Page 20 of Captivated By Him

We cross the street together, and even after we step onto the sidewalk on the side, he doesn’t move his hand.

And I don’t ask him to.

“Do you ever not get what you want?” I ask.

He laughs. “Hasn’t happened yet.”

“You’ve got a good thing here, Jakub. Running three clubs. And from what I’ve seen, they’re all growing.”

He drops his hand from my back. “Yeah. I’m good at running night clubs.”

I get the feeling he’d like to be running other things. His own crew maybe. Something that didn’t require him to stay so close to the line of the law.

“You said your dad passing away is what brought you back here. I assume there’s more to the story?” he asks, quickly brushing away any chance to dive deeper into his own life choices.

I nod. “Dad liked Henry. I wouldn’t have given him a second glance, but Dad said it would have been an insult to not at least give him a chance. So I did, but then it would have been an insult not to accept a second date or a third, next thing I knew we were together.”

“Not something that makes you comfortable, if I remember right,” he says in a low voice. It’s a small dig at my disappearing act five years ago, and he deserves to take a shot at me about that. I was a coward, and we both know it.

“I was going to leave New York once I was done with school, but then Dad died and things got, well, shitty. Henry wouldn’t take no for an answer and it was made clear if I wanted to stay in the good graces of the Kaczmareks I shouldn’t insult him in any way. They helped me bury Dad and pay off his debts. Dad wasn’t the best with his finances, and I was only working part time.”

“You took money from them?” He pulls me to a stop a building before my own.

“I didn’t have a choice. Dad owed people who weren’t going to take ‘sorry, he’s dead’ for an answer,” I insist.

His jaw tightens. “You could have told me about who your dad worked for. It wouldn’t have changed things between us.”

“I couldn’t tell you. I couldn’t let my dad know. You’re the second son of the head of the Staszek family, Jakub. I get the feeling you don’t understand the power that comes with that.”

His lips flatten.

“It wasn’t a smart idea.”

“Then why did you even start up with me? You knew who I was the first night, why not just tell me to take a hike?”

All good questions.

“That first night I thought it would just be a one-night thing. Then I figured a few times would be fine. A few dinners, some great sex.” I try to put on a coy smile, but he’s not affected by it. “It got out of hand. I liked being with you.”

He scoffs and tilts his head back. “You don’t know what being with me is really like, Nicole.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means, it’s probably better you did run off to New York.”

I pull back from him. “If you didn’t give a shit that I left, then why the wounded warrior look now?”

He pulls his sunglasses off, showing off how dark his eyes have gotten over the course of our conversation.

“I don’t like deception. It’s that simple.”

“You don’t like not getting what you want,” I point out. “I guess you were wrong; it has happened at least once in your life.” I push past him and hurry toward my apartment.

“Nicole.” His voice is hard, firmer than he’s ever used with me and a small part of me wants to stop, wants to turn to him and see what he has to say. But I’m not playing games. I don’t have time and since I’m leaving town soon anyway, it really doesn’t matter.

I jog up my steps and into the building. I’m halfway up the first flight of stairs when I hear him behind me.

“Jakub, I’m home. You can go now. I’ll see you at work,” I throw over my shoulder, turning on the first landing and jogging up the second flight of stairs to my floor.

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