I reach down to cup her chin in my hand. "Keep your clothes on at work, Isla. This is only for me. Understood?"
Her eyes fall to my body. "That's all for me, right? Only me? You're not going to your fuck pad this week, are you?"
I fall to one knee as I slowly pull her panties down. "There is one woman and one woman only that I intend to spend my time with."
Her ass moves as I lower my mouth to her stomach, tracing a path across the soft flesh with my tongue. A soft moan falls from her lips as I graze my mouth over her cunt.
"You are all that I want, Isla." I breathe in her scent. "This is all that I want."
Her hands grip my hair as I pull open her legs, wrap my lips around her swollen clit and lick and suck her until she comes under my touch.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Isla
"That's a beautiful dress, Isla." Cassia stands in the doorway of my room, wearing one of Nigel's t-shirts and his sweatpants. "Do you have a date?"
"I do," I try to quiet the anxiety in my voice. "I'm going to the symphony."
"Your date knows you really well." She laughs. "Nigel knows better than to take me there."
I've never absorbed her disinterest in classical music as anything other than what it actually is. Cassia likes dress pants and blouses. I like dresses and skirts. She likes computers and offices. I like my violin and a place to play it. We're different, very different, but our friendship is what binds us together.
"Can we talk before you go?" She shifts her sock covered feet on the hardwood floors. "It's kind of important."
"Sit." I gesture towards my bed. "Is something wrong? Your folks are okay, right?"
I only ask because her father had a scare with his heart three months ago. He was walking the family dog one night and doubled over in pain. Cassia had been on the first flight back to Chicago and when she finally called to tell me that it had been a minor heart attack that required a change in diet and a simple medical procedure, I'd been relieved.
I don't know my own father. My mother always told me that he was a bastard one night stand so I've loved Cassia's vicariously through her. He sends me text messages sometimes just to see how I am. I treasure those, just as I cherish her entire family.
"They're good. They both send their love for your birthday." She rubs her hand over her eyes. "They'll take you out for dinner the next time they're in New York."
That would be the first time. They've never come here. I doubt they ever will. They love Chicago. It's where they belong.
"What's wrong?" I lower myself to the corner of the bed. "Is it Nigel?"
She sets her hands on her thighs. "He asked me to marry him."
My eyes dart down to her empty left hand. There's no ring. I ask even though the answer is obvious. "What did you say?"
"I love him," she confesses softly. "Maybe I didn't realize how much until he asked me to be his wife."
"You're going to marry him?" I hear the shock in my own voice, there's no possible way she won't pick up on it.
She smiles, revealing her perfect teeth. "Not yet. One day I think I will."
"He's okay with that?"
Her hands reach to grab one of mine. "I'm going to move in with him, Isla. We're going to get a place together, that's just for us."
Relief wouldn't have been the first emotion I expected, but it's what's there. The surprise is buried beneath it.
"I hate to do this to you." She gestures towards the hallway. "I know how expensive this place is and I know how hard it will be to find a new roommate."
I can afford it. I can turn her bedroom into a music room. The acoustics aren't great but it's a place I can practice without fear of disturbing anyone. I can cook. I can read. I can be me, just me.
I move so I can pull her into a hug. "I'm so happy for you, Cassia. Don't worry about me. I have a feeling I'm going to be just fine."
***
"Thank you for bringing your violin tonight," Gabriel says as he carries it in his left hand. His right is holding one of mine. "I was hoping that you'd give me a private concert."
I look up and into his face. He'd been just as entranced with the symphony's performance as I had been. He'd held my hand throughout and once the room had cleared, he'd kissed me there in the orchestra seats, telling me that he loved how I leaned forward in my seat the entire night. My eyes were half closed as I listened to the music.