TENSE - Volume Two (The TENSE Duet Book 2)

by Deborah Bladon

  "You think we'll be together for a while then?"

  Forever, Sophia. I think we'll be together forever because if we're not, my lungs will never fill with enough oxygen again. You give me life. You make me see the potential of tomorrow.

  "Do you want to be with me in the future?" I ask her. "Tell me what your future looks like."

  "I feel safe and loved."

  "By me?" I ask as I kiss her temple. "Tell me that it's me that you see in your future."

  "Only you," she whispers on a sigh. "You're the only man I see in my future."

  I love you. I mouth the words against her cheek before I slide my hand down her body and along the seam of her pussy.

  "Make me come with your fingers." She opens her legs for me.

  I circle her swollen clit with the pad of my thumb. "I'll make you come like this if you promise me I can fuck you raw in the shower."

  Her hips circle in a slow sensual dance. "How can I say no to that?"

  I kiss her, my tongue stroking the inside of her lips as I strum a beat over her clit and drive her to the edge of her first orgasm of the night.

  ***

  "Nicholas!" She screams my name as I wrap both her thighs around my waist. "It's too much."

  "It's never enough," I pant between thrusts. I've got her in my arms, her back against the tiled wall of my shower as hot water beats down on us.

  I lapped at her pussy after she came against my lips. Then I kissed her softly, knowing that she was experiencing the same taste of her that I had.

  After that, I carried her to the shower. She dropped to her knees to take me in her mouth, but I yanked her back up after less than two minutes. Coming all over her face is something I crave but blowing my load anywhere but inside of her isn't happening right now.

  I sheathed my aching cock, cursing the fact that I had to. I want inside of her with nothing on. I want to feel the tight walls of her pussy gripping me like a vise. I need that but I know she's not ready for that step. I don't fucking blame her. There are risks that come with sex without a condom.

  Once I turned the water on, she melted into my arms. Her damp hair clung to the side of her face, veiling the sheen that had overtaken her skin when she came earlier.

  Now, as I fuck her with long easy strokes, she whimpers against me.

  I want her to come again before I do, so I up the tempo.

  Her lips press a kiss to my jaw as every thrust takes me deeper. "Nicholas…"

  The only thing that follows my name is a low moan as she comes in sweet surrender before I fuck her to my own release.

  Chapter 21

  Sophia

  "Are you busy next Wednesday?" I towel dry my hair. "Gabriel invited us for dinner at his place."

  "Did he?" He pulls on a pair of black sweatpants. "I'd love to go. Are you good with that?"

  I am. I'm actually looking forward to it. I haven't had a chance to see Nicholas and Gabriel together since they've become friends. I miss Isla too. When I was Gabriel's assistant, she'd stop in to see him at least a few times a week. Now that I'm in the design department, I don't get a chance to chat with her.

  "I think we'll have a good time."

  "I know we will." He hangs up the towel he used to dry my body after our shower. "We should bring something. Wine or flowers, maybe?"

  "I think the fact that you're going to be there is the only gift they need," I joke.

  He rolls his eyes, but smiles. "Gabriel's gotten over the fact that I'm Nicholas Wolf."

  "You haven't met Isla yet." I bite my lower lip. "She's a bigger fan than Gabriel. Expect to be the center of attention at that dinner."

  "I may be the center of attention for her, but you'll have my attention for the entire evening."

  I know that he's desperate to make up for what happened between us at Hibiscus, but I take every word he says to me now at face value. I've never felt as cherished by a man as I do by him.

  I'm tempted to ask if I can stay the night, but I want to present the finished sample of one of my new designs for Ella Kara to Sasha tomorrow morning. "I need to get home. I have a lot of work to do."

  "I can take you." He pats his bare chest. "I just need to throw on a coat and some shoes and I'm good to go."

  Panic washes over me. I shouldn't feel like this. He's safe. "It's cold out. I can manage to get home on my own."

  His eyes scan my face, stopping on my kiss-swollen lips. "Trust is a two-way street, Sophia."

  I know it is. I've told myself that over-and-over again the last few weeks. He broke my trust in him and he's been working overtime to rebuild it. "I trust you."

  "Do you have a roommate?" He leans his hip against the bathroom counter.

  "No," I answer quickly, toying with the belt of the white robe he wrapped me in after I stepped out into the cool bathroom from the heated shower. "I live alone."

  "You don't live at work, do you?"

  "Sometimes it feels that way," I say to avoid what I should be saying. "I have an apartment. It actually belongs to Cadence. I was her roommate before she moved in with Tyler."

  "Are you a hoarder?" There's amusement in his tone. I know he's trying to lighten the mood but it's not helping. "If I come over will you have hundreds of empty take-out containers covering every inch of available space?"

  "Only on the nights when I watch Netflix with Cadence."

  "Tell me why, Sophia." He stalks toward me. "Tell me why I can't come to your place."

  "I don't want to have this discussion in a bathroom," I stall. "And it's late. We should talk about this another time."

  He reaches for my hand. "Come with me."

  I have no choice. I follow him in silence, the entire time my heart pounding so hard it feels like the wall of my chest will split open.

  He stops when we near the piano bench. "Sit."

  I do. I lower myself onto the bench, carefully tucking the long robe around my legs. He pulls the chair next to the piano along the floor until it's right in front of me. When he sits down, his knees touch mine.

  "I want to understand the hesitation." He cradles both of my hands in his. "Trust me enough to tell me what's going on."

  Cadence is the only person in New York City who knows. I thought I could leave my past back in Florida but that's proven impossible. "Do you remember that call I took when we were at the hotel?"

  He nods his head briskly. "The day we went up to Mrs. Foster's suite and ate a fantastic burger on her dime?"

  "Yes." I lower my eyes to our hands.

  "Who called?"

  "A lawyer." My hands start to shake but he quiets them. His thumbs trace small circles on my palms.

  "Your lawyer?" His voice is as gentle as his touch. He's guiding me toward a confession. He deserves it. I kept justifying in my mind that I was right to not share this part of my life with him after what happened between us at Hibiscus. I was using his mistake to shelter my secret. It was wrong. I see that now. He wants to care for me and he can't fully do that if he doesn’t understand my hesitation to take him to my place.

  "No." I skip past the explanation of who the woman was who called me that night. "Something happened when I was living in Florida. I need to tell you about that."

  Our eyes catch. I see understanding in his. I'm sure he sees reluctance in mine. "Take it as slowly as you need to. I'm not going anywhere."

  I want to go. I want to bolt and pretend that what happened was all a bad dream. I don't want him to look at me any differently than he has up to this point. I don't want his touch to become tentative and guarded out of fear that I'll buckle from the pain of my past. "It was a long time ago. It happened back in Florida."

  He doesn't flinch. The statement is so general that I expected a deluge of questions to follow.

  "It was during my first year of college. I wanted the full experience so I rented an apartment off campus."

  "I can understand that."

  Our eyes catch. "I was dating a man. A boy, I guess. We were the same age."


  His jaw tightens. "Did he hurt you?"

  That's a hard question to answer. Franco never raised a hand to me. He was as kind as anyone I'd ever met, but that doesn’t mean he wasn't dangerous. "I broke up with him after we slept together a few times. It wasn't good. I didn't feel anything for him and the experience left me with so much regret."

  "He didn't take it well?"

  I shake my head. "He was angry, sad, the whole gamut of emotions that come with a bad break-up. He tried to get me back for months after that."

  "You held strong though?" He runs a hand down his bare chest. It's a thoughtless gesture on his part but it stirs something within me. He's muscular and firm. He could probably pummel Franco to near death with his bare hands.

  I shake off the thought. "I didn't want to be with him. I told him that over and over but he wouldn't stop bothering me. He'd follow me everywhere, send me flowers and gifts. He even showed up at my parent's house in a tuxedo asking for their permission to marry me."

  "He sounds unstable." He lets out a deep breath. "Did you speak to the police about him?"

  "Dozens of times." I rub my temple. "I took out so many restraining orders that I lost count. He was arrested just as many times."

  "He was stalking you." It's a clear statement. "What an asshole."

  "Eventually he went to jail. It had nothing to do with me. He was convicted of tax evasion." I sigh wishing that was the end of the story. "He got out early a few months ago."

  "Has he contacted you since?"

  I nod. "I saw him once on the sidewalk outside Foster Enterprises. I ran to the security guard who is always in the lobby and Franco disappeared around the corner. I called the police then."

  "So there's a restraining order now? It's valid in New York?"

  I scrub my hand over my face. "Yes and he's back in Florida now."

  "How can you be sure?" He taps my knee with his fingers. "Do you have someone trailing him?"

  "My dad," I chuckle. "My dad knows where Franco works. He keeps an eye on the place and lets me know when he's not around."

  "I can have someone shadow you, Sophia. I can do it myself if need be. I don't want this guy getting close to you again."

  I should tell him that I doubt like hell that Franco would ever raise a hand to me but it's impossible to predict what someone who is emotionally unstable will do. "I'm fine. As long as I know where he is I feel safe."

  "He knows you work at Foster," he says quietly. "Does the fucker know where you live?"

  I take a deep breath. This is it. "No. Only a handful of people know where I actually live and I want you to be one of them."

  Chapter 22

  Nicholas

  If given the chance I'd find the son of bitch who has put this fear in Sophia, and I'd steal his life from him. Short of that, I'd get my lawyer to drum up some charge that would send his ass back to jail for good.

  "When I first got to New York I stayed in a rundown motel in Queens." She moves her legs slightly, causing her ass to shift on the chair. "After I moved in with Cadence, I asked the woman who owned the motel if I could still use it as a mailing address. She said it was fine as long as I gave her a twenty dollar bill every month, so I do. When I have mail, she calls me and I go down and pick it up."

  "Did he ever show up there?"

  "Once." She raises her index finger in the air. "I found out about it when I picked up my mail. They told him I'd moved out months before. He waited in their parking lot in a rental car for days to confirm that."

  "You don't think he's followed you home from Foster?"

  "No." Her back straightens. "Whenever I know he's left Florida, I take extra precautions. My friend Dexie usually sends a car for me those days and I leave out Foster's service entrance and spend the night with her."

  "But you said you saw him outside Foster Enterprises one day? Did your father not realize he'd left Florida?"

  "My dad had a heart attack." Her voice is calm, her expression as well. "It was then."

  "I want his name, Sophia. If you won't let me hire someone to shadow you, I'll have someone trail him."

  I want that. It would give me a level of peace I've craved. It would also put me in his debt. "We can talk about that."

  "We will." He rubs my calf. "Tell me why you were speaking to a lawyer about all of this."

  "It was the lead prosecutor on the case." I smile slightly. "She's a good person and we've kept in touch. She wants to help, but her hands are tied. That day she called when we were at the hotel, she was checking in to make sure I was all right."

  I like knowing that someone in Florida's legal system has her back. It's not enough though. I can't stomach the thought of her walking down a street in this city alone now. "I'm glad to hear that. A case like this has to be frustrating for someone out to do the right thing."

  "I'm sorry I didn't let you come to my place." She leans forward, dragging her hand along the sash of the robe. "I've always thought that the fewer people who know where I live, the better."

  It's a painful pill to swallow, but I get it. She's been trying to protect herself from a monster who can't let her go.

  "I want to come to your place, Sophia. I want to have a friend of mine install an alarm system for you."

  "I have one." She nods. "Cadence had it put in before I moved in. She said it's the best of the best."

  Regardless of cost, it's still not enough to grant me peace of mind. "I'll have a look at it when I come over."

  She glances back at the green flashing light on the security panel by my front door. "You're an expert."

  "I have that to protect material things. Your security system has to protect you. It needs to do its job."

  "It does." She slides closer to me. "Will you take me home now, Nicholas?"

  When I thought about seeing her place for the first time, I envisioned a round of fucking to christen it under my touch. That's not going to happen tonight. I'll follow her lead but all I want is to hold her in my arms for the rest of her life. "I'll call for a car."

  "Let's take the subway." Her face brightens with a smile. "I love taking the subway with you."

  She likes melding into the crowd. It's her way of staying invisible. "I'm game as long as you promise to hold my hand."

  She reaches to grab my left hand. "I promise I'll hold tight and never let go."

  ***

  "I own the building she lives in." Crew looks out his office window at the skyline of Manhattan. "I haven't told her that because she'd flip out. Sophia thinks I'm one of those arrogant billionaires who own half this city."

  "You are one of those arrogant billionaires who own half the city." I chuckle.

  "There's a security guard at the door of her building at all times. I'll speak to the manager of the security team and fill him in on this dick that's stalking her. They'll keep an eye out for him. Give me his name."

  "Franco Abano. I sent you an email on my way here with all the details Sophia gave me. His work history, all the shit like that is in there."

  "Good. Let's talk about this Ella Kara thing she's got going on."

  After Sophia had taken me to her apartment last night, I asked her if Crew knew about Franco. She told me he didn't, but she said she'd be fine with me filling him in. I did just that as I rode the subway back to my place after kissing her goodnight. He was almost as alarmed as I was although I could tell he wasn't alone. He suggested I meet him at his office first thing this morning to discuss what steps I should be taking to protect Sophia. I would have asked Sebastian for his advice, but he's deep in a case right now.

  I spent most of last night thinking about Ella Kara. Sophia's name and face are going to be splashed across every fashion magazine in the country come fall. Even though Franco already knows she's based in New York, it gives him insight into where she'll be at certain times. She's the brand, so she'll be expected to be on stage when the collection debuts at New York Fashion Week. That makes her vulnerable in a way I can't accept.
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br />   "I'll hire someone to shadow her." My gaze shifts from the view of the city to his face. "You must have people you use. Give me a name."

  "Run this by her first, Nick." His fingers graze over the screen of his phone. "Give her a chance to have a say in this. She's proud. She'll be pissed if you hire someone to protect her without her input."

  He's right. Sophia insisted last night before I left that she was fine. I can't take steps to deal with this without speaking to her first. "I appreciate your help with this, Crew."

  "Sophia's like a sister to me. I love her almost as much as I love Lark. I'd do anything to keep Lark safe. It's the same for Sophia in my mind."

  I know how much his younger sister means to him. He'd step in front of a bus for her. "I'll talk to Sophia and then I'll get moving on security for the launch of Ella Kara."

  "Or I'll go down to Florida and talk to Franco."

  I chuckle." Talk or beat the shit out of?"

  "Whatever works, my friend. If he doesn't back off, I'll have someone down there pay him a visit."

  "No need." I stand, shoving my chair back. "If it comes to that, I'll take care of it myself."

  Chapter 23

  Sophia

  "You've done excellent work on this collection, Sophia." Sasha holds up the latest sample I created. It's a fitted dress with an embroidered bodice and a slit up the back of the skirt. "I'm impressed with this one in particular. I think we should have one of our team make a mock-up in red."

  I'd considered that before I'd taken hours out of my life to make it in black. "That's fine. We can show both to Gabriel."

  "We will." Her fingers play with the pearl bracelet on her arm. "I have to admit; I was hesitant when Gabriel first suggested this idea."

  "The idea of the Ella Kara label bearing my name?" I've expected this conversation for weeks. Sasha has held a pivotal position within the design department of Foster Enterprises for years. She's nurtured the careers of many aspiring designers and has watched several, including Evlin Dawn, branch out and establish collections of their own. It has to sting that I was given this opportunity and not her.