"But Hannah?" he asked her before he hung up. "Would you be able to come over here, to his apartment? I am here but I don't know who else there is to be here for him…"
"Yes, of course Toby. I will do what I have to here but will be there within an hour."
He thanked her and hung up to wait for her - anyone - to arrive and provide some guidance about what to do to provide support to one of the most influential businessmen in the country, who seemingly had no family left, and an unknowing number of people who he would consider real friends. In the time Toby had worked for him, he had only seen him really interact with his wife, the girl he had been seeing, and clients. He couldn't remember seeing anyone who fitted into the middle ground of those extremes.
'What a lonely life,' he thought to himself, wondering why anyone would want to live a life like that.
8 ~ THE NEWS
Alexis was at Anthony's house and the two of them had enjoyed time out in his garden together since she had arrived that morning. Inside of her she was eager to be inside the house, entwined around him, but she knew she could be patient. And she could see his look of amusement on his face, in the knowledge that she felt that way.
No more had been seen or heard of Lincoln since she had last seen him in the supermarket that morning, and both of them were fairly certain that she had absolutely nothing to worry about anymore.
Anthony watched her face as they weeded around the vegetables. It was a face he never tired of looking at, especially now that she was so happy all the time.
As the day started to grow cold he stood up and pulled her to her feet.
"Now, Missy, how about you and I go and get clean, after all this playing in the mud?"
"A bath?" she asked and he laughed at her. No matter the level of maturity he knew was instilled in her nature, there was still this other aspect to it where she was like a small child, eager to get on and experience things.
"Hmm … I like that idea," he said, putting his arms around her and kissing her, immediately feeling her melt - and rub - against him. "Ahem! Bath time!"
It had taken him a while to accept that her episodes of 'zoning out' had stopped, and they had only started venturing to having baths together once he was certain she was alright.
He ran the water and took his time undressing her, while she in turn removed his clothing, and for the moment both of them ignored his obvious arousal, as they climbed into the bath. He lay back with his back to the bath wall, and watched as she straddled him so she could kiss him and lie with her chest against his.
After a long time of relaxing in the warm water, holding each other, he spoke.
"I miss you when we are apart, Allie," she heard him say as his hand started to caress her hair.
"I know," Alexis replied, looking into his eyes. "So do I."
He pulled her to him and kissed her lips softly, and then more passionately, and she felt his hand edge underneath them until it found her sweet spot, and he heard her breath catch as his finger began is magical caress.
Alexis didn't move from the spot, instead revelling in the feelings he invoked in her, and when he edged her upwards and began to lick her nipples, she quickly climaxed, making him almost burst with his own arousal.
"Sit up on the edge of the bath," she said and he immediately complied and watched her move between his legs and start pleasuring him with her lips and tongue. The result was almost instantaneous.
~~~~~
As Alexis dried off and went to get some clean clothes, she heard Anthony call out with urgency from the living room.
"Allie, quick!"
She ran down the hallway, wondering what had happened, and when she got there she saw him looking at the television, turning the volume up.
"Diana Kokiri, wife of entrepreneur, Lincoln Kokiri, died this afternoon after being involved in a horrific car accident. Sources say Mrs Kokiri was transported to hospital after being removed from the wreckage, but died in hospital shortly afterward."
Anthony looked at Alexis and saw her go white, but at the same time, the image that entered his head was that of the car accident, and Alexis saw him start to look pale also.
"Anthony, sit down," she said, understanding why the article would have affected him so much. It was more than two years since his previous love, Cynthia, had been killed in a car accident, and for the most part he seemed to live his days now not thinking about her - not thinking about it. "Are you alright?"
He looked at her and nodded.
"Yes, I just … oh, the thought of anyone dying in a car crash … it always affects me, Allie. I am fine. I just need a minute."
He sat quietly and refocused his mind back to her.
"He will be going through hell, Allie," he said, and she knew he was talking about Lincoln, so she nodded in reply. "Do you think you should go to him?"
Alexis looked at him with a horrific look on his face.
"No! Anthony, that would not be a helpful thing for me to do for him!"
Anthony looked at her and conceded that it seemed a stupid idea, given how much the man had pursued her over the months since Anthony had met her.
"You are right. Sorry, I wasn't thinking…"
Alexis sat with him on the sofa and pulled him into her arms. They sat together, both in their towels, having not yet dressed, with their minds individually working hard.
"It is horrible news, though, isn't it," Alexis said, remembering the day that Diana had come into the supermarket to confront her. "I think she must have been a nice person. If she wasn't, she would have treated me quite differently when she saw me, I am sure."
Anthony heard sadness in her voice and turned to her, to kiss her. The news of the death brought out emotion in him and he stood and held out his hand to her, to lead her to his bed, where he took his time making love to her, culminating in him reaching orgasm while deep inside of her.
They lay together, neither in any hurry to move even though it was early evening and their bodies were hungry and ready for an evening meal.
"Are you sure you are alright, Anthony?" she asked tentatively, still not able to fully comprehend how he must feel when he thought about Cynthia and her death.
He turned so that they were lying facing each other in the bed, warm under the covers.
"I don't want to waste any time, Allie. I'd like us to see more of each other. I could move and get a job near where you live…"
"No, Anthony, you can't move away from here."
"Why not?"
"Anthony, this is your home. Your family home. And it is beautiful. How can you even think it?"
"I can think it because I want to be closer to you," he said, stroking her cheek softly with his hand.
"Then we will think of another way. I can swap the days that I work, and you can come up on your days off and I will come down on my days off…"
"But then whenever we see each other, one of us will be working."
"We will have evenings together," she said, admitting to herself that such a plan did not seem a good plan at all.
Suddenly her stomach growled loudly and he laughed at her.
"Come on, hungry Missy. I had better feed you first, and then we can talk about ways I can get you by my side more often."
9 ~ THE FAREWELL
Anthony and Alexis stepped off the train in central Melbourne train station, having decided to do their first trip together. Months had passed since their brief discussion about changing their relationship, but they had not changed anything yet, deciding to keep things slow.
As far as Alexis knew, this trip was a 'get away from everything' trip - a way for the two of them to forget about everything that was normality to them on a daily basis.
Anthony had other intentions. But he didn't let her know that.
They booked into the Grand Hyatt Hotel - a building far more grand than Alexis had ever been past, let alone inside of, and he watched her face as they walked into their room. He was not from money or the kind of lifestyle that wo
uld normally enable him to stay in such a place himself, but from her expressions he assumed he had seen better than her in many ways.
"Oh, Anthony!" she exclaimed, in awe of the beauty in front of her, and he was reminded of the first day she had seen his home.
That was, until she ran and jumped on the large bed in the middle of the room. He laughed loudly at her as she seemed to fly through the air and fall on her back, legs and arms wide, as if she had jumped onto a soft white cloud.
Alexis moved onto her side, looked at him and patted the bed beside her with a suggestive look on her face, making him laugh louder.
"It's so soft, Anthony. Come over here and see," she teased him and he gladly walked to the bed and lay down beside her, and when he rolled onto his side to face her, they looked at each other for a long time, just smiling and not speaking.
Then she seemed to become full of energy again and was jumping up.
"What is the bathroom like?" he heard her say as her voice rounded the corner from the bedroom area to the bathroom. "Oh, it's a huge spa bath!" she said, popping her head around the corner and giving him an even more suggestive smile. "I've never been in a spa bath before."
Anthony felt like he was on fire, and opted to not wait any longer. He jumped off the bed, walked to her, picked her up and threw her affectionately on the bed again.
Alexis watched his face as he started to undress her, and then himself, pulling a condom from his pocket and making sure she saw it on the bedside table. She welcomed him into her arms and let the passion flow, loving still how much everything was so equal between them. As she moved on top of him she looked into his eyes and knew she was in a good thing with a good man. He had never done anything to hurt her, and in some ways he was the first person in her life who had treated her as well as he did.
~~~~~
After sated and resting, he stood up.
"Come on, Missy. We are heading out on the town," he said mysteriously, making her giggle.
"On the town? Oh, Anthony, I didn't bring any clothes for anything flash…"
She watched him as he had a special smile on his face.
"You don't need anything flash, Allie. We are going to visit an art gallery that is holding an exhibition of a photographer who specialises in food and kitchen photography," he said excitedly and then looked at her. "Do you mind? I think it will be amazing to see. It costs nothing to get in - I guess they are hoping to make money from sale of the photos. And tomorrow we will do whatever you want to do," he continued, knowing already at least part of the following day's plans.
"An art gallery sounds perfect, Anthony," Alexis smiled at him, thankful that he had found something to enjoy that would not cost money.
~~~~~
As they walked into the gallery, Alexis was overwhelmed with awe for the photographs, which were giant. They were diverse - one room featured food itself - meals mainly, with a baking section off to one side of that - while another featured kitchens themselves, with the equipment having been creatively presented in such large images. But the room that caught her attention most of all was one with photos of people who worked in kitchens. Chefs of all kinds and … bakers.
Anthony watched her face as she glanced from one face to another, and then saw her look at him with a look of amazement. Although she had become increasingly expressive and conversational in the months since he had met her, for the first time in a long time, she seemed speechless.
"How…"
He laughed at her.
"That's you…"
Then he was laughing at her louder still.
"Yes, these photos were all taken in the chain of supermarkets that I work in, Allie."
She looked back at the photo and then back at him, a broad grin on her face.
"You are so sneaky!" she laughed and he pulled her into a hug.
As she held him tight her sight fell over his shoulder, and a familiar pair of eyes caught hers. For a moment she felt a slight panic and she didn't know what to do but when she saw him only smile at her - a friendly smile, and somewhat of a shy smile - she relaxed and decided to not bring it to the attention of Anthony, who was so happy in that moment.
They continued walking around the exhibition, which appeared to be a winding exhibition that wove upwards in a progressive flow over several floors. When they were walking past restrooms Anthony excused himself and Alexis made her way to a large window that was nearby, to wait for him.
"You look happy," she heard that voice say, but she noted now that inside of her there was no reaction to it.
Alexis turned around and saw Lincoln standing close to her.
"Lincoln," she breathed out heavily and he too noticed the change - he used to love her using his name - it had been like an arousal drug to him. Now there was no response within his body at all, and he was relieved at the discovery. "I was so sorry to hear about your wife."
He looked at her. She was more youthful now that she had become healthy again, and he was glad.
"Thank you, Lexi."
"Please … please call me Alexis, Lincoln. I don't want to be Lexi anymore," she said and as he comprehended what she was saying, she saw him nod in acknowledgement.
"Alexis."
Anthony came out of the restroom and looked around, and was stunned to see her standing with … him. Well he thought it was him - he had never seen the man in the flesh, only in photos, so could not be entirely certain. Regardless, his natural response was to run over and get between them, but as if sensing his intention to do just that, he heard a female voice beside him.
"Don't."
He turned to the woman who was standing nearby, looking at him. She was an older woman, although still beautiful.
"You are Lexi's partner, are you not?" she asked and he nodded at her, hating anyone using that name for his Allie. "Don't interrupt them. They are alright. He recently lost his wife and he now needs to apologize to her. Please let him do it. She will be safe, don't worry."
He looked from her back to the pair in question, and decided to put faith in the mystery woman who was speaking. When he returned his gaze back to her once again, he saw she was looking at him curiously.
"You are in one of the photos…?"
He nodded at her but couldn't bring himself to speak, his eyes diverting right back to the pair on the other side of the room.
"I'm Hannah, Lincoln's personal assistant," she said in an effort to distract him once again, and when he turned to her he saw she now had her hand extended out to him.
"Anthony," he said as he shook her hand, wanting to be polite but finding it difficult.
"Anthony, come and sit with me over here for a moment. They will be in view of us so you don't need to worry. Let them heal each other," she said and he looked at her sharply.
"Heal each other … how?"
"You know, Anthony. You know how things were between them…" she said and saw him nod. "He needs to make sure she knows he is sorry, and I am sure she needs to know that he is sorry. Let us let them do it and be done with it."
~~~~~
On the other side of the room, Alexis was studying Lincoln's face.
"What do you see?" he asked her, as if reading her thoughts.
Together they automatically made their way to a seat that was nearby, and sat on it, without any speaking at all about the move. Neither considered the fact that it was the first time they had ever been in the presence of each other in public, for all to see.
"I see a man who is a great man, who I should have said no to, about so many things," she said and felt tears come to her eyes.
"Yes, the things I asked you to do to me, I wish you had found the strength to say no to, Alexis," he started to say, and she appreciated he already had adapted to her real name. "But I equally wish that I had never asked you to do those things. I didn't know it was in me to need something like that. I'm so sorry for everything I've put you through."
Alexis watched his face, mesmerized by it, as he continued to spe
ak.
"I did not recognize the true extent of how much Diana meant to me. I knew I loved her, but if I had looked as closely at her as I did you…"
Lincoln felt a wave of extreme sadness flow over him once more, and he held back tears.
"I made so many mistakes, Alexis. And it is too late for me to make things right with Diana," he said, now holding back a sob. "Please let me make things right with you."
"Everything is right with me, Lincoln. I went away because I needed to start over … to start a new life. And I have. I have a new home, and a new job - as you know," she said and saw him nod as he listened to her with such an intent look on his face.
"And you have a good man in your life, I know."
"Yes," she said, not daring to ask how he knew. Now, it did not matter. "With him I feel balanced. I did not feel that way with you. I don't think we had something that was equal, like I have now."
They looked at each other for a long time, and he felt her hand extend out to his and hold it firmly in her own.
"Lincoln, I know that you are a good person. Please don't think badly of the things we did together. I have learned since then that people do those things and they enjoy them - it just isn't right for me to hurt someone like that. It never was right for me. But that doesn't mean it was wrong - it just means that you have to find the right person to match you in what you need."
The comment made him sob loudly as he remembered the time with Diana, and how much she had seemed to enjoy hurting him. All along she could have been his match, if only he could have seen…
Alexis felt her heart break. She had seen and heard how Anthony was when she had first met him, still heartbroken over a lost love, two years after an accident that took her life. But for Lincoln it must be still so new … so raw.
"Lincoln, I know - I expect - that you have thousands of people who want to provide support to you, but do you have someone close to you, who is helping you through this?"
He smiled at her, seeing so many different things in her now, and the question was disregarded for the moment.
Darkness of Heart (Painful Deliverance Book 2) Page 13