Chapter 65

The One With An Unexpected Reunion

A R I E L L E

Music hums lowly in the space and I glance around at the people surrounding me. People I don’t know. People of such financial status that I’ll never run in their social circle in this lifetime or the next.

I’m not even entirely fucking sure what this event is. All I can tell you is that there’s a shit ton of people, they’re loaded with money, and there isn’t a person in here that I haven’t found to not be snooty.

Other than us—the rest of my peers who can’t afford the bottle of champagne they’re passing around in tall, stemmed glasses.

I didn’t even get to properly meet his co-workers. We’d decided to not do introductions tonight, we’d only just privately decided to label one another boyfriend or girlfriend. I suggested we wait so that his co-workers didn’t jump to conclusions about his love life, considering it wasn’t that long ago when he was with Natalie.

I have to admit, though, the dinner was incredible. Some fancy ass French dinner that I couldn’t pronounce even if I wanted to. The drinks have also been flowing, but I’ve only been sipping my delicious champagne, for fear that if I have too much to drink, I’ll make an ass of myself and embarrass James.

I glance down at my dress, making sure I still look the part. I don’t know a single soul in here besides James—and he’s been fairly busy on and off all night—so the only thing I can do is glance around at conversations and fix my dress.

The dress I spent a pretty penny on. It’s form-fitting, floor length and a red satiny material. There’s a deep v in the front and thin straps over my shoulders. The back is also a little risqué for this crowd—it’s scooped low, so much so that it rests just above my ass—and I’ve received many looks because of it.

I decided to lightly curl my hair, having the waves cascade down my back. I’d also chosen to go with a smoky eye and red lipstick to match the dress.

I spin on my heel, looking for James, finding him in the corner with a group of guests that I don’t know. He must sense my eyes on him because he turns his head, wetting his lips as he drags his gaze from my feet to my eyes.

A flutter of warmth spreads up my body and I tilt my glass back, finishing off my champagne as he dismisses himself from the guests and moves to approach me.

He looks good. So fucking good. In his crisp black suit, his black dress shirt, and his red tie that matches perfectly to my dress.

“You bored yet?” He asks in a teasing tone as he closes the distance between us, stopping just a few steps in front of me. His hand twitches toward my hip, but he puts it down and I’m positive it’s because he craves to touch me but is holding back since he’s at work.

I shake my head. “There’s lots to look at.”

“Yeah?” He smirks, peering around us. “What in here is nice to look at?” He steps forward, so that he’s able to whisper, “Do old, rich men get you off, Arielle?”

I pull my head back so I’m able to meet his eyes and I raise an eyebrow as I challenge, “And what if they did?”

“I’d have to rethink everything about me,” he admits, glancing down at his suit. He then drags his eyes down my body and I watch his throat contract as he swallows slowly, fighting the urge to touch me. He suddenly looks over his shoulder and then grabs my hand, “C’mere,” he mutters and then yanks me forward with such force that I stumble on my own feet.

He tries to keep his cool as he makes me follow him, fixing his tie and pulling me to his side, but I can tell in his hurried steps that he’s desperate to get out of this particular room.

At first, he leads me to the family bathroom, trying the handle but he quickly finds out it’s occupied. My heart rate picks up, adrenaline shooting through my veins as he surveys our surroundings.

I squeeze his hand in mine as an inaudible way to tell him that I need him to find somewhere private and I hear him curse lowly. “Fuck it,” and then he’s pulling me towards an Employees Only area, clearly marked by a large sign.

After a few corners that I don’t care to memorize, we enter a room and James does a quick walk around to make sure it’s completely empty. When he’s satisfied, he comes back to me in a hurry.

James pushes me up to the wall with a grunt and I don’t even have a chance to moan because his mouth is hot on mine. He grabs my waist in his large hands, pulling my body flush to his and I release a quiet gasp when he moves his mouth along my jawline and then down my throat.

My fingers thread through his hair. I find myself wishing we were at one of our places—preferably his, if I’m being honest—so I could yank his pants down and take him in my mouth, all while he observes me and undoes the silk tie around his neck.

A shudder rips up my spine at the thought.

He uses a hand to grip my jaw and reunites our mouths, sliding his tongue past my lips with ease. We stay like that—bodies pressed together, hands all over one another, kissing so hard and passionately that my knees go weak—until we both need to break apart for air.

He rests his forehead against mine, breathing hard. When we hear someone drop something in the kitchen that sounds awfully like a plate, it reminds us that we’re in public. “We should probably save the rest for later, Principessa.”

I cup his jaw in my hand, placing another slow, seductive kiss to his mouth. I hold his gaze as I lean over slightly, hooking my hands beneath the hem of my dress to hike it up.

James’ breathing becomes more laboured as he observes me reveal skin to him. His irises turn dark and I can see the familiar look of lust and hunger as he watches me slip my fingers under the waistband to my silk thong, dragging it down my legs.

He sucks in air between his clenched teeth harshly as they fall to my ankles and I step out of the undergarment, crumpling it up in my hand.

“What are you doing, Arielle?” He says in a low husk, barely audible.

“Call it incentive to go home earlier,” I muse, standing to my height to breathe the words against the shell of his ear as I sneakily deposit the thong in his pants pocket.

He smiles, kissing me softly before he grabs my hand, intertwining our fingers as he leads us back towards the space where the event is being held. Hopefully, nobody has noticed James’ absence. The last thing I’d want is for him to get in trouble because of me.

Just before we are back into the main room, I stop him, rubbing my red lipstick off his mouth.

The moment we step past the doors, our hands distance and I take a step away from him to ensure that we don’t look too close. Eventually, he continues on straight and I veer off towards the bathrooms to make sure that I don’t look like a mess.

I quickly check myself in the mirror, fixing a bit of my hair that got fucked up and I do a once over of my dress and makeup. Once I’m satisfied, I head back out of the bathroom in search of James.

Walking into the room, I glance around the crowd, trying to find his familiar frame. After a minute or two of sauntering through the people and awkwardly pushing past groups, I find him enjoying the company of a few men. I take a moment to collect myself before I head over.

I’m nearly there when my phone buzzes in my clutch and I stop to read a text from Chase.

Chase: have fun tonight crazy kids!!!! I packed extra condoms for you 😉 😘

I roll my eyes, deciding I’ll answer him later. As I take the last few steps towards James, I’m distracted trying to put my phone back inside my clutch and so, I don’t look up until I’m positioned beside James and my phone is put away.

The second I lift my chin, my world freezes and my heart sinks so fast in my chest that it quite literally knocks the air from my lungs.

Nate.

My expression of shock isn’t shared, however, because he seems distant. Cold. Indifferent to the fact that I’m standing maybe five feet away from him after not seeing him for over three months.

My skin flames from being near him and my heart goes from having sunken to doing some stupid little dolphin flip. I’m left speechless, trying to decipher if what I’m seeing in front of me is real life or if I’ve somehow managed to dream this up. When my eyes meet Nate ‘s, I swallow with difficulty, wetting my lips as his eyes drag down my body and back up—setting me completely ablaze.