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HE WOULDN’T BE NATHAN IF HE WASN’T A DICK ABOUT IT
KARINA
Something was wrong with Nathan.
Ever since he returned two nights ago, he’d been drinking. For someone who was supposed to protect the Vasiliev family, he was doing a poor job at it. Even I could see that from the sliding doors leading out to my balcony. I pressed my hand against the glass as he tossed the empty bottle beside him.
“He’s grieving.” I turned upon hearing my father’s voice.
“Then why not send him home?” I asked, confused. “He’s incapable of doing his job in this state.”
“He is handling this his way. I’ve told him to take time off, but he refuses.”
I shook my head and stormed past my father. He made deals for a living and took care of companies around the world, yet he couldn’t help this man who’d been in our family for years?
“Where are you going?” His voice bellowed after me.
I refused to answer. If he couldn’t make Nathan leave, then I would myself. I walked through the hallway, down the stairs, past the living room, and out into the backyard. The mansion may have been big, but the side my room resided on was closer to the backyard and front door than the rest of the place.
My eyes fell on the broken man sitting on the grass. Nathan’s head hung low. His hands clutched in his hair. I took a deep breath, making my presence known. “You’re a mess.”
He scoffed. “And I’m sure you look perfectly attractive, as usual.” His voice was hoarse.
“Was that supposed to be an insult?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
“If I wanted to insult you, I could do it without words.” Of course he could. Nathan had a way of insulting someone with just a look. Or in my case, no look at all. Though he never seemed to have the heart to do so.
“Did you get tired of watching me from your room?” He asked me, his eyes meeting mine as he raised his head.
“How did you—”
“You’re not subtle. Besides, I have to keep an eye on the place. Make sure people aren’t going in and out of the house.” Nathan slipped his fingers from his hair. He pressed his back against the metal gates. The tear stains against his cheeks illuminated under the lowlights of the night.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re grieving?” I asked him, my voice low.
Something flashed in his eyes. “The Princess actually gives a fuck about the annoying bodyguard?”
He wouldn’t be Nathan if he wasn’t a dick about it. I scoffed. “Not really, but it’d be nice to know why you’re not as annoying as usual.”
“If you must know, my brother disappeared last year. He could be alive, but the longer he’s gone, the more I lose faith.” Nathan sighed, closing his eyes. “The more I want to put a time stamp on that gravestone of his.”
I lowered my head. There was still a lot I didn’t know about Nathan, outside of what I gathered and what he shared with me. What else was he hiding?
It didn’t matter. What mattered was that he lost a family member. Silence loomed over us, and I took a seat beside him. I wasn’t sure what to say other than, “I’m sorry.”
“There’s no need to be. Not like you caused it,” he said, reaching into his blazer and pulling out a flask.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked, glancing at him.
Nathan twisted the top of the flask open and took a long sip. “I saw him when he went to this underground racing tournament in New York.” Nathan shrugged his shoulders, his eyes drifting to his feet. I looked away, letting him speak. “But since then, no one’s seen him.”
I waited for a second, but it seemed like he had nothing else to say about it. That was fine. I wouldn’t push him.
After a long moment of silence, I glanced over at him once more. His face was scrunched up. The kind of look you give when you’re trying hard not to cry, but regardless, the tears trickled down his cheek. His knuckles looked white as they clenched the flask.
“It’s my fault he’s gone.” I couldn’t make out whether he was talking to me or convincing himself. His voice was barely a whisper. “If I hadn’t visited, if I stayed away, Cole probably wouldn’t have gone missing.”
Maybe it was for the best that I couldn’t understand what he meant. He was drunk and expressing his emotions. All I could do was be there to let him pour his heart out.
“People were after me, and maybe they spotted me with him.” He went on after a moment. “I don’t even know who they are.” He took a swig from his flask. “But I’m still here, while he’s been gone for a year, away from his family. Away from his kid.”
He downed the rest of his drink as if it were nothing. I stared at the flask in his hand, noting how small it was in his large hands.
I didn’t want to interrupt his thoughts. But after a moment, I could feel his intense gaze burning a hole in me. I drifted my attention to him. The anger in his eyes softened as they drifted from mine down to my lips, and back up again.
“But I’ll make sure you’re taken care of, you and your family.” He told me softly.
“You can’t do it intoxicated, Mr. James.” I smirked, trying to lighten up the mood a bit.
It seemed to work because he did the same in return. “I guess I can’t, but I could do one thing.”
“And what’s that?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
At a moment’s notice, the distance between us disappeared. I froze at the touch of his warm lips against mine. My eyes widened as his shut. He was drunk, just drunk, I reminded myself. In fact, him kissing me could have been considered payback.
Yet my heart did not receive the memo. Instead, it pattered, nervous and excited at the same time.
But the moment was over as fast as it began once Nathan pulled away.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that,” he said as his eyes told another story. Desire burned in them as his gaze lingered on my lips.
“It’s fine,” I waved off the negativity he tried to express. “It’s not the first time I’ve been kissed.” I smiled.
He scoffed. “I know that much, but as your bodyguard, I shouldn’t have done it… again.”
“Like I said, it’s not the first time. Business partners and others who protected the family have kissed me too.”
He rolled his eyes, flexing his fingers against his pants. “Way to make a guy feel even more like shit.”
“It’s not like they were drunk,” I told him.
“Being drunk isn’t an excuse, Karina. No one, and I mean no one, should have the right to do anything to you without your consent.”
His words made me smile. He said that, yet he was the one who kissed me. I shrugged playfully. “Yeah, but again, it’s not the first time we kissed.”
Nathan shook his head. “I could have avoided both times.”
“But you didn’t. Not that it matters.”
“It does. The first time we kissed, you were drunk. The second time you kissed me, you pulled away. I should have ended it there.”
“Yes, but I wanted to kiss you.”
“You just feel bad for me.” Nathan’s eyes shifted over to me. “Because I’m drunk and bottling up my pain.”
“More like drinking your pain away.” I nudged his shoulder gently.
Nathan glanced back down at his hands. “Can’t do that without liquor.”
“I could always distract you.” I reached over, sliding my hand over his thigh.
Nathan chuckled. He lifted my hand, placing it at my side. “We both know you enjoy the side glances and the teasing.”
“I honestly do, because you have so much self-control.” I joked. “Makes me wonder what it’ll take for you to break.” I winked at him.
Nathan smiled, shaking his head. He pushed himself off the ground, holding his hand out to me. “Thanks, but I’m going to rest for a bit. You know, so I can do my job and protect you.” He said with a wink.
I chuckled, taking his hand. He pulled me to my feet. “Well, you’re more than welcome to stop by my room if you ever need anything.”
“So suggestive.” He laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind. But really.” His arms wrapped around my shoulder, enclosing me in a warm embrace as his chin nuzzled in my hair. “Thank you.”
“Of course, I’d much rather not have my dad go searching for another bodyguard.”
“He might,” Nathan pulled away, dropping his hands to the side, “once he finds out I kissed you… again.”
“I’m sure he’ll understand. And with luck, you can keep Adam away from me.”
“Mr. Prince?” He raised an eyebrow at me.
“Yeah, but it’s no big deal.” I patted his chest with a smile. “He hasn’t bothered me since and I think he’s just trying to take over the company.”
He scoffed. “Yeah, well, that won’t ever happen. Trust me. Your dad has plans for his company, and Mr. Prince isn’t a part of it.”
I shrugged my shoulders and stepped forward as Nathan followed beside me into the house. “Doesn’t mean he won’t try to strike a deal or something. If it benefits my father, he’d consider.”
“Mr. Vasiliev hired me to watch out for him, his business, and his family,” He informed me in his professional tone as we climbed up the stairs. “That includes you, which means I’ll make sure whatever your father does is best for everyone.”
“Feeling a little sober now?” I asked with a smile.
Nathan chuckled, stopping just as we reached my room. His hand pressed against the wooden door, pushing it open. He leaned against the frame and glancing inside the room before bringing his attention back to me. “Just a little.”
His eyes met mine, and I could tell he was telling the truth. The way he looked at me sent a shiver down my spine- the good kind of shiver. He crossed his arms, causing the muscles to flex against his sleeves. “Get some sleep, Princess.”
I took a step in, but stopped, a question popping into my head. I turned to him. “Why princess?”
He leaned in close as a smirk played at his lips, making my heart beat faster. “I mean, I could always call you a brat. You do look like that Bratz doll my niece likes so much.”
“Funny.” I touched his arm, giving him a nudge. “Will you answer the question?”
He nodded, still keeping that smirk on his lips. “Because we’re all players in this game of life, but one day I know you’ll be the most powerful piece.”
Tilting my head, I tried to read behind the playful glint in his eyes. He meant I’d be a queen, the most powerful piece on the chessboard. “Does that make you a knight?”
“I was thinking more of a pawn, but a knight doesn’t sound too bad.” He said, looking me over. “They are useful pieces. And I guess they do destroy the enemies.”
I shook my head and looked up at him. He leaned over closer, making me suck in a breath. His gaze dropped to my lips, but instead of feeling them on mine, they pressed gently against my cheek.
“Sweet dreams, Princess.” He whispered, his breath tickling my face.
A small smile crept onto my face as my stomach fluttered. “Sleep well, knight.”
