Touched by a Phoenix (25 page)

Oh my God
…his mind screamed.

Alexis was as pure as an angel but the heat radiating from her was hotter than the fires of hell…threatening to incinerate them both. She clutched the sheets, perhaps something to hold on to, for he took her to the edge of the universe. She had taken him along on her journey, and he was so tight and hard with need, the pain was excruciating.

She was dangerously close to bringing forth the dark side of his needs. He could not remember needing anyone as much as he needed Alexis; she was the very air that he breathed. Her breathing was labored as she came off the bed, forcing his mouth away from her sweet garden. Her lashes fluttered, giving him just a glimpse of her desire-filled molten pools, immediately unleashing the furious storm raging within him. She screamed his name and as she collapsed onto the bed, he lowered his head to drink her nectar as if it were honeyed wine. She was breathless, her heart thundering so loudly it beat within his chest.

Unable to stand, he pulled her hips off the bed. Her face radiated pure bliss as he held her suspended above his manhood. She pulled him into her, wanting to feel every part of him as he drove himself into the center of her being. He covered her mouth with his, giving her his breath and stifling his own cry of pure pleasure at her excitement. She was so incredibly hot. Her nails bit into his shoulders as he thrust himself deep inside her until he exploded as quickly as a wildfire and just as powerful. His cry was beautiful, melodic, and throaty as it rose from his soul, exploding against her walls. His intent had been to take her over the edge. But instead, it was her that took him to the most blissful place he had ever been. He released not once, but twice, under her control.

Brad pulled her to the floor with him as his ragged breathing subsided. Alexis nestled against him as they both fell into a blissful slumber.

Later that morning, bright light from the sun woke him, her leg entwined with his. He soon realized the impossibility of getting up from the floor and not disturbing her. He kissed her lovely lips to wake her, “Good morning beautiful.”

She woke with a catty grin, “
Mmm,
good morning, love.”

“Have I told you lately that you are absolutely amazing?”

“Does this mean you no longer consider me the
Ice
Queen?
”

His hearty laughter filled the room, “No, you are definitely not an Ice Queen. Your fire has the power to incinerate hell itself!”

Laughter filled her eyes as she giggled, “Are you sorry you tore down my walls?”

His expression most serious, “My darling, for the first time in my life, I believe in something bigger than this world for you could not have existed without being created especially for me.”

“Brad…,” the sincerity of his words melted her heart.

“Hey now, no tears. I meant it as a compliment.”

“I love you too.”

“How about a fresh cup of coffee?”

“Sounds wonderful,” she smiled lazily.

“If my lady would like, we can shower and go out for breakfast.”

“Oh no,” she gasped.

“What, darling?”

“We were supposed to stay at the hotel last night. My clothes are there.”

“No worries, we’ll slip by the hotel and you can change there. We can have brunch at the hotel while we decide what to do the rest of the day.”

“I vote we go back to bed,” she smiled devilishly.

“My sweet little vixen, you have an insatiable appetite,” he chuckled as he kissed her passionately.

Chapter Eleven

A
lexis finished her
coffee on the balcony, her back against Brads’ chest.

“I think I’ll hop in the shower if it’s all right with you,” as she bent down to pick up his boxers and shirt from their predawn escapade.

“Darling, you wear more of my shirts than I do,” he smirked.

She just smiled at him.

His lips brushed the back of her hand. “You never need to ask permission for anything. Since we haven’t brought any of your things over, please feel free to use whatever you need.”

She leaned over for a kiss. “Thank you,” as she walked into the house.

Last night, she had been too preoccupied to pay attention to Brad’s home. He lived in a beautiful penthouse with a private elevator. In the predawn hours, she had seen the view from the balcony overlooking the Potomac River. But otherwise, she had noticed very little except for the stark contrast of colors.

They were about fourteen stories up and the view was incredible. As she padded through the living room, everything was in cool grays and whites with dark distressed wood floors. An oversized white area rug covered the floor with gray and black swirls. The white furniture was modern and surrounded by pewter accents. The foyer, reception, and dining room resembled the living room in style and coloring.

The master bedroom was not much different; everything was in the cool grays, with dark floors. It matched Brad’s personality perfectly. The king-size bed had a padded headboard, which she had been grateful for last night. The dark gray bedding lay crumpled on the floor, and white linens accented the gray walls and white trim. The sitting room was a lighter color creating the perfect contrast to the darker colors of the bedding.

As she stepped into the master bath, she came to a halt. My goodness, the bath was larger than her entire bedroom. The cool gray penetrated this room as well. The jetted tub spanned the entire far wall. Separate vanities held beautiful aqua vessel sinks with clear blue glass tiles shimmering against the wall behind them. Stainless steel wall mount faucets hung above the sinks and below huge angled mirrors with dark charcoal tile covering the floors. Etched glass led to an oversized shower. As she stepped in to turn the hot water on, the number of showerheads astounded her; they covered two walls.

And he thinks I’m pampered!
she thought, stepping into the shower.

The shower door opened and Brad stepped into the steam with her. Without a word, he stood in front of her as he guided her under the spray. He placed his hands on each side of her face as he gently moved her head for her until her hair was thoroughly wet. He stepped back and pulled her to him while he lathered her wet hair. He massaged the lather into her scalp with firm pressure until she purred like a kitten. He worked his way down her long tresses, making sure he did not miss a single strand of her lovely hair. He guided her back under the spray to rinse her hair before applying conditioner, and repeated each action, with just as much tender loving care as he had displayed when washing. Once he rinsed her hair, he lathered the rag, and washed every inch of her, in slow rhythmic motions before guiding her back under the spray to rinse her off.

Alexis sighed as he gently picked her up, and sat her on the seat in the shower propping her legs up. Brad proceeded to lather his hands with shaving cream and shaved her legs. She never flinched proving, yet again, the extent of trust she placed in him. Once he finished and had rinsed her; he scooped her up and wrapped a huge towel around them both. He grabbed a second towel as he carried her to the bed; sitting her on the edge, he wrapped her in a warm towel and proceeded to dry her.

Alexis had not protested; what Brad was doing felt much too exquisite to protest. Brad kissed her on the forehead as he whispered, “I’ll be right back.” He returned with a comb, a brush, and the hair dryer.

“Sweetheart thank you, that was the most wonderful thing anyone has ever done for me, but you don’t have to dry my hair,” she insisted sweetly.

“Hush my darling, I want to.”

No further protest from rose from her lips, she closed her eyes as he began to brush her hair.
Oh my, this feels wonderful!

Not once did he pull or catch a tangle. No one had ever made her feel so cherished in her entire life. Although, if she were honest with herself, she would have never have allowed anyone this close. Regardless, she did not think many men would do such a thing. She knew she had a thick mess of wavy locks that were quite unruly most of the time. She was astounded as his loving tenderness and memorized by his attentiveness as he dried every wild unruly lock.

When he finished, he tenderly suggested, “Why don’t you get dressed while I hop back in the shower and wash off and then I’ll give you the official tour before we head out.”

As promised, he gave her a full tour of his home. White granite swirled with grays and blacks accented the maple wood cabinets in the kitchen. Brad walked Alexis through three guestrooms and four additional baths. His home was set in a contemporary style, with all the state-of-the-art technology you would expect from a techie. That is except for the library. The library was impressive with the delicate old-world ornate carved wood covering three walls and the ceiling. The remaining wall held the most magnificent view of the river with its floor to ceiling windows. A large masculine desk sat position for the perfect view overlooking the river. Brad polished off the tour with a place Alexis thought she was already familiar with, a covered terrace spanning the entire penthouse. Her cheeks burned with color as her thoughts drifted back to her early morning frolic on the terrace. The curvature of the building and the flowing terrace provided for a beautiful view of the sunrise from the library and sunset from the master suite. The view was truly impressive.

“Brad, this is gorgeous.”

“Do you think you would mind staying here…with me?” He seemed genuinely concerned.

“Of course not love, it’s stunning,” she smiled.

“Your house is more of a home. This is nothing more than a place to live,” he decided, drawing her close.

“Brad…a home is where the heart is; and wherever you are, is where I will be,” she replied with reverence.

He beamed at her response, “Then you don’t mind if I make room in the closet and we can bring some of your things over?”

She looked sheepish as she revealed, “Brad, other than my suits for work, I think I may need to do a little more shopping.”

“Then let’s do some today,” as he flashed her the most charming boyish grin.

As they headed to the hotel, Alexis’s thoughts ran wild. “Mr. Scott, I have a personal question.”

Crap
, there is that attorney tone of hers. “Yes, Miss Saunders?” he asked, a bit on the hesitant side.

“You treat me like a princess—have you always treated prior companions this way?” her tone was firm and tight.

“No, I have not,” he assured her with conviction.

“Why?”

“No other woman has ever captured my heart. Nor has there been one with whom I wanted to spend the rest of my life,” he responded with such tenderness, it touched her heart.

“Oh….” She laid her head back against the headrest reflecting on his strong character traits, his sweet and loving nature, his sincerity, and his love for her. She was amazed…this brilliant man chose to love her when he could have had any female he wanted. Instead, he had chosen her…filled with self-guilt, scarred, and somewhat faulty. She was just beginning to realize how profound her feelings for Brad had become and to what extent she would go to protect him.

They walked hand-in-hand into the hotel and up to her room. As they entered the room, she spoke up, “If you will give me a moment, I’ll change and pack.”

“How about if I pack while you change, I’m famished and in need of food,” he teased playfully.

“
Hmm,
you have a point there. I think I’ll accept your gracious offer, sir,” she responded with her own playful tone.

Alexis grabbed a pair of jeans and a knit top from the closet and walked to the dresser to grab undergarments. She turned her back to Brad as she slipped out of the evening gown from last night, allowing the gown slid gently to the floor. Brad exhaled a long breath of air as he admired her long, lean body sanding before him in heels and nothing more. His vision from the night before paled to the women standing before him even with the scars lining her back.

“My darling, you are the most exquisite woman I have ever laid eyes on,” as he came up behind her.

She turned and gave him a sweet kiss, “There will more of those…after you feed me,” she teased playfully. She stepped back and slipped out of her heels and into a pair of lacy panties and matching bra before slipping into her jeans and a top.

Brad had to focus on the task-at-hand. Tearing his eyes from her, he began packing her clothes…that is until he came across a little something special.

“Ahem. I hate to interrupt you in the middle of something so important as dressing in front of me, but may I ask what this is,” he grinned like a schoolboy, as he held up a little white negligee between his fingers.

She tried to swipe it from him, but he was much quicker than she and hid the skimpy article of clothing behind his back. She reached around him in a feeble attempt to take it from him. His hearty laughter filled the spacious room.

“Brad, that was supposed to be a surprise for you last night,” she exclaimed.

In a low sultry tone, he said, “My shirt was the perfect surprise. This can be for tonight.”

She purred as she leaned up to kiss him, “Anything you want my love—anything you want.”

The storm clouds brewed as he raised an eyebrow, “Oh really….”

“Yes love…really.”

He dropped the negligee on the bed as his arms pulled her close for a romantically passionate kiss. When fully satisfied with his powers of persuasion, he whispered, “My sweet Alexis, I consider myself to be your first and I promise you…I will be your last.”

“I love you Michael Bradley Scott,” she whispered as she leaned up and placed the sweetest kiss on his lips.

He gently popped her bottom in the most affectionate way as she turned to finish dressing.