Nicholas: A Corbett Brothers BWWM Billionaire Romance: The Corbett Billionaire Brothers

by Imani King

  Nobody's perfect, and I shouldn’t think of Nicholas as a perfect man either, even if I can’t find a fault in him to save my life. Despite the fact that he seems almost like one of the heroes of the romance books I used to read. Beautiful, tall, muscular, with an athlete's body; rich as anything; and with eyes that nearly sear into your soul with their gray-blue intensity.

  The one important way he differs from the heroes in all those books is that he is kind. He doesn't have an ounce of arrogance, despite his obvious assets. I hope this is the real him, this considerate and kind person. And going by this morning, an incredible lover, too.

  My dad stirs in his bed, and makes a small noise somewhere between a sigh and a groan of pain. I put my head between my knees and breathe slowly to try to regain myself a little.

  Mom, what should I do?

  And the answer comes back to me.

  You should be a good daughter, you should take care of your brother and sister. And while you do all that you should get to know this gorgeous man who seems to be quite taken with you.

  I hear the sounds of a gurney behind me and turn to see the kindly nurse from before. "The doctor is just coming in to assess your father’s condition, and after that we're going to transfer him to a room, Miss Jones," she says kindly.

  "Adisa," I correct her. "And really, thank you for all your help with my father. You've been such a rock for me."

  "I told you, it's my job," she says brightly, almost impersonally, but by the light in her eye and the smile on her face I can tell that she does appreciate my words.

  In a whirl, the doctor enters and flips through the chart, making notes, and talking to my dad who is still groggy after his sleep.He speaks quickly into a voice recorder and I catch the words, "recovery," and "aorta," but beyond that I am just not too sure what to make of his high-speed medical jargon.

  "Miss Jones," he addresses me then. "Of course we need to keep your father here until he's ready for release. If you'd like to accompany him from the ICU to his new room and get him settled, that would be great. But after that he really needs to rest, and I’m sure you need to as well. I would suggest you go home and do the same."

  I look between him and the nurse.

  "It's a wise plan," she says gently. "You can't take care of anyone else unless and until you take care of yourself first. Like with the oxygen masks on airplanes." She pushes the gurney out of the door after the doctor who is striding quickly away from us and motions for me to follow. I grab my phone and my purse and follow them as best as I can, thinking about what she said.

  If anyone should put on a mask, it's Nicholas. He's obviously taking the pressure off of me and helping me through this crisis.

  16

  Nicholas

  A horn beeps behind me, breaking my reverie, and I realize I have no idea for how long the light has been green.

  As I pull out, I have to admit it - I'm not exactly a young man anymore and I'm not even sure when it'll be that I can make my own family and start building the life that I want, the life that I can be proud of. I've already done a lot alone, but it's time for me to find the right person to build a substantial life together.

  Someone with the skills to be a good mom and the love in her heart to make a house a home. And with that I slip back into my reverie.

  Someone like Adisa. Her lovely eyes, downcast with eyelashes covering them, and then when she looks up you feel as if you are enveloped in warmth. Hands, soft, warm, small, touching my shoulders, my chest, pulling me close. Lips, so kissably soft, framing the syllables of my name as she takes my arm and leans in. Her voice, so smooth and kind. The laugh that bubbles inside her, shaking her shoulders until it spills out in light peals and makes me laugh too.

  Before long I find myself on the country road near my house as the early sunset of late winter arrives. The golden light hurts my eyes a little bit and I flip the visor down for the last few minutes of my voyage. When I reach the gates and they open with a smooth hum, I can't help but admire my estate and my house, both of which a true blessing - the building gorgeous, inside and out, situated perfectly in the trees and surrounding hills. Of course I think about what Adisa would think of it, what she would have thought of it if she’d been able to come by as planned.

  As close as you could get to a kind of ranch in this state, in the sense that it's surrounded by sprawling real estate. I've got a few horses, but I don't get ride them quite often enough. How ironic to actually be a cowboy, for real, and to have someone come and exercise your horses for you? It makes me feel like a bit of a poser but I just can't live without the sight and smell of a barn somewhere in my life. Some people might not like the aroma of clean horses but to me it's perfume. It keeps me connected to my roots and from there I know I can grow. Yes, it’s a great place to live.

  But no matter how nice it may be, without a woman, a house is not a home. Scratch that. Without the right woman, a house is not a home.

  I hang my keys on the hook by the door, go upstairs, take off my shirt and pants and lay down on my bed for a nap. The gentle caress of the down comforter calms me, the silkiness of the 1000 thread count sheets makes me want to stretch out. I wonder if Adisa would like my bed.

  I've never been in bed with someone like her, at least before today. She is definitely someone special. Her fierce gentleness, her warm embrace. Just thinking about it I can feel myself getting aroused. I can't help it, I have to run my hand over the thick heaviness that is my cock. Her lips, her breasts, her eagerness. Her love.

  That's the most beautiful thing about her, though it has some stiff competition from her mocha skin and warm dark eyes, the fullness of her soft lips. Her love is so evident in everything she does, everything she touches, even me. Thinking about her makes me hard and ready. My breath hitches in my chest as I grasp myself, stroking the full length and gently running my thumb over the head. Thinking of the fierceness with which she held me, the sureness of her hands, the silkiness of her skin.

  I feel the warm tingling energy in my chest, and it collects down into my cock, as I imagine Adisa under me, opening her legs, her mouth open and her breath starting to come hard and fast, just like it did this morning. I imagine plunging into her velvety softness, slipping inside her delicate folds as I kiss her tender lips. I can still feel how her nipples gathered under my touch, to a hard peak begging to be caressed.

  "Adisa," I whisper to the empty, silent room. "Adisa, you drive me crazy..." My energy is coursing through me, and the glans quivers as I stroke the shaft. Finally my hips buck, and trembling, I come, alone, with only the image of Adisa in my mind, her name on my lips, hanging in the failing light of the evening.

  Downstairs heating up dinner, I wonder how she is? I hope everything went OK with my driver. Still, I wonder about Saturday. Surely our plans are off. She can't exactly abandon her father in the hospital.

  Thinking about Darius and how he talked to me is making me giggle. What a charmer. And little Chikae is adorable too, her little braids tied up in baubles, her eyes that are almost the same as Adisa's. Her squeaky voice.

  Wasn’t she saving for their birthdays coming up? I could also just go to the party store myself, get a bunch of decorations, and bring them to her. It would still be fun for them to have the chance to decorate for some kind of birthday celebration.

  Probably the best thing to do would be to ask her what she would like.

  I go and grab my phone from my jacket and see a text. "From my love," I think, and immediately blush, even though I am alone. Rowan would give me such grief over something like that.

  "Nicholas, I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me and my family. You've been so kind. The driver took me home and I found the BMW where you said it would be. I've never driven one before! In any case, I think we should put off our special plans for Saturday until my dad's condition gets more settled. I hope you understand."

  "Of course - I was thinking the same thing," I text back. "I'm glad everything worked w
ith the car. Let me know when you feel like talking, no rush."

  Maybe I will stop by on Saturday, and surprise them with the special cookies I ordered. It might brighten their day. I hope her eyes brighten and she gives me a huge hug, and presses her body against mine, even for a moment. Of course I don't want to impose so I'll just drop the cookies off and leave. Unless she invites me to stay...

  What a beautiful woman she is, that Adisa. Through and through. Like an angel.

  I feel the tightness in the front of my pants again and have to shift my focus before I burn this filet.

  17

  Adisa

  "Adisaaaa!" cries Chikae and buries her face in my hip. "Where were you? In the hospital?"

  "They say daddy's in the hospital and he's going to die," says Darius, so solemnly it almost makes me cry-laugh. Poor little man, my sweet Darius.

  "No honey, he's doing quite well, the doctor says, and he should be coming home very soon. He just has to get a bit stronger and then he’ll soon be as good as new.” I kneel down on the floor so I can hug both of them, and the fierceness of their embraces makes me remember once again how small and vulnerable they both are. "Don't you worry, my little birdies," I coo in their ear. "How was it at the neighbors? Did they treat you right?"

  "Ronnie has an X-box," Darius says, leaning back and looking me in the eye, his own narrowed. "Can we get one? Maybe for my birthday?"

  "Yeah, maybe for our birthdays, or if not I will ask for one from Santa next Christmas," Chikae says airily as I do some mental gymnastics to figure out any possible way to stretch the budget to include such a thing from either myself, or from next year’s ‘Santa.' At least next Christmas is a long way away and I hope this whole situation will have calmed down by then.

  "Well we'll see I suppose," I smile. "So did you behave yourselves at Ronnie’s house like I told you?"

  "You know it," yells Chikae. She's already off and running around the house. It's a good sign, I figure, that she isn't taking things so hard. But before I can completely relax, she runs back. "You're OK, right, Adisa?" she asks breathlessly.

  "What do you mean?"

  "You're feeling healthy and strong? Nothing wrong with you?"

  “Of course Chicky Boom Boom," I reassure her.

  “You aren’t going to have a hark-attack?”

  “That’s heart attack sweetie, and no, I won’t. I am young and strong and healthy, and so are you and Darius.” I pat her on the butt and she runs off again, mollified.

  "What's for dinner?" asks Darius. "I'm hooongry!" his little brown eyes glow. He rubs his stomach in an exaggerated parody of hunger. "Ronnie may have an X-Box but his mom can't make mac and cheese anywhere near as good as you!"

  "Well thank you, Darius," I say, surprised. “It's nice to be appreciated now and then."

  He continues to prattle on, telling me everything that Ronnie's family did, and grinning, I go into the kitchen to search for something - anything - that could be made into a dinner that will guarantee that I don't get demoted to lower status than "Ronnie's mom." Even if I’m only Darius’ sister. A girl’s got her standards, after all.

  * * *

  When the kitchen is finally cleaned, dishwasher humming it's way through a cycle, and the kids in bed kissed and tucked in with stories read, I realize for the second time that day just how flippin’ tired I am. After trudging up the stairs I quickly swipe my face with a facial wipe and take my phone to bed, which I see is still a little rumpled from this morning. My insides pleasantly turn over a little as I remember how Nicholas' body felt against mine, his strong shoulders, thin hips, and those delicious lines that led down to his belt buckle (and beyond), slung low on his hips. My cowboy, I think, and I feel myself throb. But unfortunately for me, I'm too tired to even think about taking care of the warm, dull, tingling ache that Nicholas always awakens in my core.

  I fall into bed. My phone is the only thing that vibrates and I just barely catch his 'Good night, Adisa" message before my eyes shut and I barely move until the next morning, waking up in the exact same position I collapsed into.

  * * *

  Darius is incredibly impressed with the company car.

  "This is one smooth ride!" he says, nodding his head approvingly. "Is this our new car?"

  "Not really, it's just a loan," I explain as I merge into the traffic on the main road that leads to the school.

  "From who, the government?" pipes up Chikae from the back seat.

  I burst out laughing and quickly stop myself. "No baby, from my boss," I explain.

  "That white dude? Santa Boss?" asks Darius. "Does he have more money than the government?"

  "No way," I say, and this time I am completely unable to stifle my laughter. "But sometimes I wonder if he has more money than God."

  Darius nods approvingly. "Nicholas is da man!"

  My cheeks grow hot as I think of the way he took command in the bedroom yesterday, and I have to agree. "Mm hm," I answer vaguely.

  "He da man!" echoes Chikae in her squeaky voice. She tosses her pigtails.

  "I'm glad you guys like him," I say, trying to bring my concentration back to my driving, where it should be. But it's not hard to let my mind wander to such a delicious topic. Those beautiful eyes, leading down to a gorgeous set of shoulders, pecs, and abs… I have to shake my head to bring myself back into the moment. Darius is right though, the BMW is one smooth ride. I glide up to the school and shift into park, to drop the kids off.

  Maybe this ride is a little too smooth. The moms are staring pretty openly. One of the other kids' moms gets out of her car and looks at the Beemer, a sneer of interest on her face.

  "Look at you girl," she says enviously, drawing out the last syllable. "Where'd you get this fine machine?"

  "From her boss! He rich!" yells Darius, before running off toward the big green doors of the school.

  "He da man!" Chikae repeats. I blush furiously, thanking heaven for my dark skin. At least I can pretend to be taking it cool.

  "It's a company car, temporarily on loan," I explain, in a way I hope doesn't sound to prideful, or too hasty. Super. Now I have the school moms' opinions to deal with.

  "Is he single? Adisa, you better lock that shit down," she whispers the last out of earshot of the kids, but I am still mortified.

  "He's my boss," I explain again, but I can barely meet her eyes. The vision of us in bed yesterday is still flashing in my mind, but with her words it seems a lot more... tawdry or something. Should I be ashamed? Is he just lending me this car because we slept together? Am I some kind of gold digger?

  "Well you must be one good employee!" her laugh sounds more like a cackle as she walks away, and I jump back into the luxury vehicle and pull away as quickly as is safe. I don't want to get some kind of strange reputation. But surely she was joking.

  I wouldn't have expected it, but in some ways I'll just be glad to have my old hoopty back. That way there will be no inopportune questions, and no awkward moments. But as I step on the gas and the car purrs into life, I know at least I am gonna enjoy this car while it lasts. This is a sweet ride, and so is Nicholas. And who cares what these silly mommies think - I am not one of them, not yet at least. I am a sister and I am allowed to date who I want, when I want.

  And what I want to do now, is to grab a couple of coffees and go visit my dad in the hospital.

  * * *

  Saturday morning I am out at the hospital again, this time with the little ones, though they’ll spend most of the time in the playroom. It’s all a bit much for them to spend the whole visit in a hospital room, as concerned as they are. Their pursed mouths and knitted together eyebrows are almost comical in their earnestness. They're worried about their—well, our—daddy, but he is really doing so much better. His scar is healing well, he's walking—well more like shuffling, but it counts—down the hall and back, and the doctor thinks that he might be able to get out of the hospital as early as a couple weeks. I'm thrilled, because I finally see some life in the
poor man since mama died. And we still haven’t discussed the insurance.

  "Adisa," he confided in me last night. "I want you to know, during the operation, I saw your mother." His voice is low, confidential. "Keep this to yourself, baby."

  "What do you mean you saw mama, daddy? How so?"

  "When I was under, I felt myself rising up over my body and I watched the operation, for a moment, and then I saw a very bright light. I went toward it, but before I reached it, your mother was there. I felt her presence very strongly. I wanted to go with her." He coughs and I give him his glass of water, which he drinks too slowly for my curiosity, but what can I do. When he's finished I wipe the few droplets away from his mouth, and he continues. "Anyway, she told me, no. You can't come with me yet. It's not your time. You need to take care of the little ones."

  My heart leaps at his words. And not only because he believes that he’s seen my mother. Which I get. After all, I imagine that I talk with her all the time. Could it be, that he will resume his fatherly responsibilities?

  "I tried to tell her no," he says. "I told her I was ready to join her, and I couldn't live without her, but she was adamant. Just like your mother, isn't it."

  I laugh. "Yes, when mama wanted something she was pretty serious about it," I say with a grin. "So she told you you have to take care of Darius and Chikae?" I prompt.

  "Yes," he says with a faraway look in his eyes. "And she told me one other thing," he says and now he is focused intently on me. "She said, Nicholas is a good man."

  Now it's my turn to sputter and cough. "She said what?"

  "That's all she said, she didn't explain. After that, I found myself floating back to my body, back to the table, and that's that." His eyes are questioning. "Who's Nicholas, baby?" He asks finally.