Nigel Read online

  Fuck! Nigel watched as Amelia fled down the hallway to the bathroom to escape him. He screwed everything up. No wonder she wanted to transfer to another job. The hurt expression on her beautiful face would haunt him the rest of his days. It killed him to know that he was the one to hurt her like that. The betrayal in her eyes cut him to the bone.

  He could let her go, but the thought of never getting to see her or worse seeing her occasionally but have her treat him like a stranger was unacceptable. Pain like nothing he had felt before centered in the region of his heart.

  Nigel didn’t want to lose Amelia as an assistant, but even more than that, he didn’t want to lose her period. He wanted to keep her in his life. He just wanted her.

  He rubbed the area over his heart, it ached for Amelia. How had she gotten to him? Was it slowly little by little over time? All her little annoying habits, somehow managed to endear her to him even more.

  Now he he had to face the fact that he could lose that, lose her because he got scared of the feelings she brought out in him. He could lose her because he pushed her away and went to another female’s bed. If the tables were turned and she had run from him straight into the arms of another male, he would be furious. It was possible that he already had pushed her into the arms of another—Phoenix. He couldn’t blame her for seeking comfort either after the way he behaved.

  Images of Amelia and Phoenix filled his mind and he growled. No way would he let her walk away and no way was he going to let another male take what should be his. He would do anything in his power to prevent that from happening—anything.

  He walked into the suite and started removing his clothes. She was stubborn and wouldn’t accept his apology right away. Nigel knew there was one thing that Amelia could not deny. He would use that to gain any advantage her could until she gave in to her feelings.

  Oh Amelia had feelings for him. He had known that for a long time. She tried to hide it but every time she saw him with another woman she couldn’t hide the emotions on her face. Want, need, desire, jealousy; these were feelings he hadn’t had room for before, but now he too felt those same things—and more.

  Chapter 6

  Amelia had so many emotions rolling through her. She quickly showered, put on a robe and came out of the bathroom feeling clean but more exhausted than ever before. She walked down the hallway to the open doorway she assumed led to one of the bedrooms, but there was only one door. She froze at seeing him lying on the only bed. He was shirtless. His golden skin looked so yummy.

  “Nigel where’s my bedroom?”

  “This is a one bedroom suite.”

  She struggled to take her eyes off of him. “What?” Why hadn’t she noticed that?

  He leaned up and gave her a hungry look. “This is a one bedroom suite and this is this only bed.”

  Her mouth felt really dry. “I’ll sleep on the couch in the other room.”

  “Chicken?”

  She glared at him. “I told you I wasn’t sleeping with you. What is it you want from me?”

  “I thought we could talk some more. I truly am sorry for hurting you and want to make amends.”

  Being alone with him was bad enough, but being alone with him in a bed had to be the worst idea ever. “I don’t think so.”

  “Are you scared?”

  She snorted. “Of you? No.”

  “I think you are scared, of your feelings for me.”

  She didn’t think about what she was doing as she charged forward with her hands on her hips. “I have feelings about you, but not for you. And lately, those feelings are borderline homicidal!”

  “I know you’re mad, but I think you're wrong about why you don’t want to be near me. I think you’re trying to keep your distance because your body wants me even though your head is angry.”

  “Well, I’m listening to my head, buddy, not my body. I’m in control.”

  “Prove it then. If you have no feelings for me and have control over yourself, then you shouldn’t have a hard time sleeping in the same bed with me.”

  He was goading her, she knew it but she still allowed it. She didn’t want to give him the pleasure of knowing how close to the mark he really was. She took off the robe and moved to the other side of the bed. She felt exposed now with only having the thin silky material of the nightgown to wear. She wasn’t even wearing her panties. She inhaled deeply and climbed in pulling the covers up over her.

  “I mean it, Nigel, don’t try anything I’m not in the mood.”

  “I admit to wanting you, but I will make you a promise. Tonight, I will not touch you sexually.”

  She somehow felt more disappointed than relieved. “Good.” She laid her head on the pillow.

  “However, I won’t make the same promise after tonight. I want you in my life, in my bed, and I’m going to fight to get you back and to keep you there.”

  “Nigel…” He stopped her from talking with a finger on her lips.

  “I’m sorry, Amelia. I’m going to prove to you how truly sorry I am. Then I’m going to spend every moment for the rest of my life making it up to you.”

  She wanted to believe him, she really did but her trust in him had been broken. “I’m not the type of woman you go for. I knew that from the beginning. Why bother? You can just move on to someone else, someone skinnier, someone prettier…”

  “Stop it! You are perfect and beautiful.”

  “If I was so beautiful, why did you run?”

  “It wasn’t because of you, it was because of me. I was the chicken.”

  She snorted. “I can’t imagine you scared of anything.”

  He moved closer to her but didn’t reach out to touch her again. “I was terrified after being with you one night that I would never be myself again. I had feelings for you that I wasn’t ready to accept. It wasn’t you that I was running from but what you made me feel. That is something no other female has ever made me feel.”

  “Then why did you fuck another woman?” She couldn’t hide the hurt in her voice.

  “I was consumed of thoughts of you every moment while away. I tried to deny to myself that these feelings for you meant something more, but it was a losing battle. I was fooling myself. The longer I stayed away from you the more desperate I was to get back to you. I hated feeling like I had no control over my life.”

  “The last night before I came back, a female who worked at the resort came to my room. I made a last ditch effort to get you out of my system. The moment I touched her, I knew it was a mistake. I stopped, before I could finish the deed fully. I’m not going to try to claim that what I did with that female was nothing, I touched her and allowed her to touch me. It was a sexual act whether my seed released or not. I washed her touch and scent off of me immediately and pretty much kicked her out of the room.”

  She turned over on her other side facing away from him. She couldn’t let him see the tears falling down. “I’m tired.” No truer words had ever been said. She felt the fatigue all the way through her whole being, not just her body but right down to her soul. He reached a hand out to touch her shoulder but she stiffened up and he let go of her.

  “I made so many mistakes, maybe too many to be forgiven; but that’s what I’m asking of you Amelia. I’m asking you to forgive me. I don’t deserve it, but I will promise to do everything I can to make things right between us.”

  “Why? Why should I forgive you?” She whispered her voice cracked a little.

  “Because I now realize what those feelings are that scared me so much and made me run from you. Love. I am falling in love with you, Amelia. Maybe I started falling the first day you stumbled into my office for an interview. You had on a short tight red pencil skirt and a white blouse. The two inch red heels made you a little taller but still you were so tiny compared to me. Even in the interview you gave me lip, not taking my shit. I was intrigued by you. Even more than that, I wanted to give you reason to argue with me. Every moment spent with you has taught me so much. Watching you be the beautiful
and confident woman that you are, has made me want to be a better man. All I’m asking for is a chance, to make amends, and to prove that I can be a man you could fall in love with.”

  Oh my God. Did Nigel just say he was falling in love with me? Is he really wanting me to fall in love with him? This was crazy—insane—unreal. Could she believe him? Even more importantly, could she trust him and give him a chance where he could hurt her again?

  “What if I can’t forgive you or feel the same as you? What if you decide you don’t have feelings for me anymore?”

  He moved closer to her and pulled her back against his chest. She didn’t struggle with him, his heat felt comforting.

  “There are no guarantees in life, but I swear to you that my intentions are sincere. I will never lie to you and if this doesn’t work out between us, it won’t be because I didn’t try. I want this—I want you Amelia. I hope that you will one day want me back. I just want a chance. Will you give me that chance?

  She should say no. Tell him to go to hell. She closed her eyes and sought out her heart, what she really wanted. Past all the hurt and pain and humiliation, she saw that spark there of want and need, of love she had for Nigel from the beginning. She wasn’t ready to tell him her true feelings. He had to earn that and the only way he could do that was if she gave him another chance.

  “I don’t know...”

  “Don’t say no yet. Just give me a chance to earn your forgiveness.” He pleaded with her.

  “I’ll give you a chance to earn my forgiveness. I can’t promise anything else.”

  His large hands turned her around to face him. “I will do anything to earn that forgiveness—anything.”

  She nodded, emotions were bubbling up and if she said anything else, she would break down again. She let him pull her against him to hold her. It felt so peaceful, he smelled damn good she wanted to soak up his scent and keep it with her always. She snuggled her face against his chest. She was probably the biggest fool ever for letting him back in her life, but it felt right. She prayed she wouldn’t regret giving him another chance.

  Chapter 7

  The next morning

  Amelia was dreaming and it was simply heaven. In her dream she was being touched all over by strong hands and a mouth that was doing wicked things to her. She moaned and stretched, wanting to get closer to that mouth as it nibbled down her stomach, over her belly button. Then she felt a warm breath on her pussy lips. Next came a tongue stroking her until she opened up. She allowed her thighs to be parted. Then that tongue moved inside of her—fucking her while a thumb teased her clit.

  “Oh God!” She couldn’t stop herself from arching as her climax hit fast and hard. As the spasms of release slowly faded, she realized she hadn’t been dreaming. She opened her eyes and looked down her body. Nigel was wedged between her thighs watching her as he stroked his tongue against her again.

  “What the hell are you doing?”

  “This is how you should have woken up after our first night together. I’m making amends by giving you the pleasure that you are owed.”

  Fuck! How was she supposed to argue with that when her body was responding to his every touch? “I’m not ready to have sex with you again.” That was only partially true. Her body wanted it more than anything, but her heart and mind were not as open.

  “I only want to give you pleasure.” He nuzzled his nose against her then licked her juices. Someone knocked on the door making him grumble with frustration. He stopped reluctantly. She almost pulled him back to her.

  “That’s room service.” He covered her with a blanket as he got up and reached for a robe. She watched him cover his beautiful body. All he wore was a pair of silky boxers and they were tented in the front. He was definitely turned on.

  She sat up feeling lethargic. She wasn’t hungry for food, she wanted him to come back to bed and give her more pleasure that he had promised. She was about to tell him that when her stomach growled.

  He chuckled. “I guess breakfast came just in time.”

  She wrapped a blanket around her and was about to get out of bed to dress but he stopped her.

  “Stay there, you’re going to have breakfast in bed.” He took the silver platter and carried it to the bed.

  She scooted back to lean against the bed rest. “So, is this something else you would have done if you had stayed, order me breakfast?”

  He shook his head and lifted the lid to the tray. “No, I would have made you breakfast myself.”

  She blinked in surprise. “I didn’t know you cooked.”

  He picked up a fork and loaded it with fried eggs lifting it to her mouth. She opened and took the mouthful.

  “I have always loved cooking. I had to learn when I was released from the facilities. The foster homes I was placed in were not the best and I had to find food to eat. I hated eating cold foods so I watched shows that taught me how to cook.”

  She looked at him with different eyes. “You never talk about your time in the facilities or after.”

  “It’s not the most pleasant stuff to talk about.” He gave her another mouthful.

  She chewed up and reached for the glass of orange juice. “You don’t talk about anything personal at all.”

  “I don’t, but with you, I’m willing to.”

  She was just too tempted to pass that up. All the questions she had been longing to ask him bubbled up. “What was it like for you in the facilities? Were you alone like a lot of the others?”

  “I was able to remain with my mother when they moved her from place to place.”

  “Was she Sorian?” She knew he was a Sorian halfsie, which meant that he could move really fast when he needed to.

  “My mother was human, the male who bred with her was a mixed breed Sorian and Priman.”

  “Your mother was human? I’ve not heard of the facilities taking humans.”

  “The scientists usually preferred to use donated or paid for eggs from human donors but the problem they faced was that many of the created children died within the first few years of life. Those that were allowed to remain with their mothers had a better success rate. They collected runaways and brought them into the facility against their will. They didn’t worry about anyone looking for the missing humans. My mother was only fifteen and living on the streets when she was taken.”

  “What happened to your mother?”

  “She had grown weak with their continual experiments. The day the IDJ (Inter-galactic Department of Justice) agents came to the facility we were at, my mother had been cut open and left there to bleed out.”

  She pushed away the food and touched his face. “I’m so sorry. How old were you?”

  “Six years old. My mother was good at making deals with the scientist and guards to get extra food for me or give me warmer clothes to wear. The IDJ took me from the cell we shared, but I broke free because I didn’t want to leave without my mother. I can still see her lying on the hard cold metal table, blood everywhere and feeling helpless. I couldn’t protect her, I didn’t know how to make deals with the scientists to help her. I failed to save her and that is something I’ve had to live with my whole life.”

  She pushed the tray to the other side of the bed and climbed onto his lap wrapping her arms around his neck. So much about Nigel made sense now. How he ruthlessly pursued deals to make sure that the fighters’ rights were protected. Hearing the anguish he still carried inside tore her apart. She had to comfort him, the child and the man.

  “Shhh...you were a child. It wasn’t your fault Nigel. Those assholes that funded the facilities and those scientists are to blame. Every one of them will have a special place in hell waiting on them for what they have done.”

  He cleared his throat trying to get his emotions under control. “Let’s finish eating. The shuttle will be here to pick us up in an hour.”

  She moved from his lap missing his warmth. Amelia was close to losing her resolve to make Nigel work for her forgiveness. Her heart ached for that six ye
ar old. No no no—she needed to keep her heart from giving into him again so easily. She wanted them to take things slowly. He had to earn her trust and she wanted to protect her heart.

  She wasn’t sure she would survive him dumping her a second time. She had to be realistic about it. Would he tire of her? Nigel always got tired of the women he dated. The longest he had ever stayed in a relationship was three months. The woman, Sophia, was a real supermodel, gorgeous and perfect. She was even nice to Amelia at times when Nigel was around, which made Amelia hate her even more. The two looked like a perfect match together. If Sophia couldn’t win Nigel over and get him to commit to her, then what chance did Amelia have?

  “I’m not hungry anymore. I think I’ll go get dressed.” She moved off the bed before he could say anything else to her.

  *****

  Nigel frowned looking at the uneaten breakfast. What had he done to scare her away again? She seemed okay with him revealing details of his past. In fact, he felt her open up to him. She was skittish with him now because he had hurt her again somehow. He had a long way to go to make her trust him again.

  Nigel couldn’t help but smile, he now knew two ways to get past her defenses. The first was to open up to her emotionally and share things he never shared with anyone. That was going to take a lot of work on his part because he never opened up about his past like that, but Amelia was worth it. The second was to give her pleasure. He planned to pleasure her body every chance he got until her heart opened up to him.

  He walked over to the bathroom door and leaned his head against it. He could hear her in the shower and closed his eyes picturing her perfect rounded curves. She was simply delicious but she wasn’t confident in her attributes. Nigel wanted to give her more than just pleasure, he wanted to make sure that she knew how gorgeous she truly was. That was going to be the hardest part but he was determined that she see herself the way he saw her. Amelia was strong, sexy, and the most beautiful person inside and out that he had ever met.

  She didn’t see herself that way, but Nigel did and what was frustrating was that other males saw it too. Males like Phoenix who were clearly interested in her. Nigel wasn’t about to lose her to another, not now that he finally realized that he was falling in love with her.