Chapter 272 - 0272: Today’s My Grandfather’s Birthday

Chapter 272: Chapter 0272: Today’s My Grandfather’s Birthday

Elena’s Point Of View

I felt the air leave my lungs in a sharp, jagged wheeze. My heart wasn’t just beating; it was slamming against the cage of my ribs like a frantic bird trying to break free. The heat crawling up my neck burned so intensely I was certain the diamonds around my throat would start glowing, their cold facets no match for the fire he’d lit under my skin.

I gasped, my eyes stretching wide as I stared at him, this utterly, completely, terrifyingly shameless man, in a state of pure, unadulterated shock. How could he do this to me? How could he make me feel so exposed, so vulnerable, so completely undone, in the span of a single breathless moment?

"Are you actually insane, Jaxx?" The words finally tumbled out, sounding high-pitched even to my own ears. I didn’t even recognize my own voice; it was thin, shaky, lacking every ounce of the "cool, independent woman" persona I’d been trying to project all morning. So much for maintaining my composure. Three hours of careful preparation, of reminding myself to stay unaffected, undone in the space of a single kiss.

Jaxx didn’t even flinch. If anything, that dark, wicked shimmer in his eyes only grew more concentrated, swirling like a storm waiting for the right moment to break. His smirk deepened, turning into something so predatory and confident that I felt my knees go soft inside those expensive heels. The man was impossible. Infuriating. And somehow, devastatingly attractive in his absolute certainty, as though the entire world existed solely to confirm whatever he already believed about himself, about us.

"Insane for you, Bambina," he rumbled, his voice dropping an octave until it became a low, gravelly vibration that I felt in the marrow of my bones. He didn’t pull back. He stayed right there, in my space, making sure I could feel the heat radiating off his body, a furnace wrapped in tailored fabric.

The scent of his cologne, something dark and woodsy, wrapped around me like a physical presence, as intimate as a hand pressed to bare skin. "Always," he added, his thumb tracing a slow circle on my hip, the small motion sending a shiver straight through me. "Get used to it."

I was stunned into thick, heavy silence. My brain had essentially short-circuited, all rational thought evaporating like morning mist beneath a relentless sun. I wanted to hit him, and I wanted to pull him back to me, and I wanted to run out the door into the cool morning air, all at the same time, each impulse as strong and as contradictory as the last.

The contradictions warring inside me were almost painful, a tug-of-war I had no hope of winning. Instead, I just stood there, my fingers still curled into the fine, expensive cotton of his shirt, blinking up at him like I’d never seen a man before. Like he was some exotic creature I couldn’t quite comprehend, something dangerous and beautiful that had wandered too close.

Jaxx let out a breathy, rough chuckle and finally, mercifully, loosened his grip on my waist just a fraction, though he didn’t let go entirely. He looked at me with an intensity that made my skin prickle, his gaze lingering on my lips, which I knew were probably swollen and definitely bare of any color now. There was something almost reverent in the way he studied my face, as if he were memorizing every detail, every flush of color, every trembling breath, as though committing me to memory for safekeeping.

"Let’s go," he said, his tone shifting into something more urgent, more grounded. His jaw tightened slightly, and I could see the effort it took him to pull back from whatever edge he’d been teetering on.

"Before I actually lose my mind, take you back to the suite, and forget about everything else that’s supposed to happen today." He paused, his eyes darkening further, a shadow passing over his features. "Trust me, I’m this close to cancelling the world."

I opened my mouth to ask what on earth was "happening today," but before the first syllable could escape, the sound of rhythmic clapping echoed through the boutique’s waiting area, slow and deliberate, each clap landing like a small explosion in the sudden quiet.

I jumped, nearly losing my balance, and spun around to see Lexi walking toward us. She had her arms crossed over her chest, a massive, knowing smirk plastered across her face. Her eyes danced with a level of mischief that made me want to vanish through the floorboards. I didn’t need a psychic to tell me she’d seen the whole thing, every scandalous second of it.

She’d probably watched Jaxx kiss me like a literal lion claiming his prize, and the thought of her witnessing that raw, unhinged moment made my stomach flip, humiliation and amusement tangling together until I couldn’t tell which feeling would win.

Oh God. I would never hear the end of this. Lexi had a memory like a steel trap when it came to moments she could use against me later, and this one would surely become legend.

Despite the embarrassment, a tiny, hysterical giggle bubbled up in my chest. A lion, I thought. Yeah, that was exactly what he was. Powerful, predatory, and utterly unapologetic about taking what he wanted, consequences and witnesses be damned.

"How shameless can you two actually be?" Lexi asked, her voice dripping with mock disapproval as she stopped a few feet away. She raised one perfectly sculpted eyebrow, clearly enjoying every second of my mortification. "Kissing like that in the middle of a place of business? In broad daylight? With eyes everywhere?" She gestured dramatically around the boutique. "Seriously, do you two even know what a ’private room’ is?"

I turned the brightest, most violent shade of red imaginable. I felt like a neon sign of shame, broadcasting my embarrassment to everyone within a mile radius. Without even thinking, I grabbed Jaxx’s arm, my fingers digging into his bicep as if I could hide behind him, or at least redirect the blame. "Here," I muttered, my voice muffled as I tried to make myself smaller. "This is the culprit. He’s the one who started it. Talk to him."

Jaxx didn’t even look bothered. Instead, his arm snaked back around my waist, pulling me flush against his side without a single shred of shame. He wore his audacity like armor, completely unbothered by social conventions or propriety, as if the entire concept of embarrassment simply didn’t apply to him. He smirked at Lexi, his expression one of pure, unbothered triumph.

"Got a problem with that, Lex?" he challenged, his tone light but carrying that underlying edge that reminded everyone in the room exactly who he was. The question wasn’t really a question at all, it was a statement of fact, delivered with the calm assurance of a man who had never once doubted his own authority.

Lexi blinked and shook her head, letting out a dramatic sigh that was clearly for show. "Of course not. Who am I to stand in the way of true, chaotic lust?" She waved a hand dismissively, though her eyes sparkled with amusement. "Just that I don’t exactly appreciate you kissing off the lipstick I spent fifteen minutes perfecting." She pointed an accusatory finger at Jaxx. "That poor thing didn’t even last thirty minutes on her face, Jaxx. You’re a menace to my artistry."

Jaxx’s lips tilted up into a small, rare smile as he looked down at me, his eyes softening just for a second. The transformation was subtle but unmistakable, a glimpse of something tender beneath all that intensity, a crack in the armor that he rarely allowed anyone to see.

"Well... what a shame," he murmured, his voice dropping to that intimate register that seemed meant only for me. "Guess it isn’t really needed anyway." His gaze traced over my features with obvious appreciation, lingering as though he had all the time in the world. "She looks perfect without it. Better, even. A little bit messy suits her."

My breath caught at the sincerity in his voice. He wasn’t just saying it to tease or to win an argument, he meant it. And somehow, that made it worse. Or better. I couldn’t decide which, caught somewhere between wanting to melt and wanting to flee.

"Shut up," I hissed, hitting his arm again, though the force behind my movements had vanished entirely, reduced to little more than a token protest. My heart performed that strange, erratic double-thump in my chest, and my gaze remained fixed on the floor. If I met his eyes now, I’d be completely lost, more lost than I already was, drowning in whatever this thing between us had become.

Lexi shook her head with an exasperated sigh. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small tube of lipstick and a matching gloss, then walked over and pressed them into my palm. The cool metal felt grounding against my skin, an anchor in the middle of so much chaos. "Here’s the shade, Lena. Take it," she said, her tone softening slightly. "And for heaven’s sake, make sure to reapply it anytime this idiot decides to kiss it off. Which, knowing him, will be roughly every five minutes."

I laughed nervously, the sound coming out breathier than I intended. My fingers fumbled as I accepted the makeup, nearly dropping the tube in my haste. "Thank you, Lex. Really. For... everything." The words felt inadequate for what she’d done, not just today, but always, through every version of myself she’d patiently tolerated over the years.

"Yeah, yeah," she replied, waving a hand dismissively as she started backing toward her office. A knowing smile played at the corners of her mouth. "Enjoy yourself. And don’t think I’m letting you off easy, make sure you bring lots of gifts back home! If I’m losing my best friend to this brute for the day, I expect compensation in the form of expensive jewelry or at least a very good story."

I stood there clutching the lipstick, feeling utterly confused and strangely vulnerable, when Jaxx’s hand found the small of my back. He guided me toward the door with gentle but insistent pressure, the warmth of his palm seeping through the thin fabric of my dress. The cool air hit my face the moment we stepped outside, a welcome relief from the stifling tension of the boutique. My lungs filled with it gratefully, as though I’d been holding my breath for the better part of an hour.

Waiting at the curb sat a sleek, black car, not the one we’d arrived in, but something even more imposing, longer and darker, gleaming like it belonged to royalty rather than mere mortals. The vehicle gleamed under the afternoon sun like a predator at rest, patient and coiled.

A driver in an immaculate suit held the back door open, his expression professionally neutral, as though chauffeuring scandalously affectionate couples was simply part of the job description. Jaxx guided me inside before sliding in right next to me, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating from his body, a steady heat that seemed to follow me everywhere he went.

The door shut with a heavy, expensive thud, sealing us in a world of leather and silence. The outside noise disappeared completely, leaving only the sound of my own breathing and the rustle of fabric as I tried, uselessly, to settle my racing pulse. I shifted in my seat, hyperaware of the twenty-million-dollar dress moving around me like liquid silk, and turned to look at him, searching his face for some clue as to what came next.

He appeared so calm now, so composed, as if he hadn’t just threatened to tear my clothes off ten minutes ago. The contrast between that wild intensity and this controlled stillness unsettled me more than I wanted to admit, a reminder of how easily he could shift between the two, as if both selves lived comfortably beneath the same skin.

"Okay, Jaxx," I said, my voice finally regaining some of its strength. I needed answers, needed to understand what I’d gotten myself into. "No more games. Where are we actually going? Why am I dressed like I’m about to be coronated as the Queen of a small country? What is this?"

Jaxx leaned back against the seat, his eyes fixed on me with a look that proved difficult to decipher, something between amusement and a gravity I hadn’t seen from him before. He reached out, his thumb tracing the line of my jaw with unexpected tenderness, and for a moment, the world outside the tinted windows simply stopped existing. There was only his touch, warm and deliberate, and the way my skin responded to it, lighting up beneath his fingers like it had been waiting all along for exactly this.

"Today’s my grandfather’s birthday," he said simply, his voice quieter than before, carrying a weight that hinted at far more than the words themselves revealed.