AllFreeNovel
Share Us
By the time I walked out of there, I looked like a million bucks.
After the salon, Creed took us to a place that had an actual valet. We got out of the car, and Creed handed his keys to the valet, who gave him a ticket in return. He took my arm, hooking mine through his, and together, we entered the building that was mostly glass.
Walking in, I was nearly flabbergasted by how fancy it was. A restaurant, high-end. The kind with tablecloths and waiters wearing all black. The kind where they came to your table to clean off any crumbs you might’ve made while you were still there. I didn’t know that based on experience, but I could see a waiter doing just that right now, past the host as he took our reservation from Creed.
The host picked up two menus, clad in leather so you couldn’t even see what exactly they had, and said, “Follow me.” He spun on his heel and started to walk, and we trailed after him. He led us to an empty two-person table near the windows. “Your server will be with you shortly.” With a bow of his head, he left.
I was too busy looking around, soaking it all in. No wonder Creed had taken me to get dressed and get my hair done before coming here. A place like this, they probably would’ve turned me away if I would’ve come looking like I had earlier.
Still, this was very odd, wasn’t it? Strange to go out like this, even stranger for Creed to have made it a surprise.
We ordered our drinks and our food once the server came, and it was only after the server brought us our drinks in sparkling glasses that Creed spoke, “Do you know what today is?” His black eyes were on me, the dim light of the restaurant only growing dimmer now that the sun was setting outside. It must’ve taken longer than I’d thought to get dressed and get my hair done.
“Um, a Friday?” I offered, though I was pretty sure that wasn’t what he was getting at.
“It’s been one year,” he said. “One year to the day. One year since you called me.” He reached over the table, and I set my hand in his, letting his fingers curl around mine. “One year since everything changed.”
As I listened to him speak, I wondered, had it really been one year exactly? Time was a funny thing. It felt so much longer than that, like multiple years had passed, but I knew he was right. It’d been one year. Just one. No more, no less, and it was crazy to think that.
“I never should’ve left you,” Creed went on, squeezing my hand. “I thought I was doing you a favor, but now… now I know I did us both a disservice. I will never leave you again, Taylor, that is a promise.”
I smiled at him. Anything I could’ve said in that moment would’ve surely not been enough. Creed had become everything to me in such a short time; I was well aware that things between us had progressed faster than they would’ve if we’d been strangers—but Creed and I weren’t strangers to each other. We had a past, we had history, and it was because of that history that we were here today.
“I want to continue being yours, and I want you to always be mine,” he spoke, the intensity in his voice as powerful and as strong as always. “You are everything to me.”
Each and every word he spoke made my stomach flip—in a good way. I sat there, feeling like an idiot I was grinning so much, unable to do much else. The world around us didn’t exist; the only thing I saw was Creed. His short brown hair. The stubble lining his square jaw. The warmth in those dark eyes. The way he filled out that suit.
God, he really was drop-dead gorgeous, wasn’t he? He was literally the most handsome man I’d ever seen, and he was all mine. Mine to have. Mine to hold. Mine to love. And to use his words, he would remain so, forever and always.
We’d been through so much together, and I couldn’t wait to face the rest of my life with Creed by my side.
Chapter Twenty-Two – Creed
One year. One year exactly. It was strange to think how much things had changed, and yet, when you got down to it, nothing really had changed. I’d brought Taylor into my life, let myself feel things for her I perhaps shouldn’t have, and in turn, she’d developed feelings for me as well, accepted me for who I was.
This girl, I was never going to let her go. That was a promise.
“You’re everything to me, too,” Taylor whispered, her small hand safely tucked in mine. “I don’t know what I’d do without you, Creed.” She truly did say my name like no one else in the world; her voice was soft and velvety, something I could close my eyes and listen to all day and night.
She’d never have to go a day without me. She’d never have to know what she’d do without me, because I’d always be there. Always. There was nothing in this world that could keep us apart; if I had to choose between her and my work with the Guild, I’d choose her. Every single time I’d choose her.
The Black Wolf would cease to exist. It would die with me, die the day I walked away from the Guild for good.
I didn’t know if that day would ever come, but I wouldn’t resist if it did. Taylor was worth giving up everything for, though she’d never ask me to. She wasn’t that kind of person—and that’s what made me even more willing to do it.
We gazed into each other’s eyes for a while, neither one of us saying anything more. When it came time to eat, it was only then that we pulled our hands apart… but even then, our ankles moved to rest against each other’s instead. We couldn’t not touch each other. We had to be in some kind of contact. Our bodies, our minds, and our hearts craved it.
The food was delicious, but I hardly paid attention to what I was eating, too busy watching Taylor. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She looked stunning in that dress—it was a very good choice. I didn’t blame her for not wanting to try on the others. It fit her perfectly, and I couldn’t wait to take it off later tonight.
Tonight. It would be more than just a dinner out. I had something else planned, although I still debated on how to do it.
We took our time eating, and once we were done, we also got dessert. We shared a slice of chocolate cake, although I let her have most of it. Watching her smile as she ate, hearing her hum in approval of the chocolate cake was more than enough for me. I swore, I could watch her all day and all night and never tire of it.
She had me. She had me wrapped around her finger. She knew it by now too, knew she had me hook, line, and sinker. There would never be an escape from the emotions inside, no running from this, from us. We were destiny. We were endgame.
When she was finished, I paid for the meal, and we were off. Once the valet brought my car back to the front of the restaurant, I helped Taylor get inside before walking around it and getting in myself.
Her head rolled on the headrest to look at me, and a soft smile graced her lips. “Don’t tell me we’re going somewhere else now. I don’t know if I can handle going anywhere else. I’m pretty full—”
