Chapter 28
Iris
“We have a reservation under Noah Pierce.”
The ma?tre d’ doesn’t register the words. She’s too busy ogling him. I’m two seconds away from asking her if she needs a tissue to wipe the metaphorical drool at the corner of her parted lips. It’s not out of jealousy but because I’m tiptoeing that line of becoming hangry.
Okay, I might already be there. It’s mostly because I can’t remember the last time I ate something.
Even if I get hungry nowadays, I can’t take more than a few bites because everything still tastes like ash.
But if I’m being completely honest with myself, I’ve actually been on edge since Kaiden dropped me off at Sam’s yesterday.
According to Noah, Grayson hasn’t announced Cain’s disappearance yet, but I’m sure it will come out any day now.
I’m using these two free days as an excuse to not show my face at the compound and calm the fuck down before I hand in my resignation.
I’ll also talk to my aunt about my mother’s journal then.
To give it to the ma?tre d’, Noah does look as if he stepped off a runway in a casual gray suit and a crisp white shirt, his sun-streaked bedroom hair styled to perfection.
In comparison to our first date, though, there was no excitement or trepidation when he arrived to pick me up in a flashy Mercedes.
More than that, I would have preferred a quiet night in, rotting on the couch.
However, that would have ruined Sam’s hard work.
She was right, the dress she ordered for me clings to my every curve.
Its open back is not something I would have ever chosen for myself, but it’s not at all indecent because of the high, turtleneck-style neckline and knee length.
She also put my hair in a high ponytail and did soft smokey makeup to enhance the blue and violet of my irises.
When Noah repeats his name after a few seconds, the ma?tre’s cheeks turn cherry red before throwing a cursory glance at the clipboard atop the luxurious glass station. She clears her throat. “If you could please follow me, Mr. and Mrs. Pierce.”
“We’re not married,” I blurt out.
“Sorry, my bad,” she replies. Judging by the hopeful glint in her eyes before she turns around to sashay down the corridor in front of us, her remark was intentional.
“Not yet,” Noah chimes in, tone full of mirth, but the heated look he throws me tells me he’s not entirely joking.
Dafuq?
Now I feel the urge to tell her we’re only friends and this is not even a real date.
Maybe she would shoot her shot if I did.
Even though I made things clear when he tried to kiss me, he still doesn’t seem to grasp the notion because he guides me after the hostess by placing a hand at the small of my naked back—as low as the dress allows him.
My spine is so stiff it’s going to snap in two any second now.
When his palm moves to the side and his fingers slip inside the dress to brush against my belly, I have to bite the inside of my cheek until I taste copper to stop myself from forcefully removing it. I don’t want to cause a scene.
Maybe I’m still reeling after Erik’s assault. But why does it feel like he’s staking a claim?
That aside, Sam wasn’t kidding when she said this restaurant was something else.
Holy shit. It reminds me of Kaiden’s penthouse because it’s also on the last floor of a skyscraper, giving the perfect view — through floor-to-ceiling windows — of Ashville bathed in the dusk’s lavender light.
And the artwork on the walls alone must have cost millions.
There’s even a large white piano at my left, where a pianist is deftly playing a harmonious tune.
The interior is a perfect synergy of modern and old with the charm of a speakeasy brought into the twenty-first century, if the speakeasy was also in a magical yet sophisticated jungle, with lush greenery and intricate flower decorations.
My bestie is so freakin’ talented. I have to send her a text and let her know she kicked ass as soon as we get seated.
We finally arrive at our table, right next to the window, and Noah drops his hand to pull out my chair.
My shoulders sag in relief as I emulate Sam’s feline grace to sit down.
Immediately, the waiter makes an appearance, but I can’t concentrate as he prattles on about the special tasting menu they have for tonight because I get that weird feeling again, right below my breastbone, that is somehow tied to Kaiden.
I dismiss it as wishful thinking. I would give anything for him to be here right now instead of Noah.
For him to take me to his penthouse after dinner and strip me to my skin.
“What do you think, Iris?”
“What was that?”
Noah’s jaw ticks in annoyance. “I asked what you think about the bottle of wine I chose.”
“Sorry, I was admiring the décor. This place is incredible.” He seems to soften at that. I glance at the menu, pretending I know what he’s talking about. “The wine you chose is perfect,” I reply, even though I have no idea what he picked. I only hope it’s white. I hate red wine.
As soon as I finish saying that, a shiver works its way down my spine. I lift my eyes from the menu.
They collide with obsidian fire.
Behind Noah, at the ritzy bar situated in the middle of the restaurant, is Kaiden.
The five people he’s talking to have an air of importance.
I think I recognize one of them from the news, he’s a senator or something.
Kaiden’s not paying much attention, though, because even from here, I can feel the fury radiating from him like plumes of fog from dry ice.
The lights above us flicker for a few seconds as he white-knuckles his glass. No one else seems to notice, though.
He looks devastatingly beautiful in a black suit.
Deadly so. Like a sharp blade honed to perfection.
I know I should look away, but I can’t. The attractive, long-legged blond next to him throws her head back and laughs exaggeratedly before she paws at his chest as though he just said the funniest thing in the world.
I see red. Before I realize what I’m doing, I’m already standing. Noah throws me a concerned look.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” I mumble while forcing my fisted fingers to relax enough so I can grab my clutch. “I need to…powder my nose.”
Spine rod straight, I weave through tables and waiters who resemble busy bees until I reach the hallway where the bathrooms are located.
I need a few moments to compose myself in private.
Luckily, the bathroom is empty. Locking the door, I step up to the sink.
I have the urge to splash cold water on my face, but I will surely ruin the beautiful makeup Sam did.
So, I settle on washing my hands instead, hoping it will help douse some of the inferno blazing through me.
Then my eyes clash with Kaiden’s in the mirror’s reflection. My heart slams to a stop, and a sharp curse leaves me. He’s livid. If I thought his fury was palpable before, now I’m choking on it in the confined space as if it’s the mushroom cloud forming in the wake of an atomic bomb explosion.
I spin on my heel. “Kaiden, wh—”
“Tell me to leave,” he says in a deep, gravely voice as if it was dragged through shards of glass.
Dumbstruck, I stare back. I should say something, right? Then why can’t I move my lips?
“Tell me to leave, Iris. Because if you don’t, I’m going to fuck you so hard you’re going to forget your name and that you’re here with him on my restaurant’s opening night. You should be on my arm. Not his,” he seethes, gold and crimson dancing dangerously in the obsidian void.
My throat rolls on a hard swallow. I open my mouth. However, nothing comes out. His crude words have already ignited my blood to the point of insanity. It only took him a few seconds to render my panties useless, and he’s not even touching me.
His ravenous gaze drops to my diamond-hard nipples. I’m not wearing a bra because of the dress’s open back, so he can see the evidence of my arousal. His nostrils flare. “What’s your safe word?”
“Cherries,” I squeak.
“If you want me to stop, say it, and I will.” That’s the only warning I get before I’m twirled around and bent over the counter.
There’s a metal clang as he slides off his belt.
At first, I think he’s going to use it like in his office at Sin, but am surprised when he brings my hands together at my back and tightens the leather around my wrists.
He doesn’t stop there; he takes off his tie to gag me.
“That’s only because I know you can’t be silent.
You’re killing me. Looking like my wet dream come to life in this dress.
Since the moment you walked in, all eyes were on you.
And I’ve never before wanted to kill so many people at once for daring to glance at what’s mine. ”
Kaiden pushes up my dress, bunching it around my hips before he kneels to inhale my pussy from behind.
“Fuck, you smell divine.” My hips buck the moment his fingers graze my clit as he moves my panties to the side.
“Look at you. Your pretty pussy is drenched. Weeping for my cock.” A strangled whimper tumbles free when he flattens his tongue and licks me from clit to back hole.
He hums deep in his throat, the vibration against my heated flesh making me moan, which comes out muffled because of the silky tie.
“Nothing compares to your taste.” I watch him through the mirror as he stands.
There’s a crazy glint in his eyes. In the next second, he rips my panties clean off my body.
He brings the lacy scrap of fabric to his nose and breathes it in before shoving it into his pocket.