"Greg?"

Nathans eyes widened to a size I hadn't thought possible for a human being. His brows drew together at the center and his entire face filled with a red tint of pure rage.

"Yes, baby. It's me. Did you miss me?"

I could feel the bile rising in my esophagus, my glands beginning to salivate as my stomach churned painfully at the sound of his torturous voice.

"How did you get this number?"

I heard him sigh deeply on the other end, an elongated silence following.

"Ever the tease, aren't you, Alexandria?" His vile lips spoke my full name and my legs wobbled uncontrollably and gave out from underneath me at his usage of my full name, what he always used to call me and refused to use any other form of nickname.

Thankfully, Nathan was there to catch me, anchoring me to his body like a vice around my waist. He was my anchor and I was his ever sinking ship, bound for destruction.

"That's no matter," he continued. "You know I always liked your teasing side the best. How I've missed our conversations; our relentless flirtations."

"I'm calling the cops." I threatened, my voice sounding far frailer than I intended.

"Ah, ah, ah...I wouldn't do that if I were you, love. You wouldn't want me to inform them about that professor of yours, now would you?"

Alarm ripped through my body as my head lifted up to capture Nathans stare.

How did he know about him?

Nathan looked down at me, concern etched in his sapphire stare. My breathing was becoming rapid as I tried to devise a way out of this.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I pretended to play stupid.

A 'tut' rang out rhythmically on the other end of my phone. He was scolding me like a child.

"Don't play the ignorant one, darling.  Stupid isn't a good look on you. You know exactly who I'm talking about."

"No, Greg, I really don't know what professor you're talking about." I lied

That statement caught Nathans interest. His head cocked to the side, his eyes alight with curiosity.

"I said don't lie to me, Alexandria!" He screamed from the other end, causing fright to jolt through my body and Nathans grip on my waist to tighten. One of his hands came up to cup the side of my neck tenderly, his eyes pouring themselves reassuringly into mine.

"I know everything. I know where you've been. I know who you hang out with. I know all about you and your professor and I can't deny that I'm not at least a bit upset with you."

"How?" I asked helplessly, grasping desperately at the ends of my sanity and the need to know how he had all of this information.

"I saw you two together, months ago at that club where you looked absolutely ravishing." He hummed hungrily at the memory.

Shock shot throughout my body and my eyes grew wide. I could feel the tears beginning to pool in my hazelnut eyes as my gaze reflected in Nathans.

"You were there?" I asked hesitantly, unwilling to want to hear what I knew his answer would be.

"Yes, baby," he laughed, his tone turning sickeningly sweet. "I went to get you back that night. And I almost had you too if it hadn't of been for your teacher who intervened before I could get to you before you passed out. You looked so lovely and so damn sexy...if it hadn't of been for that bastard, we would be together right now, my love."

My fingers gripped into Nathans shirt at Greg's words. The tears I had been harnessing spilled over my lids and slipped down my cheeks pathetically as I tried to mask my oncoming sobs from Greg's ears. The realization of what had happened that night smacked me right in the chest as my body went limp and my knees buckled as I sunk to the carpeted floor of my bedroom in defeat.

"You were the one...who drugged me?"

"Yes, baby but only so I could get to you without making a scene. I did it for us," he said in a soothing voice that had the complete opposite effect on my mind as it thrashed and cried out in useless agony.

I clamped my hand over my mouth tightly, trying to block my sobs from ripping through my trembling lips.

A hand darted out from above and tilted my head up to lock our eyes together. Nathans stone cold, strikingly deadly eyes found mine as he motioned for me to give him my phone. I shook my head and held out a finger to him, telling him silently to give me more time as Greg continued to speak.

"At the time, I just assumed he was a random guy trying to hit on you at the club but then my sources told me differently..."

"Sources? What sources?"

"All in good time, love. But for now, I need you to do something for me."

"No," I answered back without hesitation. This was the first time throughout the entire conversation where my voice actually came out strong and I was pleased with the small transition.

"Alexandria, don't test me. You're already on thin ice with me for seeing someone behind my back. But that's something I am willing to overlook if you do as I say. If not, then I will have no choice but to inform the school about you and Nathan McCoy."

Shit. He knew his name. He knew everything.

The realization of what I had to do became undeniably clear to me in that moment. There was no other choice.

"What do you want?"

"Ah, there's my girl," his wretched voice sounded delightedly from the speaker pressed firmly against my ear.

"I want to meet. I want to be face to face with you; to see if my memory has preserved your beauty in all of its glory."

"You know that's not allowed, Greg."

"It's also not allowed to date your professor but that hasn't seemed to have stopped you, now has it?"

I felt paralyzed. Dread spread through my entire body as I realized he had me. He trapped me in my own mess and planned on using it against me and Nathan without thought. Nathan's career would be destroyed and all because of me. And that didn't seem nearly enough like a good enough reason to ruin your lifes work and dream.

Greg wanted me to be his. And if that meant keeping Nathan safe and his reputation clean, then I would do anything and everything in my power to make that happen.

"Okay."

"Okay what?"

"Where do you want to meet?"

The second the words left my mouth, I felt Nathans hands grip onto my arms, my face instinctively looking to his fuming and beyond confused yet still crucially handsome one.

He held me firmly in his grasp, his eyes boring into mine as if I was insane.

"Not a chance in hell." Nathan ordered, shaking his head vigorously.

"We can meet tomorrow at your University. 1pm sharp. Don't be late, my love."

"I won't." I answered back, my voice shaking slightly but my resolve to keep Nathan safe kept my tone more level that I felt at the moment.

"Oh, I can't wait to see your lovely face tomorrow," he practically moaned into the phone, causing the bile from before to make another appearance in my throat.

"Are you excited to see me?" he asked gleefully.

No.

"Yes."

"I'll be counting the hours. Until tomorrow, Alexandria." He bid me goodbye and I could hear the smile in his voice as his excitement was beyond apparent.

The phone clicked in my ear, signaling the end of the call.

I felt a rush of dismay swarm my mind as every one of my nightmares from the past two years became my terrifying reality. My phone dropped from my hand and crashed to the floor with a resounding thunk.

"Alex," Nathan's voice called out from above me. I stayed silent, reeling from everything that had just happened; trying to accept how my life had taken a dramatic turn with just one phone call.

I felt Nathan kneel down in front of me, getting on my level as his hands came up to cradle my face in between his gentle fingers, his palms resting tenderly against my damp cheeks.

"Alex," His thumb peeked out to wipe away the stray tears that had fallen under my eyes. "If you think there's any way I'm letting you go see that bastard, then you're crazier that he is."

I shook my head solemnly, knowing there was no other choice.

"I have to."

"Why? What could possibly possess you to think you have to go see Greg?" he asked with resilience clear in his eyes.

"He knows."

"He knows what, Alex?"

My eyes lifted from their spot on the floor where they had been concentrated and found Nathan's beautiful, curious, sapphire eyes.

"Us. He knows about us."

I expected to see a flicker of fear cross through his gaze. I expected some sort of outburst from him at the threat to his reputation. What I didn't expect, was for him to say this:

"So?"

My forehead crinkled in confusion as I stared up at him with disbelieving eyes.

"What?"

"I still fail to see a reason good enough for you to have to force yourself to come face to face with that monster again."

"Are you being serious right now? Nathan, he could destroy your career! Do you not get that?" I asked almost hysterically, my voice raising a few octaves in the process.

"I do," he nodded his head. "I honestly do. But do you honestly think I would choose my career over you?"

His words and the sincere look that was shining through his eyes sent a razor blade through my heart. My chest literally began to sting in pain as I doubled over, gripping at my chest roughly.

This was all too much. His words were too much for me to handle with the cards that Greg had just dealt me. Nathan was willing to risk everything to keep me safe and my heart couldn't fucking take it anymore.

"Yes! Nathan you have to be smart about this! If I don't show up at the school tomorrow then he will call the school and you will get fired and all because I dropped the fucking sugar in the teachers' lounge that one day and you just happened to be there."

My skin was crawling with raw, unfiltered emotion and I felt like I couldn't breathe.

My hands were trembling uncontrollably as I forced my body to stand up and move as far away from Nathan as possible. I backed up into the corner of my room and began to pace back and forth, words spilling from my mouth without a solid thought put into them.

"This is fate giving you an out and you need to take it. None of this is worth it, Nathan! I'm not worth it!"

"Yes, you are!" He stood up from his position on the floor and stomped over to where I was standing.

"No, stop!" I yelled.

The room was silenced.

Nathan's steps had halted with my outburst. We now stood just a few feet from each other, both breathing heavily, both with turmoil churning in our stares.

As I looked over his face, I couldn't stop the emotion from pouring from my eyes and down my cheeks again, running all the way down, tickling at my neck until they dampened my shirt.

"I can't do this to you anymore," I said in a heartbreaking whisper, shaking my head.

Nathans eyes flickered with instantaneous pain as he shook his own head and stepped towards me. "You aren't doing anything-"

"Greg ruins people. He tore his entire family apart. He put me in therapy for a year and I still have nightmares about what he did to me. If he..." I broke off, a sob ripping through my throat. "If he ever hurt you, if he ever did anything to you, it would kill me. He ruins people, Nathan and I refuse to let him do that to you."

His eyes skimmed over my entire face, taking it all in and realized what I meant to do in that moment. I knew it would be the worst pain imaginable to let him go but you know the old saying. If you love something, let it go.

And I loved Nathan McCoy more than I ever thought anyone could love another person.

"I'm so sorry." I felt my heart crack in two with my words, knowing it would be some of the final words I would ever speak to him.

My heart was thrashing around inside and the pain was almost unbearable as I continued to stare at Nathans frigid frame through my blurred vision.

His face was stoic, his lips set in a prominent frown. I thought he would leave in that moment, taking my heart with him.

Instead, he surprised me once again by moving towards me slowly, each step taking it's time as his eyes were trained on mine.

Once he reached me, he stood with his body inches away from mine and I tried my best to keep my composure, to not break apart and fall into his awaiting chest.

"If you really want me to go, I need to hear you say the words," his lips spoke so low that I almost thought I was imagining it.

"I need to hear you say that you don't want me anymore." Suddenly, his fingertips were trailing up my arms, shooting off sparks wherever he touched.

I was a trembling, whimpering mess and I kept in my cries and focused on anything that wasn't the man that I was so wholeheartedly in love with in front of me.

"I need you to tell me to go and then I'll will and I won't turn back. You need to make me believe that you don't want me, don't feel anything for me and that you want me to go."

His fingers had reached my shoulders and slid along their length until they reached my collar bone. His head dipped down and he traced his lips along the raised bone, causing a strangled gasp to force its way out of my lips.

What he was asking for was impossible because none of it was true. But I had to keep him safe by any means necessary which also meant breaking his heart and mine as well. I had to make him believe it.

"Go."

He paused his actions for a moment. Then, without warning, he walked me back into the wall I was just centimeters away from and pressed his body up against mine, grasping my hands and shoving them up against the wall behind me, lacing his fingers through mine.

"No," he rasped as his wild eyes captured mine. "I need you to look at me while you say it so that I know you mean it."

My eyes flurried over his face rapidly, trying to get my lips to form the word he wanted to hear, the word I needed to say.

"Say it."

His eyes danced with mine. The look in his eyes slowly began to soften as he drew his head in close to mine, breaking all of my concentration and forcing me to acknowledge his dominating presence.

I felt something brush across my lips and my resolve exploded unwillingly at the touch of his lips.

"I can't."

"Good."

And with that, he brought his lips fully down on mine, capturing them in a heated, passionate kiss that caused my mind to blank of all thought or reason as I let myself fall deeper and deeper into Nathans embrace.

His arms curled around my waist and lifted me until my legs were wrapped around his torso as he carried me over to my bed and laid us both down. His body was pressing mine down into the mattress as my hands gripped desperately at his back and threaded through his hair, something I thought I would never have the pleasure of doing again.

His lips continued to pull at mine as his tongue ran across my bottom lip, asking for entrance which I gave without hesitance.

My body was on fire as I started pushing my hips up into Nathans growing bulge. A desperate heat was flowing through my body and the only thing I wanted in that moment that could squelch my desire was Nathans body thrusting persistently into mine.

A growl vibrated through his chest and into mine as he thrust his hips forward, grinding himself into me, causing me to break ours lips connection and release a loud, throaty moan.

Our clothes were the only thing keeping us from finally taking that last step and right now, I wished for two things. A condom and a lighter to burn all of our clothes off.

Unfortunately, I didn't have either.

"I don't have protection." I gasped out as he nipped his teeth at the vulnerable skin on my neck.

His lips stilled on my neck. His head dropped down into the crock of my neck, his breath fanning across my chest as he rested his head there and relaxed his body over mine.

"It's probably best that you don't. These aren't exactly the circumstances I wanted it to be under."

I nodded in agreement as I started playing with his hair, coming down from my pleasurable high and facing the selfish, weak decision I had just made in letting him know how I really felt.

"Don't...ever do that again, okay?" Nathan mumbled into my neck, his voice sounding like that of a pleading child.

"I'm so sorry. I just want to keep you safe."

"And I need to keep you safe," he said as he propped himself up on his elbow to look at me.

"We're in this together, Alex. You and me. Until the end."

Woah, that was sure an emotional chapter to write! lol What did you guys think?? Were you scared that Alex and Nathan were actually going to break up?

Please vote and comment and share if you loved it! The next update will be soon! :D Maybe sooner than you expect ;)