Loved by You (Taken by You Book Three) Read online

  “Good, but here,” she said, grabbing some hair spray and moving my hair around a little.

  I closed my eyes as I was enveloped in the sticky mist that clouded around me. She soon finished, and I slowly opened my eyes and looked in the mirror. My hair looked better, sexier, and my black dress hugged my hips and accented my cleavage. I turned around, looking at myself from every angle as I did so, before accepting what I saw and going to get my shoes.

  “What are you going to do tonight?” I asked as I picked them up and put them on.

  “Not too much. I might watch something on Netflix, not sure. I suppose the night is ahead of me to do whatever I want with it,” she said.

  “Please stay off the app tonight. I don’t think it’s working so well for you anymore,” I said.

  “I can’t go away just because of one bad experience. Besides, that guy was nuts. I’ll be fine,” she said.

  “Whatever you say,” I replied in a not-so-happy voice.

  I grabbed my purse and shoved everything inside that I always brought with me when I went to see Blake. I was hoping that he’d ask me to come over, have a glass of wine, and cuddle with him all night, but I wasn’t counting on it. I knew that things might be a little tense, so I just wanted to make sure we were kosher instead of hoping for anything more.

  “Well, have a good time. I won’t wait up for you,” Nicolette said.

  “I hope you won’t have to,” I said, smiling, before walking out the door.

  There was a bus that went close to where the restaurant was. After waiting outside in the cold, my legs becoming a little too cold for comfort, the bus came around the corner as the exhaust billowed out in a cloud of smoke. I got on, swiped my card, and got a seat before we took off down the road.

  As we got closer to the restaurant, I felt butterflies build up in my stomach as they tickled my insides and made me more nervous than I’d been in a while. Hell, I wasn’t even this nervous when I told him I’d been lying to him. I guess maybe I knew that this was the last chance. If we couldn’t make it work now, on our third attempt, then it would never happen. I didn’t want that to happen. I wanted to be with him, I wanted to be his, and I wanted to make it work more than anything. I still had hope, huge hope, but I hoped that he felt the same way.

  The bus let off near the restaurant and an older woman and I both got off. With a cool breeze rolling my way, I pulled my coat up to my mouth and walked towards the door of the restaurant. Their parking lot was filled, including Blake’s car, and another person was pulling in. The door was opened for me as the welcome warmth inside crashed against my likely reddened skin.

  “Good evening, madam. Do you have a reservation?” the maître d’ asked.

  “I’m here to see somebody. He should be here already,” I said.

  “Name, please?”

  “Hunter. Blake Hunter,” I said.

  “Oh, yes, Ms. Wells, we’ve been expecting you. Please, if you’ll follow me, I’ll escort you to his table,” the man said.

  We walked through the small open lane for traffic as I was led towards the back of the restaurant. After walking through curtains, there he was. Blake, who was sitting at a table sipping ice water, smiled before standing up.

  “I’ll take it from here. Thank you, Pierre,” Blake said.

  “As you wish, sir,” Pierre said before leaving.

  “How are you?” I asked as I went in for a hug.

  “A little better now that you’re here,” he replied, kissing me on the cheek.

  I felt my cheeks get warm as I got shivers up and down my spine. Things were already looking good, and I couldn’t be happier.

  “Please, sit. We have a lot to talk about tonight,” he said.

  I took off my coat and hung it on a hook next to his outside the booth before sitting down across from him. I took a sip of water from the crystal glass in front of me.

  “So, how have you been?” he asked.

  “Okay, I guess. Just a lot of schoolwork. Nothing really too exciting, though I guess my life never is. How about you?” I asked.

  “Well, I just got back the other day from a quick business trip. I suppose those never stop, which may or may not be a good thing. I’ve missed you,” he said.

  “I’ve missed you,” I said, smiling.

  “I think things have changed for me ever since I met you, Penny. You’ve had this huge effect on me, and I don’t even know how to explain it. I wish I could, but I don’t know the right words or where to even begin,” he said.

  “You don’t have to. I think I know what you mean,” I said.

  Blake was such a different man from the first time I met him. He was more open, caring, and definitely more trusting. Was I the person who’d changed him, or was it something natural that just came out? I’d hoped that I was the one who’d had some kind of effect on him, but you never know.

  “I didn’t think that you were ever going to contact me again. I thought that I blew it,” I said.

  “No, you didn’t. I think I just needed a little time to cool down and reevaluate everything in my life. Things have been different ever since you came along, and it’s not that different is bad, not even close to it, but it’s just…different,” he said.

  “Yeah, I know what you mean. I used to wonder if I’d ever find that one person or get that happiness that I always see other people having. I was never the girl who got hit on or talked to or anything like that. I was just like this shadow to my friends whenever we went out. So having something different, especially with you, is good,” I said.

  “Yes, it is,” he said, smiling.

  “Hello, how are you two doing this evening?” a woman said as she walked up with two menus.

  “I’m doing well, and yourself?” Blake asked.

  “Marvelous, thanks for asking. May I start you off with a drink, maybe an appetizer?” the waitress asked.

  “I think we’ll take a bottle of red, please. Whatever your finest one is. Would you like an appetizer?” Blake asked, looking at me.

  As I looked at the menu, I saw garlic-infused green beans and my mouth started to salivate. I used to eat those, at least something like them, as a kid and hadn’t had them in years.

  “The green beans, please,” I said, smiling.

  “Great, I’ll get that right in and be back with your wine,” she said before walking away.

  “I hope that’s okay,” I said, looking at him.

  “Of course it is. You’re fine,” he said as he reached out across the table and grabbed my hands.

  I looked him in the eyes and saw his softened expression. Here he was, the man of my dreams, right across from me, and I couldn’t help but smile and laugh like a schoolgirl. Even after all this, even after everything we’d gone through and the hellish flames that had tried to burn us away from one another, we were still here smiling and being close to one another. I didn’t know what I did in a past life to deserve this, but I was glad I did.

  “So, I wanted to talk to you about something tonight. It’s part of the reason why I asked you here,” he said.

  “Okay, shoot,” I said nervously.

  “Well, I was just thinking a lot about us and getting together. Not only that, but the stuff we’ve already been through. I like you, I really do, but I think if we’re going to give this another shot then we need to do it a little differently,” he said.

  I froze with nervousness and trepidation, as I hadn’t a clue what he was talking about. Obviously we had to do things a little differently, like not trying to mess with one another and use the other person in any way, but it almost seemed like he wasn’t going in that direction; he should’ve already known that and known that I knew that too.

  “What do you mean, exactly?” I asked.

  “Well, how much do we really know about one another? We’re comfortable around one another, and we trust one another and have a great time, but we don’t even know each other’s middle names or favorite anything. I think that if we’re going to
do this, we need to take it seriously and need to really put everything into it. I want to build something with you, not short-term, but long-term,” he said.

  “Really?” I asked.

  “Really,” he replied.

  I had to admit that I was in full and utter shock. Blake had never really asked a whole lot about my past, my upbringing, or even the types of things that I liked, but I guess I never asked him either. We were just two people who really liked one another, but without any proper basis for relationship success. He was right that if we were going to make this work for the long haul, we needed to be connected on a much deeper level.

  “Nicole,” I said, taking him by surprise.

  “What?” he asked.

  “My middle name. You said you didn’t know it. It’s Nicole,” I said.

  “Penelope Nicole Wells. I like it. Mine is David,” he said.

  “It’s cute, like you,” I said, and he smirked.

  “Okay, here we are,” our waitress, whose nametag I saw read Beatriz, said as she came back.

  With a food runner helping her, she set down the green beans and two plates on the table before pulling out the wine bottle from the chiller. Blake approved the bottle, and she poured some for him to taste before he agreed and asked for the entire thing, which must’ve shocked her a little. It’s not every day that you have a man buying an almost five-thousand-dollar bottle of wine.

  She poured our glasses and set them down before asking if we were ready to order, which we were. Blake ordered the steak, medium-rare, and I ordered the chicken with roasted vegetables and cream sauce. Beatriz took our menus and smiled before walking away past the curtain and leaving us once again in solitude.

  I took a sip of my wine and it made me pucker my lips a bit from the shock to my taste buds. Still holding hands, Blake and I kept our gaze on one another as our relationship, which was definitely back on, seemed to instantly go even further than I’d ever hoped. I knew it was a small step, but I also knew it was an important one.

  “How is it?” I asked as Blake bit into his steak.

  Juice dripped off of his bite when he raised it to his mouth and I couldn’t help but feel a little jealous, even though my dish was very juicy too. He chewed for a couple seconds, swallowed, and then looked at me with a smile.

  “Like butter. I love it,” he said, cutting off another small bite.

  I cut into my chicken breast and the white sauce parted around it as I pierced it with my fork and lifted it up to my mouth. Steam billowed upwards before I blew it on a little as to not burn my tongue. I took the bite, the snap of the cheesy, creamy sauce pressing against my taste buds, and my mouth was coated in a wonderment of chickeny goodness. It was almost like sex, though maybe a bit better. I wouldn’t tell Blake that, though.

  “So, what’s your favorite movie?” Blake asked.

  “Hm, I’m not sure. I guess The Notebook. Kind of dumb, huh? The quintessential girl movie,” I said.

  “Not stupid at all. I’d never say you were stupid for liking something. I’d have to say mine is Rocky. I don’t know why, but I’ve loved that movie since I was a kid,” he said.

  “Wasn’t that out long before, though?” I asked.

  “Long before I was a kid? Yeah, it was, but my friend down the street had it on tape and we used to watch it almost every weekend, sometimes twice in a row. The raw, unadulterated machismo and simple yet powerful narrative just screamed to my young, impressionable mind.”

  “I like this—talking to you and finding out more about you,” I said.

  “It’s nice. It’s almost too bad that we couldn’t have had this all along. We were too focused on the wrong things, I think,” he said.

  “Well, all that’s important is that we have it now. Better late than never, right?” I asked.

  Blake nodded before taking a sip of his wine and swirling it around a little in his glass. There he was, with a dripping steak and side of garlic mashed potatoes, sipping an expensive glass of wine, and I couldn’t help but be completely infatuated with him. He wasn’t doing anything special, far from it, but he had this air about him that I couldn’t help but feel. He made me feel calm and collected, but most of all, he made me feel loved.

  We took our time with the rest of the dinner and even opted for some chocolate fondue for dessert before Blake paid the check and we sat there, both of us likely thinking about our next move, as I anxiously waited to see if he was going to ask me back to his place or end the night now. I was fine with either, but after how well our date went, I wanted to go back. I didn’t care about sex; I just wanted to be with him for another night. To feel his warm, hard body against mine and know that I was safe.

  “Would you like to come back to my place? I know that might sound a bit sudden, but I’d really hate for this most perfect of nights to end already,” Blake said.

  And then, in a flash, I felt the warmth of happiness envelop me as my nerves and trepidation seemed to vanish almost instantly.

  “I’d love to. You aren’t being too sudden at all. I’d hate for this night to end as well,” I said with a smile.

  “Great. Shall we go?” he asked as he got up and grabbed my coat.

  I stood up before he helped me into my coat and I buttoned myself up. I wasn’t ready to face the cold yet again, but a leather-wrapped car with heated seats sure helped the situation.

  The staff was very friendly and thanked us for coming in before we walked outside past a few people smoking to his car. He opened the door for me and helped me inside, and I smelled the sweet Italian leather. Blake got into the driver’s seat and started her up as the engine instantly came on and roared like a monster from some biblical tale.

  As we drove to his place I saw people taking out their phones and taking pictures of the car as we pulled up to stops and waited to go. I leaned down a little, not wanting to be photographed, though I was sure their cameras weren’t powerful enough to break through tinted windows in the dark. It wasn’t that I hated being seen with him, or in this car, but rather that I just hated having the focus on me. It was something I’d never been comfortable with since I was a kid.

  As we sat at the last stop before his building, he looked over at me, his eyes locking with mine. We didn’t say a single word, though thousands were said without so much as a peep. This felt right, this felt good, and most importantly, this felt safe.

  Blake pressed the button for his garage and we slowly pulled in over the bump as the door closed behind us. People walked past it before it bolted itself down and Blake drove up to his special car elevator. As the door opened he pulled all the way inside and we were slowly lifted up all those stories to the top of his building, where his apartment waited patiently.

  “Here we are,” he said as the elevator stopped and the doors opened behind us.

  We got out, walked inside his place, and I instantly felt at home.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Blake

  Life felt better with Penny in my arms. We lay on my couch, the flames from my fireplace burning intensely, as we sipped on a light wine and cuddled. Steam billowed up from rooftops in the distance as the city lights twinkled like burning stars in the night sky. We’d gone back to how things were, the cutesy stuff, and I couldn’t help but feel relieved.

  Penny wrapped her arms around me and nuzzled up to my chest as my free arm wrapped around her shoulders and refused to let go. We had a white fuzzy blanket on top of us, her legs intertwined with mine, as we shared the warmth of each other’s bodies.

  I took a sip of my wine, swirled it around in the glass a little, and kissed her on the forehead. She looked up at me, straight in the eyes, and moved in closer for a kiss on her lips. I obliged, not even hesitating, as I felt her soft lips press against mine. A rush came over my body as I felt my face warm up. I wasn’t usually like this, but with her I couldn’t help it. It was as if all the things I was afraid of before didn’t matter anymore. I wanted to feel like this because I knew what it meant.


  “I love kissing you,” she said with a smile after slowly pulling away.

  “Did you miss it?” I asked.

  She nodded in lieu of speaking, and I pulled her in closer and kissed her forehead again. She yawned, causing me to yawn too, before saying she was getting tired. With work for me tomorrow and school for her, I suggested getting to the bedroom and finishing our cuddling there.

  Leaving the warm couch was hard but necessary. I turned off the fireplace and put our glasses on the counter for the cleaning lady to take care of tomorrow. Penny and I held hands as we walked up the large staircase towards the second floor. I’d begun to feel the slight effect of the few glasses of wine buzzing my senses, trying not to stumble as we walked upstairs.

  I touched the cold metal handle to my room and a spark of static electricity ignited against my hand. The door opened and cool air pressed against my cheek as I swept Penny inside. I shut the door behind me, locking it, before turning on the bedside lamps.

  “I don’t have any clothes to change into,” she said.

  “That’s never been a problem,” I said with a smile.

  We walked into my bathroom before going into my closet and picking out some clothes for the both of us. We changed in front of one another and I couldn’t help but feel aroused as I saw her bare skin. I reached forward, her shirt not on yet, and pulled her closer into me and nuzzled my face against hers. She smiled, her hand going onto my chest, before I kissed her softly and let her know just how much I missed her.

  Penny started to breathe heavier as I kissed her neck and ran my hand down her bare goose-bumped side. I could almost smell the endorphins coursing through her body as she wrapped her arms around the back of my neck and waited for me to kiss her once again. I hesitated, though not because I didn’t want to; I wanted her to beg me for my lips.

  She moved in, almost without warning, and pressed her lips against mine before her tongue found its way into my mouth. I gripped her hips and pulled her closer before my hand drifted to her almost bare ass. Only a black lace thong covered her. I slapped it, gentle enough not to bruise, though hard enough to let her know I meant business. She jumped a little before I grabbed her bare ass and squeezed it firmly between my fingers. I’d missed it so much.