Sweet Spot by Stella Rhys

7

LIA

Okay, so the bar did kind of look like a sordid sex dungeon with its black lace walls and reddish glow. Pretty aggressive for a first date. I knew that was the point but it was still nerve-wracking. But thankfully, within thirty minutes of sitting with Hayden the Dog Hater, I found that he was mild enough to put me at ease.

“Don’t be afraid to tell me if you don’t like your drink, Lia,” he offered, nodding at my untouched glass. “I’d be more than happy to get you a new one.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I like it,” I assured him with a smile. “I’m just taking it slow.”

“Oh,” he nodded politely. “Well, I’m glad you like it. And it’s always good to take it slow,” he smiled back.

Agh.

I mean he was… nice. He hadn’t said a word about me being fifteen minutes late and to my relief he’d picked one of the booths instead of one of the overly sexy, bed-like seats. So he had that going for him and he was handsome. His smile was a dazzling white and he looked great in a tan sweater, brown jeans and camel loafers. Sure, he was weirdly monochromatic and dressed in a way that reminded me of handsome human cardboard, but it worked on him.

Kind of.

And even if it didn’t work on him, it didn’t matter because more than ever now, I needed to get Lukas out of my head.

That sexist pig.

I just couldn’t figure it out with him. Every time I leaned toward the idea that he might be okay, something reminded me that he was everything I should avoid. And just now, the latest reminder was the fact that he saved a woman’s contact in his phone as “Useless Gold Digger Bitch.” How could I possibly how found myself hung up over someone like that?

It was the hotness,I clucked at myself. See, that is the evil of flawless bone structure and absurdly defined muscles. They’re like the sun – they’re dangerous, they will blind you and you should never look directly at them ever again, I decided as Hayden went on about the superhero show he binged on Netflix last week.

I might’ve tuned out. No, I definitely did because suddenly, I was listening to the manager and waitress murmuring behind me. At first, it was because I found it amusing to hear them quietly trash the Wall Street douchebag in the corner, talking over everyone in the room about his big merger or whatever. But now I was listening to them because one of them was making muffled squealing noises and audibly bouncing on her heels behind me.

“Oh my God. Omigod, omigod, what is that.”

“What is what?”

“That. All three of that. Oh my God, I can’t even talk.”

I paused. Hold up. Three presumably good-looking men coming in barely forty minutes after I did? Right away, I had a hunch but I didn’t want to be right so I refused to entertain it. Focusing my eye contact on Hayden, I ignored the weird suspicion in my bones and the sudden heat in my belly. I made sure to put a smile on for him, too, nodding zealously along to everything he said.

Still, I couldn’t ignore the women talking behind me.

“I’m gonna kill the hostess if she tries to seat all that hotness at the bar.”

“Omigod, look, the big one just pointed like he wants to sit here!”

Shit, the evidence was damning but I refused to confirm it. Don’t look around, don’t look around, whatever you do, don’t look around.

I didn’t look around.

But that was no help because in seconds, I was watching a corset-clad hostess walk two tall men in front of our table, seating them at the booth directly across from ours. And oh, did I recognize one. It wasn’t Lukas, but it was that David Beckham-looking motherfucker who’d sat behind Sara at the café, who’d ratted me out for being a thirsty, sexless Lukas Hendricks fangirl – to Lukas.

He had a wicked grin on for me now and I was convinced I could smack him. I wanted to launch myself across the table as he caught my eye and dared to laugh, leaning over to the friend I assumed was Emmett. My face was aflame as they both looked at me, studying me, muttering to each other as if appraising me like a damned car. After a couple seconds, Emmett raised his eyebrows at me and nodded to Beckham, as if giving me the honor of his approval.

Douchebags – I don’t need your approval! I wanted to snap at them, making a fist around my drink.

“Lia, are you okay?”

I blinked over at a frowning Hayden. “Huh? Oh. Uh-huh,” I replied unconvincingly, swallowing the giant knot in my throat.

“Are you still thinking about your bad day?” he asked sweetly.

“Yes,” I nodded, eagerly taking the excuse. “I was. I just … ugh, that darned realtor!” I laughed, giving an awkward shake of my fist. “They’re just, uh, yeah. The worst. Will you excuse me for a second?”

He sat me down as I tried to get up. “Hold on. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just…” I looked down at my glass. “It’s too strong. I think I’m going to go to the bar and ask for a new drink.”

“I’ll do it!” Hayden insisted. “Please. What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn’t?” he smiled, grabbing my glass and sliding out of the booth.

I tried to protest but before I knew it, he was gone and I was suddenly holding my breath because walking into the room was none other than Lukas. He commanded all eyes in that sleek, black suit I’d seen him in at home. The shirt he had on underneath was crisp, black as well and while he’d worn a tie before, he didn’t now. Apparently, I noticed those things.

Gorgeous bastard,I cursed him since all I could do was helplessly sit and watch him approach me, his eyes burning into mine. His sheer size eclipsed the light as he made his way to my table and stood before me – raw masculinity wrapped in an expensive Italian suit.

“You look beautiful.”

He said it before I could so much as open my mouth and just like that I was compromised. “Thank you,” I murmured, watching him watch me. I had to blink several times before I even remembered I was pissed at him. “Lukas – ” I shook my head. “What you are doing here? I know you didn’t come just to have drinks with your friends.”

“I have no interest in hiding that I’m here for you.”

“And why are you here for me? You thought I couldn’t protect myself from an Internet stranger?”

“No, I thought you got an inaccurate impression of me back at the house and I couldn’t sit through my night without fixing it.”

I stared. “So you came all the way here to interrupt my date? Because I caught you calling some poor girl a gold digging bitch?” I laughed in bitter disbelief. “First of all, it hardly surprises me. Second, what could you possibly say to defend yourself?”

“I can say that Emmett was the one responsible for naming that particular contact – ”

“Please, Lukas – ”

“ – and the person in question isn’t a woman. It’s a guy named Cam,” Lukas said, his cheeks flexing when he said the name. I narrowed my eyes.

“Who’s that?”

“Formerly my best friend. And business partner. I forced him out of my company two months ago and he’s been calling repeatedly to argue the terms of his buyout. Feels duped, wants more money, the like. My friends hate him as much as I do and Emmett,” Lukas glanced over his shoulder, “who has his own unique charm with words,” he smirked, “put that nickname in my phone. If you don’t believe me, I’ll leave this here.”

To my surprise, Lukas slid his naked iPhone across the table in front of me, the screen already open to his missed calls. I stared at the last one – “Useless Gold Digging Bitch.” The time stamp matched the time I’d seen the call come in at home and a part of me did want to grab the phone and call right back. And then maybe flip through his camera roll and see what kind of dirt he had in there – sex tapes, dick pics, incriminating screenshots. There had to be a bounty of fascinating material from just the photos alone and biting my lip, I stared at the phone with true temptation. It was the coveted gateway into the mind of men as ridiculously hot and successful as Lukas, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t wish I could just read him like a book.

Still, I pushed the thing back at him.

“It’s fine, I believe you,” I muttered. “But you should go now. My date’s going to be back soon and – ”

“You’re not remotely interested in him.”

I cocked an eyebrow. “Oh, I’m not?”

He cracked a little smile. “No.”

“And how on Earth do you know that?”

“I know exactly what you look like turned on – let’s not pretend that isn’t a fact,” Lukas returned easily, his stare falling to my mouth. “I know just how pink and swollen those lips can get when you’re all hot and bothered. I know how you start to squirm. And I didn’t see any of that till about ten seconds ago. Correct me if I’m wrong but your date’s been gone much longer than that.”

I was defiant. “He’s nice.”

Lukas smirked. “I’m nice.”

“You couldn’t even say that without laughing,” I snorted.

“Give me a chance then,” he grinned. “I can be nice to you if you let me.”

Damn it. I believed him. I wasn’t sure why but I did since I knew it was a bad idea to. My fragile attraction for Hayden was based solely off of negative feelings for Lukas, and now those were fading again. And I couldn’t afford that. “Fine,” I finally said. “Then be nice to me now, Lukas, by leaving me alone. Just because you’re here doesn’t mean I stopped being on a date.”

He stared at me a second, as if trying to read my bluff. “Fine,” he said. “Just don’t drink too much,” he added with a smirk, turning on his heel before I could tell him to mind his own business. Grrr. I raged silently as I watched him sit with his friends at their booth, quickly joining Emmett in charming the figurative pants off the waitress. She was giggling nonstop and so hard I was sure I might see her pass out from lack of oxygen. Ugh.

Did I just tell Lukas to leave me alone and then get upset that he left me alone?

God. I wanted to tear at my own hair. What sense did my brain make anymore? Apparently none.

“Lia?”

“Just a former coworker,” I blurted when Hayden sat back down. He gave a quizzical look that told me he hadn’t seen Lukas at all.

“What?” he frowned, seeming flustered and distracted himself. “Um, I was just going to say that this is annoying but I couldn’t get you a new drink,” he muttered, gripping my original glass. “Apparently, we can’t order from the bar if we’re sitting at a table. Bullshit, if you ask me, but now we can just not tip.”

I stared at him, instantly put off. Damn it, Hayden. Why? I was rooting for you. Why did you have to go and ruin it? I groaned inwardly while outwardly forcing a smile.

“Actually, no, I used to be a waitress, so let’s definitely not do that. Besides,” I pried the glass from his hand, “it probably tastes fine now that the ice is melted. In fact – ” Bringing the drink to my lips, I took two-and-a-half large gulps, watching Hayden’s eyes widen over the brim of the glass. “See?” I wiped my mouth with my ring finger when I was done. “Everything’s fine,” I said despite knowing it wasn’t. What little interest I had in Hayden was officially gone and drinking did nothing to help it.

On top of that, I knew Lukas was watching me with disapproval for what I’d just done. I couldn’t help looking over to confirm it.

Oh…

Oh yeah.

My heart pounded when I caught his eyes on me, a stony look on his face as I heard Hayden murmur “damn” and scoot closer. He said something about how I looked “cute with a little liquid courage” in me, but I didn’t hear the rest because I was too busy having an intense, wordless stare-off with Lukas. From his booth, he shook his head lightly, just enough for me to see. From mine, I gave a subtle shrug as if to say, what are you going to do?

“I hope this doesn’t sound creepy but you’re seriously sexy when you’re drunk,” Hayden murmured in my ear.

“What makes you think I’m drunk?” I asked distractedly, my heart hammering as I watched Lukas lean back in his seat, taking a drink as he continued to watch me. His body language was calm, collected but his eyes were an entirely different story. Fuck, no man should look that good angry, I thought as Hayden’s chuckle tickled my skin.

“I don’t know. I guess I thought so ‘cause your lips got all red and swollen.”

Mm-hm. “They just do that sometimes.”

“Yeah? When you’re turned on?” Hayden made me go stiff with a hand on the upper part of my thigh.

Crap. My pulse picked up when Lukas sat up.

“Hayden,” I warned, removing his hand. My breaths were short and serrated now as I snuck glances at Lukas. His entire body faced me now, his darkened eyes trained on my every breath, as if waiting for the slightest sign that I needed out.

“I’m sorry. You’re just kind of irresistible right now,” Hayden said softly, sitting so close our chests touched. I didn’t have to look up to catch the swift movement of Beckham jerking Lukas back into his seat.

“Thank you…” I said unsurely, looking around for a bathroom. I felt eyes on me – Lukas, his friends, possibly the waitress. I hated the attention. It had my body temperature suddenly out of control. “Hayden, sorry, I just…”

“What?” When his hand cupped my knee, Lukas yanked his arm free from Beckham’s grip. My heartbeat quickened.

“I need to go to the restroom,” I blurted.

“I need to kiss you first,” Hayden murmured, grabbing my cheek and covering his mouth sloppily over mine. A sharp gasp burned my lungs as my peripherals spotted Lukas leaping up from his seat.

And just as quickly, I shoved Hayden to excuse myself from mine.

Shit, shit, shit, holy shit.

Blood rushed in my ears, loud enough to muffle my heels clacking in a hurry toward the bathroom. My heart was pounding as I rushed down a dim hallway, my mind racing with a million thoughts that all had to do with Lukas.

Frickin’ asshole.

I was humiliated by the scene that just unfolded outside and while Hayden was mostly at fault, I blamed Lukas. He knew he would make me nervous. He probably knew he’d cause some kind of scene and he still came to crash my date.

I hated that.

On that topic, I also hated how I did everything right to avoid distractions like him but then one night, he just happened upon me. I hated that no matter what I did, thought, schemed or said, he always managed to have the upper hand.

But more than anything, I hated that I was unpredictable around Lukas Hendricks. I barely knew him yet he had some kind of hold over me. One look at me and he had me wantingthings I never even thought about before the day we met and that thought pissed me off more than anything as I finally shoved my way into the women’s bathroom. But it didn’t stop me from letting the footsteps behind follow me in.

“Lia.”

I groaned a culmination of my frustration. “Damn it, Lukas, what are you trying to – ”

I’d barely spun around before he caught the nape of my neck and reclaimed my mouth, his tongue sweeping against mine with unapologetic roughness. My fingers dug into his shoulders as he grabbed a handful of my dress. Fisting it, he pulled me against him, continuing his vicious onslaught against my lips. I could taste his aggression, his urgency and I kissed him back with the same hot desire. My pussy throbbed the instant he dropped his hands to my ass and squeezed. I felt his hot erection press against my belly but before I could lose all control, I pushed away.

“Not here,” I breathed out, my cheeks on fire as he hit me with that steely gaze.

“Tell me what that means.”

I clenched my jaw. “You know what it means.”

“What?”

“That I want you.”

“You’ve wanted me,” Lukas corrected. “What you mean now is that you need me.”

“Fine,” I bit out. “I need you to fuck me. Not him. I’m not going to deny that anymore because I can’t but I don’t want to do it here.” I backed up, overwhelmed as Lukas moved toward me. “I can’t have you touch me again either,” I blurted breathlessly, “because if you do I’ll get tempted and despite the fact that I need to come more than anything in the world right now, I don’t want to have sex in a bathroom at some bar. Not for the first time in this long.” I exhaled and caught my breath. “I have to do it my way. Exactly how I want it.”

“That’s fine,” Lukas said. His stare was heavy on my breasts spilling out of the dress he’d twisted askew on my body. I chewed my lip as I watched him watch me, curious if I could push my luck.

“Also.” My breath went jagged when he flicked those eyes back up at me. “I want you to leave after we leave this bathroom. Take your friends, go to another bar and when you get home tonight, don’t knock on my door. Just wait for me to text you and tell you what I want.”

“Tell me what you want, how you want it. And we’ll do it.” Lukas’s voice came back languid, so thick with lust that what he said next hardly surprised me. “You’ll just have to give me the next two minutes to do whatever else I want to you.” Off my silence, he cocked an eyebrow. “Deal?”

My lashes fluttered. My best bet was to resist and say no but I was way too hot and way too curious, which just about summed up my whole damned relationship with Lukas. So nodding, I murmured, “Okay.”

He wet his lips. “Good. Now turn around.”

Swallowing hard, I did what I was told. My heart thumped against my chest, my sense of touch and sound heightening the moment I stood with my back facing him.

“Walk over to that table.” His voice was soft, husky. “And pull your skirt up for me.”

The shameless demand froze me for a moment. But with one heel in front of the other, I made my way to the vanity, cursing it for having no mirror. I wanted so badly to just look at him. I wanted to see what he looked like watching me as I reached the table. My fingertips skimmed its edge before I worked up the courage to reach down and grab my skirt. Gripping its edge, I peeled it slowly up my thighs, the cold air prickling over my bare skin. I couldn’t see Lukas but with my senses on high alert, I heard him. Barely, but I did catch the breath he sucked between his teeth once I had my dress hiked up to my waist, my ass exposed for him in the white lace thong I’d bought for Hayden.

Come on.

My thighs twitched, my fingers digging into my handfuls of cotton as I waited for his next command. But instead I heard nothing. It was silent for what felt like an eternity as I stood there, once again half-naked for Lukas and aching for his touch.

I almost jumped when I heard a sharp metal click.

The door. He’d locked it. Just knowing that, heat rushed through my veins. “Lukas,” I pleaded. “Tell me what to do next.”

“Bend over. Take your panties off for me.”

I hooked my thumbs in the sides of my thong, biting my lip as I bent over and pulled the lace down to my knees, letting it fall the rest of the way down to the floor. I heard Lukas coming behind me but still gasped when I felt him graze my naked backside as he sank to a crouch.

“Let me have them.”

I stepped out of my thong, peeking down to watch his hands gather it off the floor. I didn’t have to see to know that he’d tucked it into his pocket, and I could hardly breathe as I felt him spread my legs wide, rumbling with approval when I bent over the table without him asking. My cheek pressed against the cold surface as I turned to watch him. But my eyes squeezed shut the second he grabbed my ass and spread it apart, giving no warning before he ran the flat of his cool tongue along my hot pussy.

“Oh my God.” The words barely squeaked out of my throat as my entire body clenched and relaxed, over and over as he buried his mouth against me and licked. He gave me no time to breathe or catch up to what was happening. All he did was pulse his tongue against me, all over me, lapping at me so furiously I could hear the sounds of my wetness slapping every wall of the room.

“Play with your clit.”

I was stroking myself before he even finished his sentence. I heard his sexy laugh behind me as he pulled back to watch for a moment. “God, you get my dick so fucking hard,” he growled, gripping the back of my thigh and squeezing as he slid his palm up to my ass. With a spank and a yelp from my lips he smirked and pushed me back down on the table, lifting my right leg up so that I was spread wider for him now. My knee up next to my shoulder, he went straight to sucking on my clit.

“Lukas!” I cried out and clasped a hand over my mouth. As his tongue bathed my pussy, his thumb gently rubbed against my ass, spoiling and teasing me at the same time. It was such an explosion of clashing sensations that my stomach clenched and before I knew it, I was shaking, relying on his strong hands to keep me in place as I lurched forward and came.

Oh my God.

Oh my God, oh my God.

I stared at the wall as he marveled at the unbelievable wetness of my pussy. My heart pounded against the table as I held onto every last spasm of pleasure shocking my body.

Holy fucking shit. Slowly, I returned both feet back to the ground. That was quite possibly the best two minutes of my life.

Still trembling, I finally breathed, relaxing my grip off the edge of the table and watching the color return to my knuckles. Behind me, Lukas returned to his feet, making a low mm sound as he cupped the back of my leg, ran his palm up my thigh and spanked my ass one more time. Then with a hand fondling my breast, he stood me straight again, holding me against his chest as his free hand pulled my skirt back down my ass. I let my head roll back against his shoulder for a second and closed my eyes, savoring the lasting sensation of what the hell he’d just done to me. I only opened them when he turned me gently around, perching me on the edge of the table.

“How do you feel?” His question was teasing but I answered it with complete truth.

“So good,” I breathed out. I stared at his mouth, convinced it possessed some kind of fucking magic. He grinned as he watched me for a moment, clearly relishing the dazed look he’d just put on my face.

“Good,” he finally said, giving his cock an adjustment before nodding out the door. “I’ll leave you alone now. Right?”

I could only nod, my body still buzzing as I watched Lukas head for the door, unlock it and leave.