Parker leaned back, fingers idly tapping against his glass as Tessa scrolled through the details on the tablet, her voice smooth as she listed every custom feature on his new toys.
After reaching an understanding, Parker made the call. Thanks to Tessa's help, he'd placed an order—custom cars, four motorbikes, all fine-tuned to his specs, and, of course, something else he conveniently forgot to mention to her.
So, while Tessa and the maids had been off training, his orders had been in motion, moving through production, getting prepped.
And now, here they were.
Tessa had found all the necessary details in the lounge and was currently explaining everything to him—each and every little customization—while their lovely third-wheel, Atalanta, was on her phone, grinning at something stupid, completely oblivious to the absolute obscene amount of money being spent right under her nose.
Tessa smiled to herself. Atalanta, the very definition of a carefree but fearsome warrior. Innocent, cute, sometimes even naïve, but when it came down to it? Dangerous like a goddamn apex predator. She was a beast. The kind that would smile while ripping someone in half.
She turned to Parker, her gaze steady. "So? If it's all fine, we can go check out what you ordered, finalize the payment, and wrap everything up."
Parker met her eyes and smiled. Instead of answering, he reached out, took her hand, and pulled her in—slowly, deliberately. His fingers skimmed against her palm, warm and firm, before settling at her waist.
And then he kissed her.
Soft at first, like a tease, just barely brushing against her lips, before pressing in deeper, stealing a slow, lingering moment. His hand slid up, cupping the back of her neck, tilting her just enough to make her shiver—yeah, he felt that. She barely had a second to react before he dipped in, catching her lips in a slow, lingering kiss. His fingers traced along her wrist, featherlight, his touch precise.
Tessa let out the softest sigh, leaning into it, melting against him as her hand clutched at his arm, her pulse just a little unsteady.
And when he finally pulled back, just a breath apart, his thumb traced the edge of her jaw.
Tessa hadn't told him what her deal was—what she had to do to stay with him. She was shut tight about it, locked down, and he didn't push. Not now.
Breaking the kiss, he ruffled her hair, watching as she huffed at the gesture but didn't actually pull away.
Tessa blinked up at him, lips slightly parted, before she exhaled a laugh and leaned in, resting her forehead against his cheek. "I love you." Parker smiled.
It wasn't hesitant or shy—just honest, like a fact she'd finally decided to say out loud. And when she pulled back, her eyes searched his like she wanted to see something deeper. "I feel so lucky I met you, Parker. Like… what were the odds, you know?"
Parker exhaled, his fingers tracing the back of her hand before he murmured, "I love you too, Tess." His voice was soft, real, but then he pulled back just slightly, tilting his head at her. "But let's get one thing straight—this wasn't luck."
Tessa blinked. "Oh, so you planned this? You just woke up one day and thought, 'Hey, let me fuck around and go at Blacktower Hotel and run into this absolute goddess of a woman'?"
Parker huffed out a laugh, shaking his head. "No, but you're thinking too small. You ever hear of 'geop'?"
She stared at him. "If I say yes, will you drop whatever nerdy shit you're about to hit me with?"
"Absolutely not." His thumb brushed circles against her wrist as he continued. "Okay, so think of time like… layers, right? In Buddhist thought, they have this concept of a 'kalpa'—which is basically a unit of time so fucking long, it makes human history look like a two-minute YouTube ad. Picture some celestial dude with a silk cloth, and once every hundred years, he brushes it against a mountain. By the time that wears the whole thing down? That's one kalpa."
Tessa's nose scrunched. "So, time is just a slow-ass exfoliation process?"
Parker smirked. "Kinda. But the point is, existence isn't just a straight line. It's cycles—actions stacking on actions, lifetimes feeding into lifetimes. You and me? We weren't some random-ass coincidence. This?—he gestured between them—"was always gonna happen. Because of everything before it."
She pursed her lips. "So, you're telling me I've been suffering through reincarnations just to end up right here, dealing with your philosophical ass?"
"Basically." He grinned. "And not just that. There's also this thing called 'uji'—it's a Zen concept that time and existence are the same thing. Meaning every moment is an intersection of past, present, and future. So us being here, ? It's not just now. It's layers of choices, history, maybe even some weird divine joke. But it was never random."
Tessa's eyes narrowed. "Parker, I swear to god, if you're about to tell me you were also some kind of ancient monk in one of your past lives—"
"Nah, that'd be boring as hell." He let his fingers slide through hers, his voice lowering. "But I have lived through things that don't make sense in just some hundreds of lifetimes for some. Shit that shouldn't be real. And if I tried to explain it all to you, you'd probably think I was insane."
She watched him carefully now, her playful irritation fading just slightly. "Try me."
Parker's gaze softened, but he didn't push further. "Let's just say, when I tell you this wasn't luck, I mean it. There's another idea—'kalachakra,' the wheel of time. It's the belief that time moves in cycles, that events repeat, not exactly the same, but close enough that they feel like echoes. And sometimes, those cycles pull the same people back to each other. So maybe this isn't even the first time we've met. Maybe we've been here before, in different versions, finding each other over and over again. Perhaps you were some waitress in one in and we closed paths."
Tessa stared at him for a long moment, then exhaled dramatically. "Great. So I'm stuck with you for eternity. Love that for me."
Parker chuckled, reaching up to ruffle her hair. "Damn right you are."
She groaned, slumping against him in exaggerated defeat before murmuring against his chest, "I was just trying to say something cute. And now I have an existential crisis. I hope you're proud of yourself."
He smirked, pressing a slow kiss to her forehead before whispering, "Always."