The Alpha's Second Chance

by Jillian Riley

  “Are you crying?” Rosalinda asked, shocked.

  Nick sniffled. “Why would I be crying?”

  She felt a tear fall down her own cheek. “I don’t know. Maybe you’re just happy?”

  “I’m kinda happy. Well, more than kinda happy.”

  “Then I guess it’s okay to cry a little.”

  “It is. When do you want to meet?” Nick sounded hopeful. “I’ve got a lot more availability than you have.”

  “I want to get a sitter for it. Let me see if I can talk my sister-in-law into watching him during off hours.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Tell you what. I’ll split the cost with you.”

  “You don’t have to do that,” she protested as she started to dress. She pinched her phone between her shoulder and the side of her head as she pulled her jeans up and over her hips. “I can cover it. It’ll be fine.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah. As long as I don’t do this all the time, she’s usually fine,” she insisted as she pulled her shirt on to button it up.

  “Ok. Let me know when you’re available.”

  “I will. I promise I will.”

  “Are you sure? Are you just going to decide you don’t want me again?” Nick sounded really worried for a moment.

  Rosalinda felt the need to assure him and make him feel better, but she didn’t know if there was anything that she could say to repair the weird divide that had come between them. “I won’t do that. Just let me get off the phone, and I’ll call her and it’ll all work out.”

  “Okay, okay, I know. It’s all fine.”

  22

  Coffee Again?

  Nick stood outside the coffee shop and checked the time on his phone. He had shown up half an hour early, and it had only been five minutes since then. Diligently, he had checked his phone at least once a minute since he’d arrived.

  His foot was tapping, and the ladies behind the counter had asked him multiple times if he was all right, probably because he was looking nervous. It was probably making them nervous. He noted that they were taking long looks his direction.

  Nick laughed wryly as he realized that they were making sure to get a good look at him in case they needed to describe him to the cops later. He wanted to inform them that he wasn’t planning to rob them and wasn’t waiting for some contact from a criminal syndicate, but was quickly distracted by the door opening.

  He was up on his feet in a heartbeat. “Rosalinda.”

  “Hey, Nick.” She edged closer to him, looking down at her feet.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, and rushed over towards her.

  Rosalinda picked her head up and he stopped in his tracks. “Nothing. I just didn’t expect to see you again.”

  “I know. But we’re better now, right?”

  “Yeah. I just didn’t expect to get this rush when I saw you again.”

  “You know, we could have run into each other at work at least once.”

  “I guess so,” she sighed heavily as they moved over to the table.

  “What kind of coffee do you want?”

  “Uh. How about a caramel macchiato?”

  “Sure.” He got up and walked over the counter to get two coffees, one black and one fancy one for the lady that had come to meet him. The women at the counter offered him smiles as they realized why he was so nervous.

  “I can get my own coffee,” Rosalinda said, coming over to join him at the counter.

  “I don’t mind this at all.” He waited for the cups to get finished, and started walking back to the table. “It’s the least that I can do.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong. My brother spent an hour yelling at me for being ridiculous.”

  He sighed. “I don’t blame you for that. You’re scared.”

  “Can you stop being so perfect for a second? It’s making me feel worse.”

  He laughed. “Really?”

  “Yeah, really. It makes me feel even worse for freaking out like that.” She looked down at her hands. “I screwed up and panicked.”

  Nick sighed. “I am a little upset about that. If I’m being honest, it felt like you didn’t believe me at all. You didn’t give me a chance to say anything in my defense. You just threw me out.”

  Rosalinda looked down at her hands, twisting them awkwardly. “Is it too much for me to still ask to see the conversation?”

  “No problem.” He passed over his phone. “Look anywhere you want. Show yourself what you need to see.”

  She tapped away at the screen of the phone for a few minutes, bringing up his messages. “You really told her that you don’t want anything to do with her anymore?”

  “The settlement is handled. I really don’t have to talk to her. I can block her, if you want me to.”

  She nodded. “I’m really sorry about this, but can you?”

  “Yeah, but I can’t promise that it’ll work at all.”

  “Why not?”

  “She’s even sending me letters and stuff. I promise I’ll do my best to do the right thing.”

  Rosalinda sighed. “Alright. That works. And I’m sorry. I should have listened. I tried to make it right, but I didn’t know how. I even asked Oscar to check you out. It’s so strange, I know. It was awful of me to do.”

  He reached across the table and took her hand. “I’m sorry. I should have told you sooner that she was hassling me.”

  “You should have, yeah. But I was the one that snooped. I was the one who didn’t stop and ask questions.” She looked down at her hand but didn’t pull it away. “I hope I didn’t screw everything up.”

  “You’re scared. I get that.” He shook his head. “I know you’re not perfect. That you have problems, especially when it comes to your heart. I know that you’re shy, to say the least.”

  “Shy is a nice way to say it.”

  He squeezed her hand. “I get that you’re upset, but if we keep blaming ourselves, it’s just gonna get worse.”

  “Is it?”

  “Yeah. Let’s stop this.” He moved around the table and wrapped his arms around her. “It doesn’t matter. We can still save this.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “If you can still deal with me, I really want to try.”

  Rosalinda stepped back and looked him up and down. There were many emotions crossing her facem, and it made her hard to read. “I’d like to spend more time with you.”

  “I’d like that too,” he said hopefully.

  “What do you want to do?” She fidgeted nervously.

  “I don’t know.”

  Rosalinda paused, and looked down at her coffee cup before picking it up. “It feels kind of weird to have this conversation here.”

  “Do you want to go somewhere more private?”

  “Sure.”

  “My apartment isn’t that far away,” Nick said, motioning towards the door.

  She stared at him for a moment, then nodded. “That’d be great.”

  “Are you sure?” His heart skipped a beat. “You don’t have to do this.”

  “I’m not afraid to be alone with you,” she assured him, “if that’s what you’re afraid of.”

  “I’m mostly worried about hurting you again,” he sighed heavily.

  “You aren’t gonna hurt me.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Because you didn’t hurt me the first time,” she said. “I hurt me. And I got scared because of it.”

  “Please stop blaming yourself. It isn’t going to do you any good.” Nick walked up and wrapped her in his arms again.

  Together, they walked out of the coffee shop arm in arm. “I’m sorry.”

  “Stop apologizing.”

  “I don’t think I can stop.”

  Nick smiled softly. “Just let me love you, Rosalinda Carlisle. I’ve wanted to for entirely too long.”

  “Really?”

  “Really, what?” He played innocence.

  “Did you j
ust say that you loved me?”

  “Maybe in a very roundabout way,” he teased as he smiled at her, hoping that it worked.

  She stopped and stared at him for a moment before pulling away.

  “I screwed everything up again, didn’t I?” It was Nick’s turn to look down at his feet. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “No. It’s just. I should take my car.” She touched his arm.

  “Is that all you’re going to say about it?”

  “I need some time to think about it. A drive will be great for that.” She looked a little nervous.

  He nodded. “All right, then.”

  Rosalinda turned and walked to her car and climbed behind the wheel. Nick watched her as she pulled out of the parking lot before he managed to climb into his own vehicle. “I can’t believe I did that,” he said to himself. The drive that followed was full of brooding worry, something that he didn’t like feeling at all.

  But as he pulled into the parking lot of his apartment, there she was, standing outside of her car and leaning against the door. He practically jumped from behind the wheel. “I didn’t think you’d actually show up.”

  “I told you I needed to do some thinking.”

  “I was sure it was an excuse for something.”

  She shook her head. “Let’s just get inside.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah.” He led the way into the apartment, unlocking the door.

  She glanced around the room. “Lawn furniture, really?”

  “Yeah. I guess so,” he shrugged. “I never really went shopping for stuff. I never had the need.”

  “You weren’t expecting company?” She was smirking. “At least there isn’t dirty underwear everywhere.”

  “You have to give me a little more credit than that.”

  “Maybe it was a test?” she laughed. “Me beating you here?”

  “So I didn’t have time to clean up?”

  “Yeah. You kinda want to know how a guy lives.”

  “You would think that if I thought there was a chance you would come by here, I would have cleaned up before I went to the coffee shop.”

  “Not enough to get real furniture.”

  “I guess I just worried about other stuff. Like you. My mom kept telling me to go shopping.”

  “So, if this is the living room, should I be worried about the bedroom?”

  “I’ve got a really nice air mattress,” he laughed.

  “That sounds like an adult way to sleep.” She grinned at him.

  “Right. I need help.” He smiled back at Rosalinda. “Look, I’m a typical bachelor.”

  “Clearly.” Her laughter rang in his ears.

  He couldn’t help but pull her in for a heated kiss. He couldn’t keep his hands to himself, running them up and down her back. The kiss was pure passion. The need for touch seemed to reflect between them, amplifying as it went from one of them to the other. It was already getting hard to tell where one person ended and the other began.

  When Rosalinda started to tug at his shirt, all bets were off. Any embarrassment over his lack of furniture didn’t matter. They were heading to the bedroom, still locked in a hot kiss and leaving a trail of clothing behind them.

  Nick fell onto the bed with her on top of him, and her moans started before they had even touched each other, the sounds escaping between kisses as his hands found their way between her legs. She was so ready for him.

  He rolled them over and started to kiss down her body, pausing to catch her nipples between his teeth, one after another. Her back arched under his touch. “God above, don’t stop that.”

  “I don’t plan on it,” he groaned as he kissed further down her body. Each kiss caused her to jerk as if she was being hit by a thousand tiny electric shocks. “I’m going to keep going.”

  “I love this.”

  “I love you.” he said, working his way down to between her legs, kissing her womanhood with pleasure.

  “I love you too,” she said, hands running through his hair.

  His tongue worked in wide looping circles around her nether regions, and she couldn’t help but moan louder. It just made him want more of her. “I don’t know how long I’m going to be able to hold out with you making noises like that.”

  Her hands grabbed the pillow, knuckles turning white. “Then don’t wait.”

  He climbed up her body in a heartbeat, capturing her lips in yet another long passionate kiss as he claimed her body, thrusting with wild abandon. Her arms wrapped around him, nails digging into his shoulder blades. “Don’t stop.”

  “I won’t stop. I promise. I’ll never stop,” he moaned against her lips. “I never want to stop.”

  “Then don’t. Don’t ever stop.” She kissed him as they rushed towards the edge of climax together.

  “I won’t. Dear God, I won’t stop,” he groaned as she started to clench her arms around him. She felt more than amazing. It was a slice of heaven on an air mattress as they crested release together.

  His mind soared and his heart went insane, threatening to burst out of his chest as she cried out his name, her face buried in his shoulder. He loved it. He loved her. And this felt like the perfect end to his love story. Even if it was just the beginning.

  23

  One More Night to Destiny

  “I’ve really got to go,” Rosalinda groaned as she dragged herself off the air mattress.

  “Are you sure?” Nick rolled onto his side to look at her.

  “I only have a sitter for about fifteen more minutes.”

  “Are you sure that you don’t want me to help pay for it?”

  She shook her head. “No, you really don’t have to do that.”

  He slowly climbed off of the air mattress. “Look, I want to help. I owe you so much.”

  “You don’t owe me a thing,” she disagreed. “You didn’t know to help me at all, why would you owe me anything?”

  “I want to be a part of your life. Let me help you out.”

  She sighed. “Nick. You’re being too nice again.”

  He laughed. “All right. At least let me meet you at your house, and we can continue catching up on lost time?”

  “I think you’re just trying to use my bed.”

  “That may be part of it. But I’d be happy with a real couch.”

  Rosalinda grinned. “All right. I gotta go pick up Dominick. I’ll meet you at the house?”

  “That sounds like a plan.” Nick grabbed his pants.

  “You might want to throw some clean clothes in your trunk.”

  He laughed as he zipped up his jeans. “That sounds like it just might be too confident for me. Who knows what could go wrong if I get my hopes up again?”

  “Really?”

  “I’ll pack an overnight bag. Don’t worry,” he grinned at her.

  She couldn’t keep the smile off her face if she tried. “I’m not making any promises.”

  “I’m not expecting you to, but it’s nice to know that I have the chance if I play my cards right.”

  “Oh, trust me. Playing your cards right is exactly what you want to do right now.”

  “Is it because you’re in a good mood?” He poked at her side.

  Rosalinda giggled a little. “That tickles.”

  “You know, I had actually forgotten that you were ticklish.”

  “Somehow I doubt that.”

  “Why would you doubt me?”

  “Because you hit my ticklish spot perfectly.” She put her hands on her hips.

  Nick stared for a second before shaking his head. “When you do that, it’s a little hard to think straight.”

  “Then I should do it more often?” She was in a teasing mood. And it seemed like he was, too. It was a nice feeling between them, like everything had popped right back to normal.

  “Yeah, you probably should,” he said as he smirked at her. “I love to look at it.”

  “Wow. That’s bold.”

  “Hey, I’m trying somethi
ng new.” She glanced over at him while she pulled on her shirt. He was watching her with lust in his eyes.

  “I like it,” Nick admitted. Rosalinda definitely enjoyed the effect that it seemed to be having on him.

  “You like it?” she asked.

  He nodded. “Why wouldn’t I?” His arms wrapped around her waist from behind, and he planted a soft kiss on her shoulder. “You’re absolutely beautiful and amazing. I wouldn’t trade you for the world.”

  Rosalinda felt a blush rise up on her cheeks. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t expecting this to happen again.”

  “You asked to come back here.”

  “I might have been a little hopeful,” she admitted.

  “You should have taken it as a sure bet. I respect you enough to keep my hands off of you most of the time, but you can rest assured I almost always want you squirming underneath me in pure lust.”

  “That’s what you’re going with?”

  “Yep,” he agreed. “I’ll meet you at your place?”

  “Yeah. I really have to go now, through.”

  “Go. Get the kid, and I’ll be there in a few minutes.” Nick placed his hand on her arm. “I’ll be fine.”

  “Take your time, it might take me a few extra minutes to get Dom.”

  He nodded. “Do you want me to bring anything?”

  She tilted her head in thought. “A bottle of wine, maybe?”

  “Are you a wine drinker?”

  “Very rarely, but tonight feels like a good night to do it.”

  He laughed. “I can handle that.”

  “Are you sure? I didn’t even ask if you drink.” She felt her cheeks flush brightly when she thought about that. She should have done something, or said something to make it a little better for him. She should have known more about the man that she was sleeping with, but it had been a long time since they had really known each other. On top of that, he had been married to another woman for several years. Anything could have changed during that time. Rosalinda gulped.

  Nick had a thoughtful look on his face, seemingly unaware of the panic that was rushing through her mind. “I don’t drink much, but I do sometimes. I don’t always keep beer around or anything.”

  “Are you a beer guy?”