“Look, love. I know you get self-conscious thinking about the girls Hayes has been with, but you’re the one he’s with now. Officially. That’s a big deal. And if I’m any romance expert—which I am—I can tell Hayes is head over heels just by the way he looks at you.”
My heart flexes. “You really think so?”
Lila bops me on the nose. “Even a blind person could see how infatuated he is with you.”
As much as I hate to admit it, I’m terrified how serious things are going to get between me and Hayes as our relationship progresses. More complications are bound to come up. That’s what happens when you start to peel away your emotional baggage.
I snatch a glass of champagne, forcing the liquid down my throat as it settles heavily in my belly. “You don’t think I’m gonna crash and burn when this is all over, do you?”
Stop overthinking, Aeris. Enjoy the present. Don’t worry about the future.
“You worry too much, Aer-Bear. Stop trying to sabotage yourself. I know you think this is too good to be true, but this is the standard for a lot of people. You’ve just known disappointment your whole life, so you’ve grown to accept that’s what you deserve. But it’s not. What you really deserve is happiness.”
The nerves taking me for a tailspin start to wane. I always feel so much better when I talk my problems out with Lila. If modeling doesn’t work out for her, she should seriously consider becoming a licensed therapist.
After a long half hour, Lila’s already made three friends while I haven’t moved from my spot by the buffet table. I keep sneaking chocolate-covered strawberries to avoid having to introduce myself to anyone.
Hayes reappears around the corner, brandishing an apologetic grimace. “Sorry about that. Uh, we just had to talk about some things.”
I don’t have a right to be angry. But I am. Beneath my wayward indignation is a pool of sadness, and betrayal flits across my face. “Who was that, Hayes?”
“She was just a girl.”
“A girl you slept with?”
The tendons in Hayes’ arms writhe, and his jaw ticks. “I did sleep with her. Before I met you,” he admits. “But I haven’t seen her since. I haven’t even thought about her.”
I cross my arms over my chest. “You don’t have feelings for her?”
“I don’t. I told her that I didn’t mean to give her the wrong impression, but that I’m happy with you, Aeris.”
He turned a girl as beautiful as her down…for me?
Look, Hayes could be hiding more from me, but I truly don’t think he is. Trust is a two-way street. We’re never going to get anywhere if I let my insecurities get in the middle of things.
I inch open the slats of his fingers to merge our hands together. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I trust you. If you say that’s what happened, then that’s what happened.”
He brings the back of my hand to his mouth and plants a kiss between my knuckles. “Are you ready to head home?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
When we return to Hayes’， I barely have enough energy to stay awake. I’m stuffed from the all-you-can-eat buffet, and I can already feel blisters forming on my feet from the overuse of my heels. The rest of the guys stagger their way to their respective bedrooms.
I’m about to make my way upstairs, but Hayes catches me mid-step.
He removes his suit jacket and lays it on the dining table. “I was hoping we could stay up for a little.”
I yawn, stretching my arms above my head. “Stay up? Why?”
“Why do you think, Aeris? I haven’t been able to stop staring at you the entire night. You, in that tiny dress…fuck. You’ve been driving me crazy.”
“Hayes, I’m bloated and gross and need a shower.”
He stalks toward me with the gait of a ravenous predator. He pulls my face toward his, close enough for our lips to flirt, and I can feel his breath dust over my skin.
“Do you think that’s a turn off for me?” he whispers into my mouth.
“Y-yes?”
The muscles in his upper body coil like a snake waiting to strike. “Try again.”
“You want me like this?” I have a day’s worth of stink on me, and my makeup is starting to rub off.
He leads my hand to the monster tenting the front of his pants. “Does that answer your question?”
Blood rushes to my cheeks as my eyes go wide. And suddenly, lust explodes inside me like a grenade. A grenade that Hayes just pulled the pin to.
“Upstairs. Now,” he growls.
Even despite my off-the-charts libido, I decide to tease him, slowly dragging myself up the stairs as if the mere action is draining every cell of energy in my body. It takes all of Hayes two seconds to break his resolve and chase after me. He spanks me on the ass, and my yelp turns into a bunch of champagne-fueled giggles as I wind-sprint up the steps.
The minute we make it to his bedroom, he slams the door shut, eating up the space between us one intimidating stride at a time. I walk backwards until I hit the edge of the bed, then hoist myself up onto the mattress.
A chord of anticipation thrums inside of me.
“I want you to touch yourself, Aeris.”
I comply immediately, lifting my hips up as one of my hands snakes up to grab my tit. I start to massage my breast, tweaking my nipple through the thin fabric of my dress.
I close my eyes, his voice wading through my ears.
“What do you think about when you touch yourself?”
“You,” I reply, rolling the bud between my fingers, lightning striking my core in varying degrees of intensity.
Hayes watches me, spellbound, and he helps me slide out of my dress, revealing the black, lacy thong riding high on my waist. There’s a damp spot over my sex, and it spurs Hayes to release a throaty groan. My underwear is the next thing to go.
“Do you think about my tongue stretching that gorgeous pussy out?”
“Yes,” I gasp. My hand travels south and cups the outside of my vagina, the familiar wetness loosening a pained breath from my lungs. If only Hayes could feel me right now.
“In detail, Stacks.”
“I think about how your tongue makes my legs shake, how when you lick me and fuck me with your fingers, I want to combust into a million pieces.”
Hayes makes a guttural noise at my declaration, his erection pleading to be freed from the confinement of his pants, and when he finally sheds the restrictive barrier, his dick is twitching in the palm of his hand.
Thanks to his lack of pants—and now, lack of underwear—I can see his abs contract as he starts to rub his length, pumping his hand back and forth. He throws his head back, his Adam’s apple wobbling in his throat, his jaw squared.
My fingers flick against my pussy, salaciously parting my entrance, and there’s a squelching sound that echoes through the room.
“Jesus.” Hayes’ hand speeds up, bulbs of pre-cum beading down his thick, pulsating shaft. “Do I always make you this wet?”
“This if all for you, Hayes.” My digits curl against the roof of my clit, and I know that once I disengage myself, I’m going to leak onto the bed. When I start to moan loudly, my free hand comes up to cover my mouth, absorbing the sound.