Chapter 20 Protecting His Claim
"Alex..." Sarah gasped, her hand going to her mouth.
"You're insane. You're going to end up in jail."
She was worried now. It was something about how young he was.
He was too daring and would get himself in trouble. All for her sake.
"I'd go to a lot worse places for you," he said, and for a second, the sheer devotion in his eyes was more overwhelming than the threat of his violence.
"I told you. I am your shield. Whether you ask for it or not. Whether you think you need it or not. I will never let anyone treat you like prey. You aren't some trophy for old men to fight over."
He reached for a sponge and dipped it into the water, beginning to wash her shoulders with a slow, deliberate grace. The movement was tender, but his grip on the sponge was firm. It was a massage and a claim all at once.
"You're angry," he murmured, watching the soap suds slide down her skin.
"I'm terrified," she admitted. "I don't know who you are anymore. One minute you're my son’s friend, the next you're... this."
"I've always been this," Alex said. "You just finally stopped looking at the age on my ID and started looking at the man standing in front of you. Joseph couldn't protect you. Crude couldn't respect you. I’m the one doing both."
Sarah leaned her head back against the cool marble, closing her eyes. The conflict in her chest was agonizing. She should be calling the police. She should be running out of the house. But the feeling of his hands on her, the knowledge that someone was willing to burn the world down just to keep her from being touched by a man she despised... it felt like a dark, addictive drug.
She felt a rush of gratitude so thick it made her throat ache. For years, she had been the one doing the protecting. She protected Mark from Joseph’s neglect. She protected the company from bad deals. She had been the wall for everyone else. Now, someone was building a wall for her.
"Thank you," she whispered, the words tasting like a betrayal of her own common sense.
Alex stopped moving the sponge. He dropped it into the water with a splash and reached down, cupping her face with both hands. His palms were warm and slightly rough.
"Don't thank me," he said. "Just belong to me. That’s all the payment I want."
He leaned down, kissing her deeply. The kiss tasted of salt and steam. Sarah reached up, her wet arms wrapping around his neck, pulling him closer until the water splashed over the side of the tub. She didn't care about the mess. She didn't care about the rules.
"I have to get out," she panted against his lips. "I'm pruning."
Alex laughed, a low, vibrant sound that vibrated in her chest. "Come on then, mama."
He stood back and grabbed a plush, oversized white towel from the warming rack. As Sarah stepped out of the tub, dripping and shivering as the air hit her skin, he didn't hand her the towel. He held it open, waiting for her to step into his space.
She did.
He wrapped the fabric around her, pulling her firmly against his chest. His grip was a little too tight, his arms locking around her waist so she couldn't move if she wanted to. It was a display of pure dominance, a reminder that while he was her shield, he was also her master.
"You're so small," he whispered, buried his face in the crook of her neck.
"So small and so perfect. I'm never letting you go back to that world of greedy old men."
Sarah melted into him. She let her head rest on his shoulder, the scent of him filling her lungs. The fear was still there, a low hum in the back of her mind, but the desire was louder. She felt safe. She felt seen.
"Alex..." she started, wanting to tell him she was scared of how much she needed him.
"Shhh," he hummed, his hands moving up and down her back through the towel.
"Just stay right here. No one is coming for you tonight. It’s just us."
They stood there in the dissipating steam, two figures bound by a secret that was growing larger than the house itself. Sarah felt his heart beating against her own, a steady, powerful rhythm. She was starting to believe him. She was starting to believe that they could survive this.
Suddenly, a sharp bzz-bzz broke the silence.
Sarah flinched. The sound was coming from the marble counter where her phone lay.
"Ignore it," Alex murmured, his lips tracing the line of her jaw.
"I can't," she said, pulling back slightly. "It might be Mark. Or the office."
She reached out with a damp hand and swiped the screen. It wasn't a call. It was a push notification from her home security system.
\[Front Door: Motion Detected\]
Sarah’s breath hitched. She tapped the notification, opening the live feed from the porch camera. The infrared light showed a grainy, black-and-white image of the front of her house.
The driveway was empty. The street was quiet. But right there, standing directly in front of the door, was a tall, dark figure.
They weren't knocking. They weren't moving. They were just standing there, a silent shadow draped in a heavy coat, staring directly into the lens of the camera as if they knew she was watching.
"Alex," Sarah whispered, her voice trembling as she held the phone up for him to see.
"Someone is at the door."
Alex took the phone, his eyes narrowing as he studied the figure. The protective, cold look returned to his face in an instant. The steam in the room seemed to turn to frost.
The figure on the screen remained perfectly still, a dark blotch against the night, waiting for someone to let them in.
Who was it?