Bonus Chapter
Cole
I saw Nina from across the road. I knew she had no clue I was there. Two PM on a Wednesday, when I should have been in London closing a business deal. I had parked my Maserati and got out just to stop and stare at her, when she thought nobody was looking.
She was sitting under an umbrella, at the front of her favorite cafe. I had a feeling I would find her there, doing her usual thing. She was sipping her frothy iced latte from a tall glass, while reading a book.
Her dark sunglasses were pushed into her angelic blond curls on top of her head. She was in a pair of denim cutoffs and a thin white spaghetti top, through which straps of her pink bra peeped out. Her brilliant green eyes were sparkling in the harsh Las Vegas sun, while her brows were crossed, concentrating on the text in hand.
Her slender yet curvaceous legs were crossed over each other, her arms were bare, getting tanned, and in the warm breeze of the afternoon, her curls sometimes blew behind her. Nina was completely oblivious to my presence across the road. She hadn’t once looked up from her book or looked in any direction. I could literally stand there for several hours, just watching her and she would never know. And I knew I could do it too. I could look at her endlessly and never grow tired of watching her.
I knew every freckle on her cheeks, the length of her neck, the way the edges of her lips turned when she smiled. The deep dimple that formed on the left side of her mouth when she blushed. The way the tops of her ears grew bright red every time I kissed her velvety pink mouth. And even though I thought I knew everything there was to know about Nina, she surprised me every day.
I had been away to London for five days, and I felt giddy and breathless with the thought of seeing her again, with surprising her. What was this hold that she had on me? Where had she been all my life? Why was she the only one who could make me feel like this?
I crossed the road, growing nervous now as I walked towards her. I was like a blushing teenage child afraid of my schoolboy crush.
“Mr Emery! Cole Emery. I’m a fan,” I heard someone’s voice beside me, and I stopped in my tracks and turned to look at the guy. A young early twenty-something in cargo shorts and a polo shirt. I quickly looked over to Nina again, she still hadn’t looked up. I was relieved that my surprise wasn’t spoilt yet.
“Hi. It’s nice to meet you,” I turned so that my back was to her now and I stuck my hand out to the excited guy who shook my hand vigorously.
“I’m sure you get this a lot, but I would love to pick your brain. I want to get into wealth management myself, and I studied some of your cases last year,” the guy was still shaking my hand and grinning. I nodded my head and forcefully retrieved my hand away from him. My mind was clouded with thoughts of Nina, and yet I didn’t want to be rude.
“I’m humbled, but I do really have to go. I wish I could stay and chat,” I said and took a step away from the guy.
“Of course, Sir. Mr Emery. Cole,” he was fumbling with his words and suddenly I felt sorry for him.
“Here. This is my private email,” I said and fished out a business card from the back pocket of my dark pants and handed it to the guy. He was delighted, and stared at it with the grin returning to his face.
“Thank you, Sir! I will email you right away. I’m sure you’ll be interested in my ideas, Mr Emery, Sir. This is brilliant. You made my day. My name is Josh,” he said, gushing with his words now and I nodded and smiled.
When I turned around, I stopped in my tracks again. Nina had stood up from her chair, staring directly at me, her face covered in that gorgeous smile of hers, her book lying discarded on the table in front of her.
“Have a nice day, Mr Emery,” I heard the guy call out behind me, but I was already running. Running towards the love of my life.
“What are you doing here? You were in London when we spoke last evening!” were Nina’s first words, but I didn’t have time to answer her. I had to kiss her first. Our mouths met, and I devoured her, breathing in the sweet taste of her breath. I moved her face around between my hands so I could kiss her deeply. My hands found the hem of her top and in my desperation to have her, I rolled the top up till she forcefully pulled it back down.
“We’re in a public place, Cole! There are kids!” she said, laughing, as she pulled away from me.
“I had a surprise planned, but someone intercepted me first,” I said, my hand seeking out hers so that I could hold her close to me. Nina was flushed, her green eyes were sparkling even more in the sun now.
“One of your many fans?” she said and edged herself closer to me. I could sense eyes on us. People were watching us, me, her…together. We got a lot of looks wherever we went. I was still making news. Not only for the crazy business deals that had suddenly begun falling into my lap, but also because the tabloids couldn’t believe that I had been with one woman for three months now. They were constantly sniffing for stories. But I wasn’t even annoyed. I had nothing to hide. In fact, I was happy showing Nina off and she was slowly getting used to the limelight.
“You should have just told me you were coming home…back, I mean,” she said and her eyelids fluttered with embarrassment. Even though we had been together for three months, she hadn’t agreed to move in with me yet. God knows I’d tried to convince her it was a good idea. Nina insisted that we take our time. To her, moving in with somebody was as good as committing to a point of no return. She had never lived with a man before, and she didn’t want to make a hasty decision. And we both knew the consequences of hasty decisions already.
I smiled and brushed her cheek with the back of my hand.
“Well, I’m home now and I wanted to surprise you,” I said, and she was blushing still.
“I could have cooked for you, my apartment is a mess. Will you come over tonight?” she asked, and I stared at her, the way I always did. It was like I was still in shock that she had agreed to be with me.
“I don’t care about the mess, babe and if you’re worried, we can just stay at mine tonight,” I said and Nina gave me a hug. I wished she would just agree to move in with me, so that we wouldn’t have to go back and forth between our places like this. As far as I was concerned, I was more ready now than I ever was before. I knew she was the one. Nina Philips was the woman who had changed my world, my way of thinking…I was ready for the commitment. But I also knew that she needed to take her time, I didn’t want to push her into anything. It would take time for her to trust me again, and I was willing to spend an entire lifetime getting her to trust me.
“I’m so happy to see you, Cole,” I heard her say, her voice snapping me out of my thoughts and I rested my chin on her head. We were still standing wrapped up in each others arms, outside the coffee shop, neither of us wanted to be the one to let the other go. Even five days felt like a lifetime apart.
“I missed you, Nina,” I said and she looked up at me with her enormous expressive green eyes and I took in a deep breath. It felt like it was time. I had to take the leap at some point, and I could feel a host of emotions coursing through my veins. I had thought about nothing other than being with her while I was away.
“I love you,” I said, for the first time, to anybody, and I held my breath. The look in her eyes changed, grew tense and then suddenly relaxed. I was regretting my decision to say those words already. Had I majorly screwed things up between us? Would she despise me now? Was it too soon?
“I love you, Cole,” she said in a tender voice.