“I don’t think I’ll ever get this image of you out of my head,” he groaned as he pressed a cheek to my jaw. “Not now. Not tonight. Not ever.”
“So you like the dress?” I said as I lifted my gaze to meet his. A slow smile pulled at the corner of his lips, the kind that reached his eyes and made everything feel like it’s on fire—making me feel like I’m on fire.
“Sterling, there is not enough time,not enough years,in your lifetime to fully articulate how I feel about you in this dress. I love this dress. I lo—” He stumbled over the word before Esme interrupted.
“Bloody hell, Shakespeare.” Esme smirked from behind me as Thallor and I broke apart. “You’re quite the wordsmith. Could have just gone with fuckable like me.”
For the briefest of moments, I noticed the tinge of red that crept up Thallor’s cheeks. I rolled my eyes in response to her before smiling at them both. “Not at all what I was trying to go for,” I drawled as I stepped into the kitchen to give Mort a few head scratches. I picked up a glass of champagne that Esme had poured earlier and proceeded to drink it, this bottle far nicer than the previous one we’d shared.
“It’s not something you have to try. It’s simply a truth about who you are,” Thallor said behind his glass of champagne.
Our eyes were caught in a moment. A split second before I heard Esme squeal again. This is the first time,ever,in the history of our friendship, that I’d been on this side of the dynamic. I’d always been the third wheel to her and Isaac, and navigating this unknown was more than a little strange
Neither of us had heard from Isaac in months. We had both been under the impression that, at some point, he would come to his senses. But after unceremoniously cutting us from his life,Isaac was really leaning into his true calling.Being a massive asshole.Whilst I had, for the most part, come to terms with his decision, how he had left our lives never failed to turn my stomach. It was just so uncharacteristic of Isaac.
Despite Esme’s natural warmth, behind the effortless curve of her sunshine smile, I could see the pain that lingered there. And the hurt, too. The way her jaw clenched a little every time his name was mentioned. I could see it in her slightly duller energy and forced laughter. The weight she carried when she thought no one was looking. I knew Esme was taking it harder than I was. She had given Isaac everything. She had poured every ounce of herself into that relationship to make it work. She had wrapped herself around him and blanketed him with her love, and when he was gone? Well, there was nothing really left to cling to but the memories of him.
“You might say, she was the type of girl you’d want to get stuck in a supply closet with during detention.” Esme smirked as she moved to grab her jacket from the coat rack.
“Don’t you two start,” I moaned.
“The type of girl I’d bunk off school and commandeer a parade for,” Thallor said quietly, although the smile on his face was a clear indication that he was as amused as Esme was.
“Was that aFerris Bueller’s Day Offreference?” I looked up at him, shock clearly visible on my face.Dear God, I think I’m in love. Save Quincey.
“Oh, the taxi is here, I am going to go and give him instructions.” She smiled as she opened my front door. “I’m giving you two five minutes and then I’m leaving without you.”
The sound of her heels hitting the ground reverberated through the stairwell. Her excited giggles echoed through the space. Whether it was for the upcoming gala or her relishing in my newfound awkwardness at the situation I find myself in, I’m not entirely sure.
“Hi.” I smiled at Thallor before closing the gap between us at the same time Mortimer scampered off into my bedroom. “Sterling, you look…” It was as though he couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.
Even with the heels I was wearing, I still had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes. I stepped in closer, noting how he towered over me. I could feel the undeniable warmth of his body radiating against me and beckoning me to come closer. I set my hands on his chest, letting my fingers trail against him until they found the nape of his neck. If he was going to stand there, paralysed, then I’d have to make up for it. I pulled his lips toward mine, the space between us vanishing.
A low, primal growl tore through the silence as Thallor finally let go of the breath he’d been holding. It filled me with desire. White, hot, electric, burning desire. For him and only him. Although it was quick and fleeting, the kiss was deep and fierce and spoke of our want so plainly.
The yearning and hunger I felt for Thallor was so consuming that it almost felt sinful. Like something neither of us could be saved from. Not that I wanted or needed saving from someone like him. But when he looked at me, it was as if he was seeing more than just temptation. More than just an itch to scratch. He looked at me like I didn’t need to be saved. He looked at me like I needed to be worshipped.
I pulled away slowly, looking down at the time on my phone.4 minutes 43 seconds elapsed.
“Okay, we really need to go,” I said softly before stealing one last kiss. Thallor looked down at me with a soft smile and heavy-lidded eyes. “Stop. You are going to have me on my knees if you keep looking at me like that.”
“You can get on your knees if you’d like.” His voice was low as it poured into my ears. I clenched my legs together andswallowed down the whimper before looking up at him. “I won’t stop you.”
“You’d love that, wouldn’t you?” I said a little breathlessly whilst trying to regain control over my own thoughts.
“I’d love to do a lot of things with you, Sterling.” The words came out relaxed, unhurried, but they curled around me and gripped me like a vice. “But, seeing as you’re already thinking about your knees, I’d be happy to enlighten you in all the ways I’ve pictured you that way.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
“Fucking hell,” Esme exclaimed as we stepped into the Year-End gala.Fucking hell, indeed.The party was opulent. Extravagant. Ostentatious. And any other synonymous words you might find underlavishin the thesaurus. The crossword clue for this event would be ‘Something characterised by excessive luxury or showy wealth’because that’s exactly what this party was.
The first thing that a socially anxious person like me noticed was the sheer volume of people in attendance, of which there were many. Theoretically speaking, I understood that one thousand was a large sum, but the concept and seeing it in practice were two entirely different things. Crowds and crowds of people stretched endlessly before, me moving in waves of polished faces and expensive clothes.
We walked past a group of obnoxiously loud men who were eyeing up a group of women to their right–the only pristine thing about them was their suits. The gala had only started an hour before, but they had already descended into a drunkenstupor, yelling over one another and stumbling about, holding their drinks at odd angles that was no good for their suits or the fancy carpet beneath their feet.
The room was large, but it was difficult to tell with the sheer number of people in the facility. The ceiling had been adorned with beautiful crystal-encrusted chandeliers crested by a ring of floating candles. Although completely unnecessary, the lights illuminated the room, making it feel like stars in the night sky. I could appreciate the effort that had gone into decorating this space, but I couldn't help but feel that it was all a little unnecessary. No one was sober enough to notice, and even if they had been, I wasn’t sure they'd care.
“I am going to get us some drinks,” Esme yelled over the crowd as she disappeared into the sea of finely dressed partygoers searching for clinking glasses. “Don’t move, I’ll be back in a minute.”
