Chapter 19 DEAL

Chapter 19 DEAL

GRACE

My head throbs the moment I try to move. It feels heavy, like it’s resting against something solid and unfamiliar.

I force my eyes open.

And my heart jumps instantly.

Nick?

Then my heart starts to stutter violently. He’s right there, lying beside me, his chest bare, his arm stretched lazily across the bed like he belongs here.

What the hell? How am I even here with him?

Panic hits me when I look down.

I'm wearing different clothes.

My breath catches sharply. No. No, don’t tell me Nich did this.

I scramble backward, my body reacting before my brain can catch up. The mattress dips as I crawl away, but before I can put distance between us, his arm snakes around my waist and yanks me back hard against his chest.

“What the hell, Nick?” I snap, struggling. “Get your hands off me!”

He doesn’t answer. Instead, his grip tightens possessively, unyielding.

“I swear to God,” I warn, my voice shaking now, “if you don’t let go—”

“I don’t care,” he mutters, his voice rough, eyes still closed. “We’re staying like this.”

My blood boils. Is he actually serious right now?

I twist enough to look at his face. Of course his eyes are still shut and he’s calm, like this is some ridiculous comfort he’s enjoying.

“How did you even find me?” I demand.

His arm loosens just enough for me to slip free. I don’t hesitate. I spring off the bed and put space between us immediately, my heart hammering.

He opens his eyes slowly like he knows he's in control.

“Are you not even happy to see me?” he asks.

I let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Where are my clothes?”

He doesn’t move to get them. Instead, he sits up, his gaze lifting to my forehead. Before I realize what he’s doing, his fingers touch it.

“Ouch!” I hiss, swatting his hand away.

His expression shifts into a serious one now.

“You hit your head when you fell into the pool,” he says. “Why the hell were you even there? I thought you hate water.”

I glare at him. “That’s none of your business. Just give me my damn clothes. I’m leaving.”

He scoffs, his jaw tightening. “You’re serious? None of my business?” His voice rises. “I almost lost you, Grace. Do you get that? I pulled you out when you were barely conscious.”

I inhale sharply, steadying myself. “Stop treating me like I'm still your girlfriend. We are not a couple anymore. When is that going to sink in?”

He drags a hand down his face, frustration written all over him. “You don’t get to decide that alone.”

I stare at him. “I already did.”

“You broke up with me,” he snaps. “I didn’t. At least give me the chance to agree to it.” His voice drops, like a wounded lion. “And don’t twist this like I’m wrong for saving your life. Do you have any idea what it felt like to see you like that? Almost drowning?”

Then the silence hangs between us.

“And now,” he continues bitterly, “all you do is push me away like I’m a kind of monster.”

My chest tightens, but I don’t let it show.

I straighten my shoulders. “Just give me my clothes, Nick.”

“I know you’re running away because you still love me,” he says quietly. “Can you just stop being stubborn? Let’s fix this and get back together.”

I shake my head slowly as my chest feels tight.

“There’s nothing to fix,” I say. “This thing between us can’t work. I’ve told you that already.” I inhale sharply, my voice lowering. “I can’t be with a man who doesn’t trust me.”

His jaw clenches.

“I didn’t tell your mum about us,” I continue, my eyes dropping to the bed. “...because I wanted you to do it. She’s been so kind to me. I don’t think I can face her knowing I'd shatter all her expectations for us.”

“Then let’s keep it that way,” he says quickly. “I’m not breaking up with you anyway.”

My anger boils again.

His eyes drift downward to my hand. “I don’t believe you hate me like you claim,” he adds.

I follow his gaze. Then it lands on my ring finger.

Damn it.

I didn’t even realize I was still wearing it.

Without saying another word, I slide the ring off and place it on the bed between us. The soft sound it makes feels louder than it should.

“There,” I say. “Do you get it now? We’re really over, Nick.”

I turn and start moving away from the bed, but he doesn’t stop me.

Just then, his voice cut through.

“Do you like him that much?” he asks suddenly. “Dominic?”

I pause.

What?

I spin around to face him. “That right there, that’s the problem. You still don’t trust me, yet you want us back together?” My voice shakes now. “This will never end. And I don’t trust love alone to fix something that's way deeper.”

“It’s not you I don’t trust,” he snaps. “It’s him. Don’t you get that?”

“That has nothing to do with me,” I shoot back. “If you’d just stop letting your jealousy control you—”

He steps closer, anger flashing across his face.

“I hate the way you look at him!” he yells.

“What?” My voice cracks.

He looks away instantly, his shoulders stiff. Silence stretches. Then, without another word, he turns and walks toward his wardrobe.

Just like that? Is he joking with me?

“Nick!” I call after him.

He doesn't respond.

“We’re not done talking,” I add, my frustration boiling over. “What the hell are you even talking about?”

He still doesn’t answer.

I walk around the bed and stop in front of him. Before I can even open my mouth, he shoves my already dried clothes against my chest.

“You can have your dress,” he mutters, avoiding my eyes. “You wouldn’t stop shaking, so I had your clothes changed. I shouldn’t have done that without your consent, but I’m sorry. I couldn’t watch you freeze to death.”

I stare at him, my fingers tightening around the fabric.

“You know that’s not what I want to hear right now,” I snap. “You just dropped a damn bomb and you’re talking about my clothes? How the hell did you say I look at your brother?”

“I don’t know, Grace!” he yells, finally meeting my eyes. “I honestly don’t. This whole thing pisses me off too. I tried not to think about it. I tried to believe it was just you being… you. But hell, it’s not.”

My chest tightens as he continues.

“I saw the way you looked at Dominic the very first day,” he tone softens a little. “At breakfast. And again when I caught the two of you together.” His voice cracks. “You don’t look at me that way.”

“How?” I whisper.

“Like you’re crazy about him!” he shouts. “And the worst part? You don’t even admit it out loud, but your eyes always say otherwise. I’m not letting him take you away from me because I—l…” His voice breaks. “Because I love you.”

I just stand there, my chest rising and falling too fast. I should say something. I need to say something.

But what do I say?

Nick is wrong. I don’t look at Dominic that way. I’m just scared whenever he’s around. That’s all it is. Fear and tension. Nothing else.

“It’s true,” Nick says again, quieter now, his head dipping slightly. “I haven’t been completely honest with you. Dominic and I… we have history. It didn’t just start today, and it’s not even about what happened with Samantha. It goes deeper than that.” He exhales. “But none of that matters to me anymore. I only care about us.”

“Wait,” I cut in sharply. “What happened with Samantha? Did you two fight over her or something?”

He doesn’t look away, but I can’t read his expression. It’s like he’s holding back too many things at once.

“No,” he says flatly. “We didn’t. Can we not talk about it?”

I sigh. There it is again. That same avoidance, silence. And the stupid half-truths.

Suddenly, I’m exhausted. Without hesitating, I turn and start toward the door.

“Wait,” he says softly, grabbing my wrist.

For a split second, I think, maybe now he’ll explain. Maybe now he’ll stop running from whatever is eating him up.

But then he adds, “Are you really going to go out looking like that?”

I stop. And just like that, I know we’re still not talking about what actually matters.

I roll my eyes so hard it almost feels like they might fall out of my skull.

“You can use my bathroom,” he murmurs.

I give him a flat look. “No, thank you.”

“Come on, Grace. Just use the bathroom. It’s not like I’m going to do anything to you.”

Before I can fire back, his phone rings.

He turns away to pick it up, then raises a brow at me before sliding his finger across the screen.

“Hello, Mum.”

He sighs quietly, listens for a second, then walks over and presses the phone into my hand.

“What is it?” I whisper.

“She’s worried about you.”

I exhale slowly and bring the phone to my ear. “Hello.”

“Thank goodness, honey,” Mrs. Santos says immediately. “I was so worried about you. What would we have done if Nick hadn’t shown up to rescue you? Has your fever gone down now?”

I glance at Nick, then look away just as quickly.

“Yes,” I say. “I’m fine now.”

“Alright. Just make sure you get enough rest. You were out for over two hours, so I had to call the family doctor. He said you need proper rest.” She pauses. “Violet and I already covered most of what we needed. I’ll be back home shortly, so make sure you wait for me, alright?”

I nod even though she can’t see me. “I will.”

“Good.”

The call ends.

I pull the phone away from my ear and lightly slap it back against Nick’s chest.

“She says I can’t leave yet,” I mumble.

Nick smiles, like he’s won something.

“I bet you’re so happy now,” I add with a glare.

He doesn’t answer. Instead, he turns, excuses himself, and shuts the door behind him.

The sound clicks too softly. I collapse back onto the bed and let out a long breath.

ELLIOT

Today didn't go as planned. I was supposed to take Grace out. A real date this time. I made reservations, cleared my time, and arranged everything down to the smallest detail. And then she cancels it.

Not even a proper excuse. Just her assistant telling me she wants me to come back some other time.

Seriously?

I leave after waiting longer than I should have. Calling her again would only make me look desperate, and I refuse to be that guy.

I’ve barely settled in when the doorbell rings.

Great.

If that’s my mum, I might actually pretend I’m not home.

After waiting for a second, I drag myself to the door and pull it open and my jaw almost drops.

A tall woman stands there, wrapped in a red dress that looks expensive, and dangerous. The kind of red that isn’t worn to impress, but to warn. Her posture is calm, confident, like she already owns the space she’s standing in.

For a second, I wonder if she’s at the wrong address.

She tilts her head slightly, amused. “I can’t come in if you don’t invite me in.”

Her voice is smooth and bold. The kind that doesn’t bother asking permission or care about who is who.

I blink once, then straighten. “I don’t usually invite strangers into my house. Shouldn’t you tell me who you are first?”

She smiles, not exactly warm, or friendly. Just a poised one.

She then reaches up, slides off her sunglasses, and suddenly those honey-brown eyes lock onto mine with unsettling tension.

Beautiful, yes. But beauty has never been enough to catch my eyes.

“I’m Hazel Vale Cassandra,” she says calmly. “Does that ring a bell?”

It does. She's that Hazel my mum won't stop talking about.

My hand runs through my hair before I can stop myself.

She arches a brow. “Still keeping me outside?”

“Uh—no. Please.” I step aside, giving her space.

She walks in without hesitation, her heels clicking softly against the floor. She doesn’t look around. She doesn’t even admire anything. Instead, she heads straight for the couch like she’s done this before, like she’s been here in her head already.

Then she stops and turns to wait for me.

“May I sit?”

She definitely doesn't look like one to ask but I answer anyway.

“Yes,” I say. “Of course.”

She sits, crossing her legs slowly, deliberately, her attention never leaving my face. I take the opposite chair, already feeling like this isn’t a normal visit.

“I’m sorry you had to come all this way, Hazel” I begin, trying to keep things polite, and controlled. “But if this is about the date…”

“Cass,” she cuts in, sharply. “I go by Cassandra. Cass, for a short.”

I nod once. “Alright. Cassandra.” I say with a smile. “Well, my mum didn't mention anything about you coming.”

She leans back slightly, satisfied. “Your mother doesn’t know I’m here.” Her lips curve faintly. “I wanted to see you personally.”

I shift a little on my seat.

“That’s not a problem, is it… Elliot?”

The way she says my name tells me everything. But I just nod.

“So…” she says slowly, folding her arms. “As you already know, our parents want us to start something.”

I already hate the way she says that.

“And I’m guessing you’ve figured out by now that I’m really not interested in you at all,” she continues. “So I came to a conclusion. This can actually work for both of us.”

I arch a brow, saying nothing yet.

“If I don’t agree to the date,” she adds, then pauses. Just for a second. “My dad’s going to…” She stops herself, then exhales. “Anyway. I’m just asking that we pretend. One week. Then we split up. That's it.”

I almost laugh. That’s it? She barges into my house for this?

Interesting.

“And what if I don’t buy that?” I ask calmly.

She blinks once, clearly not expecting me to decline. But she recovers fast.

“Then I give you a second option,” she says smoothly. “Haven’t you been losing to Simons Holdings recently?”

My spine stiffens.

“What?” I say before I can hold myself back. “Have you been spying on me?”

She doesn’t flinch but she doesn’t deny it either.

“Look,” she says, leaning forward slightly. “I need to get what I want, so I did what I had to do. I’m interested in one thing and that's the company.”

I stare at her waiting for her to land.

“That means I have to pretend we’re heading toward marriage,” she continues, obviously unbothered. “and of course we won’t. It’s just for a show. I get the company. You get Simons Holdings crawling under your feet.”

She smiles. “I can make it happen.”

A long silence stretches between us. I honestly can't believe I'm even having this kind of conversation.

“All you need to do,” she adds softly, “is say the word.”

I let out a slow breath before standing.

“Listen, Cass,” I say evenly. “I appreciate the offer. Truly. But you’ve got one thing wrong about me.”

She watches me closely now like she's preparing herself.

“I’m competitive, I know that” I continue. “But I don’t bring people down to win. So no, none of your options work for me. If you don’t want to date, explain that to your father instead of dragging others into your mess.”

Her smile fades. “And Grace?” she cuts in.

My heart slams hard against my ribs.

“What?” My voice comes out sharper than I intend.

“I can remove every obstacle between you and her,” she quickly adds.

That’s it. I'm done listening to her… before I lose it.

“That’s enough,” I snap. “How the hell do you even know all this? Have you been having people follow me?” I shake my head in disbelief. “You’ve gone too far, Cass.”

I move toward the door. “Please leave. We’re done here.”

She doesn’t stand right away. She sits there like the room belongs to her and that alone pisses me off.

She exhales slowly. “I know about your company because my mother mentioned it by chance. I just… dug a little deeper.” she says quietly, “And you didn’t exactly hide how you feel about that girl. I came late for the date and saw you two together.”

“Well, I don’t care about any of that or what you've been up to,” I reply coldly. “But don’t get me involved.”

“The woman you like…”

“Stop it!” I shout.

She actually flinches just a little. Good. I grab the door handle and yank it open. She finally stands, smoothing her dress like nothing just happened.

Before stepping out, she looks back at me.

“Think about it, Elliot.”

I don’t bother answering. I slam the door in her face.