Noah's POV
Damn! There is nothing sexier than watching the city most eligible bachelor cook for you while you lay on his couch wearing his oversized t-shirt.
Would it be weird if I asked him to stand still so I could take a mental picture for my private consumption later?
Noah, you weirdo... don't make it weird.
But holy motherducking hairball, he was sex on legs and he was incredibly oblivious of it!
The coffee was warm in my hands, maybe I should focus on that instead of objectifying my boyfriend.
My eyes snapped down immediately just in case he could read my mind through my eyes. Because, did I just say boyfriend?
"You okay, baby?" He asked me.
My eyes snapped back up. What was I supposed to do, tell the man I met two days ago that if he could flip those round things he was cooking slower it would do great for my wet panties.
Don't worry, I didn't say that. I haven't completely lost it...yet.
I watched Caid move around the kitchen. He looked… normal. Domesticated. It was the weirdest thing I'd ever seen.
"A penny for your thought, sweetness"
"Yeah, just daydreaming about you being shirtless and flipping those damn meat," I blurted out without thinking and then proceeded to have the most intense blush of my life.
He laughed in this adorable way that got me laughing too then proceeded to slowly pretend like he was stripping.
It was when the catcalling started. I know...there is something wrong with me!
"Damn boy, you look like you could show me a good time! Sweet cheeks, shake what yo mama gave you!"
He laughed harder, his eyes pulling together...this laugh came from every part of him.
"Damn, boy! You look like you could be my baby daddy—"
Great! I took it too far, didn't I?
Classic Noah saying the first thing that pops up in my mind.
But the way he laughed and came closer to kiss my nose told me I didn't send him running across the country.
"I just… didn't picture you knowing your way around a kitchen," I admitted.
His laugh did things to my insides. "You clearly haven't met my mother, Rosie Ryan. Everything I know came from her. I liked helping out. It was quiet."
The conversation was soft. I took a breath and asked the question that has been on my mind since I walked inside. "Are you… on good terms with your dad?"
The air changed instantly. He didn't stop chopping the veggies, but his shoulders got tighter as he answered.
"As good of terms as you can be with a man who married another woman when your mother was six months pregnant with you," he said, his voice flat. "And then named his new, legitimate son the same name as you."
If he was bitter, he didn't show it. It was like we were discussing curtains pattern Instead of a sensitive subject.
Then he stopped chopping and turned around to look at me.
"I should have seen this. You need a favor, don't you?," he said, wiping his hands on a towel. "What do you want, Noah? Why did you really come here?"
My heart sank. "I… I wanted to see you." It was the truth, but it sounded like a lie now.
"So you didn't come here to talk me into asking my father to call off the dogs? To stop him from crushing your family if you don't marry my annoying half-brother?"
I stood up and dropped the coffee cup on the table. And moved closer to him. Too close...and made him look at me. Sure I wanted to see if he would be my protector against the big bad wolves but most importantly, I wanted him to...
"Beg me to s-stay! Tell me you can't live without me! Tell me I have no choice, Caid. Baby, tell me you envision no other life except with me. M-make wanting you seem like the logical thing b-because I am a logical sensible person. I need you to convince me to choose you! Beg me if you must! W-want me like I want you"
He lowered his head, I thought he was going kiss me but he simply rested it on mine.
"I want you, Nicolette Octaliegh Avalon-Hatchet. I want you so much." He took my hand and pressed it against the hard ridge of his arousal through his pants. The contact was electric. "That should answer your question about wanting you. And for the sake of future argument, let's all agree I want you all the time, sweetheart"
I smiled to myself. Then he spoke again. "But—" his voice trailed off then he found it again. "I don't beg. And you do have a choice"
"Damn it! Caid. This is not the time to stand on principles!" I was begging him. "Tell me everything I want to hear"
"No."
"Even if it means I'll be your sister-in-law?"
"Even then." His hand came up, cupping my cheek. His touch was unbearably gentle. "I'm trying not to be offended. Choosing me shouldn't be this difficult, Noah. Watching you struggle to make it makes me want to punch something."
"Of course you'd say that!" I pulled away, the tears starting to well up. "You're not losing anything! I'll lose everything! My family, my company, my only chance to find my mother's killer!"
Choose me anyway. Lose everything. I promise you, I am worth it.
I would have given anything for him to say those words but he didn't. He didn't say anything.
He leaned in and kissed me. And God, I kissed him back. It was a kiss full of desperate promises and impossible futures.
But then I saw us. Our reflection in the dark glass of the window. Him, all power and perfection. Me, with my red-rimmed eyes and my too-big shirt.
It was a scene from one of my bad rom-coms. It wasn't real life. One day, he'd really look. He'd see the difference between us, and he'd toss me aside. And it would be too late because I'd have nothing left.
I think he saw the moment I made my decision.
"Nicolette..."
The tears fell down my face so fast I couldn't stop them.
"I'm going to marry your brother." I choked out. "I'm going to be sensible. I can give up everything else for you, but I can't give up finding who killed my mother or the company she loved almost as much as me. I can't gamble on that."
The light in his eyes vanished. "Then you've just made the worst decision of your life." His voice was final. It wasn't a threat; it was a prophecy.
The words were a physical blow. I turned and walked to the door, my legs shaking. I opened it, ready to step into my miserable, sensible future.
And there she was.
A goddess. Tall, blonde, legs for days. The kind of woman who belonged on Caid's arm. She looked at me with a polite, bored curiosity before walking past me as if I were invisible.
"Cady, darling, I let myself in," she said, her voice was a purr. She went straight to him, and I saw his hand lift to her waist, a familiar, possessive gesture that shattered what was left of my heart.
I stood frozen in the doorway, a spectator to my own nightmare.
"Who's your friend, Cady? Introduced us" the model asked, not even looking at me.
I found my voice, thankfully "Nobody," I answered for him. "I was just leaving."
I forced myself to take one last look. Caid's gaze met mine over her shoulder. There was no apology there. No explanation. Just that same, chilling calm.
"Have a nice life," I whispered.
I walked out, the door clicking shut behind me. I almost made it to the elevator when I heard his door open again. Heavy, quick footsteps followed. His hand grabbed my arm, spinning me around. He crowded me against the wall, his body caging me in.
"You are not a nobody," he growled, his eyes blazing with a fury that felt like possession.
"Aren't I?" I choked out. "You didn't stop me. You didn't stop her."
"I don't beg," he repeated, his voice a low, vicious promise. "But understand this. You walking down that aisle doesn't end this. It starts it. You want to play the sensible wife? Fine. But I will be the ghost in your marriage, Noah. The thought you can't shake. I will make sure you never forget whose you are."
He released me just as the elevator doors slid open. He stepped back, his expression hardening.
"Go be sensible," he said, turning away. "See how long it lasts."