Chapter 19 #2
She looked down at his chest, feeling her face grow hot. Did she just tell him that she didn’t mind rubbing against his dick?
Nathan chuckled, and he pulled her head so she could look at him.
“Well, I certainly don’t mind you touching me there, but I want to make sure you’re on board with anything we do.”
“I don’t know what I want to do,” she admitted softly.
“I don’t even know if I’ll ever be ready.
You shouldn’t be burdened with that. It’s not fair to make you wait indefinitely.
We shouldn’t be together, not that we are…
officially. I don’t even know what this is.
Making out with the mysterious man who keeps randomly appearing in your life? ”
He smiled, but it seemed sad.
“We can be whatever you want us to be. I can’t promise how much time we’ll have, or if it will be a happily ever after. I can only give you now.”
Hearing that made Alex’s heart ache. No matter what, Nathan had the Conglomerate after him.
Even if he was successful, what was next?
Would he be able to get the organization to back down from trying to kill him?
The odds were slim that it would ever happen.
He was right, and it hurt. But she could have this time with him.
She wrapped her arms around him tightly and buried her face in his chest. Tears came, and his shirt was now getting soaked.
“Hey, now,” he said, smoothing her hair. “Don’t cry for me. I’ve made my bed. I’m going to have to lie in it. I do promise you I will do everything in my power to keep you happy for as long as I can, okay?”
Alex picked her head up and said, “Promise?”
“Promise.”
He went in to kiss her again when she heard the shrill ring of a cell phone echo in the large garage.
“Ah, fuck,” he muttered. “That must be John. Come on.”
He shifted, picking himself up from the floor and pulling her with him. Her body felt stiff from being cuddled on Nathan’s lap for that long. As she stretched, she watched as Nathan picked up an old-fashioned flip phone and answered it.
“Yeah,” he said and began talking quietly.
Alex probably shouldn’t have eavesdropped, but she was too curious.
“I guess I’ll head out tonight,” he said, rubbing his forehead.
“Thanks for the intel.” Nathan ended the call and looked at Alex.
“I have to go. There’s a Conglomerate spot outside of Philadelphia.
John thinks they’re calling in reinforcements.
If I can destroy it first, then I can bypass all that. ”
“How exactly does John know all of this?” she questioned.
“Fuck if I know. I know he’s Keira’s father, but beyond that, I’m in the dark.”
“Damien Amherst, the guy we assumed was her father, had a right-hand man who did everything for him. That was John Stratton. One would assume he is fully capable of many dangerous tasks. However, what he has been doing for the past few years in the shadows is beyond what his skill level should be. Either someone is helping him, or he has more to his story.”
“Or both,” Nathan offered.
“Or both. I wish he’d come home. Keira desperately wants him around, and he can’t be bothered.”
Nathan shook his head and said, “John said he sprung me from the psych ward as a favor for Logan and Keira. He wanted them to have their family back together. I think he’s correcting his mistakes so she can live peacefully.
He might be sacrificing time with her now, but I think in the end, he’s doing the right thing. ”
She frowned and then said, “I wish Keira knew.”
“She eventually will,” he said and pulled her close for a soft kiss.
She wanted the kiss to go on and on. She could get used to physical affection from Nathan.
However, he stepped away and said, “I need to try and get more of Kat’s program working with my suit.
I don’t have much except for turning off the display, but she has other functions like jacking up the heating unit, interfering with the stealth capabilities, and turning off the infrared detectors and night vision.
It would allow me to get into position much easier. ”
Alex nodded and said, “I wish I could have Kat work with you. I’m surprised you can tinker around with your suit. Did someone in the Conglomerate show you how to do that?”
Nathan shook his head.
“I taught myself. I had time to spare between missions and didn’t have a life outside of the Conglomerate, so I audited courses online from places like MIT.
I got on forums and started programming.
The main language used in the suit is C++.
I’m decent at it. Honestly, programming had always been something I wanted to do after I graduated high school.
” His face darkened. “Maybe I’d still like to do it. If I ever get out of this mess.”
She grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently.
“You can still do it, Nathan. I believe in you.”
He stared at her, his eyes widening.
“I…don’t think anyone has ever said that to me.”
Alex’s heart broke. Poor Nathan. She felt like kindred spirits with him.
“Well, you’re going to hear it more often because I do,” she told him.
He nodded.
“Okay, well…help me with packing up?”
“I would love to,” Alex said, smiling.
Life was finally starting to look up.