Chapter 14
Siri whistled walking into Ariya’s room. “Who are you really meeting tonight?”
“It’s a work event, Siri. I told you, you can go with me as my guest.” She winked at her sister in the mirror. Her heart was racing in her chest, and she hoped her sister wouldn’t pick up on her nervousness. She was excited but more nervous.
“You look lovely… beautiful.” Her sister’s voice was soft as if in admiration.
Ariya turned to look at her sister. “Remember, you helped me pick this dress.”
“It looks much better on you than on the mannequin.” Siri smiled.
“Now you sound cheesy.” She giggled.
“I’m serious. The color, the style… this dress was made for you.” Ariya was wearing a wine colored, long chiffon dress that flared from the waist. The material felt soft and the shoulder-baring, high-neck dress made it the perfect dress for a not-so-formal event. She paired her dress with long gold earrings and decided to carry her rose gold clutch.
“Thank you. You look lovely, yourself.” Siri and Rohan were going out for dinner, and she was wearing a baby pink, lace cocktail dress and looked elegant.
“How come you are not taking the guy you talked to me about to the event.” Siri’s question made Ariya let out a gasp. She had told her sister about a guy she has been talking to but didn’t give her any details.
“No, he and I haven’t talked in a while.”
“Why?”
“He’s… he is in my line of work, and you know what happened when I dated a guy in the same field.”
“Ariya… that guy was a cheating asshole… you didn’t break up because you worked for the same network.”
“I know but being in the same circles makes it hard to…” Her voice trailed off when she heard her mom call out to them. “Let’s go, Rohan is here.” Ariya was thankful for the interruption.
“Oh my, look at you two,” her mom said excitedly.
“Thanks, Ma.” Ariya kissed her mom on her cheek.
“Siri, you should pick this color for your wedding dress.” Her mom kissed her sister on the cheek.
“Ma, that’s exactly what Ariya said when we went shopping for this dress.”
“This is a beautiful color for you, sis.” Ariya smiled.
“And, I think you should get a dress this color for Siri’s wedding.” Her mom ran the back of her hand on Ariya’s cheek. “You are glowing like a bride… are you meeting someone special tonight.”
“Stop it, you two… it’s the network event for the pilot show launch.” She glared at both of them.
Siri looked at her phone and scrunched her nose. “Rohan says there is a fancy car waiting for you outside.”
“Stefan…”
“I like Stefan. Do you like Stefan?” Her mom asked, playfully.
“Yes, Ma, I like him. He is my best friend.” Ariya glared at her mom.
“Fine. Just asking.” Her mom shrugged and waved her girls goodbye.
“Bye, Mom. If it’s too late, I’ll go to my apartment.”
“It’s okay if you want to come back home, even if it’s late,” her mom called out.
Ariya and Siri stepped out of her mom’s suburban home and went down the winding walkway to the driveway. Rohan waited outside in the driveway, and another dark, elegant looking car was parked on the street along the curb.
“That’s fancy. The network sends Bentley limousines for pickup?” Rohan winked at Ariya.
“No clue.” She smiled at her future brother-in-law.
“You have fun.” Siri hugged her.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.” Ariya waved to her sister before smiling at the elderly man who held the door open for her. She sat in the back of the luxurious car, unable to stop thinking about Veer. She didn’t know what he would say or what she should say to him. Would he be angry that she didn’t call him in the three weeks they had spent time away?
A thought that he may have moved on since she didn’t want more than what they had, crossed her mind, and it hurt deep inside. She swallowed painfully as the car pulled in front of the lavish hotel where the party was being hosted.
She walked to the ballroom with her heart in her mouth, not knowing what she would do when her eyes locked with Veer’s. She spotted Stefan as soon as she stepped into the party area.
“You look great!” Stefan gently hugged her.
“You don’t look too bad yourself, Stef.” She laughed, still feeling anxious. She moved around the room as Stefan introduced her to the executive team of the network. She smiled at the people she met, but her eyes roamed from time to time. It took a few minutes to realize Veer was not in the ballroom.
People trickled in for the next thirty minutes but no Veer, and her anxiety turned to disappointment. She sat at the table with Jerry and Andy and chatted with them until they heard Stefan on the microphone.
Stefan accepted the applause and kicked off the event. He talked about the two weeks he and his team spent in the rainforest. He made sure he credited everyone and finally turned to smile at her.
“A special thanks to Ariya from the team and especially Veer, the star of our show who is unfortunately stuck at home sick,” Stefan said, and her heart took a nosedive into her stomach when she heard Veer was sick. The crowd broke into applause when the picture of Veer, his eyes gleaming at her just before his haircut, was projected on the screen behind Stefan.
Ariya coughed fighting back a sob. She looked at the picture fighting back the tears. She saw the depth in his eyes and knew she had to go to him. She needed him in her life and decided not to be miserable for another minute. She stood up from the table when Stefan continued to talk about the trip, but Jerry caught her hand.
“You okay, Ariya?”
“Yes, I need to go,” she whispered.
“Hang on, I’ll give you a ride.” He stood up and followed her out of the ballroom.
“You should go back, Jerry. I will have the person who brought me here take me back home.” She turned, but Jerry followed her out to the car.
“Back to Palo Alto, miss,” the elderly gentleman asked.
“No, I need to go to another location. I can give you directions.” Her voice wavered at the thought of what she was going to do. She was going to knock on Veer’s door. She had texted him a ‘Hi’ on her way, but she did not get a response.
Ten minutes later, the luxurious car pulled up in front of one of the best apartment homes in San Francisco. She thanked the man behind the wheel and asked him to go back to the hotel and walked into the lavish lobby. She walked up to the young man at the security desk.
“I’m here to see, Veer. Veer Thakur.”
“May I see your ID miss?”
She gave the security person her ID, and he picked up the phone and dialed a number. After waiting for a minute, he hung up and looked at her. “I’m sorry, miss, I am not getting a response on the intercom. I need the tenant’s approval to let you in.”
She wanted to collapse on the marble floor and cry, but she smiled and thanked the young man. She turned, fighting back the tears and took a few steps toward the exit door. A ding from the elevator behind her made her stop, and she turned, almost on impulse.
Ariya’s eyes were blurred with tears, but there was no mistaking the tall, fuzzy figure of the man who stood a few feet from her. His eyes were locked on hers as he walked to her looking dapper in a dark silk suit and a light blue dress shirt.
She stood frozen as he walked to her and wrapped his arm around her waist. She threw her arms around him and buried her face into his chest, drenching his tie with her tears.
“Veer…” Her heart fluttered when he smiled at her. “I… I thought you were sick.”
“Sick of parties… without you.” His voice was a soft whisper.
“Are you headed somewhere?” She had no control over her words as her body felt the thrills of being around him.
“I was going to the party… to see you.”
“Veer…”
He gently hushed her and led her back toward the elevator without another word. She looked up as she walked next to him and saw him clench his jaw. They stepped into the elevator, and he punched a code on the number pad on one side of the elevator.
Veer pulled away slightly to look down at her. “I can’t stop thinking of you.”
“Veer… I…” He sucked her words and the air in her lungs as his lips closed in on hers. She moaned into his mouth when her back hit the elevator wall. Her hands wrapped around his neck, and she hoisted herself by locking her legs around his waist.
Veer kissed her with so much hunger she was left with no choice but to match the passion. She dug her fingers into his neck when his lips left hers to roam the column of her neck. “Baby, I missed you.”
“I missed you, too… I’ve been miserable since the day we got back.” She sobbed.
“I’m here, sweetheart,” he mumbled against her neck before bringing his lips to hers to suck her lower lip and feast on her sweetness.
The elevator doors opened, and he stepped out into his living room holding her in his arms and never wanting to stop devouring her mouth. He walked her straight to his bedroom unable to bear the need to be unified with her, a need he had been fighting for weeks. He decided to give her, her space for few weeks, but they have been painfully long and hard weeks.
“I want you, Veer,” she murmured against his lips, and it made him want to rip the beautiful dress she had on that night. He slowly pulled his lips away and let her feet back on the floor.
His hands cupped her face and looked at her. “You are so beautiful.”
She smiled, feeling the heat creep to her cheeks. He let his hands slip lower to cup her bare shoulders and then one hand slipped to the center to cup her yearning breast. He took the other hand to the rounded curve of her bottom and melded her body to his bringing her softness to his steely rod.
Her breath hitched when she felt his desire for her against her belly. The hardness that threatened to dent her flesh sent waves of sweet pleasure through her body. His hands roamed hungrily making her skin tingle with his touch. His touch triggered sensations that deepened the ache inside, and she couldn’t get enough.
She pushed aside his suit jacket and started fumbling with his tie. He let her body go and helped her remove his tie, followed by the buttons of his shirt, diving to their freedom. She had only wondered what it would feel like to touch the skin that layered over his rock-hard muscles.
“I need you now, baby,” he groaned into her chest.
She gasped when he buried his face in her chest, and she felt the prickle from his facial hair through the thin material of the dress. She arched her back, his hand supporting her back as he ran his hand over her curves like he was memorizing every inch of her body.
He went back to claim her mouth and swept her feet off the ground to make her body fall onto the mattress, his body threatening to crush her with his weight. He bit down on her lower lip before letting go of her mouth to wander downward.
Her breath hissed when he looked up at her from her chest as he squeezed one of her breasts. She moaned delectably, tossing her head sideways. She raised the small of her back off the mattress in anticipation as he took his lips toward her throbbing folds.
Veer buried his face in the delicate fabric of her dress right over her sunken clit as he reached for the hem of the dress to pull it up to her thighs, exposing the creamy length of her legs.
“I’ve dreamed of this for weeks.” He nuzzled her wet depths over the thin material of her panties while his facial hair put her delicate skin through sweet torture.
“Veer… I…” She lost her voice when he took a bite of her weeping folds over the soft fabric that served as the last barrier between them and her need to be touched by him in her most intimate part of her.
She gasped when he pulled her panties like he wanted to rip them and pushed them to her knees. He looked up at her as she looked at him with the deepest desire in her eyes. He smiled at her before planting a kiss on the top of her mound and then leaving a flurry of kisses on the delicate area as his beard and mustache set her skin ablaze.
She called out his name fisting her hand in his hair as he delved deep into her throbbing darkness with his tongue. He circled his tongue over her clit over and over again with such precision, and she shuddered with pleasure.
One hand reached out to squeeze the breast he ignored as he flicked his tongue over her clit and when she felt the sweet pain in her chest, she came in a million shudders. She moaned his name unable to use her voice as he lapped up her arousal like he couldn’t get enough. He was lapping with so much pleasure that he moaned into her folds making her come again, waves of pleasure clashing inside her for a surge of sensations making her float into a state of bliss.
“You are the most beautiful thing ever when you look at me like that,” he said, bringing his lips to her and making a concoction of her release and sweetness that made him shoot up even before he entered her.
Her heart drummed in her chest, and he lay down next to her, pulling her into his arms. He rocked her against his bare chest as his hand found the zipper that would give him access to her pebbled nipples that begged for his touch.
He slowly ran the zipper down and flicked open the hook on her strapless bra as his lips grazed over the delicate skin on the side of her neck. He rolled on top of her and sat up, straddling her waist. He looked down at her as he pulled the fabric off her shoulders and down her chest along with her bra.
His breath hissed making her hold hers when he laid eyes on the beautiful mounds of flesh on her chest. He ran his hands over the smooth skin, his thumb flicking over the hardened nipples, his eyes never leaving hers.
A familiar throbbing started again, deep inside, much deeper as he lowered his mouth to her chest. He sucked one nipple into his mouth while he worshipped the other with his thumb and index finger. When he switched, he bit down on her nipple, and she thought she was going to go blind from the pleasure. He let go of her nipple and traced the lower line of her breast as he pushed her dress all the way to her ankles and she kicked it off her feet.
When he sat up and looked at her laying beautifully naked in front of him, the beast inside his pants begged for a release. As if she knew what he wanted, she moved her hand and brought the back of her hand to rub on the hidden hardness before reaching for the belt buckle. His finger circled her belly button as she battled his belt and zipper, a small smile playing on his lips.
She pushed down his pants and boxers, and he shed them easily and went to lie next to her. His heated body made hers feel like ice, the ice that can be melted by his steely-hot rod. He rubbed his throbbing hardness against her flesh as he kissed her slowly, gently.
Gone was the hunger with which he kissed her in the elevator, gone was the urgency with which he made her come, and it was replaced with something more intense. The need to savor the moment, the need to etch every sensation, every touch deep inside.
She placed her hand on his cheek and smiled. “Don’t make me wait.”
He smiled softly kissing her, slowing down every moment. He traced her lips with his tongue while he took the tip of his hardness to the drenched folds between her legs making her shudder. She moaned his name as her eyes rolled to the back of her head in sheer decadence.
He rolled on top of her without breaking the kiss and shoved his beating beast into her depths. His initial entry was met with some resistance as he stretched her like she was never before and then her muscles relaxed, cocooning him in their warmth. He let her lips go and buried his face into the crook of her neck as he pulled out and dove deeper into her with slow deliberation.
“Veer, I want you to come inside me… It’s… I’m on birth control.”
“Baby… I want you to come with me.” He pulled out and pounded into her with more power making her moan. He flattened his palms over hers to her side, entwining their fingers. He looked down at her and commanded. “Look at me, sweetheart.”
Her eyes fluttered open, and she was lost in the haze of the moment as he built up the rhythm, his body humming to the sensations, and they swirled through her like a vagrant tornado. When his tip scraped over her deepest spot, she cried out delectably making him spray her inner walls with his warm release.
They moaned in unison as they wrapped each other with their body and floated into pleasure land with their hearts beating rapidly in their chest.