“So yeah, I guess I’m overprotective of her because there was no one else around to keep her safe.”
“And who protected you, Mel?”
I frown. “I didn’t need protecting like she did. She was a baby.”
“You were only thirteen. Still a child yourself.”
I’m blown away by his insightfulness. I feel like he can see me in a way nobody else can. “I don’t know. Tyler when he was around, I guess. We were both kids, but we looked after each other. His mom was our dad’s sister. She was never around much, and he practically lived at our house, but Bryce stopped him from visiting after Dad died. He’s never really liked him.”
Nathan’s expression darkens. “So you lost your dad and your best friend around the same time?”
“I still saw him every day at school, but yeah, I guess I kinda did.”
He tilts his head, and his eyes burn into mine. “I guess now I know how you became such a spitfire.”
Regret and loneliness overwhelm me at the memory of my teenage years. Being stuck in that house with Mom and Bryce, feeling invisible and alone. It’s no wonder I fell head over heels with the first guy who showed me anything akin to kindness when I went to college. But those memories are even more painful, and I almost choke on their bitter aftertaste. “It must have been fun growing up with four brothers,” I say, desperate to change the subject.
He gives me another half smile. “You could call it that. I’d call it chaos.”
“You’re close to all of them though?”
He nods.
“Even Maddox?” I know he hasn’t seen him for a long time, and after what he told me, I haven’t pressed for more details on why his youngest brother left.
Sorrow washes over his face, but it fades as quickly as it appeared. “Yes. Especially him.”
“I hope to get to meet him some day.”
He nods, but that quiet grief returns to his eyes. “I’m sure you will.”
With the dinner dishes washed and dried, I lean against the kitchen counter and watch Nathan put them away. His strong forearms and the powerful muscles in his shoulders flex as he moves deftly around the kitchen. I lazily drink him in, no longer attempting to hide it. If he’s going to walk around this penthouse shirtless with the body of a demigod, he brings it all on himself. And it’s not like I don’t see the way he looks at me. The way his eyes darken when I’m wearing anything remotely fitted, and the way his gaze lingers on my ass and boobs when he thinks I’m not looking.
When he’s done, he walks over to me with that sexy-as-hell half grin on his face. “You enjoying yourself there, Spitfire?”
I sigh. “I mean, I was.”
He gives a single shake of his head and takes another step forward until our bodies are tantalizingly close and his eyes are locked on mine. “Looking at me the way that you do is going to get you into a whole mess of trouble someday, Mel.” His voice is low and husky, and it melts me to my core.
I tilt my head to the side, my gaze remaining fixed on his face even as his rakes up and down my body. “Maybe I could use a little trouble.”
He sinks his teeth into his bottom lip and tips his head back on a groan. When he looks at me again, his eyes are blazing with so much fire that my breath stutters in my throat. He bends his head, his lips dangerously close to my ear. “I bet you could use so much more than a little trouble, Spitfire.”
He slides one hand to my hip, his fingers digging into my flesh in a bruising grip. A shiver of anticipation runs the length of my spine. I place a hand on his chest, my fingertips flexing over his solid pecs. His lips brush mine, and I whimper, acutely aware of the ache between my thighs at the mere memory of this man’s kiss.
He takes a half step closer, and our bodies are flush. Heat coils in every cell of my body. His breath is warm and heavy on my lips as he continues taunting me with the promise of his kiss. I tangle my fingers in his hair. He grunts and rocks his hips, pressing every solid inch of himself against my abdomen.
I gasp.
“You feel what you do to me?” he groans.
I jolt when vibrations shudder through my hip. With a grumbled curse, he looks down, breaking the spell between us as he fishes his phone from his pocket.
He holds it to his ear, his hand still on my hip and his impressive erection still pressed against me. “What?” he barks.
I can hear the muffled voice on the other line but can’t make out what they’re saying.
“Right now?” Nathan sighs. “Then have the jet ready.”
He ends the call and lets out of a string of curses. “I really have to go.”
“Right now?”
He licks his bottom lip. “Believe me when I tell you that I know this is the worst timing in the history of the world, but I’ve been expecting that call for weeks. I’m—”
“Don’t say you’re sorry. This is your job.” I step back, taking some much-needed air and space from his dizzyingly impressive erection.
His grip tightens on my hip, and he yanks me back so our chests collide. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
His expression is pained. “Don’t pull away from me.”
So many emotions shuttle around my body, and I don’t know how to process them all at once. What I do know is that I need to get the hell away from him before I lose myself. I suspect that once we cross this line, I will fall for him completely. And I’m going to fall hard. “You’re the one who’s leaving, Nathan.”
His jaw ticks, and I hold my breath. Oh, fuck it! Just kiss me and tell me you’ll be back soon. He does neither. He takes a step back. “I’ll be gone for a few days. Will you be okay here alone?”
I draw in a shaky breath. “I’ll be fine.”
