluctant. To be honest, she could’ve gone to a bar, but she didn’t want to go alone. And even if Lex agreed to go with her, she might burst into tears. She’d already embarrassed herself in public today. That was enough. Lex’s place was her only option.

  “Come on, Lex,” she coerced. “Just tonight. I promise I won’t mess up your place.”

  He watched her for a moment then said, “That’s not what I’m worried about.”

  “What are you worried about?” she asked.

  He didn’t answer but the odd light that glinted in his eyes was enough to send momentary doubt through her.

  Was it a bad idea to drink with Lex? She immediately shook that doubt away. Why would it be a bad idea? He was her brother’s best-friend. The man she trusted as much as her own family. What could happen?

  She forced her lips into a pout as she pleaded, “You’re the only one I have, Lex. Please. Please.”

  He stared at her for quite a while before he sighed in surrender.

  “Thank you.” Freddie grinned. When he got on the bike in front of her, she leaned forward to say, “Don’t worry, Lexy. I’ll be a good girl. I won’t eat you.” She didn’t know what possessed her to add, “Unless you want me to.”

  But the shock that filled Lex’s expression when he turned back to stare at her was enough to make her giggle. However, her giggle faded when his shock changed into something more… more dangerous. His eyes darkened and shadowed. That look sent a strange ache shuttling through her body straight to her lower belly. Her breath caught and she couldn’t pull her gaze away from his. It was almost as if he was thinking of taking her up on her offer to eat him. He wasn’t, right?

  Before Freddie could further analyze the look, he turned away from her and started his bike.

  CHAPTER 4

  Did Freddie bring your wallet? Ari’s text came in as Lex and Freddie were taking the elevator up to his condo.

  Yes, Lex returned without mentioning that he and Freddie were still together. If Ari knew that his sister was still hanging around Lex, he’d ask questions that Lex wasn’t even sure he knew the answers to.

  For instance; why were he and Freddie still together? Lex still couldn’t quite figure out what Freddie was
doing coming up to his house. She was a bubbly, cheerful woman who got along with almost anyone she chose to. Surely she had other girlfriends apart from Winter. And even if she didn’t, never in a million years would he have thought that she’d pick him as a substitute.

  When she was still a teenager, she’d followed him, Ari and their other friends around a lot. But once she got to college the pseudo-stalking had stopped. In fact for the last few years, he’d thought that he was practically invisible to her. Other than greetings and a few teasing comments whenever he dropped by her parents place, she ignored him. Now she was heading to his place? It didn’t make sense.

  What about the whole being attracted to Lex speech that she’d given Wesley? That she wanted him to be her one-night stand. What was that about? He snuck a glance at her. Was she serious? Or had she just said it to get back at Wesley? He suspected the latter but hoped that it was the former.

  The ping of the elevator dragged him out of his thoughts and the doors opened out to his floor.

  “Ooh! This is cool,” Freddie said as she glanced around the long hallway.

  Like the rest of the building, the hallway had been built and decorated with luxury in mind. The floor was made of custom natural stone. White walls met each other between intersecting walls and were lined with expensive paintings as well as several plant stands. Crystal chandeliers guided the way to his condo.

  To open his front door, all Lex had do was look into the Iris scanner then type in his code. When the door opened, he stepped aside to let Freddie in. She’d never been to his home but by the immediate widening of her eyes he could tell that she was impressed. The entryway itself was big enough to be someone’s bedroom.

  “Is this a hotel or your house?” She gaped as she kicked off her boots then strolled to the large living room.