13. Delilah
Confusion hadme stumbling back from him, fresh pain ricocheting around in my chest as I got to my feet and straightened my dress. “You didn’t want to protect me from anything. It wasn’t even about me. Your hatred for my dad and blocking him from the hotel shares were all you cared about.”
Nash followed me, tucking himself back into his slacks, a tired exhale leaving him. “Yes, I wanted to stop him from touching those shares, but only because he kept sabotaging everything. Since Howard died, it’s as if Joseph was on a mission to destroy as much as he could as quickly as possible. If I didn’t stop him, there wouldn’t have been anything left for you in no time.”
Turning to glare out at the waves, I absorbed what he’d said. Nash stepped behind me, pressing a kiss to the back of my head. “The hotel was always important to you. Anyone who knows you understands that. I refused to let him steal what should have been rightfully yours.”
Emotion choked me, and my shoulders slumped forward. My next breath shuddered out of me, and I tried to push back the hurt of his betrayal. I knew he’d done what was needed to save the hotel. To keep my father from destroying everything. So many people relied on the Royal Phoenix for their livelihood. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I was part of the reason that was taken away from all of our employees—people I considered family.
His hands gripped my arms with a desperation I couldn’t help but question, sure that I was looking for a sign that he wasn’t the villain I now knew him to be. “Come back to the house with me. I want to show you something.”
“Can we just not for a minute?” I muttered, keeping my gaze on the horizon. “I want to pretend for a little while.”
A choked sound reached my ears. “I’m sorry.”
A sad smile lifted my lips. “You said that already.”
“There’s so much I need to make you understand. If you let me explain, I can fix everything I’ve broken.” His arms contracted around me, tight enough to make me squeak, jolting me enough to remember the baby. “The same day Howard’s will was read, I had Samuel start drafting a contract to gift you half of the hotel. It’s what should have been yours all along.”
“That was kind of you,” I murmured. “And while I appreciate the sentiment, thanks but no thanks.”
Nash spun me around so fast, the world tilted for a moment. He grabbed my hips when I swayed, steadying me. “What do you mean, thanks but no thanks?” he demanded. “That’s your half of the hotel. I’m making sure you get what belongs to you. Lily, you worked your ass off. No one deserves it more than you.”
I shrugged. “Honestly? I couldn’t care one way or the other. It hurt when you betrayed me, but it opened my eyes to a few things. All I wanted was to be where I was needed. Where I thought I was wanted. You more than proved that wasn’t the case. Keep the hotel shares. I don’t want or need them. But I would like to return to work. So, if you’re okay with Winston reinstating me as assistant manager, I would like my job back.”
His face lost all color, but his mouth opened and closed for a moment. “Fuck this noise. The shares are yours, regardless. I already signed them over to you.”
“Oh-kay.” I drew out the word, not sure what more he expected. “Then I’ll just have Sam sign them back over to you.”
“No, you will not!”
“Fine. I’ll give them to Winston,” I decided with a nod. “He deserves them more than anyone. Yes, I like that idea a lot.”
Nash made a noise that didn’t sound wholly human. “You’re maddening. Do you know that? I don’t know whether to shake you or kiss you right now.”
“That sounds more like a you problem. Good luck with that.” I stepped away from him, starting back along the path that led to the cottage. “I’m not sure how you got here, but you’re a big boy. You can find your way back to whatever boat or helicopter you rode in on.”
I got fourteen steps before he caught hold of my arm. Biting my lips together, I looked up at him curiously.
“Are you fucking with me, Lily?”
Snorting out a laugh, I leaned into him. “Winston called and told me everything, Nash. Did you think he would just give up my location to you without warning me? Plus, this is a private island. I heard the helicopter land almost an hour ago. Can I just say, it took you freaking long enough to figure out where I was. Did you search the entire house before checking the beach?”
With a playful growl, he grabbed my ass and lifted me off my feet. Wrapping my legs around his waist, I could feel his come coating my inner thighs. It was a sticky mess, but I’d always liked feeling it on my skin after he fucked my brains out.
“You’re taking the shares,” he grumbled as he carried me toward the cottage.
“I’ll think about it.”
“And you’re coming back to work as an assistant manager.”
“That’s a given. I missed my job. And Winston. And Sam and Stef.” His chest vibrated with the displeased sounds he made that I pretended not to hear. “I think perhaps I am a workaholic. Vacations sound fun, but they are actually very boring.”
“That’s because you didn’t have me here to keep you occupied, baby.” He kissed up and down my neck. “We will go somewhere special for our honeymoon. And I’ll show you how nice a real vacation can be.”
I leaned back in his hold enough to see his face better. “Oh, now you want to marry me, but you couldn’t be bothered to make me your wife two days ago when it mattered?”
Groaning, he kept walking. “I don’t like this game you’re playing. Please tell me you forgive me. I fucked up, and I’m so sorry, Lily.”
Kissing the tip of his nose, I grinned down at him. “I forgive you. But only because you were so sad when you dropped to your knees in front of Winston.”
“He really did tell you everything.”
“Uh-huh. And then Sam sent me the video he took of the whole thing,” I admitted. “For future reference, I like you on your knees. A lot. Like a lot, a lot.”
“Yeah, baby? As soon as I get you inside, I’ll drop to my knees again,” he promised.
I rolled my eyes. “Maybe I’ll keep you there. It’s how you liked Nicole, wasn’t it?”
He stopped in his tracks, his throat bobbing. “She meant nothing. You have to understand that. Less than nothing.”
Another spike of jealousy hit me, dampening my happy glow from only moments before. I hated that woman so much. “How long were you with her?”
“Off and on for a few weeks,” he admitted, his eyes glued to my face. “We weren’t exclusive. She wasn’t even the last woman I had sex with before I returned to Vegas for good.”
For some reason, that made me feel better. Thinking of him having sex with Nicole before coming home to me made my skin crawl. But I still needed to know…
“Were we always exclusive?”
“Fucking right, we were. Always. From the moment I saw you, there was no one else. I fell in love with you that day, Lily.”
“And you couldn’t tell me before?” I pouted, determinedly pushing Nicole from my thoughts. She didn’t get to mess up any more of my life, damn it.
Chagrin darkened his handsome face. “I was worried Joseph would find a way to use what I felt for you against us. Samuel kept reassuring me there were no loopholes your father could exploit to contest the will, but I didn’t want to take any chances.”
“But you had no issues making me tell you how I felt every time you were inside me,” I reminded.
“Hearing you say you love me is addictive as hell, sweetheart. I couldn’t give that up, even under threat of death. I’m going to make it up to you, though.”
“How?”
“For every I love you that you so beautifully and generously gave me, I will return them tenfold.”
“Starting when?”
“Right now.”