354 A Regular Booty Call

Stepping inside the luxurious foyer of Katherine's apartment, Damien's eyes immediately scanned the room and froze.

"Why'd you stop?" she mumbled in a whisper that only they could hear.

"Is she…?" The voice came from an old man. Her eyes slowly opened ever so slightly and she peeked from her position through the small slits of her eyes, only to find her grandfather, aunt, Styles, and Amelia who was wearing a disguise in the living room.

She stiffened in his arms, her brain almost malfunctioning at the thought of what she and Damien did past her foyer… and past the stairwell door—all while her family was in here the entire time. And now she's not moving while he was carrying her.

Feeling his grip tighten on her, she didn't know what to do. Was she supposed to wake up, jump out of his arms, and run to her grandpa? Or should she pretend to be asleep?

"Mm… She fell asleep in the car," Damien answered for her.

Holy sweet pretzels! Katherine had to close her eyes and act the part. He made the choice for her and because she was horrified to see her family in her current state, she didn't know what else to do except lie through the whole thing. 

"Ah… She must be exhausted," she heard her grandfather speak before a clatter of what she thought was a teacup being put on the table sounded.

Yeah. Exhausted from their little escapade several meters from where they were standing that her legs turned into jelly. She could smell her guilt—heck she could still smell her arousal around her, causing her heart to rapidly pump in her chest. The only consolation that kept her sane was knowing that the inner and outer walls surrounding her penthouse were soundproof. Surely no one heard her scream through her orgasm in the stairwell, right?

"I'm just going to put her to bed. Excuse me," Damien took light steps towards Katherine's bedroom, leaving the awkward atmosphere in the living room.

As soon as the door closed behind them, her shoulders sagged and she heaved out a long sigh. "Oh my god…" She heard him chuckle above her and she buried her face on his neck. "Bathroom please."

He entered the bathroom and made her sit on the counter. "Are you going to take a shower?"

"I have to." She shrugged the trench coat off her with his help and saw the shit-eating grin on his face. "You're not joining me."

A sexy chuckle reverberated in his throat—a melody that made feather-light brushes in her heart. "Too bad. I give really good scrubs." He winked.

There he was. The naughty, shameless Damien that she knew too well. It was true though. He did give really good scrubs that always came with neck and shoulder massages and she couldn't even deny it.

Placing his hands on the counter on either side of her, he trapped her between his arms and leaned forward to press a kiss on her lips. "I have to go."

She loved him back then and even until now—even more so now. Their separation didn't lessen her feelings for him. If anything, it only made it stronger. How was she supposed to deal with everything? Why didn't anyone warn her that being in love would make her feel weak?

"I need to take care of some things. Are you going out to see your family?"

"Yeah… maybe after I shower."

"I'll tell them you'll come out soon."

"Okay… Are you going to be safe?"

He softly smiled, liking the way she was worried about him. "Yes. It's mostly just work stuff." He saw the faint disappointment in her eyes and he tucked her hair behind her ear, hooking his fingers under her chin and tilting it up. "What's wrong?"

Katherine shook her head and put a small smile on her face, realizing what she must have looked like. "Nothing… I just… I thought you were staying. I forgot that you had a company to run. You've been out of your office the whole day." She knew that he would want to be around her more during these times. 

"You don't have to worry about that. I hired competent people and Caleb's running it with me so it's not a problem. The company can function without me for a while. I wouldn't have hired them if they needed to be monitored every single time."

"You're right… I just didn't want to keep you from your responsibilities."

Damien chuckled. "I'm not weak, Katherine. I can handle it."

She could only nod at him, feeling a little better after his assurance. "If you… um… if you want to come back. The door's open for you anytime." A faint blush colored her cheeks, feeling bold and shy at the same time. She almost regretted the hint that she gave him.

Brushing his thumb on her cheek, he said, "I'll come back in the morning. I don't want to wake you up in the middle of the night just to open the door for me." He kissed her forehead and pulled away. "Good night, Kitten."

"Good night…" She watched him leave her bedroom before she stepped into the shower and took a quick one. It took her less than five minutes to finish washing and then she put on a t-shirt and lounge pants before heading out of her bedroom to meet her family.

However, just before she left her room, Katherine shot Damien a text. Her thumbs tapped so quickly on the phone screen and then pressed the send button before she changed her mind.

[Katherine: You don't have a keycard to my place but you can have access using a code.]

[Katherine: My initials and birthday.]

Letting out a long sigh, she put her phone on silent mode and kept it in her pants pocket before strolling out.

Did she really just give him access to her place? It was like inviting him for a regular booty call! She shivered at the thought.