Page 6

Chapter six

I descended the stairs slowly, adjusting the thin strap of my camisole, my heels clicking against the hardwood.

The smell of fresh coffee and bacon filled the air, and I didn’t have to look to guess that Titan was at the stove, Cruz was leaning against the counter with a mug in his hand, and Storm was probably reading an article while he ate his perfectly balanced breakfast.

“Morning, beautiful,” Cruz greeted, his eyes skimming over me with appreciation. And he was standing exactly where I thought he'd be, mug in hand .

At the stove, Titan looked at me over his shoulder, his expression neutral. “Damn. You look good enough to ruin.”

I rolled my eyes, smiling as I said, “And you sound like you really mean that.”

“You know he does,” Storm said from the table, flipping a page of whatever he was reading. He didn’t look up, but I could hear the amusement in his voice.

I crossed the kitchen and stole a sip from his coffee just to see what he’d do. He let me, and smiled watching me. Of course.

I was his princess.

Cruz pulled out a chair for me at the breakfast bar. “Come eat.”

I took a bite of Titan’s bacon instead, leaning against the counter. “I don’t have time. I have a million things to do today.”

“Like what?” Titan asked in his no-nonsense way.

“A bunch of meetings, then deadlines, then after work, I have to shop for a dress for the wedding.”

Cruz raised an eyebrow. “New dress, huh? Who you out here trying to impress? ”

I laughed. “Um, your frat brother’s bride. I’m not trying to look a mess in the pictures.”

Titan scoffed. “It’s for us, brother. She wants us drooling over her like a hungry man near a piece of juicy steak.”

I picked up another piece of bacon. “Yall drool over me no matter what I wear.”

Cruz grinned. “Unfortunately, that's facts.”

Titan tilted his head, eyes narrowing. “Who is your date?”

“Why?” I said, eyebrow raising. “Are you offering?”

They exchanged looks, then Storm finally looked up from his paper, eyes dark and intense. “Come with us," he said.

The words hung in the air for a second as I considered what they were asking. They wanted the four of us, together, in public.

I crossed my arms, giving them a playful look. “I’ve done a lot of unorthodox things with y’all, but I don’t know if I can do that .”

Storm chuckled. “I mean, was playing, but now—“

“Now, we’re serious,” Titan finished. “Let’s make that happen, Goddess. ”

I hesitated, excitement coiling in my stomach. Out with all of them And nobody would know but us?

Sounded kinda sexy.

“Fine,” I said, shrugging a shoulder. “But don’t expect me to hold y’all’s hands or feed you cake or anything.”

Titan made a face at me. “I don’t give a fuck who’s watching. If I want to lick frosting off your pretty little fingers, I will.”

Heat spread through me. “Maybe,” I said shyly, earning a smirk from him.

Cruz walked up to me, bending down to kiss my cheek. “Have a good day, sexy. Don't trip and fall in them stilettos.”

I swatted at him before turning my gaze to Titan. “Goodbye kiss from you?”

“If you have to ask…”

Ugh, he was so annoyingly sexy. I walked over to him and tilted my head up, silently pleading for affection. He stared down at me with those dark eyes, cupped my chin, and nipped my lower lip.

I knew better than to ask for more, so with my head swirling and my body ablaze, I grabbed my bag off the counter so I could make my exit. As I reached for my keys, Storm caught my wrist, gently pulling me toward him.

He reached into his wallet and handed me his black Amex.

“Take this.” His voice was low and thick. “When you go shopping, I want you to spend enough to make me sweat.”

I narrowed my eyes playfully. “Define sweat.”

He smirked, his eyes dropping to my lips. “If you send me a pic of your dress and I ask for a price, that means I’m sweating. If I call, that means I’m excited.” He leaned in, his lips brushing my ear. “If the card doesn’t go through, that means you went too far.”

“But it’s black.”

He pressed his lips to mine, pulling back with a smack. “You’re in charge, Princess. If you wanna fuck my shit up, I’ll just have to take it, won’t I?”

Warm tingles spread through my lower body, landing right between my legs.

“You will,” I said softly as I plucked the card from his fingers.

Titan and Cruz exchanged a look, and Cruz a big grin, but they didn’t comment. They seemed to be enjoying this in a way that felt very familiar, like they were watching a rerun of their favorite show play out onscreen.

I made it to work somehow, but I didn’t remember the journey. I was too preoccupied with thoughts of Storm, and this new reality I was living in with him.

Last night was…mindblowing. And not just the physical part. The foot washing and oral sex felt good, of course, but something about him sharing his deepest desires with me felt even better. Paradigm-shifting, in fact. Because I know it wasn’t easy for him to expose himself like that to me.

It was special.

And now, he expected me to escalate, and I wasn’t sure I knew how to do that. I had no idea where the line was, or how to strike a balance.

Make him sweat? I didn’t even know his budget. The parameters he set were ambiguous enough to make me sweat.

But maybe that’s what he wanted.

Well.

Come 5 o’clock, I guess we were both gonna be sweating.

“Black tie, formal, semi-formal?”

My new best friend Juliana rolled out a rack full of dresses, all arranged by occasion, then color.

The moment I stepped inside of Diosa, I was enveloped in an atmosphere of quiet luxury—something that’s often hard to find in Miami.

We’re loud and proud here, no shame in our game.

But I found this little gem tucked away near a restaurant I frequent and thought it looked like the perfect place to make Storm sweat.

“It’s semi-formal,” I said to Juliana. “But I wanna be on point.”

Because I had three whole dates to impress. That’s serious business.

The amber and vanilla candle-scented air wafted past my nose as Juliana stepped in front of me with three beautiful choices; red, pink, and black.

“Can I try all three? ”

“Of course!” she said, smiling brightly. “You can try on every dress in this store if that’s what it takes.”

Music to my ears.

The lighting in here was perfect. Soft, but purposeful, casting the most flattering light imaginable. Staring at myself in the floor to ceiling mirrors in the private dressing area, I looked like a piece of art. I turned left, right, around to see the back…not a bad angle in sight.

Between the three, the red one was calling my name. I wondered if I should wear red to a wedding, as fine as I am, but then I thought about Storm.

I checked the price tags.

Coincidentally, the red one cost the most.

A smile spread across my face.

When I exited the dressing room, Juliana rushed over, ready to earn her commission.

“This one,” I murmured, handing over the red dress. “But I need to take a picture and send it to my…boyfriend.”

She nodded approvingly as she held it up in front of her. “It’s a statement piece. He’s gonna love it. ”

I pulled out my phone, snapped a pic, then sent it off to Storm, wondering what his response would be, or if he’d respond at all.

Seconds later, my phone vibrated.

Storm

Beautiful. Can’t wait to see it on you. And off you

I felt warm all over, but it wasn’t enough. He wasn’t sweating yet.

“He likes it,” I said to Juliana. “I think I might need some shoes to go with it.”

“Follow me.”

She lead me straight to the Louboutins. Far be it for me to argue, I tried on several pairs before settling on a strappy gold pair. High. Classic. Devastating.

Juliana took a picture of me from behind.

Storm

Damn. Sexy af

My dick so fkn hard right now

…

How much?

I grinned. There it was.

“I think I need jewelry.”

You would have thought I just told Juliana she won the lottery.

She snapped to, skipping over to the register to secure my dress and shoes while I stepped back into my sensible work flats.

After, she led me through a glass door to the other side of the boutique, where a handsome white-haired older man named Willery showed me glass cases full of diamond earrings, bracelets, and necklaces.

I took my time picking out a pair of teardrop shaped earrings. They were very elegant, and expensive as hell.

I sent another picture.

Moments later, my phone rang.

My heart beat a little faster, wondering if I should answer. It was in my nature to nurture. To make men feel comfortable with me. Be their peace, as they say. I wasn’t used to causing a man stress on purpose.

Another call, then a text.

Storm

Santar i

Just my name. Somehow, the lack of any other words made it more intense. Was it a command? A plea? A warning ?

I stared at the screen, pulse thrumming in my throat.

I could picture him, sitting in his office, his jaw tight, his body coiled with tension, but no chance for release.

Not yet, anyway. I imagined his chest rising and falling as he waited for me reach out, trying his hardest to be patient as his sense of control continued to diminish.

Another call.

Against my natural instincts, I didn’t answer.

“Thank you,” I said to Willery. “I’m ready to check out.”

He walked me back over to Juliana, who was behind the register now. She barely batted an eye when I handed her Storm’s card. She’d probably seen this game a few times before…a woman with expensive taste and a man willing to indulge her.

The only question now was, would the card go through?

I wasn’t in the mood to be embarrassed. I didn’t wanna be the black lady who got declined trying to buy thousands of dollars worth of luxury goods.

I’m gonna be on the news.

“So, I just have to tell you,” Juliana began. My heart sank. “Because your name isn’t on the card, I have to contact the concierge to verify the purchase. We do that with everyone,” she rushed out.

“No problem,” I said. “I understand.”

My heart thudded even harder.

She lowered her voice, turned her back, and murmured into the phone while I waited to hear my fate. Willery stood over by the shoes, lurking, watching the proceedings with interest as I died a little inside.

Finally, Juliana turned back to me, a smile blooming across her face.

“Would you like your items wrapped?”

I blew out a quiet sigh, my shoulders dropping, my stomach settling. “Yes, please.”

“Right away,” she said, handing the card back to me.

For some reason, it felt weightier in my hand now. More substantial. This little thing held a lot of power.

Or maybe I held the power .

Fifteen minutes later, Willery escorted me out the door to my car. I was feeling pretty good now, and a little smug. That feeling lasted about ten seconds before I saw it.

Storm’s car.

His dark blue Mercedes sat covertly in a space about two rows back. The door opened, and out he stepped, looking like sex and danger wrapped up in one six-foot, perfectly built package.

I wasn’t sure how to react, so I didn’t. I ignored him as Willery carefully loaded my new items into my backseat.

“It was a pleasure,” he said with a carefully crafted smile. “I’m sure you will look lovely.”

“Thank you, Willery. Hopefully I’ll be back soon.”

I said that part loudly and for Storm’s benefit. Not because I cared about shopping again, but because I cared about turning him on.

Our eyes met across the parking lot, giving me a rush of adrenaline that shot right between my thighs. The set of his jaw, the crinkle of his brow, the slight narrowing of his eyes—they all told me he was on tilt.

Right where I wanted him.

As he stalked toward me, I noticed something about his walk…it was different. More aggressive. A greater sense of urgency.

Oh.

No wonder.

His erection was leading the way.

Biting back a smile, I braced myself, inhaling deeply when he pressed a soft greeting to my lips, taking a hit of his cologne, luxuriating in his energy.

“You ignored my calls,” he said in a voice that was dangerously low.

I nodded slowly as he inched me backwards. “I wanted you to sweat.”

My back met my car door. He had me pinned in, now.

“Did you?” I asked.

He grabbed my hand, guiding it to the space between us, pressing it against the front of his pants.

“What do you think, Princess?”

I almost moaned when I felt how hard he was .

“Did you like torturing me?” he murmured, his lips brushing mine.

“I liked it so much, it made me wet.”

“Mmm.” Another soft kiss, then a quick nip of my bottom lip. “And now you need a release, don’t you?”

“I do.”

He pressed his hand against mine so I could feel him throb. “You like to fuck in public, Princess?”

The question jarred me out of my lustful stupor, bringing me back to reality.

“I don’t…I’ve never…”

“We can wait ‘til we get back to the house, or I can please you right now,” he said, his breath fanning over my ear. “Your choice, baby. It's whatever you want.”

It was an easy decision to make, really.

Of course I wanted him right here and now.

The only question was one of logistics, but I trusted him to handle that.

I trusted him with me in every way, which said a lot about my growing feelings for him.

It said things I wasn’t even conscious of until this very moment.

“Right now.”