NICHOLAS Ed Sheeran and Beyonce crooned the song called Perfect on the speakers as I led Ophelia through the low cherrywood archway my parents had guarding the entrance to their house. My father turned the music down as we entered, allowing Olivia and my mother to walk into the room after us. "Ophelia, it is lovely to see you again. In a very different setting, may I add," my father said with a half smile on his face. Ophelia flushed and I could feel my hand twitch in the direction of my father. How dare he make her uncomfortable?"It is nice to see you again too," she returned. Her reply was nothing but kind, but her smile was directed at only my sister who was currently jumping excitedly from foot to foot. "I was literally just about to ask Nicholas for your number! What are the odds?" I felt somewhat cornered as both of my parents and my insatiable sister made an obscenely long show of hugging and kissing Ophelia. She looked beyond flustered when they finally pulled away, and
NICHOLAS "We were surprised to hear that Nicky hired a young woman like yourself as his assistant in the first place but then we were even more surprised to hear that you quit after only a few weeks!" My mother didn't miss a beat before she started her usual probing. I tried for an apologetic look in Ophelia's direction but she didn't seem to notice it. Or at least, her contented expression didn't falter. "And Nick was so devastated by it!" My mother placed her hand over her heart, shaking her head as if recalling how shocked she was to see me in such a state after an employee of mine quit. Suddenly, I was catapulted back into my blurry memory of that day. ***FLASHBACK "Nick, honey? When did you get here?" I cleared my throat as I tried to quieten the furious burning in my heart as I held onto the doorframe, while I was still desperately searching for something to hold onto. A gasp echoed through my parents’ living room as my mother cautiously approached me. "Are you drunk?"
NICHOLAS I latched onto her wrist as I gauged her reaction carefully. Her cheeks were flushed from her orgasm, and her eyes were wild and aroused. I had really come to love this expression on her face. As I guided her out of the kitchen, I found myself enraptured by how badly I wanted her; how badly I wanted her crumbling under my touch. I felt her hand grab the back of my shirt as she tried to slow down my long strides, but that was the last thing I wanted to do. I pulled her down the familiar long hallway until we stumbled upon the last room I never thought I would come back to: my childhood bedroom. I swallowed back the bittersweet memories triggered by the peeling cream walls and musty smell as I turned to face Ophelia once more. My breathing hitched as I took her in. Her hair was a mess, her cheeks were flushed red and her dress was hitched halfway up her thigh. My God, she was really hot. I began to unbuckle my belt, but she stopped me. "Let me," she said softly and erotic
OPHELIA We were still sprawled lifelessly across the bed when a loud knock echoed through the room. "Nicholas?" Olivia called innocently through the door. I glanced at Nicholas's sleeping figure lying peacefully beside me, and I resisted the urge to kiss his slightly parted lips. "We will be right out," I called as she mentioned something about dessert before the tapping of her heels faded away once more. "Nick?" I called out softly.I shuffled hesitantly towards him. He was passed out, gloriously naked with the musty bed sheets tangled around his long limbs. "We are going to have to move eventually," I muttered as his eyelashes fluttered, telling me he was only pretending to be asleep. "Why did you wait?" he suddenly asked me. His question was muffled because his voice was laced with sleep. "What?" I asked. "To sleep with me. Why did you wait?" he elaborated.Releasing a sigh, I ran a hand through his unruly hair. He really needed a haircut. His eyes fluttered but didn't open
NICHOLAS My phone had to chime at least a dozen flat electronic notes before I finally gave up on trying to go back to sleep, then I answered it. “Do you have you any idea what time it is?" I snapped into the phone. "Yes, it is 11 AM. Where are you?" the voice at the other end said and I bolted upright. Shit. It was Martha, and I had an appointment with her at 9 AM. "l was held up,” I lied smoothly, but the tutting on the other line told me she didn't believe it in the slightest bit. “For personal reasons," I added, hurriedly glancing at my personal reason who was still fast asleep beside me. Her blonde locks were shading everything except her lovely pink lips from view. “Is your personal reason Ophelia? Because you still haven't told me how it went with her." "There is too much to tell over the phone. Can we just cancel this appointment? I will still pay for your time," I suggested.There was a beat of silence, before she started to say, "Fine, but…" Since I had already heard
NICHOLAS My phone had to chime at least a dozen flat electronic notes before I finally gave up on trying to go back to sleep, then I answered it. “Do you have you any idea what time it is?" I snapped into the phone. "Yes, it is 11 AM. Where are you?" the voice at the other end said and I bolted upright. Shit. It was Martha, and I had an appointment with her at 9 AM. "l was held up,” I lied smoothly, but the tutting on the other line told me she didn't believe it in the slightest bit. “For personal reasons," I added, hurriedly glancing at my personal reason who was still fast asleep beside me. Her blonde locks were shading everything except her lovely pink lips from view. “Is your personal reason Ophelia? Because you still haven't told me how it went with her." "There is too much to tell over the phone. Can we just cancel this appointment? I will still pay for your time," I suggested.There was a beat of silence, before she started to say, "Fine, but…" Since I had already heard
NICHOLAS Three hours later as I jogged back from an impromptu dinner with some fellow business men, I passed by a restaurant . 'Aventi's' read the name on th front sign. Hmm. Maybe I should take Ophelia there. Woah! Where did that come from? I questioned myself in my mind.I was alone in the elevator as I stretched out, centered and calm for the first time since I employed that enigmatic woman. The fact that even more food had been delivered to my office also helped my mood. I was not hungry but I would eat it because I would feel dreadful for weeks if anything here went to waste. And it was not a feeling I would tolerate. The gradually setting sun outside informed me that it was approaching evening now. Wow, Taylor and I must have been talking for a while. Originally, she clearly had intentions to talk to me about what she had witnessed earlier today but since I was known to be quite cogent, steering the conversation in the correct direction was an easy enough task. In the end,
NICHOLAS I followed Ophelia into the bathroom as my memory faded away, and I watched in fascination as she ran a comb through her luscious hair. "I don't think anyone has challenged me as many times as you have," I suddenly said. "I am very special," she said with a smile on her beautiful face. Then she winked and grinned at me through the bathroom mirror. I waa transfixed by the way she gnawed at her bottom lip as she finally finished up with her hair. “I can't believe I am not wearing any makeup," she said, pouting. I frowned at her annoyed tone. “You don't need it," I said truthfully.She gave me a look as if she found this hard to believe. “If you had some of your makeup here, maybe there wouldn't be a problem," I pointed out. She met my gaze in the mirror as confusion clouded her eyes, and I could clearly see that she was not catching on. "And maybe if you also had some of your clothes here, and your books and… well, the other things you own..." l wrapped my arms around
NICHOLAS Two hours later, we were sitting in my bed, swaddled under the covers with a random movie playing on the television. Our legs were tangled together with her cheek was against my chest, and there were plates of unfinished food around the dresser beside us. Usually, the mess would have been bugging me but right now, there were more important things on my mind. Currently, it was watching Ophelia’s face break into laughter every time something funny happened on the screen. Her hair was usually in the way, but when I did glance down and saw her chuckling softly, something powerful ignited inside of me. I loved seeing her smile. Infact, I needed to see her smile. It has become as essential as food and water to me and I had never been so captivated by someone before in my life. She noticed my stillness and tilted her head up to glance at me. She was silently asking me what was wrong, but I couldn't think of a single cheeky remark, not even a joke to hide my true intentions. Her
OPHELIA It took me half an hour to find him but when I did, I somewhat wished that I hadn't. He was sitting on a bench outside the hospital entrance, and I realized that he often resorted to these when he wanted no one to find him. My heart was pounding in my chest as I gazed at him from afar for a moment. I could immediately tell that there was something wrong with him. He was curled up with his head in his hands and even from across the street, I could see that he was shivering. When I got closer, I realized that it was not just from the cold because he was shaking with sobs. Infact, his body was wracked with them."Oh, Nicholas," I whispered and raced up to him as fast as I could. He tried to stand up but not before I grabbed his hand to pull him back down. The sound of his harsh breathing as he roughly wiped his tears away was the only sound on the desolate street surrounding us. “Talk to me," I pleaded. Alarmed, I tried to place a hand on his face but he shifted away. "Don't
OPHELIA I walked through the admissions foyer of the hospital and Rianne's mother was waiting for me at the entrance. After greeting her warmly, I immediately asked her if Rianne was awake yet, although deep down I knew that it was a long shot because she probably would have texted me.It still hurt to hear that nothing had changed since she left last night. I tried not to show my disappointment on my face though. "She may have come to overnight. I haven't seen her yet today because I was waiting for you." I smiled at her thoughtfulness before she continued. "So is your other half coming today?" I pursed my lips at her question and she read my expression immediately. "Don't worry about it, dear. He did seem a little uncomfortable yesterday. I am sorry if it was because of me." "No, no, it wasn't. He should be here soon. He is just at work right now." "Oh?" She looked at me inquisitively as we walked side by side through the Accident and Emergency unit."Where is he working? I am
OPHELIA I woke up with a start, struggling to catch my breath as the vivid pictures from my nightmare slowly faded from my mind. I couldn't help my frustration when I realized that this was the second one I had had in the past few days. I really thought I was over them. When I glanced to my left, I could see that there was already light outside the wall-sized window. Where did Nicholas go? My eyelids were heavy so I clearly hadn't slept long enough to catch up on sleep entirely, but it was disappointing nonetheless to know that he must still be working. I got to my feet, deciding to go and get some water since my throat was abnormally dry. I walked into the kitchen, surprised to see a new bag sitting on the floor next to my own. I recognized it as Nicholas's suitcase, and I automatically assumed that someone must have found it in our villa in The Bahamas and delivered it here. Maybe Shane arrived in Washington and brought this bag with him? Both bags were unmoved from in front of
OPHELIA "Nick. Hey, where are you going? Nicholas!" I caught up to him and eventually, he accepted that he couldn't ignore me any longer and hesitantly turned around. "Why are you leaving?" I asked him."We can come back when she is conscious," he replied ."I don't understand. We waited for hours to see them and now you want to leave?" He looked at me and I realized that he was breathing harder than usual. His eyes were wide and his face was abnormally pale. "Can we just… go? Please?" His voice was trembling and suddenly, I blanched, realizing that this may be much more than I thought it was. "Ohh, okay. But please just tell me what is going on." I hurriedly signed us out at the front desk and scuttled after him. The front doors slid open as we left the hospital, and I was thankful that the sun had risen in the time we had been inside. The cold was still biting, but it was not as harsh as it had been earlier. "It was difficult for me to watch them together," he finally said
OPHELIA The clock continued to tick mockingly on the wall opposite us, marking time passing painfully slowly. It was only the end of November, but it was already viciously cold in the waiting room as if it was already full-blown winter. Maybe it was just my imagination, but I felt as if I was freezing to death, even as I was with Nicholas's jacket on and his arms were wrapped around me. Minutes became an hour, and an hour becames hours. I had lost track of how long we had been sitting in the waiting room by the time a doctor appeared, asking if we were here to see Rianne Thomas and Dave Hank. Rianne's mother and I jumped out of our seats, both with expectant expressions on our faces. Nicholas stayed back as the doctor introduced himself, and I thought he was probably wondering if he would even be allowed to see them because he wasn't direct family of Rianne's, or even that close to her. In fact the last time I checked, they hated each other's guts. "Hi, I am Doctor Nathaniel.” T
OPHELIAIt must have gotten considerably colder in Washington while we were away, because the few cars parked by the hospital had a layer of thick white snow on their roofs, and the ground was coated with icy mud. The moment Nicholas parked the car in the deserted parking lot, I was ready to unbuckle my seatbelt and bolt to Rianne's side. I already felt terrible that we weren't here sooner but hopefully, her mother would understand because we were halfway across the world when we were informed of the accident. Nicholas seemed to sense my predicament because he turned to me the second we were no longer moving. "Go," he said and I smiled gratefully as I scurried out of the car and up to the towering hospital entrance. I could see Nicholas's figure reflected in the glass of the front doors. He was looking slightly less calm and collected than usual as he walked in behind me. I, on the other hand, couldn't seem to breathe as the place we were suddenly dawned on me. The last time I wen
NICHOLAS Eventually, she detached her lips and smiled lazily at me before she opened her mouth to speak. “You don't know what I want to do to you right now," she whispered as she sat up and began to plant small kisses on my neck. I must have been too preoccupied with trying to unzip my jeans to notice the way she sucked and nibbled harshly on the skin just below my ear for a little too long. “Nice.” Her tone was proud as she kissed the tender skin one final time. Just then, I froze as what she just did suddenly dawned on me. "You did not just give me a hickey," I bit out but she just grinned widely at me so I went on, "You have got to be kidding me. I have important meetings coming up." She continued to smile, and it was beyond contagious as her hand landed on my boxers. She rubbed the material over my bulge as I nuzzled my head into the crook of her neck. "I am sure I can make it up to you," she said and that same smile was still on her face. "Oh, I am sure you can." My voice
NICHOLAS I soon grew tired of the silent driving. I really thought Ophelia would have broken and spoken to me by now, but I guess I didn't realize just how upset with me she was. Out of instinct, I reached over and brushed the hair out of her eyes, but she only stiffened at my small display of affection. My hand found hers and I pulled it to my lips so that I could kiss it tenderly with my eyes still on the road as I steered with one hand. She didn't snatch it away, which I guessed was a good sign. So I dragged my kiss down to her knuckles and wrist next, feeling the softness of her pale skin beneath my lips. She still didn't show any emotion, as she kept on listening to whatever song she had playing on her phone. I put her hand back in her lap in defeat, resting my arm on her thigh instead. I waited a silent minute or so before I couldn't help myself any longer. Then I began to rub the skin on her leg just below the hem of her dress. Cautiously, I made a move to slide my hand fu