Love You Always
An Elani Short
By Lou
-CHAPTER FIVE-
Lani checked the caller ID before shutting her phone off completely.
She couldn't stop going over it in her mind. Their last argument didn't even rank on all the other ones they'd had previous, both when they had been together and when they had been apart; and this, her job, his, had been the one to break the camel's back? He had gone to the extent to buy an engagement ring, and her working for Titan made him, literally, throw it all away?
Fine, she lied to herself. It didn't make sense; not to her mind, nor her bruised heart, but fine, Lani thought as she peeled out of her condo's driveway.
She'd had her wake-up call when Eli had walked away from her the first time; after the death of their son had consumed her. Lani, in her grief, had tried to replace what she had lost with something, someone, who had never been hers. It had been a sick dream, a dangerous fantasy that she hadn't been able to stop until she had no choice but to see what was in front of her. She had disregarded the life that she and Eli had begun together, disregarded him as their son's father, as the man who lived inside her heart, and the grief that, he too, still carried.
He loved her anyway.
He hadn't walked out on her after she had told him about the kiss, and he absolutely could have. He'd been mad enough, and the only reason Eli hadn't put his fist through Rafe's face was that Lani had told Eli the truth of it. She couldn't let his mad make him do something that he would later regret.
Eli hadn't been trying to hear it.
"You were grieving, Lani," Eli told her. "I'm not disregarding that there were things that you should have done, and didn't; nor things that you shouldn't have done, but did. None of that negates Rafe not having the sense, not having eyes to see what the hell was going on from jump."
"He did s-"
"Eventually." Eli cut in. "That's always his damned excuse, 'I didn't know', 'I didn't see'. That's bullshit, Lani. Once in a while, I could understand, but all the time? Hell no. No. It's selfish. It's fucking lazy."
"I kissed him, Eli."
"I know what you did," He told her. "I don't need a reminder. I haven't forgotten."
"Why aren't you upset with me?"
"Who said I wasn't?"
They had gotten past that.
Lani didn't believe that they would ever get past the destruction she had laid waste for their relationship when she had gone undercover. To this day Lani felt sick to her stomach at the thought of how badly she had hurt him.
When everything had come out, and Eli had been so angry, so hurt. He understood that Lani did what she did to save her brother. He loved Theo, too, but there had been nothing that Lani could say to ease the soul-deep hurt that she had caused him.
So he had shut down.
Every time the had been in each other's presence after that it had been like a war. The hurt, the anger that bubbled in the both of them crashed up against each other. For a couple of years, she and Eli had yo-yoed between cool and callous to angry and resentful.
She knew that he wouldn't believe her about Gabi, but it had been a chance that Lani had had to take.
Because she had still loved him.
Lani truly wanted Eli to be happy even if the happiness that he had found wasn't going to be with her, and she had tried to move on, she had, but it hadn't worked, either time, because Lani had still been, very much, in love with Eli.
All of the hurt anger, the starts, and stops hadn't dimmed what Lani had felt for him. Lani wasn't able to turn away from it or put out the fire of what she felt for him any more than he had.
That's why none of them made sense. For him to, literally, throw it all away because of the Kiriakises? Her job?
Maybe it was, Lani thought, her throat growing tight at a red light. Maybe Eli was just tired of all of it.
Even so, if Eli Grant wanted to be done, if this was it, the end; then he was damn sure doing to stand like a man in it and tell her to her face.
Eli swung the door open, heated, only to have all the wind taken out of his sails.
Goddamn...
He couldn't tell you what the hell she was talking about; couldn't tell you what the hell she had slapped to his chest. All Eli could think was that she was here, that things could be worked out.
I haven't ruined it, he thought. They could fix this.
When Lani shoved her hands, hard, into his chests again, Eli came back down to Earth.
Anger, hurt, and devastation ravaged Lani's features. It was a pain so deep that sliced through him, that when Lani pushed him again, Eli fell back a few steps.
He couldn't find the words to speak. They just wouldn't come.
When he caught her mouth with his, the kiss was one of desperation. Lips caught when she thought, she knew, to pull away.
Confusion splintered deep inside her. Lani forced herself to pull away from him. That relief, that hope that had stared back at her, the look on his face when he saw her, the way that he held her now...all of it was a threat to what she had come to do.
She pressed her hands into his chest, pushing him away so that she could breathe air free not saturated with him.
It was highly addictive and, supremely, counterproductive. Lani stepped around him in desperation dodging the hands that reached for her.
"Start talking," She said, again the relief on his face nearly broke her, made her weak. A heavy weight left her and Lani had to sit down.
He was right there with her, kneeling in front of her; an unconscious breath shuddered out of him when Lani ran her fingers through the hair on his face. Their heads rested together as Lani wrapped her thighs around him. The both of them...just being for a little while.
"I wanted this to be perfect." Eli finally spoke, his voice soft.
"What?"
He didn't want to stop touching her, was half afraid that this was a dream that he was about to wake up from and he would be back in a damned nightmare.
When Eli pulled out the ring, the gold ring with its ridiculous diamond shining between them. Nobody could tell him nothing after he had picked it out.
Shawn had been speechless. He couldn't even crack on Eli for being a "lovesick punk" because he had seen it coming, had watched it unfold; put money on it, because he'd seen it before.
"Even though all that shit," Shawn had said afterward. "I knew that the two of you were it. I'm so fucking happy for you, Eli."
Paul could only nod. "Now this is what I'm talking about," He said. "This is exactly right. No notes."
When his eyes found hers, Lani stared back at him confused disbelief.
"I don't understand," Her voice shook as she traced a finger around the gold band.
"It's been burning a hole in my pocket for the last two weeks."
"Two we-mm." Lani's eyes slammed shut and her head shook as she tried, desperately, to pull in the calm that she needed. Snatching up a throw pillow next to her, Lani squeezed it between her hands before letting out another breath slowly then she looked at him.
With dark eyes that shot fire.
Nope.
"Move."
"Lani-"
Lani unwrapped herself from around him, saving Eli's life. "Two weeks?"
Unfolding herself from the couch, Lani put the coffee between them. Pacing, Lani pressed at hand to her forehead. Eli got to his feet to go to her, but she held out a hand, stopping him.
"Two weeks?"
"Lani...I wanted this to be perfect."
She felt like she was about to explode; with what, she wasn't all the way sure. "Eli..."
"I needed it to be." He finally admitted.
"Why?" The word came hoarsely from her, so many emotions filled her.
"Because you deserve it."
His words stole what was left of her breath, erased the words that had been waiting on her lips.
"I know what you did," Eli told her. "For my grandmother. For me."
"You weren't supposed to know about that. Ever. Who- Paul..."
"I love you, Lani Price." He told her. "That didn't stop when we broke up. It didn't go away while we were apart. It didn't lessen when we were with other people."
"You don't sound happy about that," Lani replied, a smile creeping into her voice as Eli moved closer.
"I wasn't," He told her. "About any of it. I started to think that it had all been one-sided. I stopped believing and got it in my head that you never loved me when, in reality, I didn't have a clue as to how much you did. Did I?"
He kept the short distance between them, waiting while Lani pulled herself together. It was hard, but he knew that this was what she needed.
"I am so sorry, that I hurt y-" She stopped on a sobbing breath when Eli shook his head stopping her.
"We're passed that," He told her. "You don't have to keep apologizing. I understand-"
"No, Eli, you don't; not even a little bit," She tried to tell him. "I couldn't tell you any of it before becau-"
He closed the distance between them now, tilting Lani's face to his with a finger to her chin. "If Peter Blake learned that you were working for the ISA to bring him down, he would have killed you. But before he did that, he would have killed your mother, your father, and both your brothers to send a message."
Lani nodded and he continued. "You knew that if I found out the truth that I would follow you-"
"And he would have killed you, too," Lani replied, her voice catching. "He had people on you, on all of us, just waiting for the command to execute. He killed an entire family of a man who he thought had betrayed him. I couldn't leave my brother to that. I couldn't leave Theo at Peter Blake's mercy."
"I know."
"Here's what you don't. Years," Lani told him. "Peter Blake had eyes on me for years. While I was in the academy; before. He knew who I was before I did. It was always in his plan to recruit me. An agent in the ISA told me of this after Theo was taken. Blake was coming for me either way. I was to be his Celeste. Whatever that means.
"You were so angry-"
"Yes."
"I did that to you; to us. I couldn't see any other way. I'm so sorry, Eli-"
One of these days Lani was going to have a strong conversation with Eli Grant about his putting his lips on hers to shut her up. She couldn't let his ass think that he was about to make a habit out of this.
Just...not today.
Not today.
His slow, deliberate, drugging kiss pulled at the fabric of Lani's sanity as her mind thought it too much and her body knew that it wasn't enough; nowhere near.
It physically hurt to pull away from him again, but she needed to know. "I don't understand," She said to him on an uneven breath her hands still touching him everywhere she could reach. "I found the empty box I saw you throw my ring off the docks. Do you need your place north pole, igloo cold in the dead of winter?"
"What?"
"I saw you on the docks," She tried again. "You threw my ring. I th-I thought you threw my ring..."
"No," Eli shook his head. "I...it was...David's. My father's. It was my father's ring." He explained tucking Lani's hair behind her ear. It didn't matter how she wore it, Eli stayed dying to run his fingers through it.
"Eli..."
"I know that we haven't talked about it. That I haven't wanted to talk about it. The ring came to me after he died. It was all I that had of him; but every time I looked at it I couldn't stop thinking about how my mother told me that he, my father, believed that something was missing in him; and that, somehow, because of it, he didn't fit; and, no matter how hard he tried, he never could.
"With everything I dealt with before even coming here, and in Salem...I started to feel that way about myself, too. It got to where every time I thought about that box, opened it, saw it, that noise just got louder. I just...I had to get it away from me. That's what you saw, Lani. Is that why you sent me to voicemail? Twice?"
When Lani nodded Eli's chest rose and fell on a breath.
"Girl-" Lani brushed her lips over his.
"You've had my ring for two weeks. I knew you were up to something." She said to him. "I wouldn't let myself think that it was this until I had no choice.; and you kept playing with me."
"Excuse me? Playing?"
"We get into a fight, then I see that-"
"I'm still stuck on the playing."
"What was I supposed to think?" Lani went on. "We spent-wasted- so much time stuck in our heads...I thought..."
"What?"
"After all of it; David Ridgeway and Rafe, hurting you the way that I did, that this, my job, being that absolute straw."
"I did try to call you," He reminded her. "But you sent me to voicemail. Twice."
"If you were about to break up with me, it was not going to be over the phone. You were coming to me." It wasn't a question. Lani slid her hand in his.
"If we were done...I had this whole thing planned out-"
She shook her head this time. "I don't need perfect. All I need is you," Her lips whispered against his. "All I need is you."
Ah, nope; he thought, telling his need to back up; always getting him into some shit.
"Now see," Eli told her. "This is why I kept getting derailed."
Lani pulled back, looking at him, her face one of confusion. "What?"
"First time I tried to ask you; the plan was to go to dinner, do something dancing then when we came home I was going to ask you for forever then get to being all delicious."
"'Get to being all delicious'?"
"You saying it's not?"
"I would never. How dare you?"
"Then you came out with my shirt on and the thighs were all out...Plans changed. Quickly."
"Oh, so it's my fault that you can't control yourself?"
"I'm just saying...that the ingredients were distracting," Eli told her as he watched Lani touch him like she hadn't been gone for days.
She loved this ridiculous man.
So much.
"Then," He went on. "You weren't trying to let your man have any popcorn-"
"Yeah, because that's what you wanted." She cocked a brow at him. "You had no manners, sir. Just sticking your hands anywhere without permission."
"You're lucky it wasn't Doritos, woman."
"I would never do that to you."
"THEN," Eli chose to ignore her laughter. "Then you had to go and look at me like that."
"You're self-control is a personal problem that you need to address,"
"Acting like you don't come with the sexy on purpose, man please..."
"And looked at you how? Like what?"
"AND JUST when we were just about to bless this couch, the coffee table, some of these walls, the washer and dryer-"
"Yeah, I saw you got new ones," Lani smirked.
Eli grinned, then stopped. "See, here you go."
"Ambitious; I like it." The wink she threw at him made Eli's hands itch and his body heat as she pressed kisses onto him.
"Oh, damn...see, look..."
Lani pressed one more kiss then stopped. "So sorry, please continue."
He stared.
She stared. "Eli?"
"Then the hyenas woke up acting stupid." He went on like she hadn't just sat and watched his brain reboot and connect. He didn't appreciate her silent giggles in the least.
"What does that even mean?"
"Look, Lani," His words soft, serious, when ran his hands down her arms. "I know that you have to make your way, find where you fit. You're a damned good cop. I don't like those people."
"Some of those people are your family."
"And I love their annoying asses to death. I can't stop feeling the way that I do, but I know that police work isn't where you are anymore. I can't fix what Stefan's shooting has done to you for you. I will respect your choice to work for the Kiriakeses."
"Good; because I'm not leaving my job. I can't, and it's not just about protecting Theo-"
"Be careful with that, Lani. Theo, he's not a child."
"And I'm not treating him like one. As I said, it's not just about my brother."
"Stefan made his choice."
"I know, but that doesn't change the result. Police work is something that I may never return to, Eli."
"I know," He nodded. "Whatever you want to you, whatever you need, I'll stand behind you.'
"Thank you."
"I thank God for you every day, Lani. I don't know what it means to not love you." He said to her. "Ah, don't-baby, don't cry."
"Deal with it." Lani blinked back tears.
"I was going to ask you the morning we blew up all over each other." Eli shook his head taking Lani's hands in his. "I was so focused on one thing that I missed what was most important. I'm sorry. I scared you, Lani, and that wasn't my intention."
"You didn't tell me to jump to conclusions." She said to him. "Maybe this was something that we needed."
"Maybe," He wrapped his arms around her and she around him. "I love you, Lani Price. Forever."
Arms wrapped tighter around each other.
"Be my forever."
She nodded against him.
"I don't think that I heard that." Her laugh was watery against him. "I said, Lani Price, will you be my forever?"
"Yes."
"Hallelujah!" He spun them around.
"Can we please go be delicious now...what are you d-Are you serious?!"
Eli whipped out his cellphone with one hand and held Lani close with the other.
"Diggity. Look, you might as well get over it. I'm not changing it. Where's Norita? Shut up. Give him the phone. Yes, I did call you to tell you to shut up."
"So childish. The both of you." Lani shook her head at Eli's goofy grin.
"Norita, I'm taking some vacation. For a week. I'm not putting you on speaker. Shawn's in charge."
"YOU SHOULD SEE THIS RING, PAUL!" Lani spoke loudly. "SPARKILY!"
"You don't see me on the phone? I'm no passing messages."Eli said into the phone. "Hell no, I'm not naming my child after him. You tell Shawn I said to make one. He's married. What? What?! How's he gonna regift a wedding gift that I gave him? Put his cheap ass on the phone."
"Okay, this is done." Lani took the cellphone. "Paul, tell Shawn he's in charge. He'll see you all in a week. Oh, hey; thank you." She told her friend sincerely before ringing off and tossing the phone aside. "What was that?"
Eli shurgged. "Delegation."
"I will never understand you two. She told him batting his hands away and undoing Eli's tie herself.
"I only want you to understand me."
She started on his shirt buttons. "Forever?"
"And ever," Eli replied. "Always. Without question."
Goddamn...
Eli's eyes closed nearly rolling back in his head. He had to work hard to get them back open. Jaws clenched, he concentrated on pulling in one breath after another to keep from falling over.
He watched as Lani came back down. His mind was still on moments before when she had she been tossing beneath him, her body arching into his like she couldn't get close enough, fingertips digging into him, holding on for dear life.
The slope of her neck, the aching sounds that left her threatened to take the last bit of him. The deep rawness of her pleasure washed over him, prickling his skin sending his blood boiling over, his head spinning.
She said that she hadn't wanted perfect, that she didn't need it, but perfect was exactly what Lani was getting; and she wanted more.
Every time Eli touched her, something new grew inside of her. When she reached out and touched it, it changed; drawing her deeper, higher.
The way that Eli looked at her, smiled at her, the way that he loved her, the way that he was loving her now; it was better than perfect.
She would have laughed at the look on his face when her thighs squeezed around him, shattering him, but Lani couldn't catch her breath. Pleasured torment so exquisite would not allow it. She was going to drown in it and had every intention of taking Eli with her when, at the last second, Eli snuck that small piece of control from her.
Sliding his hands into hers, Eli pressed her hands to either side of her head, his movements slow and deep. If he even thought that she wanted to change the pace, felt the need in her to try, Eli pressed his hips to hers and endured. He withstood the whispered pleas that slipped, desperately, passed kiss swollen lips; powered through the heated sounds of raw need that moved through him, sending deep shivers down his spine, before he started over again.
Everything Eli felt that he had neglected to tell her, he told her. The things that he had, and hadn't felt that he said enough, Eli repeated over and over again; and when he couldn't say another damn word, he used his body to speak for him.
Deeper, harder, faster they moved together; giving to each other until it was just Lani taking. Needy whimpers grew to breathless sobs when she finally got her hands free from his. She grasped at him, fingers gripping desperately for purchase at the muscles in his back, slipping down sweat-slicked skin.
He didn't know what the fuck he was saying. Words just spilled from his lips directly into Lani's ear, ratcheting up her pleasure as her body, again, shook beneath him. He wasn't done; nowhere near. Eli moved her leg higher on his hip, his fingertips grazing the sensitive skin at the back of her knee; swearing hotly into the damp arch of Lani's throat at the new sensation, his name a desperate plea from Lani's lips.
So good...
"Oh..." Lani called out blindly, her voice sho sharp it cut out around them. Desperate breaths, unintelligible words, the sounds of their bodies sliding, slipping, grinding together; were background noises to their hearts thundering together and pleasure unexplainable spun, turned everything inside out, as her words ran together. "Omygodohmyg-"
Perfect, Eli thought as Lani pulled him over with her.
Perfectly delicious.
This woman tried to kill him.
Steal all his life.
He felt Lani turn toward him in her sleep, her thigh sliding up over him, her soft hand moving over his chest. Reaching out to touch was automatic.
"Uh-uh," she replied sleepily. "Don't touch me."
"What?" He sat up a little looking down at her.
"I require ample amounts to sleep to replenish before you have me all over this bed again, Commissioner."
"Hold on," He told her. "You touched me. What's with you and the thighs, girl; and, AND, that was like...45 minutes rest. At least."
Lani protested on a laugh as Eil pulled her over him as if she weighed nothing; pulling his hands through her hair when she pressed a kiss to his chest.
"How was that for deliciousness?"
Eli huffed out a laugh as Lani's body shook atop him, their laughter loud in the quiet around them.
"I think your neighbor heard us."
"That was the headboard beating the wall," He told her. "You know I don't have any neighbors."
They laughed some more.
"You gonna marry me, Lani Price?"
She nodded against his chest. "Yes."
"Steal all the covers from me while I sleep?"
Lani pushed up on an elbow looking down at him. "I do not; don't tell that lie."
"Let me have some popcorn?" He went on as if she hadn't spoken.
"If you have the manners I know your mother raised you with...possibly. Just sticking your hands in places without permission..."
Eli rolled them over, cutting off her words, sliding his body atop hers between her thighs. A breath sighed out of her when Eli touched his face to hers. Lani's eyes searched his and she felt her world spin at the love that stared back at her.
"Can I touch you here?"
Where was here? Lani could barely understand the words that were coming out of his mouth, let alone discern where "here" was.
She felt him everywhere.
When Lani could only nod, Eli brushed a thumb over her lip. Heat began to pool inside her instantly, desire renewed. The sweeping slowness of his kiss set fire to Lani's senses, heating her blood; a kiss that ended far too for Lani's liking as she tried to follow.
This man.
That man was addicting. Her absolute weakness. Lani ran her fingers through his beard. licking absently at her lips; tasting him there.
"Are you gonna marry me, Eli Grant?" She asked softly.
"I'm going to marry you," He told her. "Immediately. Can I touch you here?"
"Mm..." Lani nodded her reply, her eyes drifting closed when he slid back inside her.
"Will you have my babies, Lani Price?" He asked. She nodded, her eyes coming open, tears wetting her lashes.
"Absolutely," She replied. "Can I touch you here, Eli?"
"Please do." Her hands were so soft, so warm, as Lani ran them up and down his back, inciting the need that already moved through him. A smile canted Lani's lips as she wrapped her thighs around him, feeling pleasure shudder through him; saw it flash in his eyes as he couldn't help sliding deeper. "Are you gonna love me forever, Lani?"
"Always. I'm gonna love you always. Touch me," her words came brokenly as he pinned their hands to the bed, pressed his face into her neck, hips sending them. "Touch me everywhere."
Deliciousness, Lani thought as touch her he did.
Deliciousness indeed.
~The End