Chapter 13
13
Nick
“ T hanks for meeting me,” I say in a deep voice.
“Come in. Please, sit down.”
Kristie enters a private suite at Club Duality, and is it my imagination, or is the gorgeous blonde even more beautiful than before?
She’s dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt, but the t-shirt highlights her big breasts while the denim hugs those wide hips.
My fingers itch to stroke her curves, but I know this isn’t time.
Kristie’s just as likely to bite my head off as she is to listen to me with an open mind.
But I deserve her ill-humor because I transformed into a fucking caveman the moment I learned of my son.
I forced her to bring Riley to me, and my heart was swept away by the sight of the doting blonde cuddling a baby in her arms. Those two belong to me, and now it’s time to clear the air.
But my stepsister’s hesitant as she takes a seat on the couch, and for good reason too.
“Thanks for inviting me,” Kristie says in a wooden voice.
“I gather this is about Riley? He’s safe at home right now with a babysitter.”
Internally, I flinch because my stepsister’s obviously ill at ease and suspicious to boot.
I don’t blame her because this is a case of David versus Goliath.
She’s David, scrappy and small, while I’m Goliath with all the might of my riches behind me.
She must feel intimidated, yet Kristie squares her shoulders and straightens her spine, the gesture like a lance to my heart.
I adore her for her determination to protect our son, and know that this is the woman for me.
But first, Kristie has to realize that, and I take a deep breath to begin the conversation.
“So I want what’s best for our son, and I’m sure you do too,” I begin.
“Of course,” Kristie says in a clipped tone.
“Tell me something I don’t know.”
I wince again because we’ve been antagonists for so long that I’m not sure we can break out of the habit.
But I will myself to stay calm while looking into her blue eyes.
“The thing is that I haven’t been fair to you,” I say in a low tone.
“I haven’t been fair to us .”
Kristie tilts her chin at me.
“What do you mean?”
I pause for a moment.
“You’ve always said that nothing happened between you and Steve. Over the years, you’ve never deviated from that line.”
“Because it’s not a line!” she protests hotly, two spots of color burning on her cheeks.
“It’s the truth!”
I nod.
“And that’s what Steve always said too – that I was jumping to conclusions, and that I often saw the worst when it was nothing but coincidence.”
Kristie shakes her head, her shoulders slumping.
“Yes, and that’s what I’ve maintained for years,” she grits out.
“But where is this going? I don’t understand what this has to do with Riley.”
I take a deep breath.
“It has to do with Riley because Steve passed last week. I got a call that he had a heart attack, and I flew to Austin immediately. I’m sorry I’ve been out of contact, but it’s because our father died.”
Kristie gasps, looking up quickly.
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry! When is the funeral? Is Milly okay?”
“She’s fine,” I say in a low tone.
“Steve hasn’t been well for the last year or two, and in fact, when we were at the auction, Steve was suffering from chest pains. Did you know?”
Kristie is astonished and she shakes her head.
“No, I had no idea,” she says in a low voice.
“I didn’t even know he was at the auction.”
“Right, because he had a mini-heart attack while we were in the bidding booth,” I say.
“The paramedics were called and he was transported straight from the club to the hospital. Then, he flew home to Austin, but he was already incredibly frail by then, and our father passed about a week ago.”
Kristie’s face is now ghostly white.
“Oh my god,” she gasps.
“I’m so sorry. Of course, I’ll come back for the funeral.”
I hold up a hand.
“No, there’s no need because there was no funeral. Steve was cremated, and his last will was read at his lawyer’s office.”
Kristie stares at me, blue eyes hurt.
“You guys didn’t contact me?”
I shake my head.
“No, because it’s not what my father wanted. He wanted something quick and easy, with only me and Mills there. You were never adopted, Kris, even if he treated you like a daughter. But Steve remembered you, Kristie, and spoke through his will.”
“I don’t want anything from him,” my stepsister immediately says.
“Nothing at all. Riley and I don’t need anything from Steve Bradley. In fact, Steve didn’t even know about Riley.”
“He didn’t,” I confirm, my blue eyes grave.
“But Steve was aware of the beef between you and me. In his will, he said that he knew that we were in love, and that somehow, he’d come between us. He reiterated that there’s never been anything between you and him, and he stated that he only dragged me to Vegas because somehow, he knew that you were going to be sold. The whole trip was carefully orchestrated so that we would meet again.”
Kristie stares at me.
“But how did he know I was being auctioned?”
I shake my head, my gaze serious.
“Again, I don’t know, but Steve was a successful surgeon before he retired, and rich men always have a way. Maybe it was through word of mouth, or maybe he was recruited to the club. I don’t know, and I don’t think we’ll ever know. But in his will, Steve said it was his dying wish for us to be reunited as a family. In wealth, health, and romance.”
Kristie shoots me a skeptical look.
“Really? Your father put that in his will?” she asks.
“Okay, maybe not in those words exactly, but you understand what I’m saying,” I say in a rough voice.
Now, the pedal’s met the metal, and I feel like I need Kristie to understand how much she means to me.
How much I adore this woman, and how we’ve gone astray over the years due to unfortunate circumstances, as well as random chance and my own blindness.
If only I could have been the better man, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.
It I hadn’t been so fucking impatient and determined to bend her to my will, then maybe we could have been a family that much sooner.
“So what are you saying?” my stepsister asks, her pretty features pulled into a confused expression.
“I don’t understand, Nick.”
I look her full in the eyes.
“What I mean is that we’re meant to be together as a family,” I say in a rough voice.
“You, me, and Riley. There’s been enough misunderstanding over the years to overflow a fucking landfill, and I’ve had enough. I want us to be a family.”
But Kristie’s not sold.
“Because of your dad?” she asks in a skeptical tone.
“Steve’s passing made you realize this?”
“Yes, and because I’ve been thinking of you, and us, non-stop for years now,” I rasp in a harsh tone.
“You’re in my blood, Kristie. I’ve been fucking blind, and I wish I could change the past. Hell, I’ve been a fucking idiot for years, and I wish I could turn back the clock, but I can’t. So I’m asking you now, Kris: will you let me be a father to Riley? A lover to you? A husband even?”
The beautiful blonde stares at me, her mouth dropping open.
“ What ?”
I let out a harsh laugh.
“Okay, that’s not the reply that most men hope to get in response to a proposal. But I mean it, Kris. I’m in love with you, and I have been for years now. Since you were a teen, and I saw you at that party when you were still underage. Something shifted in the air, and it’s been years since that party, but I’ve never stopped loving you. In fact, I think love would be an understatement. Obsessed would be a better descriptor.”
“You’re obsessed with me,” Kristie says in a trembling voice, her cheeks flushed and eyes suspiciously shiny.
“And you have been since I was seventeen.”
“Yes,” I acknowledge.
“I regret the past, and unfortunately, I can’t go back and change things. But what I can do is to make amends, and the best way for me to do that is to take you as my wife. I want you by my side, Kris. I want us to spend our days and nights together, with our son loved by both parents. I want more children too,” I add in a rough tone.
“If you’re on board, of course.”
Her lips tremble, that pout rosy and lush.
“I’m not sure about all this,” she says in a teary voice.
“This is coming so fast and I haven’t had time to think. I thought we were just going to discuss a co-parenting arrangement for Riley—”
I take her hand in my own.
“I know,” I say in a low voice.
“And we can stick to that for now if you want, because I know I’ve turned the tables abruptly. But I also want you to know that I love you, Kristie Linwood, and I’ve loved you almost since the moment you stepped foot in our house. Maybe not as a lover then, but certainly as a brother, and your happiness is of the utmost importance to me. You make me want to be a better man,” I say in a rough voice.
“I love you and appreciate that about you, sweetheart, and please, just say you’ll consider my words.”
The blonde goddess stares at me, lips trembling, and to my consternation, a tear slips free and slides down her cheek.
“Sweetheart, I didn’t mean to make you cry,” I say in a low voice, squeezing her hand again.
“That wasn’t my intention.”
I don’t know what to do next.
I want nothing more than to pull Kristie into my arms before pressing tender kisses to that delectable mouth, but I’m paralyzed because so much has gone wrong between us in the past. There are so many times that we could have fixed things, but instead, we’ve spent years in no-contact, low-contact, or just plain hating each other.
What do I do next? It’s a strange position for an alpha male to be in, but that’s what the beautiful blonde does to me.
Kristie makes my heart pound as my stomach churns, and I literally feel like I might vomit waiting to hear her reply.
But my worst fears fail to materialize because instead of jerking away and spitting in my face, my stepsister does the opposite.
She throws herself into my arms, burying her face against my chest before bursting into tears.
“I love you too, Nick,” she sobs.
“I have for years and years, and I’ve never loved anyone but you. You’ve always been my obsession too, and I’ve never been able to forget you despite what I told myself. Now, we have a child, and yes, we should figure out how to be a family for Riley.”
My heart soars with joy, and to my surprise, tears spring to my eyes as I press a kiss to her blonde head.
“Thank you, baby,” I rasp.
“That’s all I need to hear right now. You’ve made me so happy, and I’m glad we’re on the same page. You are more than I deserve, sweetheart, and I love you and appreciate you.”
Then, our lips meet in a passionate kiss, and it’s me who clings to the curvy girl.
It’s me who seeks salvation in her arms because I spoke the truth: Kristie Linwood is more than I deserve, and it would be my honor to make her happy for the rest of her life, as a cherished and treasured woman.
I want to spend the rest of my days making her laugh while holding her in my arms. In fact, I never want another day without being in her presence because Kristie is, and always has been, my obsession.