Ch-14

•~•Solane's POV

I slid open the hospital room door and paused at the threshold.

Nathaniel looked up, his face breaking into a bright smile.

This idiot.

He almost got run over by a train, and he’s still smiling?

Maybe those kidnappers Dad hired knocked something loose in his brain. That would explain the ridiculous grin.

"Are you just going to stand there?" Nathaniel's voice pulled me from my thoughts.

I stepped inside, my pace deliberately slow as I took in his appearance.

His arm was bandaged, his legs stretched out on the pristine sheets, mottled with purple bruises beneath adhesive medical dressings.

Try as I might to ignore it, guilt coiled in my stomach like a serpent.

I had watched him almost die tonight—just to prove a point.

I still couldn’t believe those bastards had just left him on the train tracks and turned their backs on him.

I had explicitly told Dad to make it clear to them—it was only meant to scare him. That if the train got too close and he didn’t get up, they should pull him off.

But they didn’t. They just left him there to fucking die.

If it weren’t for Melissa’s bodyguard, Nathaniel would be dead right now… and I’d be a fucking widow before I even got my revenge.

But then again… how did that bodyguard get there so fast? How did he even know where Nathaniel was being held?

"Seems like you have a lot on your mind." Nathaniel’s voice cut through my thoughts once again. "You don’t even care about your husband who almost lost his life?”

"I'm just in shock," I replied, stepping closer to his bed. I perched on the edge, careful not to disturb the tangle of monitoring wires.

"One minute you were in the hospital—I stepped out to take a call—and the next, you were gone. Now you're here again. I’m still trying to wrap my head around everything that happened and what you went through."

Nathaniel scoffed. "You don’t need to be so worried or shaken… Those bastards couldn’t kill me even if they wanted to."

I raised an eyebrow. "Nathaniel, you almost died. Do you understand that? According to your mom’s bodyguard, you were seconds away from being crushed when he pulled you off those train tracks."

He tilted his head slightly, his expression unreadable. "Would that have upset you?"

I froze.

The way he said it—soft, almost curious—made my chest tighten in a way I didn’t like.

I scoffed, forcing the lump in my throat down. "Obviously."

"I mean, can you imagine? A widow at twenty-seven—just two days after my wedding. The headlines, the tabloids…" I let out a dry laugh. "Planning your funeral wouldn’t just be a pain in the ass—it’d be a pain in the neck too."

His eyes flickered with something unreadable. Then, to my surprise, he chuckled.

"Good to know I’m worth the inconvenience."

I stared at him, completely at a loss.

This man had barely escaped death, yet here he was, joking like it was nothing.

"Unbelievable," I muttered.

He watched me for a moment, that damn smile still stretched across his lips like it was imprinted there.

Then, to my surprise, he took my hand, his thumb tracing slow circles on my skin. I stared at my hand—small in his palm.

"How did it feel?" I asked suddenly.

"What?"

"Sitting on that train track. Unable to stand up and save yourself when the train came barreling toward you." I met his eyes directly. "Being seconds from death. How did it feel? What went through your mind?"

His cocky smile faltered, then disappeared entirely. Something serious flashed in his eyes—sadness? No, it was deeper than that. Despair. Regret. Longing.

Emotions I never thought I’d see in him.

Emotions I knew all too well.

Without command, my own memory surfaced—the night his mother pushed me off that cliff. The moment I stared death in the face.

I remembered thinking about our child. The desperate wish that no harm would come to the life growing inside me.

And then him.

No matter how hard I had tried to deny it for the past five years, in that moment, I had thought about him—and how desperately I wanted to live just to see him again, to ask why he betrayed me after everything.

Even if it was just once, I wanted to see him again.

Nathaniel let out a sigh, his cocky smile returning, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

"You know that thing people say? That right before you die, your whole life flashes before your eyes?" He let out a dry chuckle.

"Yeah, I felt that. Saw almost everything. How I lived my life before I got paralyzed, and all that. And I just thought…” He trailed off.

"And you just thought what?" I pressed.

His lips twitched. "And I just thought... I should have had more sex.”

"Sex?!" My voice pitched higher, disbelief all over my face.

He nodded solemnly. "I really thought about how little of it I got before I got crippled… It's a tragedy, really.”

I stared at him, waiting for him to say he was joking.

He didn’t.

"Are you serious right now?"

Slowly, he nodded—there was something disarmingly innocent about the gesture, like a child caught with cookie crumbs on his face yet still insisting he hadn’t touched the cookie jar. Genuine, guileless… and entirely unapologetic.

A scoff escaped me. "I was worried all night! I lost sleep, got questioned by the police about everything that happened before your disappearance, and the only thing you thought about at the point of death was—”

Before I could finish, Nathaniel suddenly grabbed my wrist and yanked me toward him, his lips catching mine.

The warmth of his mouth. The firm press of his lips against mine. Soft yet demanding.

It completely knocked the breath out of me.

My heart hammered in my chest, my traitorous body responding before my mind could catch up.

His hand cradled the back of my neck, fingers threading through my hair as I gasped against his mouth, my hands instinctively gripping his shoulders.

When we finally broke apart, we stayed inches from each other, sharing the same breath.

"What was that for?" I whispered, my voice unsteady.

His thumb brushed against my cheek.

"Sorry," he murmured, eyes never leaving mine. "And thank you. For being worried about me."

The tenderness in his voice caught me off guard. I searched his eyes for a lie, for manipulation.

But all I found was sincerity.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was falling for me.

But the Nathaniel I knew—that was impossible.

We had dated for almost two years. He had made all those promises of love, and yet, he still betrayed me. He couldn’t possibly have fallen for me in just a few days.

I pulled back, scoffing. “You’re crazy.”

His cocky smile returned, broader than before. “I know. But so are you.”

I raised a brow. “Me?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I can see it in your eyes.” His gaze turned intense. “Why else would two people who never knew each other until a few days ago feel this much attraction? This connection?”

Then, his smile dropped, his tone shifting into something softer, more serious. “I didn’t mention it before, but back at the train station… when I thought I was going to die, I wished I could live.” His eyes still so freaking intense remained locked onto mine. “So I could see you again.”

The way he said it—his voice, his eyes.

Those fucking green eyes.

Just… damn him.

Before I could respond, the door slid open, shattering whatever was building between us. Melissa stood there, immaculate as always.

She let out a sigh. “Sorry to disturb you two.” Her eyes flicked between us before settling on me. “You must have been so worried, Solane.”

I nodded mechanically. “I was.”

“Have the police left?” I asked, almost two seconds later.

"Yes. Dominic gave his statement, and with the one Nathaniel already provided, they should be working on catching the culprits now."

I nodded, rising from my seat. "I'll excuse myself so you two can have your moment."

I turned toward the door but hesitated at the entrance. Casting a glance over my shoulder, I asked, “Uhm… just curious, but how did your bodyguard know Nathaniel was in that abandoned train station?"

Melissa visibly froze. It was quick—just a second—but I caught it. Then, just as swiftly, she smoothed her expression, clearing her throat.

"The police had no clue where those bastards took my son. As a mother, I couldn't bear the suspense anymore, so I had Dominic search every place he thought kidnappers might hold their hostages."

I tilted my head slightly, narrowing my eyes at her. "And he found him that quickly?"

"Dominic once worked as an agent for the NCIS," she replied smoothly, her tone perfectly controlled. "Besides, I suppose we just got lucky."

She turned to Nathaniel, flashing a warm smile. "Isn’t that right, darling?"

But he didn’t respond.

The air in the room shifted, growing heavier with something unspoken. Nathaniel’s serious expression remained unchanged from before she entered, but I noticed it—the slight twitch of his fingers.

Maybe I was imagining things, but something about her presence seemed to unsettle him.

Melissa let out a light chuckle, but it lacked humor. It felt forced, like a flimsy attempt to cover the awkwardness of her son ignoring her.

She turned back to me. "Solane, darling, you must be exhausted. Go get some rest. I’ll stay with him tonight, okay?"

I forced a smile. "Of course."

Then, without another glance, I turned and slid the door shut behind me.

As I walked down the sterile hospital corridor, I immediately pulled out my phone from my pocket and dialed Dad’s number.

He picked up on the first ring.

"The ransom money, Dad," I said quickly. "Tell them to get rid of it now. I think Melissa put a tracker in it."

But his response made me freeze mid-step.

"That’s going to be a problem, sweetheart… I can’t get in touch with them," he said, his voice grim. "It’s almost like they’ve vanished.”