tlac; shine bright like a diamond

tlac; shine bright like a diamond by ssaarah 

I hung up the last of the dresses we had shipped in and I heard the little bell tinkle when a customer walked in.

"Welcome." I turned I around and saw Nicks handsome features, "Hey you." I grinned. Nick returned the smile, nodding and pulling out a vase of flowers from behind his back. Oh my god.

"Hi beautiful." he said, leaning over to peck me on the lips.

"What are these for?" I grinned as I smiled at the flowers.

"For the date that went south." He winced and I looked back at him,

"I thought we established the fact that that wasn't your fault." he shrugged,

"I still wanted to apologize for it…"

"Well, they are beautiful. Orchids are my favorite." I smiled, taking the vase out of his hands and setting it on my desk.

"I'm glad you like it."

"You always make surprise visits. Should I be expecting this often?" Nick shrugged,

"I like you seeing you." He replied, making me blush. "And I just got off work and I thought coming here would be better than going home."

“Well I'm about to close if you want to watch me put things on clearance and dust the top shelves.

“I might….” He trailed off. “Are you going to be on a ladder for those top shelves?” he smirked slowly.

“Are you trying to get a peek up my skirt Nick?” I asked, red ticketing a dress and turning back towards him. He nodded.

“Maybe.” I felt myself smile slowly and instinctively lean into his body. His strong arms wrapped themselves around my waist and pulled me even closer.

“You just had to ask.” I whispered slowly, feeling myself blush. God it was one thing talking to Scarlett but with Nick? I always kind of felt like jello.

“Fu.ck you’re so cute….” He pushed my hair out of my eyes and I gave him a look.

“Cute….not exactly the adjective you’re looking for when you’re attempting to make out with a guy.” I teased and he gave me a look of mock scandal.

“Making out in your shop? While you work? Brooke exactly what kind of a girl are you?” he asked slowly and I couldn’t help but smile.

“My family owns the store, I think I'm allowed to do anything I want.” He rose a brow and then his hands were around me and he was picking me up and setting me on the table next to the register.

“Anything huh?” he cupped my face and pressed a kiss against my lips, lingering against them as I heard myself let out a soft moan.

“Not just cute…..” he trailed off against my mouth.

“What?” I asked, grinning and pulling back from him.

“Your sexy as hell Brooke….” He trailed off, looking at me, his eyes getting more and more intense. I swallowed thickly because my whole body was getting warm with him so close to me.

“Maybe I can skip some closing stuff….we could get something to eat…maybe end up somewhere with no naked ex girlfriends around?”

"Well I did have my locks changed." He grinned

 "Oh yeah?"

"I'm the only one with the keys, so there will definitely be no naked ex-girlfriend on the couch."

"Good." I breathed out, thinking in my head I was hoping I’d be naked on his couch sometime soon….

"I just have to count the till… and make sure everything is okay… I can clean in the morning."

"Sounds good…" he breathed out, holding my body against his tight as his hands slowly trailed down my back towards my ass.

"You should let me go then…" I grinned, even though I really didn’t want him too. He nodded,

"I guess I should…" he trailed off as he let his arms slide down to his sides. Damn.  I gave him a smile,

"Thank you." I walked towards the door and turned the open sign over and locked the doors while Nick took a look through the store front and I finished up my final chores. "I'm done." I spoke up watching him turn back towards me.  

"Let's go." he suggested as we walked out together.

"How about we go to my place…" I trailed off, biting down on my lip, "I can make you dinner." I suggested, "And there will be no risk of exes." I joked.

"That sounds perfect." He said nodding as he held the door to his car open for me and he drove to the complex. I opened the door and set my stuff down, trying not to think about when the last time a guy I really liked was in my apartment alone with me.  

"Make yourself comfortable." I said.

“This place is nice."

"Thanks, my parents got it for me." I grinned, "So what do you want for dinner." Nick shrugged,

"Absolutely anything. I'm starving." he grinned.

"Men." I shook my head, "All they know is that they're hungry."

 "I am a man…" he trailed off, "I really do like anything so I'm not very picky."

“Okay.” I smirked and opened my fridge pondering the options.

“Damn.” Nick said from behind me, peeking into the fridge. I turned.

“What?” he shrugged.

“You have a lot of food in there.” I laughed.

“Yes, I'm not your typical twenty something. But I am studying to be a chef…..so…” he smirked.

“I'm beginning to think I'm a very lucky man.” He started as I pulled out some chicken veggies.

“How about stuffed chicken?” Nick’s eyes widened.

“Stuffed with what?” I shrugged.

“Cheese mostly. I love cheese.” He grinned.

“Definitely lucky.” He nodded and I set to work on hammering the chicken so I could roll it, stuffed with cheese and seasonings. He watched me as I worked, not really talking, but it wasn’t an awkward silence.

“So your ex wants you back….” I trailed off, looking up at him.

“Don’t remind me please.” He said shaking his head as he watched me stick the food in the oven and wash my hands.

“I don’t blame her.” I teased, drying off my hands and setting my apron back on the hook next to the fridge.”

“You know I never thought a girl could look so sexy in an apron.” Nick teased, seeming to want to stay away from the ex talk. I felt myself blush.

“Wait until you see me in just the apron.” Nick groaned.

“I feel like you just read my thoughts…..” he said, his eyes stormy as he looked back at me. I blushed harder.

“Hmmm” I started. “We must be on the same wave length….” I replied, walking up to where he was perched on the stool next to my kitchen island. He grabbed my waist and pulled me into his hard body.

“How long until dinner?”

“It has to bake for 45 minutes.” I replied.

“Damn….” He trailed off and I looked at him questioningly. He met my eyes with a mischievous grin on his handsome face….god he was so handsome…”Not nearly enough time.”

“For what?” I heard myself almost whisper as Nick’s thumb started stroking my waist slowly.

"Anything…" he said, looking like he was struggling with his self.

"Like?" I bit down on my lip and smirked.

"I'm afraid to say anything in fear of getting slapped." he grinned and I laughed because that couldn’t be further from the truth.

"Tell me… I won't care…" I looked down at him and he swallowed.  

"I'd be lying if I said I hadn't pictured you naked…." he trailed off and I felt a shiver shoot straight through me…..and right between my legs.

"Naked and what?" I urged him on.

"Moaning my name." he admitted, making me grin because I had had quite a few dreams where I was doing just that.

"Like this? 'Nick.'" I said in a breathy moan, teasing him and making him groan.

"You shouldn't do that, unless you're going to follow through…" he trailed off as I gave him an even bigger grin.

"What are you going to do if I don't?" I teased back and he grabbed my hands forcefully, thrilling me.

“I'll have to teach you a lesson…" he grinned.

"I think I'd like that…” I admitted. I watched Nick swallow thickly as he grabbed my waist and placed me on the counter easily, stepping between the legs I had parted for him and kissing me hard before moving his lips down my neck. Oh god…...

"Do you like that?" I nodded and he nipped at my neck making me moan again.

“More…..” Nick brought his eyes back level to mine and smirked.

“More?” I nodded, reaching for him and running my hands down his torso, fisting his teeshirt and then slowly pulling it up. Nick looked surprised for a second but then lifted his arms and let me peel it off of his body. Holy shi.t. The man was hiding the body of a greek god under his clothes.

“Unf….” I made an indistinguishable sound and Nick smirked.

“Is that a “like what you see” noise?” I smirked, but nodded, running my hands over his now naked chest.

“That would be an understatement.” I whispered, wrapping my legs around his waist to pull him back in and kiss him again. Our tongues moved together and I felt his hands move slowly, cautiously up my thighs to play with the hem of my tank. He fin.gered the material, not moving forward, apparently still afraid I’d slap him or something, I pulled back slightly and looked in his eyes before raising my hands in the air. Nick grinned and understood my meaning as he lifted my tank over my body and tossed it away, taking me in before pressing his body against mine.

“You’re so fu.cking gorgeous Brooke….” He groaned, his lips tracing the swells of my breasts and making me die. He was too good. No guy should be able to get me this worked up without having even fully gotten past first base.

“I'm not even naked yet.” I teased, grabbing his belt loops and pulling him harder into me. Fu.ck the feel of his abs against my stomach was almost electrifying. We just kept kissing, over and over, our hands roaming and our mouths stopping to move across our necks or chest but we didn’t take it further…I wasn’t sure why all I knew was I didn’t want to stop kissing him. He felt so good….so. Damn. Good.

"I want you so bad, Nick." I breathed out as his expert hands roamed my body. He groaned against my skin as he trailed kisses down my body while I whimpered because I was impatient, I wanted his mouth everywhere…….

"You are so gorgeous." he repeated again and I felt his hands hook into the waistband of my skirt, slowly inching it down my legs, whether to torture me or make sure I was on the same page as him I wasn’t sure, but it was having the former effect.  I felt my heart rate speed up as his lips hit my thighs.

"Do you like this?"  he asked, looking up at me as I quickly nodded.

"God yes…" I bit my lip as he kissed below my navel.

"Good." He grinned and then his fingers were hooking in my panties and I was about to lose it but just as he did? The oven timer went off, beeping loudly and ruining the mood. We both groaned as I threw her head back. Not fair.

"Why does the world hate me?!" I exclaimed as Nick pulled away from me with a small grin.

"We have the worst timing, don't we?" he smirked running his hands through his hair. I sighed, "God yes." I hopped off the counter and grabbed an oven mitt before bending over to take the chicken out, knowing I’d burn the house down if it lasted much longer.

"Well dinner is ready." I sighed…I had really been hoping I would be dinner instead… Nick smirked, looking at the two of us, me in nothing but bra and panties and he was sinfully shirtless, it was like two high scholars getting caught.

"I'm suddenly not hungry for chicken…" Nick trailed off.

“Oh yeah?” I laughed but then my eyes found their way down to the bulge in his jeans. Oh my god.

“It’ll be fu.cking impossible to focus on anything but you if that’s all you’re wearing….” He said, trailing off as his eyes caressed my body. I felt hot all over. Then again I was standing near an oven…..but something told me that wasn’t the culprit.

“I always have dinner dates in my underwear.” I joked, cursing the fact that I hadn’t worn my lacey lingerie and instead opted for black cotton.

“Lucky dates.” He grinned.

“So…..” I wasn’t sure what do to. I knew what I wanted to do. I wanted to rip off the rest of his clothes and mount him. But the moment was kind of ruined.

“Well….we shouldn’t let your food go to waste..” Nick looked as conflicted as I was. I nodded and pulled out some dishes, arranging the food on a plate without really thinking about it. “Wow.” Nick grinned and I looked up.

“What?” he shrugged.

“You really are a chef.” I looked down and noticed I had been plating my food to restaurant quality and I laughed.

“Force of habit.” I shrugged, adding a garnish to the left side and pouring sauce on top.

“I wasn’t complaining.” I tried to keep myself from grinning like a moron as I found my skirt on the ground and pulled it back over my hips….but then Nick had come up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, his head nuzzling in my neck. It felt…..too good. Too real. It made me feel safe and for some reason? That scared me. “You okay?” I nodded quickly.

“Yeah. Fine why?” he pressed a soft kiss against my neck and squeezed me tighter against him.

“You tensed up.” I turned in his arms and smirked.

“Are you some kind of expert on body language or something?” I asked.

“Maybe.” He smirked, saying it in a low sexy voice that was still teasing and it made me laugh. “Or maybe I just know you.” I blinked.

“But you don’t….not really.” I admitted. He really had no idea what he was getting into with me. I looked at the ground and he tilted my head up.

“I can tell when you’re being Brooke and when you’re being scared off. What did I do?” He literally boggled my mind.

“Nothing. You’re perfect.” I said, proving my point as I ran my hands down his perfect chest, the hormones still raging in my body wanting to follow my hands with my tongue.

“I don’t know about that.” He smirked. “Do you want to eat?”

“Are you going to put your shirt back on?” I asked, biting my lip.

“I won’t if you won’t.” He played and I felt myself blush again.

“Deal.”

"Thank you for making dinner. I appreciate it. I mean I know I came up and surprised you and-"

"Stop talking." I grinned, "I like seeing you… so I'm not complaining." Nick  took a bite and moaned loudly.

"Oh my god. This is amazing…"

"Really?" I asked, though I knew it was. I was kind of cocky about my cooking.

"Yeah." he nodded quickly, "This is amazing! Is it some recipe?" he asked, shoveling down the rest.

"No, just made what came to me." I shrugged.

"Jeez, this is amazing." he said, digging in, "You should cook for me more often." I laughed,

"I'd love to." He quickly finished his whole plate as I gave him an amused smile,

"What?" he asked puzzled.

"Do you always eat so fast?" I asked with a grin. Nick laughed and nodded,

"Yeah, it drove my mother insane… I mean she shouldn't complain since at least I ate all my food. Plus seconds. By the way, can I have seconds?"

"Knock yourself out."

"Thanks." he said, getting another plate and quickly wolfing it down. I just eyed him,

"Where do you put it?"

"What do you mean?" he asked confused again. I grinned,

 "You're sitting in my kitchen, shirtless and you're wondering why? I mean look at you! You have the body of a Greek god." I admitted, making him look down at himself and smirk.

"I take care of my body…" he shrugged, "I used to play football in high school and I still work out occasionally."

"Well it does you good." Damn good…...

"And what do you do?" he smirked, "I mean you're crazy gorgeous and you're a chef. I think you eat, but honestly, it doesn't look like it." he grinned.

"Psh, you're just saying that to be nice."

"You're gorgeous Brooke. Really sexy actually…"

“Well, the perks of being a chef is that you know how to make food that’s good for you taste good too.” I winked at him and he grinned. Ugh..that grin….

“Are you saying this is good for me?” he asked and I shrugged.

“Well I cheat a little sometimes. But that’s what the gym is for.” He swallowed thickly and took a second to stare at me. “What?” I felt like my body was blushing and he shook his head.

“I'm trying not to think about you on a treadmill in tiny yoga shorts.” He admitted and then I knew I was blushing.

“I do look good in tiny yoga shorts…” I admitted, taking a sip of my water before setting the glass down. “Do you want to be my date to my friends party?” he blinked back at me.

“Sure.” He grinned again and my heart melted a little. What did he do to me?!

“Well technically I'm throwing the party. It’s my best friends birthday.” Nick nodded.

“Mason right?” I shook my head.

“No my other best friend Scarlett.”

“I'm dating a girl with two best friends?! Wow.” He teased me and I wrinkled my nose at him.

“Mason will be there I'm sure.” I nodded, smirking as I thought about my two best friends.

“Sounds like a lot of pressure.” He teased though I could see in his eye that he might be a little nervous. I waved my hand in the air.

“Trust me, they’ll just be happy I'm out with someone at all. The worst they’ll do is chastise me for not jumping you yet.” I said it before I had the chance to hear what I was saying. Oops.

"Jump me?" I bit my lip,

"I have a habit of sticking my foot in my mouth…" I trailed off,

"I might have told them that you're a little attractive… And it's been a while for me…" Nick grinned,

"Okay, I'm going to have a giant ego with you."

"Shut up! I'm embarrassed."

 "Don't be! It's cute and I'm am really flattered." He shrugged, "I'm kind of nervous to meet them to be truthfully honest."

"Why?"

"Because they're your friends. I don't want to mess up. Plus I feel like I'm going to be judged." I shook my head,

"They're not that bad. I promise and I'll protect you."

"Now you're making me sound like a girl." Nick smirked and I shook my head.

"I didn't mean it like that! I just meant that I'll just stand up for you, but in a way that assures that you're still a manly guy."

 "Thanks. I do appreciate that."

“So you’ll come?” he nodded.

“Sure.” He nodded and then grinned, grabbing my hand and pulling me into his lap. “Though maybe I should jump you first.” He slid his arms around my waist and leaned in, kissing me hard again as I pressed my body against his hard chest.

“You could do that….” I breathed out as his lips trailed down my neck and his hands slid up my back to reach for my bra clasp…..just when my phone rang. I groaned again.

“The. Worst. Timing.” Nick said, glaring at my cell. My mother. Of course. I sighed and reached for it, Nick seeing the screen and wincing.

“I feel like you should put your clothes back on for that call.” I smirked at him. “What?! It’s creepy…” he trailed off and I chuckled as he put his shirt back over his head and I pouted. It was a damn good view. I slipped my tank back on and answered my mom, who was asking something stupid about the store and then I turned back to Nick.

“So…” he sighed and pushed my hair out of my ear.

“I'm going to go home and take a cold shower before I try anything and get interrupted again.” He laughed and I bit down on my lip.

“Well how about Friday you come over and I’ll turn off my oven and my phone….” I trailed off and he smirked.

“Will you wear that skirt again?” I shook my head slowly.

“I was planning on wearing nothing instead.” I whispered, thinking I’d probably need a cold shower myself. Nick’s eyes widened and he nodded.

“You have….awesome ideas.” He said before cupping my face in his hands and kissing my lips softly but fiercely before pulling way. “Friday can’t come soon enough.” He winked and then headed out the door. I shut it behind him and set my back against it looking up at the ceiling.

“Why does the world hate me?!” ….sigh.