Chapter 28: Chapter 28

I stare into Nathan's eyes and I can see how serious he is.

He really isn't going to leave.

Somewhere deep inside me is full of joy. The selfish part of me, that wants him...regardless of the pain it might cost him.

He wants to stay.

But I shake the thought out of my head. This wasn't about me.

It's about the only guy I might ever love, risking so much and he isn't even aware about it.

"But Nathan--"

"Lunar, please. Enough is enough." He says firmly, staring right at me.

"You can't expect me to walk out of here and get into my car and leave you knowing that you're going through so much. That's not how a relationship works. You're my girlfriend."

"I'm just worried about you." I whimper and he sighs. Then he turns off the shower and helps me out.

When Nathan is done drying me up, I wrap the towel around my body and then he takes my hands in his.

"You have to stop believing that you're a jinx or you're cursed. It's what's causing your nightmares and it hurts me to see you like this." He says and I blink back my tears.

"How else am I supposed to explain what is wrong with me?" I ask and he lifts up my chin.

"Exactly. Nothing is wrong with you. You're being paranoid because you've lost people close to you." He says gently.

"But it's not normal."

"It's not abnormal either. Lunar people out there have lost their entire family in a day. People surviving in wars, people being abused, people transferred from foster home to foster home.  This whole thing never really bothered you until we lost the baby....that's what triggered it." Nathan says and I look away.

He was right.

He always is.

"I know it. And I don't blame you because I know you felt attached to that baby so much. But you don't have to deal with the pain alone by coming up with theories. I know it's a coping mechanism but it has to stop." He says and I look back at him.

"But the hurt is so much Nathan." I sob.

"I know baby. I know. But that's why you have me. I know you felt the pain the most but I felt incredibly hurt too. We both lost the baby together and we'll deal with the pain together. How many happy times we have doesn't define our relationship, it's how strong we are together. You don't have to do anything painful alone so far as you have me. You want to cry? My shoulder's available for you. You want to trash stuff and scream? I'll buy you an antique store. You want someone to hold you at night? You've got me. I'm here for you. What's yours is mine. Your sadness is my sadness and your happiness is my happiness. But you can't keep running when you face an eclipse in life, because you know the thing about eclipses? They always pass." He says and the realisation of his words draw up feelings.

Feelings I had no idea I was burying.

"If it was a girl, I was going to name her Kristi." I cry.

"With a K?" Nathan asks and I smile through my tears.

"Yeah. And if it was a boy, I was going to name him Eric." I say and Nathan nods.

"And there's nothing wrong with having those regrets. The doctor never said anything about you not being able to have kids again baby. And you can always name the next baby with any of those names. You just have to accept that this opportunity is gone, but another will come. You never had nightmares about your parents or Logan until now. You know they loved you baby, and they never blamed you." Nathan says as he wipes my tears.

"I made you something." He says and I watch as he leads me to the bedroom and brings out a flash drive from his coat pocket.

"I was going to bring it today before you called last night. I thought maybe if you saw what you've done for people who have really lost hope in life, you'll realise how much happiness you've brought." Nathan says and I stare at the small device.

I look up at Nathan.

"What did you make?" I ask and he smiles.

"How about I change out of these wet clothes and you get dressed? Then I'll get the hot chocolate and we'll see it together." He says and the idea of him leaving completely vanishes.

Yes I want that.

I want to sit next to him, wearing his jacket and sipping hot chocolate while seeing what he made for me.

"Okay." I say gladly.

Within a few minutes, I'm dressed and so is Nathan. Then he brings the mugs filled with hot chocolate and melting marshmallows to the bedroom.

I can't believe he was willing to stay and still be here for me, despite how emotionally imbalanced I've been.

He was right. I am being paranoid. If I chased him away...who else would I be happy with in this time of hurt?

Nathan pulls me close and pecks my forehead before playing the video and I dwell in this moment with him.

But the minute the video starts...I'm mesmerized till the end.

It's everybody I have ever helped.

The charity runs I did.

The orphanages I visited.

The homeless people I gave the restaurant leftover food to.

The Old people's nursing home that I visit.

I watch as they give their testimony concerning me.

"I lost hope in humanity until I met Lunar."

"She is the nicest girl I've ever met."

"You hardly see someone her age wasting time on us poor folks, but she does it."

"She bought me drugs when I was sick. Me. A homeless man."

"I have never experienced a greater blessing."

"I don't know how my life would have been without Lunar."

The people were endless. Even Emily was in it, and Tess.

"All you've ever been is a blessing Lu. You make life bearable just by existing." Tess says in the video.

I can't believe Nathan did this for me. Took his time to meet all these people.

It feels like all the grief, anger, stress and hurt I've felt for the past few days just melt away and is replaced by an overflow of happiness and love.

When the video ends, I turn to Nathan and he is observing me through watchful eyes.

"You...you did this for me?" I ask and he smiles.

"Anything to see that smile on your face and the sparkle in your eyes." He says quietly, holding eye contact with his amazing, green eyes.

"I will always be here for you Lunar Kensington." Nathan says gently and I let a giggle escape...Because I can't control my emotions anymore.

"Oh Nathan..." I say and lean into him, letting his lips link with mine as he gently kisses me.

When the kiss is over, our gazes lock and I realise how much love I have for him.

How lucky I am to have him.

"I'm in love with you." I say and he chuckles.

"I'm in love with you too."

*****

I turn off the switch on the mixer and pull it up to observe my cream cheese frosting when Nathan dips a finger in the perfect peak, taking a generous amount of frosting with his finger and then licks it off.

"You know, you being around while I make your birthday cake is not fair at all, even though we agreed to celebrate it privately indoors. You're supposed to see only the finished product." I say, turning to him and he gives me a look.

"Are you chasing me away on my birthday?" He asks, milking the 'birthday boy' privileges and I giggle as I roll my eyes at him.

It had been almost two weeks since we left my home after dad had said his parole hearing was still under consideration.

We were back in his apartment and Nathan had successfully coerced me to keep living with him after our first semester exams were over.

"You can't keep guilt tripping me. I mean its bad enough your birthday is on Christmas eve." I tell him and he chuckles.

"Please, you love it." He teases and I nudge him in the shoulder before turning to taste how sweet the frosting is, but the minute I dip my finger in it, Nathan grabs me by my waist from behind and turns me to face him, drawing out laughter from me.

"Babe, cut it out..." I laugh helplessly.

"What? I just love watching my girlfriend bake." He says and I look away to hide my blush.

"You keep doing this and we won't have your cake ready on time." I tell him and his gaze locks with mine.

"I don't mind." He says and brings my finger to his lips, eyes on me as his warm mouth latches on to it and he slowly sucks off the frosting.

I'm pretty sure at this point the heat I'm feeling isn't from the oven.

"The things I want to do to you with this frosting." He whispers in my ear and I remain silent as my body reacts to his words and I keep my gaze locked on his.

"Like lick it off your lips." Nathan continues as he takes some frosting and spreads it on my lip. Then he dips his head slowly, using his tongue at first to lick across my lower lip. Then he takes it in his mouth, nibbling and softly sucking before he full on kisses me.

I grab hold of him for support as my legs go weak and Nathan drives me nuts with his kissing as his tongue does wonders.

Then I feel the frosting on my neck, just below my ear and Nathan's lips travel there, making me go insane and at this point I can't help but moan as my eyes technically roll up to a point that I can barely see anything anymore.

And then the timer on the oven goes off.

I hear Nathan sigh defeatedly before he pulls away and I giggle at his expression.

"This cake better be worth it. Because there are  sweeter things I'll rather be tasting right now." Nathan says and I bite my lip to keep myself from returning to his kisses.

Nathan moves away now, allowing me to take the frosting and keep it in the fridge before wearing my oven mits to bring out the perfectly levelled, twin red velvet and vanilla cakes.

"So what happens now?" He asks as I set the cakes aside and I turn to him, smiling.

"We'll put them in the freezer to cool quickly so we can start icing it on time." I say and Nathan walks closer.

"And how long will that take?"

"Five to ten minutes I guess." I say and he smiles a naughty, wicked smile.

"I know what I want to do to take up the time." He says and I try to ignore what he is hinting at as I open the freezer and slide the cakes in.

By the time I turn around, Nathan is directly in front of me. Then he pulls me close by the waist and leans in and whispers.

"I want to lie you down on the couch and take off what you're wearing underneath. Then I want to spread that sweet frosting on your perfect, pulsing slit. And then I want to lick it off you until you're screaming my name." He says with raw pleasure and I can barely breathe anymore as Nathan's dark, naughty eyes meet with mine.

"And I'm sure you want that too." He says and my knees buckle as I'm overcome with deep, passionate need from his words alone.

In a few minutes, I'm lying on my back on the couch, clutching one of the throw pillows with one hand as Nathan's tongue works it's magic between my legs.

I bite my lip, trying not to scream as I squeeze my eyes shut at the blinding pleasurable experience and my other hand clutches the hand of the couch behind my head.

But with Nathan eating me out like he is starving, I can't suppress the need to scream anymore and I give in.

And he keeps going until I scream his name in a weakening climax.

I had to hand it to him, he was right about two things.

I did scream his name, and it was the perfect way to pass time because by the time we'd washed up and gone back to the kitchen, the cakes had cooled off from being in the freezer.

Nathan is attentive the rest of the time and doesn't bother me much as I level the cakes, layer them and ice it to a perfect, smooth finish.

By the time I'm done decorating, it's noon.

"You know, realising that you can bake so well makes you a whole lot sexier." He says as I carefully drop the cake on the breakfast table.

And then I straddle him where he is sitting on a chair.

"Yeah?" I ask and he chuckles.

"Yeah." He says and plants a kiss on my lip.

"Are you ready for your birthday present?" I ask and he gives me a look.

"Another one? I thought you gave me my present on the couch half an hour ago." He says with a naughty grin and I hit him on the shoulder.

"Stop being such a perv. I'm serious." I laugh and he laughs as well.

"Okay, okay. I'm ready. What is it?"

"Close your eyes."

NATHAN'S P.O.V

"Close your eyes." Lunar says, her face lit up with excitement like she was about to give me the whole world.

And she has. She just doesn't know it.

No gift would ever match the happiness I get from just being with her, watching her bake or cook or cuddling with her while watching t.v. until she sleeps off or watching her study.

She was the best gift I would ever have. It may have taken a while before she had gotten over her phobia of losing people...but it didn't change a thing.

My love for her will dwell with her no matter what she is going through. So far as I get to see her smile again, that is fine by me, because she's more than enough.

"Do I have to?" I ask and she giggles.

"Come on, close them. It'll be worth it, I promise." She says and I hesitate because I don't want to stop seeing how gleeful and happy she is.

But I close them anyway and Lunar climbs off my lap, earning a sad groan from me.

"Stop whining you big baby." Her voice comes from the bedroom.

In a few seconds she is back and she straddles me again.

"Okay, open them." She says and I open my eyes to see her wearing a cherry red, super revealing lingerie.

It's more of straps than cloth, the only clothlike material is what is covering her nipples and her smooth crotch, while her cleavage and the rest of her skin is in full display.

The straps link it from her neck to her waist and then her thighs where it is attached to the thigh-high red socks she has on.

"Holy fuck." I say and she laughs.

"This is your night present." She says and I look up at her.

"Are you kidding me? My birthday is happening right now." I say and she laughs.

"Sorry baby. Rules are rules."

"So I can't have it now?"

"Nope." She says proudly, enjoying the tease.

"You could have just showed it to me you know. This isn't fair. Especially after I had a taste of you just now." I tell her teasingly and she giggles.

"I needed to create an effect by putting it on full display." She says and I grab her waist.

"Congratulations. It worked." I say and she gasps at the feel of me, then she starts rubbing against me.

"God....Lunar." I say huskily and she leans down.

"I'm going to give you lap dance in this tonight." She whispers as she leans in to kiss me and I kiss her back, unable to resist.

"You're not helping." I say against her lips as I tease her erect nipples, protruding on the soft cloth.

She pulls away now and takes a deep breath.

"Don't worry. I bet your day present will distract you." She says and I watch her dig into a shopping bag next to her and emerge with an envelope.

Watching her move in that lingerie was torture  but I try to focus.

"Here." She says and hands me the envelop.

I take it and it feels light, like it's empty.

"Thanks. Just the thing I need to distract me, a piece of paper. I'll make sure to add it to my paper collection." I say sarcastically and she laughs.

"Would you just open it?" Lunar says and I open the envelope.

Now I know why it was light. It had just a card in it.

Not just any card. The golden embroidery on the head of the silver card is enough for me to know.

An invitation. To the Famous Entrepreneurs Gala.

And not just an invitation. The card shows that I am a nominee to win the Youngest Successfull Entrepreneur of the year.

"Oh my God. Lunar how did you...." I trail off as I look up at her and she smiles.

"Happy birthday baby." She says and I pick her up and spin her around as she laughs.

"This is amazing! How were you able to pull this through?" I ask after I drop her and she laughs.

"I asked Fred to help me with getting an invite and when they saw the name of your restaurant, they said they haven't been able to pin the owner for years now because they've been ecstatic about how fast your restaurant is growing within a few years. So they needed your details to include you as a nominee and Fred and I agreed. They sent the invite two days ago." She says and I pull her into a heartwarming kiss.

"Thank you baby." I say and she smiles.

"It's the least I could do. But your Christmas present may not be this ecstatic." She admits with a down look and I chuckle.

"You think I care about that? The best gift I could ever ask for is you. Plus I might as well show you your Christmas present now because it requires you packing for tomorrow." I say and she looks up at me.

"But tomorrow is Christmas." She says and I smile.

"Exactly." Before I pull out the pamphlet from my pocket and hand it to her.

I watch her eyes scan over it.

"No way. This...this is for that cabin I told you about. A months rent comes with a masseuse, sauna, spa....it even has a hot tub and---" she stops abruptly as she opens the pamphlet to read more and two plane tickets fall out.

Lunar observes them then looks up at me with a bright smile.

"We're going there? I get to finally travel by flight?" She asks and I chuckle.

"First class baby."

"No."

"Yes." I say and she throws herself on me.

"Oh Nathan, thank you! Thank you so much!" She says and I laugh.

"I've been thinking of the best vacation to take you and when you mentioned these amazing cabins, I couldn't resist. You deserve it. We'll cuddle and have the best massages and roast marshmallows. But in the sauna and hot tub, that's where the fun starts." I say with a naughty tease and she laughs.

"I'm in love with you, Nathaniel Jackson." She says. It was her new way of telling me she loves me...And it couldn't be better.

"I'm in love with you Lunar Kensington." I reply and kiss her like she is my whole world.

Because she is.

Author's Note:

Hi guys! I'm so happy for all the reads that encouraged me to go through with this book you guys are amazing.

Stick around for the Epilogues because I have 3 coming your way