6. Yara

Chapter 6

Yara

“ A nother shot please.” This wasn’t my typical bar, but it would do. It was lit in red, the drinks were heavy, and it hadn’t gotten too busy yet.

I smiled at the bartender as he set my glass down and made my way back to the corner booth. I had zero interest in being social, I wanted to numb some of the aching pain that was threatening to overwhelm me.

I had just enough time to throw back my shot before two men slid into my booth, wedging me in the middle.

If I was a bit more sober, the panic might very well have set in, but I wasn’t.

“May I help you?” I asked, not looking at either of them.

“What’s a pretty little thing like you doing alone here?” The one to the right leaned in, pressing into my shoulder.

“Waiting for my boyfriend,” I stated nonchalantly, adding a shrug for good measure.

“Oh, is that right? You’ve been waiting for quite some time,” The other man advised.

His words sent a chill of unease down my spine.

Exactly how long had they been watching me for?

Across the room, I watched a large barrel chested man I had been keeping tabs on get up. I suspected he was Kazi’s “cousin. ”

“Here he comes now. Sugar!” I waved my hand as the burly man approached.

He looked absolutely nothing like Kazi, but I supposed cousins could do that. Where Kazi was pretty, this man was rugged. Dangerous. He stood well over six feet tall, muscular, and had a shaved beard covering his jaw.

A jolt of desire shot straight to my core as he walked up.

What the fuck?

“Yara,” the newcomer stated, his voice gruff from disuse. Calling me by my name confirmed what I already knew–he was the man Kazi sent in his absence. He turned to my unwanted guests; they were no longer arguing with me, instead their faces had turned white.

Men never quite listened when a woman said no. They had to wait for a man to back her up.

One left right away, putting his hands up in surrender, but the other clearly had a death wish.

“I watched you get up from across the room, I bet you her name isn’t even Yara. Fuck off man, I found her first.”

My hand came up on its own accord, my palm landing up and against the intruder’s nose with a satisfying crack.

“You bitch!” He went to raise his hand as if to hit me back, but Kazi’s cousin was already there to forcibly remove him.

“I suggest you leave. Now.” The voice left no room for argument and this time the sod left without a backwards glance cursing up a storm.

“Sit with me?” I gestured to the now empty spots.

The man furrowed his brow before shrugging. “Might as well. You’re not going to ask how I know your name?”

He was surprisingly graceful as he folded himself into the seat, he even kept a respectful amount of space between us.

Which I found unexpectedly annoying .

“Kazi told me his cousin would be keeping an eye on me tonight.”

“Did he now? Name’s Mateo.” He offered me a ginormous hand to shake.

I turned in the booth, giving him mine. It was almost comical the size difference. He gave it a light squeeze before wrapping his thick calloused fingers around my wrist.

“You’re ridiculously tiny.”

“Uh, thanks?” That was a new one. “How about this? I’m going to get us some shots.” I pulled my wrist from his grip and I could see the shock written across his face as I slid out the other side of the booth.

I ordered three shots from the bartender, chugging one before grabbing the other two.

I wasn’t exactly thinking straight and Mateo was making it even more challenging. His critical mahogany eyes were following my every move and his attention was causing sparks of anticipation to skitter across my skin.

I wanted to climb this man.

Which was decidedly not a good idea.

My alcohol muddled brain didn’t agree.

“Here you go.” I didn’t return to my seat. Instead, I gave in to my intrusive thoughts. Moving to his side, I settled lackadaisically on his knee that was halfway out of the booth. He stiffened and I attempted to shift and rethink my bold move, but he wrapped an arm around me, securing me in place.

“You’re playing a very dangerous game, little bee.” His guttural voice was directly in my ear and it sent chills of anticipation to the neediness furling in my belly. One of his arms stayed wrapped around my stomach pressing me against him while the other grabbed his shot. I expected him to drink it, but instead he brought it up to my lips .

“Drink.” His voice vibrated against my back. I didn’t think to argue, I simply opened my mouth as he pushed the glass against my lips, tipping it up.

I swallowed it down. “Little bee?” I questioned.

“Bright.” He set the empty glass on the table. “Lively.” He brought his fingers back up to my lips wiping away the burn. “Fierce.” He pushed his fingers into my mouth. “Suck on these, show me what you can do before I pull my dick out here and now and fuck you at this table.” He readjusted me in his lap until my ass rubbed against his hardened cock.

I hissed at the contact. This wasn’t how I thought the night would go, but this beast of a man wasn’t putting me on edge as many men before him had.

In fact. It was quite the opposite.

My heart pounding in my chest was from excitement—not the typical fear—as I leaned back further into his embrace.

Is it because he’s related to Kazi? Is that why he isn’t prickling my anxiety? Why I feel so secure in his arms?

Even though they looked nothing alike.

I sucked down his fingers greedily, swirling my tongue around them. My hand reached down, finding his hard cock, and I brushed along its length through his constricting jeans.

This might not be the smartest idea, but I needed a release. It had been too long. I needed to expel some of my pent up rage, and this man was offering it up to me.

He groaned, removing his fingers, and thrusting upwards into my hand. “Fuck,” he expelled, nipping at my ear. “Too fucking hot.”

I turned to face him, my hand reaching up and tucking his chestnut hair behind an ear. It was soft, silky. At odds with the disarray it appeared to be in. “Not to sound too cliché, but I think we should go somewhere more private.”

Mateo made a sound of agreement before he was lifting me up with him and throwing me over his shoulder.

He ignored my protests and the concern of the patrons as he walked swiftly out the door.

His one hand holding my dress down and his other securing me in place.

“This wasn’t what I had in mind!” I objected, trying to wriggle free.

He ignored me, walking a single block before pausing in front of a hotel. “Lucky I was staying nearby.” He cast his attention left and right. “Someone has been following you,” he murmured the words before walking into the hotel.

My irritation shifted to unease. It was hard to see anything other than Mateo’s glorious ass as he walked us to the elevator, but his words were breaking through my drunken stupor.

Is it my stalker? Someone else? What if by being with Mateo he ends up involved? Anxiety prickled across my skin at the thought as Mateo stepped inside the elevator.

I was thankful to see the elevator’s interior wasn’t reflective.

I didn’t want to even imagine what I looked like at this point. My messy hair, the rolls on my stomach pushing out the sheer fabric of the dress, the scars on my legs on full display.

“Can you let me down now please? This isn’t the most comfortable.”

He obliged. Sort of. Instead he lifted me so he was holding me up and forced me to wrap my legs around him. With the shortness of the dress, my cunt rubbed against him. Only a thin layer of silky material separating me from his jeans.

He grunted at the contact .

I could barely manage to get my legs around him as I used my arms to encircle his neck.

My eyes found his. “This works.”

His face was an impenetrable mask, but his eyes were swirling with emotion.

Lust, excitement, adoration.

The elevator dinged and he walked us off; his attention torn between me and where we were going.

Only a few more steps and we were in a room.

I could tell Mateo appreciated my body, that he was impressed with what he saw. It was why being wrapped around this behemoth of a man made me feel so powerful, wanted, and horny . I wanted nothing more than to end my dry spell with him whether it was a good idea or not. I needed to let loose.

I deserved it.

Once he had the door shut, I yanked his head down, pressing my lips to his.

I could tell that I was drunk as fuck, but I didn’t care. I wanted more of this man, of whatever he had to offer.

I wanted to fuck him and get it out of my system.

Pushing my tongue into his mouth, he allowed me to take control.

I lost myself for a moment in the feel of his hand under the curve of my ass holding me compressed to him. Of his other hand tangled in my hair as we consumed each other.

But when it was time to pull apart, I made the mistake of glancing around.

My eyes landed on the TV’s black screen. Of my reflection.

My wild hair, my chubby cheeks, my arms falling out of the dress sleeves .

He wasn’t expecting me to jump off him as I tumbled back onto the ground with an umph , but I didn’t pause.

Finding my destination, I made my way to the bathroom, slamming and locking the door shut behind me.

It was time to puke up anything that was left in my stomach.