The NSC Boxset: Heart of Stone

by D H Sidebottom

  He cocked his head and grinned. “Ooh dear!” he chuckled as he handed me a mug of much needed hot coffee and I scowled even harder.

  “I. Don’t. Like. Mornings,” I told him severely.

  “I may have noticed that, Angel,” He said grimly and then grinned again.

  “Will you stop bloody smiling?”

  Taking a sip of my coffee I saw his grin grow wider. He turned to look out of the window to hide it. I looked at him over my eyelids, taking another sip of my coffee. “I take it you’re excited to meet Jay.”

  Even with his back to me I could still feel the intensity of his grin. “Yeah,” he said simply, trying to hide his excitement as well as his nervousness.

  I walked over to him and snuggled into him from behind, resting my cheek on his back. “Jay has waited his whole life years for this too, Nate. I’m absolutely sure he’s just as much excited, nervous, happy and scared as you are, babe. But Nate, he is so much like you that I know you’re gonna get on brilliantly. Just take the day as it comes and be yourself, okay?”

  He turned into me and embraced me. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

  I smiled up to him, “Come on, let’s get going and you can treat me to breakfast on the way up.”

  I went to the pantry and pulled out a box of food, laundry cleaners and a huge pack of toilet rolls. Nate stared at me. “Liv, what are you doing?” he asked, his face full of puzzlement.

  I shrugged. “Nate, can’t you remember being at uni? How you’re always bloody skint. I always restock for him when I visit.”

  His eyes widened and he looked sheepish. I knew straight away he was feeling guilty. “Don’t you dare,” I said pointing at him but he looked away. “Nate, It’s not the university experience if you’re not skint.”

  He smiled and nodded his head a little. “But I have more money that I know what to do with and my bloody son is scrounging about for food. I mean, what the hell?” he shrugged and his face said it all.

  “He doesn’t want your bloody money, Nate. He wants his Dad.” I was annoyed now. “Not everything is about money!” He looked at me and raised his eyebrows. “Okay, Okay, I’m a tad grumpy this morning.” I was the one smiling sheepishly now.

  Pulling me into his arms and kissing my head, he chuckled. “Really?”

  I swat his behind and chuckled with him but then I looked up at him seriously “But Nate, please don’t offer him some money today, not today. Today is about you two getting to know one another, not money.”

  He nodded and smiled. “Come on Baby, let’s go meet my son.” He grinned again and picked up the box. “I hope Virgil’s arse is big enough for this lot.”

  We arrived at Jay’s half an hour earlier than planned in Nate’s eagerness to get there. As we pulled up Jay was kissing goodbye to a tall brunette on the doorstep. He didn’t pull away from her, just carried on.

  Nate started laughing as we watched them before exiting the car. “I told you he was just like his Dad.” I grinned.

  Climbing from the car, I went to the boot to retrieve the necessities we had brought him and still, he continued to kiss her.

  I stood at the side of them. “Let me in Jay, these are heavy.”

  He pushed his ‘girlfriend’ to the wall to let me past but didn’t pull away from her. “Will you put her down!” I exclaimed and smiled at her when she ended the kiss. “Ah ha. You have a very pretty smile, now I can see it.”

  She grinned sheepishly as I handed the box to Jay and held her hand out. “Lovely to meet you Mrs Thomas, I’m Jessica, Jay’s . . . friend.”

  I raised my brows at her and took her hand. “Pleased to meet you too ‘Jessica, Jay’s friend,’ please call me Liv.” I gestured to Nate. “And this is Nate, Jay’s Dad.”

  He grinned at her and took her hand. “Hi,” was all he said, but he gave her a once over look and seemed proud that his son could pull a good-looking girl.

  She smiled at Nate then turned and kissed Jay on the cheek. “See you later.”

  He pulled her hand and gave her a big kiss on the lips. “See you tonight, baby.”

  He was so much like his Father. I rolled my eyes and looked at Nate. He raised his eyebrows at me in a ‘What?’ expression but he knew exactly what I was referring to.

  We walked in the house and into the kitchen, putting the kettle on I turned to Jay. “She seems nice.” I smiled.

  He shrugged. “She’s just a friend I get together with now and again.”

  Shaking my head at him, I opened the fridge. “Mmm. Where’s the milk?” I scowled at him. He gave me a blank look. “For God’s sake Jay, you knew we were coming!”

  “I’ve been busy, Mum,” he stated with a playful grin.

  “It looks like it,” I scoffed, giving him an ‘unbelievable’ look. He grinned again then turned to Nate.

  “Hey,” he greeted him with a soft smile and a deep breath. “Finally.” He walked to take Nate’s hand. Nate stood silent regarding Jay and then put his hand out to shake but changed his mind and pulled him into an embrace. It was a moment I had been waiting to see for nineteen very long years. I turned back to the kettle, tears glistening on my eyelashes and continued to make the black coffees.

  We spent the next few hours chatting and catching up. Nate had taken a sneaky look around Jay’s shared house, excusing himself to use the bathroom but I knew exactly what he thought of his son living in a tired, run down terraced house.

  It was heart-warming to see how easily and comfortably they had got on, both with the same sense of humour, interest in all things business and technology and of course, females.

  I started to clean the kitchen and put the things we had brought in the cupboards when it came to the subject of what Jay looked for in a woman, secretly pleased he now had his Dad to talk to about them.

  Nate and I were preparing to leave and I hugged Jay and slipped him £50, which Nate caught and gave me a glare. “I’m allowed,” I whispered and winked as Jay pulled his Dad into a man hug.

  Pulling away Jay walked over to the kitchen side and retrieved an envelope then handed it to Nate. “Read it in private,” he smiled gently, a slight mist in his eyes.

  Nate nodded and embraced him again as we said our goodbye’s on the doorstep.

  Approaching the car Jay grabbed my hand and pulled me back, leaning into my ear to place a kiss on my cheek. “Thank you. God, so much,” he whispered hoarsely and I saw the unshed tears in his eyes.

  I nodded and cupped his cheek. “No, thank you Jay,” I whispered as a tear fell from my eye, he wiped it away with his thumb and winked.

  “See you soon. Love you, Mum,” he said and then turned to Nate, “You too, Dad.” The simplicity and easiness it was said with took my breath away.

  Nate inhaled deeply and gave him a gentle nod and smile from his place beside Virgil. “And you, Jay.”

  As we pulled away down the street Nate grabbed my hand and we drove home, Nate still gripping my hand tightly all the way.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  WE PULLED UP outside my house behind a bright red Mini convertible and I looked around a bit curious. With everything that had been happening I was dubious about strange cars.

  Nate climbed out with a grin on his face and came round to open my door, as he usually did.

  As I passed the car I gave it a quick glance and noticed some writing over the rear wheel arch. I stopped dead in my tracks. The silver embossed lettering was in a beautiful scroll style.

  Betty II

  I spun round on the spot to stare at Nate. He was grinning widely and gave me a wink. “Is this what I think it is?” I frowned at him. I saw his grin slip a little when he took in my expression.

  “Uhh, I’m not sure now looking at your face,” he grimaced.

  “Nate?”

  He shrugged and pinched my chin. “You need a new car and I wanted to buy you one, simple.”

  My mouth dropped open and my eyes were huge “Simple? Nate nothing’s ever simple with you. You didn�
�t need to buy me a car; the insurance would have covered it.”

  He walked up the path towards the front door and unlocked it, picking up an envelope off the doormat. Opening it, he tipped the keys out and gave them to me. “Baby, you would have been lucky to get fifty quid for it.”

  I shook my head at him. “But however much I would have got, it’s not your responsibility to buy me a car, especially a brand new one!”

  I couldn’t understand him sometimes, I thought he’d understood that I was an independent person and I wanted to stay that way, whether we were in a relationship or not. It just felt wrong taking gifts from him constantly, especially one that cost more than £30,000.

  “Please just accept it, Liv. I want to buy it you; I want to buy you the world and everything beyond. It makes me happy.”

  Sighing, I held out my hand and grinning, he placed the keys in my hand.

  My stomach flipped a little with excitement when I took a look at her; she really was quite beautiful, painted in a bright red with two black bonnet stripes and black trim, the interior was even more impressive. It had every available accessory. “Wow Nate, I don’t know what to say, she’s beautiful. Thank you.”

  He grinned and stroked my cheek with the back of fingers. “You are very welcome, baby. Let’s grab a quick coffee and then we’ll take her out.”

  I beamed excitedly. “Oh, one more thing,” he said taking the keys from me. He walked to the rear and opened the boot, crooking his finger. I walked over to follow him.

  In the boot was a Christian Louboutin shoe box. My mouth fell open and I turned to stare at him. “Oh my God, Nate!”

  He gave me a lazy grin and took the lid off. Inside were an exact replica of my poor incinerated red and black ones. “You were lucky because this design is still in their production line otherwise it would have been an entirely different pair.”

  I squealed and jumped on him, wrapping my legs round his waist and giving him the best ‘Thank you’ kiss I could. His mouth came round to my ear. “I want you to wear these for me when I fuck the living daylights out of you,” he growled.

  My mouth found his again, kissing him in a passion. “You are on” I winked. He walked into the house with me still wrapped around his waist.

  * * *

  An hour later I was zipping through some countryside in my new Betty. She was a dream to drive and I think Betty would have approved of her replacement. “Nate, she’s wonderful,” I beamed, shifting gear and increasing her speed a little.

  We were on a secluded lane somewhere in the middle of nowhere, “Turn left here,” he barked at me. Frowning I rotated the steering wheel sharply to the left. I had no idea where we were but Nate seemed to. “Next right,” he ordered again.

  We seemed to be going further into nowhere. “Nate, are you sure? We’re in the middle of nowhere and I’m a bit worried about getting lost, babe. My sat-nav blew up in Betty.” I grimaced and gave him a quick glance.

  “Trust me.” He grinned and I narrowed my eyes on him.

  “Where are we going?” It was getting dark and I was getting a bit nervous.

  “Left,” he instructed and directed us into a lane bordered by trees. I was growing even more anxious. “Right here,” he directed. It turned into a gravelled area with a boundary of trees and undergrowth.

  Unclipping my seatbelt I raised my brows at him and cocked my head. “What worries me the most is how you knew this was here,” I said with hesitation.

  He frowned at me. “Problem, baby?” I shrugged and looked out of the window. “Liv?” he asked gently and stroked my cheek.

  Turning to him I gave him a questioning look. “Nate, I take it you have brought me here for a bit of fun?”

  He grinned at these words to confirm that was the exact reason we were here. “The thing is . . . if you already knew it was here then you’ve been here before.” I shrugged again, refusing to look at him, not wanting him to see the insecurity I was feeling.

  “Baby, I’m not sure I understand what you’re getting at.”

  I bit my bottom lip and turned to him. “What I’m trying to say is . . . is . . . well I’m not . . . I don’t want to have sex with you here, Nate.”

  He frowned at me again and took my hand. “Liv, what’s the problem with a bit of outdoor fun?”

  I shook my head. “It’s not the outdoor fun Nate, it’s the fact that you’ve already had sex with somebody here, in this exact spot and I don’t like the image it’s putting in my head.” I was embarrassed to be feeling like this and blushed furiously. I didn’t want him to think I was clingy and jealous.

  “I’m sorry, Liv. I didn’t think of it like that. We were just driving and I spotted something familiar and I knew where we were. I just thought it might have been fun but I’m sorry, baby.” He squeezed my hand and gave me a shamefaced look. “Yes, I’ll admit I’ve had sex here but the thing is I don’t have sex with you Liv, we make love and our love making is really, really mind-blowing. It’s like nothing I have ever felt before, only twenty years ago that is.”

  I was breathing heavy now because I knew exactly what he was saying because it was exactly how I felt.

  I climbed out of the car and walked round to his door, opened it and taking hold of his hand, I pulled him out and pushed him up against the car.

  He sucked in a breath, his eyes darkening as I cupped his groin, making him hard in a second. I leaned up and covered his mouth with mine, kissing him with a fury, sucking his tongue, showing him my intense arousal and roughly kneading his now solid erection through his jeans.

  Grinning I took his hand and led him over to a grassy area littered with trees and backed him up against one as I carried on kissing him. When his back hit the tree I dropped to my knees in front of him, unzipped him and freed his hard length, gasping as I took in its remarkable rigidity; he was absolutely rock-hard.

  I kissed the tip and he hissed as I lapped the beads of semen already collected there. Leaning against the tree he watched every single stroke as I licked from his sac right up to the tip and flicked at his bar with my tongue.

  He groaned low and grabbed my hair as I sheathed him with my whole mouth and sucked him hard. “Jesus baby,” he growled and wrapped his wrist around my hair as I took him down to the root. “Fuck Liv, Stop!” But I continued to drive him fast and furiously until I felt him swell. He pulled my head further onto him, nearly deep throating me, as he jerked and pumped his hot salty semen straight to the back of my throat and yelled my name.

  I slowed down, draining every last drop as he jolted his final release. “Fuck,” he panted.

  I smacked my lips together, winked at him and walked back to the car, swinging my hips as I shouted “Thanks for the car.”

  I laughed as he shouted back. “What if I buy you a boat?”

  * * *

  I pulled up on the driveway and Nate shot out of the car, lifted me into his arms and carried me through the front door, sucking on my neck noisily as he went straight up the stairs, kicked open my bedroom door and flung me on the bed.

  I bounced twice and he fell on top of me. “Ouch” I exclaimed as something stuck in my back. I reached behind me to grab whatever it was. I gasped as it pricked my finger and pushed Nate off me as I jumped off the bed.

  “What the Fuck?!” he raged.

  Sat on the middle of my bed was a single black rose, thorns included.

  My chest heaved as I struggled to breathe but not with fear, this time it was rage that controlled me, a pure white blinding rage. “The Bastard has done it again,” I fumed. “How the hell does he keep getting in?”

  Nate was pacing the floor, fighting his own rage. “Liv.” He turned to me his face white. “Liv, will you now please come and stay at mine. He’s never gonna stop, baby and I don’t want you here while he keeps doing this.”

  I was chewing on my lip, staring at the rose of death. It was a million miles from the beautiful roses Nate had sent me and the fact that James had tarred Nate’s beautiful sentime
nt with his own sick and twisted games hurt me to the core. From this moment on, every time I saw a rose I would think of this vile and hateful moment in time.

  I turned to Nate, slid my thumb across his bottom lip and kissed him tenderly on the cheek. “Yes, I will. I need to enjoy our time together not be constantly looking over my shoulder to see if he’s there. I’ll pack a bag now, okay?”

  He nodded and exhaled but his face and lips were still pulled taut, his fists were clenched hard and his eyes were cold, the coldest blue I’d ever seen them. He looked utterly powerful but in the end would he be powerful enough?

  * * *

  Nate was in his home office as I was getting ready for work Wednesday morning. Putting the finishing touches to my make-up, I went to tell him I was leaving for work.

  I knocked gently but he didn’t answer so I knocked again and was still greeted with silence. Frowning I opened the office door slowly not wanting to disturb him if he was on the phone.

  He was sat in the large leather chair with his back to me staring out of the window. “Nate?” I said softly but he didn’t hear me. “Nate?” I tried, a little louder. He spun his chair round to look at me.

  “Sorry, baby, I was miles away.” He had an intense expression and his eyes were bloodshot.

  “You Okay?” I asked ominously as I saw a letter in his hand.

  His eyes found mine and he nodded. “Jay’s letter,” he stated and bit his lip.

  I walked over to him and cupped his face as I leaned down and gave him a tender kiss. “I’m sorry for disturbing you. I’m just on my way to work and came in to say goodbye.” I smiled softly, knowing whatever Jay’s letter had said had reached inside Nate and pulled at him.

  He handed me the letter. “Read it, Liv.”

  I shook my head. “No Nate, it’s yours and Jay’s letter not mine, Jay never showed me the letters he wrote you, they were his private thing to you.”

  He shook his head at me. “I think you ought to read this one, Liv,” he argued quietly, locking eyes with me. Hesitantly I took the letter from his hand and sat down.