I got the camera. How could the paparazzo help handing it to me after I asked so nicely? A little charm can really do wonders sometimes. And I can only assume that news of me and my steel-edged charm spread among the journalistic community of New York, because the paparazzi suddenly seemed to lose interest in chasing E.W. Winslow's mysterious new girlfriend.

E.W. Winslow himself, though, certainly did not lose interest. Not at all.

"Cassidy!" Without even waiting for the rotor blades to stop, Elliot leaped from the helicopter and strode towards me where I stood leaning against the wall, waiting, a ridiculously happy grin on my face. He was back!

"And?" I asked. "How was your day with Zack and the metal monsters? Missed me?"

He simply grabbed me by the shoulders, pulled me close, and planted a kiss on me that forced all the breath out of my body and nearly made me faint. It went on, and on, and on, as if he didn't so much want to kiss me as devour me.

"Cassidy!" he groaned against my mouth, and deepened the kiss even further, plumbing the darkest depths of my mouth, filling me with exquisite pleasure. Finally, he took a deep breath, and ripped himself away from me. Still he was staring into my eyes as if I were the only woman in the world for him. No... not as if. It was clear there, in his eyes: I was the only woman in the world for him.

My lips parted in another grin. "I'll take that as a yes."

His midnight-blue eyes sparkled with wicked thoughts. "Come. I've spent the last twelve hours in a garage and out on a filthy race course and need to wash. You can help me."

"Oh, I can, can I?"

"You not just can—you will!"

"Really?" One of my eyebrows went up. "And what if I don't feel like playing your bathroom assistmpf—"

My words were cut off by his lips covering mine again. I realized that he was right—he smelled deliciously raw of sweat and dirt and something else I couldn't identify. His normally faint masculine smell seemed to be doubled or tripled, and I felt my mouth go dry with desire.

"I'm only going to tell you one more time," he whispered. "Come to the bathroom with me—now!"

"Yes," I breathed, and before I could blink he had picked me up and carried me through the door, from the roof into the penthouse.

"Careful," I growled, nipping at his ear. "You'll get me dirty!"

"I want to get you dirty. I want to get us both dirty all over and then we'll wash it off together, feeling every inch of each other as layer after layer peels off and we're laid bare!"

Holy...! His words alone made me want to tear his clothes off! So, not being a restrained kind of girl, I gripped the collar of his shirt and tugged. Before my hands could tear his shirt open down the front, though, his hands were there, caging me.

"No," he whispered into my ear.

"Yes!" I hissed back.

"No," he insisted. "Remember—all good things take time."

"That's a matter of opinionmff..."

His lips covered mine once more, and my hands, along with my whole body, slackened, melting into him. When he took his lips away and his spell lifted off me, we were already in the giant marble bathroom. He sat me down on the edge of the tub. Holding me against his chest with one arm, he reached out with the other to turn on the faucet. A steaming jet of hot water shot into the luxurious tub, spreading in waves over the gently curving bottom.

"They heard the waves splash, and the wind so low," he whispered into my ear, to the music of the water, and in a flash I realized he was quoting poetry again. "And saw each other's dark eyes darting light into each other." His lips wandered from my ear, over my cheek, until we were facing each other and staring deep into each other's eyes. And his eyes were dark, the darkest eyes I had ever seen, and still... there was light deep inside. His light.

"That's beautiful," I murmured. "What is it?"

But he just gave me his mysterious half-smile, and murmured: "And, beholding this, Their lips drew near, and clung into a kiss."

"Elliot, I want—"

His lips covered mine, cutting me off. That hadn't been all I wanted. It wasn't enough—and yet, it was. It so was.

"A long, long kiss," he breathed into my mouth, "a kiss of youth, and love, and beauty, all concentrating like rays into one focus, kindled from above."

"Elliot..." I could hardly hear my own voice, that's how weak it was. "Dammit, I want to know... what is this you're saying? What—?"

I felt him smile against my lips.

"Such kisses as belong to early days," he murmured on me, into me, while his fingers slid down my face and neck, stroking my skin with gentle fervor "Where heart, and soul, and sense, in concert move, And the blood's lava, and the pulse a blaze, Each kiss a heart-quake."

"Yes, it damn well is! Elliot! Please...!"

His lips detached themselves from mine, and his finger settled over my mouth, silencing me. A moment later, his lips were at the hollow of my throat and all attempts at speaking I might still have made collapsed into a garbled moan.

"They had not spoken," he murmured against my skin, "but they felt allured, As if their souls and lips each other beckon'd, Which, being join'd, like swarming bees they clung — Their hearts the flowers from whence the honey sprung."

Oh yes, I felt allured all right. The blood was pounding through my veins, my heart was beating as hard as any ever had, and the steam rising from the water made my skin tingle all over! Elliot hadn't even really started to touch me, and he was having this kind of effect, just with words?

Ah yes... but they're magical words, aren't they?

"They were alone." His voice was deeper now, black velvet stroking my skin. "But not alone as they, Who, shut in chambers, think it loneliness."

Reaching down into the lapping water, he wetted his hands and started stroking over my face and neck, leaving hot trails in his wake. "The silent ocean and the starlight bay, The twilight glow which momently grew less, The voiceless sands and dropping caves, that lay Around them, made them to each other press,"

Slowly, he began lowering me into the tub, pressing himself against me more and more tightly. It took a few moments for my dazed brain to realize that we were both still wearing clothes. When I did, I tried to wriggle out of his grip, but he was far too strong. Slowly, we began to slide into the water.

"Made them to each other press," he repeated, his voice no longer soft, but masculine and raw. "As if there were no life beneath the sky, Save theirs, and that their life could never die."

"Elliot, please... I need to know..."

"Haidée and Juan, by Lord Byron," he rasped. "Beautiful, isn't it? But not as beautiful as you."

And with that, we sank into the water, and into each other.

Hours later, when we were lying in bed, cleansed and sated in every possible way, I looked at him, remembering the magical words he had whispered to me. Where heart, and soul, and sense, in concert move. That was exactly how I felt about him. And I remembered too the look in his eyes when he had jumped out of the helicopter, a look that, I was sure, was mirrored in mine. We both felt it—felt the L-word hovering between us, crackling with energy, with more power than any other word in the world.

So why not just say it?

Gathering all my courage, I leaned closer to him, meeting his dark, midnight-blue gaze.

"Elliot, I lo—"

His finger touched my lips, cutting me off.

"Don't say it."

"Why not?"

There was sadness in his eyes. A far too ancient sadness for such a young man. "You'll regret it one day. I was not lying when I warned you about me, Cassy. Don't lose your heart to me."

Gently taking hold of the finger covering my lips I guided it up, until his open palm was in front of me. Bending forward, I pressed a soft kiss into its center.

"Too late."

❤☠❤☠❤☠❤☠❤

Despite Elliot's dire warnings, my love for him secretly blossomed like a night-blooming flower. And it had plenty of fertilizer to feed on: although we had been together for more than four months now, still was there seldom a night on which Elliot didn't take me out on another wonderful date, or a week when he didn't send me another expensive gift.

"Wow!" Jill whistled shook her head, slowly lifting the two delicate emerald earrings out of their box. "If he gives you stuff like this just for fun, what is he going to get you for your birthday?"

"Oh my God!" Nearly dropping the box, I clapped a hand over my mouth. "My birthday! It's in three days, and I completely forgot!"

"Don't panic, girlfriend! We have towels, remember? And besides, it's your birthday, not his. So he's the one supposed to be rushing around in panic trying to find you the perfect gift at the last minute!"

"Yes, but... I mean, it's my birthday! Don't you get excited at birthdays, wondering what people will give you?"

"No," Jill said, bluntly. "They always give me dumb stuff anyway. But then, I don't have a billionaire for a boyfriend."

"Wouldn't it be the perfect present if he told her he loves her," Lisa sighed.

"He's done that already, hasn't he?" Jill demanded.

I bit my lip. "Um... to be absolutely honest..."

"Cassy, he has, hasn't he?"

"Um... no."

"After four months? And you're still with the guy?" She gave a snort. "You've got an impressive stock of patience, girlfriend! More than I would have! I'd have dumped his ass weeks ago, billions or no billions!"

"Well..."

"Or, come to think of it, maybe I would have stayed for a while longer just for the awesome sex."

"Jill!"

"Well, it is awesome, isn't it?"

"Can we please get back to the subject here? We were talking about my birthday!"

"Personally, I think sex is a much more interesting subject."

"Jill!"

Then, Lisa tried to intervene, and we ended up all talking at once, and after a while the conversation wandered on to other subjects, away from the lack of love declarations and the undisputed awesomeness of my sex life.

The two salient points of that conversation that permanently stuck in my brain were:

Firstly—what was Elliot going to give me for my birthday? And, secondly—what if his gift would really be to tell me that he loved me? I couldn't suppress an excited flutter of my heart at the thought. Was this why he had held back so long? Because he wanted to make my birthday the very best day of my life? It would be so like him to do something like that—so meaningful, so romantic.

Thus, you'll understand why, when the morning of my birthday finally came I was understandably excited.

We had been invited to spend the feast day with his grandparents. Now, this might be slightly awkward if grandma and grandpa lived in a tiny cottage or apartment somewhere. But if they reside in a palatial estate, where you and your boyfriend can have a whole wing of the house to your own, it's actually kind of nice. And I simply couldn't bring myself to say no to little old Mrs. Winslow, whose eternal love and gratitude for me practically shone out of her eyes like a beacon every time I met her. Even the gruff Mr. Winslow seemed not to detest me these days.

So, when I skipped into the breakfast room that day, I received a nod from the old gentleman and a warm smile from Mrs. Winslow.

"You look excited today, dear."

Well, you see, I think your son is going to confess his love to me today. Yay!

"What's not to be excited about?" I returned the smile. "It's my birthday."

Zack, who had also joined us for the day, gave me a wink that made me think he could guess what was going on in my head. I didn't mind. I never really minded anything Zack did, he had that way about him.

Dancing to the kitchen, I mixed myself a quick bowl of cereal and returned. Elliot hadn't shown up yet, so I flopped down on one the chairs and gestured to the giant TV installed on the opposite wall.

"May I? I feel kind of hyper this morning. I need something to distract me."

Mrs. Winslow couldn't have said no to me if I asked for half her kingdom. "Be my guest, dear."

Mr. Winslow just grunted and turned over the page of his paper.

Zack grinned. "As long as it's something with plenty of hot babes in it, sure."

Rolling my eyes, I switched TV on, and just then, the door opened and Elliot came in. My heart did a somersault when he gave me a radiant smile.

He's going to tell you he loves you! He is, right now!

He opened his mouth.

"Hi," he said.

Hi? Hi? That's it?

"Um... Hi."

What about "I love you"? For that matter, what about "Happy Birthday"?

"Happy birthday," he said, still smiling.

There, you see! That wasn't so hard! Now the other half! Say it! Say it!

"Pass me the marmalade, will you?" he said.

I took a deep breath, and passed him the jar, and he took a seat beside me, piling a slice of bread and two pancakes on his plate.

I love you! Say it! Just say it!

"Can you pass me the powdered sugar, too, please?"

I passed him the powdered sugar.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Have patience, I told myself. He's probably just waiting for a more romantic opportunity. Maybe one without his grandmother watching our every move like a mother hen. Or he's gathering his courage. Yes, that has to be it!

To distract myself, I turned my attention to the TV screen. Some action movie with Romans or Spartans hacking each other to bits was running, and I found the wanton violence and indiscriminate murder immensely relaxing. It can be so comforting to watch something nice and familiar. Sighing, I shoveled another spoonful of cereal into my mouth. Any moment now. Any moment, Elliot would pluck up his courage and tell me he loved me.

Then, suddenly, the TV screen went black. There was a flicker, and after another moment, the very serious face of a newscaster appeared on the screen, besides the image of, what appeared to be, an average chest type freezer.

"Good morning. We interrupt this broadcast for some shocking, breaking news. This very morning, police discovered the body of a murder-victim in Hilly Springs, Alabama."

I spewed my cereal across the table.

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Hello, my fellow homicidal maniacs! :)

For those of you who haven't heard yet: I have (one again) succumb to sickness and am currently in bed with fever. However, I managed to drag myself to the computer and upload this chapter for you. Just don't be surprised if I do not answer any wattpad messages for a while and won't be very active on social media.

Cheers

Sir Rob, with a thermometer sticking out of his mouth