Rihaan #3
Needing her closer, I slid one hand to her waist, bending as I placed the other beneath her thighs and lifted her effortlessly against me. I turned, lowering us both onto the bar stool she’d been sitting in moments before, settling her onto my lap as if she’d always belonged there.
Her arms tightened around my shoulders the second I set her down, and that was all the permission I needed.
The kiss deepened instantly—no hesitation now, no space left between thought and action.
It was hotter, hungrier, like something in both of us had finally stopped behaving like we were in public.
Pulling her closer, I held her firmly against me as the world around us blurred into nothing but the press of her mouth and the way she fit so perfectly against me.
A sharp buzz vibrated against my thigh, startling her where she sat in my lap.
I let out a quiet groan against her lips before pulling away just enough to rest my forehead against hers.
“Terrible timing,” I muttered.
A reluctant smile tugged at her mouth as I kept one arm around her waist and rose from the stool with her still in my arms before setting her gently back onto her own seat.
“That was so hot,” Grinning at her honesty, I stole one last slow kiss before pulling away and fished my phone from my pocket.
Matt calling…
Frowning, I turned in my spot, my eyes instantly reaching the VIP spot they all still sat to in the corner. “This better be good.”
“It is. For me,” Matt said, laughter creeping into his voice. “You still at the bar?”
“Yeah.” I replied.
“Good. Bring another bottle of champagne back with you.”
I frowned. "Don’t you guys have servers assigned to the table?"
“We did,” he replied. “Let’s just say the girls assigned to our table are... otherwise occupied."
I huffed a laugh, shaking my head. “Give me five.”
“Make that two bottles—”
I hung up before he could add a third.
My gaze found Maeve’s again, and just like that, I'd forgotten why I'd answered it in the first place.
“Problem?” She asked, her eyes still lit up with the desire I was sure mine mirrored.
“Errand.” I replied, lowering as she gripped my jumper in her fist and pulled me closer to her once again.
“You know it’s not nice to make someone wait?”
I raised a brow. “You want me to ditch them?”
“I’m just asking you to choose,” She replied, pulling me in for another kiss that spun my world around.
Fuck. I loved kissing her.
She lingered when she finally pulled away, her lips brushing mine one last time before leaving me chasing the warmth she'd stolen.
"Fuck... okay," I murmured with a reluctant smile. "Let me just buy the bottle for them and get one of the servers to take it over."
She nodded, a grin plastered over her stunning face, as I shook my head once to wave down the bartender.
I had barely placed the order before I felt her fingers curl around my bicep. Holding up a finger for the guy, I glanced back. “You okay?”
Biting down her lower lip, she shrugged. “You can go and give them yourself.”
“What’s wrong?”
She tilted her head in the opposite direction. Following her gaze, I spotted the brunette from earlier wearing an expected look from across the room.
Turning back to Maeve, I lifted a brow. “I thought it was rude to make someone wait.”
A grin spread across her face.
“Yeah,” she said with a shrug, “Only, you won’t be waiting; you handle your stuff, while I make sure she’s fine.”
Hoping off the stool, she leaned up on her tip toes to reach my ear. “Plus, it’s chicks before dicks.”
A laugh escaped me before I could stop it. “I don't think I can argue with that.”
“You definitely can't.” Pressing a kiss on my cheek, she gave me one last smile before weaving through the crowd toward her friend. I watched her go, unable to stop myself, the burgundy bow disappearing between clusters of people until she reached the brunette and looped an arm through hers.
Only then did I turn back to the bar, and paid for the bottles.
Grabbing the bucket he’d placed, I thanked the bar tender before turning around and walking straight into someone.
"Watch where you're..."
The words died on my tongue as their eyes connected with mine.
Of all the people to run into.
“Axel.”
Just my fucking luck.
He wore the same easy grin that had irritated me since I was a kid, as though the years hadn't done a thing to dull it. As a kid, I’d been jealous of the guy who’d become best friends with my brother, as an adult, I’d become jealous of his relationship with my sister.
I hated losing, and somehow in the game of life, Axel Beauman had always been able to pull one over me.
“Rihaan.” His gaze flicked over my shoulder before returning to me. “Didn't think I'd find you here.”
“Great. Let’s pretend you didn’t.”
I stepped to the side, intending to walk past him, but he shifted with me.
“But now that I have. Give me a minute.”
I rolled my eyes. “You've already had thirty seconds too many.”
His smile didn't falter.
There had been a time when he'd practically lived at our house.
My brother's best friend. When Ma had left, it had been as easy for Vedant to start hanging out at his place. So much so, in the first few years after, I’d barely seen him at home.
Then somewhere along the way, their friendship had curdled into rivalry, and they'd gone from inseparable to barely able to stand in the same room.
Somehow, despite all that, he'd managed to keep one relationship intact.
My sister's.
That fact had always sat beneath my skin like a splinter.
“What do you want?” I asked, annoyed that my good mood had been ruined in seconds because of him.
His expression lost some of its teasing edge. “It’s about Raina.”
I barked a humourless laugh. “We’re done with this conversation.”
“I'm serious.”
“So am I.” I replied, taking another step but he didn’t falter, matching his step with mine.
“You need to get over yourself, and make up with her.”
“Don’t tell me what I need to do. You have no clue what you’re talking about.”
“I know that she misses you.” The words hit somewhere I refused to acknowledge. “I know that if you stopped being stubborn and called her, she’d probably answer.”
I stared at him for a long beat.
“You seem to know an awful lot about her.”
“She’s one of my best friends.”
“Good for you.” I replied coldly. “How’s Vedant doing, by the way? I haven’t been able to catch up with him in a while…you know with our schedules, and seeing he’s also supposed to be your friend—oh wait, he can’t stand you either. No wonder.”
His jaw tightened as the only sound that settled between us was the music that blared from the speakers.
Finally, I stepped around him just as he spoke.
“He’s struggling, too, by the way." Clapping a hand on my shoulder, he continued. “Because of you, his own relationship with his sister is ruined. Honestly, it’s a surprise you still have a relationship with any of your siblings.”
He looked at me expectantly. “Do yourself a favour, and stop being such a jerk.”
“Fuck off.”
I didn't wait for a response.
By the time I handed Matt and his group their buckets and made it back to the bar, my mood had completely soured.
Even so, I caught myself scanning the crowd for a flash of blonde hair tied back with a burgundy bow.
The craving to feel that same rush I'd felt whenever she was near only grew stronger with every passing minute.
I leaned against the counter as I waited, telling myself she'd probably been delayed by her friend.
Five minutes became ten.
The bartender asked if I wanted another drink.
I shook my head.
The crowd shifted, people came and went, laughter rose and fell, but she never appeared.
For the first time in years, I found myself disappointed over a woman I’d barely known.
Yet somehow, later that night, I found myself standing at the door of the one place I knew would make me feel something, where pain had always managed to quiet everything else.