Sutton

I have no idea how Nicolai plans on getting me out of this apartment because as of right now, Jason has himself shoved so far up my ass that I'm considering charging him rent.

"Do you need anything, princess?"

I hold back the sigh that nearly escapes me and tuck my lips between my teeth before turning toward him, pausing the fifth episode of Bridgerton I've watched today.

"No, Jay. I'm fine. I was fine thirty minutes ago when you asked too," I say with a smirk.

He holds his hands up in front of him and backs away, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. "Sorry, just wanting to make sure you're okay. I know you were pretty sick last night."

Despite everything, a little seed of guilt burrows into my chest. "No, no, I'm sorry, Jason. You're sweet to check on me. I'm still feeling nauseous but I'm a little better than I was a few hours ago. Still have no appetite, though."

It's a lie, but also the truth. I'm not exactly ill, per se, but I do feel pretty sick to my stomach over everything I learned from Nicolai last night about Ezra...not to mention the note I found in the ledger.

Jason steps back into my space and leans over, pressing a kiss to my forehead. "All right. I'm going to my office to get some work done. Yell if you need me."

"Will do," I say, clicking Play on the remote as he flashes me a smile and walks down the hallway.

I blow out a breath and lean back against the couch, staring at the ceiling as the show plays in the background. I wish I could get out of here. I haven't heard from Nicolai yet today. I guess his plan to meet up didn't work out. I can't blame him. It was a long shot anyway, trying to get me out from under Jason's thumb.

My phone dings and I snatch it off the couch next to me, trying not to be disappointed when I see it's Dom instead of Nicolai (or Kayla, as I renamed him in my phone, just to be safe).

Hey, what are you doing?

I type out a quick response, hoping she has good news...like she wants to hang out with me on her day off.

Nothing, just watching Bridgerton for the third time. You?

Coming to pick you up for your doctor's appointment.

My eyebrows furrow in the center of my forehead.

Doctor's appointment? I don't have a doctor's appointment today.

Yes you do. You're sick, are you not? You threw up last night, were sick to your stomach...so I took the liberty of making you an appointment.

How did she...oh. A slow smile spreads over my face when I realize what's going on here.

Of course, yes. I feel just terrible. I might have norovirus or some awful case of food poisoning.

Okay, okay, Sutton, you can lay off the drama.

I chuckle and get to my feet as I answer.

Thank you, Dom. More than you know.

Pushing my phone into the pocket of my pajama pants, I walk to Jason's office and stick my head inside. "Hey."

"Hey, princess, you could have just yelled, I'd have come to you," he says, glancing up from his laptop.

"I know, but Dom just texted and told me she made me a doctor's appointment. She said she was worried about me and wants to make sure I don't need any medicine or anything."

Jason raises his eyebrows. "That was nice of her. I thought you were feeling better."

"I am, but still not 100%, so I guess I better take her up on it," I say, wrapping my arms around my middle for effect.

"All right, you want me to come with?" he asks, starting to get up from his chair.

"No, no," I say, holding one hand out toward him. "You stay. You have enough work to do here. I don't want to be a burden."

He cocks his head to the side and gets to his feet, coming to stand in front of me. "For better or worse, Sutton Marie Banks, remember? We're getting married next week, and I already feel the need to protect you like my wife." He takes my face in his hands and tips my chin so he can brush his lips against mine.

Suddenly, I don't have to pretend anymore; I am sick to my stomach.

To end this as fast as possible, I give him a chaste peck on the lips and pat his chest. "I don't want you to get sick, Jay. I don't know what it is I have. I know you're so busy and you have so much to do before next week."

"Okay, okay. Be careful, and have Dom bring you back as soon as you're finished at the doctor's office."

I clench my jaw. I need more time than that. "Well, I might end up hungry. I haven't eaten much today, plus if I need any medication—"

"True. Just take your time, but please be safe. Do you hear me?"

"I hear you," I say, wondering what has him so paranoid. "I'll text you and let you know when I'm on my way home, okay?"

He nods as he starts typing again. "All right, princess. See you later."

When I'm back in my room, I lean back against my closed door and take a deep breath. I'm going to see Nicolai again.

Alone. For longer than five minutes in a restaurant bathroom.

"Stay calm, Sutton," I mutter to myself as I pull on a pair of black leggings, an off the shoulder sweatshirt, and a worn-in pair of Vans. Cute, but not so cute that Jason will suspect anything.

My phone dings with a text from Dom letting me know she's outside. Grabbing my purse and lip gloss, I open my door and make my way down the hallway as quiet as possible; I don't want to see Jason again if I don't have to.

I don't have a ton of time today, but we should be able to get a few...errands run.

I can't help but smirk as I type a reply to Dom as I get to the elevator and step on, breathing a sigh of relief when the doors close with no incident. When I get to the sidewalk, I don't see Dom's car outside, but instead, a limousine I don't recognize.

Somehow, I know it's for me though. Before I can get to the door, it opens for me, and when I peek into the backseat, my heart stutters in my chest when I see who's inside.

"Come on, mala tigrica. I understand we're on a time crunch, and we have a lot to catch up on," Nicolai says, holding his hand out to me.

I take his hand immediately and slide into the seat next to him, pulling the door closed behind me. "Oh, we do, do we?"

"We do," he says, pulling me onto his lap to face him as soon as the door is safely shut and no one can see inside the car.

"What about the doctor?" I ask with feigned ignorance. "I think I need an examination...what with being so sick and all."

He smirks and slides his palms around my waist, slipping them under my shirt. "I'll give you an examination right here, baby, and you won't even have to leave the car."

His skin in contact with mine gives me chills and I can't help but shiver under his touch. I rest my hand on his chest and run my fingers over the soft cotton. "Yeah? Well, go ahead, Dr. Marković. Cure me of my ailments."

Glancing down at my hand, his eyes darken as his gaze flits over the ostentatious ring on my finger. "That's one of them," he growls, reaching up and gripping my hand, pulling the ring off and shoving it into his pocket. "I don't want to see his ring on your finger while you're with me, mala tigrica. You're mine right now."

I tighten my legs around his waist and roll my hips over the rapidly hardening bulge behind his zipper. "I'm always yours, Nic. Always will be. He just doesn't know it," I whisper against his lips before pulling the bottom one between my teeth and tugging.

He groans and turns us, flipping me onto my back and hovering over me, pushing a loose strand of hair out of my eyes. "You're such a brat, but I have to admit I fucking love it."

I lift my hips to meet him, but he stays just out of my reach. "I know you do. That's why I play it up. To drive you crazy."

He shakes his head and leans down to kiss me, finally rolling his hips against mine and giving me the pressure and friction I'm longing for. But no sooner do I open to him and sigh into his kiss, he pulls back.

"We're almost to my house. I have so many things I want to do to you that I don't want to do in the back of a limo, Sutton. And if you keep making little noises like that, I'm not going to be able to hold back. Plus, there are some things I want to talk to you about first."

He adjusts back into a sitting position and helps me up and I settle in next to him. "Is everything okay? I mean..." I shrug. "As good as it can be."

Nicolai nods and pulls me close into his chest, and I immediately relax against him. "Yeah, I haven't learned anything new since yesterday. I just want to get everything out in the open. Make sure we are on the same page."

"That's fair," I say, and just before he starts to speak again, the limo stops.

"We're here. Come on," he says, opening the door and tugging me out gently. He tosses a tip to the driver through the open window and tells him he'll shoot him a text half an hour before he needs him to return.

When we get inside, we settle on his sofa after he gets me a Diet Coke and a beer for himself. "How long do you think you'll be able to stay?" he asks, placing his palm on my leg and brushing it along my inner thigh.

"He told me to take my time, so I am just going to stay until I feel like I can't get away with it anymore," I say. "Oh, and I'm going to turn my phone off...that way he can't track me."

"Won't he notice?"

"I'll just tell him it died," I say, typing out a note to Dom telling her I'm switching it off and then doing exactly that before tossing it on the chair opposite us.

"Okay, I just don't want him to get angry and take it out on you. I don't want to have to kill him," Nicolai says, and while I think he's kidding, the look in his eyes tells me otherwise.

But I don't press him, and instead soothe his worries. "He won't. He knows he fucked up by moving the wedding up without telling me not to mention what happened the other night and—"

"What happened the other night?" Nicolai interrupts, his hand going still on my thigh, and my blood runs cold.

"I—uh, nothing. Nothing you need to worry about," I say. "The point is, he's trying to make up for it so he's not going to be a dick."

"No, mala tigrica. You're not going to get past me on that one. What happened the other night? What did he do to you?" Nicolai's voice is hard, with a threatening edge.

"Nicolai, please. It isn't worth getting upset over, okay?"

"Then you wouldn't have mentioned it, and you'd just tell me," he says, his cheeks turning pink and the vein in his neck thumping. "But you're clearly not comfortable with whatever it is, and that is not fucking okay with me, Sutton. Tell me. Now."

"Okay, okay, fuck's sake, calm down," I say, setting my drink down and turning to face him, my knees resting on his thigh. "You know how I said nothing happens in his bed besides sleeping?"

Nicolai's face goes from a shade of pink to scarlet in an instant. "I really don't like how this story is starting."

I take his hand and squeeze his fingers with mine. "Breathe, Nic. That vein is going to pop in a second if you don't calm the fuck down."

"Very funny. Please continue."

"He always wants to cuddle. Sometimes, I can avoid it, but most nights, I have to suffer through it. But I wear my flannel pajamas every night so he doesn't get to touch my skin."

When I say it out loud, I realize how fucked up it sounds.

It is fucked up.

Nicolai obviously agrees because he jumps up and starts pacing the room in front of me. "Sutton, you better get to the part where I can calm down because this ain't it."

I tuck my lips between my teeth and look at my feet. "Well, it may be a sec on that one. The other night, the night before I saw you at the restaurant, he took things a little too far. He wanted to know why we weren't going to the next level, and when I finally blurted out that I'm a virgin, his reaction creeped me out so bad."

"I fucking told you, Sutton!" Nicolai exclaims, and I hold up one finger. He holds up his hands. "Sorry, keep going."

"I was just saying anything to try to get him to back off, and he said he assumed you and I had done it. And I told him to not talk about you, that I couldn't handle it. He saw through me and what I meant by that..." Tears fill my eyes unexpectedly and I swipe them away with the back of my hand. "He was so angry that I still have feelings for you. He rolled over on top of me, got in my face, basically threatened me that if I didn't have you out of my head by our wedding day, there would be hell to pay."

Nicolai stops pacing and comes across the room, dropping to his knees in front of me and grasping both of my hands in his. "Sutton, baby, did he hurt you? I need you to tell me the truth." His hazel eyes search mine and I can see so many emotions swimming in their depths—worry, rage...love.

I shake my head. "No. He didn't. And I told him I wasn't okay with his behavior, and he apologized. That's why he brought me to dinner that night, to try to make up for his actions. Only there's no making up for it—not like he thinks—because there's nothing in this world that could make me want to marry him. Not when I know you're still out there, waiting for me...loving me. Because I—" My tears slip down my cheeks now, and I have no desire to hold them back or wipe them away. "I love you so much, Nicolai. No one could ever stop me. Not Jason, not my dad, not the whole goddamn Ring."

"God, Sutton, I love you. So fucking much," Nicolai groans, pulling me into his arms and lifting me so my legs wrap instinctively around his waist.

"What are you doing?" I ask with a giggle as he takes me down the hallway, presumably to his bedroom. "I thought you wanted to talk and get on the same page."

"We can talk later. The only page we need to be on right now is the one where I'm inside you. Because I can't wait another fucking second," he says, burying his face in the crook of my neck as we cross the threshold into his bedroom.

"Nicolai, I—are you sure?"

He tosses me onto the bed and reaches behind him, pulling his shirt off by the collar. "Am I sure? Mala tigrica, I've wanted to fuck you for so long. I never thought I'd get the chance, then I found you again, then lost you. And now you're here in front of me, in my bed. Am I sure?" He chuckles and unbuckles his belt, snapping the button on his jeans, and my eyes travel to the prominent bulge behind his zipper. "I'd say I'm more certain of this than I have been of anything in my entire life."

I wet my lips and scoot back toward the headboard, pulling my sweatshirt over my head and thanking whatever god is up there that I wore my push-up bra today. When I slip off my leggings, my relief multiplies when his eyes land on the matching lace thong.

"Good," I say, sitting up and pulling him onto the bed by the waist of his boxers. "I'm sure too."

"Then get ready to come until your legs are shaking and your head is spinning, Sutton Marie, because I've never been more turned on in my life."

He's not the only one.