NICK (Carsonbrothers Book 3)

by S R Dyble

  "Tonight at 9pm, the jet will be ready. We have to be there and ready to leave."

  I nodded.

  "Nick?"

  He stared at me for as long as he could and waited for me to speak.

  "He said to be careful, that he knows more than we think he does. That he has people watching everywhere."

  Nick's jaw hardened as did his hands around the steering wheel before he thumped his hand hard against it. He was absolutely furious as he took out his phone and made a phone call and placed it on loud-speaker.

  "Nick?" Kit answered on the first ring. "Did you find her?"

  "It was him, Kit, it was fucking him!"

  "Where is she?"

  "Kit, I'm here," I said and lowered my hand over Nick's as I saw his hand trembling with anger.

  "Lilly, sweetheart, are you okay?"

  “I’m okay,” I answered, trying to sound calm.

  “Lilly, I need you to tell me everything, can you do that? Tell me what happened.”

  "Omar, it was fucking Omar! He sent Omar to kill her," Nick yelled through gritted teeth.

  "He let me go, Kit.” I cut Nick off before he could rage anymore. “He… he…"

  Nick stared at me as I thought about Omar kissing me. Why did he do that?

  "He told me that your father knows more than we think he does. That he has eyes everywhere."

  Silence lingered for the shortest time and I stared at Nick.

  “We have to act now," Kit said, forcefully.

  "He could just be bluffing," Nick answered.

  "Why would Omar let me go if he wasn't telling the truth?" I asked.

  "It could all be part of the plan to get you to trust Omar," Kit said.

  "To get us all to trust him so our eyes are elsewhere and not where they need to be," Nick added. “If you trust Omar, they could use that to their advantage in the future.”

  "No, that's not right…" I continued trying to get my point across but both of them kept speaking at the same time, overcrowding my mind and making me lash out.

  "Lilly, you think you know him but they do things like this—"

  "I don’t know him but I know it’s not what you think, he—"

  “Lilly—”

  “He kissed me, alright?!" I shouted, silencing them both.

  Nick stared at me, then pulled the car into a street before pulling to a stop.

  "He kissed you?" he asked me.

  "Yes, he kissed me then told me what I have just told you, that your father knows more than..." I trailed off as he continued to stare at me.

  Silence created a thick atmosphere in the car and I almost forgot about Kit still on loud-speaker.

  "Nick, just get to the hotel and call me back," Kit said, then hung up straight after.

  Nick looked around the street full of cars.

  "Why didn't you tell me he'd kissed you?" he asked.

  "I haven't had the chance…" I explained simply.

  He nodded and opened his car door. "We have to walk from here. We can't risk them finding our car in the hotel car park."

  "You think they're looking for us?"

  "I don't know what's happening right now, but until I do, we disappear..."

  I nodded and got out, I rushed to Nick's side and he stared at me before throwing his rucksack over his back and gripping my hand.

  I wanted to talk to him about Omar kissing me, but he wasn’t even here with me right now. His eyes were too busy, searching everywhere to make sure we were safe. He made sure to look behind us and kept a tight hold of my hand while trying to remain casual so that no one would suspect differently.

  We walked about two miles to the hotel and I listened as he gave fake names for the pair of us and fake ID. I had to hide my shock as he showed the lady behind the counter the two sets of fake ID he had.

  Once Nick had paid for the night, he took my hand and led me away. In the lift up to our room, people stared at me. I hadn't realised until now but I looked naked beneath Nick's large hoodie.

  "Chose the wrong day to wear shorts." I gestured to my legs and the lady chuckled with me in agreement. Once the doors opened and she got out, my smile was wiped clean and I stared at myself in the mirror. I was an absolute mess.

  The lift continued higher and higher and everyone vacated until we were the only ones left. I began shivering as we eventually reached our room and Nick led me inside. The second we were inside, Nick searched around the rooms and then pulled out a black gun from the back of his trousers that was hidden beneath his clothes. I had no idea he had it. He placed it onto the wooden surface and stared at me.

  "You should go take a bath to warm up," he said and I stared back at him.

  I couldn't wrap my head around everything that had happened, up until that moment I had acted on instinct—getting myself back to Nick and remaining as calm as possible. Now we had a moment to rest, a wave of shock swept over my mind as well as the realisation that I would have been dead right now if not for Omar, made me feel sick.

  "We're safe here, Lill', go take a bath. I'm going to call Kit, I'll be right here."

  Eventually, I nodded and headed into the luxuriously styled bathroom. It reminded me of the bathroom in the hotel room I'd stayed at in Cornwall. The same bathroom Nick had shared a bath with me in after he'd surprised me by showing up. It felt like forever ago and now we were hiding in a beautiful hotel, needing to get home so we could be safe. Even then, would we be safe? Would we ever be safe?

  I started thinking about Eve and Erin and sickness consumed me, worrying about them. I always knew we were in danger. I'd been face to face with it before. I killed a woman for Christ’s sake. She hadn’t even been related to these guys tryna kill me. It dawned on me then, now more so than ever, just how bad this was. We'd been lounging in Australia for weeks as if nothing was happening at all. That had to have been the calm before the storm.

  Once my bath was full and with the appropriate amount of bubbles inside from the complimentary bottle on the side, I stripped down and climbed in.

  I'd hung my clothes onto the radiator but there was no chance they'd be dry any time soon. They were absolutely drenched and there was no need for a radiator to be on, battling the air-conditioning trying to keep us cool...

  Thankfully, there was a dressing gown hanging on the back of the bathroom door that I could wear until it was time to leave.

  I sat with my legs high against my body and could hear Nick talking intently to Kit on the phone in the other room. He was pacing and had put the Tele on, probably to mask his conversation in case there was someone listening.

  Although apparent how trained Nick actually was, I hadn’t actually witnessed the full extent of his knowledge until now. Earlier it had been like walking through the busy streets with a marine, he was so trained and diligent.

  The longer I sat there, the more clear it became in my mind just how lucky I'd been. I had experienced nothing compared to what Eve had been through. She was an unbelievable person to go through everything she had been through, and still be standing strong. Up until this day, I still didn't know the full extent of what had happened to Eve the night she'd been kidnapped with her family. It bothered me a lot, now more so than ever because I was more involved. Until now, it had really bothered me that I didn't know, but had just accepted that I would never have the answers to the questions swimming in my head, that I'd never fully understand what she had been through. To know now that those things could happen to me too, laid heavy on my mind.

  After about thirty minutes of soaking in the bath, I couldn't hear Nick talking on the phone anymore and the bathroom door opened.

  He walked into the bathroom and sat on the toilet after placing the lid down.

  "You've been in there a while," he said and I nodded.

  He rubbed his face before staring at me again. “Are you okay?" he asked, not taking his eyes off of me.

  I had been crying some more since I'd been in the bath but I nodded and stood up to get out. I wrapped t
he towel around myself and another around my now washed hair and walked past him. He took hold of my hand and made me stand in front of him.

  "It's okay to not be okay, you know that, right?"

  Again, I nodded.

  "Speak to me, Lill'."

  "I don't know what to say. I'm in shock, I guess…"

  He nodded and stood up, towering over me. He pulled me towards him and wrapped his arms around me.

  "Do you wanna order some food?"

  I shook my head and stared up at him.

  "You haven't eaten since breakfast, please Lill', eat something."

  I thought about it and eventually agreed.

  I followed him as he led me into the other room and grabbed the dressing gown as we walked past the door.

  I sat on the bed as Nick picked up the phone and rang for room service. I didn't request him to order anything specific, I couldn't even think about food right now.

  I busied myself by ruffling my hair dry with my towel while still sitting with the other wrapped around my body.

  Once Nick put the phone down, I stared at the gun still sitting on the side as he neared me.

  "How long have you had the fake IDs?" I asked him.

  "From the moment we left the UK, it was just a precaution and now I'm glad I took it. No one knows we're here and it has to stay that way. I didn't show you because I didn't want to worry you."

  "Why would fake ID worry me?"

  "Because needing a fake ID means something like this has to happen in order for us to use it. I didn't want you worrying that this would happen. I didn't think it would," he explained.

  I nodded and got up to take my towel off. I stood there naked with my back towards him as I picked up the dressing gown. Just before I was about to place it around my body, I felt him just behind me, his breath against my shoulder before he kissed it.

  "I thought I'd lost you today," he said against my skin.

  I turned to face him, the fact that I was naked didn't matter. I placed my hands on his body and looked up at him.

  "I've never been so scared in all my life. I know it sounds weak but…" he trailed off and ran a few strands of my hair between his fingers.

  "You're not weak, Nick. Telling me how you’re feeling doesn't make me think you're weak, it makes me love you more."

  He gave me a small smile as I brought my lips to his. Then he wrapped his arms around my bare body and held me against him.

  "I'm sorry I let Omar kiss me, I didn't know he was going to do that."

  He shook his head. "You don't have to apologise for anything."

  "I do," I nodded, getting to what I really needed to talk about.

  "The things I said this morning, I didn't mean them. I just said it to—"

  "Baby, I know."

  I nodded. "And you're right, I am terrified. I am a coward."

  He brought his hands to my face and made me look at him.

  "You're not a coward, Lilly. I also said things I didn't mean, I'm sorry."

  I didn't want to cry again but I could feel my eyes watering.

  "I love you so much, Nick. I'm not afraid of it, I'm just afraid of losing you."

  "You won't lose me. I'm not going to lose you again. I love you too, so much it consumes me. I won't rest until I know you're safe. Until I know our family is safe."

  "Lilly, everything is fine. Please eat," Nick said, pushing the plate further towards me.

  I watched as he placed the gun back onto the side after hiding it from the guy bringing our food. Then he sat on the bed across from me, the food tray between the two of us. He picked up his sandwich and took a large bite.

  "I envy you right now," I told him as I watched him devour his sandwich.

  "You want some?" he asked with his mouth full.

  I smiled. "No, I meant the way you can eat right now. I'm too nervous to eat anything."

  "I have you here with me and you're safe. I think celebrating with a sandwich is well-deserved."

  I raised my eyebrows and smiled at him before picking up my sandwich and taking a bite.

  "There you go." He smiled before placing his hand on my bare leg and giving it a gentle rub.

  "When we leave, will we go back to your car?"

  He shook his head. "I'm not talking about it until you've finished eating."

  He got up after devouring his sandwich and walked towards the window.

  "Have you seen the view?" he asked and I shook my head. Truth was, I didn't dare go near the windows. As if I thought they could somehow reach us this high up from the window if I dared to look. I knew it was stupid. We'd look like ants to the people passing below, but still I was afraid to look at the outside world in case they were looking for us. Nick's face changed as if he'd heard my thoughts and he held out his hand.

  "Come here," he said.

  I dared to stand up and edged closer to his hand then he pulled me closer and towards the window. Once there, he wrapped his arms around me from behind as I stood absolutely astounded by the amazing view before me.

  "This is amazing," I said as the sun started descending in the distance.

  It meant that soon we would have to leave the hotel room and go to the airport. Time had passed so quickly today, it felt like only five minutes ago that I had my first conversation with Omar.

  "Delta has arranged for another car to meet us here, then I'll drive us to the airport. I can't risk them knowing what car we have."

  I nodded.

  "What are you thinking about, Lill'?"

  I turned to look at him. "I was so angry that my parents had left, that they'd returned to their report. Now I'm glad, they're safer being out at sea than around me."

  Guilt showed on his face then.

  "None of this is your fault, Nick."

  "Don't say that, Lilly. They wouldn't be tryna kill you if it weren't for my father ordering them to do so. Of course it's my fault. I can only apologise, and I swear that we will end this. Me and my brothers won’t ever stop until this is all over. "

  "I don't accept your apology," I told him and I could see it had shocked him. "Because it's not needed. You've done nothing wrong. None of your brothers have. I know together you're a force to be reckoned with and your dad should be shitting bricks right now."

  He smiled and pulled me towards him to kiss me.

  "You should get dressed, the car will be here soon."

  I nodded and headed towards the bathroom.

  "Wait," Nick said before walking over to his bag.

  He pulled out a piece of denim and my eyes widened as he handed me a pair of my denim shorts.

  "You left these at the beach house. I grabbed them on my way out."

  I took them from him and for once I was thankful for my foolishness and for forgetting them. I then moved past him and dug my hands into his bag before pulling out one of his black t-shirts. I smiled at him as he watched me nabbing his clothes and I rose up onto my tip-toes to thank him before pecking him on the cheek and heading into the bathroom.

  I stared at myself in the mirror. I had no make-up or a hair brush… I didn't care about make-up, I had bigger things to worry about, but I needed a way to brush my hair so I could shove it into a bobble.

  At that moment, Nick peeped his head around the door and held out a brush for me.

  "I swear you can read my mind," I told him.

  "No, I just watch you a lot… I knew you'd need a brush."

  He smiled and then it faded. "That sounded creepy," he said, making me laugh.

  "Thank you," I said, gesturing to the brush before brushing all of my hair back and platting it.

  I pulled on my underwear and denim shorts, then Nick's t-shirt that I tucked into the denim shorts. I left a little hanging out and then pulled my converse on. I returned to Nick, somewhat ready to leave the room.

  I feared the worst as he stared at me.

  "How is it that no matter what, you look like that?"

  "Like what?" I asked, staring down at my body.
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  He moved towards me, his face only centimetres from mine as I looked up at him.

  "Flawless," he said before gently kissing my lips.

  "You've gotta stop talking like that, we have to leave…"

  "Why, what will happen if I continue telling you how beautiful you are?" He tested me, coming even closer. I gulped and stared into his eyes.

  "I might get carried away and…" My lips trailed along his and my eyes closed at the contact against his puffy, soft lips.

  This was the last thing I should have been thinking about, but there was nothing I could do. The world could be ending just outside our door and I wouldn't be able to resist Nick Carson.

  "Then perhaps I shouldn't tell you that your legs are ridiculously perfect, and the thought of them wrapped around my neck drives me crazy, especially when you're wearing those damn shorts, or one of your mini-dresses…"

  "Then I shouldn't tell you that your arms flexing like that does weird things to the centre of my body, and your fingers gripping onto me like they are right now, are—"

  I didn't get a chance to finish, Nick had pushed me onto the bed and knocked the words from my mouth as he stripped away my shorts and underwear.

  "Enough talking, baby, open those legs for me now," he told me as he climbed over my body.

  Like he even had to ask...

  I hummed as he started kissing my ankles, then kissed every section of skin up to my inner thigh.

  "I love every inch of your body," he told me before flicking his eyes to mine from where he hovered between my legs.

  "Nick, now," I told him breathlessly. "I need you now."

  "You don't want me to kiss you here first," he said, trailing his fingers over my folds.

  "No, Nick, fuck me, please." I told him, more forceful.

  He smiled and undressed himself to reveal his large member. I didn't have to order him anymore, once he saw the way I looked at his bare body, he slid inside of me and made love to me just the way that I needed.

  Once we were both relieved, we didn't have much time to lavish on each other. Nick handed me my clothes and I handed him his and as soon as we were dressed, Nick shoved his gun back into the back of his jeans before taking my hand and pulling me with him.