THE BATTLE FOR YOUR HEART

8 YEARS AGO

AMELIA walked into the guest room of Sagamore Resort, she dropped her black backpack on the king sized bed before slumping on it. Looking up at the white ceiling , She thought...Should she welcome Nicholas wearing Victoria secret's newly launched lingerie set she'd bought yesterday at the mall while thinking of him or maybe just remain in her birthday suit ?

A smile she couldn't stop bloomed on her face at the thought of Nicholas' expression when he walked in to see her naked. She had found it difficult to concentrate during her classes at the University of Columbia because he'd stayed on her mind. Since he had called her on Tuesday to tell her that he would be flying in from Florida for the weekend, the days seemed to have been moving at a snail's pace and so had the four-hour drive earlier from the University. It felt like a year had passed since she last saw him, instead of just 2 weeks.

Sitting up , she bent to take off her sneakers before standing up to remove her jeans, shirt and underwear. She stuffed her clothes into the backpack, stowed everything in the closet. Then hurried into the corner bathroom for a bathrobe. When she came back out, she dimmed the glass lamp on the bedside table. Moonlight shining through the sliding glass door across from her gave the elegantly furnished room a romantic glow.

Looking around the room , She couldn't help but think about how for the first time she and Nicholas would actually fall asleep in each other's arms and wake up together in the morning, like a normal couple , cooking and sharing breakfast together. Her dad was on a business trip until late Sunday. So this time around, she wouldn't have to sneak back into the living quarters of the resort before dawn.

More importantly, Nicholas' concern about them seeing each other as a conflict of interest while he negotiated to buy Sagamore Resort from her father no longer existed. The papers had been signed yesterday, selling the property to Nicholas' family company, Chesterfield group. They had taken over ownership of her dad's fifty-acre resort next month, so she and Nicholas were finally free to share about their relationship.

Amelia walked back in the bathroom, opening the window. Moonlight illuminated the steam rising from the hot bathtub on the left. She hung the bathrobe , twisted her long black hair into a loose topknot, then slipped into the rippling water. The stress from studying and agonizing over the business management exam she'd ultimately aced that afternoon melted away as she leaned back and closed her eyes.

Would Nicholas have more of Chesterfield's modernization plans to show her? What he'd shared so far was fantastic. Picture windows would provide views of the lake, trees, and mountains. Revamp the lobby , Invite new design elements into guest rooms.

Amelia's heart accelerated as she recalled Nicholas sitting across from her three weeks ago in the hot tub, telling her about his plans. His slicked-back dark hair had emphasized the chiseled angles of his mesmerizing face.

"Not only are we building larger decks on the cottages, we're also installing bigger hot bathtub s." He had shot her a lazy grin.

"You and I will definitely take advantage of them when we visit the new and improved Sagamore Resort next season."

"I like that idea a lot." She hadn't been able to stop herself from smiling. "But I wouldn't mind if you took advantage of me now."

"Come over here and I will," He smirked.

"Uh-uh," She had crooked her finger at him. "You come here."

As he had stood and approached her, water had trailed down his defined abs. The gleam in his brown eyes and the erection rising high on his abdomen had promised her one thing-mind blowing orgasms. She had begged him more that night and Nicholas had delivered amazingly.

Infused with the warmth of remembered bliss, Amelia sank deeper into the water. What they shared was perfect. But she knew her dad would be surprised to hear she and Nicholas were in a relationship, and that they were going to keep seeing each other. He had asked her not to become serious with anyone until after she'd turned twenty. She had only missed the mark by six months, and her father did like Nicholas .

At twenty-four, Nicholas was already an acquisitions negotiator for his father's company. He understood the importance of responsibility and would support her making college her main priority over him. It wasn't like they were planning to get married or anything. Surely, her father would understand why she had kept it a secret until now. She and Nicholas had happily and unexpectedly fallen in love and she hadn't wanted that to disrupt his business dealings.

The sound from the door broke her thoughts and a man's voice came from inside the room clearly on the phone. Nicholas? Her heart drummed in her chest as she listened closely, No... it's not Nicholas.

"It's Sebastian Chesterfield, I have been trying to reach you."

Sebastian Chesterfield...Shit! The bathroom door is opened. Just as she shrank back into the bathtub, a stream of light came from the bedroom. Nicholas' tall, black-haired father walked closer to the bathroom , talking on his phone.

"I don't care what it takes. Just do it. No more delays." Sebastian unknotted the red tie from the collar of his white dress shirt and stuffed it in the pocket of the brown overcoat that melded perfectly with his dark suit. With his back turned to Amelia, temperature seemed to creep up with the warmth flushing into her cheeks. She couldn't let him find her bare-ass naked in the bathtub. If he came closer, she could dunk herself under the water. She would rather drown than have him discover her.

"I don't give a damn about what they do exactly as long as the papers are signed. Get it done."

Sign papers? What was he talking about?

"Dad, where are you?" Nicholas's bellow reverberated before she had the door opening.

Amelia watched him advanced towards his father while she tried to shrink back into the shadows farther still. "What the f**k did you do?" Sebastian slipped his phone into his pocket. "That's none of your concern."

"None of my concern?" Nicholas' muscles bunched and released underneath his navy sweater and jeans. "You working a side negotiation with the outlet mall developers on my deal damn well qualifies as my concern."

Side negotiation? No...They weren't talking about Sagamore, they couldn't be.