Chapter 11
Nathan
She races for the steps leading up to her flat.
I push my own door open and follow at a leisurely pace.
Mainly, because I want to give her a head-start.
Also, because she may not realize it, but I'm the one in control here.
The vixen may have teased me with the way she licked that frozen dessert, and I admit, I got turned on by it.
But she was aroused, too. I could tell by the way she wiggled in her seat, how she squeezed her thighs together, how the pulse at the base of her neck increased in intensity, how her shoulders rose and fell.
How she monitored my reaction, and how her own mirrored mine.
We affect each other, and that's the truth. I might have tried to deny it in the years we were apart, but I never forgot her response to my kiss. I’ve never gotten over how she felt in my arms. There’s not a single morning I haven’t woken up without thoughts of her crowding my mind.
Not a single night has passed when I haven’t wished I could taste her again.
The chemistry between us blew my mind. It filled me with craving, a hankering which has grown over the years.
There’s no question that I'm following her in. No question that I’m going to mount the steps, reach her apartment and push open the door—which, by the way, she hasn’t locked.
I step inside and let the door shut behind me with a bang that echoes through the space.
That should give her enough notice that I’m here, and that I’m going to find her.
I raise my head and sniff the air—and maybe it’s my imagination, but I can smell her sweet cherry-blossom scent under the smell of freshly-baked bread.
I follow it to the door of the bathroom, but when I push it open, she’s not there.
I blink, turn, survey the space, then draw in a deep breath, and fill my lungs with Skylar. It has the predictable effect—my thighs harden, my groin stiffens, and my cock stabs against the restraint of my pants.
That yearning inside me swells to a full-blown craving.
What I wouldn’t give for one taste of her.
Just one lick of her lips, one bite of that peach of her behind, one squeeze of her soft tits.
Goddam. I curl my fingers into fists and shake my head to regain my composure.
This time, when I look around the space, I notice the door on the far side of the studio.
I must have missed it because it blends into the woodwork.
But it’s slightly ajar, which is why I notice it now.
I stalk toward it, pull it open and step onto a small landing.
I climb the ladder onto the roof and find her sitting on the ledge, with her legs dangling over. Around us, the city spreads out. I walk over and sit down next to her, copying her by pushing my legs over. We sit for a few seconds in silence, then she says, without turning around, "You found me."
"It wasn’t difficult."
"I wasn’t hiding from you; not exactly." She raises her shoulder.
We sit quietly, and there’s no missing the tension radiating from her that I can't ignore. "You don’t have to worry; I’m not going to do anything... Nothing that you don’t want, at any rate."
She blows out a breath. "That’s what I’m afraid of. This… thing between us… It’s clear it hasn’t ebbed with time."
"It hasn’t," I agree.
"It’s only gotten stronger."
"It has."
"You going to agree with everything I say?"
"Only for the moment, and only because you’re saying things I want to hear."
She throws up her hands. "You’re maddening."
"And you still owe me."
"Oh." She seems taken aback. "Wh-what do you want from me?"
I hold out my hand. She hesitates, then slowly places her left palm in mine.
I rub my thumb across the ring I placed there less than an hour ago.
It looks right. It looks like it belongs to her.
And she belongs to me. I promised Ben I’d look out for his sister.
And this is the best way I can deliver on it.
I bring her palm to my mouth and kiss the ring.
"I want you to marry me. I want you to let me take care of you.
I want you to… let me give you everything you deserve. "
She pulls her hand from mine, and I let her. She places it in her lap and looks out over the rooftops. "I wish he was here." She swallows.
"So do I."
"Do you think he’ll be happy when he finds out?"
"I think… He’d be happy if you’re happy," I offer.
She half laughs. "Not that I need his permission, but I would like to have his blessing."
"He’d want you to do what you think is right for you and your business," I murmur.
She turns to me. "Why are you being nice to me?"
"Why shouldn’t I be?"
"I’m not used to you being this agreeable. Almost pleasant. It’s not the kind of man I thought you were."
"But then, you don’t know me well, do you?"
Our gazes meet, and that connection which has always been there, flares to life between us.
"We’re both to blame for that. I was mortified I threw myself at you. I never told Ben what happened. After that day, I never asked him about you, either. Every time he mentioned you were coming home for a visit; I made sure I wasn’t there."
"And I tried my best not to accept his invitations home. But there were times I couldn’t say no. I'd dread running into you, then be disappointed when I didn’t.”
"And now, here we are—engaged." She glances down at her ring.
"And you’re going to get the money to save your bakery."
"Right." She swallows.
"The money will be deposited in your account as soon as we’re married."
"Which will be—"
"In a week’s time."
"So soon?" She jerks her chin up. "I… I thought it might be a little later… In a month, or three, maybe?"
"Can your business survive without the cash for that long?"
She shakes her head.
"So, it’s best we go through with it as soon as possible, isn’t it?"