Black Angel

Chapter Nineteen

Derrick

    I wanted nothing more than holding her to my chest, tight. I didn't want to let her go. Ever.
    But in this week after we killed Julio together – only the thought made me hard all over again – she shut down completely. She didn't let me help her. She didn't let me hold her. Nothing.
    "Baby, we need to talk. Remember what you've told me once? You're not alone, nor will you ever be again. I am here, sweetheart. I will always be here for you. Let me in, please." The only sound coming through the locked door were her sobs.
    Resting my forehead against her door and a hand next to my head, I held my voice low and as soft as possible when I said "Don't shut me out. Don't... Fuck, don't leave me without you, Zola. Without you, I'm nothing. You're my strength. You're the light in that darkness I call my life.
    You're giving me everything it takes to survive this life. I love you so fucking much, Zola. I didn't even know I was capable of loving so much. Please baby, open the door. Let me hold you. If you don't want to, we won't talk eith-" The door opened suddenly.
    Red, blood-shot eyes looked up at me, her expression emotionless and her gaze dead.
    Fuck. Derrick, what have you done?
    I shouldn't have let her handle Julio. I should've taken care of him and tell her he won't disturb her ever again.
    "I'm so fucking sorry, baby. I shouldn't-" She interrupted me one more time by hugging my waist. Startled, I just stood there for a few seconds, letting her warmth engulf me completely.
    By the time I hugged her tight to my chest, my shirt was getting wet from her silent sobs. I detached and took her face between my palms, placing one hand on each cheek.
    "Zola, look at me." She looked straight past me, silent tears still streaming down her cheeks.
    "Come here." I led her to her bed and sat down with her, but she stood up immediately. „No, please- don't. Your room..." She strangled each word out her throat and I scooped her up in my arms, taking her to my bedroom.
    Placing her on the bed, I sat down next to her, and she crawled on my lap. Before I could say anything, her arms were hugging my torso one more time, her head resting on my chest.
    Okay, I got it.
    Hugging her, I placed my head on top of hers and we stayed there in silence. The feeling of her warmth and snuggling engulfing me.
    "Whenever you're ready, sweetheart. I'll always be with-" A ringing phone interrupted me. It was hers.
    She slid off my lap and asked if I could get it with her since she was scared, confronting a mirror alone.
    I didn't know what she meant, but I still went with her.
    Picking up the phone, she paled even more. New tears welled in her eyes and rolled over her cheeks. "Who is it?" I said and she turned the phone with shaky hands.
    Samuel Laston.
    Her dad.
    The ringing stopped. She looked up at me, her whole body shaking, as I took the phone out of her hand and turned it off completely. Scooping her up in my arms again, I carried her to the bathroom in my room and sat her on the sink. She didn't say a word until then.
    "What am I going to do if he calls again? I'm not ready to face him nor will I be ever again, I guess."
    I turned the faucet on hot to fill her a soothing bath so she could relax, adding some scented relaxation oils.
    "If you want to, I could take the call. See what he wants. I promise I won't let him talk to you unless you want it." I said as I shut the faucet again and placed her on her feet, turning my back to her.
    "This bath is for you. You need to calm down, so do your nerves. Strip your clothes and let me know when you're inside, sweetheart." She tapped my back and said "I know I can trust you and that I don't need to hide from you. You can turn around if you want to."
    Debating if I should, I decided to give her privacy and said "One day I'll see more than enough of your beauty, baby. Take your time and just let me know when you got in. When that one day comes, your surname will also change."
    I reached a hand in the pocket of my sweatpants and played with the red velvet box inside it. Now wasn't the right moment, but once she gathered herself and stopped blaming herself for what she'd done, I'd propose to her. Well, at least that was the plan.
    I knew we were together for only a short time, but I bought the ring long before. I knew she was it for me. My endgame. And if she said yes, I'd be the happiest man alive.
    "Okay, I'm in." Her soft voice pulled me out of my thoughts and I turned around to see her sitting in the tub.
    Walking behind her, I gathered her hair in a braid – thank you for teaching me, Daisy – and massaged her shoulders and neck, kissing the top of her head.
    She melted into my touch and moaned in appreciation, which went straight to my cock.
    God, this woman will be the death of me.
    "Why?" She said suddenly.
    "What do you mean, princess?"
    "Why do you love me? And how? I mean, look at me." Her voice was a whisper, nearly inaudible.
    I let go of her shoulders and walked beside the tub. Kneeling down, I took her hand in mine and kissed her knuckles.
    "There are so many reasons. But the major one is just you, I guess."
    She frowned in a questioning look, causing me to let out a deep chuckle.
    "The way you talk, the way you think. Just... the way you're you. That you're yourself. With your pure heart and thoughts and with that beautiful body, face and hair of yours." I chuckled and played with a strand of her locks between my fingers. She giggled softly.
    "I wish you could see yourself from my eyes, Zola. You're an incredible woman. You're so strong, so patient. My only regret about you is that I didn't find you earlier."
    One more time, her eyes got glassy and when she smiled tenderly, I knew: This was it. The perfect moment.
    "I wanted to wait, or at least do it in a proper way. But since I'm kneeling already and we have this moment," I reached down to my pocket and retrieved the velvet box. The questioning look on her face turned to a shocked expression fast and she covered her gasping mouth with her hand.
    "Derrick-" I interrupted her by shifting and getting one knee up again, so I was down on only one knee.
    "Zola Laston, since the first day I saw you, I knew there was more to you. I didn't know it could be possible to be wrong, or rather in an understatement, in such a beautiful way. Because there wasn't just more to you, there was a whole new world I found with you. And I know it might be inappropriate to do this right now, but I don't want to waste one more second living without you. You're my princess, my girl, my everything. Your love consumes me, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Would you like to be my wife, too? Zola, would you marry me?"
    I didn't know when I started, but I felt a tear escape my eye, which she wiped away with her thumb. She shifted in the tub, coming closer to me and revealing the top of her breasts.
    Tears in her eyes, she nodded.
    "Yes!"