by P. G. Van
Their tongues tangled, and an intense throbbing started deep inside her. She moaned, tightening her arm around his neck as he dug his fingers into her flesh at her waist.
“You are so fucking hot,” he mumbled against her lips making her press her body harder into him.
“I want you.”
“Not like this.” He knew she was under the influence.
“No… I want you,” she demanded, pulling back to peel their lips away.
He ran the rough pad of his thumb over her cherry red, moist lips making her groan deep inside. “I’ll take you when you are sober and get you high with the things I do to you… not tonight.”
Kushi groaned an objection and took her lips to his, her fingers fisting in his hair. She used her body weight to push his back against the concrete and sucked in his lower lip between hers. “I am a grown woman, and I know what I want.”
He growled against her lips, his palm possessively cupping her breast squeezing it over her black, empire waist dress. She let go of his lips to bury her face in the crook of his neck as he trailed kisses down the side of her neck.
“You are such a tease.” He grit his teeth, and his hand let go of her breast to trail lower to the seam of her dress. He ran his hand along the length of her outer thigh. “You have beautiful skin.”
She moaned, catching her breath when his fingers trailed closer to the heated throbbing between her legs. “Don’t make me wait.”
“Sweetheart, you have no idea how hard it is for me not to rip your clothes off right now.”
“Do it,” she ordered.
That broke his resolve, and he dove into the apex of her thighs with his fingers. He rubbed the back of his hand over the moist spot on her panties. “You are so wet.”
She let go of his neck and let her head fall back spreading her legs and raising her hips to reach for his touch. Her back rested on his arm as his fingers teased her drenched clit over the soft material.
“Please don’t tease me.” She sobbed against his lips as his mouth closed over hers. She felt his fingers push the fabric of her panties aside and trace her folds one soft layer at a time. He sucked the air out of her, and her gasp was lost in his groan as his fingers dipped into her clenched depths. She pulled away from his lips to catch her breath and bit down to suppress a moan that threatened to escape her.
The music boomed, and people screamed with joy and happiness, but she was deaf to any other sound other than the sound of her beating heart and the rush of blood in her ears. He pumped his fingers into her building up a range of sensations all over her, a surge of raw, uncontrollable feelings and emotions that had her peak building—a peak she had never felt so strongly, and she groaned reaching for her release. She was floating toward a state of bliss when she felt a sharp, pleasurable pain as he bit down on her breast over her dress making her come undone.
She sucked in a deep breath as he rubbed his chin into her jawline, his rough stubble causing a delectable tingle on her skin. Her inner folds were still clenched around his fingers as he gently ran his thumb over her swollen nub down below.
“Baby… you are so hot,” he crooned.
“That was crazy,” she whispered and saw his smile grow.
“Can you handle one more?” He started stroking her, and this time she was sure she was going to die of a heart attack with the pleasure that rippled through her. She cried out in delight and dug her teeth into his shoulder as she embraced her release and came again when she heard him groan with pleasure.
Chapter 3
Kushi rolled in the bed, her muscles feeling sore. She groaned moving on her side of the bed and heard Megha moan in her sleep. She cautiously stretched expecting the headache from last night to return and instead another dull ache was what she felt between her legs.
“Shit.” She sat up in bed as the memories came crashing down.
“Kushi, are you okay?” Megha asked, half awake.
“Megha, how did we get here?” She looked down at her pajamas and remembered the dress she had worn last night.
“You are still drunk from last night… me, too.” Her friend pulled the sheet over her head.
“Megha… wake up.” She shook her friend, almost ready to panic.
Her friend yawned sitting up in bed. “What is going on?”
“I don’t remember… who brought me to the room? Who changed my clothes? Did you?”
“No. You left early and came here by yourself.” Megha ran her fingers through her messy hair.
“There is no way I would have known where the room is… was someone with me?” The last few words were a whisper.
“Someone? Who? Did you hook up with a guy last night?”
“I have no idea… I met this guy on the balcony…” Megha didn’t let her finish. She started jumping on the bed.
“Who is he?”
Kushi slapped her palm on her forehead. “I have no fucking clue who he is… thanks to your rules, I don’t even know his name.”
“Oh my God… where did you do it?” Megha started laughing.
“Stop it… I didn’t do it… just fooled around and…” her voice trailed off when the throbbing between her legs started again. “Shit… I don’t even know who he is but… oh my God.”
“What did you do?”
“Nothing… I just can’t remember a thing except for…”
“You are killing me… except for what?” Megha was dying with curiosity.
“I don’t believe this… how could I not remember anything… do I look fine? Do I have any bruises?” She started to panic.
“Kushi, stop it. Everyone in the resort is here for the wedding… no strangers, don’t worry.”
“Who could it be, Megha? His face was covered with a frigging mask.”
“Okay… only way to find out who rocked your boat is to go hang out by the pool. Anurag was going to gather all the guys for brunch by the pool.”
“I don’t know… isn’t that embarrassing? What did I do? I feel like a slut now.”
“Stop it, Kushi. You are single, and if he was at a singles party, so he must be single, too, and you are both adults. What’s wrong with that?”
“I know, but I don’t even know his name.”
“We can find out, let’s go… you go shower first, and I’ll ask Anurag to order breakfast for us.”
Almost an hour later, Kushi applied sunscreen on her hands while waiting for Megha to get out of the shower. She spent almost thirty minutes in the shower racking her brain about the previous night, but the last thing she could remember was the amazing feeling of being in the man’s arms.
The man, whoever he was, she was going to have to face him, maybe even thank him for keeping her company on the balcony, bringing her food and a drink, and taking care of her. Her heart started to race again at the memory, and she wondered if her heart would tell her who the man was when she sees him again.
“Megha, hurry up,” Kushi called out to hurry her friend.
“Why are you in such a hurry?” Megha grumbled.
“I’m hungry.” She remembered the smoothie he had given her on the balcony. It had fruits which were probably from the bar and used for the cocktails.
“What did you eat last night? I didn’t see you eat at all,” Megha asked as they stepped out of their room wearing sundresses to beat the heat.
“That guy… he brought me food to eat.”
Megha turned to look at her friend. “So, it wasn’t like you just… he seems like… a sweet guy.”
“Yes, he was, and the worst part is… I literally begged him to do it, and he refused. He said I had to be sober.”
“Wow, who is this guy?”
“I want to find out, but I need to eat first.” Kushi pulled her friend’s hand to walk faster.
“There’s my lovely, fiancée,” Anurag called out from the seating area by the pool. The resort was empty, but she knew a lot more guests were arriving for the Sangeet and Mehendi ceremonies scheduled over the next few
days.
Anurag was seated with a few men, all of them wearing sunglasses and seemed to be fighting the side effects of a hangover.
“Kushi, you don’t look hungover.” Anurag observed.
“Yeah, for the number of shots she downed.” Megha laughed.
They sat by the pool under the shade of a big tree enjoying the continental breakfast. Some of the masquerade party attendees from the previous night showed up shortly after.
“So, all of Anurag’s friends are here. Do any of these guys look familiar?”
“No,” she whined throwing her napkin on the table. “Which way are the restrooms?”
“That way?” Megha pointed, and Kushi walked away confused and feeling crappy.
Had she imagined the man and everything that happened?
Kushi was lost in thought when she turned a corner and bumped into someone. The next instant, she knew it was the man from the night before. She almost bounced back like she hit a wall, but he caught her, and she looked up, her eyes rising to his slowly.
“Good morning, gorgeous.” He had a sly smile on his face.
She pulled away taking a step back and looked at him in silence. He was wearing a light blue polo shirt paired with shorts. He was an extremely good-looking man with slight decency based on what she could remember of him from the night before.
“I… thank you for bringing me food last night.”
He smiled like he could see right through her embarrassment from the way her cheeks were flushed. “You are welcome.”
“I’m Kushi, and you are…” She held her hand out.
“Do we really need introductions after last night?”
“I don’t remember telling you my name last night.” She tried to sound casual.
“True… you know what I mean.” He looked straight at her, and she just refused to acknowledge the night with him. She was finding it odd and decided it was best to fake complete innocence.
“I had too much to drink… I barely remember anything.” She laughed, sounding nervous.
“Really?” He took a step closer, but she held her ground.
“Nice to see you… excuse me.” She started to move away, and he stepped in front of her making her look up and questioning his intentions.
“You. Owe. Me. One,” he whispered and walked away leaving her gasping for air.
She ran to the comfort of the bathroom and stayed in there until her heart rate settled down. It was a lot harder than she thought and knew she would have a tough time playing it cool around him. With that thought, she walked back to the pool area hoping he had left, and he wasn’t part of the wedding party.
Kushi’s heart sank when she saw him, again, sitting in her chair talking to Megha. She cursed under her breath and walked back to where Megha was sitting with the stranger. His back was to her, and Megha looked up and tilted her chin asking if Kushi was okay as she answered her phone.
She walked past the stranger and took the seat next to Megha and sat in silence without making eye contact as Megha spoke on the phone. She had her eyes lowered and fixated on her phone, but she could feel his eyes on her. Megha continued to speak, and more than once, the man tried to clear his throat, but she did not look up.
“Good morning, sir, how are you?” A male voice addressed the man.
“Good morning, Jeevan. Thank you so much for the special smoothie last night,” the man crooned making her look up.
The younger man who was standing was smiling, shyly. “Thank you, sir. It was your idea.”
Was the man an employee at the resort?
“You made it, and you did a fine job with what you had,” the man said cheerfully, and the younger man departed.
“Okay, okay… I’ll wear the pink outfit tonight,” Megha huffed ending her call.
“You okay?” Kushi asked looking at her friend.
“Just annoying people deciding what I should be wearing for my wedding events.”
“Wear what you want, Meggie,” the man chimed in.
Meggie? Did he just call her best friend with a name she had a copyright on?
“I don’t want to deal with it now… I just want to chill.” Megha kicked off her sandals and placed her feet on the cane ottoman.
“Do you want a drink or something?” the man asked Megha like he cared about her, just like he had asked her the night before. Who was this man?
“I’m fine, Nirvan.”
Nirvan? Why is that name so familiar?
Kushi felt the blood drain from her face when she realized the connection. Nirvan was Megha’s first cousin. He is the guy she was set up to go on a date with a few years back, and she never made it. She was so busy at the time, she had messaged him to tell him she couldn’t make it but didn’t want her best friend to know. She had asked Nirvan to tell Megha he didn’t like Kushi, but he refused to and suggested she tell Megha that they didn’t hit it off.
That was the last communication, and she never expected him to be the one she has a semi-tryst with on a balcony at her best friend and his first cousin’s wedding. She took a deep breath and managed to look up at him.
He was looking at her, the edge of his mouth twisted into a smile like he could see through her and her guilt of lying to her best friend. The one time she did, she was about to be exposed.
The man sitting across from her had her squeezed into a tight corner and had her craving for him at the same time. Not the kind of challenge she was expecting.
“Nirvan, get into the pool with us,” Anurag called out from one end of the pool.
Nirvan stood up and stretched before taking off his shirt and tossing it on the chair. Her mouth went dry at the display of the dips and curves on his chest.
“Nirvan, what did you do to your neck?” Megha asked as he turned away from them.
Kushi bit her lip to suppress the surprised cry when she saw what Megha was talking about. Nirvan had a hickey, a desire-driven mark she had given him the night before.
“A wild cat attacked me last night.” He laughed and dove into the pool to join the other men.
Chapter 4
“Kushi, are you okay?” Megha asked after a few minutes of silence.
She wasn’t okay, but she nodded. “All good.”
“You should have asked Nirvan if it was one of his friends you hung out with last night. He crashed the party with his friends.” She laughed.
“No, that’s fine. Are you okay?”
“Yeah… the wedding planner changed the background of the event tonight and wants me to wear my baby pink dress that I saved for my reception,” she grumbled.
“Meggie, you should wear whatever you want to wear… it’s your wedding.”
“Yeah, I picked the dress for tonight, so I can be comfortable when I dance.”
Kushi laughed. “I’ll accompany you in shorts if that’s what you want to wear tonight.”
Megha laughed reaching out to put an arm around her friend.
“Where are all the other girls?” Kushi asked about Megha’s cousins and friends.
“They probably slept in when we woke up. We’ll see them only at the parties.” Megha winked, standing up to grab a refill of her drink. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“I’m good. I want to take a nap here.” She put her legs up on the ottoman and slid down on the chair.
“Enjoy, I’ll be right back.”
Kushi closed her eyes and was lost in a suspended state within a few minutes. She wasn’t sure how long she had dozed off but opened her eyes when she felt something moving in front of her. The sun was coming out overhead, and the rays hit directly on her.
She sat up looking around wondering where Megha had gone as she moved into a chair that was under the shade of the tree. The chair she sat in offered her a good view of the men in the pool, especially the man who set her being on fire the night before. The group was laughing and playing with a ball in the pool.
Her eyes, hidden under her sunglasses, trailed over his bare chest o
blivious to the half dozen other models who were in front of her. She looked at him admiringly, not just for the way he looked, but for the person he was. She remembered the way she begged him to take her on the tiled floor of the balcony. She still couldn’t wrap her head around what made her so desperate in that moment.
Did he give her the attention and care she had been craving… for years? A sudden sadness enveloped her at the memory of everything that was going on in her life. Was he the one to shield her from it?
Kushi was so lost in thought that she didn’t realize Nirvan had gotten out of the pool and was walking toward her. He signaled to the man behind the juice bar, and she saw him hold up two of his fingers.
“Hey.” He tilted his chin up at her as he sat down on the lounge chair next to her facing the pool.
“Hi.” She was slightly at ease after sorting a few things in her head.
“You okay?”
“Yeah… I’m…” she trailed off when a young man stopped at their table with two drinks.
Nirvan took one glass and placed it in front of her. “For you.”
“Oh… thanks,” she said to the young man and then looked at Nirvan. “Thank you!”
“For?”
“I guess, first off for being nice about me not showing up on that date… that’s one thing I lied to Megha about and still feel guilty about it and…”
“And?” He raised a cocky eyebrow.
“And for bringing me food last night and getting me to my room safely. There is no way I would have gotten back by myself.”
“Sure… anytime.”
“I… I don’t know why…” He didn’t let her finish. “Are you going to tell Meggie about your parents?”
She straightened her back turning to her side to look him straight in the eyes. “What about my parents?”
“What you told me last night.”
She ran her fingers through her hair unable to believe he knew about a secret she had kept from everyone, even from Megha. One truth she hid from her friend, so she wouldn’t worry about her during the happiest time of her life.