Although the laptop remained impossible to find, I found myself focusing on the little things. My life was in shambles, I scrubbed the toilet of the man who wanted me dead all day, and there wasn't an end in sight.

But today was a good day, and I was excited to come home.

Today was the second big date of our anniversary season. Exactly a year ago, I'd sold my app to Kelex and celebrated it at a fine restaurant with the company's owners. But more importantly, it marked our very first time kissing, the first time both of us had realized that the insane attraction we felt for each other was mutual.

As a celebration, I'd woken Lex up with a kiss just as steamy and lustful as the first one we'd shared back then. For endless minutes, we'd made out in the early hours of the morning, rolling in the fine sheets and devouring one another.

But before things could get too far, I'd pulled away and had left him there, high and dry, to start getting ready. The anniversary concerned the first kiss, after all. Not first sex.

Since Becker had officially seen me, and because we weren't sure if it had triggered something in him or not, we were being overly cautious. No more shortcuts taking the SUV right after work. No, instead, I took the bus every day, with one or two bodyguards in disguise, and got off in the Bronx at a specific stop we'd picked together. I then walked to the building where we rented a place under the name of Perdita Ramirez, came out the back, and walked to a dead-end where the SUV was waiting for me.

I hated all of it, since it now took nearly two hours to get back to the suite after work, but it was the best thing we'd found to ensure my safety and my cover.

There was something positively giddy in my walk as I made my way to the suite's door. I couldn't wait to get back to Lex and see what he'd planned for our 'second' anniversary. Given the way I'd left him this morning, I expected some stellar, out-of-this world retribution slex. If I was lucky, I might even get some spanking out of it.

As soon as I entered the suite, I sought Lex, eager to see him. I'd just been on the phone with him for over half an hour during the drive back to the hotel, but I still craved his presence.

To my surprise, he wasn't in the office we'd set up, nor in the common rooms. No, I found him brushing his teeth in the bathroom of our master bedroom, looking all dashing in a dark blue button-up shirt, with the sleeves rolled up on his forearms, and my favorite pair of jeans he owned, which molded his amazing butt to perfection.

Hot damn, what a snack... One I was impatient to devour.

"Baby, you look amazing," I appreciatively told him, eating him up from head to toe.

He gave me a mischievous glance in the mirror before bending to spit out the foam in his mouth. "Thank you, I tried my best."

Once he was done rinsing his mouth and passing a towel over his lower face, he came to me for a quick minty kiss. "You have half an hour to shower and get dressed too," he declared.

I pouted, wondering what he had in mind. "Really? I thought you'd be looking forward to getting me undressed. Not dressed up."

"You mean, after you left me painfully hard this morning?"

"Yes," I impishly replied.

"Andrea, I jerked off as soon as you left, and then twenty minutes ago in the shower, so I wouldn't be tempted now. Your ovaries are definitely bluer than my balls."

I gaped at him, both shocked and amused by his admission. "Baby, that's cheating!" I protested. "And I want to be there and watch when you rub one out."

"Oh, you were there," he affirmed with a devilish smirk. My brows came together in confusion, and he walked closer to whisper the rest in my ear. "I told you our little homemade movie would make me come in no time."

After a gentle pat on my rear end, he left me alone in the middle of the bathroom with my jaw on the floor. Damn, that man was such a fucking tease.

Exactly thirty minutes later, I came out of the master bedroom all dressed and showered, securing the golden hoop on my left ear. While it had taken me a bit of time to blow dry my hair and mind my curls, it had taken thirty seconds to slip on my yellow sundress and ballet flats. I'd also taken a couple of minutes to draw perfect wings in the outer corners of my eyes, and I felt pretty damn cute.

"So, what's the plan, hot stuff?" I asked Lex as I joined him in the common area of the suite. "Are we having a romantic dinner on the balcony? Are we ordering lobster from the room service? Oh, we have to try that trolley of desserts!"

"Maybe another time," he chuckled.

"Oh... So you have other plans?"

"I'm taking you outside."

Too stunned to speak, I repeated his words a few times in my head, to make sure I'd gotten them right. He meant... outside-outside?

"Outside as in... out of the hotel?"

"Yes. I'm done watching you look at the city from the balcony like a sad puppy. It's time you get to experience some of it."

"Is it a joke? Lex, if this is a joke, it's a cruel one," I told him, refusing to believe he really planned on us doing all that.

"I'm really not joking, freckles."

"I thought outside was too dangerous?"

"It is. Which is why I came up with an elaborate procedure to ensure we'd be good."

Finally, I allowed myself to accept this was real. We were really going outside. Keen excitement overtook me, and I wriggled with happiness. Impulsively, I leaped forward and grabbed his face to pull him down. I covered his cheeks and forehead with elated kisses before finishing with a quick, but intense, peck on his lips.

He looked utterly charmed by my reaction when I released him. Peeping down at my light clothing, I wondered if I wasn't underdressed. "Do I need to change? I think I do."

"No, you look lovely."

"Really? It's not too simple?"

"It's perfect. We are just getting an authentic New York pizza, in what's apparently one of the best joints in the city."

My body did a little dance on its own, overjoyed by the program. "Okay, just give me a second to put on some underwear and we can go," I declared.

My admission ripped a genuine laugh out of him, and before I could escape, he grabbed me by the hips and pulled my dress up. With a carnivorous smile, he gazed at my naked front, and then flipped me around to glimpse at my bare ass.

"Walker, you seem to have an obsession with going commando."

"What can I say... I love how ravenous you are every time you realize I'm wearing nothing under my proper dresses."

"That's because I love the idea that you're bared and ready for the intrusion of my cock." He gave the left cheek of my behind a dry slap, which prompted me to escape him with a squeal followed by a giggle.

Ah, I was about to visit some of New York City! And for more than just the trip to and from Becker's. We were having a proper date night together, and I couldn't wait for it.

I came back a couple of minutes later with a pretty pair of panties on and a small leather backpack, ready to go.

Lex's plan to escape the hotel with no one knowing was quite elaborate. After he'd dismissed the bodyguards for the night, telling them we wouldn't need their services, we'd walked to a staff-only door. Lex took out a magnetic card from our suite and slid it in the slot. The light turned green, and the door unlocked with a blip.

When I gave him a confounded frown, he offered me an impish grin. "I reprogrammed it."

With a gentle hand, he pushed me into the room, which turned out to be another corridor. As he led me further into it, he controlled the security cameras from his phone, turning them off and then back on once we'd passed. We came across a couple of confused maids, but they didn't say a thing, eyeing us with curiosity. In a way that almost looked like he knew this part of the hotel, he led me to a freight elevator.

We rode it all the way to a sublevel, and after he'd made sure no one was there, he took my hand and pulled me behind him. Just like he'd done upstairs, he made sure we never appeared on the CCTV, and moved around as if he knew the place like the back of his hands. It was all very thrilling to be in a place we shouldn't be in, trying to remain unnoticed.

We only crossed the path of a confused kitchen porter before reaching our goal. Using the card one last time, Lex opened a heavy metal door that led into an alley behind the hotel. The sounds and smells of the city reached me, and the warmth made me happy that I was only wearing a light dress.

"What now?" I asked.

"Now, we grab a random taxi."

Still holding hands, we walked out of the alley to get to the main street, where it was much busier. "Give me a number from one to ten," he told me.

"Six?"

A few taxis passed, and Lex hailed the sixth one, which stopped by our side. We climbed in, forced to let go of each other, and Lex asked the man to drive us to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The drive there wasn't long, and we followed Central Park for most of it. This, right there, had been in so many movies and shows... I'd seen so much of it, and yet had never been there, not even when I'd visited this city at seventeen.

The cab stopped by the Met, and after he'd slipped the man a bill, Lex and I exited the vehicle back into the street.

"I think we're good now," Lex declared. "No more covert operations, just our date."

"Fine by me. Although, I have to say... It was fun. Did you spend your day planning it?"

"Please... It took me twenty minutes to reprogram the card, hack into the hotel's CCTV, find the safest route, and memorize it."

"And how long to plan the date itself?"

"That took me a little longer," he admitted with a smirk.

"Love hearing that. So, where to, Coleman?"

"The pizza place I found is on the other side of the park. Since you've been dying to stroll in there, I thought we might as well do part of the way by foot."

Once more, keen excitement over-flooded me, and it prompted me to hug the shit out of him. "How are you so fucking perfect, Alexander?" I asked, my voice muffled by the fine fabric of his shirt.

"It's purely selfish, really. It brings me a lot of joy to make you happy. So I'm just being an egotistical ass and giving myself a dopamine high through you."

"That's one way to look at it," I giggled.

Gazing up, I met his loving eyes and melted against him. With everything that was happening, I sometimes lost sight of the end goal. But it was this. This incredible man and how fucking amazing we were together. He was the reason why I'd infiltrated Becker's penthouse, the reason why I was trying so hard to get my life back.

I wanted everything with him. I wanted it with everything I had.

"Will you marry me?" I whispered, mesmerized by his gray irises.

Like every time I slipped him the question, a playful grin danced across his delightful lips. "No," he replied, like always. And as he consistently did to lessen the refusal, he kissed me tenderly, pouring all the love he had for me into it.

After spending so many hours from the suite's balcony, observing the park from above, it was amazing to finally stroll along its paths. Especially with the way we held hands the entire time. I felt like a heroine in a romantic comedy.

While the day was slowly fading, there was enough golden light to enjoy the place without worrying about what lurked in the dark shadows. A lot of people were still enjoying the park's facilities, couples sitting on the benches, families scattered on the lawn, runners doing their evening jogs.

We came out the other way, plunging into the concrete jungle and its noises again. We walked for another two blocks, and Lex opened the door to a charming little pizza place. The woman who welcomed us had a heavy New Yorker accent, and after Lex had told her we had a reservation for the Wilsons, she led us to a table in a corner of the room.

There was a soft Italian tune playing in the background, and the tables were covered in red and white checkers tablecloths. It might have been a little cliche overall, but I loved the place exactly for that.

The woman came back with menus and a pitcher of icy water, with condensation all over its round shape. We thanked her with a smile, and as she went away, I checked what pizzas they have.

"We'll try to talk about things other than Becker tonight," Lex suggested. "But before that, I need to address something."

I lifted my eyes from the menu to gaze into his. Part of me already knew what he'd say, as I was aware we'd avoided the topic for long enough. "What is it?"

"When I agreed to let you move on with your plan, we were talking about a few days – a week at most. It's been nearly twenty days, Andrea. You still haven't found the laptop, and every time to head back there, you put yourself at risk. I'm not sure what more you can do at this point, so I think you should quit? We'll find another way."

He was right. I'd been having the same thoughts for a few days now. Was it really worth it to keep going to Becker's place when it wasn't sure I'd ever find the laptop? By now, I'd looked at each of the potential rooms three times. I'd inspected every corner of them and had found nothing.

To give myself some time to think before I answered, I poured myself a glass of water, then one for Lex, and brought mine to my lips.

It was enraging to be so close and yet so far. The computer was there. I knew it. But it seemed impossible to find where exactly.

"Let me finish this week," I bargained. "I have three days left there, and then I'll call in sick for a couple of days. That should be enough to get me fired without being suspicious."

He considered it for a moment, his eyes lost on the table between us. "Alright," he eventually agreed. "But I'm serious, Andrea. You're done after this week."

I nodded, agreeing to his terms. If I still didn't have anything in three days, I'd stop. And if we didn't find another way to unveil Becker's dirty secrets, we might have to prepare for a life of running away. Or at least until the man bit the dust.

And assholes like him tended to live long, long lives...

As agreed, we spoke about other things from then on. Lex entertained me with tales of his youth I hadn't heard of before, and I ended up telling him about an ex who'd ruined my self-image with his negative comments. While it hadn't been my goal, it prompted Lex to cover me in compliments, which delighted me beyond words.

We stayed in the small restaurant for much longer than necessary, but made up for it with a very generous tip. The pizzas were fantastic, and the wine just as good. I'd drunk a few glasses of it, and as we walked out into the night, I could sense the alcohol making everything smoother in my mind, slower.

The air was cooler now, but the buildings and the streets still emitted heat from the day, so I wasn't cold at all. Especially since I plastered myself against Lex and wrapped my arm around his middle while he laid his over my shoulders.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" he asked as we walked away together.

"I really did. The food was great, but I have to say the company was even better."

"Happy to indulge," he chuckled.

We strolled around, taking random turns, stopping to look at the inside of shops, admiring the liveliness around us... It was amazing to be out like this again.

"I don't want this to end... Can we just walk around forever?" I begged.

"That wasn't the plan, Miss Walker."

"Oh, sorry! Did you have something else in mind?"

"Not really. I wanted to take you back to the suite and celebrate in another manner."

A naughty grin spread my lips wide. "Well, we can still do that, but after."

"What happened to the Andrea who couldn't wait to get my pants off?"

"She's been getting a steady amount of dicking for a few months now, so she's been tamed a bit. And you're the one who released the beast. I want to explore now!"

He laughed softly, but didn't complain. I let him lead the way, even though he never even checked a map. He'd probably taken a good look at the city's layout, and would be able to steer us through the streets without ever getting us lost.

Although I didn't feel entirely safe out there, I forced myself to relax. If Lex was confident that nothing would happen to us, I had to trust him. But it was odd to be out and about when we'd been hiding for so long. The experience was lovely, though, so I allowed myself to dismiss my worries.

We passed many bars and pubs, and my desire to linger in one of those grew more intense with each of them. Eventually, when we walked by a very animated one with a nice interior, I caved in. "Alright, refueling break," I declared, pulling on Lex to change our course.

"No more strolling through the night?"

"We'll get back to it when I'll have a draft beer in me. Haven't had a proper pint in ages."

The inside was larger than I'd thought, and it was even more crowded than I'd anticipated. Turning to Lex, I glimpsed up at him. "Is this too much?"

"No, we're good. We're not staying long, though."

"No problem. A couple of drinks and we're out exploring again."

"Deal."

The tables were all taken, but we found two spots by the bar, near the beer pumps. I hung my bag on the hook underneath my spot and took a look at the available brands. "Can you get me a pint of Stella Artois?" I asked as he sat down on his stool. "I need to pee real quick."

He nodded, and I gave him a quick peck before looking around for a restroom sign. I headed over there at a fast pace, and located the ladies' before entering. Three women were already in line, waiting for one of the fours stalls to be available, so I patiently waited for my turn.

By the time I came back, Lex had what seemed to be a Tequila Sunrise, and a tall pint of cold brew waiting for me. On my way to him, I was reminded of how effortlessly handsome this man was. And I wasn't the only one, it seemed, as two women came to him before I could reach him. The surrounding hubbub prevented me from hearing their words, but I clearly saw the flirtiness on their faces.

Aw, these poor women. Kudos to them for finding the strength to approach this godly man, but he was hella taken. Jealousy never even made its way into my mind as I witnessed the disinterest in his traits. He was absolutely hermetic to the charm of the pretty blonde and her red-headed friend.

I arrived back at my seat before he'd managed to fend them off, and I decided to take care of it. "Hi," I greeted him with a playful smile. "Is this seat taken?"

Amusement bent the corner of his lip. "By all means... take away."

The two women moved to the side so I could sit on the stool, appalled frowns bending their perfect eyebrows. "I'm Alexandra," I continued, leaning closer to him. "I saw you from the other side of the room and decided I had to have you."

A light glimmered in his eyes as he understood what I was doing. "I'm Andrew. Andrew Wilson. And I think you stole my line."

That was when