Page 30 of The Pursuit of Happiness

I shake my head, “Nothing important. He just has a nasty attitude.” I scrunch my face in disgust to accompany the last sentence. His nostrils are flared with anger and I tilt my chin up to face him better, “Hey, don’t worry about it. I don’t care.”

He huffs, “I do.”

I give him a confused look, “Why? I just said it’s fine.”

“I care because he’s under the impression you’re my real girlfriend and he thinks it’s okay to speak to you that way.” His eyes are darkening, the turquoise deepening in color. His usually bright eyes are starting to resemble the deepest depths of the ocean, an area left undiscovered.

I give him a reassuring smile, “Sly, seriously, let it go. It’s fine. I’m not your real girlfriend so no harm no foul, right?”

He gives me a look of pure exasperation, his mouthdownturned into a frown. “That’s where you’re mistaken, Aria Kane.” He leans in close, his eyes glazing over, “The entire world thinks you’re my real girlfriend. As far as I’m concerned, you belong to me.” Gone is the sweet and sensitive Sly I’ve gotten to know these last few weeks. In his place is a Sly that I don’t know. This is a version of him that’s dominant in a way I haven’t yet seen from him. This Sly gives me the impression that he’s not afraid to take what he wants.

I’ll admit, it turns me on in a way that has me clenching my thighs together. I’m attracted to him when he doesn’t talk like this, but when he takes control? I’m a goner. I try to keep a visage of confidence on my face even though it’s taking a very small village to keep my legs from turning to jelly. “I don’t belong to anyone,” I try to feign confidence and fearlessness, but it doesn’t work. Instead, my voice comes out shaky and low.

He laughs, a low and very intoxicating laugh. “You don’t sound too sure about that.”

“I’m sure,” I protest, a small amount of my confidence returning.

Clearly, it isn’t enough because he smirks as he leans in close so our mouths are about an inch apart, “If you’re so sure, why are you squeezing your legs together like that?”

A quick, panicked look crosses my face before I force it away. I slowly unclench my thighs to plead my case, “I’m not.”

His eyes are on my lips as he grins, “I’m willing to bet that if I put my hand in your panties right now, it would come out dripping wet for me.”

I feel my cheeks redden. Who is this man and what has he done to Slater? I like him with his usual aura of playfulness and happy-go-lucky personality, but this husky and seductive side of him is alluring as hell. The stubborn side of me wants to make some kind of rude comment to downplay his accusation, but we both know it’s a true statement. Besides, I don’t want to argue. Iwant to give in to him. I lean my hips forward so that they press against the hard length of him through his jeans. He grunts as if in pain, “Why are you tempting me, Kane?”

I smirk, “You’re not the only one who can play games, Nicks.”

He cups my jaw in his large hand, angling my face so that I can’t move it. He stares into my eyes and a moment passes between us where we’re both silently communicating something, but we both don’t know what. He looks like he’s fighting some kind of internal battle. Whatever the battle is, he loses because he whispers, “Fuck it,” against my lips before his mouth crashes down to meet mine.

At first, I’m so startled that he’s kissing me, that I’m stiff and he pauses, pulling away. “Fuck, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-”

I cut him off by fisting his shirt in my palm and tugging his mouth back to mine. He’s surprised at first but then he relaxes. He grabs a handful of my hair with one hand and uses the other to explore my waist. His lips graze my bottom lip seeking entry and I open my mouth for him, allowing his tongue to find mine.

I can’t believe I’m kissing Slater Nicks. Not after the tape. I’m so traumatized from that fucking tape, it made me resent Sly. I know it’s ridiculous and entirely unfair considering he’s a victim of that tape and the drugging the same way I was. I just couldn’t help it. I needed someone to blame because the faceless, nameless person who did this is still unknown.

I made peace with the fact that I would have to spend time with Sly to cover up this whole mess. I promised myself I would keep him at a distance in an effort to not give the media reason to back up the claims they’re making about me. I mean come on, making out with Sly in an empty club hallway is making me look really guilty of the slut allegations that have been made against me.

I feel Sly’s hand rove over my ass and squeeze it. He closes the distance between our bodies, deepening the kiss and I moaninto his mouth. I feel the valley between my legs aching with need for him. I need release and soon because if I don’t get it, I just might combust.

I grind myself against his length and he groans, breaking our kiss to trail kisses over my jaw and neck, licking and biting the skin. Nothing about what we’re doing is sweet or innocent. No. Our kisses are all desperate and hungry. “Careful, Kane. You’re on a slippery slope right now,” he groans as he kisses my collarbone.

I throw my head back and moan, “Please, Sly.”

“Please what?” He asks, a wicked edge to his voice signaling he knows exactly what I’m begging for but he just wants to hear me say it.

I run my hands over his chest and squeeze the material of his shirt, “You know what.”

He laughs, his hand moving from my ass to my breasts, squeezing them through what little fabric there is on my top. His hand moves lower and lower until his fingers trace the edges of my pants. He dips a finger into my waistband and I gasp, desperate to feel him between my thighs. “I want to hear you say it,” he demands devilishly.

My brows furrow with rage and impatience. I don’t want to give in, but I know that if I don’t, I may not get the release I need. “Please touch me,” I plead, a note of impatience in my voice. I don’t particularly feel like asking him to finger fuck me, so that’s the best he’s gonna get.

His finger dips lower before he adds his entire hand, moving my panties to the side. In a second, his fingers are moving through my slippery folds, spreading my juices all over. He grins, “You’re so fucking wet for me, Kane. Just as I thought you’d be,” his voice is full of pride and something else. Something that sounds a lot like hopefulness just by judging the look on his face.

I roll my hips over his fingers, needing to feel him inside of me. “You want me to fuck you with my fingers?” He asks, amused.

I want him to fuck me with a lot more than his fingers right now, but I don’t say that. Instead I say, “Yes.”

His middle finger dips inside of me and I gasp. He slowly removes his finger before pushing it back in and I make a noise of arousal. He kisses me and I moan into his mouth as he creates a rhythm with his fingers.

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