Hot Sauce 1

Nyla

I stared at the photo on my screen, unable to look away. Ezekiel stood there by the pool, shirtless and glistening, his wet hair slicked back, those perfectly carved abs catching the sunlight like some kind of god. My brother Garrett was next to him, laughing, but my eyes only saw Ezekiel. He looked so hot it almost hurt. I’d been invited to go with them today, but the usual shyness had crept in, and I’d said no. Now I was regretting it so badly my chest ached.

“God, he’s so hot," I whispered, biting my bottom lip. A warm tingle spread through my body, racing downward. My hand started drifting lower on its own, chasing that feeling—

A sudden knock on my door made my heart slam against my ribs. I yanked my hand away like I’d been burned.

“Who is that?” I called, trying to sound normal.

“It’s me, your big brother,” Garrett’s voice came through the door. “I need to talk to my little sister right now.”

I grunted and rolled my eyes. I hated when he called me that, but I couldn’t exactly argue. I had just turned twenty, two days ago, quietly, without anyone noticing. My brother was twenty-nine while Ezekiel was twenty-eight. Quite the age gap you would say.

Still… being called “little sister” felt childish.

“What?” I asked, staying on my bed.

“Can you open up? I want to talk to you.”

“You can say whatever you want from there,” I answered, hugging my big brown teddy bear tighter against my chest.

“No, I want to talk to you inside. Please.”

I sighed, dragged myself off the bed, and opened the door. Then I walked straight back and sat down, clutching my teddy like a shield. Garrett stepped in, closing the door softly behind him, and took a seat on the edge of my bed.

He gave me a small, warm smile. “Look at you… all grown up and so pretty. In another life, I would’ve asked for you to be my sister.”

I sighed again, already exhausted by whatever this was. “What is it, Garrett?”

“Tada!” he said suddenly, pulling a box from behind his back with a dramatic flourish.

My eyes narrowed. “What is that?”

“Your birthday was yesterday, right?” he asked, smiling.

I sighed and slapped my hand against my forehead. “My birthday was two days ago, Garrett.”

“Ohhh, ohh, sorry about that. I totally forgot…” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Anyway, won’t you take this gift from me? It’s quite expensive, you see?”

I didn’t even argue. I just reached out, took the box, and opened it. The moment I saw what was inside, I gasped. It was a pair of those stunning limited-edition shoes from the luxury collection everyone was dying to get. The ones that could take years on a waiting list. I had wanted them so badly, but my part-time job at Subway could never cover something like that. Even when I’d shown my parents, they’d just complained about the price.

“Oh my goodness…” I kept whispering, running my fingers over the beautiful shoes.

Garrett smiled. “So, what do you think?”

“They’re so beautiful! Gosh, I love them. Thank you so, so much!” I threw my arms around him in a tight hug, squeezing him for a second before pulling back.

I slipped the shoes on right away and walked around my room, admiring them in the mirror. “What do you think?” I chuckled, striking a little pose.

“They look pretty on you,” he said, grinning. “Am I forgiven?”

“Yeah,” I nodded, still smiling.

“And another gift,” he added, pulling out a smaller box from his pocket.

I gushed with excitement, practically ran over to him, and took it. “Thank you!” I said as I opened it. Inside was a delicate, absolutely gorgeous necklace. My eyes widened.

“Not at all, don’t thank me,” Garrett said. “You have to thank Ezekiel. He was the one who got it for you.”

My heart skipped hard. “How did he know that day was my birthday?”

Garrett sighed deeply. “To be honest, I actually and totally forgot about your birthday. He randomly asked if we’d celebrated it, and that’s when I realized I’d missed it. We had to get you gifts.”

“Wow… he knows my birthday?” I smiled, a warm flutter filling my stomach.

“I mean, you guys follow each other on I*******m,” Garrett shrugged. “He probably saw it on your profile. He said he saw it there.”

I gulped heavily, my cheeks heating up. Does he also stalk my I*******m the way I stalk his? Oh god… This was really complicated.

He gave me a knowing look but didn’t push. “Well, I’m glad you like the gifts. Sorry again about forgetting your actual birthday. I feel like shit about it.”

“It’s okay,” I said, meaning it this time. The gifts were so thoughtful that it was hard to stay mad. “Thank you. Both of you.”

Garrett stood up and ruffled my hair like I was still a kid. I swatted his hand away, laughing.

“Alright, I’ll leave you to admire your new stuff. Let me know if you want to do something for your birthday this weekend. Even if it’s late.”

I nodded. “Sure.”

After he left and closed the door behind him, I let out a long breath and flopped back onto my bed. I picked up my phone again and opened the photo of Ezekiel. My eyes traced every line of his body — the sharp cut of his abs, the way his swim trunks hung low on his hips, the confident tilt of his smile.

Why does he have to be so damn dangerously sexy?

My hand moved downward again, slower this time. I slipped it under my shorts, fingers brushing over my already damp panties. A soft sigh escaped me as I started touching myself, imagining it was Ezekiel’s hands instead of mine. Imagining him fresh out of the pool, still wet, pressing me against the wall and kissing me like he couldn’t get enough.

My fingers moved faster, circling my clit as heat built between my legs. I bit my lip to stay quiet, but soft whimpers still slipped out. The necklace felt cool against my skin, a reminder that he had thought about me. That he had picked this out for me.

“Oh God…” I whispered, hips lifting off the bed as pleasure started to crest.

I was so close, imagining his voice, his hands, his body on top of mine when another knock sounded at my door.

I froze, my heart pounding.

Not again.

“Who is it?” I called, my voice a little breathless.

“It’s me again,” Garrett said. “I forgot my AirPods in here.”

I yanked my hand out of my shorts, face burning with embarrassment. “Come in!”