Rejected: A love story-Chapter 85: But you didn’t come up here only to give me food.

Chapter 85: But you didn’t come up here only to give me food.

Immediately Fiona pulled away, trying to keep her voice steady. "Nathan, what’s?....don’t just do that..."

"Why not?" he asked pulling her in a way she was sitting on his laps.

Because I’m leaving!! Because you’re making this harder. She looked down, unable to say any of that.

Nathan gently held her hand. "Fine. I won’t push you."

"But you didn’t come up here only to give me food."

Fiona’s eyes flicked up. "I did."

"No you didn’t," he said quietly. "You came because you missed me."

Her lips parted in a small gasp. He was too direct, and too confident for his own good.

"You’re full of yourself," she muttered.

"You’re sitting on my lap."

"That was you!" she snapped. "You pulled me."

Nathan chuckled under his breath, leaning in. "Are you going to feed me or keep pretending you don’t want to be here?"

She snatched the fork from him, her cheeks burning. "Fine. Eat."

He lifted his chin obediently, amused. She fed him a bite, he watched her the entire time, barely glancing at the plate. Fiona shifted, trying not to think about how close she was, or how warm he felt through the robe, or how steady his hand stayed on her waist.

"Stop staring," she muttered.

"I’m looking," he corrected.

"Same thing."

"I’m allowed to look at my girlfriend."

Her heart thumped hard. "Nathan..."

"You’re trembling," he noted softly.

She glared. "I am not."

"You are."

"I’m not!"

He caught her free hand, bringing it to his lips. "You are."

Fiona’s breath got stuck in her chest. Everything felt too much all at once, so she pulled her hand away quickly and stood up.

"I should go," she said, stepping back. "You need to finish. I need to get out of your way."

She turned toward the door— Nathan grabbed her wrist once more.

"Why do you keep trying to run?" he asked quietly.

"I’m not running."

"Yes, you are."

"Nathan—"

He pulled her back, but gently this time, slow enough to give her space to resist if she wanted. But she didn’t pull away. He wrapped his arms around her waist, steady and certain, and tugged her closer until she was between his knees.

His voice lowered. "Just stay."

"I can’t," she whispered.

"You can," he said. "You just don’t want to admit you want to."

Nathan lifted a hand to the side of her face. "Fiona."

She looked up at him and then he kissed her.

It was soft at first, slow, not rushed. Just the feeling of his lips brushing hers like he was giving her time to pull away.

She didn’t, her hands slid into his hair without thinking. Nathan deepened the kiss immediately, pulling her closer, holding her like she was the only thing in the room worth touching. She could feel him breathe against her, warm and steady, like he had been waiting all morning for this.

He kissed her again—longer, firmer—until she had to grip his shoulders to stay steady. His fingers pressed into her waist, moving her even closer between his legs. She let out a tiny sound, barely a breath, and he smiled against her mouth like he heard everything she wasn’t saying.

"Nathan..." she breathed.

"Shushh, stay," he whispered into her lips. "Don’t go anywhere."

Her chest tightened painfully. She kissed him again, quick and desperate, because she didn’t know how to answer him. She didn’t know how to tell him the truth.

His mouth moved to her jaw, then her cheek, slow kisses that made her knees feel weak.

Fiona’s heart kicked hard, she wanted him.

She wanted this but she didn’t want to hurt him and how could she avoid that?

"Nathan," she whispered again, her voice cracking slightly.

He kissed the corner of her mouth, ready to pull her back in—

Leo suddenly ran inside

"Daddy—!"

Nathan jerked back so fast he almost dropped Fiona. She stumbled a step away from him as Leo burst in, full speed, hugging a toy in his hand.

Leo froze, then blinked at them.

It was painfully obvious what they had been doing. Fiona felt heat rush straight up her neck to her ears.

Nathan cleared his throat and straightened. "Leo. You’re supposed to knock."

"I did knock," Leo said confidently. "You didn’t answer, so I thought you were asleep."

Fiona covered her face.

Leo pointed. "Daddy, why is Fiona’s face red?"

Nathan sighed, running a hand down his face. "Leo, go sit on the couch. Daddy needs a moment."

Leo skipped to the couch like nothing was wrong.

Nathan looked at Fiona and Fiona looked at the floor.

Neither of them spoke for several seconds.

##########

The small kitchen was filled with noise. Clattered pots, water running in the sink, and the ceiling fan made its usual clicking sound. Valerie wiped sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. There was flour everywhere—from the counter to her shirt to the floor near her feet.

Catherine stood beside her, peeling potatoes with a knife and complaining nonstop.

"Mum, I’m serious, I can’t live like this," Catherine said, raising her voice. "My nails are breaking. Look at them."

Valerie didn’t even glance. "Keep peeling. The potatoes won’t peel itself."

Catherine groaned loudly. "Why do I have to do this? Why do we have to do this? This is Fiona’s job!"

Valerie let out a long sigh. "Fiona has been gone for a month, Catherine. We have no choice."

"That’s exactly the problem," Catherine snapped. "She’s been gone for a month and we’re still suffering like this. Every day it’s one chore after another. I’m tired. I’m stressed. My back hurts. And yesterday I burnt my hand with hot water."

"It was lukewarm," Valerie corrected.

"It was hot enough!" Catherine dropped the half peeled potato and pointed accusingly at her mother. "I’m not meant for this. I’m a princess. I can’t live like this. It’s too hard."

Valerie rolled her eyes. "Princess or not, you still have to eat. And to eat, you cook."

"Well I don’t want to!" Catherine shouted. "Where is Fiona when we need her? She should be here doing all this. She’s the maid. That’s her job."

Valerie wiped her hands on her wrapper and turned to face her daughter fully. "She left, Catherine."

"And you let her!" Catherine folded her arms, still pouting. "Look at this house. It’s a disaster. Dad is angry all the time. You’re tired every day. And I’m suffering."

"You suffer the least Cathe," Valerie muttered.

Catherine ignored that. She picked up the potato again but her face was filled with frustration. "I’m telling you, Mum, I can’t continue like this. My life can’t be cleaning, cooking, sweeping, washing plates, and carrying heavy things. I’m not built for this."

Valerie pressed both palms against the counter and exhaled sharply. She looked genuinely exhausted. The kitchen was messy despite her efforts—dirty plates stacked in a corner, ingredients scattered around, laundry waiting to be folded on a chair.

"It’s hard for me too," Valerie said quietly. "I’m tired. My back hurts. I’m not young anymore."

Catherine threw her hands in the air. "So why don’t we do something about it? Why don’t we get Fiona back?!" 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Valerie looked at her daughter with a tired but calculating expression. "I’ve been thinking about that."

Catherine’s eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Yes," Valerie said. "Because I can’t do this anymore. This house needs order. It needs someone working. It needs Fiona."

"That’s what I’m saying!" Catherine slapped the counter. "She belongs here. She belongs doing chores. Not enjoying life or living fancy. She should be here making our lives easier."

Valerie kept her face neutral. "Exactly."

Catherine grinned, relieved. "So what do we do? Should we go to the city and drag her back?"

Valerie shook her head. "No. That girl is stubborn. If we go to her begging or trying to pull her back, she won’t come."

"So what then? How do we force her?"

Valerie tapped her fingers on the counter slowly. "We need to make her feel guilty."

Catherine frowned a little. "Guilty? For what?"

Valerie raised a brow. "Catherine, think."

Catherine stared blankly.

Valerie let out another long sigh. "Your father? His birthday!."

"Oh..." Catherine blinked. "Right. She didn’t come."

"She didn’t call, she didn’t even show her face. She disappeared for one whole month." Valerie folded her arms with a small triumphant smile. "Your father is furious."

"He is," Catherine agreed quickly. "He keeps complaining about how ungrateful she is."

"Exactly," Valerie said. "Duncan doesn’t forget things like this. And he definitely won’t forgive it easily."

"So... that’s our weapon?" Catherine asked, slowly putting the pieces together.

"Yes," Valerie answered. "We use his anger, we use his disappointment. We remind him how she abandoned him on his birthday. How she walked out without a word. How she left us alone here to struggle while she lives comfortably somewhere else."