Nicolai
She should be in here by now. I check my watch again. It's definitely been over a minute, and I know for a fact Sutton wouldn't take longer than I asked her to. I think I made it clear how important it was that she not waste time getting in here—not only because I'm just about ready to explode from how much I want her, but because I do not like letting her out of my sight.
But she proved earlier tonight that she can hold her own, and what's one minute?
Except it's now been two and I can't help but feel panicked...something is wrong. I know it.
Fuck it, I'm going to check on her.
I storm out of the bathroom, the door slamming hard against the concrete wall, making the couple who was making out next to it jump in terror.
"Sorry," I grumble, holding up a hand in apology as I rush back to where I left Sutton standing.
But I can already see that she's gone.
"Fuck!" I exclaim, pulling at my hair.
Stay calm, maybe she went to the wrong bathroom.
Running back up toward the row of restrooms, I quickly find that is not the case. I pull my phone out and call her, but it just rings and rings.
Of course it does. She left it in my car.
Mother fucker.
I run out of the bar without even closing my tab and I ask the bouncer if he saw a young woman leave the building, and he looks at me with his beefy arms crossed over his chest. "You mean the one you 'told' me to 'pretend I never saw'?"
I widen my eyes and clench my fists, willing myself not to punch this fucker in the face and get arrested. "Come on, man. She could be in danger. Did you see her or not?"
He shrugs and looks out at the street then back at me. "I wondered why she was leaving with another man when the two of you looked so disgustingly happy when you came in."
I see red and I have to close my eyes to center myself and remain calm. "Another man?"
"Yeah. Shorter than you, though. Looked like a real fucking tool. Had a driver and everything. Looked like he belonged on the cover of the Wall Street Journal if they had a eligible bachelor edition."
I don't need to hear anymore.
Fucking Jason.
I make it home in record time, nearly plowing over the valet cart when I pull up to the front of the building. Snatching Sutton's phone out of the floorboard, I shout an apology as I bound out of my car and into the lobby, pressing the button on the elevator over and over again as if it's going to make it arrive any faster.
When it finally does and I get to the penthouse, I storm into the darkened apartment to find all the lights off and everything quiet.
Not for long, though, because I am about to fuck his shit up.
"Jason, where the fuck is she?" I yell, not even bothering to go look in her room first. I want to confront him. I want to know why he thinks he can take her like that. Like he has the fucking right to own her.
No one owns Sutton but herself.
At first he doesn't answer, and I don't hear her either. For a moment I'm afraid I was wrong and she's not here at all. The bouncer saw a different guy and I just assumed it was Jason.
Fuck, what if—
"Stop yelling, fuckwad," Jason says, stepping out of his office at the end of the hall.
The edges of my vision blur and I clench my teeth as I stalk toward him. "Where. Is. She?"
"Who?"
I eat up the remaining distance between us, grab his collar, and shove him against the wall. "Don't fucking play with me, kopile. I will beat your ass."
Jason turns his face away from mine and struggles against my hold. "Let me go, asshole."
"Tell me where she is and maybe I will," I growl, gripping his face and turning it back to me, forcing him to meet my eyes, relishing in the fear I see there.
"If you're talking about Sutton, I don't know why the fuck you're assuming I know where she is. I've been at work all night. Maybe if you'd—"
I readjust my grip on his collar and whirl around, slamming him against the opposite wall. "I know you took her from Musica, you fucking cockhole. Why?"
"Because you left her standing in the middle of a crowded dance floor, Nicolai," he says, his condescending tone grating over my every nerve.
And the worst part is, he's sort of right. I did leave her there. Even though she was coming to meet me in literally one minute, I left her alone. I shouldn't have done that. I let my dick cloud my judgment.
I can't let that happen again.
I let go of him, surprising him and causing him to fall back against the wall. "I'm only going to ask this one more time. Where is she?"
He rubs at his neck like a little pussy. "My office. Don't—"
"Fuck off," I spit as I take off down the hall. I can hear his footsteps echoing behind me, but I don't give a shit. I have to see her.
I fling open the door when I reach his office, not caring about the way it slams into the wall on the rebound. When I see her sitting in his desk chair, her legs tucked against her chest, eye makeup running down her face, I don't wait a single second before I scoop her up in my arms.
"Are you okay, mala tigrica?"
She lays her head on my shoulder and nods. "Just get me out of this room, please."
"Gladly," I mutter, but when I turn to leave, Jason is blocking the doorway. I don't hold back my vitriol as I shove past him. "Move, Kincaid."
He shifts so I can't get through without potentially scraping Sutton against the doorjamb, so I step back as he says, "Put her down."
I laugh and shake my head. "I don't know who the hell you think you're talking to, dickhead, but I'll do no such thing. Move your ass before I hand it to you."
"I told her father I would keep an eye on her until he got a chance to FaceTime so—"
Her head snaps up from my shoulder and her eyes flare with anger. "You called my dad? After you said you wouldn't—"
Kincaid crosses his arms over his chest. "Uh-uh, princess. I never said I wouldn't. You just assumed I wouldn't if you came with me. I didn't say that."
Her body is trembling in my arms and I squeeze her tighter. I know she wants to go off on him, that she wants to explode. But I don't want her to give him that satisfaction, so I speak up before she can do it. "I swear to fuck, Kincaid, move out of my fucking way. When her father calls, you can bring the phone to my room. Until then, she is staying with me. Period, fucking end of story."
And with that, I shove him out of the way and stalk down the hall to my room with her in my arms. I kick the door open and closed again in one motion, not stopping until I have her sitting comfortably on my bed.
"Here," I whisper, pushing her hair out of her eyes. "Let me get this dress off of you, okay?"
She nods and turns to the side, and I push her dark hair over her shoulder, planting a kiss on the back of her neck as I lower the zipper. A shiver snakes up her spine. "Are you cold?" I ask as I push the sleeves down and she pulls her arms out of them.
"No, just—" She glances back at me over her shoulder and my heart nearly bursts with the affection I feel for her. "It's just you," she whispers.
Guiding her to her feet, I turn her around and push the dress all the way down and help her step out of it. My gaze trails back up her body and every cell in mine comes to life when I finally see the bare pussy she'd been rubbing all over me earlier tonight and the bright red lace bra barely containing her perfect tits.
"Fuck, Sutton," I groan, turning toward my closet to grab one of my shirts for her to wear. There's no way I can look at her like this for another second and not touch her. And I don't know if that's what she needs from me right now. Nor do I think I deserve to touch her after leaving her in the middle of the dance floor tonight.
But before I can turn away, she grasps my wrist and turns me back around. "What? What did I do?" she whispers.
A laugh escapes my lips and I shake my head. "You did nothing, mala tigrica. I am just angry right now, and I don't know if I can be trusted to hold back."
"Why would you want to hold back from me?"
"I don't want to, Sutton. I just—" I take a deep breath and grip her waist, bringing her as close to me as I can without pressing myself against her. I don't want her to feel how turned on I am, because she'll want to do something about it. And I can't allow it.
"You just what, Nic?"
I close my eyes and squeeze them shut for a second before meeting her gaze. The way she's looking up at me nearly takes me out, but I stay strong. "I just fucked up tonight, that's all."
Confusion passes over her face and she cocks her head to the side. "What are you talking about, you fucked up? Jason came and forced me into his car. How is that your fault? If anything, I feel terrible for not being able to tell you where I was going. Probably scared the shit out of you. I still don't know how he found me, by the way."
I do. But I won't get into that right now.
"I should never have left you alone. Not even for a fucking minute. It was irresponsible. This is all my fault," I say, letting go of her and stepping away toward the window before she can grab me again.
"Nicolai, what the fuck?" she exclaims. "What do you mean it's all your fault?" When I don't turn around, she slides in between me and the window and pokes at my chest. "Look at me, damnit!"
I do, and I notice she has wrapped the throw blanket from the end of my bed around herself, and I hate that she's hidden her body from me. I want to rip it off of her, throw her on the bed, and show her how much I want her every second of every day. How absolutely horrified I was when I thought something terrible had happened to her, something far worse than Jason just bringing her home.
But all I say is, "I mean it's my fault because I left you unprotected, Sutton! Dominique trusted me with you and your safety, and I just left you there. And for what? So we could have a little bit of fun in public? Not worth it. Not worth almost losing you."
She grits her teeth and narrows her eyes at me. "Nicolai. Did you or did you not watch me take up for myself in the street in Brooklyn? And that's why you said we could even go to the club at all? Because you believed in me?"
I swallow and stare at the floor. "I—"
"Yeah. You fucking did. You said I could fend for myself if I needed to. And now you're saying you're a failure because you left me standing alone for less than a minute? Please. That's preposterous. I am a big girl, Nic. I can take care of myself. I love having you to protect me, and I appreciate everything you do for me. But I wanted to play that game with you. I wanted to have a moment like the ones I read about in the books I love. I wanted that one fucking chance to have an experience like they do in movies. I could have handled it if Jason's ass hadn't come in and threatened to call my dad and shit. Which he apparently did anyway. So please, Nic. Give me a little fucking credit," she says, stepping away from me and letting the blanket fall to the floor as she walks toward my bed.
I stare at her as she moves away from me, and with every step she takes, I grow harder behind my zipper. I need her.
I love it when she's like this. It's exactly why I call her my little tigress.
Of course she could have taken care of herself.
I'm being a dickhead.
"Sutton, wait," I say, stepping in front of her, wrapping my hand around her neck, and backing her up against the window, her bare ass pressed against it for anyone in the building across to see.
"Fuck," she groans as I slip my hand between us and slide my fingers through her wet center.
"Oh, Sutton Marie. You're dripping for me...is this from earlier or did your little pussy get wet from putting me in my place just now?" I growl, tightening my hand around her neck, leaning in and nipping at her bottom lip.
"Both," she gasps as I push my two middle fingers deeper inside her, hooking up until I hit her g-spot and her knees buckle. "Nicolai." Her voice comes out as nothing more than a whimper and I grin against her mouth.
"I said it earlier, and I'll say it again. You are a bad girl, Sutton Marie."
She captures my bottom lip between her teeth and unsnaps the button on my pants, sliding the zipper down before slipping her hand inside my boxers to grip my cock. "You love it though."
I abruptly pick her up by the backs of her thighs and she lets go of me, wrapping her legs around my waist. "Nicolai!" she squeals as I toss her on the bed.
"What?" I say, unbuttoning my shirt and tossing it onto the floor near her abandoned blanket. "I don't want the neighboring penthouse to see what I'm about to do to you."
She bites her lip, and I just know I won't be able to stop myself this time...from showing her exactly how much I l—
A pounding on my door makes us both jump and I literally want to stab Jason Kincaid in the throat when he says, "Sutton, open the door. Your father is on the phone."