My entire body ached, from my back all the way down between my legs, a clear reminder of what happened last night. I turned around uncomfortably, expecting Nathaniel's spot beside me to be empty as usual, but to my utter surprise, he was still there sleeping soundly like a baby.
His long lashes brushed over his cheeks, and his lips were parted slightly tempting me. I scooted closer and caressed his soft cheek wanting to stay in bed with him forever.
"Good morning," he murmured, brushing his lips against mine, eyes still closed.
"Morning," I whispered back in surprise, wrapping my arms around his neck and closing the small space between us.
He groaned and pulled back, nuzzling our noses together.
"Don't you think it's a little too early for extracurricular activities?"
"Never," I smiled, peering up at him in adoration.
The corner of his lips curled upwards as he gazed down at me, and it was the first time I'd ever seen him smile.
"Why don't you smile often?" I breathed, brushing my thumb against his lips in amazement. "It's a good look on you."
"I had no reason to before," he whispered, wrapping his arms around me and nuzzling his head in the crook of my neck.
"And now?"
"I can think of a few."
Heat crept up to my cheeks, and I was suddenly grateful that he couldn't see my face.
"I was surprised you were still here when I woke up," I mumbled as I weaved my fingers through his thick locs.
"I didn't want to leave you again."
"You know, eventually you'll have to go back to work, right?"
The place I don't work at anymore.
"Mm, I can work from home."
"Well, unlike you," I began, untangling our bodies and sitting up against the headboard. "I don't have a job any more thanks to my boss so kindly firing me, so I have a lot of work to get done starting with these emails."
Nathaniel sighed heavily and sat up next to me, pulling me onto his lap with my legs positioned on either side of him.
"I actually wanted to talk to you about that," he murmured, remorse evident in his bright eyes.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and tilted my head to the side, hoping to hear good news. "I'm listening."
He unconsciously slipped his hand under my shirt and began rubbing small circles along my back, and as soon as he opened his mouth to speak, his phone rang loudly, interrupting him.
Nathaniel's face immediately dropped, and all the traces of the loving and caring man I'd grown to like vanished.
"Creed," he snapped irritably as he pressed the phone against his ear but continued the gentle motions on my back.
"I'll be in the kitchen," I mouthed as I tried wiggling out of his grasp, trying to give him some privacy, but he shook his head, tightened his arm around my waist, and began peppering small kisses along my neck and collar bone.
I bit my lip to stifle the moan that threatened to escape my throat, not wanting the person on the other line to hear.
"Tell him to have the contract written up by the time I get there, or the deal is off," Nathaniel growled before hanging up and tossing his phone back on the nightstand.
"You have to go," I whispered, feeling my heart sink, not expecting him to leave so soon.
He clenched his jaw and nodded. "Come with me."
"I don't know..."
"I'm not leaving you alone again, and it won't take long."
"But I don't even have clothes here, which means we'd have to stop by my—"
"Follow me," he interrupted, lifting me up and sliding out of bed.
"Where?"
He didn't answer as I followed him out of the room and down the hallway into another master bedroom, still having no idea why we were here in the first place.
"I had all your clothes from Italy transferred here," he murmured once we were standing in the walk-in closet.
My eye widened as I fingered through the familiar items feeling a wave of happiness flow through me. "You didn't have to do that, Nathaniel."
"I wanted to."
"And what would've happened to them if I never came back?" I asked, raising my eyebrows as I turned around to face him.
He shrugged and raked a hand through his hair. "But you're here now, and they're all yours."
"Thank you," I whispered, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him into a kiss. The bulge in his boxers pressed against my thigh, making my core throb with excitement.
"Unless you're ready to fuck me, I think you should leave now," I mumbled against his lips, hoping he would take me here.
But instead, he pecked my lips one more time before stepping away. "We'll be leaving in an hour."
I nodded and watched as he shifted the front of his boxers before leaving me alone in the monstrous room.
I turned my attention back to the clothes, trying to figure out how I was going to narrow my outfit choices down with so many options to choose from. Eventually, I opted for a beautiful grey turtleneck sweater dress and paired it with a black and gold belt with black knee-high boots.
After taking a quick shower, I slipped on the warm clothes and brushed my hair into a neat low ponytail before dabbing the concealer he bought for me the same time he got my clothes in Italy on the fading bruises on my face.
Nonna must've helped him pick out my correct shade when they went shopping together.
I found Nathaniel waiting for me in front of the elevator, already dressed in a tight black fitted suit with his hair gelled and brushed neatly, looking handsome as ever.
"You look beautiful," he murmured, planting a small kiss on my lips.
"Thank you, you don't look too bad yourself."
He smiled again, something I don't think I'll ever get used to, and nodded his head towards the elevator. "Ready?"
I clung to his arm and took a deep breath, not wanting to tell him about my fear of elevator's and nodded. It wasn't until we were safely in his car when I finally felt like I could breathe again.
"You okay?" Nathaniel asked softly, placing his large hand on my thigh as he peeled out of the driveway.
"Yes," I lied.
"Tell me," he murmured, seeing right through my fib.
I shook my head. "It's nothing."
"Anastazi."
I sighed and rested my head against the cool window before finally deciding to answer.
"I haven't been able to look at an elevator, much less ride one after seeing his bloodied body in the one at my penthouse."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nathaniel clench his jaw and tighten his grip on the steering wheel, but he gave my thigh a gentle squeeze despite his outrage.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"I don't see him when I'm with you."
"That's why you didn't want me to leave you," he finally put the pieces together.
I nodded.
"I'm sorry," Nathaniel whispered, his voice strained and filled with agony.
"It's over now; there's no point in rehashing the past." I placed my hand over his and continued staring out the window, letting silence engulf the small space between us.
"I can stay in the car," I suggested once we arrived at Creed Industries. I didn't want to draw unwanted attention to myself, and walking in with the billionaire CEO would do just that.
Nathaniel climbed out and walked to the other side of the car to hold the door open for me. "I'm not taking my eyes off of you."
I rolled my eyes, "I'll be fine."
"Anastazi," he sighed, checking his watch for the third time since we arrived. "I have a meeting in a few minutes, and I'd rather not be late, but I'm not leaving without you."
"Fine."
I followed closely behind him, and as soon as we entered the lobby, all eyes were on us. The first thing I noticed was how busy the floor was, unlike the last time I was here. Nathaniel must've called everyone back once he came to his senses, and I couldn't help but smile and wonder if I was the reason he made that decision; either way, I was grateful to see that they all got their jobs back.
"I think I'll wait for you right here," I whispered, eyeing the elevator as if it were my worst enemy.
Nathaniel followed my gaze and immediately understood without me having to say anything. And with no hesitation, he reached down and intertwined our fingers, ignoring the gawking employees in front of us.
"What are you doing?" I whispered harshly, suddenly wishing I could disappear into the air. The last thing I wanted was messy employees gossiping around about something that wasn't any of their business.
"Do you not want me to hold your hand?" He asked innocently, gazing down at me with a small smirk on his face.
I immediately blushed and leaned my head into his shoulder to avoid wandering eyes. "I do but not in public like this; people are going to talk."
"Why do you care what they think?"
"I don't, it's just that...fuck I don't know, this was a bad idea, I'm going to wait in the car." I tried wiggling my hand out of his, thinking he would let me go but instead, he tightened his grip and cleared his throat.
"If you don't want to get fired again, I suggest you all keep your fucking eyes to yourself and continue the jobs I'm paying you to do. I'm sure by now you've learned that you are all dispensable, so don't tempt me." He growled loud enough for everyone in the lobby to hear.
And no more than a second later, everyone went back to work as if we never existed.
"You didn't have to do that," I whispered as we made our way towards the death machine.
He squeezed my hand gently and planted a kiss on my forehead. "I know."
"I can still wait for you down here," I suggested nervously; my hands started to feel clammy as the elevator doors opened in front of us.
"Focus on me; I'm right here with you," Nathaniel murmured.
I took a deep breath and looked up at his handsome face as I took a step inside, my eyes still trained on him.
"That's it, amore mio, one step at a time."
I nodded and took another deep breath but as soon as I saw the doors closing out of the corner of my eye, I started to panic. My breathing was ragged, uneven, and it felt like the air around me was growing thin, suffocating me.
I needed to get out.
I turned back around to tell Nathaniel to stop the elevator, so I could get off, but when I saw his face, I was surprised to see him gazing down at me lovingly as if I wasn't having a panic attack right here in front of him.
I opened my mouth to speak, but before any words came out, he snaked his arms around my waist and pressed his soft lips onto mine.
All my worries immediately vanished when I wrapped my arms around his neck and moaned into his lips as his hand trailed down my back and cupped my ass. Our tongues hungrily explored each other's mouths, fighting for dominance, and this time I won.
A low guttural groan escaped his throat as I sucked on his bottom lip and began rubbing the hard bulge straining against his tight slacks, threatening to bust out.
But before anything else could happen, the elevator dinged, alerting us that we arrived at our floor, and I immediately untangled myself from his clutches and smoothed my hair out, trying to look presentable as possible. Nathaniel calmly straightened out his tie and placed his hands in front of his pants to hide the very visible tent I created.
It wasn't until we stepped foot off the elevator when I realized he kissed me to distract me from my fear, and it actually worked. As promised, his meeting lasted no more than twenty minutes, and it wasn't long before we were back in his car heading home.
"I know what you did," I whispered, reaching out and lacing my fingers through his hair.
"Mm, and what's that?"
"Kissing me to distract my thoughts."
"Did it work?" He asked, glancing over at me.
I smiled and nodded. "Thank you."
Nathaniel grabbed the hand that was in his hair and kissed it before intertwining our fingers together without taking his eyes off the road, and it was at that moment when I realized that I was falling for him.
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A/N: happy valentine's day, lovelies! <3