Chapter 45 Secret affair
RORY POV
When we finally got back to the penthouse it was already nine in the evening. I expected Liam to be asleep but he wasn’t. The soft glow of the television and the sound of explosions met us in the foyer. He and Luke were draped over the sofa, mid-way through an Avengers marathon.
The moment he heard the click of our heels, Liam's head whipped around. "Rory!"
He scrambled off the couch and sprinted toward me. I went down to my knees, catching him in a hug that nearly knocked the wind out of me.
"Miss me, buddy?" I whispered into his hair.
"So fucking much-"
"Language, Liam!" Luke's voice boomed from across the room, sharp and cautionary.
Liam pulled back, rolling his eyes with a dramatic sigh that was pure Alexander. "But Luke, you say it all the time! I heard you in the office!"
Vivienne let out a low, wicked chuckle behind me. Luke's jaw tightened, his eyes darting to her for a split second before looking back at the boy. "It's for grownups, Liam. Not for you."
"Don't be a grumpy little man," | teased, ruffling his hair to soften the blow.
"Looks like you don't like your favorite auntie anymore," Vianne pouted, crossing her arms.
"Vivi! I still like you," Liam said sheepishly, shuffling over to wrap his arms around her legs. "I just like Rory more."
"I'm hurt. Rory, you've charmed the soul out of this boy," she whined, though she was grinning.
Liam let go and ran back to me, his small hands reaching up to stroke my hair. "Why aren't you asleep yet?" I asked softly. "It's past your bedtime."
"I couldn't sleep without saying goodnight to you," he said.
Completely casual. Like it was obvious. Like it was simply a fact about how the world worked.
He had absolutely no idea what that did to me every time.
“Let’s get you to bed then,” I said, taking his hand. “I’ll be back Viviane.”
I tucked him in, pulled the sheets up, and pressed a kiss to his forehead, letting it linger the way he always wanted.
“Sleep tight baby,” I whispered.
“Thank you mummy,” he murmured, his eyes already drooping.
Mummy.
It was alarming how naturally it slipped out of him. Like he didn’t plan it. Like some part of him had simply decided and the rest of him was just catching up.
I turned off the light, leaving the dim lamp on, and locked the door behind me.
When I got back to the sitting room Viviane and Luke were in the middle of something.
She was looking at him like she wanted to eat him alive. He was looking at her like she was the most delicate and dangerous thing he had ever encountered and he hadn’t decided yet whether to run toward it or away from it.
I cleared my throat.
Their eyes came to me immediately. Viviane was completely unbothered. Luke tried to arrange his face and almost managed it.
I pressed my lips together, fighting a grin. When I stepped between them, Luke raised a brow at me. I shrugged innocently and turned away before the smile broke through completely.
“Girls time,” Viviane announced, grabbing my arm and pulling me to the sofa.
She put Gossip Girl on the big screen and scooped ice cream from the cup she had been carrying since the ice cream place.
“What were you two discussing?” I asked.
“I told him I bought new lingerie and I’d be wearing it when I came to his room later,” she said. “And he had the nerve to lecture me about doing this in the house.”
“Maybe you should listen to him,” I said.
She looked at me like I had suggested something genuinely offensive.
“Hell no.”
“Fine. But why him? You know what your brother is capable of and you still chose—”
“Because nobody does it like Luke,” she said simply. “The last time I tried sleeping with one of Alexander’s friends I was let down so badly I wanted to cry. And when Luke found out he stopped sleeping with me for months until I threatened to tell his boss exactly what we've been doing behind his back."
A part of me actually thought Luke might love her — the way he looked at her was too soft, too protective.
I winced. "You threatened the poor man."
"Forget about me. In twenty minutes, l'm going to be getting my pussy pounded and stretched, so if you know what's best for you, you'll ask me for tips on how to make Alexander beg."
I nearly choked on my breath. She was just as uninhibited as her brother was controlled.
As much as I wanted to ask I didn’t want her knowing how much I was attracted to him. Not yet.
"No... I'll pass. He has a blue-haired bimbo at the office who practically gave him her soul the other day. I'm sure he's somewhere fucking her right now."
Vivienne threw her head back and laughed.
"Don't be jealous. Trust me, my brother doesn't sleep around. He's too obsessed with quality control for that."
I sucked my teeth. He doesn’t sleep around my ass.
"I'm not jealous," | lied, my chest tight.
She turned to me, her eyes suddenly firm and piercing. "Have you ever touched yourself, Rory?"
I felt my soul leave my body. "Why would you ask me that?"
"I just wanted to know."