Nora

"You've got an admirer." Was the first thing Gracie said to me when I reached Dixon's.

"Huh?" I made my way inside my office, cautious. 

Five freshly plucked, long stemmed roses were bunched on my table. They were blood red and smelt divine. They were the only beautiful thing on my table. I looked at the card that was attached, taking in the manly handwriting, trying my best not to smile but failing miserably.

I'm still thinking about you.

-Nicolas

I had to say this was sweet. When I'd denied his offer, I hadn't expected him to still try and convince me. He wasn't a person who usually ran after women. Women willingly surrendered themselves to him. I was one of those. Even though I hadn't, I wanted to. Badly. But my self respect was much more important to me than my lust for him, and I knew I needed to have some kind of self control when it came to him.

I found his contact number on the other side and placed the card on the table, shaking my head. I asked Gracie to find me a vase, the roses were too beautiful to be wasted. My phone rang. I didn't need to look at the card to confirm his number.

"Nora."

"Nicolas. What are you trying to do?" I asked.

"Just telling you that you're on my mind." I heard a creak from his side and imagined him leaning back on his chair. "I have a feeling you're gonna be on my mind for a very, very long time."

"The roses were beautiful, thank you. But you didn't need to do that." I said.

"I can still feel you, Nora. I've had to go through three meetings with a hard on. You've got the advantage here. State your demands."

"This isn't a fucking business deal." I repeated. "I told you, I have no intention of having a one night stand."

"And I told you it's not going to be one night." I could hear the frustration in his voice. "We need to discuss what it's going to take to get you under me."

I hung up.

That was the only thing that came to my mind at that time. He didn't call me again, probably because he was mad. Not a lot of people had the courage of hanging up on Nicolas Reid. He wasn't the person you hung up on.

But, there's a first time for everything.

And secretly, I was enjoying a hot billionaire running after me.

~~

"Why didn't Cameron come tonight?" 

"He's got work." Lydia muttered. "But I think he didn't come because he didn't want to."

"Is everything okay with you two?" I asked.

"Yes...no. I don't know." She put her head in her hands. "I don't know what's going on, Nora."

"What do you mean?"

"He's been acting so strange lately. Distant. He's been working late for the past three days. I called up his office yesterday and they said he wasn't there."

I froze. "What? Did you have a fight?"

"Quite the opposite actually. I bared out my soul to him a few days back. I think he was overwhelmed. I just wish he'd tell me if he wanted to break up instead of ignoring me."

"Lyds, he loves you." I said. "He's not breaking up with you."

"Why won't he talk to me? If he wanted space he should've told me. I would have gladly complied." She sighed. "I can't lose him, Nora. I don't know what I'd do."

"Babe," I wrapped my arms around her. "Shh, it's gonna be okay. You're not losing him. Come on, it's Cameron we're talking about. I'm sure he has a reasonable explanation for his behaviour. Or maybe you're just reading too much into it. Give it some time. He'll come around, okay?"

"I guess." She mumbled. "I just wanted to eat a shit ton of popcorn and watch sappy movies tonight. But I hadn't seen you in days and I missed you."

"We could do that now?"

She shook her head. "Nah, getting wasted is better than drowning in my sorrow."

"No it's not."

"No it's not. But I don't care." She said. "I'm drinking."

"Lyds-"

"Give me one night, Nora. Please. I want to stop thinking about him for one goddamn night." She sighed. "I'll talk to him tomorrow."

"Uh, fine." I still thought it was a bad decision. Lydia was a hyper drunk. We always had Cameron with us when we partied, but this time we didn't. And she was upset with him. I was afraid she'd do something and regret it later on.

"Nora, I'm not cheating on him even if I'm drunk." She downed a shot. "Stop worrying about that."

I nodded my head reluctantly. "I'm gonna dance."

We both went to the dance floor, and for a moment I forgot about everything around me. It was just the floor, the music and I. My hands lifted up on their own, moving my hair to the side as I swung my hips. My feet tapped to the beat as I felt the tunes dance in my veins. I closed my eyes to enjoy the feel.

"Hi girls." 

I opened my eyes to find two identical blonds standing in front of us. One moved towards Lydia, while the other one made his way over to me. 

A strong arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me to a hard body. A smell so delicious reached my nose that I wanted to bury myself in it, in him. His grip was possessive and dominant, as if staking a claim on me. It turned me on. His possessiveness turned me on to a whole new level.

"This one's taken." He stated. His voice was calm and composed, calculated.

The blond faltered in his steps, but didn't show anything on his face. "Why don't you let her make that decision?"

Nicolas ignored him. "You're coming with me, Nora."

"Why do always have to command me as if I'm some sort of a toy?" I asked, incredulously. 

"Don't make this difficult." He warned me. "We can either do this the easy way, or I have other ways to make you comply."

"Say please and I'll come."

His mouth shut close, but his arm around my waist didn't loosen. I looked at him with a challenging gaze. He expected me to bend according to his wishes. Well, I wanted him to bend as well. If he wanted to make us happen, he would have to deal with that. He was used to being in control, but I needed it time to time as well.

I turned towards the blond when he didn't show me any signs of complying, and threw his hand away from my waist. "Hey, what's your name?"

"Ash-"

"Please." Nicolas gritted out from behind me. I could hear his difficulty. "Come with me."

I smiled at the blond. "It was nice meeting you. I'm afraid I'll have to take my leave now."

Nicolas snaked both of his arms around my waist and pulled me to his chest. He turned me around, pressed a hard and fast kiss to my lips, pulling away with a deep breath. I heard a gasp, making me turn around sharply.

Lydia stood there with her mouth open. "You bitch! You're so fucking dead."

"I-"

"Nicolas Reid, very pleased to meet you." He said to her.

"I-uh, Lydia." She blinked, dazed. "Smith."

"Parker, please drop her home." He said to a guy who was standing next to him. I hadn't even noticed him earlier. "Or, do you have somewhere else to be?" He looked at her.

"I d-don't." Then she looked at me pointedly.

I winced, "Nicolas, give me a minute."

He held onto me stubbornly, but let go after great difficulty. Lydia linked her arm with mine and called out, "We'll be back."

She pushed me into a bathroom stall, and then she screamed.

"Shit, Lydia, shut up. Fuck, my ears are about to damage." I hissed.

"How could you not tell me you're shagging Nicolas Reid? Wait, is that the hot guy you were talking about?"

"Yeah, and I'm not shagging him." Yet, I added in my head.

"Goddamn he looked ready to kill that guy. And he fucking kissed you!"

I had the audacity to look down. "Yeah, uh, about that-"

"He totally wants to bang you." She hollered. "He's got the hots for you."

"He does." I told her. "Look, I'll fill you in on everything tomorrow. I need to know what he's so persistent about. Will you be okay going home alone?"

"Yeah yeah." She waved her hand. "Get him, babe."

We walked outside together, our hands still linked. Nicolas was watching me like a prey, his eyes dark with desire. I took that moment to look at him. He was dressed in a three piece suit like always, his grey tie bringing out the blue in his eyes. His strong cheekbones looked more prominent and angular, the black hair scattered aimlessly as if he had run a hand through them. 

"Thank you, Mr Reid." Lydia said from beside me. She looked much more composed now. "I take it you'll drop her home?"

"I will." He said. "You don't have to worry about her. I'll make sure she gets home. And please, call me Nicolas. We're gonna be seeing a lot more of each other."

She smiled. "Very well. Nora," She turned towards me. "You call me if you need anything."

"Take care, talk to him." I whispered. She nodded her head and strutted away.

"You look gorgeous." Nicolas whispered beside me. "Well, you do everyday."

I turned to him. "Thank you. You look charming as ever."

He smiled. "Come on." He gave me a hand. I looked down at it, smiling when I realised he was offering me a choice to hold it or not. He didn't try to grab mine like always. He listened.

I placed my hand in his outstretched one and he intertwined our fingers, walking out of the club. He held open the door of his car and slid down beside me. "Paul, take us to hers."

"You know I realised," I said once the car started. He pushed a button at his side and a partition glass slid up, hiding us from the driver. "I never really told you my address."

"You didn't give me your number as well." He said. "I pay people a huge chunk of money for a reason."

"To have me stalked?" I raised an eyebrow.

His lips curled up. "Maybe."

"That's not fair. I don't have people to stalk you."

"You don't need to. I give you information voluntarily. You don't."

"Have you ever considered the possibility that I'm just not interested?"

"No lies, Nora." He looked in my eyes with a hard stare. "Ever."

His fingers traced patterns on my leg, slowly, very innocently moving up and resting on my thigh. I looked down at his hand, using my own to push it away. I saw him smile from the corner of my eye and grab my thigh again. As crazy as it was, I liked his persistence and stubbornness. I liked that he was not giving up even though I was giving him a hard time. He was a man who got everything he wanted with a click of his fingers. The fact that he was running after me made me feel special.

Made me feel as if I should forget about the consequences and take a chance.

Made me feel like kissing him.

So that's what I did.

I got up and straddled him. I could tell he was surprised by my sudden confidence and urge to be closer to him. I pressed my lips to his and he pulled me closer, wrapping his lips around mine and tugging my bottom lip. His hands swiped my hair back, grabbing my head.

"I want you." I mumbled against his lips.

"Repeat that." He said forcefully.

"I want you, Nicolas. Right now."

A groan vibrated from his chest. "Tell me you mean that. That you're not saying it because of the alcohol."

"I didn't drink a single drop of alcohol tonight." I told him. "I want you." I cupped his face.

"What made you change your mind so suddenly. You weren't like this seconds ago."

"I want to fuck the consequences and have fun for a change. I want to give in to my body's desires. I want to feel good. Can you do that for me, Nicolas?"

His eyes darkened and he smirked. "When I'm done with you tonight, you're going to wish you'd said those words way sooner."

*

*clears throat* Yeah...so...that happened.

I've got this paper tomorrow that I'm really not prepared for but I still have a day left so I can prepare, but, ugh, I don't want to.