Page 119 of Stranger to Love

"Alex," I murmured, feeling her knees buckle slightly against mine. "I am going to say this exactly once. If you do not stop complaining about my help, and if you say the words 'too much' one more time, I will buy this entire street."

She gasped, her eyes flying wide.

"I will buy every single house," I continued, my tone perfectly conversational. "I will bulldoze them all to the ground, and I will build your parents a mansion with a staff of twenty just to prove a point. Do you want to test how far my resources go when I’m being stubborn, darling? Do you want to see how much I can spend to make you be quiet?"

She stood there, completely paralysed, realising with a delicious certainty that I was not joking.

"I... I believe you," she rasped.

"Good girl," I whispered, pulling back to wipe a stray tear from her cheek with the pad of my thumb. "Now, the next thing out of your mouth should be about that wine you were going to pour. Not another word about the cost of living. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Carrie," she breathed, leaning into my weight.

I hummed, tightening my grip on her chin, tilting her face upward. "I think I prefer it when you call me Dr. Carter. Can you try that again for me, princess?"

She swallowed dryly, obeying perfectly. "Yes, Dr. Carter."

"Much better," I murmured, giving her chin a sharp, possessive little tug before stepping back into my professional mask. "I’ll help your father find a plate. He looks like he’s forgotten how to use a kitchen."

Later that evening, the house was finally quiet. Upstairs, Karen and Phil were tucked into bed together, likely mesmerised by the high-definition glow of the new screen. Downstairs, the lounge was illuminated only by the blue light of a deep-sea documentary I selected for Alex.

We were tangled together on the sagging sofa. My long legs were stretched out, my fingers absentmindedly tracing a stray thread on the worn armrest. I hummed thoughtfully.

"You’re thinking about buying a sofa, aren't you?" Alex smirked, leaning against my chest.

I glanced down at her, a matching smirk touching my lips. "Well, I was actually thinking I might just buy your parents a new house for Christmas. It is only a few days away now, darling."

She sat up abruptly, her heart rate spiking in a beautiful, predictable panic. "Carrie, please. Do not buy my parents a house. I’m serious. You’ll give my dad a heart attack, and we only just got Mum out of the hospital."

I shrugged elegantly, thoroughly enjoying the terror I caused her. "In that case... a new sofa doesn't sound so bad now, does it?"

She closed her eyes, letting her head fall back against the cushions. "You’re insane. You are actually, clinically insane."

I shifted, pressing the full length of my body against hers, hooking an arm around her waist to pull her close until our noses touched. I wanted her to understand the absolute futility of her resistance.

"I have more money than I could possibly need, Alex," I whispered against her lips, my voice a dark, decadent purr. "I am very, very good at what I do, and the university compensates me accordingly—among other things. If I want to spend that wealth on you and your family, then tell me, princess... who exactly is going to stop me?"

She looked into my eyes, searching for a limit she was never, ever going to find.

"You're going to spoil me until I'm useless, aren't you?" She rasped.

"I’m going to provide for you until you realise that the only thing you ever need to worry about is me," I corrected, finally claiming her mouth in a slow, deep kiss that tasted like beautiful surrender.

I hummed happily, letting the low vibration settle between us in the quiet room before I finally pulled back just enough to take her in. The blue light from the television caught the deep brilliance of her blue eyes, contrasting beautifully against her pale skin and the dark brown hair framing her face. She looked small like this, entirely softened by the evening, stripped of the defensive armour she usually wore so fiercely.

"I love how you fill my days, Alex," I said quietly, the confession slipping out with an effortless sincerity that surprised even me.

Alex blinked, pulling back slightly as a flicker of confusion crossed her features. "What do you mean?"

I smiled softly, my fingers resuming their slow, rhythmic stroke through her hair, anchoring her to my chest. "There was so much quiet before you," I murmured, my mind briefly flashing to the pristine, echoing emptiness of my own house. "But now... now I get these sea documentaries. And a woman who, for some reason, insists she isn't into soppy things, yet is glued to my side the absolute moment we sit down."

Alex let out a theatrical huff, rolling her eyes as she deliberately detached herself from my side. She shuffled down to the far end of the sagging cushions, crossing her arms over her chest with a stubborn pout. "I am not clingy," she grumbled, throwing a sharp look toward the television. "I was just cold. Don't flatter yourself, Dr. Carter."

"Oh, okay then," I replied smoothly, a thoroughly amused smirk playing on my lips.

I made a show of stretching my legs, slowly shifting my weight as if to stand up. "In that case, I'll move over to the armchair. Give you some personal space."

The moment I lifted my weight off the sofa, Alex’s defensive glare completely crumbled. Her arms instantly uncrossed, her lower lip pushing out into a pathetic, desperate pout as her eyes traced my movement. She looked entirely horrified by her own bluff being called.