by Nana Malone
“Dad met someone else—Judith. She practically brought me up. Judith didn’t have kids of her own and she treated me like she would have done her own. She was, she is, my second mum and I love her like one. So ... almost a year ago, I found out that Dad's been shagging the head of marketing for over a year. Behind Judith’s back.” He shook his head. Even now, disbelief was his overriding feeling. “I just couldn’t stomach looking at him anymore.”
Sophie reached out and touched his arm. The gesture was nice, encouraging. “I walked out. Never went back.”
“Does Judith know?” Sophie asked gently.
“No. I can't face her. I’ve told Dad that he needs to tell her. He’s point-blank refused. Said the marketing bird was nothing. Meaningless. All the usual excuses. And he knows I’d rather die myself than hurt Judith. As far as I’m concerned, I want nothing more to do with him.”
14
Sophie
Shock. That was the only emotion that coursed through her veins. First at his honesty, then that he’d given her something so personal. And finally, how strongly he felt about his father’s cheating. She’d taken him for a pussy hound, yes. She’d maybe subconsciously included thinking cheating was no problem.
Just another thing you were wrong about.
Had someone told her all this and then asked her opinion a week ago, she’d have quickly assumed that Nathan was a poor little rich boy who was quick to judge and only out for himself.
It seemed as though the more she learned about him, the more surprised she felt. He was certainly nothing like you’d assume he would be, if you were to judge purely on looks and snapshots of lifestyle.
“I’m sorry you’ve been through all that. Do you think that having an honest conversation with your dad might help? Why can’t you explain it to him how you have to me?”
Nathan shook his head. “I don’t want to have to. I want the man I used to admire to do the right thing and figure it out for himself.” He shrugged, making his statement look more nonchalant than Sophie believed he really felt, and then he caught her eye.
His look sent a shiver of excitement through her. Despite having opened up to her about something so personal, the stormy depths of his eyes still contained that slightly mischievous light. If she stared too long, she knew for sure that her mind would wonder how that sexy mischief could manifest itself in the bedroom. She had to halt it before a blush crept over her cheeks and the inner workings of her mind would be visible to Nathan.
“Right. Now that I’ve told you my entire life history, I think it’s time we get cracking.” He glanced around the room. “You see anyone you like the look of?”
Sophie’s heart sank. “We’re really doing this, huh?” She had hoped … It was stupid but she’d thought that they’d been connecting. She’d even been naive enough to hope that the whole training session was just a smooth ruse by him to get her on a date.
“Fuck yeah we’re doing this.”
Apparently not. “You need to find someone who you think looks fit, and then start a conversation. Once you’ve get to know them a bit, the most important thing is that you’re honest and say that you’re not after anything long-term.”
I’ve found someone hot, Sophie looked at him, feeling more disappointed than she really cared to admit. “And then what? How do I suddenly go from finding someone hot and taking him home to having no feelings for him the next day?”
“Because you control yourself. You know from the start it’s a one night thing and so does he. It makes for a great, selfish fuck and you just kind of, hold back because you know it’s just that night. Or afternoon. Whatever.” He laughed at her skeptical impression. “I promise you it works. Only take numbers before you’ve had your fun and delete them afterward.”
She twisted her fingers together, nervous and uncertain. She just wanted to stay right here, talking and drinking with Nathan. The way he’d kissed her had been so passionate, but then he said all that stuff about not becoming involved emotionally at all. He was such an infuriating paradox.
Feeling infuriated by him was such comfortable, familiar territory it spurred Sophie on to speak up. “Do you want another scotch? I mean, I appreciate you’re taking time out to help me here, but I really think I’m gonna need a couple more drinks before I’m brave enough to approach some poor, unsuspecting dude.”
Nathan held his hands up. “No pressure. Your call.”
"Are you sure this is a good idea?"
Nathan gave her that lethal grin before he took a sip of his scotch. "Yes. Come on. you’ve got to do this. Just walk up to someone, smile, and be confident. I promise you: you're beautiful, so any guy you walk up to will preen. And then let him drive the conversation."
She scowled at him. "Yeah, you make that sound easy. Besides, aren't I supposed to let the guys chase me?"
He nodded. "Oh, you are. And you will. All you're doing is walking up and presenting the bait and saying hello. Let them do all the rest of the chasing. You're worth being chased."
Sophie was happy that at least he couldn't see her flush in this lighting. "Right. I’m worth the chase. All right then." She took her shot of tequila and poured it down the hatch. God, that burned. But she was going to need this mortification. "Okay, who were you pointing me at?"
Nathan surveyed the crowd at the bar. "The guy in a suit, no tie, in the corner by the door. He's been darting glances over here for a minute. He's trying to figure out if we're together or not."
Sophie slid a glance over. "Oh my God, he is ridiculously good-looking."
Nathan scoffed. "Please. You shagged hotter. Come on. Off you get."
Jesus Christ, how could he so casually talk about them having sex like that and feel absolutely nothing in terms of any jealousy? This is how you need to be. No fear. No jealousy. Just go out there and lay it all out there. "Okay, let's do this."
"Remember: walk up; smile; say hello. Let him do the work after that."
Right. He made it all sound so easy. But there was no backing out now. Casual. Fun. The whole point was to prove she could do this. You're crazy. Yes, yes she was, but she was doing it anyway.
It turned out that Nathan wasn't entirely wrong. The moment she walked up to the suited guy by the door, he grinned. And when she said hi, he did take over. As it turned out, she didn't have to do much except stand there and smile, sip on her drink. It was easy, except he was dreadfully boring. He was a foot doctor or something. She hadn't really been paying attention. The whole time she could feel Nathan's gaze boring on her back. She wanted to turn to look at him. But that wasn't the point of this exercise. The point of this exercise was to meet someone. Someone like him, someone that she never even thought to try and get, someone exciting. That was not this guy.
So Doctor by the Door leaned forward. "What do you say we get out of here?"
Sophie blinked up at him. "Oh, out of here?" He was just asking to take her back to his place or something? Gosh, she was so out of practice with this. It turned out she needn't have panicked. She could feel the hand at the small of her back and she knew that touch. It was warm. Electrifying. It sent shivers up her back in the way that Doctor by the Door couldn't manage. What the hell was his name again?
"Excuse me, mate. I'm just going to go over here and sweep this beautiful girl for a moment."
Doctor by the Door scowled. "Just who the fuck do you think you are? Sophie and I were having a conversation."
Nathan didn't even skip a beat. "Oh, she didn't mention? She's already engaged, to me. We like to do this thing every once in a while where, you know, we invite someone else into our bed. I don't think I like the look of you. You don't look like you know how to suck—"
Doctor by the Door’s eyes went wide and backed up a step. Sophie whacked Nathan on the arm. "Oh my God, you are impossible."
He led her away. "He wasn't the right one for you anyway. Oh my God, I could actually see you falling asleep on your feet."
"But did you have to say that? Dear God, no
w he thinks—"
Nathan laughed. "Now he thinks you're extremely adventurous. Besides, it doesn't matter. It's not like you're going to go home with him anyway."
"Yeah, you have a point. God, he was boring."
But that didn't deter Nathan. He directed her toward an edgy looking guy at the end of the bar. "Okay, try him next.”
Under this guy's rolled up sleeves, she could see hints of tattoos. He also had an earring in one ear. He was dressed sharp, but there was a hint of edge to him. "Oh, okay, that's more like it."
Nathan scowled. "You'd like him? I thought you had taste."
She laughed. "You're the one who said I need variety and fun. He looks like he might be fun. He's clearly not afraid of being a little bit edgy."
He nodded. "Yeah, whatever. Have at it. I'll be at the bar. Send up a smoke signal if you need it."
Turned out the guy at the end of the bar? His name was Adam. And surprise, surprise, he was a musician, which really didn't bother her much when she mentioned she was in promotions and events, he got extra chatty. Within five minutes of her conversation with him, he was closing out his tab and ready to go shag. Sure enough Nathan stepped in again.
This time, he pretended to be drunk. "Oh, sorry mate. Oh, I just tripped and couldn't get my bearings."
Adam scowled. "You need to watch where you're going mate. You got— fucking whatever that is all down my shirt."
Nathan shrugged. "I'm so sorry mate. Do you me to wipe it off?" He signaled the bartender. "Can I have a rag? I need to wipe down my man's back here."
Adam shook his head and excused himself to the bathroom.
When he was gone, Sophie turned to Nathan. "What was wrong with him? He was cute and fun."
Nathan shook his head. "Yes, good-looking, fun, but you were giving that face, like you might get attached to that one and that is not the point of this experiment. We want fun, good-looking and disposable."
"Yeah, but what's the problem if I get attached? He was very cute."
He shook his head. "Nope. Not that one. Pick another one."
And off it went for three more tries. Eventually all she got was frustration. After thirty more minutes, Nathan had found a way to essentially cock-block every single guy she walked up to. But, on the plus side, she was no longer nervous. And it was actually kind of fun.
"What about him?" Nathan asked.
Sophie shook her head. "No. No more guys because you're going to find something wrong with each and every one of them. I'm tired and I need to get my shoes off my feet."
He nodded. "You're right. These guys were dodgy anyway. We'll try again. Do you want to go and watch a movie? I'm in sort of an old action flick, martial arts kind of mood."
She blinked at him. "You want to keep hanging out? You know what? Actually that sounds kind of good. I'm exhausted. Getting hit on is hard."
He chuckled as he threw an arm around her. "See, that's what I've been trying to tell you this whole time."
The hours passed like lightning. Sophie enjoyed the way that she seemed to make Nathan laugh and she was much more relaxed around him than she thought she’d have been.
Not once was she aware that she sat drinking in a bar with one of the richest men in London, though she was constantly aware that she was sat drinking with one of the hottest men in England. Every time he looked at her she felt the flap of several hundred butterflies in her tummy and each woman that passed them looked on in awe. Some of them even had the audacity to smile or wave at him. Sophie was incredulous by this behavior; okay, so she wasn’t on a date with him or anything, but it was still damn rude and disrespectful.
Nathan noticed but ignored them all. Unfortunately, his attention was completely on Sophie. It was unfortunate because she felt that if he could have at least lived up to her preconceptions of him being a womanizing philander who had no respect, it would have kept a bit of a lid on her ever increasing fantasies about him.
But she knew now that, even with extensive notches on his bedpost, he was extremely respectful. A womanizer he may have been, but he was no arsehole. In fact, Sophie was worried that he was quite the opposite.
Nathan
Nathan had wanted Sophie to give it a go with someone that evening. She needed to get back on the horse. She didn't need any more tears shed over men that weren’t worth it. But he could tell that she was still tense and not ready to try yet, and that was cool with him. He quite liked just hanging out.
He was getting closer to her than he would have liked; not that he normally kept secrets from the women he met, but he had never gone into quite so much detail before. She put him at ease and that, in turn, put him on edge.
Come on, you idiot. You’ve got friends you speak to; Sophie’s just a new friend, that’s all. But as he looked at her, he wondered if he really meant that.
After seeing how heartbreak had destroyed his father, he’d made a vow with himself never to be either the cause of it, or on the receiving end of it. And that meant not getting attached to the opposite sex, nor letting them get attached to him. He never wanted to experience that, not ever. He was, however, just a man. And she was a very pretty woman.
One simple kiss had gotten him all worked up last night. And now he wanted to kiss her again. What the fuck was wrong with him? Dammit, he really wanted to see her naked. But honestly, he’d be perfectly happy sitting here talking to her all night. What the hell was wrong with him?
And as much inner turmoil as he was in, she seemed completely comfortable. He knew his effect on women. And he knew last night she’d wanted him. The problem was, while she was able to just file that away, he was still thinking about her.
For the first time, a woman had been able to walk away and he didn’t entirely know what to do with that. It was new territory for him. Up until he’d met her, he would have been proud to tell anyone that he could read women like a book. Women were his area of expertise for God’s sake. But not this one. He still couldn’t figure her out.
It was difficult because he got on better with Sophie than he did some of his friends he’d known since childhood. He could say absolutely anything; nothing shocked or phased her. He could be unapologetically himself and not only did she accept it, she even teased him about some things too. The evening had been, unexpectedly, one of the best he’d had since arriving in London, and nobody had even taken their clothes off. Yet.
Fuck it. Go big or go home. Wasn’t that what the Yanks said? He met her gaze with his. “Do you want to stay here and have another or do you fancy coming up to my much bigger flat?”
“You know, I am quite curious as to what the other side of the building looks like.” She grinned. “I’ll accept because I’m nosy.”
The whole way home, all Nathan could think about was touching her. How had she gotten him so worked up? It was hardly as if she'd been laying the sexy attitude on thick; in fact, she’d been so casual with him she’d even snorted with laughter.
He was being pulled into her orbit despite it breaking all his rules, he actually wondered what it might be like to shag someone who he wanted to do more than just shag with. He was turned on by her personality. And that had never happened before.
You're in a twist mate.
Once inside the flat, she scoped it out by doing exactly as he had in hers, standing in the middle of the living room and surveying the area.
“This is insane,” she said, looking around in marvel. “It feels like it’s double the size of my place. How is that even possible?”
“Good interior designer.” He shrugged, not confessing that he’d actually designed the interior himself. His creative side was a part of him he kept well hidden. Being a business man and an artist were two very conflicting roles. He liked keeping them separate. “Oh, and the fact that my flat is the bigger of our two.” He smiled and nudged her affectionately. She retaliated immediately by shoving him hard with a laugh.
“So, what do you want to watch?”
Sophie frowned. “You were ser
ious about the movie?”
“Of course. Did you think I invited you up here to have my way with you?”
Sophie
Sophie flushed hot. Well, one could hope. But she hadn’t been thinking that exactly. “No. I figured you’d ply me with alcohol and your bad taste in music first.”
“You wound me. Pray tell me what is wrong with One Direction. I happen to think they have some soulful ballads. And that Harry, with the hair. He’s very handsome.” His lips twitched, giving him away.
“Let me guess: one of your female admirers loved them.”
He nodded. “You guessed it. In retrospect, I should never have given her a repeat showing. Except she did this thing with her tongue—” He cut himself off.
Sophie leaned closer. “Oh, c’mon. You have to tell me now. You cut my lesson off downstairs. I want to know what skill I can learn with my tongue to warrant a repeat performance.”
He cleared his throat and slid his gaze away. “We’ll move on to the bedroom skill later. Have a seat. Can I get you anything?”
“Wine is good. I’m not picky.”
He came back from the kitchen with two glasses of something white and chilled. While he’d been gone, she couldn’t help a little light snooping. There were photos of him looking younger with a woman smiling. Many with him and friends. None with anyone that might look like his father.
There was a larger one near the window. He was clearly younger. Maybe eight? With a beautiful woman. He got his blue eyes and mischievous smile from her. Sophie’s heart went out to him. The pain he must have gone through.
“Here you are. So what do you want to watch?”
She joined him on the couch as he pulled up the digital movie shelf on the telly screen.
“What do you have?”
“Everything. Honestly, Mum loved movies and theater. She used to take me to all those shows in the West End. I got bitten by the same bug. Let me guess. You want something sappy? I have Love Story.”
