Chapter Twenty-Four
Arya
Nathan has made himself perfectly at home in my apartment.
Suit jacket gone and tie loosened, sleeves folded up to his elbows, revealing strong, veiny forearms with a light dusting of hair, he sits on my couch with his legs in a manspread.
The sight is straight from a woman’s wet dream.
I think I read somewhere… The sluttiest thing a man can do is slowly undo his cuff links and roll up his sleeves.
Witnessing it from a front-row seat, I can safely say it is correct.
I think I had a mini orgasm.
Now, he’s opening the paper bags and serving me lunch.
My poor heart can’t cope.
His mood shifts give me déjà vu.
“I am not on the menu, little minx,” he cockily says without sparing me a glance. “Sit your pretty ass down.”
I circle the couch to sit as far away from him as possible. Like thunder, he captures my wrist lightning fast and brings my ass down on the cushion right next to him.
I bounce, squealing in shock.
Before I can comment on his high-handedness, he hands me my plate, which is filled to the brim with piping hot Schezwan noodles and Manchurian on the side. I gape at the size of the portion. “How hungry do you think I am, Nathan?”
His head swings my way, glancing between me and my plate. “It’s only a handful, Ari.”
“It could feed two people.”
He squints his eyes, looking strict and hot at the same time. “Please tell me you aren’t one of those women who picks off her plate in front of a man.”
“Of course not!”
“Prove it.”
“What is this? A game of truth or dare?”
“We both know if it were, I wouldn’t give such a tame dare. At least, set the bar higher for me.” Flicking his chin at my food, he commands, “Eat however much you wish. Use the leftovers for dinner.”
“You’re a super-weird client, Nathan,” I mutter.
His rough chuckle reverberates down my spine.
We eat in a peaceful silence, comfortable and uncompelled to make small talk. He, of course, finishes first while I scarf down more than half of my plate.
Fine, I took his non-dare seriously.
The tiny smirk on his handsome face betrays that he knows it, too.
Sipping on my can of Coke, I put it down and wipe my mouth with the tissue paper. Rising to my feet, I bend and start to grab the empty plates and the leftovers.
Nathan halts me midway, taking the dishes from my hand and quietly carrying them to my kitchen. Putting them in the dishwasher, he washes his hands in the sink.
For a moment, I forget we work together. It rather feels like a scene of two people dating and living together.
I quietly observe Nathan. Perhaps a little bit of a gentleman does exist inside him. No matter how hard he tries to bury that side with barbed wire and cutting taunts.
Aryan was never this thoughtful. He was more of a traditional guy, expecting his woman to do stuff related to the kitchen and maintain the house. I didn’t think much of it because it’s how I saw my mom behave around my father. So, I fell into the same role.
In retrospect, it was a red flag that I missed.
Who knows how many others I ignored?
“What’s that look for?”
“Huh?” I blink out of my stupor.
Nathan rounds the island to where I’m standing, leaning his hip against the edge and crossing his arms over his chest. “What are you thinking?”
“Nothing.” It takes herculean effort not to check out and drool over his flexed biceps and powerful forearms from this close.
“Spill it, angel.”
Knowing he won’t budge, I reveal, “I didn’t expect you to help me clean up.”
“Because I was brought up with a silver spoon in my mouth?”
“So was I. You just give off that vibe.”
“A rich snob?”
“Domineering.”
“Being dominant doesn’t equate to being a sexist,” he says before dropping his voice an octave, “and the only place I demand a woman’s complete submission and fulfill my every whim is in the bedroom.”
My rough exhales skate over my parted lips. His dark, deviant confession spreads like a wildfire on every expanse of my body.
The first time he fucked me was a preview.
Nothing but foreplay.
I’m yet to burn in the flames of his dominance and passion.
“Sounds more fun for you than the woman,” I argue.
“Does it?” he counters, his voice husky. My hips collide with the island when he cages me against it with his hands braced on either side. “If I remember correctly, I’ve made you orgasm more than I have.”[RK12]
Heat climbs up to my cheeks. Reaching up, he cups the side of my face, tracing the outline of my mouth in a teasing circle with his thumb. Slipping it in, he presses on my bottom lip and tugs on it.
I clutch the smooth marble behind me, forcing myself to hold his primal gaze.
“Watching a woman fall apart under my touch brings me pleasure,” he rasps.
“When she trusts me to give up all control to me is what gets my dick hard. Will there be times I use her body to sate my lust? Yes. It will be because she craves it. Loves to please me. As long as my cock is inside her, she’s content. ”
I’m panting hard, envisioning myself as his woman. Every single thing he said turns me on. I’m aching to experience it all.
The only way it can happen is if I gather the courage and ask him for a casual sexual relationship. For the first time, I yearn to demand my own pleasure. Take a stroll on the wild side without putting my heart on the line.
Do it now.
Ask him.
Except the last time I initiated a simple kiss between us and got brutally rejected slams to the forefront. What if he laughs at my proposition and says no?
Can I handle it?
The heat of his thumb on my lip falls away as he moves back. His expression becomes closed off. “We should talk about your meeting with my father.”
The abrupt change in the topic pulls me out of my dilemma. Could he listen to the debate going on inside my head?
How he can go from dripping with seduction to freezing cold boggles me.
“What do you wanna know?” I ask, my wayward thoughts scattering away.
“Everything. From the minute you walked into his office to the second you left.”
Clasping my hands together in front of me, I tell him about my morning. I don’t leave a single detail out except for the bad-mouthing of Iris as he listens raptly. His face is unreadable. A blank mask. Once I finish, he doesn’t say anything for the longest time.
“You won’t tell him anything without running it by me first.”
“Of course,” I promise. “I’ll keep as much distance from him as possible.”
“I will deal with Erika so she doesn’t repeat the mistake,” he assures me in a hard tone. “You also can’t let our personal lives get in the way of business, Arya. If anything out of the ordinary happens or you’re uncertain, check in with me.”
“It won’t happen again.” I’ve learned my lesson after today. “Can we talk about the leaked texts? It’s the second time someone’s tried to defame you.”
“What are you saying?”
“I believe somebody is out to ruin you. We should investigate and uncover the person to make them stop.”
“I am not involving the police,” he says resolutely.
“I’m not suggesting filing an FIR. We have a private freelance investigator at my firm who helps us with our clients. I think it’s wise to take their help and counter any future attack,” I urge him softly. “If you give me the go-ahead, I will reach out to her today.”
“I don’t see the point,” Nathan argues. “They’ve already gotten what they wanted. There are no more secrets related to my engagement.”
“What about secrets unrelated to it?” My tone is unflinching. “You underestimated the hacker the first time. Don’t do it again.”
A dark look passes through his eyes. “I don’t have any more ugly secrets.”
“Nothing at all?” My intuition screams he’s lying. “I need to know so I can protect you better.”
“I said no.”
“Fine,” I relent. Another pressing matter nags at me that I decide to address.
“You need to trust my judgment and stop turning down my suggestions, Nathan. Or refuse to take them seriously. Last night was the perfect chance to interact with board members and you wasted it. If it’s how you’re going to continue to act, then I’ll let Radha take the lead.
I get the feeling there was truth to your words when you assumed I was an intern.
You weren’t just saying it as a jab at our first meeting.
We can’t work together if you don’t respect my expertise and aren’t willing to meet me halfway. ”
His shoulders pull taut, my words catching him off guard. I’m all for facing challenges and proving others wrong, but it’s impossible to do so when that person has already made up their mind. It’s like banging your head against the wall.
“I do respect your opinion, Arya,” says Nathan quietly. “I don’t want Radha.”
“Your actions speak otherwise.”
“Hire the freelance detective.” Tilting his head, he asks, “Does that prove to you I take you seriously?”
His acceptance feels like he is doing it to shut me up. “I want you to genuinely trust my skills.”
Stepping up to me, he tilts my chin to keep our eyes locked onto one another.
In a somber voice, he assures, “I don’t let just anyone close to me, Ari.
Whether in my personal life or at work. I’m not ignoring your ideas because I think less of you or that you aren’t amazing at what you do.
Despite how I treated you in the past, you never once let it affect your job and backstabbed me.
It made me respect you even more than I did from the start. ”
“Then why?” I curl my fingers around his wrist, unable to stop myself from touching him. “Are you letting your ego get in the way? Talking to them doesn’t mean you’re bowing in defeat to them.”
His thumb sweeps along my cheek. “It isn’t about that.
I can’t muster the desire to put on a fake smile for someone who openly hates my guts.
It’s what I’ve been taught to do by my father while he was preparing me to lead our company one day.
I never realized how tiring it can be or I’ll get sick of it so soon. ”