The boys straightened like a teacher had stepped into the classroom.
I looked up and found Kian standing there with his jacket slung over one shoulder, dark hair streaked with silver at the temples.
“You’re going to have to repeat that in English for me, babe,” I said lightly, sliding my shoes back on. His eyes flicked over the group, then settled on me, unreadable.
“Are you done with the kids?” he gritted. Why was he mad? It was he who had to talk business; I’d only been giving him space.
“We were talking.”
“I can see that,” he said. His smile was thin. To the others, he added, “Your uncles are looking for you. The raki won’t drink itself.”
“Hey, that’s kind of?—”
Kian leaned against the wall, arms crossed.
“You collecting admirers…babe?” he asked, repeating my nickname for him with a drawl.
I slid off the wall, then smoothed my dress. “Don’t be silly. They’re not exactly my type.” I shot them an apologetic look. “Sorry, boys.”
“Uh-huh.”
They muttered something to Kian, but he didn’t even look their way as they all drifted away, properly chastised.
But they didn’t go inside for some reason. Instead, they hovered by the door, their curious glances flickering our way almost as if they were waiting for something.
Chapter 33
Kian
“Babe, huh?” I finally said when Amir’s cousins were out of earshot. I fucking loved it when she called me that. “It’s not exactly a nickname that terrifies people.”
She shrugged, chuckling. “I wouldn’t worry about that. Besides, you called me babe right back.”
I wasn’t worried about the silly nickname. What unsettled me instead was the sight of Sophie ringed by young men—men closer to her age than mine—watching her with hearts in their eyes and devotion written across their faces. It was absurd, I knew that.
Yet, jealousy stirred, and with it came a darker impulse: the urge to show her who she belonged to.
Without warning, I knelt and lifted her up by the waist, then threw her over my shoulder. She let out a surprised squeal, then sighed, relaxing.
“God, not this again,” she said in an exasperated tone as I made my way toward my car. “You need to put me down because everyone’s looking.”
“Let them look,” I grumbled. “They’ll know you’re mine and to keep the fuck away from my woman.”
“Gosh, that is so…hot, but at the same time, very chauvinistic. I can’t make up my mind.”
She hung compliantly over my shoulder, her palm resting against my back, and we both remained silent until I reached my car.
I set her down and she crossed her arms over her chest, meeting my gaze.
“Why are you upset?” she questioned, her brows arched. “It’s not like you haven’t been talking to women all day, yet you don’t see me throwing you over my shoulder, do you?”
“Women could parade naked around me and I wouldn’t even see them,” I growled, gripping her chin so she’d see the truth in my eyes. “There’s only you.”
I kissed her deeply, hoping to steal her breath the way she stole mine. My tongue brushed against hers, and I swallowed her moan.
Goddammit, I was losing control around her.
When she pulled back, breathing heavily with flushed cheeks, she smiled and said, “Let’s go home.”
