Knowing CELIAN DEVEREUX

CHAPTER TWO

"No!" With a shout of horror, Celian lunged forward, trying to catch the arm of the falling girl as she slipped off the roof.

When his hands met hers, he grasped onto her palm, holding her tight. Her screams were loud in his ears along with the raging sound of his heartbeat. At the bottom of the building, he heard people scream and yell as they watched the girl dangling from the roof.

"Help me!" Rae screamed, flailing her legs in fear as she looked down at the ground. She couldn't believe she had wanted to jump off such a tremendous height. Reaching her second hand up, she held into the hand that saved her with both hands. "Don't let go!"

"Hang on." Celian urged, groaning. His left arm, the one which she gripped rather strongly was starting to hurt from supporting her whole weight. Slowly, he pulled her up, the two of them gasping for air as soon as he pulled her off the ledge and dropped her gently on the roof.

"Are you okay?" Celian murmured when he felt less agitated. He knelt before the grill who was crouched on her knees and shivering.

Rae gasped again as she looked up at Celian. His face was so close to her and she felt her cheeks burn in embarrassment. She had tried to commit suicide and the hot man that knelt before her had been her saviour.

Her eyes roved over his face and she noticed how blue his eyes were. They reminded her of the deep blue sea that threatened to engulf and swallow her whole. His lips looked pink and soft

His breathing fell over her cheeks in warm waves and she shuddered in delight. She had never seen a man much more beautiful close-up. When she was younger, her mother would read her stories of Prince charming. Men who showed up at the exact time the princess needed saving. At that moment, looking up at the stranger's face, she felt particularly like a princess.

"I'm okay." She breathed, feeling a bit stupid for wanting to jump off a building. What had she been thinking?! That it was going to be an easy sweet ride down? Her eyes squinted and she burst into tears. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I just wanted it to all end."

Celian, relieved that she was okay and unhurt, gathered her into his arms, patting her on the back consolingly. "It's okay. Just calm down okay? You're fine now. I promise."

His words soothed her and she buried her face deeper into his chest. Her life hadn't always been easy. But it had been bearable until things worsened.

"My mom." She croaked after a few minutes of crying. "She...she has leukaemia."

"I'm sorry about that," Celian murmured, pulling away so he could see her face. Her cheeks were stained with tears.

Rae nodded. "Yeah... It's been three years now. And so hard. The money, surviving... It has been so f*****g hard..." She trailed. "I just thought I wouldn't have to endure it anymore if I was gone."

"Look at me." Celian urged, tipping her jaw up so he could look into her startling green eyes. "Rae Wesley, Going,... Dying won't fix your mom's condition or add more money to your account. Instead of escaping, think about how you can solve your problems instead. You're strong,"

She chuckled dryly at his words and he smiled, swiping her black curls away from her face.

"Beautiful and totally capable of following your passions. You can make things better for yourself Rae Wesley."

"Wow." She sighed. "That was motivational."

Celian gave her a playful grin that made her insides melt. He really was her prince charming. She thought as he rose to his feet and helped her stand up. She felt quite relieved. His words rang in the back of her mind, giving her the strength to squash her desire to die. She would live. And she would find a way to make things better for herself.

"Thank you...Mr-"

"Celian." He stated, leading her towards the elevator. "And don't mention it."

A few minutes later she found herself outside the condo staring up at the man who had saved her life with so much gratitude bursting from her. His blue eyes watched in amusement when she thanked him profusely.

"It's all good," Celian stated. "I'll be seeing you around Rae Wesley. I have a feeling you'll do great things."

And with that, he blended through the crowd that had surrounded them.

***

Stepping into his building, Celian dragged himself to the elevator, feeling quite rejuvenated from meeting Rae. He had been scared out of his wits when she had fallen off the roof.

He couldn't blame her. She looked like she was going through a lot of crazy things.

"And I thought my life was horrid." He chuckled and took a deep breath. Talking to Rae had made his awful day better and he felt quite ready to go back to work.

The elevator doors pinged open and when he stepped back into the penthouse, he found Joanne sitting on the couch in the living room, the twin babies lying in her arms.

She smiled sweetly at him and his eyes darted away from her innocent face knowing that soon they would argue. Something they were both so vigorously good at.

"You're back. Guess who I just saw on the news?" She asked and Celian grunted, approaching her.

"I'll play your games later Joanne. I'm going to work." He announced and squatted to play with his babies.

The night Joanne had birthed them had been the longest night of his life. For seven hours, he ran through the hospital, buying drips, gloves, medications, anaesthetics and all the f*****g stuff they needed for her delivery. He heard her screams, loud and piercing and it jolted him to the very bone. Even now, staring at his one-year-old daughter and son, Celian wondered how she had ever survived an ordeal like that.

His son, Dylan reached for his right hand and bit on it. He was in the biting stage where he bit everything he saw and touched. Chuckling, Celian pulled his hand away.

"No Dylan. Don't do that."

His sister Eliana babbled her father's words. "No." and giggled when Celian made a face at her.

"Naughty." He teased, stroking the twins on the head. If not for their gender difference, they looked the same. A black tuft of hair on their head and amber eyes that reminded him so much of Joanne.

Glancing up briefly at her, he saw her looking at him already. Her eyes were sad and vulnerable. An invisible knife struck at his chest and he withdrew from them, stepping away awkwardly and walking to his room.

Joanne watched her husband leave and tried to cool her boiling emotions, cursing herself for panting eagerly for his attention. When he had held on to the twins, she felt jealous. The only time her husband had ever held her so dearly had been on the night of their wedding.

Oh, he had been amazing. She sighed needily. Two years without his touch, his caresses, his kisses, Joanne was certain she would go mad soon enough. She eyed the TV where she had just seen the news of her husband saving a girl's life.

"How is he so good to other women out there but not to me?" She hissed, leaning into the sofa, feeling all the more lonely with each passing minute.

****

Dev's Group of companies stood tall and proud in the heart of New York. For almost a century, they had led the business sector of alcohol production and remained number one in America.

To anyone out there, it must have seemed like Celian was blessed to be born into a generation of great wealth. But Celian knew better.

With a grim look on his face, he swerved his car into the car park and stepped out. Dressed immaculately in a black suit, his black hair was combed to the back in an aristocratic manner giving all and every one the impression that he was sophisticated.

Every day of his life, Celian had worked hard to prove to everyone watching that he was different from his shameless father and all the other generations before him. The Devereux family had a reputation for breeding wild uncontrollable men with insatiable s****l appetites and while he may have been able to exercise control over his desires, Celian had to admit that his s****l appetite was f*****g humongous.

"Good afternoon sir." The security posted at the entrance of the security greeted and Celian tipped his head to acknowledge him and slipped through the doors.

Giving a nod to the receptionist, he strutted, tall and proud, into his private elevator. Stepping out on the last floor, he found his Secretary, Fiona grinning at him from behind her counter.

"Lord she's beautiful." He breathed as he approached.

His secretary had the loveliest blonde hair he had seen, her eyes were a startling blue and her lips were so full, they had the words 'f**k me' written across them. She was dressed in a short black seductive dress. It had a low sweetheart that propped up her honey-coloured breasts and Celian felt his mouth water.

His wife's face drifted temporarily in his mind and he pushed it away. f**k what Joanne thought. He was a man in his f*****g prime and he wasn't about to go on a bout of celibacy because of her. She ought to be happy that he wasn't going around the city, shagging everything in a skirt.

"Hi, Celian." Fiona drawled rising to her feet.

He hummed, his eyes taking in every inch of her greedily. Feeling his pants tighten with need, he reached for her jaw, stroking it softly.

"I've told you, Fiona," he murmured, lowering his lips to her mouth and taking in her sugary perfumed scent. His lips curled in disgust at the smell and he pulled away. "It's Mr Devereux when we're at work."

She giggled childishly then, sticking her tongue out of her mouth briefly. "Yes sir."

Damn, all the naughty things he wanted that tongue to do to him. Eager for a release, he reached for her hands and pulled her into his office.

He shoved her against a wall and would've continued if a series of groans and moans hadn't made him stop. Glancing behind him, Celian watched in horror as his father, butt naked, pounded fiercely into a woman on his darned office desk.

"What the hell?!"