Chapter 9 May I Kiss You

He let out a soft laugh. "Come. Laura went ahead to prepare our dinner, so I will show you to the terrace. The weather is too nice to dine inside." He took my hand gently in his and led me out the glass door of the top floor.

The scenery outside was surreal. I could barely believe my eyes when I saw the sugared stoned floor perfectly aligned and stretching throughout the terrace. I smiled at the cozy table setting, complete with candles.

But my eyes were stuck on the sparkling water of the rooftop swimming pool.

"Do you like it?" His excitement made me grin. "It's rare in this city to have a private pool because of the space crunch." He pulled me closer to the pool, showing me how half of it was indoors. "The glass goes down into the water to form a tunnel you can swim through from the outside to the inside," he explained. As beautiful as it looked, the thought of swimming under it made me feel slightly claustrophobic. Well, I wasn't going to swim there, so I didn't need to think about it.

I failed to mention the jacuzzi right beside the pool. There was a rock wall aligned on one side and water flowed down into the hot tub and finally into the pool. The whole set was breathtaking.

"It's beautiful, Mr. R-Nicholas."

He gave me a boyish grin and his enthusiasm made my own smile widen.

"I am glad you like it. I did notice that you enjoyed the library more."

I was flushed immediately and chastised myself for acting like a fool inside his house. "You have a lovely home. Thank you for inviting me." I bit my bottom lip and looked up to find him making a garbled noise.

He shook his head a little before leading me to the dining table. "We should get seated so that dinner can be served." He was mostly talking to himself.

He slowly pulled out my chair and I sat down, watching him take his seat across me on the small table. Hints of gold shimmered in his hard hair as the light from the candles danced. I wondered how his hair would feel if I ran my hand through it.

I paid great attention to the napkin on my lap, trying to use the time to get a grip on myself before I did something stupid. I had never felt a desire so acute for another in my life.

Laura appeared suddenly, distracting me from my thoughts. She placed the salads in front of us before giving me a wink.

"How long has Laura worked for you?" I asked after she was out of earshot.

Nicholas uncorked a bottle of chilled wine, pouring some into each of our glasses. "I have known her since I was a child. She worked for my parents before that, but when I bought this house, I asked her to be here. She makes his place a home worth living in. I am not sure what I would do without her around."

I could tell Laura held a special place in his heart by the way he spoke about her. I took a bite of the salad and eyed the glass of wine within my reach. Evidently, Nicholas didn't have issues with allowing someone underage to drink.

"How long have you owned this house?" My head was finally catching up with what was happening. Perhaps my clarity of mind was dependent on having no physical contact with him.

"Three years."

I nodded dumbly before I could say something stupid.

He pushed his plate aside and put his elbows on the table. He put his chin on top of his palms.

"Tell me a bit about yourself, Willow."

"There is not much to tell," I said, meeting his gaze. "I am sure you know everything about me already." He had sent Virgil to do a background check on me. Of course, he knew everything there was to know about little old me. I didn't have anything to hide either.

He smirked. "I did my homework. But there is a lot more I wish to find out."

My palm itched to slap the smug smile away. Or maybe to kiss it shut?

'Stop it, Willow!' I was more frustrated with myself than I was with him.

"Why do you wish to know more? What is this about?" I asked with a hint of irritation. I pointed to the wine and candle to make a silent point.

His eyes glimmered as he spoke, "I wondered what you would look like when you talked back. It is even better than I imagined."

Before I could show him just how well I talked back, Laura appeared with two more plates of food. I had lost my appetite but I still thanked her. It wasn't her fault that the man she worked for was frustrating. If I hadn't been confused and intensely aroused, the dish would have been perfect for the setting.

I took the glass and took a large gulp of the wine. I saw Nicholas fill my glass back up and arched a brow when he went back to his own food. Yet, his eyes never left me even as he ate with a grin.

"You should really try the food, Willow. It is delicious."

"You haven't answered my question yet." I took another sip of the wine and folded my arms over my chest in defiance.

He tilted his head to a side. "You haven't figured it out yet?"

"No, Nicholas. I haven't figured anything out. If you could please tell me why I am here..." I trailed off.

He set his fork down and leaned forward. "It's simple. I want you, Willow."

I almost choked on air. My head was spinning. 'He wanted me?'

I didn't know what he meant by that, but I couldn't dismiss how fast my heart raced, or how my stomach flipped at his words.

Apparently, I was wrong and Lory's flight of fantasy was the reality.

I tried to maintain my composure as his eyes lingered on me. But I was sure my nerves were on display when I grabbed the glass of wine with shaky hands and downed it at once. I was well past being tipsy. It seemed my alcohol tolerance was low too. I was going to be wrecked if I kept drinking the wine like soft drinks.

Nicholas chuckled when I picked up the bottle of wine and poured myself more. Who cared? I needed some courage to finish the conversation.

"Does the thought of me wanting you disgust you, Willow?"

I shook my head immediately. "No. It is unbelievable... impossible. But not disgusting." If I didn't shut my mouth, I would ramble on.

He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. "We will have to work on your self-confidence some other time," he said finally. "For now, answer a few questions for me, okay?"

"Go ahead. Ask away."

"From what Virgil told me, you worked so you could get out of Atkins and live a better life, Is that correct?"

He couldn't have said it better. "Yes."

"Excellent. I love your determination and that you fought for what you wanted. I am the same way."

'What did that mean?' I swallowed a few times as a few thoughts popped into my head. It was all too unreal.

"As I understand it, you have nothing keeping you at Atkins. The only person close to you is your friend, Miss Adams?"

"Yes," I said tentatively.

"And Miss Adams will be coming to Quentin to attend college, yes?"

"Yes."

"Then tell me, Willow. Where do you see yourself in five years' time? What do you imagine your future to be like?"

The truth was, I had never had the time to think beyond doing something with my life. I had never wanted to be disappointed when my expectations didn't come true.

I had spent all my time trying to get grades to get into college, but still, they didn't hold a candle to some of the other students. I didn't have one particular subject I had a desire to pursue. I knew I liked reading so the thought of studying literature or getting a teaching license would suit me just fine. The only thing I knew absolutely was that I wanted to belong somewhere in the future. I wanted to be wanted by people and I wasn't going to tell him that.

"I am not sure of that yet."

I could tell he knew exactly what I was thinking. "May I share what I thought when I read your scholarship submissions?"

I was nervous, sure that I would receive criticism for lacking in purpose.

"You seemed unsure of where you wanted to go career-wise. You want something different, I can see what. And then it struck me that you want to belong in a place... a family... the right one."

How had he understood that so perfectly? The need for affection must be written on my forehead.

When I didn't respond, he continued, "We are more alike than you can imagine."

Laura chose that very moment to return. She frowned at my untouched plate of food but didn't say anything. After the dishes were cleared, only a plate with dessert remained. I looked closely to see some type of cake.

Nicholas stood up and scooted his chair so that it was right beside me. He sat down close enough that our knees touched. The butterflies in my stomach reappeared when he hooked his foot around mine under the table.

"Come. Try this." He held his fork out with a bite-sized piece of cake on it. I closed my eyes and bit it. I almost moaned at how good it was. When I opened my eyes, I saw Nicholas' expression. For a second, I wondered if he wanted to eat me for dessert.

After a few more bites, he spoke again. "You haven't spoken much. Are you scared of me, Willow?" His tone was soft and he slowly leaned in so that I could feel his breath on my face.

"No," I barely said. In my head, I was begging him to come closer.

Our noses were almost touching and our eyes were locked onto each other.

"May I kiss you?"