Kade (4 page)

Chapter Seven

Kade is leaning against my car, waiting for me as I walk out of my house dressed for my first day of internship at Regal Public Relations. I’m dressed professionally in tailored black pants and a white blouse. My hair is tied in a severe bun and the high black pumps I decided to wear are already hurting my feet. Kade gives me an appreciative once over but I’m not impressed. Not this time.

“What do you want, Kade?” I deadpan.

“About yesterday, Nikki...”

I cut him off. “Yesterday was enlightening. You set me straight, so thank you, Kade. You put my priorities in order for me. Now I have to get to work, not all of us are obscenely rich.” I move to my car door, but he doesn’t budge. He just stares at me with those deep baby blue eyes.

“Let me go, Kade,” I say softly. My sentence has two meanings and he knows it.

“I don’t think so, Nikki. Look, I wanted you so bad, still do; but you were pushing me away at every turn. When you didn’t answer your phone for a week, I was like fuck it, if she doesn’t want me, other women do. I fucked up, okay, but do you think I like getting rejected over and over again by the only woman I have ever considered anything even slightly permanent with?” he says heatedly.

“We’re cool, Kade, okay? But really, I gotta head to work. I've heard that my boss is an ass-hole,” I say honestly.

“Okay, but this conversation isn’t done, Nik,” he rumbles, placing a chaste kiss on my temple before returning to his Hummer.

This conversation is definitely over, because I think Kade and I are better of being friends.

Or so I kept telling myself.

******

The following weekend, Layla invites me to her family get together. Being around Kade sucks but we all ride together because of the distance. On the ride over I can feel Kade staring at me in his rearview mirror, but I don’t talk to him. Instead, I make small talk with James the whole time.

When we get to the Crawford residence, Layla’s mum runs up to us and gives us warm hugs. I love Layla’s mum. She didn’t like me at first, considering the first fight I got into she happened to witness. Once she learned it was because some girl was being mean to Layla and I was defending her, she warmed up to me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Layla’s cousin Sasha walking towards us. I begin to brace myself because we never did make up after our last fight. Before I can go into full lock down mode I notice that James and Sasha are staring at each other in shock, like they know each other. I see Sasha narrow her eyes, and clench her fists, her pink manicured nails digging into her palms.

“What are you doing here?” she asks in a dangerous tone. Out of nowhere, an awkward silence descends upon us, and before I can organize my thoughts to question what’s going on, James decides to leave. There's a story here. More mystery with James- no surprise there.

I see Ryder stride over looking like sex on a stick.

“Nicole, long time no see,” he says with a cheeky grin.

I can feel Kade hovering around, but ignore it, I grin back at Ryder. “Apparently not long enough, Ryder.”

Ryder’s grin turns into a killer smile. Kade tries to grab my hand, but I pull it away. Even though deep down I want Kade, he’s lost his chance.

I spend most of the time talking to Ryder, and glaring at Layla’s cousins who are flirting with Kade. Why does Layla have so many attractive people in her family? Every so often I notice Kade staring at me.

On the way home Kade and I are forced to sit in the back together. Great. Just what I need.

Not wanting to give him any of my attention, I manage to get Layla to talk to me the whole way home. I had hoped that Kade would take the hint, but apparently he didn’t because every once in a while his hand creeps onto my leg, and I have to quickly brush it off. After the fourth try, I swear he growls and looks like he's going to punch something. For the rest of the trip he just stares out of the window. Chase drops me off at home, and I jump out before Kade can say anything else.

******

The next weekend, Simone, a co-worker of mine, invites me out for drinks and dancing. With Layla spending all her time with Chase, I need a new partner in crime and Simone fits the bill. Blonde, blue eyed with a model's slim figure, Simone is a lot of fun, and almost as wild as me.

“Want another drink, Nikki?” she yells over the music, motioning to the bar. I nod.

An hour or so later I’m dancing with some random guy, having a good time. “Whistle” by Flo Rida is playing, and I’m grinding against my dance partner when all of a sudden I feel two large hands grip my hips and pull me backwards, slamming me into a hard chest. I tilt my head and stare into the familiar baby blue eyes of a very pissed off Kade. I gulp. In an instant he spins me around so I’m facing him, and suddenly his lips are on mine. Urgent, yet gentle at the same time, his firm lips devour mine. And fuck me if I can’t get enough. He moans low in his throat before pulling away.

“Fuck, Nikki. Let’s go,” he says gruffly.

Not even thinking twice, I nod in agreement. I need this, I need him.

I quickly shout to Simone that I’m leaving. She notices who I’m leaving with and winks. I told her all about Kade, and she keeps giving me this lecture about how I need to get over my issues and just go for it.

“Call me tomorrow,” she mouths. I nod.

Kade chuckles, and then leads me out the door. “Now, Nikki, I’m going to open the door for you, no lip.” And he does just that. We’re quiet on the ride to his place, but he doesn’t move his hand from my leg. Every time I shift, he tenses, probably thinking I’m going to change my mind. We pull into the driveway, but before we get out he looks at me.

“Is this ok?”

I hesitate, and then nod. He hops out and comes to my door, running around the car, so he can get to it before I do.

We walk into his house and head straight for his room. Layla isn’t here because she's been staying with Chase at his place lately, which means we can be as loud as we want. As soon as we stumble into his room, Kade pushes me against the wall, while our tongues continue to dance with one another in a passionate embrace. I moan loudly as he pulls back to rip open my shirt. With hooded eyes, I watch him as he begins to slowly kiss his way down to the swells of my breast.

“Fuck, Nikki,” Kade growls out, coming back to pay attention to my mouth. He lifts me up and my legs automatically wrap around him. He undoes my bra then flings it across the room as he moves me to the bed. Roughly throwing me down on to it, Kade immediately begins to kiss a wet trail down between my breasts towards my stomach, finally stopping at the top of my skirt. He darts his tongue out to trace slow circles on the sensitive flesh of my lower stomach, while he tucks his fingers into the waist band of my skirt and yanks it down roughly. I hear him suck in a breath. “Why the fuck are you not wearing any underwear?” he hisses in question. Before I can answer him, his mouth is on me. Oh god, that feels good. He takes my swollen clit into his mouth and sucks, and I shatter seconds later. Without warning he’s inside me, thrusting hard and fast. After he quickly works my body into a frenzy, he starts to slow down, alternating between kissing my bruised lips and planting sloppy kisses on my neck. It's torturously slow and sweet, but I want it rough, so I dig my nails into his back, and he grunts his approval as he bites down on my shoulder and picks up the pace once more. I can feel it coming again.

“Kade,” I whisper huskily. Then it hits me, the biggest orgasm I have ever had. He pulls out of me, obviously not finished yet, and flips me around so I’m on all fours. Again he’s back inside me, hard and fast. It’s not long before I have another orgasm, this one coming out of nowhere. We come together this time, and he groans out my name as he shudders his release. He rolls me over onto my back, and comes over on top of me, kissing me softly.

“Nikki, stay this time. Don’t run off.” As soon as he says that, I snap back into reality.

“Kade, please, let me go,” I tell him.

“No, Nikki, I want you to stay. What’s the big deal?” Kade questions.

“Please, Kade, just please,” I’m begging now. Pathetic.

Emotions cross over his face. “You can trust me, Nikki, whatever it is.” Fuck, is it that obvious there is something wrong with me? I quickly call a cab, and am immensely relieved when they say they will be here in five minutes. Kade reluctantly walks me to the door after I’m dressed and waiting. “Nikki, you don’t have to go,” he whispers, pulling me into his arms.

“Sorry, Kade,” I mumble, running out when the cab pulls up.

KADE

I watch her practically run to escape me. And it hurts. It. Fucking. Hurts. I know she has her own demons, and I want to find out what they are. Help her, let her know that no matter what it is, I will always be there to fix things, make them better. Make her better, happier. I understand now why Chase went so crazy for Layla. Why he fought so hard. Because at the end of the day, nothing else matters. I want Nikki, by my side. To go to sleep with, wake up with, and everything in between. I know Nikki is the woman for me, now I just need to convince her. To get her to let me in, let me prove myself. Prove my worth. It will never be over between Nikki and me.

Chapter Eight

NIKKI

After our night together, I’m feeling more confused than ever. It’s clear the sex between us is phenomenal, there's definitely no issue there. We have chemistry- a spark. I ignite every time he's near me. If it was just sex between us that would be fine, but boundaries are being crossed, and I don’t really know how to handle that. Do I want him?
Yes.
But am I willing to lower my guards and put myself out there with him? No, I’m not.

He tries calling the next day, but I don’t answer. Looks like I'm back to playing the avoidance game. I really need to get over this. I’m Nikki, I don't usually avoid situations, I confront. But what is it about Kade that has me so fucking freaked out?

Layla calls me up and says she's coming over. When she pulls into the driveway, she’s not alone. Chase is with her. When a Hummer pulls up behind them, I curse. James and Kade. Shit. I walk up to Layla.

“What’s going on?” I ask slowly, drawing out each word.

“Go get ready, we’re going somewhere,” she says with a grin.

******

I’m sitting in the back of Kade’s Hummer. I don’t know how I got talked into this, but we’re all going to visit his mom because their dad has been busy with work and she’s been feeling lonely. We pull up to the house, it’s beautiful. As we start to get out of the Hummer, a petite, blonde older woman comes running out to greet everyone.

“And who is this lovely lady?” she asks, moving in to give me a hug too.

“This is Nikki,” Kade says, sounding… proud?

Lucy glances between Kade and me and grins slyly. “Nice to meet you, Nikki. I’m Lucy, but you can call me mum if you like. Come on inside, everyone.”

I glance over at Layla and give her an evil look. She ignores me and gives me a huge smile in return. I know she’s happy I’m here so she’s not alone in meeting her future mother in law. I, on the other hand, would prefer to be somewhere else, not meeting the family of the man I have an extremely complicated relationship with. We all sit down and Lucy flutters around being a wonderful host, getting us all something to drink and eat. We all make small talk, and I avoid Kade’s penetrating gaze, listening to the family interact with each other instead. When I find out Lucy put alcohol into James’s coffee I burst out laughing, and when she says YOLO, I almost choke with laughter. Who knew this prim and proper looking woman had a sense of humor? Certainly not me. Kade’s mother really is lovely. This is why I didn’t want to come today. I don’t want to think of the ‘what-ifs’ anymore. I'm happy for Layla. It’s a little depressing to think she could have been my sister in law if Kade and I had worked out.

“Layla, you and Nikki will have to come visit sometime. We can have a girls' day; go to the spa, do some shopping, and maybe some lunch. How about it?” Lucy asks us, her eyes bright with excitement. Layla agrees on both of our behalf. I force a smile and avoid Kade’s knowing gaze.

******

My phone beeps with a text message from an unknown number. I scan over the message and frown.

It’s Layla.

She says that she's fine, not to worry about her, and she will call me in a few days. Also that I’m the only one with her new number, aside from her parents. I ask her why she has a new number, what the hell is going on, but she doesn’t respond. A few days later I get a call from Chase, begging me to tell him where Layla is or how he can find her. I had already guessed Layla’s running had something to do with Chase, and when I spoke to her yesterday, she confirmed it and told me everything. I tell Chase I’m sorry, but I can’t help him. When Kade calls me, asking me to please come over so we can all talk, I reluctantly relent. 

When I step into their house, Chase, Kade, and James are all standing there looking quite pitiful.

“Alright, asshole, what did you do?” I say to Chase with my arms on my hips. He puts his head down and fills me in on his version of what happened to make Layla take off.

“Can you please call her or give me her number? I need to talk to her; make her listen,” Chase pleads.

“I can’t do that, Chase. When she gets home, you can try talking to her then,” I tell him, avoiding his eyes. The man looks almost desperate.

“I need her home now, Nikki, what she walked in on was not what she thinks it was! She overreacted like always and took off.”

That's true, Layla overreacts over everything. James remains quiet the whole time, just staring at me intently.

Kade sighs, then grabs my arm and pulls me out of the kitchen. I roll my eyes- here we go.

“Nikki, the man is hurting. You need to tell us where she is,” Kade demands.


“Kade…” I trail off.

“Nikki, you know she needs to be back home, with Chase; with us. She can’t run forever, and it’s not safe, Nikki. Think!” he says gruffly. I sigh. Layla does need to hear Chase’s side of the story. I know he’s telling the truth, the man loves Layla way too much to ever stray. He's totally whipped. Layla is going to kill me though.

“Fine,” I grunt. Kade nods, and gives me an approving smile.

“Come on, let’s get the two lovebirds back together.” He smirks.

We walk back into the kitchen, and I hand over Chase my phone. Fuck, Layla is gonna be so pissed at me. They don’t talk for long before Chase hangs up, gives me back my phone, and stomps off pissed. I quickly leave after that, well, I try, but Kade grabs my arm.

“What now, Kade?” I ask with a sigh.

“Stay for a bit,” he suggests.

“No, I need to get back home. Layla is probably pissed at me now, so I need to try and talk to her.”

I pull my arm away and head out.