Chapter 267 - 0267: I Deserve A Better Reward

Chapter 267: Chapter 0267: I Deserve A Better Reward

Elena’s Point Of View

"...is when I’m taking you," he murmured, his forehead almost touching mine, his breath warm against my lips, "with your legs wrapped around my waist."

Everything in me went still. Not dramatic. Not exaggerated. Just... still. Like my brain had quietly decided to shut down for a second because it couldn’t process what he had just said. The words hung in the air between us, heavy and deliberate, refusing to dissipate. I stared at him. Actually stared.

My eyes searched his face for any sign he was joking, but found none. Because there was no way... No actual way he just said that so casually, as if he’d commented on the weather rather than something that made heat crawl up my neck and settle in my cheeks.

My lips parted slightly, but nothing came out at first. My throat had gone dry. My pulse thudded somewhere near my ears, loud and insistent, refusing to let me pretend I hadn’t heard him perfectly. A small, traitorous part of me replayed his words again, just to feel that same jolt a second time.

Then finally, "Jaxx..." My voice came out low. Almost cautious. Like I was testing whether speaking would make this moment more real or less.

He didn’t pull back. If anything, that smirk of his deepened just enough to make me want to smack it off his face. His eyes held mine with an intensity that made my pulse quicken, dark and unwavering, like he had all the patience in the world to wait for my reaction. I hated how easily he could do that to me, how one look could unravel weeks of careful composure.

"Yes, baby?" The way he said it... Soft. Unbothered. Like he hadn’t just dropped something completely insane between us, something that shifted the air itself and left it thick with unspoken things.

I blinked. Once. Twice. Trying to reset my thoughts, to claw back some semblance of composure. Then frowned. "Are you nuts?"

His smirk widened. Not even ashamed. Not remotely apologetic. "Completely," he replied smoothly, his voice dropping lower, rougher, like gravel wrapped in velvet. "Nuts for you."

I stared at him, processing the absolute audacity of the man in front of me. Then made a face. "Ew."

He raised an eyebrow, genuine surprise flickering across his features, as though the word had physically struck him. "Ew?"

"Yes, ew. That was cringe."

"Cringe?" He repeated the word like it physically pained him, clutching invisible wounds to his chest.

I nodded, pushing lightly against his chest, feeling the solid warmth beneath my palms, the steady thrum of his heartbeat betraying the calm he wore so well. It gave him away every time, no matter how composed his face stayed. "Very."

He looked genuinely offended for a second, his expression almost wounded, as if I’d just told him his favorite shirt was hideous. "Wow."

I crossed my arms, creating a barrier between us, though it did little to dampen the warmth still lingering on my skin. "You asked."

"I didn’t ask for an insult."

"Well, you got one anyway."

He shook his head slowly, studying me like I had just said something deeply disappointing. Like I’d personally betrayed him with my honest assessment. A long beat passed between us, filled with nothing but his contemplative stare and my stubborn refusal to look away first. Then his expression shifted. Subtle. But I noticed. The playfulness dimmed slightly, replaced by something more serious, something that made my chest tighten in anticipation.

"But don’t you think I deserve more than a hug?"

I narrowed my eyes slightly, suspicious of where this was heading, my heart already betraying me with its quickened pace. "What?"

"For what I just did," he continued, his hands sliding back to my waist like they belonged there, like they’d been made to fit exactly in those curves, warm and sure against the fabric of his own shirt that I wore. "I deserve a better reward."

I scoffed immediately, the sound sharp in the quiet space between us, though it did nothing to hide the way my breath had grown shallow. "A hug is a good reward. Deal with it."

He shook his head, stubborn. "No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"Elena." My name came out as both warning and plea, wrapped together in a way that made something low in my stomach twist.

"Jaxx." I matched his tone exactly, refusing to let him see how much that single syllable affected me.

We stared at each other for a second, locked in a battle of wills neither of us wanted to lose, the air between us practically humming with tension. Then, before I could react... Before I could even process his intention, he pulled me into him. Fast. Decisive. And kissed me.

Not soft. Not hesitant. Not asking permission. Just direct. His hand tightened slightly at my waist, pulling me closer until there was no space left between us, until I could feel the rapid beating of his heart against my chest, matching the frantic rhythm of my own. My breath caught, and for a second, I forgot what I was about to say. I forgot my own name. I forgot every reason I’d had to resist him in the first place.

His other hand moved slowly along my side, firm, steady, like he knew exactly how to keep me right where he wanted. The touch sent shivers racing across my skin, raising goosebumps in its wake. I tried to push him away. I really did. I told myself I would. But it lasted all of two seconds. Because my fingers betrayed me, gripping lightly onto his shirt instead, pulling him closer rather than pushing him away, every ounce of resolve dissolving the moment his lips moved against mine.

My heart was racing, my thoughts completely scattered like leaves in a storm, and the worst part? He knew. I could feel it in the way he didn’t rush. Didn’t force. Didn’t demand more than I was giving. Just... held me there, like he had all the time in the world. Like this moment could stretch on forever and he’d be perfectly content, like nothing outside this room existed or mattered at all. For a heartbeat, I let myself believe it too, that nothing beyond this room could touch us.

Then he pulled back. Slowly. Deliberately. Just enough to look at me. His lips curved slightly as he looked at me, satisfaction written across every feature, his gaze tracing my flushed face like he was memorizing it.

"Now that’s a reward."

My brain kicked back in immediately, indignation flooding through the haze he’d created, chasing away whatever spell he’d managed to cast. "You..." I smacked the back of his head. Not hard. But enough to make my point. "Idiot!"

He laughed. Actually laughed... a full, genuine sound that echoed through the room, warm and unguarded in a way that caught me off guard every single time. That annoyed me even more than the smirk, mostly because some traitorous part of me liked hearing it, liked knowing I was the one who put it there.

I scrambled off his lap, my cheeks burning as I smoothed down his shirt, which hung loosely on my frame. As if tugging at the fabric would somehow erase what had just happened between us, or slow the frantic beat of my pulse still thundering in my ears.

"I’m calling Lexi," I announced, needing the distraction, needing something, anything, to ground me back into reality.

"Of course you are," he said, that knowing tone creeping into his voice, laced with quiet amusement he didn’t even bother hiding.

"Yes, of course I am," I repeated, lifting my chin, refusing to let him have the satisfaction of seeing me flustered any longer than necessary.

"You always run to her," he observed.

My spine stiffened. "I do not run to her."

"You do."

"I don’t."

"You literally just said you were calling her," he pointed out, his logic infuriatingly sound, and the smug curve of his mouth told me he knew exactly how irritating that was.

I pointed at him, my finger trembling slightly with indignation. "That’s not the same thing."

"It is."

"It’s not."

He leaned back against the headboard, watching me with barely concealed amusement dancing in his eyes. The afternoon light caught the sharp angles of his face, making him look far too satisfied with himself, far too comfortable in the aftermath of what he’d just done to my composure.

"Go on then," he said, gesturing lazily toward my phone.

I rolled my eyes and walked toward the closet, cradling the file against my chest like precious cargo. My hands shook slightly as I placed it on the top shelf, positioning it carefully as though it might vanish into thin air if I didn’t handle it with reverence. The weight of what that file represented hit me all over again, freedom, finally within reach after everything. I pressed my palm flat against the folder for a moment, as if I could absorb its reality through touch alone.

"Don’t touch it," I warned over my shoulder.

"I got it for you," he reminded me, his voice carrying a hint of wounded pride.

"Exactly. Don’t touch it."

The irony wasn’t lost on me, but I didn’t care. He chuckled behind me, the sound low and warm, filling the space between us with an ease that made my chest ache in a way I didn’t fully understand.

I grabbed my phone from the nightstand, my excitement bubbling up like champagne before she even answered. My fingers fumbled slightly with anticipation as I dialed Lexi’s number. The moment the call connected, I didn’t hold back.

"Guess what, Lex!!!" The words tumbled out in a rush, practically tripping over each other in my hurry to share the news.

She didn’t even pause. "What?" Her tone carried that familiar note of suspicion she reserved for my more dramatic announcements. "Let me guess... you and Jaxx are finally getting married? Because at this point, it seems like it."

I froze mid-step, my breath catching in my throat. Then I turned slowly to look at Jaxx, my heart doing something complicated in my chest, equal parts panic and something softer I refused to name.

He raised an eyebrow, looking entirely too smug for his own good, clearly having heard every word through the phone’s speaker.

I spun away again quickly, heat flooding my face. "No, silly, that’s not happening."

"Really? Because you’ve been living in his suite for a week," she said, her tone dripping with implication.

"I am not living here." The protest sounded weak even to my own ears, and I winced at how unconvincing it came out.

"You are."

"I’m temporarily existing here." I emphasized each word, as though precision alone could make the distinction matter.

He snorted behind me, and I could practically feel his amusement radiating across the room, the traitor clearly enjoying my floundering far too much. I ignored him, focusing on the conversation.

"Anyway," I continued quickly, unable to contain the news any longer, "I’m free, Lex. Finally. I’m a free woman."

Silence stretched across the line, long enough that I wondered if the call had dropped. Then... "What?"

"I’m serious." My voice cracked slightly with emotion, the weight of the past weeks finally catching up to me in that single word.

"How?" Disbelief colored her question.

"He signed it." Just saying the words made it feel more real, more solid, like finally exhaling after holding my breath for years.

"What?!" Her shriek nearly pierced my eardrum. I winced, pulling the phone slightly away.

"Yes."

"How... when... howww?" The questions tumbled over each other, breathless and frantic in a way that mirrored exactly how I’d felt when it happened.

I laughed softly, pacing now as nervous energy coursed through me, unable to stand still with everything bubbling up inside my chest. "I don’t know, okay? I don’t know how he did it, but Jaxx made it happen."

I glanced at him again, unable to help myself. He sat there watching me, his expression unreadable. Quiet. Focused. That same intense look that made my stomach flip, like he was cataloguing every shift of emotion crossing my face and committing it to memory. There was something almost tender beneath that focus, something I wasn’t ready to name yet.

Lexi made a small, knowing sound on the other end. "There she goes again..."

"What?" I asked, though part of me didn’t want to know.

"Nothing."

"Lexi." I used my warning tone.

"Nothing, I said." But I could hear the smile in her voice, teasing and entirely too pleased with herself.

I narrowed my eyes even though she couldn’t see me. "You’re annoying."

"You love me," she countered without missing a beat.

"I tolerate you." The lie came easily, affection softening my words despite myself.

"Same thing." I smiled despite myself, feeling some of the tension drain from my shoulders, the familiar banter settling something restless in my chest.

Then her voice shifted, taking on a different quality, quieter and more deliberate.

"Elena."

"Hmm?" I stopped pacing.

"I want you to come to my boutique tomorrow."

I paused, curiosity prickling at the sudden change in her tone. "Why?"

A beat of silence hung between us. Then her voice softened slightly, becoming playful and mysterious in that way that always meant she was up to something.

"It’s a surprise."