Angel Dust

A/N: This chapter contains sexual content. Enjoy!

It was common knowledge, not only in the political world, that no one threw a party like the Lane family. The senator's birthday bash drew not only his fellow pundits, but also a slew of celebrities and media correspondents. Anyone considered remotely powerful could be found milling around the backyard of the palatial estate on Sunday afternoon.

Courtney watched from the kitchen doorway as Randy chatted with a few of his colleagues. A tall champagne flute dangled between his fingers as he laughed about something the other men were saying. The fact that he was beautiful was not even a question in her mind at that moment. His charisma, his charm, and the warmth with which he drew the men around him into conversation was undeniable.

Somewhere between four and five in the morning, she had made a decision. As she watched him sleeping, she realized that he was not the dorky kid she had known in high school. And he wasn't just Dave's assistant. The things that had been holding her back from moving her relationship with Randy forward were not really issues at all. They were hurdles in her own mind, nothing more.

As though he could feel her eyes, Randy turned and offered her a smile. Though they had yet to talk about what had happened yesterday, about how much Randy really knew about the Nitro situation, Courtney could tell that he was willing to let it go. At least for now, in front of their peers. And that, in itself, told her that he was the right man for her.

When they met at patio bar, Randy dropped a kiss on Courtney's cheek and rested his hand on her hip. "You look beautiful, Sweetheart," he said with a soft sincerity.

Courtney absorbed the compliment and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Is this shirt new?" she asked, her eyes sweeping over the periwinkle fabric against his skin. When he nodded, she smiled. "It looks great on you."

His face lit up as he sat his glass on the bar and wove his fingers through hers. "Come on," he said, leading her toward the house.

"Where are we going?" Courtney asked, a giggle in her voice as she followed him through the kitchen and toward the stairs. "Randy, we have guests," she started to protest.

But he shook his head. "No. We are guests. This is not your party," he reminded.

Rolling her eyes, Courtney followed as he pushed the door to their bedroom open with his shoulder. "As a part of the family, I'm kind of one of the hosts," she retorted.

"Okay," he agreed, unbuttoning his shirt and dropping it to the floor. "I'm not gonna stand in your way if you want to head back outside." Stepping away from the door, he opened the clasp on his belt and swiftly unbuttoned his pants, allowing the silky fabric to pool at his feet.

Courtney raised an eyebrow. There was such a blatant, raw sexuality about the man standing before her. Without words, he could virtually command her to want him. Without another thought, she nodded toward the bed and watched him move backward, sliding his boxer briefs over his hips as he moved.

Randy laid back, resting his weight on his elbows as Courtney untied the halter straps from around her neck and unclasped her bra, dropping it to the floor. She then stepped out of her dress and slid her fingers into the waistband of her sheer panties. As she uncovered herself at a painstaking rate, Randy's eyes never left her face. Even as she exposed herself to him, he seemed more interested in the wanton desire washing over her features.

With a smirk of her own, Courtney straddled her boyfriend on the bed and ran her fingernails down his chest. "You're warm," she commented, running her hands from his pecs to his navel and back again.

He trapped one of her hands with his and lifted her fingers to his mouth, sucking her middle one between his lips. When he let go, his hands slid under her dress and encased her thighs, kneading and massaging them gently. "You're hot," he whispered.

Courtney lowered her face to Randy's as he directed her hips down over his erection. Covering his lips with hers, she groaned loudly as he filled her completely. Even after nearly a year together, his size still took some getting used to, and she found herself fighting tears as she began to rotate her hips and slowly ride him.

Randy sucked hungrily on Courtney's lips as she found a rhythm, sliding effortlessly up and down his shaft. Sweat beads gathered on his chest as she began to whimper and moan louder against his lips. Tearing his lips from hers, he pulled her face toward his shoulder and sucked on her earlobe. "Your pussy feels so fucking good wrapped around my cock like that, Baby," he whispered gruffly, noting that the dirty talk only made Courtney ride faster.

Her body was on fire as Randy continued to pump inside her, and Courtney ripped herself away from his grasp, shaking her hair as she sat straight and arched her back. When his hands covered her breasts, she groaned loudly and emitted a low "yes" from the back of her throat. How he had learned the things he did to her were not important. All that mattered to Courtney was that he did them.

Nitro had been good. His bedroom style was creative and unique. But Randy was a god. He found places inside her that she didn't even know existed, taking her body to places she had never even thought to imagine. Maybe she didn't love him yet. But if he kept fucking her like this, she was pretty sure she could learn to someday.

Feeling that his end was nearing, Randy managed to flip them over and drive Courtney's knees to her shoulders, holding her ankles as he thrust with an animal intensity into her tight opening. No longer repressing her urge to scream, she tossed her head from side to side, emitting loud "FUCK"s and "DAMMIT"s as he moved deeper inside her.

"You like this, Court?" he asked, lifting her legs from her shoulders and spreading them wide. "Tell me you love the way I fuck you," he grunted.

"FUCK!" Courtney screamed as her body stiffened and raised off the bed slightly, her orgasm slamming over her with a violent intensity. "Motherfucker!" she added in a slightly softer tone, her face twisted in blissful agony.

With little warning, Randy felt his own orgasm washing over him. Grasping his shaft with one hand, he watched Courtney's face as he came on her stomach. When she licked her lips and held her arms out to him, inviting him into her post-coital embrace, he collapsed in exhaustion. "Fuck, Baby," he whispered in her ear as he wrapped his arms around her trembling, sweaty body.

"That was," she stopped and shook her head, a giggle escaping her lips in leiu of words.

Pressing another kiss to her temple, Randy stood and grabbed his pants, heading for the bathroom. "We need to get back to the party before anyone notices we're gone." Turning back, he smiled at her from the doorway. "And I agree," he nodded. "It was."

Courtney was still glowing when the couple re-entered the backyard fifteen minutes later. If anyone had noticed their absence, they said nothing as both slid into easy conversation with various guests.

Just before sunset, after hours of partying and mingling, Sean Lane stood on the patio and raised his champagne glass. "Can I have your attention, please?" he asked loudly, taking a microphone from the band leader and thanking him with a nod. "Thank you all for coming out to celebrate this joyous occasion with the Lane family. It is my honor to have served you for the last forty years, either as your senator, your employer, your colleague, or your friend.

"But my greatest honor in life has always been my family," he smiled at Alissa, and then at Courtney, who returned the glowing gesture with the brightest smile she could muster. "And perhaps the greatest birthday present I received this year is the knowledge that my baby girl, my little Courtney," he took her hand, "will begin pursuing a seat in the Senate, representing the great state of New York."

There was a smattering of applause as Sean turned and placed both hands on Courtney's shoulders, dropping a kiss on her forhead. "I am very proud of you, my precious Corabeth," he beamed.

No matter how much she had despised him the night before, Courtney found herself basking in the glow of her father's compliment. No matter how much she wanted to believe that what he thought of her didn't matter, there was something about praise from her father that still meant something to her. And whether it was wrong or right, she felt better about her decision to run for Senator now that she had her father's public seal of approval.

So busy was she in accepting her father's affirmation that Courtney didn't realize Randy had taken the microphone from Sean. When his deep, rumbling baritone filled the air, she turned. "What are you doing?" she asked dumbly.

Randy took her hand and smiled over her shoulder at her father. "Senator, I know this is your party, and this day is supposed to be about you. But there's something that I've been wanting to say to your daughter for awhile, and in front of all of our colleagues and esteemed friends, I would like to do that now. If it's alright with you, Sir."

When Sean nodded and reached for Alissa's hand, Courtney found her fake smile wearing thin. Her heart was racing. Was he about to? No, surely he wouldn't. Not here. Not like this. In front of everyone? She hated attention. He knew that. He couldn't be. "What are you doing?" she mouthed.

Squeezing her hand, Randy licked his lips, his hand shaking just slightly as he gripped the microphone. "We've known each other for a long time, Courtney. And ours has not always been an easy path. I have seen you happy, and I have seen you in absolutely heart-wrenching agony. And through it all, your grace and your strength have drawn me to you in a way that no other woman has ever been able to capture my attention.

"I've got a lot of accomplishments of which I am extremely proud, Baby. I'm proud to be an Emmy-award winning producer. I'm proud to be a reknowned television executive. Hell, I'm proud to be in this year's issue of People's Sexiest Men Alive," he winked as the crowd released a collective chuckle.

Though she knew where this was headed, Courtney couldn't allow herself to process the information. It was as if everything inside of her body had stopped completely.

"But nothing has made me more proud than being your friend and your lover," he smiled, dropping to his knee on the concrete patio. Withdrawing a black velvet box, Randy popped the lid and revealed a beautiful princess cut diamond on a gold band. "And I would be even more proud to be your husband." Looking into her eyes, Randy spoke with a confident authority. "Courtney Elizabeth Lane, will you marry me?"

She searched his face for some explanation. Why in the hell would he ask her like this? Now? They hadn't even talked about marriage. But as she rested her gaze on his face, the answer bubbled in her throat. The tiny tears that gathered in the corners of his crystal blue orbs, the anticipation with which he was awaiting her answer, could not be denied.

Nodding, she whispered, "Yes," before she could stop herself.