Chapter 69 Chapter 69
“But now it all makes sense!” Hiago celebrated. “He finally fell in love with someone! If Nick liked men, it would be a waste of that impeccable appearance and physique...” He paused. “Can you imagine him being dominated by another man...?”
“H-HIAGO!” Caroline interrupted, desperate, feeling her cheeks burn. “You don't need to worry. Nicholas... likes women. A lot. He's... completely normal.”
“Ah, so he really likes them!” Hiago breathed a sigh of relief. “Sister-in-law, is my little brother there with you?”
“No... he's in the shower.”
Silence.
And then:
“In the shower?” Hiago let out a low whistle, full of ulterior motives. “Hm... so his fighting spirit is low today. It's okay, sister-in-law. He's a virgin, you know? It's like that at first... but the next time we meet, I can give him some advanced lessons.”
Caroline almost dropped her phone.
VIRGIN?
Lessons?
Fighting spirit?!
She choked.
“It's not that!” she protested, red as a tomato. “You've got it all wrong! Nothing is happening, I swear!”
“I know, I know.” Hiago laughed as if he were an experienced adult talking to an innocent teenager.
“Well, since you two are busy, I won't bother you.
”And let Nick know that young Turnes is coming back tomorrow. Her flight lands at 10:30 a.m. If possible, he should pick her up."
The call ended.
Caroline stood still, holding her cell phone, feeling her cheeks burn. Young Turnes...?
Who was this woman that even Hiago mentioned casually, as if she were important in Nicholas's life?
She didn't even have time to think much.
She heard a knock at the door.
She took a deep breath and opened it.
Bratt Malike was there—impeccable, serious, almost military—holding several bags of clothes.
He bowed his head respectfully.
“Ma'am.”
Caroline smiled kindly, trying to act natural despite the turmoil in her chest.
“Thank you, Bratt... I'll take them.”
But her heart was racing as fast as the water running from the shower behind her.
Nicholas felt his whole body tremble when Caroline moved in his arms.
She was trembling, trying to pull away, and that—that mixture of fear, purity, and confusion—almost destroyed him.
Caroline, pressed between his warm chest and the steam in the bathroom, looked like a small, cornered animal.
A moment ago she had been flushed, dazed, gasping for air...
Now she was almost crying.
And Nicholas... Nicholas finally realized what he was doing.
His breathing, which had been heavy, slowed.
His gaze changed—the burning desire was still there, but something much stronger suddenly took over: panic.
Panic that he had scared her.
He took his hands away from her face and, for the first time that night, backed away an inch.
Just one.
But for Caroline, it was enough to breathe.
“Carol...” His voice was still hoarse, but now there was something else mixed in with it. Guilt. “Look at me.”
She didn't look.
Her heart was beating as if it wanted to escape her body, and her breathing was short, shaky, almost childlike.
Nicholas lifted her chin gently—this time without force, as if afraid of hurting her.
“I said I wouldn't touch you...” He closed his eyes, as if fighting with himself. “And I just almost broke my own promise.”
Caroline didn't know what to say.
Her body was still tense, her hands still resting on his chest, as if any sudden movement would make her flinch.
Nicholas noticed.
His expression softened.
All that dominance, provocation, arrogance... evaporated like the steam around them.
He rested his forehead against hers, breathing slowly, trying to control himself.
“I won't touch you...” he murmured, low, as if pleading with himself. “Not like this. Not while you're afraid.”
His fingers trembled as they held her face, but they didn't kiss her again.
He just hugged her by the nape of her neck, slowly bringing her to his chest, as if she were crystal about to break.
Caroline felt his strong muscles tense... as if he were fighting every instinct.
He pressed his lips to the top of her head and took a deep breath.
“Carol, you have to believe me...” His voice became a low whisper. “I would never, ever hurt you. And nothing will happen unless you want it to.”
The steam from the bathroom seemed to envelop them.
His warm breath on her hair...
His huge heart beating against her hands...
His whole body trembling so he wouldn't pull her back into a kiss.
Nicholas wasn't a man used to controlling himself.
But for her... he would try.
He would go against himself if he had to.
Caroline bit her lip hard.
She wasn't afraid anymore. At least, not that paralyzing fear.
It was... something else.
Something new.
Something she didn't yet know how to name.
“N-Nicholas...” she whispered, her voice breaking. “I just got... scared. It all happened so fast...”
He closed his eyes with a small sigh of pain.
This was exactly what he had feared.
He lifted his head and looked at her—a look so deep, so intense, but so full of adoration that Caroline felt her stomach sink.
“I'm sorry, my love,” he whispered, running his damp fingers across her cheek. “I lose my mind when I touch you. But it's not your fault. It's... it's the way I feel you.”
He kissed her forehead—a slow, chaste kiss, full of tenderness.
That was all.
“I promise...” He ran his thumb gently under her eye. “I'll never scare you like that again.”
And then, with extreme care, he let her go... as if she were more fragile than glass.
“Go to your room, Carol.”
He smiled wryly, exhausted, defeated. “Before I break my promise for the second time in less than five minutes.”
Caroline stumbled out, still dizzy, still hot, still confused.
And when she closed the door behind her, she rested her forehead against the wood...
Her heart was in chaos.
But for the first time... it wasn't fear.
It was something worse. And at the same time... much better.
Caroline raised her tear-filled eyes and stared at that perfect face—tense, restrained, marked by drops of water running down his forehead, down the bridge of his nose, and disappearing along his jawline.
Nicholas was... on the verge of losing control.
And it was visible.
Every muscle in his body, every feature of his face.
She had never seen a man so desirous... of her.
The shock she felt came not only from fear, but also from something forbidden and sweet.
It was impossible to deny: part of her feminine vanity felt deeply satisfied.
How could an ordinary girl like her leave a man like that—so handsome, so powerful, so unattainable—in this state?