Chapter 72 Chapter 72
Caroline thought she wouldn't be able to sleep with Nicholas in the room.
But surprisingly... she fell asleep quickly.
The room was quiet and dark. His breathing, soft and steady... brought a strange sense of security.
Comfort.
But when she thought about him sleeping on the floor because of her, guilt began to gnaw at her chest.
Nicholas Wolf... sleeping on the floor.
It didn't fit with reality.
“Nicholas...” she whispered.
No rustling, just an immediate response:
“Not yet.”
She blinked, surprised.
“And you?” he asked a few seconds later. “Are you awake too?”
“No.”
“Carol...” His low voice sounded amused. “Do you want to say something?”
She curled her fingers into the blanket.
“Is it... uncomfortable down there? You're not used to sleeping on the floor, are you?”
Silence.
Then:
“No.”
She knew it was a lie.
“Is this your first time sleeping on the floor?”
“Hmm.”
The confirmation made her chest tighten.
“I can sleep on the sofa,” she suggested softly.
The sofa was small, but comfortable enough for her. For him? It was too narrow. But Nicholas had insisted on staying in the same room.
“Carol...” His voice was firm. “Do you really think I can sleep in a bed while my wife is stuck on a couch?”
He sighed softly. “Sleep. Don't worry about me.”
“But...”
“Love.” His tone changed, seductive, serious, intimate. “If you really feel sorry for me... let me sleep with you in bed.”
She gasped.
“Of course, if you're worried that I won't be able to control myself...” His pause was slow, provocative. “Then pretend I never suggested it.”
Caroline swallowed hard.
“So... can you promise you won't... lose control?”
A low laugh escaped him.
“I can't.”
She fell silent.
Nicholas finished, his voice slow, deep, absurdly sincere:
“Carol... if a man promises he'll maintain 100% composure with the woman he loves by his side...”
Then you should be concerned about his health, not yours.
If Caroline was already blushing before... now she was burning all over.
“I can only promise one thing.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “I won't go past the last step.
But...
Kiss you?
Touch you?
Hold you until you go limp in my arms?
” He took a deep breath. “That... I can't control.”
Caroline clutched the blanket to her chest, her face burning.
He was being too honest.
Too real.
And too irresistible.
As soon as Bratt Malike walked away down the silent hallway, the door to the other room slowly opened.
Tania appeared, disheveled, her hair tied in a messy bun and her eyes still half-closed with sleep.
She blinked a few times when she saw Caroline holding several bags of breakfast.
“My God...” she murmured, suddenly wide awake. “Is all this for us?!”
Caroline nodded, still holding the bags, a shy smile dancing on her lips.
“Nicholas asked Mr. Malike to bring it. He said he didn't know what we liked... so he bought a little bit of everything.”
Tania opened her mouth, stunned.
“AAAAaaah!” She ran to Caroline, grabbed her shoulders, and began shaking her, almost in a trance. “Carol, this man is going to kill me... with envy!”
She took a dramatic step back.
“How can such a man exist in the world? It's not fair! Life isn't fair!”
Caroline laughed softly.
“Stop it...”
“I'm serious!” Tania pointed to the bags. “Girl, he woke up early, thought of you, remembered breakfast, and even sent you a feast? That's... prince charming level, unlimited black card version!”
Caroline lowered her gaze, but couldn't hide the blush on her cheeks.
“He just cares...”
“Just cares?!” Tania put her hand on her chest. "If this man cares any more, I'll book your wedding at the civil registry, the church, the notary, heaven, and hell too!
She snorted theatrically and picked up a bag.
“I'm going to eat before I faint from jealousy, okay? Excuse me.”
Caroline laughed and accompanied her to the small table, opening the packages.
There was everything:
bread, croissants, hot sandwiches, omelets, cut fruit, fresh juice, coffee, and even a small cake with strawberries.
“My God...” Tania murmured, shocked. “He didn't buy breakfast... he bought an entire five-star hotel.”
Caroline enjoyed seeing Tania so excited and exaggerated—it made her forget a little of the tension from the night before.
As they served themselves, Tania looked at Caroline suspiciously out of the corner of her eye.
“So... how was it?”
Caroline choked on a piece of bread.
“What do you mean, how was it?”
Tania slapped the table, laughing.
“Don't play innocent! He slept here. In the same room. The bed is huge... what happened?”
Caroline immediately blushed.
“Nothing! He just... slept.”
Tania raised an eyebrow.
“Just slept? Nicholas Wolf? Hugging you? In the same bed?” She pounded her chest. “Carol, please don't lie to me. I could almost hear the romantic atmosphere from here.”
“Nothing happened!” Caroline repeated, blushing even more. “He just hugged me. And... slept.”
Tania's eyes widened.
“That's all?”
“That's all.”
Tania sighed deeply, defeated.
“If it were me, I would have lost all my dignity right there.”
Caroline blushed to the tips of her ears.
But deep down... she felt something warm and sweet expanding in her chest.
Nicholas had really slept... and that was all.
Even though he wanted more.
Even though she was suffering.
Even though she was fighting against herself.
She bit her lip, remembering his words—low, hoarse:
“My love... just a little longer. Just let me hold you a little longer.”
Caroline looked away, trying to push the thought away before her heart exploded with shame.
Caroline kept her eyes down, her fingers tightening around the cup of hot milk in her hands.
The memory of Edward was still like a small thorn — it didn't hurt as much as before, but it was there, uncomfortable, sensitive to touch.
The table was full of delicious food, the warm aroma filling the air... but for a moment, everything seemed to lose its flavor.
Tania noticed immediately.
She put down her chopsticks, her expression changing from surprise to remorse.
“Carol...” she murmured softly, looking like a child who had broken a vase. “I'm really sorry. I said something stupid. You know how I am... my mouth speaks before I think.”
Caroline breathed slowly, trying to bring the world back into focus. Then she looked up and smiled softly—not sadly, but maturely.
“It's okay, Tania. You didn't tell any lies.”
Tania opened her mouth to protest, but Caroline interrupted her with an even calmer smile.
“I mean it. I think... deep down, I always knew.”
She stirred her milk slowly, watching the liquid swirl in the glass. “There were signs. Little details I should have noticed. But when you trust someone deeply... you just close your eyes, right?”
The silence between them became softer, more intimate.
Caroline continued:
"I thought that... after so many years, he just didn't show it in the same way anymore. I didn't think it was a lack of love... I just thought it was habit, you know?“ She gave a soft, ironic chuckle to herself. ”Now I see that I was too naive. I trusted him so much... I didn't even want to consider that I could be betrayed.
Tania squeezed Caroline's hand tightly.
“Carol... you weren't naive. You were just good. Too good for someone who didn't deserve you.”