by Marian Tee
“Mother?” Although her presence was a welcome surprise, he couldn’t figure out the reason for her visit. She sat on one of the stools in his breakfast counter, a half-folded newspaper before her. His gaze swiftly roamed the rest of his surroundings. His penthouse unit was styled as a two-story loft, with the entire second floor consisting only of his bedroom.
His chest tightened when he realized that Lilac was nowhere in sight.
Sylvia’s heart ached at the sight of Nick. It always did and always will, Sylvia knew, for she owed so much to this stalwart son of hers. Aristos had tried to make the firstborn of their twins cold and selfish, and in many ways he had succeeded. But no matter what he did, Aristos had never succeeded in making Nick heartless.
Someone else had done that to Nick, and Sylvia knew there wouldn’t ever be a day in her life she would stop hating that person. She didn’t know how, didn’t know why, but frankly she didn’t give a damn. All she knew was that Karla Niall had made Nick see himself as ugly and weak, so much so he would rather hurt others than let himself be hurt again.
Sylvia took several deep breaths, not wanting Nick to feel how devastated she was by what she had learned from Jason last night. When he reached her side, she lifted her cheek for his kiss. “Good morning, son.” Her voice cracked at the end, but she smiled at Nick brightly, hoping he wouldn’t notice.
But of course he did. Nick had always been her defender and Jason’s, the one who constantly put himself between Aristos’ rage and them. Nick thought she did not know what he had suffered for them, but she knew. She had always known, but she had also always pretended, knowing that the only way to spare Nick from more pain was to let him think that he had been successful in completely shielding his loved ones from Aristos’ cruelty.
“Good morning.” Nick bent his head to kiss her on the cheek. “Dare I ask why you’re here?” He was smiling, but there was a question in his gaze, demanding Sylvia to let him know what was wrong so he could fix it.
It made her eyes blur for a moment. In front of Sylvia was the man she knew many considered as one of the most beautiful men alive, one of the world’s most eligible bachelors, and it wasn’t just because he was heir to a billion-dollar trust fund.
At that moment, all Sylvia could see was Nick as a seven-year-old boy, a determined cheerful smile on his face even though his swollen eyes had given him away. “Mother,” he had said very gravely then. “I made our lawyer tell me the truth. I must stay with Father or he would try to take Jason away from you as well. He would try to hurt you, too, and my stepfather. Uncle Pelias told me that when I am eighteen, then I can be free of Father. But for now, I will stay here with him and make sure he does not give you or Jason trouble.”
“Mother?”
Sylvia glanced up, blinking rapidly. “I’m just so happy,” she explained.
Nick frowned. “Happy?”
The knob of his front door rattled, and Nick’s head snapped towards it. The door opened, and Lilac came in, school bag slung over one shoulder, looking as beautiful and as uncoordinated like she always did. Today, she wore an orange-and-black striped shirt over checkered seventies-styled slacks.
Sylvia and Nick exchanged glances, and the fond twinkle in his mother’s eyes made Nick breathe a little easier. She understood…and she appreciated Lilac as she was.
Lilac blushed when their gazes met. It was too adorable, and he strode towards her, taking Lilac’s lips for a kiss. She gasped against his lips, but he didn’t give a fuck, pushing his tongue in, demanding her response. With a sigh Lilac melted against him, her school bag falling to the floor as she twirled her arms around his neck.
When he lifted his head, he said accusingly, “You left me.”
She blushed, her eyes darting over his shoulder to see if Sylvia was looking at them. She was, and Lilac blushed even more. “I did not…leave you,” she corrected. “I went to…school.”
He scowled. “You left me.”
She laughed at how stubbornly selfish Nick was. It made him sound like a kid, and for some reason she found this side of Nick awfully cute. What would the world say, Lilac mused, if they knew that this 23-year-old self-made billionaire was so selfish he didn’t want her leaving for school without telling him?
She said obediently, “I’m s-sorry.”
“Never leave me again without telling me,” he told her, his voice utterly serious.
It tempted her to smile, but she did her best not to, knowing it would just infuriate Nick. “I promise,” she said solemnly.
Nick sighed above her. “Don’t think I don’t fucking know you’re laughing at me inside your head.”
And so she laughed.
“That,” Sylvia said softly behind them, “is what I’m happy about.”
Nick turned to her curiously, an arm around Lilac’s waist. She was of course still shy, and she was doing her best to wriggle away from him, clearly uncomfortable of being this close to him with Sylvia around.
“What do you mean?” He didn’t loosen his grip on Lilac, anchoring her to his side. Lilac York was his, and the first step to making the world realize this was making said Lilac York get used to his touch, no matter who was present.
“Jason called me about the good news,” Sylvia answered casually. “Says a girl has finally captured your heart.”
Nick was stunned, but looking down at Lilac, he could see that it was already old news to her. “We…talked,” she explained. “Mrs. Christakos---”
“You can call me Mother if you want,” Sylvia said graciously.
Lilac turned red, Nick grinned.
Sylvia grinned as well, but taking pity on the poor girl, she amended, “Well, you may also call me Sylvia if you wish.”
Lilac said quickly, “I…wish.” Then she looked up at him expectantly. “Are you…ready?”
Nick gazed at her blankly. “Ready for what?”
An hour later, he found himself being dragged by two horrendously socially conscious women to a Habitat for Humanity construction site, the three of them wearing branded shirts from the foundation.
Sylvia stuck up her nose in the air at the laughing look that her son gave her. “You can stop looking at me like that.”
“You do know what we’re going to do, right? Your nails could get broken,” he teased, but he was half-serious since Sylvia had never worked a day in her life. It was, unfortunately, one of the reasons why she had failed to secure custody of him from the beginning.
Sylvia released an unladylike curse.
“Mother!” Nick didn’t have to pretend to be shocked.
Lilac laughed. “It’s your…fault, doubting your…mother.”
Sylvia gave her a grateful look. “You are such a sweet child. I really don’t know what you’re doing with my son.” She dealt Nick an arched look. “If you get tired of my son, do tell me right away and I’ll have much nicer men lining up at your doorstep.”
A curious pain wrapped around Nick’s heart at the thought of Lilac leaving him, but he swiftly pushed the feeling away. Lilac would never leave him. She loved him. And she…thought he loved her.
At the site, Nick knew that everyone had been briefed about his arrival. It was obvious by the way they treated him and Sylvia like one of their own. The on-site manager had no trouble issuing commands, getting Sylvia to help with organizing supplies while he had Nick hammering boards. It had been a long time since he had done something physical outside the gym, and it was…invigorating. He looked around, a part of him always needing to see Lilac and be reassured that she was nearby---
Lilac stood next to Dorothy, who was also volunteering for the project along with other members from their org. Lilac held a Styrofoam cup of coffee in her hands, an intent expression on her face as she listened to the other girl. Her head partially turned towards him, as if sensing his gaze.
Lilac’s pale violet eyes gazed at him knowingly. Miss me?
His blue eyes blazed its answer. Miss you so much I need to find a secluded place to fu
ck you.
Lilac choked on her coffee, and she choked some more when she saw Nick striding towards her purposefully.
Dorothy pounded her on the back. “Are you okay?”
She cleared her throat. “I’m…uh…” The thought of what Nick had so slyly suggested with his gaze had her choking again. Oh…Nick!
A male volunteer passing by stopped in front of them, his concerned gaze at the choking Lilac.
“You okay, miss?” The girl looked up, and his jaw dropped. She was immensely pretty – in fact, lovelier than any girl he knew. But it was her eyes that attracted him the most – big and the shade of lilac, those eyes made her seem almost unreal, like a doll brought to life.
Lilac nodded, managing a slight smile. Discomfort made Lilac shift on her feet. She was still having a hard time staying calm in the presence of male strangers, a part of her still haunted by the past.
The guy cleared his throat. “I’m---”
“---going your way, I hope?”
His eyes bulged when he saw Nick Christakos walk into view, his arm going around the hot girl’s waist possessively. Nick Christakos! So what his friend had told him was true, the guy realized in a daze. An earlier announcement had been issued regarding the billionaire’s presence, with everyone requested to treat them normally and to refrain from taking photos or alerting the media in any way for security reasons.
And then he realized another thing.
The billionaire’s security team had him surrounded, and they did not look friendly. He said hastily, “I…uh…yeah…gotta go,” he mumbled. What the fuck was that about? It was like Nick Christakos was ready to have him killed just for looking at his girl.
He stole a look over his shoulder, the memory of the girl with her spectacular eyes tempting him to take one last glance---
He hurriedly looked back because all he had seen were the gazes of a dozen hulking men in black, their hands casually poised as if to draw something from inside their blazers. He did not need a good imagination to know what that was.
Lilac shook her head reprovingly at him. “Nick…that poor guy!”
He shrugged. “It was his fault for daring to look at you.”
“Nick!”
He bent down to steal a kiss from her lips. “We need to fuck soon,” he told her seriously.
She gasped, covering his lips. “Nick! Someone might…hear!”
He took her hand away from his mouth, twining his fingers with hers.
Her face softened, the familiar touch making love burst inside her like fireworks. It was, she thought ruefully, like Katy Perry’s song. How mushy was that?
Looking up at Nick, she whispered, “To be honest…I w-want t-that, too.” It was hard, speaking of sex when a part of her still thought James had been right – that something about her made everyone see her as a slut.
But this was Nick.
He knew her, understood her – he loved her.
His chest constricted. Dio! She never ever failed to amaze him, the way she could risk so much of herself for him.
“I love you.” The words rolled off his tongue so easily it was as if…it was true.
Her eyes went wide.
He went hard.
She said morosely, “Now…I’m so…t-turned on, too!”
Ah, fuck.
Without a word, he curled his fingers around her delicate wrist and took her with him, walking so fast she had to run to keep up to him. Her eyes widened when she saw where they were going. “Oh my…God!” She looked at him in panic. “No!”
He said coolly, “It’s the only private place here, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to hammer nails when my own cock’s harder than a rock.”
She tried pulling away. “Nick.” She wailed it softly.
Ignoring that, he kept dragging her with him while he called for his head of security in Greek. He issued his command. When he reached the RV camper that served as the on-site canteen for the project, all five members of its crew on the way out. Its body was painted a garish shade of green, with the words Burger 4 Ya emblazoned on all sides. It was fucking ugly, but for now it served his purpose.
Impervious to the gaping stares of the people around them, Nick urged Lilac to move forward, practically carrying her so she would make her way up to the camper.
“In you go, sweetheart.”
Lilac had no choice but to step inside the camper, which smelled of burgers and fries.
Nick shut the door and locked it. He did the same with the huge window that served as the order area before moving around to do the same with the rest of the windows. Outside, Lilac heard Nick’s security team flatly answering everyone’s questions, and then there were cheers and shouts.
She whirled around, demanding, “What…did y-you make them say?”
“That I’ll treat everyone to pizza and beer if they turn a blind eye to the fact that I’m going to make love to you here.”
“Oh…Nick.”
“Oh…Lilac,” he said mockingly, but a smile was playing on his lips. “You’re welcome.”
She blinked, which of course had his balls aching, and then she was laughing, running to him and surprising Nick as she twirled her arms around his neck. “You are so…hot!”
Nick groaned. “You want me to come before I’m even naked?”
“No,” Lilac said breathlessly before sinking to her knees. Her fingers were quicker and more confident now as she worked on his belt and the zipper of his jeans. It was so goddamn hot, more so because Nick knew he had made her feel confident, that she didn’t feel like a slut for wanting to have sex with him.
And then she was taking his cock into her warm and eager mouth. He groaned, and as she fucked him with her mouth, taking his cock all the way in, he couldn’t stop groaning.
She pulled away, her eyes pleading. “Come…in m-my mouth. I want i-it.” Lilac’s head started bobbing up and down, her love working like some kind of erotic steroid that had Nick gasping and gripping her hair.
His hips moved, pumping his cock into her mouth faster and harder, and Lilac welcomed it, her mouth widening and her hands joining in, driving Nick to the very edge.
Nick came with a shout, Lilac milking him, and his body shuddered with every pulsing stream of cum that shot out of his cock.
“Lilac.” Her name was torn out of him.
When he was clearly spent, she gently released his cock, the popping sound making Nick look down. She licked her lips.
“Ah, fuck.” Nick lifted Lilac up and swiftly took off her clothes. She giggled at his haste, but it soon became a moan as his fingers immediately started working on the triangle between her legs.
Lilac gasped as he half-carried her in front him, her feet dangling in the air as he walked towards the only clean table at the back. He pushed her down, and she gasped again, the steel surface making her nipples harden like pebbles.
Nick began fucking her with his fingers while playing with her clit. “Soon,” he said hoarsely. “It’s going to be my cock.”
She could only moan at his promise, no longer able to talk because his fingers alone were more than enough to turn her world upside down.
Lilac couldn’t imagine how long it lasted, his fingers going in and out of her. Sometimes, it was slow, sometimes it was fast but always it made her feel so beautifully full---Lilac screamed, taken by surprise when Nick’s cock suddenly replaced his fingers.
“Nick!” The cry came out all choked, Nick driving into her hard, fast, and furious. The slapping sounds of his balls against her body just made everything more erotic, hotter, and tears pricked her eyes at how wonderfully good it was.
“More, sweetheart?”
“More,” she gasped, and it was more. She didn’t know how Nick did it, but it was more – the speed and force of his thrusts, the power of it, the thickness of his cock, it was so much more.
“I’m near,” Nick grated against her ear.
She could only nod, already out of her mind with desire.
; Nick’s hand on the small of her back pushed her down, and when she was lying completely flat against the table, he started pistoning into her wildly. His fingers clamped around her clit, twisting and twisting until a cry of pleasure was wrenched out of her.
“NICK!”
She came, and he came, and the pleasure didn’t stop as Nick’s cock pistoned into her nonstop. Weakly, she reached out and before she could move another inch, his fingers found hers, twining with hers. She closed her eyes as their hands clasped. Nick knew. Nick understood. Nick loved.
****
“The poor girl is so embarrassed,” Sylvia reprimanded her son when the doors of the elevator closed with a still-blushing Lilac inside it.
He shrugged indolently, the air of sexual satisfaction about him an answer in itself.
Sylvia couldn’t help but smile. “I knew I would like her when I learned about Briarwood,” she told him. “And I was right.”
“Good.”
Inside his limousine, she said softly, “She’s not like Karla.”
Nick stiffened. “I know she lacks Karla’s sophistication---”
“Son.”
Something about Sylvia’s tone made him look at her. “I was favoring Lilac.”
When Nick’s gaze became shuttered, Sylvia sighed, her heart heavy because she knew – she knew that the dark specter of Karla Niall was the only thing blinding Nick to the truth. “One day,” she told him. “One day, you’ll know how lucky you are to have Lilac.”
Sylvia’s words remained with him even after he had driven her home. The words echoed Jaike’s and he knew without a doubt that Jason – and every one of his friends - thought the same.
His heart beat madly against his chest.
They didn’t fucking know…
Dio!
They were all so fucking blind. They didn’t know that he already knew he was lucky to have Lilac. That had never been the fucking problem. His phone beeped.
I’m at our favorite hotel. Room 222. Please – for old time’s sake.
He did not answer.
Another beep.
I just hope…she will always understand you like I do. That she knows how lucky she is to have you.