Just one more day, and the dominos will begin to fall. One by fucking one, until they topple in the direction that leads her to me.
Chapter13
Sienna
A wet warmth begins to form between my legs as my mind places invisible caution tape all around the path the nameless stranger walks.
I hear Nessa’s muffled voice in the background of my thoughts, but I can’t bring myself to shift my focus back to my friend. My eyes and my aching center are controlling me, forcing me to follow the black and white pinstripes that mask the thick muscular frame of what feels like the Devil in disguise.
I continue to watch as he makes his way behind the bar. He takes the phone from the bartender’s hand and turns his back to the row of thirsty patrons that line it. This should be my cue to stop staring, but instead, I take this as my opportunity to study him some more. If nothing else, he is perfect spank-bank material which, if I don’t bring someone home with me, I can utilize later.
As he raises his hand that holds the phone it reveals a sea of ink that I somehow didn’t notice before. His knuckles are covered in Old English lettering with what looks like, from a distance, to be a skull with piercing irises. In contrast to the dark center of his hand tattoo, there is an array of colorful flowers that surround it.
Even with his back turned to me, I can’t help but admire how wide and strong his shoulders are. They make the perfect tapered V shape down his back. His exceedingly tall frame is well-noted. His body is a work of art, both in the tattoos that adorn it, from what I can see, and the defined muscles that can still be distinguished through his suit. I can tell from the way he is dressed that he is a man with power, and he has a silent but commanding presence. A presence that I have been unable to look away from in the few minutes I have made his acquaintance.
He hangs up the phone, finally, and just as he heads to the exit door, he moves his head back, directing his dark eyes in my direction. The slick warmth that began to form is now slightly dripping past the lace of my thong as I settle my eyes on his. I feel a flutter form deep inside of me. I would say it is coming from my stomach, but somehow, that doesn’t feel like an accurate enough origin for how deep of a feeling is being stirred within me.
His friend is already through the back door, yet, he remains standing there, taking me in with a menacing grin on his chiseled face. Keeping his eyes on me, he reaches the inked hand I was just studying to the top hook of what seems to be a coat tree. The design on his hand is suddenly covered as he grabs a hat from the rack.
He shakes his head slightly, shifting the patch of jet-black hair that adorns the middle of his head. I notice how much longer that section of hair is compared to the buzzed length he keeps at the sides of his head as he slips the hat on. He lowers his gaze, bringing the same skull-and-floral-covered hand to the brim of his hat, giving a subtle nod in my direction, before following his friend. As he exits the door, I have this sudden overwhelming urge to chase after him, even though I know I won’t.
He’s alluring, sure, but I’m not going to chase after a man, let alone one I do not know. I can tell from the little interaction I had with him that he is trouble. I can’t trust myself around that kind of man because there is no telling what that will unleash in me. So, I shake the thought out of my head, chalking the encounter up to the result of having one too many drinks and just being horny for the first devastatingly gorgeous guy I have seen so far in the city. That’s all. A man like that, with the wicked energy he exudes, would be the end of me. Despite how delicious a descent into Hell being caught in his web may be, I can’t risk the burn he would undoubtedly leave on me.
“Well, that was fucking weird,” Ness slurs slightly, bringing me back to reality and out of the trenches of my own thoughts.
“Who doesn’t answer a simple question, likewhat is your name, when they are asked more than once? Makes sense Alex is friends with him,” she scoffs.
I nod and half-listen to Nessa say something about how much of a dick Alex is, before she makes her way over to the bar. The whole time she went on about Alex, all I could picture was his friend.
I need to snap out of it.
Fuck, Sienna, get it together.
I look over at Vanessa, who is now leaning over the bar, spilling her cleavage out. She’s talking to the bouncer from before, who has made his way into the bar area instead of manning the front. By the way she is flirting, I am assuming she will be bringing him home. So, I head over to close our tab.
As I wait for the bartender to bring back our tab, I suddenly feel a familiar presence before it grabs hold of my shoulder from behind. I look over to discover a certain Beetlejuice-tattooed hand.
Eric.
Confused as to why he is here, I glance over my shoulder. “Oh, hey, Eric,” I say, instinctively turning toward him, shifting to my tiptoes to give him a hug.
“Hey, sorry, I’m late. Traffic was crazy,” he says, sounding out of breath, as if he just ran here.
“I didn’t know you were meeting us, otherwise, I wouldn’t have closed the tab. Nes didn’t tell me,” I say, still confused that neither he nor she told me he would be joining us.
“It was a last-minute thing. I just got a sick town car today to start driving around Mr. Moretti and his clients. I was in the area, and I remember Nes mentioning you two would be stopping here tonight. I was hoping I would catch you,” Eric says with a flirtatious hope in his eyes.
Judging from the way he moves his thick forearms toward the small of my waist, it’s safe to say he is over the little scuffle we got into last week when he left my house. The hope in his eyes is more than likely stemming from his assumption that meeting me here tonight and driving me back to Nessa’s will get him laid. Even though the vision of the nameless bar owner is still fresh in my mind, making my thong damper than I would care to admit, I can’t keep leading Eric on. No matter how good the sex is. Him being my best friend’s cousin just makes things too complicated, and I have had enough unprovoked complications in my life, I can’t keep adding to them.
“Miss?” I direct my attention back to the bartender, expecting him to have my bill for me to sign.
“Yes?” I reply, staring down at his empty hands.
“It’s on the house, courtesy of the owner.”
I can’t help but smile.That Devil.
Arms still wrapped around my waist, Eric squeezes them beyond the point of feeling playful, or pleasurable, for that matter.
