50 Shades of Drake 1 and 2

50SOD II: Chapter Eighty-Two

    Brian's house was ridiculously large - especially considering he was a single man with no family to fill it. The exterior was brick, with gorgeous, arched windows. A four-car garage lay beyond the house, at the end of the driveway. Both the front and back yards were expansive.

    "What do you need with all of this space?" Destiny asked as he led her up the walkway.

    "I don't know if I'd say that I need it," he explained, jingling his car keys in his hands. "But growing up, I always wanted a house like this. When I was able to afford it, I bought one."

    The inside was just as impressive as the outside. Tastefully decorated, not that she expected anything less from the executive who wore only the most sought after designer suits. She immediately found herself comparing his interior decoration to Aubrey's. Aubrey's condo was modern, with a few traditional touches here and there to make the place feel cozy. With the exception of the electronics and appliances, Brian's place was decorated in a complete traditional style. Old woods, earthy tones, comfortable, overstuffed sofas in the living room. Photographs on the mantle of the fireplace and portraits of his family gracing a few of the walls.

    Brian may not have had a family to share the place with, but the house was ready for one. The kitchen was every aspiring housewife's dream and opened off into a patio overlooking a large yard, complete with an Olympic-sized swimming pool. "Swimming is one of my favorite hobbies," he explained.

    She felt his eyes on her as she peered out of the patio door. "Mine too." Her life had been a bit too hectic to enjoy the swimming pool located in Aubrey's condo complex.

    "I showed you the living room, my office, the kitchen and dining room, the home theater, my workout room, the pool room, the bathrooms, hmm... That's pretty much it for the main floor. If you're ready, I can show you your room."

    She trailed behind him, making a conscious effort not to be impressed by his home. As she climbed up the beautiful, winding staircase, she tried to convince herself that this wasn't the perfect dream house she would have chosen for herself. For some reason, it unnerved her to admit that she had anything in common with Brian. That was especially the case now that Aubrey had practically given her permission to sleep with him. I still think he was out of his mind for even thinking it, much less telling that to me, she thought her cheeks heating up.

    Brian turned his head and glanced at her as he reached the top step. "What are you thinking about?"

    Her eyes widened and she shook her head. "Nothing."

    "Something has you blushing," he told her with a knowing look in his eyes.

    She took a deep breath, unable to step onto the top stair since he was in her way. "So...my room?"

    Mischief glinted in his eyes, but he wordlessly turned and led her down the hallway. A set of ridiculously tall French doors closed off what Destiny could only assume was the master bedroom. Brian stopped a few bedrooms down from the master suite and opened the door.

    She followed him inside and gaped at the perfection of the room. The room was massive, and so was the canopy bed nearly obstructing the view of the balcony window that faced them. A flat screen television was mounted to the wall opposite the bed. Two night stands, a large armoire, and a walk-in closet completed the room. "You have all of this furniture, and all of this stuff...but it's just you?" She walked over to the bed and sat on the edge of it, testing its firmness. It was just the perfect ratio of softness to firmness.

    "My family comes to visit," he explained. "I'm a part of a pretty large family, actually. This house barely contains them all when they come over."

    She fell back on the bed and stared up at the canopy draperies. "It's so beautiful. It's the type of room you'd see on a Disney movie."

    He laughed. "Sans the very modern television," he corrected.

    "Right. Minus that." She breathed out a sigh.

    "I'm going to bring up your luggage," he told her.

    She raised up on her elbows. "You don't have to do that. I can get it."

    "What kind of jackass would I be if you had to bring up your own luggage?"

    "The kind of jackass who is nice enough to let me stay here in the first place," she countered. "The kind of jackass who believes in equality." Never mind what feminists would think about the relationship I have with Aubrey and the borderline masochistic kinks we indulge in, she thought.

    Brian arched an eyebrow. "Really? You're going to throw equality at me?"

    A giggle escaped her lips before she could stop it. "It sounded better in my head than it did out loud."

    "Uh huh. So...are you going to let me go grab your luggage, then?"

    She twirled a curl around her finger. "Yeah."

    He laughed, shook his head, and turned around.

    "Brian?" she called out.

    He turned back into the room, gripping the edge of the door frame. "Yeah?"

    "Thank you, for letting me stay here."

    "Of course." Emotion touched his eyes briefly, before he stowed it away. He turned and headed down the hallway, leaving only the sound of footsteps behind.

    She fell backwards again, raised a hand and rested it on top of her stomach. Her life was taking the craziest turns, turns she could have never possibly imagined. Meeting Aubrey in and of itself was a crazy turn. Living with him, working with him... and to top it all off, this mess with Palmer and Carlos...it was overwhelming. She loved Aubrey with all of her heart, and hated that she was apart from him. But maybe he was right...maybe she needed to get away for awhile. Away from the craziness and the contract and the surprise kink.

    When he'd first broken the news to her, she had looked at this situation in entirely the wrong way. Yes, she was worried about Aubrey and wanted him to be safe. Yes, she wanted justice to come to Palmer, who was sounding more and more evil, the more she found out about him. There was something to be said for silver linings, however. Aubrey had terminated her contract. Though the reasoning behind it was quite morbid, this was the first time in about two and a half months that she hadn't been bound by a piece of paper. This was the first time in about two and a half month that she didn't have to do whatever someone else wanted her to do.

    I love Aubrey. Lord knows I took pleasure in doing what he wanted me to do. But it feels like...it's like... She exhaled again and with her hand on her stomach, she could feel the air coursing through her body. It was like for the first time in months, she could breathe again.