He tucked his shirt in his charcoal slacks and buckled his pants and belt. He opted not to wear a tie and pulled on his blazer instead. Kalilah wanted nothing more than to pull him on the bed and take off every piece of clothing covering his body.
Enough was enough; she refused to be the mopey, freshly showered yet naked woman lying in his bed waiting for him to return. Time for an emergency girl’s night. She needed to remind him that she had a life outside of him and this agreement. Kalilah flipped open her suitcase and pulled out some sexy underwear. The task didn’t require much effort since she made sure every pair was sexy until Wednesday. She slipped into her coral, transparent bra and snapped it in the front. Her brown nipples were still easily visible since it wasn’t created for coverage.
Kalilah made sure her back was to Nick when she slid into her thin lacy, see-through boy shorts. She wanted him to see how the cheeky bottom cut high on her ass almost like a thong. Once dressed in lingerie that covered nothing, she shimmed into a tight, knee length dress. It was navy blue, long sleeved which revealed nothing in the front. The back was v-cut and had a silver zipper that ran from the back bottom slit up to the V of the back.
Nick was eying her hungrily. She wasn’t surprised that her request for him to finish zipping her dress resulted in him placing a bunch of hot kisses on her back and neck. Her pulse spiked, and her body prepared to do what they’d been doing all day.
“You’re killing me Kalilah,” Nick growled in her ear.
His warm breath sent shivers through her body, but her goal wasn’t to seduce him right now. She wanted him to miss her.
“I have a little more time…”
He groaned when she bent over to apply her lip gloss in the mirror. His heat warmed her ass as he pressed closer.
“Where are you going?”
His question almost didn’t register because her body was completely focused on his finger sliding down the exposed part of her spine.
By some miracle, she managed to apply her mascara and gloss without error. Satisfied, she moved out of Nick’s reach and dabbed a little perfume on her body.
“Out with the girls.” She shrugged. “I’m sure we can find some trouble to get into.”
She ran her fingers through her hair to make sure it fell into flirty waves around her shoulders. Silver stiletto pumps finished her look and she was ready. Her heart pleaded for him to ask her, and her brain told her not to be clingy.
She was wearing almost the outfit she’d picked in hopes of being invited; she would have worn more conservative underwear of course. Nick would never know because she would deny it to the end. Even if she couldn’t go, it would be a shame to let a good outfit go to waste.
“Have fun at your birthday party, Nick.” She pecked him on the lips.
Nick gripped her tightly and deepened the kiss. His tongue slipped past the seam of her lips and toyed with hers. Kalilah wrapped her arms around his neck and savored the kiss. Her overactive hormones convinced her that getting naked again would be the proper thing to do; it was his birthday after all. Nick broke the kiss and pressed his forehead against hers. His eyes promised sex, and his body agreed. His voice was husky with arousal.
“I should take you with me...” Her heart filled with hope and she looked at him expectantly. “And lock you in the car until I’m finished.”
Was he fucking serious? Hope and desire took a nose dive. They crashed into a million pieces and burned in an awful, fiery death. Kalilah took a step back and suppressed yet another sigh.
“You shouldn’t keep your people waiting.”
She headed towards the door, walking with a stiff spine. One of them were clueless, and Kalilah was starting to wonder if it was her. How did he possibly think it was a good idea to suggest locking her in the car like she was a pet he could put away until he was ready to play again? She felt it was her obligation to tell him in case this was the beginning of the end. She sighed and turned on her heel to face a somewhat confused Nick.
“Nick, in the future, if you are having sex with a woman… it doesn’t matter if she is just a fuck buddy…” She pointed at herself. “Like me, or the love of your life, she will lose her shit if you offer to leave her in the car while you attend an event you didn’t invite her to.”
Kalilah was out the door before he could reply. Her car was in drive before he made it outside. She drove off rationally, not slow enough where she would have to talk to him, but not fast enough to look upset. She saw him, as handsome as ever, standing at his front door with his hands in his pockets, watching her leave. It was hard to read the emotion on his face in the fading sun. Kalilah took solace in the knowledge that he could not see the tear that slid down her cheek.
Chapter 21
N ick sloshed his beer around in his glass, the amber liquid threatened to escape over the rim before settling back under the foam. This was supposed to be his favorite beer, yet he tasted nothing. He looked around the party – his family and friends, the usual people, all dressed up and having a wonderful time.
The band played, and people danced. Servers walked around with trays of Nick’s favorite food and drinks, yet he had no desire to reach for anything. His parents’ mansion was beautifully decorated for his celebration. His mother usually spared no expense. She loved throwing parties, and her children’s birthdays were no exception. She’d ensured they had a birthday party every year since their first birthday. The themes updated with their ages.
He smiled at his parents on the dance floor. They beamed at each other like they were the only two people in the room. Nick was happy and jealous. He wanted that badly. Worse, he wanted it with the one person who was not here. Kalilah. His stomach rolled again at the possibility of her being gone by the time he returned home.
The idea scared the hell out of him. He didn’t know how he could exist in the place without her. She’d only been there twenty-four hours and the house finally felt complete. If it wasn’t for the stupid fraternization policy, she would have been here in his arms instead of…he had no idea where she was.
Her iPhone was at his home, and he was big enough of an idiot to still not have her Android number. He couldn’t quite place her demeanor when she left, but he knew she wasn’t happy. Disappointed? She wasn’t angry, he’d seen angry. Defeated or hurt maybe? Yes, definitely hurt. Fuck. It was a bad joke.
Nick should have thought about the implications. He’d questioned her all afternoon about her mood, and she insisted she was fine. Yet, he’d still felt uneasy all day preparing for a party that they both knew she wouldn’t be attending. He should have known that his joke would not go over well. Her words confirmed his suspicions. She wanted to go.
The phrase “fuck buddy” felt like she’d stabbed him in the heart. Was that all he was to her? He thought they were, at least, very good friends. He wanted more from her. She already had his heart; he just needed her to accept it. “Fuck buddies” seemed so low on the relationship spectrum. He rubbed the pain out of his chest. He’d tried so hard to get her to see him as more than a guy that needed her for his own personal agenda, but maybe he’d missed the mark somehow. Maybe she wasn’t ready for a relationship, and he was spinning his wheels.