Rejected: A love story

Chapter 174: The kiss

Viktoria felt Nathan’s heart beating fast. He held her tight, like he never wanted to let go. She could feel his breath on her skin, and it made her feel warm inside. For a moment, she forgot she was supposed to be a stranger from far away. In this dark room, with his arms around her, she felt like she finally belonged.

Nathan moved back a little bit. He reached up and touched her face with his hands. His skin was a bit rough, but he was very gentle. He looked into her eyes for a long time. It looked like he was searching for something he had lost a long time ago.

"This feels crazy," he whispered. His voice sounded tired and sad. "I know who you are. I know my past is gone. But when I am near you, the world doesn’t feel so broken."

Viktoria didn’t know what to say. Her mind was full of questions about her own life and the man she left behind in Russia. But her heart was telling her something else. She didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned closer to him.

"Nathan," she said softly.

He leaned down and their lips brushed lightly.This time, there was no one to stop them.

When they finally kissed, it felt very natural. It wasn’t like a brand new thing; it felt like finding something she had forgotten. It was a long, slow kiss that carried a lot of emotion. Viktoria felt a tear run down her face, and she put her hands on his shoulders. She felt like a light was finally being turned on in her head. For the first time in years, she felt awake.

His hand moved to the nape of her neck, his fingers tangling in her hair, pulling her head back slightly. The hug tightened into something desperate, a silent conversation of longing. She reached up, gripping his shoulders, her nails digging faintly into his fabric as her eyes dropped to his lips.

Nathan leaned in, his breath warm against her skin just a second before his lips finally met hers. The kiss was deep and certain, an outpouring of the tension that had been building between them all evening. Viktoria leaned into the contact, her hands sliding from his chest to wrap around his neck, pulling him closer as the rest of the world seemed to fade.

Nathan pulled back, but his hands stayed on her face for a second longer. He looked at her with wide, confused eyes. He was breathing hard, and his chest was moving up and down fast. He looked at her lips and then back at her eyes, and suddenly, his face changed. The softness vanished, replaced by a look of total shock and shame.

He let go of her so fast it was like he had been burned. He took two big steps away from her, stumbling a bit until his back hit the wall. He pressed his palms against his eyes and let out a shaky, jagged breath.

"I’m sorry," he whispered. His voice was cracked and raw. "I... I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry, Viktoria."

Viktoria stayed where she was, right in the middle of the room, feeling her heart pound in her chest. She could still taste the kiss on her lips and she couldn’t stop her mind from spinning. She wanted to move towards him and tell him how everything felt brighter after he kissed her. She wanted to tell him that she was finally waking up from her nightmare.

"Nathan, wait," she started, taking a step toward him. "I... I felt something. When you said that name, and when you touched me... it was like I was....."

"Don’t," Nathan snapped, holding up a hand to stop her. He wouldn’t even look at her. He kept his eyes on the floor, his face pale and full of guilt. "Just don’t. You have a husband. You have a life. And I... I just disrespected my girlfriend’s memory in the house I bought for her."

He grabbed the door handle, immediately. "I need to get out of here. I need air."

"Nathan, please listen to me," she tried again, her voice trembling.

"Stay with the boy," he said, his voice cold and hard now. He didn’t wait for her to say another word. He pulled the door open and vanished into the hallway.

Viktoria stood alone in the dark room. She looked down at the velvet box, the silver jewelry sparkling back at her. She touched her lips with her fingers. She felt like she was falling into a deep hole, and the only person who could catch her had just run away because he was scared.

She walked to the window and watched him burst out of the front door. He didn’t look back. He just started walking into the dark woods, disappearing into the shadows.

Viktoria sank onto the edge of the bed and pulled her knees to her chest. She looked at Mateo’s sleeping face. She was terrified. She was starting to remember a life that didn’t belong to her.

######

The woods were cold and quiet, but Nathan’s head was a mess of noise. He kept walking, his shoes crunching over dry leaves and fallen branches. He felt like a traitor. Every time he closed his eyes, he felt the way she had leaned into him and the way she tasted. He touched his lips the taste of her was still on his lips, and it made him feel sick with guilt. How could he kiss a stranger? How could he forget Fiona like that?

Just then his phone rang, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, ready to smash it against a tree just to feel something break. But the screen lit up, It was a private number.

Nathan stared at the screen. He didn’t want to talk to anyone, but his finger swiped the green icon before he could stop himself. He held the phone to his ear, his chest still heaving from the walk.

"Whoever this is, make it quick," he snapped.

"My, my. You sound like you’ve been caught doing something you shouldn’t," Natasha’s voice came through the speaker, sharp and full of spite.

Nathan stopped walking. He leaned his shoulder against a thick tree trunk, looking back at the distant lights of the house. "Natasha. How did you get this number?"

"I have my ways, Nathan. I know you’re hiding away in one of your little villas. Probably sitting in the dark, trying to convince yourself you’re a good man," she mocked. She didn’t know exactly which house he was in, but she knew his habits. She knew he ran away when things got hard.

"I’m busy, Natasha. Hang up," Nathan said, his jaw tight.

"Busy doing what? Forgetting Fiona?" she hissed. Nathan flinched as if she had struck him. "I can only imagine how she feels, looking down at you. You spent years acting like your heart died with her, but the first pretty face that looks like her comes along, and you’re already melting. You’re pathetic."

"You don’t know what you’re talking about," Nathan growled. "I haven’t forgotten anything. I’m doing my job. I’m protecting a business partner."

"A business partner?" Natasha laughed, a high, cold sound. "Is that what you call it when you look at her with those puppy-dog eyes? Fiona was the love of your life, Nathan. She was your ’everything.’ And now you’re throwing all that away for some Russian woman who probably laughs at you when you aren’t looking. How would Fiona feel, knowing you’ve found a ’soft spot’ for a fraud?"

"Shut up!" Nathan yelled into the phone. The sound echoed through the trees. "I don’t have a soft spot for her. I don’t feel anything for her."

"You’re a liar, Nathan Keith. You’re lying to me, and you’re lying to yourself. You’ve let her into your head. You’ve let her into your heart. You’re betraying the woman you swore to love forever."

"I said shut up!"