Leila didn’t realize it, but she was crying. Tears streamed down her cheeks one at a time. She chuckled and wiped them out, a sad smile playing on her lips. She didn’t expect it to hurt that much, even after years. But the heart is a funny thing, it relieves moments you thought you had forgotten.
“Leila - “Ethan whispered, his voice shaky.
He reached to grab her hand, and she allowed him. She needed a bit of strength to go on with the story. She had been keeping those details to herself for so long. Finally, being able to say them out loud was like removing a painful part of her soul.
“I’m okay.” she said, before going on with the story. “I know you never asked those things of me. But as your partner I was obliged to consider what was best for you. For us. So, I decided to leave. My plan was simple. Become successful then return. I was in college, I had a career planned out, I had the motivation. I just needed to begin.”
“Then why didn’t you come back?”
“By the time I considered it was time to come back, seven years had passed. How would I have the guts to return? I knew you hated me. I broke things off over a letter, with not a single word to explain myself. I had no guarantee you hadn’t moved on and found someone new. I kept reading articles about you, I knew your business was doing well. Why would I come back and ruin things?” she asked. “Of course, life seemed to still be going according to old plans. It found a way for me to return without even asking. Or maybe I was silently asking, who knows?”
For what seemed like an eternity, Ethan and Leila looked at one another. Their eyes spoke words their tongues couldn’t even comprehend. Leila felt at ease. She had finally taken a burden off of her chest.
“Leila, I was never doing well. I had achieved every dream I ever had, but something was always missing. What good is it if you have everything you ever wanted but without someone you can share it with?”
“You could have shared it with anyone.” she shrugged.
“Would you have shared it with anyone else?”
Leila couldn’t answer to that. The answer was too obvious. There was no one for her in this world other than Ethan. She had learned that through long painful nights and countless broken hearts. Come to think about it, she never even tried to, all she had tried to do was distract herself from the actual hollowness she constantly felt inside.
“Yes, I would have laid the world at your feet. But not just because I could, but because I wanted to Leila. You were my muse, my motivation. Your love made me understand that I was more than the illegitimate son of my father and the heir to countless assets. “You were the one who had my back when everyone else was trying to stab it. You didn’t need to be anyone else, being you was enough. Is still enough.”
If her heart could explode, it would have happened right that moment. In that second, she wished they weren’t in such a public space, because all she felt like doing was kissing the life out of him. She hadn’t just been reminded of all the bad memories, but of all the reasons she loved him too. Yes, even after ten years apart, Leila could gladly say she loved the man with all her heart, and she doubted that would ever change.
“Leila, I know you have a life now. That coming back is not an option anymore. As selfish as I may sound, I can’t help but ask. What if you come back? Can’t we both start from zero? I don’t know about you, but I am sure as hell can’t seem to get over you.”
Leila was unsure of what to say. She looked at Ethan. He was right, she had her whole life back there, but not her home. Choosing Ethan was by far the only choice she would ever take, but being a grownup meant you also had other things to think about.
“Ethan, I love you. There is no point in acting like I don’t. Having a second chance with you is the only thing I’ve been praying for.” she began, her voice now strong and confident.
“But you don’t know if you can come back?”
“It’s not that. I always wanted to come back. England was only temporary. I just need some time to sort everything so I can transfer smoothly.”
“So, you’ll stay?” Ethan asked in surprise.
“What part in “I love you and I want to be with you” did you miss?” she asked sarcastically.
“If you keep on repeating them, I’ll gladly say I missed it all.”
*****
When Leila finally opened the door to her hotel suite, they both stumbled inside, both still locked in each other’s embrace. The sound of moans and groans was loud, slashing though the silence that lingered in the dimness of the night. Ethan heard the door lock, that had been the last sound he noticed before he grabbed Leila and pinned her against the wall.
He felt her body tense beneath his touch, her back arching against him. Saying he didn’t love the way she reacted to him would have been a lie. Slowly, with his lips still pressed to hers, he trailed his finger down her neck and to her chest. He made sure to linger in certain spots more than others, knowing fully well how mad it drove her. Her lips were soft, the taste of wine still lingering heavily on them, making him dizzy.
The sound of his blood boiling in his veins was loud in his ears, echoing louder with every touch of her hands. Her mouth moved with so much skill, molding against his as if they were always just one. Her tongue was in his mouth too, teasing his with the erotic dance it knew so well. Her fingers were tugging at his hair, pulling him closer to her, as if that was even possible. Her legs were around his waist, her hips rocking steadily against his.
It was safe to say that every inch of her was driving him crazy. Every part of her body worked in harmony with the other to ensure that he will never feel the same way with any other woman. Sometimes, he came to wonder how he could be so vulnerable, how could he crumble in ashes with one simple touch of hers. It was all a mystery to him. One he was impatient to reveal.
Her lips had now parted with his, their trajectory diverting slightly. She was now kissing down his collar bone and onto his neck. Her mouth leaving hot burning trails behind. She licked and sucked at the base of his neck, causing a deep groan to vibrate though his broad chest. In response, his hands dug deeper into the soft skin of her thighs.
He felt her smile against his skin, clearly happy with the reaction she was getting. Little did she know of his plan of making her regret it all. Her hands slid down his back too, reaching for the buttons of his shirt. She shakily undid the first one, her fingers brushed against his exposed skin. But, by the time she had reached his third button, she seemed to have gotten rather impatient, given that she suddenly decided to rip the shirt open.
“Easy there.” He whispered in her ear, before he grabbed her earlobe in his mouth, his teeth gently nibbling at the soft skin.
Leila moaned under his touch, her knees squeezed against his hips while her nails dug into his flesh. Slowly, his hands guided the hem of her dress upwards, revealing one inch of skin at a time. Ethan couldn’t be sure what was softer, the satin or her skin.
By the time the dress was off, Ethan couldn’t wait longer to have her naked under him. Slowly, his thumbs brushed over each nipple, taking their time to squeeze them. Leila arched her back as he did so, allowing him more access to her breasts.
Ethan eagerly accepted the offer. He lowered his head to grab one of the breasts between his lips, his tongue moving to coil around the erect nipple. He sucked at it violently, his whole-body trembling under the sweetness of her body. His other hand massaged her breast, giving it attention.
Her moans were loud, echoing in the empty hallway of her hotel suite.
“I told you, you shouldn’t have worn that dress.” he whispered as he carried her to the bedroom.
Ethan was surprised to find that the room was bathing in clothes. He looked at her through his lashes, amusement written all over his face. Leila just shrugged as he placed her on top of the few items that were still left on the bed. Impatiently, he threw them all to the ground, just in time to see her taking her panties off.
Ethan groaned at the sight of her. She was simply a
goddess waiting for him to have her. How lucky could a single man be?
By the time he was on bed, he had taken his pants off as well, leaving his manhood free. Leila’s hand had been around her core, her fingers working to release some of the pressure that had built along the way. Ethan couldn’t help but smile slyly.
Slowly, he lowered his head so that his mouth was now against her thigh, his tongue trailing up and down its length until it finally stopped on top. There, he nibbled on her skin, teasing her, before he finally moved to suck at her core.
He remained there for what seemed like an eternity. He got lost in the sound of Leila’s moans and the feeling of her sweetness against his lips. It wasn’t until he finally felt like she was going to explode, that he positioned himself between her knees, his tip fixed in front of her entrance.
Leila looked at him with her wide blue eyes, begging him to end her misery. What kind of gentleman would he be if he didn’t abide to his lady’s request? Without a moment hesitation, he thrust inside her, making her scream out his name.
Chapter 8
Not too long-ago Jonathan had called Ethan to tell him about his drunken marriage to a ballerina. When he had dropped the news to his uncle, he had described how he had woken up in the morning to an article declaring it. Back then, Jonathan had described how he felt, but Ethan failed to understand it fully. Now, a year after the incident Ethan had the pleasure of understanding the shock of waking up to terrible news from the press.
His secretary’s voice was still ringing in his ears, demanding he opened any newspaper. Sleepiness was still tugging at every corner of his mind, but so was his anxiousness. With shaky hands, he pressed on the link Susan had sent him. Even the internet seemed to be against him that morning, it was too slow for his liking.
As he waited for the page to load, he took a glance at the bed. Leila was still sleeping, her naked body bathing in the early morning rays. She looked so relaxed, and calm. He should have been there beside her, with his body tangled with hers. Instead, he found his first day of his reunion with Leila stuck on a chair waiting to see what catastrophe had hit on him.
The moment he lowered his gaze to glance at the lit screen in his hand, his jaw dropped. The title of the article was enough to make him understand what had happened. Night at the Museum: Dinning Among Art.
Beyond that tittle was every detail Ethan and Leila had discussed. It did not only hold their concept, but their vision, their plans. Even the planner with which they were about to sign a contract with had his name signed upon that article. Even in his dizzy state and with the sleepiness still gnawing at his mind, it wasn’t hard to understand that someone had sold the information to his worst competitor - the very reason he had even began to look for partners.
“Ethan? Did something happen?” Leila’s sleepy voice brought him out of his trail of thoughts.
Ethan wanted to smile and tell her he was fine. But she was implicated in the mater too. She and the team she had provided, had worked their butt off to come with the details of the concept, and now it wasn’t just gone, it was being used by someone else. Ethan took in a deep breath and shook his head, watching from between his lashes as she slipped in a loose shirt that had been thrown on the floor.
“The Millers, they just released a press statement declaring that their restaurant will open tomorrow.” Ethan began as he threw his phone on the beauty parlor.
“And?”
“Guess who decided to adopt a theme for the opening?”
Leila seemed to realize where the conversation was going. Her eyes had widened, and her lips had parted too. Shock and denial was written all over her features. She shook her hand and rushed to her phone, her hands shakily typing in words. Ethan knew the exact moment when her thoughts had been confirmed. The feelings that passed her face were a mix. It was shock and anger and panic and helplessness. He understood all of them because he felt the same. He didn’t speak for a while, he didn’t know what could be said. He was like a mouse caught in a trap. His only solution of assuring his restaurant’s survival had been flushed down the toilet, along with a contract worth of thousands of dollars and a concept that was hard to replace.
“Come on, let’s get dressed.” Leila finally said.
She was already searching for something to wear among the piles of clothes that were thrown on the floor. Ethan looked at her with a frown on his face.
“Where are we going? It’s barely six in the morning.” Ethan said in exasperation.
“We need to go to the company. We have to look more into it, talk to Susan, find a way to damask the traitor. I want to rip the heart out of whoever it is.”
“What good will it do? Our opening is less than two weeks away and now we don’t even have a theme.”
Ethan was beyond unmotivated. He sat there on the chair, his mind going in different directions, but none of them led to a solution. He didn’t even look at Leila; his eyes were set on the floor, the image of the article still floating in front of him like a phantom.
“What do you mean? Ethan we can’t possibly give up. Yes, we are in deep shit, but we can get out. Now, get changed.”
Ethan loved how she completed him. It was nice to know someone had your back when the world suddenly turned black and white. Having Leila by him to guide him through the darkness was a pleasant feeling, it made him feel like nothing was quite impossible.
“One small problem.” he finally said, a boyish smile playing on his lips.
“What now?” Leila asked impatiently while one of her brows arched.
“Someone kind of ripped my shirt the night before.”
*****
Ethan sat in his leather chair, behind the glass desk he had bought months before. Files were sprawled in front of him; the things that had been stolen were highlighted in red. He looked at the papers in disappointment, realizing that there was nothing they could save. It was all gone. The worst thing out of it all, was that they had no proof who to accuse of plagiarism. On the contrary, accusing them of such a thing could backlash at them. People could accuse them of simply causing a scandal in hopes of high advertisement. Ethan couldn’t risk such dark images for his restaurants.
In front of him, Leila and Susan were pacing around his office, both holding grim expressions. If under different circumstances, Ethan would have found it funny. Having them so close to one another, Ethan couldn’t help but realize how much they resembled each other. They both were strong, and when angry, it was better not to mess with them. The women walked in circles, only stopping every once in a while, as if meaning to say something. Of course, they said nothing, all thoughts were lost before any word could leave their parted lips.
“What now? We can’t leave them unpunished?” Leila finally said, breaking the silence.
She stopped in the middle of the room, her hands extending in front of her, mimicking the exasperation written on her face. Her words made Susan stop to, much to Ethan’s pleasure-he was dizzy from all the walking the two had done. His secretary looked at Leila with an annoyed gaze.
“What do you suggest we do? We weren’t the first ones to invent this concept. People will believe it was just a coincidence.” Susan said “Besides, I told you we should have announced it at the conference.”
She had told them so, but back then, having it a surprise had seemed like such a good idea. Who would have even considered such a disaster? Ethan had even begun investing, he had paid a design company a considerable amount of money to create a mural for one of the walls.
“I know we can’t publicly blame them. But what if we take our own justice, we can’t possibly remain silent. We’ll be taken for fools.”
Ethan sighed and looked at Leila, his eyes drowning in distress. He had no idea what Leila was implying, but from the fire that burned in her eyes, he could guess it was nothing good. It might not have been good, but it must’ve been better than sitting around. Ethan was burning with so much hate and anger, he was ready to do anything, just to get a little
taste of sweet revenge.
“What are you implying?” He rose a brow as he crossed his hands over his chest.
A smirk tugged at the corner of Leila’s lips. She looked at him through his lashes, happy to finally be asked of the plans that had been brewing at the back of her mind. Ethan regretted asking almost immediately, feeling the danger of the words that she was about to spill.
“We sabotage their grand opening.” Leila said without even a moment hesitation. She seemed rather proud of the idea and looked pretty serious about it. Ethan doubted she had weighed the consequences of being caught, though.
“You are mad!” Susan exclaimed “As much as I would love to do that, we can’t.”
“Why not?” Leila frowned in disappointment.
“Because, if we get caught, we risk a scandal! Plus, legal charges.”
“They won’t do any of that.”
“How are you so sure?” Susan asked.
“They won’t risk a scandal for the same reasons we won’t risk one.” Leila shrugged. “Besides, if we go there, we may also find out who the traitor is. I’m sure the guy got invited to the opening.”
Crazy as she sounded it was still true. She had a point. Ethan wasn’t sure if he wanted to believe it because he wanted hard to make them pay so badly, or because Leila was completely right. Whatever it was, both Susan and he seemed to be more than convinced and ready to put in practice whatever Leila had in mind.
“So, what’s the plan?”
For the next hours, the three got caught in a deep conversation about all the things they could do. If anyone were to hear them, they would either call them insane or childish. But who cared? They were ready to do anything just to get back at the person who dared mess with them.
Their plan had been simple, but if executed correctly it was bound to be the recipe towards the place’s downfall. Of course, Ethan hated to do something so low. But, given the fact that they were now in war, everything was fair game.
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