Dane

Dane couldn't understand why she was so angry. "I'm not looking for a fight, Lila. I'm trying to find out who's on the other side of this now, so—"

​​

"You can't stop! You're going to get yourself all twisted up with these people—"

"No, Lila!" he roared. "I'm going to make sure I know who to avoid! The whole point is to not have to fight. I am so damn sick of fighting!"

She stopped, blinking at the rage that had snapped out of him so suddenly. He closed his eyes and let his head drop for a minute, breathing to get himself back under control. "I promise you," he growled, "I have no interest in ever seeing any of those people again. None. But knowing who the head of the snake is now will help me guard against them. And tell me the level of risk that they might come after me."

"You… You think they won't leave you alone?"

"I don't know, until I know who's on top."

"Do any of them have a reason to… continue your father's vendetta?"

"Not his vendetta, no," he said. Lila relaxed a little. "But some of them might decide they've got a debt to pay on the boss's son, now that the boss is out of the way." Her face crumpled and he rushed on. "I doubt it, Lila. I think Felix will take this, and he likes me, and he was happy for me to walk. I just… I just want to make sure. I don't want to hit any nasty surprises. Especially if…" he gulped. "Especially if we're starting a family."

She looked up at him them and something passed between them. Something warm and hopeful. Dane stepped forward, running his fingers up her arms. "I'm sorry I scared you," he murmured. "I thought you'd sleep. And… I'm not looking for a fight. I promise."

She nodded and let herself fall into his chest again, her arms circling his waist.

They stood that way, just breathing together, for a long time.

*****

Lila called in sick to work, which she said no one would be surprised about given the way she'd acted the day before. He knew he should be encouraging her to keep her normal schedule, but he was selfish enough to want to keep his eyes on her. And, he supposed, given everything that had happened, having an erratic schedule probably was normal in most people's eyes. He knew they should be doing everything they could to give no one any reason to question whether or not he was there, or had contact with her.

But for once he decided to just put the shit aside and sit with his wife and touch her and smile at her and try to ignore the heavy clouds hanging over his head. After he made a late breakfast, they lay down on the couch and snuggled. Lila made sure the front door remained locked, and Dane messaged Chris that he was just waiting the day out, so he should just spend the day on business as usual.

Chris sent him a thumbs up.

Dane lay on the couch, one arm bent up behind his head, the other around Lila, who was pinned between his body and the back of the couch, one arm over his chest, her head on his shoulder. They'd been "watching" a morning talk show, but Dane hadn't heard a word in the past half hour. Lila kept stroking his chest and stomach—absentmindedly, he thought—and his dick was starting to twitch. If she didn't stop soon—

Her fingers suddenly appeared at the hem of his t-shirt and slid underneath it. His stomach clenched and he looked at her from the corner of his eye.

She was looking at the television, not at him, but she had a small smile on her face, and he suspected she wasn't hearing any of what these people were saying any more than he did.

She laid her hand flat on his stomach and began to stroke all over his abs, and his chest, tugging his shirt up when it got in the way.

Dane's breathing picked up, but he kept his eyes on the television. At least, he tried to. When she tipped her head up and started kissing his neck, then her hand slid under the waistband of his pants and she began to stroke, he blew out a breath.

And when she quickly pushed his pants below his hips and was opening playing him, he gave up and just blatantly watched her, his breath coming faster and faster. Soon, his hand was white-knuckled on the back of the couch behind her, while the other twitched under his neck. His breath huffed and held, huffed and held, in time with her stroking. And hers thundered in his ear.

She groaned and pushed herself up and over him. For a moment, he thought she'd straddle him, but she was hopping off the couch completely to slide down her own pants and he groaned as her delicate white thighs were revealed. When she bent over in front of him he almost came.

"Lila, I—"

"Shut up, Dane," she panted, then crawled up and onto him, plastering herself to his chest and rolling her hips to rub herself against him as they kissed.

"Holy f-fuck," Dane cursed, grabbing her hips and pulling her down onto him, seeking her, tilting his hips to find the right angle to take her until finally, he found it and slid into her heat with a cry of sheer joy.

Groaning in pleasure, Lila pushed herself up so she was bracing on his chest, her head dropped back and her eyes closed. But Dane cursed, because she was still wearing the loose, flowing top she'd put on that morning. Breath hissing through his teeth as she rocked on top of him, he grasped the hem of it and pulled. She sat back and lifted her arms as he tugged it up and over her head. But that changed the angle so she moaned and Dane shuddered and had to swallow back the urge to just grab her and pound.