Kiss Me Like You Mean It.

Naomi pulled away from Damon's embrace, her mind reeling from the shock of his sudden appearance.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded.

Damon's jaw tightened. “What am I doing here? You've been ignoring my calls! I thought something happened to you!”

“And why would I be anything but safe?” She asked, her arms folded across her chest. How the hell did he find her anyway and why is he overreacting?

“What the hell are you doing in my apartment?” It was Soonie, brows furrowed in anger.

She was in the kitchen when she heard commotion at the door and to her surprise, Damon Sinclair was in front of her apartment.

Damon’s gaze, flickered to Soonie briefly and returned to Naomi. His concern is now replaced with an unreadable expression.

“Get your things, we're leaving.” he ordered.

Soonie pulls Naomi behind her , planting herself in between them with a death glare in her eyes. “She's not going anywhere with you. Get the hell out of here.”

Damon ignores Soonie, he wasn't here for her. He couldn't tell what but something about Naomi's friend doesn't sit right with him.

“Naomi. We need to leave.”

“You can't just come in here and drag out just because you feel like it! You could have called kike every normal human being.” Soonie snapped.

Damon's empty eyes met Soonie's, he'll have to run a check on this woman. Whatever he can sense from her, it's not good.

“I called a dozen times and it went straight to voicemail mail. It's been eight hours since you left the company. I have every right to be worried.” He said.

“Eight hours? What are you talking about?” Naomi frowned, her hand instinctively going to the small purse on the table. She pulled out her phone, her brow furrowed in confusion. The screen was black. She pressed the power button, and the screen lit up with the logo, indicating that the device was indeed switched off.

She hadn't turned it off. Someone had. But who?

“I…I didn't turn my phone off.” Naomi muttered as she scrolled through her phone. She had received over a hundred missed calls from Damon and a bunch of text messages from members of her department.

She gasped on seeing the time on her phone, she was really gone for eight hours. But how? She fell asleep a few hours ago after eating but she didn't think she slept for that long!

“Anything could have happened within eight hours, Naomi. Anything..” He said. He shouldn't have wanted that long to find her but he needed to be sure that he wasn't overreacting.

"She doesn't have to answer your calls. She's here to get away from you. You really have some balls on you uh? After abandoning her for six years, you're suddenly concerned for her? Don't make me laugh!"

Damon clenched his fist but stood his ground, his eyes fixed on Naomi. He was here for her, and no one was going to stop him.

“Soonie, was I really asleep for that long?” Naomi asked, a look of concern on her face. It sounded bizarre. She had planned to stay with Soonie for an hour or two and head right home after but after that meal, she had dozed off.

Soonie glanced over her shoulder. “Yes. Because you feel safer here than with him.” Soonie turned back to Damon but the look in his eyes was dark. She narrowed hers on him, why won't he get out of her apartment anyway?

“Leave or I'll call security!” Soonie threatened but Damon wasn't leaving without Naomi.

“Soonie…can I talk to him? Alone.” Naomi pleaded, walking towards the door.

Hesitant, Soonie steps away and Damon walks into the apartment, shutting the door behind him while he has a standoff with Soonie.

Irritated, Soonie leaves, heading straight to the patio and vanishing out of sight.

“How did you find me?” Naomi asked.

“I was worried so I told Patrick to track your phone.”

"Why do you care?" Naomi asked."You wanted me gone. This could have been your chance to get rid of me."

“Don't say that..”

“It's the truth, isn't it? You wanted me gone and you could have gotten what you wanted. Why do you care?”

Damon took a step towards her. “You're my wife, Naomi, and you're my responsibility."

Naomi scoffed, the words hit her like a punch to the gut. She had heard them before, and they stung just as much this time.

"I'm your responsibility? That's all I am to you? A responsibility?" she spat, her anger finally breaking out. "I'm not an asset on a balance sheet, Damon. I'm a person! You can't act like you want me gone and then tell me I'm your responsibility!"

Damon flinched, the truth of her words cutting deep. He saw the tears welling in her eyes, the fury etched on her face. He saw the pain he had caused, and it broke something in him..

He couldn't speak, couldn't reason, couldn't find the right words to explain what was going on in his head.

He took another step, closing the distance between them. He might not have the right words but at least he could show her.

Damon reached out, his hands gently cupping Naomi's face. Her skin was soft against his palms, and he felt a jolt of yearning for her. He leaned in, his gaze dropping to her lips.

Their lips met in a collision of pent-up emotion. It wasn't a gentle kiss; it was a desperate, yearning. His mouth was hungry, a silent apology for every cold word and every moment of distance between them.

Naomi's initial resistance melted away, and she responded to him with an equal want, her hands clutching at his suit jacket as if to anchor herself. She tasted the regret and the longing on his lips, something she hadn't known he felt.

Her own body, which had been screaming for weeks in frustration, came alive under his touch, answering him with a desperate need of her own.

For a moment, the world outside them ceased to exist. It was just the two of them, their bodies pressed together, their lips moving in frantic desire.

Soonie walked in right then and her eyes darkened at the scene before her. Naomi clinging to Damon like she wanted to crawl under his skin, Damon holding her like she was the only reason he was breathing again..

Her hands clenched into fists at her sides, her knuckles turning white. She hated the sight, hated the way Naomi was melting into his embrace, hated the way Damon held her.

That could have been her. It could have been just the two of them!

Damon finally pulled away, his forehead resting against Naomi's, both of them breathing hard.

“We need to leave.” he pleaded, his voice in a broken whisper. "Now."

Naomi, still dazed, nodded slowly. She stumbled backward, gathering her things.

Soonie stepped forward, blocking her path. "You're not going with him," she said, her voice low and dangerous.

Naomi gave her a reassuring smile. "I'll be okay, Soonie. I need to do this."

Damon watched the exchange, a strange sense of unease washing over him. The look in Soonie's eyes, It didn't sit right with him.

“I'll call you.” Naomi promised and hurried towards Damon.

As Naomi walked towards him, he stepped past her, fixing Soonie with a hard unwavering stare that was clearly a warning.