"Where to, sir?" the chauffeur asked once they situated themselves in the back seat of the black bespoke Rolls Royce.

The luxurious vehicle, whose interior resembled that of a limousine, was provided by the hotel. The spacious rear passenger compartment, adorned by plush white leather seats with unique embroidered motifs against black ash wood veneer panels, had the look and feel of a secluded upscale lounge.

"The Morton Arboretum," Kylo answered back gruffly.

"Oh, that's a beautiful place to take a beautiful lady, sir," the driver commented as he pulled away from the hotel. "The weather is damn near perfect today, too. A fantastic 79 degrees!"

"Yes, it's a gorgeous day out," Rey remarked cheerily, grinning as she looked out the tinted window. "Not a cloud in the sky."

"Are you guys going for a romantic stroll through the trees?" the chauffeur asked trying to make small talk, which irritated Kylo.

"We're going to a wedding, actually," Rey told the driver. She admired the lively scenery as they drove down Lake Shore Drive, the waters of Lake Michigan sparkling like Swarovski crystals beneath the shining sun.

"Oh, a wedding? How nice - " the driver started to converse before Kylo abruptly cut him off.

"Yes, it's nice, but some silence would be nicer."

The chauffeur cleared his throat. "My apologies, sir."

"Just let us know when we're there," Kylo ordered as he pressed the button that brought up the partition wall between the front and rear seats. The chauffeur nodded in acknowledgment before disappearing behind the privacy screen.

Rey slapped his shoulder, taking Kylo by surprise.

"Don't be such an arse," Rey scowled at him. "He was just being friendly."

He turned to glare at her for hitting him, but his anger quickly dissipated. One look into her hazel eyes and he found himself hopelessly hypnotized.

"I didn't feel like talking," Kylo said to her, his gaze running down her body, "at least not with him."

The air between them suddenly felt dense and thick with heat, even though the air conditioner was on full blast. Rey saw how his demeanor changed posthaste from that of a perfect gentleman to a wanton scoundrel. It awakened that familiar ache low between her legs.

"Is that what you want to do, Kylo?" she asked, her teeth scraping over her bottom lip. "Talk?"

Kylo hadn't had the chance to regard her until this moment. She looked exquisite in her elegant plum dress, the clean lines flattering her slim body and accentuating all the right curves. The dress reached just past her knees and had an appliqué of black lace over its only strap, the one-shoulder design exposing her lithe arms and shoulders. Her hair was styled into a sleek low ponytail with a deep side part, which highlighted her pretty eyes and cheekbones. Kylo licked his lips once his roaming eyes reached her fixed stare.

"Yeah, I would very much like to talk, Kira," he breathed out.

"Then I don't think you'll mind if I find a more comfortable seat," Rey said while unclicking her seatbelt. Kylo was about to demand she put it back on as he didn't want to risk her safety, but he couldn't. Words escaped him as he sat there, paralyzed. He watched as she scooted closer to his side.

Rey was thoroughly enjoying his lingering stare. She reveled at his undivided attention. Rey felt wanted, desired and she didn't want that magnificent feeling to go away. She lifted her dress until the hem reached her mid thighs, allowing her legs to move more freely. It enabled her to go over and straddle Kylo. He didn't protest as she rested astride him, his large hands automatically coming up to grab her small waist.

"Ah, yes," Rey moaned, taking off his seatbelt and wrapping her arms around his neck. "This is so much more comfortable. Now we can talk."

He should have tried to resist her, but she was magnetic and he was putty in her hands. She rested her forehead against his, their noses a centimeter away from touching.

"Last night, I..." Kylo started to say before he lost his train of thought. She was so close to him, he could see the freckles dotting across her face and the slight specks of yellow in her eyes. She was breathtakingly beautiful.

"Oh, so last night wasn't a blur after all?" Rey teased as she played with the hair on the back of his head. Her touch felt heavenly, though a bit distracting, but Kylo didn't dare attempt to stop her.

"No," he replied, struggling to catch his breath. "I'm sorry for almost crossing a line."

"What line? The one you placed on yourself?" Rey quipped, leaning her head sideways. He didn't know how to respond to that so he remained silent.

"Why don't you want to have sex with me?" She asked, lifting her head from his. Rey grabbed his left hand from her waist and studied it. "I don't see a ring on here, but is it because you're married? Do you feel guilty?"

Kylo shook his head. "No, I'm not married. I'm single."

Rey smiled triumphantly at that.

"Ok, so help me out here. What's the issue?" She twisted her fingers with his. "Why no sex?"

"I don't exactly feel comfortable... paying for it."

"Really? That's why you won't do it?" she giggled softly. "Oh darling, did nobody tell you the sex comes free?"

"Free?" he frowned at her, not quite understanding what she meant.

"You pay for my time and company. Should sex happen when we're together, well… rest assured it's because both of us wanted it to," she explained, giving him a small wink. "It's the little loophole we have so that, technically, what we do isn't illegal."

"Oh," Kylo said, dumbstruck at the revelation. "Well, I'm not sure if you truly want to. That you want me."

"Of course I want to," she replied quickly, gripping his hand firmly.

"You do?" he asked, an inflection of incredulousness in his voice.

Rey bounced her head up and down eagerly like a bobblehead toy. "Who wouldn't? I mean, look at you. I've wanted you since that first night."

It was exactly what Kylo needed from her. He had to hear those words come from her sultry lips, a verbal affirmation of her advances and behavior.

And he believed her without any trepidation whatsoever. Sure, she had lied to him before, but he knew she wasn't lying this time. He couldn't be too hard on her for having lied to him previously. That was the past and he wished to remain in the present. Who was he to judge and condemn? It wasn't like he was a saint himself.

Besides, when you truly loved someone, you loved them unconditionally, with all their faults and imperfections. That was what love was. And he was certain that he loved her. He would simply have to work to earn her trust.

"Do you not want me?" she asked feebly, pouting her lips and pulling him away from his reverie.

"What? Of course I want you. I've wanted you since I first laid eyes on you," he let go of her, moving to hold her face between his hands. His thumbs stroked across her cheeks, his touch gentle and tender. Rey was on cloud nine, having finally heard it with her own ears that he did want her. He did desire her. And that was the rush she craved. "I do want you, Kira. I want all of you."

"Wait, all of me?" she frowned at him, shifting slightly. "What do you mean all of me?"

Kylo bore into her eyes, his thumb running across her bottom lip.

"I mean that I don't just want your body," he pulled her closer so their lips almost touched. "I want your heart, your mind, your everything. I want it all… and I'd give you all of me, too."

Rey felt conflicted, wanting to simultaneously catch his lips with hers and shove him away. While she was elated to find out Kylo wanted her, she wasn't willing to give him more than sex. Rey had to keep her heart protected. She couldn't let the walls she built up to come down. Not for anyone.

"I- I can't, Kylo," she whispered, shaking her head. She removed his hands from her face, moving slowly off and away from him to return back to her seat.

"Why not?" Kylo asked in anguish. "Do you already have a boyfriend?"

"Hmm? No, I don't have a boyfriend... or a girlfriend," she replied, glancing back at him. He seemed distraught, but perked up a little when she denied being with someone. "It's kind of difficult to have one with this job. I've also actually never been in a relationship before."

"Never?" Kylo couldn't hide the hint of glee in his tone. He was glad to learn that and it made him desperately want to be her first.

And only one, too, if he could have his way.

Damn, how he loved her.

"Relationships aren't my thing," she commented, grimacing. "Can't we keep this casual? Just sex?"

"No, I can't do that," he replied firmly. Couldn't she see what she did to him? He wouldn't be satisfied with just a taste of her. He wasn't just thirsty, he was hungry for her. Only her. "I know that I want you. And I want it all... or nothing at all."

He saw as she took in his words, both pensive and skeptical. Kylo knew he didn't deserve her. He was not worthy of her, of any happiness. But it didn't stop him from wanting it, from wishing to try. He'd much prefer to make an attempt than not.

"That's a bit extreme," she stated, thinking Kylo couldn't really want her. He didn't know her. She was a complete stranger to him. For fuck's sake, he didn't even know her real name. If he found out the truth, who she really was, he wouldn't be so infatuated. He would see that she was a tawdry person without any true worth.

A nobody.

He'd be disappointed once he discovered she wasn't who he had imagined her to be. And then he would leave. Everyone always did leave her in the end.

"I don't think it's extreme," he replied nonchalantly.

"How would it even work, Kylo? You don't live here," she reminded him. Maybe this fact would help convince him otherwise. He had to see that anything more was destined for failure.

"I'd make it work," he affirmed in a most confident manner. God, he was so fucking smug. "New York's not that far. Trust me, I would find a way. We could find a way."

"We don't live in a fantasy world, Kylo. We live in reality and reality sucks," she crossed her arms as she looked out her window. "Long distance relationships don't work. It's a fact."

"Says who?" he retorted, sliding closer to her. Kylo softly grabbed her chin, making her turn back to face him. "We can at least try. I'd be willing to."

For a brief moment, her eyes remained steady and unblinking. Then her expression grew tense and she shook her head at him. Kylo's forehead wrinkled with uneasiness. He had to convince her somehow. He was not going to let her slip away.

"Fine. Then come to New York, live with me. I could take care of you," he said to her, his voice filled with a gentleness and sincerity he never knew he was capable of.

Rey's eyes grew wide, her hand grabbing his to remove it from her face.

"I don't need anyone to take care of me," she huffed, dismissing the preposterous idea that someone would actually want to do that. It'd be a huge mistake on her part to entertain such drivel. "I've been on my own all my life. I can handle myself. Besides, I can't go to New York! I have to stay here..."

To finish school, she thought, stopping herself before saying it aloud.

He did not need to know that or anything else about her. Rey would not rely on anyone ever. She couldn't allow herself to become so vulnerable.

"Ok, then I'll move here if I have to," he told her. Rey leaned back into her seat, slack-jawed. She must have misheard him.

Did he just say…

"But I need you in my life, Kira. I want you to be mine," Kylo continued, staring at Rey as if she was the world's greatest treasure. "You said that you wanted me. And if that's true, then you'll give it a shot. I know you feel that there's something here because I feel it, too. Please, give us a chance."

Rey was shocked, unable to believe the words that had come spilling out of his mouth. He'd move here for her? But why? Why would he do that for her?

No, he'd move here for Kira, not you, she heard a small dark voice within say. He doesn't know who you are. You're a liar, a deciever. Once he finds out that you're nothing special, that you're no one, he'll leave. And all you'll be left with is heartache and pain.

Too absorbed in her musings, she failed to notice Kylo sidle up beside her. She broke away from her thoughts when she felt his hand pull her seatbelt over her, fastening it in place with a click. Rey stared as Kylo's fingers danced back and forth across the strap over her belly. Her heart thumped hard against her chest at his light strokes.

"Please," he beseeched once more, grabbing her right hand.

Pressing a soft, chaste kiss onto her knuckles, Kylo waited patiently for an answer, but Rey was reticent. He knew that he had to persuade her in some way. She had to be his and only his. Kylo had to make her see that he wanted to lay all his love on her. But how?

"Has anyone ever told you that you can be... intense?" she finally said to him, eliciting a small chuckle from Kylo.

"No," he pulled her arm gently, stretching it out. "At least not to my face."

"Well, you are," she joked breathily. "Just so you know."

"Duly noted," he whispered, planting small kisses up her bare arm. Rey panted with excitement, feeling her temperature rising as they grew deeper, each touch of his lips more passionate than the last.

"I'd have to stop being an escort," she choked out, trying to sound calm in her fevered state, "if I were to be with you."

"Uh-huh," he mumbled in between pecks. He had reached her shoulders now, grabbing her neck with his other hand to draw her nearer. She didn't pull away, tipping her head a bit to give him better access.

"But how will I make money?" she breathed out, losing her self-control with every smack of his lips against her skin. She clenched her thighs together in an effort to still the sudden agonizing throbs below. It helped a little when Kylo abruptly stopped to look at her, though Rey wished he hadn't.

He moved his hand from her neck to hold her face in his palm, his eyes searching hers. "I thought you said you had another job where you had interned. That that was why you stayed here instead of going back to the U.K."

Rey flitted her eyes at him, pausing a nanosecond before responding. "That job pays shit."

"You're lying," he told her, his mouth turning downward in displeasure.

How did he know she was lying?

He sighed, his hand still pressed against her cheek. "You don't have to lie to me, Kira. You can tell me anything."

Rey stared back at him, her gaze filled with incredulity. Could it be true? Could she really tell him anything?

"I'm not lying," she squeaked nervously. Her eyes darted down and away from his stare to where her fingers played with his tie. He tilted her head up so that she would look at him again. There was a momentary pause before she exhaled loudly. "Ok, fine. I lied about that. I don't have another job. I only do this."

His chest swelled with hope. She was opening up to him. It was a small step, but progress nonetheless.

"I could help you find something," he slid his hand back down to her neck, caught unawares at the rapacity of his grasp there. "Because there's no way in hell I'd share you with anyone else."

Rey swallowed hard, a vociferous sound amidst their shaky breaths. "No, I wouldn't want to share you, either."

Instinctively, she gripped his collar to pull him closer to her, their mouths a hairbreadth away from crashing into each other. She was surprised at her own feelings of possessiveness over him. It was the first time she'd ever experienced such a thing for someone. What was happening to her?

"So are you saying yes, Kira?" he asked in between their pants. She felt his hot breath blow onto her lips, how it teased her and momentarily made her forget why she was even resisting.

"I… I..." Rey stammered before she begrudgingly pushed him away. "I think I need some air."

Kylo removed his hand off her and gradually leaned away to give her some space.

"Thank you," she breathed, adjusting herself.

Kylo ran his fingers through his hair, respiring deeply in an effort to compose himself. Glancing back towards her, he noticed her hand swiftly come up to cover her mouth.

"I know I asked you before and you didn't want to tell me," he said, sliding back over to his seat, "but why don't you want me to kiss your mouth?"

She let her hand come up her face, turning slightly away from him so he wouldn't note the blush forming over the apples of her cheeks.

"It was meant to help keep myself in check," she started to explain, eyeing him briefly. "So that I would be able to comply with your 'no sex' rule."

Kylo looked at her inquisitively, not quite understanding what she meant. She sighed heavily, turning completely away from him to look out her window.

"I knew that if you kissed my lips, I wouldn't be able to stop at that," she said, continuing to stare blankly outside. "I would wish to go further. Much further. And trust me, I would've made you break your own stupid rule."

There was a pregnant pause with only the soft whir of the moving car audible in the silence. Suddenly, there was the unmistakable sound of laughter erupting from behind Rey. She twisted back to find him giving her a rare wide-toothed grin. His smile tugged at something deep inside her, melting her from within. His laughter was contagious, making Rey join Kylo in his mirth with her own fit of giggles. The walls she worked hard to create were beginning to splinter for him, chipping away at its tough exterior.

"Yes, I think you probably would have," Kylo agreed, his laughter diminishing. "I guess we both have been suffering needlessly."

He extended his hand out to her, opening up his palm. Rey stared at it, wanting to take it and feel herself come alive with his touch. But she didn't. Rey couldn't allow herself to trip lest she fall.

"Yes, we have," she lifted her gaze from his hand to look into his warm, brown eyes. "And we'll continue to do so if you keep being so dramatic."

"Dramatic? Why? For wanting to be with you?"

"Yes!" she yelled at him, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "We could just fuck and be done with this! But no, it's 'all or nothing' with you," Rey used air quotes for further emphasis, pissed he got her to make that annoying gesture. "I don't think I can do that, Kylo."

Both stayed quiet as they glared at each other intensely, their eyes filling with an animal attraction with each passing second. Kylo decided to take advantage of the rising fire kindling between them.

"I think you can," Kylo answered back gently. "Because only then can you kiss me," he inched closer to her, slowly, "and fuck me all you want, Kira."

Rey released a gasping breath. He had come up right beside her, grabbing hold of her neck to caress her sensitive skin.

"You need only say yes," he said to her, his voice laced with a fervent zeal. She sat as still as a mannequin under his spell, piercing into his heady gaze. Her mouth went dry as the tip of his nose brushed along her jawline. "Say yes and be mine."

Rey realized a major shift had just occurred then. It was only quite recently that she was the one trying to seduce him into sex. Now Kylo had taken on the role of seducer, luring her into a relationship by using sex. How the hell did that happen?

If he only knew the truth, Rey thought to herself.

The fact of the matter was that he didn't know the truth. Rey had heard before that ignorance was bliss and she thought it to be true. Kylo had not known that she was unworthy of his or anyone else's affections. She was good for sex, yes, but more than that? No. She wasn't. It would just be a matter of time until he'd figure that out.

Even though a deep part of her wished to, she couldn't believe him when he said he wanted her. Rey couldn't trust the butterflies fluttering ferociously about inside her core. These butterflies that only he was able to bring out in her. Sure, they felt good now, but they would most likely betray her later.

To let him in, to let down her guard - it was too risky. It was best to play it safe. The less risk involved, the better.

Don't let anyone in. Don't get attached.

That's what she had always told herself before. Keeping people at arm's length had worked for her. Solitude was what she was used to and it was what kept her from any harm. Though at that moment, she found it hard to deny that it was rather lonely, being on her own.

I'm better off alone, though. Always have been. Always will be. Alone.

"Can you at least think on it? Please?" Kylo asked as he cupped her pretty face in both his hands, removing her from her racing thoughts. Rey gazed into his stare, clutching onto his wrists. He was giving her that stupid look again, the one where he looked like a lost, sad puppy. She found it frustratingly hard to resist him then.

"Ok," she conceded while closing her eyes, "I'll think about it, Kylo."

She felt him pull her face closer, making Rey pucker her lips slightly. She readied herself to finally feel his luscious mouth on hers. The pad of his right thumb touched her cupid's bow lightly and made its way down slowly, lingering once it reached her bottom lip.

"You can kiss me once you've made the right decision," he said as he pulled away from her to exit the vehicle. Rey's eyes flew open, releasing a shuddering breath and her limbs like jello in the wake of his leave. She hadn't even realized when the car had stopped moving.

"Bastard," she muttered under her breath, watching as he left and walked over to her door. Kylo opened it and offered his hand for her to take.

Rey stared at it, then glanced up at him. His eyes were brimming with what she could only perceive as… hope. Should she say yes and give him a chance? Give them a chance? Or should she slam the door in his face and stop all this nonsense right here, right now?

Sighing loudly, she undid her seatbelt and placed her hand in his to get out of the car.

"I heard that," he told her amusingly once she was at his side. The corner of his lip quirked up a bit when she scoffed at him. "Hopefully, I can be your bastard. Only yours."

A shy smile started to appear across her face as she walked beside him. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad idea agreeing to consider his offer. But was she willing to pay the asking price for Kylo Ren to be hers? She held tight onto his hand, finding that she didn't want to let go.

Only yours.

Rey thought she rather liked the sound of that.

A/N:

In the words of Michael from "The Office":

Well, well, well, how the turntables... :P

So finally, some real talk happened between these two. Kylo Ren has declared himself! He wants Rey to be his! Yes!

But poor, sweet Rey is too guarded, too scared to let anyone in, you guys :/

At least she's agreed to think about it, though... right?

The next update will be the wedding, yay!

To my lovely commenters, LOVE YOU guys! Hearing from you gives me motivation to keep writing, you've NO idea ;)

To my readers, THANKS A MILLION for joining me :D