Chapter 6
6
HANNAH
The Next Day
W ith every determined stride down the opulent corridor of the Infinity Voyager, my heart thrummed a reckless beat against my ribcage. I clutched Nick's key card—a small piece of plastic that felt heavier than it looked, charged with the weight of our last encounter. The anticipation of seeing him again tangled with a nest of anxiety in my stomach; his absence during dinner at the Sapphire Seas Steakhouse left too many unsaid words lingering on my tongue.
"Come on, Hannah, just grab the hairbrush and go," I murmured to myself, trying to steel my nerves. I reached Nick's door and knocked. No answer. So I slid the card into the slot. The soft click of the lock disengaging was like a starting gun for the race of emotions revving inside me.
I stepped into the room, the air still carrying the scent of his cologne mixed with the salty ocean breeze. It was a heady reminder of the man who'd managed, against all odds, to breach the walls around my heart. But he wasn't there, and the relief that I wouldn't have to face him yet clashed with an inexplicable disappointment.
"Focus, Hannah." I walked past the plush king-sized bed, adorned with crisp white linens that held imprints of our intertwined bodies from nights before. Pushing those steamy memories aside, I spotted my hairbrush on the nightstand.
As I reached out to grab it, a corner of white paper peeked out from beneath a leather-bound business folder on his desk, drawing my unwelcome curiosity. My fingers brushed against the cool surface of the paper, and I found myself yanking it out before my conscience could catch up.
"Nick Carrington, CEO" read the bold letterhead at the top, but the figures dancing beneath told a tragic tale. Losses, debts, a company on the brink of collapse—it was a stark contrast to the powerful, unflappable demeanor of the man I knew. The alpha male who commanded every room with his towering presence, who spoke in sentences as sharp and direct as the lines of his military-cut suit. And then there was a memo about his most formidable competitor offering to buy him out with a note in Nick’s handwriting saying “the writing is on the wall.”
Fuck.
"Damn it, Nick," I whispered, the paper trembling in my hands. I thought about the times he'd gone quiet, his green eyes clouded over with a storm I couldn't reach.
"Nick Carrington doesn't fail," he'd said once, his voice low and firm, the set of his jaw leaving no room for argument. Yet here it was, in black and white, the evidence of his vulnerability—a side of him he never wanted me to see.
"Nick," I sighed, dropping the damning sheet back onto the desk, resentment simmering in my chest. I tucked my hairbrush into my purse, suddenly needing to be anywhere but surrounded by the silent whispers of his secrets. I turned to leave, my mind a chaotic whirlpool of hurt and confusion, wondering if the passion that had ignited between us could withstand the wildfire of his pride and my own fears.
The foundation we were building on was now quicksand, and I wasn't sure how to pull either of us free without being sucked down into the abyss.
"Nick, where are you?" I whispered, needing him to appear and make this nightmare dissolve, explain away the numbers that threatened to tear everything apart.
The click of the door announced his arrival before I could brace myself. In strode Nick, his presence commanding even the very air I breathed. His eyes, those deep pools of green, had been my calm in any storm, but now they were the epicenter of the tempest.
"Nick—" My voice broke as our eyes met, and I saw his expression shift from calm to alarm in the span of a heartbeat.
"Hannah? What are you doing here?" His voice was a low rumble, the undercurrent of concern unmistakable even as he tried to mask it with his usual control.
“I just came to get my hairbrush.”
"Hey." He was closer now, the heat from his body igniting a flame despite the chill of my shock. "What's wrong?"
"Nick, I?—"
But words failed me. All I could do was hold out the papers, the harbinger of doubt, and let the silence speak for me.
The papers crinkled under the pressure of my grip, the damning numbers and words blurring as my hurt morphed into seething anger. For a moment, I was paralyzed by the sheer force of it, but then my voice found its way past the lump in my throat.
"Why?" I managed to choke out, glaring at Nick as he stood frozen before me. "Why didn't you trust me enough to tell me about this?"
Nick's usual stoic mask cracked, revealing an unfamiliar vulnerability that almost made me falter. His green eyes, always so full of command, now swam with regret and something else... fear?
"Damn it, Hannah, I—" He ran a hand through his brown hair, his broad shoulders tensing beneath the fabric of his shirt. He looked like a man braced for impact, yet struggling to find the right defense.
"Is this why you fired me?" I stepped closer, my heart pounding against my ribs as much from his nearness as from the turmoil inside me.
He took a step toward me, closing the gap until I could feel the heat radiating off him. His presence was overwhelming, suffocating and intoxicating all at once. His voice, when it finally broke the heavy silence, was a low growl tinged with desperation.
"It’s more than that, Hannah. My business was falling apart while at the same time I was falling in love with you. And I couldn't bear the thought of you seeing me fail."
"Fail?" The word triggered a laugh, bitter and sharp. "Nick Carrington, the unshakeable alpha male, afraid of failure? Afraid of appearing weak to me?"
"Damn straight!" His admission cut through the air, fierce and unguarded. "I'm not just some CEO or former military guy when I'm with you. You see through the bullshit, and it scares the hell out of me."
His confession slammed into me, knocking the wind from my lungs. I wanted to rage at him, to push him away and protect the tattered remnants of my pride, but the sincerity in his voice pinned me in place.
I also just realized that he also said he was falling in love with me…
"Scared or not, you should have trusted me," I said, my words trembling not only with residual anger but with the effort of holding back the rush of emotions threatening to sweep me away.
"Trust?" He echoed, and the look in his eyes shifted, hardened into something more intense. "You think I don't trust you?"
"Actions speak louder than words, Nick." My own were a whisper now, barely audible over the thundering of my heart.
"Then let me show you," he murmured, stepping closer still, until I could feel his breath on my skin, smell the faint scent of his cologne mixed with the sea air. "Let me show you how much I trust you, how much I need you."
Every instinct screamed at me to push him away, to guard my wounded heart, but the yearning I saw reflected in his eyes mirrored my own desires. Desires I'd tried to deny but which now surged to the surface, undeniable and urgent.
"Show me," I whispered back, the distance between us disappearing as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into the storm of passion that had been brewing beneath the facade of our animosity.
"Look at me, Hannah," he said, his voice dropping to that familiar commanding rumble, yet tinged with something new—a vulnerability I had never heard from him. It disarmed me, made it impossible to look away.
My pulse thrummed in my ears as I searched his face, studying the weariness that pulled at the corners of his eyes, the subtle tension in his jaw. He was always so controlled, so impenetrable. But now, this man—this infuriatingly complex man—stood before me, stripped of the armor I hadn't even realized he wore.
"Damn you, Nick," I whispered, more to myself than to him. The words were meant as a reprimand, but they came out sounding like a plea.
He took a step closer, and the room seemed to shrink, the space between us charged with the electric buzz of our proximity. "I've been fighting battles on all sides, Hannah. Trying to save what I've spent years building." His voice broke, just slightly, and it sent a shiver down my spine. "But none of that matters if I lose you."
The air hitched in my throat, his words landing like blows against the last vestiges of my defenses. "You should have told me," I managed, though it felt as though I was speaking through a haze of emotion. “And not just about the company, but about your feelings for me.”
"I know." He reached for me, his large hands warm and steady as they cupped my face. "I know, and I'm sorry. More sorry than I can express. I've been a fool."
"Nick..." I hesitated, caught between the urge to rail against him and the longing to close the distance, to claim the kiss that lingered unspoken between us.
"Listen to me," he implored, his thumbs gently tracing the line of my jaw. "I love you, Hannah. I've loved you since the moment I met you. I didn't want you to see me fall apart, to see the failure behind the fa?ade."
The world seemed to pause, my breath catching in my chest. Love? The word echoed in my mind, a concept so foreign in the context of us—the tempestuous dance we'd been engaged in since our paths first crossed in ways that went beyond mere physical attraction.
"Nick, I—" Words failed me as the implications of his confession washed over me.
"Let me fight for you, Hannah. Let me fight for us." His plea was raw, stripped of any pretense, and it resonated within me, touching something primal and profound.
In that moment, as I stood there, cocooned in the strength of his embrace, the remnants of my anger dissolved into the heat that radiated from his body. And I knew, no matter how hard I tried to resist, my heart had already made its choice.
"Say something, please." He took another step, closing the little space left between us. His presence was all-encompassing, a gravitational pull that I no longer had the strength or desire to resist.
"Damn you," I murmured, not entirely sure whether it was a curse or an endearment. The tension that had been a sharp edge between us began to dissolve, replaced by a magnetic pull that drew us inexorably closer.
"Is that a good 'damn you' or a bad one?" A hint of his usual self-assurance surfaced in his tone, but it was laced with an earnest yearning that made my heart skip a beat.
"Does it matter?" I teased back, a smile tugging at the corners of my lips despite the gravity of our conversation. The air seemed to thicken with something sweet and spicy, a blend of relief, desire, and understanding that we both breathed in.
"Only if it means you're staying," he said, his voice dropping lower, a sensual rumble that resonated within me.
"Stay?" I echoed, the word hanging between us like a promise waiting to be claimed.
"Stay," he affirmed, leaving no room for doubt. And in that word, I heard the silent plea for trust, for a chance, for us.
"Okay." It was a whisper, drenched in the weight of everything unsaid, every touch, every fiery glance that had passed between us.
"Okay?" His brows knitted together, as if he couldn't quite believe it.
"Every time I argue, every time I push back, it's because I care, damn it. Because I can't stand the thought of not being part of your world, no matter how much it clashes with mine." My own admission hung heavy in the air, a stark confession of the depth of my feelings for him.
Nick's breathing hitched, and he closed the distance between us in two long strides. Before I knew what was happening, his arms were around me, his embrace engulfing me in the scent of his skin, a mix of cologne and something uniquely Nick. His touch was gentle, yet there was a possessiveness in his hold that sent a thrill racing down my spine.
"God, Hannah," he breathed against my hair, the vibration of his voice sending shivers across my skin. "You have no idea how much I've wanted to do this, to hold you and never let go."
The intensity of the moment consumed us, igniting a fire that had been quietly smoldering, waiting for a spark.
"Nick," I whispered, tilting my face up to meet his gaze, lost in the emerald depths that promised so much more than words could say. "I want this—I want you."
Nick's hands traced the curve of my waist, pulling me closer until I was pressed against the hard planes of his chest. The heat from his body seeped into mine, kindling a fire that had been stoked by every heated glance and sharp word we had ever exchanged. Breathless from our kisses, I marveled at how natural it felt to be in his arms, as if my body recognized its counterpart.
"God, Hannah," he groaned, his lips finding the sensitive skin of my neck. His mouth was hot against me, each kiss sending jolts of desire straight to my core.
"Nick," I breathed out, tangling my fingers in the soft brown hair at the nape of his neck, urging him on. My skin tingled with anticipation, every touch amplified by the yearning that had built between us for so long.
"Tell me you feel it too," I whispered, seeking affirmation in the turbulent sea of green that was his gaze.
"More than I've ever felt anything," Nick replied, his voice low and fervent. He captured my lips again, sealing his vow, the passion in his kiss leaving no room for question.
Nick picked me up and carried me over to the bed and gently laid me down.
"You feel so damn good," Nick groaned between kisses.
I moaned into his mouth in agreement, biting my lip to stifle the sound. I tasted salt and desire on his lips as I kissed him back with gusto. Nick's tongue danced with mine as they fought for dominance while also giving in to the other's touches. He broke our kiss to nibble on my neck and earlobe before speaking breathlessly, "I need you."
His words sent a shiver down my backbone as he whispered them into my ear, sending a wave of goosebumps along her skin.
"I need you too," I replied, opening my eyes to look him in the eye.
He responded by kissing me passionately on the lips as if we both needed air and each other's touch to survive. His hands roamed my body, tracing the curves of my waist and hips, while mine fisted themselves in his shirt, desperate to get closer to him.
With a growl, Nick's hand stroked down my thigh and up my inner thigh, leaving goosebumps in its wake. "God, you feel so soft," he said hoarsely as his fingers grazed the silk of my underwear.
"Nick," I moaned, arching into his touch. His touch sent fireworks to shoot through me as my body ached for more of him.
With a growl of approval, Nick slid his fingers under the fabric of my panties and gently parted my folds. His thumb found my throbbing clit and circled it, eliciting a moan from deep within me.
"Feels like you want this as much as I do," he said smugly before dipping a single digit inside me.
"Oh God, Nick," I moaned, arching against his touch. "More."
Nick obliged by adding another finger, setting a slow but steady pace that had me on the brink of orgasm in no time. He continued to tease me with his fingers while his free hand reached up to unbutton my blouse, exposing my bra-clad chest to his hungry eyes.
"You're so damn beautiful," he said, his voice hoarse with desire.
"You're not so bad yourself," I managed to say between gasps. His touch was driving me wild, and I needed more.
Nick smiled at my response before leaning down to lace his lips along my collarbone, sending shivers of pleasure down my spine. His mouth trailed lower and lower until he reached my breasts, where he gave each nipple a teasing lick before sucking it into his mouth, causing me to nearly fly off the bed.
"Nick, don't stop," I panted out as he lavished attention on my other breast, his fingers still moving inside me in a delicious rhythm.
He continued alternating between suckling and licking my nipples while his fingers plundered me, sending me higher and higher toward the edge of ecstasy. "I aim to please," he said, winking at me before going back to his ministrations.
"God, Nick, I'm close," I panted out as the pleasure built within me like a dam about to burst.
"That's it, baby, give it to me," he said, increasing his pace and sucking on my nipple harder.
With a cry of his name, I shattered apart in his arms, my body convulsing around his fingers. Nick continued to stroke me through my climax before removing his fingers and leaning down to claim my lips in a searing kiss.
But he wasn’t done.
“Turn over onto your stomach,” he commanded. And I obliged happily.
Nick spread my legs apart, exposing me completely to his lustful gaze. “You’re so wet for me,” he growled, spreading my slickness over my folds, teasing my pussy and my asshole.
I could only mewl in response, too far gone in pleasure to form coherent words. Nick chuckled darkly before licking my core. I cried out, my head buried in the pillow in ecstasy as he lapped at me like a man starved for water.
He continued his torturous pace, alternating between sucking on my clit and dipping his tongue inside me before he pulled away with a snap of his lips.
“Damn you’re delicious,” he groaned before kissing his way up my spine, leaving goosebumps in his wake until he reached my earlobe. His hot breath tickled my sensitive skin as he said those three words that sent shivers down my spine:
“I’m going in.”
Without waiting for a response, Nick slowly pushed himself inside me, filling me up completely. I moaned as he stretched me and hit all the right spots within me.
“Fuck, you feel so good,” he groaned. “You’re so tight.”
“N-Nick,” I panted out, raising my ass and arching my back to meet his thrusts. He obliged, picking up the pace until we were both moaning and panting like animals in heat. Our bodies slapped together in a delicious rhythm that only served to stoke the flames of our desire higher.
"You feel so damn good," he growled into my ear, sending shivers down my spine. His words sent me over the edge again, my second orgasm crashing over me like a tidal wave as I screamed his name at the top of my lungs and he emptied his cock inside me.
Nick grunted once more before stilling inside me, both of us gasping for breath as our heartbeats returned to normal. He collapsed onto his side, pulling me close to him so our chests were flush against each other.
"God damn," he breathed out, his chest heaving with exertion.
"You're telling me," I panted out, my heart still racing in my chest.
We lay there for a moment, catching our breaths and basking in the afterglow of our passionate encounter. Nick lazily stroked my hair, his fingers tangling in my long locks as we both tried to regain our bearings.
"I love you," I blurted out, unable to hold it in any longer.
Nick froze for a moment before responding, "I love you too."
That was all it took for the dam to break. The walls that had kept us apart crumbled to dust as we both confessed our feelings for one another, pouring out our hearts like we’d been holding back for years.
As we laid there, entangled in each other's arms, I knew that no matter what happened tomorrow, tonight had been worth it.