4 | PARIS: THAT AWKWARD MOMENT

JOY

By the aura Vince carried, I wasn’t surprised to see how quickly he had booked a VIP area for us. The area was larger than the lounges—a semi-round couch around a round table that had a champagne bottle dipped in a bucket of ice.

"Deux verres, s'il vous plaît," said Vince, turning to the waiter.

The waiter handed him the glasses and walked past me with an odd grin glued to his lips, making me scrunch my face.

"They are not used to seeing such an entrancing woman like you," Vince said.

“Entrancing?” I asked, sitting on the couch with a leg over the other. He only nodded. "So, do you come here often?"

I tried not to ogle at him and pulled out my phone. I caught glimpse of a few messages from Aubrey, and I laughed. Aubrey worried more than my mother ever had whenever I went off to a club or a party. I quickly replied to Aubrey with a few heart emojis and strode the phone back inside my purse.

I looked up to find Vince watching me intently, and my heart skipped a beat. He sat beside me, awfully close to my liking.

"No, I was here for some business purposes, which had ended faster than expected. So, I came here to get some escape from work and you know the rest." He shrugged. "What about you?"

"This is my first visit to Paris, and I was here for business as well, which had also finished early. So, here I am."

"A businesswoman? I like it."

"I'm not, but I'm a daughter to a businessman."

"So am I." He smiled. "I mean I'm the son of a businesswoman."

"Interesting." I couldn't help but wonder why a man like him seemed shaky around me. His Adam's apple bobbed while he took a deep breath and kneaded his shoulders. "Why do you seem nervous?" I asked with an arched brow.

"Will it be weird if I said you’re making me nervous?"

"I’m making you nervous?" I snorted. "Are you serious?"

"Yes." He licked his lips and stared at me as I chugged the entire glass of champagne, all the while holding his gaze. Who drinks like that? I scoffed at myself at the back of my mind.

"You are different." I quirked my eyebrows at him to which he added, "Any other girl would've jumped over me by now, especially with my looks and personality, so either you don't know me or you're already committed."

"If I was committed, I wouldn't have been here with you.”

He laughed. “Trust me when I say this that many committed ladies have had no problem getting into my bed.”

“Oh god, that’s . . .” I gulped, stopping myself.

Of course, he was promiscuous. With looks like that, I would’ve been worried if he weren’t. And he was narcissistic. A very lethal combination.

I added, “I have to say you’re handsome. You can brush your ego with that.” He was trying hard to subdue the smile tugging the side of his lips. “But being handsome doesn't mean that I'd have to lick your face. And do I need to know you? Are you in the mob or something? You should warn me if I’m in trouble or something."

As embarrassing as it sounded, I’d indeed thought of jumping on him . . . because I was that drunk, and he was marvellous. The alcohol was playing with my hormones and my entire body was warming up under his intense gaze.

"You’re in huge trouble.” He grinned, pursing his lips to one side. “I am just used to people, particularly women, talking about my looks all the time. It's to get into pants or my pockets.”

“That’s awful,” I said.

“You looked like the only normal person in the club."

"I'd take normal as a compliment. It's so nice to hear someone say that."

"Would you like anything else?" The waiter interrupted once again as Vincent was about to speak. He looked at me and I shook my head. Perhaps more drinks would be a bad idea. I sighed.

As soon as the waiter walked away, he retorted, "You are not normal . . . you are incredible and—"

"Okay, okay, I get it. Enough with the pickup lines already." I flung my hand around, realising I was blushing.

"It wasn't a pickup line, Joy." Tugging a strand of hair behind my ears, he drew his face close to my ears and whispered, “I’ve wanted to do this since I saw you.”

The way he said my name was enough to play with my mind and his hoarse voice, on top of it, sent a tingling sensation down my stomach.

I turned to look at him, his eyes boring into mine, our noses brushing. He shifted closer to me, his silver eyes glistening under the dimmed yellow light. He brushed his lips on mine, his warm breath hazing my senses. My entire body was calling out to him, which was a new sensation to me. I’d never let people touch me, but with him, I didn’t want him to stop.

In seconds, his hands slid back and gripped my neck to keep me from moving away before he pressed his lips on mine. I stiffened, my hands fisting over my knees as a familiar ache followed its way into my heart. I could hear my own muffled screams ringing in my ears, yelling for help.

But the next moment, Vince pulled back and looked at me, his eyes filled with so many emotions, but above all, desire and longing. My chest heaved, and I gulped, not knowing how else to react. I didn't get to kiss him back, and I was regretting it immediately after.

He rested his forehead on mine and moved one of his hands to caress my cheeks and brushed his thumb on my lips. The tenderness in his touch was enough to make me forget all the thoughts that were clouding my mind in just moments. How can a touch feel so good? 

The next thing I knew, I was the one who pulled Vince by the lapel of his jacket into a rough kiss, my hands cupping his cheeks. He let out a soft groan and lips tangled to mine.

He pushed me to lie on my back over the sofa and hovered on top of me, with my legs straddling him. He deepened the kiss while caressing my cheeks with his warm fingers. With him, I failed to remember why I’d feared men touching me in the first place. The sensations were terrific, sublime.

Maybe it was the wine and all the margaritas. Whatever it was, I didn't want my fear ruining this moment.

I complied with each of his movements. His tongue evaded my mouth and chafed mine so softly it was heartbreaking. He trailed his kisses down to my throat. He licked and grazed his teeth right over the pulse point, making a soft moan leap out of my lips. One of his hands rested over my belly, heating my skin over the fabric of my dress, and the other pressed down on my neck.

But then, his hands moved down my neck, and that was when . . . I messed up.

***

 

VINCE

I wanted to beat the shit out of the bartender for staring at Joy that way. That filthy asshole! Because not even my icy glare could do the trick. But the waiter wasn't the only thing bothering me.

I couldn't stop myself from inching toward her to move the strands of hair falling by the side of her face. I wanted to graze his hands on her smooth cheeks, down her sharp jawline. God, I wanted to do things that would make her run for the hills.

And when I finally gathered the courage, I pushed myself to kiss her. But what upset me was that she didn't kiss me back. I tried to force my mind to believe that my move was too sudden for her to react to. Then again, a part of me could see her fidgeting and the thousand emotions whirling in her eyes.

She was scared. Whether from me or something else, I couldn’t tell.

I was about to move away when with a sudden grasp on my cheeks; she pushed her lips back on mine. Her lips had instantly parted for me and I tasted the champagne smeared in her mouth with a hint of strawberry. The boundary between me and my control shattered and the next thing I knew, I was already on top of her, fondling her tongue with my own while my hands slowly motioned down her cheeks to her neck and breast. She shuddered under me when I pulled my lips to her throat and sucked on her skin. Even her skin was fucking delicious.

Just as my hands moved down to her firm breasts, a sharp sensation pierced my lips, and I quickly sprang up. Joy had bitten me.

I watched her sit up with a horrified expression on her face. The metallic taste of blood escaped into my mouth as I sucked on my bottom lip. What the hell? When I made a move on a girl, they cooperated. They willingly gave themselves to me, but seeing Joy react in a way I hadn't expected made me angry.

"What was that for?" I groaned.

She looked at me, her eyes almost tearing up. I turned away, afraid of watching her cry. I felt betrayed. My mind tried pointing out the reasons she was so uncomfortable around me. She had said she wasn't committed, yet it seemed to me like she was.

I got up from the couch.

I’d always got everything I wanted and right at this moment, it was her. I craved her. She was different and every nerve in my body was warming me of how dick-ish I was being.

My moves were unnecessary and very immature, I knew. But as the saying goes—habits are the second nature that kills the first—this was that exact situation I was in.

"It's getting late. I should drop you home" was the only thing I said.

I understood by the look on her face that she was either embarrassed or sad . . . or both. She sat in silence and got up when the waiter handed my card back. I’d even tried to make eye contact after that but failed as she successfully avoided my narrowed gaze.

I am sorry—I was mentally screaming.

The ride to her hotel was full of awkwardness and sexual tension. I realised by her expression how regretful she was, and when I parked the car in front of her hotel, she didn't utter a word for a while and neither did I.

I was playing different sceneries in my mind of how to start a conversation before she got down. I wanted to end our meeting on peaceful terms without having to hold grudges against each other.

I didn't want her to go back to her hotel room and feel it was her fault I’d left.

"I-I am sorry for that," mumbled Joy, clearing her throat to break the silence.

She looked at me, her brows curving into a frown. But the next moment, I witnessed a smile appear on her lips, a smile so genuine that a fluttery feeling spread across my chest, making my heart drum with a rhythmic beat. There it was—the very smile that made him walk up to her.

"Well, goodnight. It was nice knowing you, Vince."

I opened his mouth to speak, but before I could manage any word, she stepped out of the car. I wanted to pull her back in and kiss the heck out of her. Take her right here in the car. Kiss every square inch of her body. What the fuck is she doing to me? 

"Fuck it!" I growled loudly before walking out of the car and closing the door with a loud thud.