CHAPTER332
As soon as Leila knew they were coming she lost courage and high tailed it to the ladies’ room alone, telling us she needed a minute to breathe and fix her face. I know the men won’t take long to get here, knowing Jake they are probably camped out on the bar doorstep. He’s probably wearing out a hole in the pavement from frantic pacing.
Sarah and I sip our drinks watching the scenery, chatting non-descriptively, in the few minutes it takes that sexy six-foot two Adonis to come swaggering in, making my insides liquefy. He has the same effect on me every time I see him. He makes everyone else disappear, with just an appearance, like watching him course through the crowds at the Charity Ball all over again and my heart soars.
He spots us with his eagle-eyed observation and immediately turns our way with Hunter behind him. Some little brunette appears, stopping their progress, waving her hands and hips at him and a frown crosses Jake’s face as he looks down at whatever she’s saying. He gently and firmly puts a hand on her shoulder, pushing her aside without another glance, and he just keeps coming toward me.
Suddenly, I get what Leila meant. She wanted some sort of sign that Daniel was hers, not just weird angry dating and sex. She wanted to see him show loving possession in subtle ways like Jake just did. The girl was a test in Leila’s messed-up head, and he failed where Jake just succeeded.
Hunter needs to start making obvious shows of his love for her, be demonstrative, and assure her that this is the real deal for him. I doubt that he’s had any chance of showing any form of softness while Leila’s been in high maintenance feisty mode. He needs to be the guy he was when she was sixteen, the gentle boy who made her first time beautiful, if he’s ever going to win her round.
Leila is the same insecure and terrified girl I was. She needs Daniel to cut through all her crap and see it too.
He needs to romance her, rather than handle her; under
that crazy spirited exterior she’s still a girl shielding a
fragile heart.
When they approach, Jake swoops in and kisses me hard on the mouth, a hint of aggression telling me the last half hour has probably been torture for him and now he’s here needing to expel all his tension. I tilt my head back, straining my neck with the ferocity of his kiss and lose my breath at the sheer passion in it.
“Steady on, Carrero.” Sarah giggles, slapping him on his huge muscular shoulder. “Let the lady breathe. You might actually break her neck if you keep that up.” Jake throws her a non-apologetic smirk then comes back to kiss me, a little gentler, while still cupping my face and saving my neck from injury.
Daniel is holding back behind Jake, looking around sheepishly. He seems tired and stressed and, need I say, a lot heartbroken. He looks nothing like the Daniel Hunter of old, the little lost soul inside of him on full view.
“Where is she?” He butts in, doing another eye sweep of the room. It’s obvious he’s on tenterhooks and can’t seem to stand still. Jake stands and motions to the bar almost ignoring his question.
“We’re going to get drinks; we’ll be a couple minutes. You need top ups?” He strokes a hand down my face, turning away when Sarah and I shake our heads.
“Bathroom.” I raise my eyebrows at Hunter as Jake pulls him away, part of him so sure she wouldn’t be here, and he relaxes a little.
Bless him.
“Wait,” I say hurriedly. Jake halts and both men look my way. “I know you’re expecting fiery hell-cat and her usual shitty attitude, Daniel, but she needs some tender handling. It’s all an act and maybe if you try the gentle approach it might make a difference. She needs the guy who made her first time the best time,” I raise a brow subtly, seeing the way his frown ripples across his face as he takes in what I’m saying. Jake throws an arm around Daniel’s neck with a rather intrigued and mildly aggressive expression …
Oops … a reaction to finding out about Hunter’s removing of Leila’s virginity I expect.
“In that case, seeing as I’m the ‘pussy touchy one’ that you’re nothing like, we should compare notes, right?” Jake jibes Daniel’s own words back at him and pokes at his ribs with his free hand dragging him off to the bar. I would love to be a fly on the wall in their next few minutes of conversation.
I watch the pair saunter to the bar; heads close as Jake obviously imparts some words of much-needed wisdom or maybe drags Leilas first time truth out with hostility. They’re only just getting there when I spy Leila appear across the room. She instantly spots the most attractive pair here, by a long shot, and she loses every ounce of Leila confidence and spark. She fumbles with her bag and turns, retreating to the ladies’ room as though her ass is on fire.
This is not going well.
I go to get up, but Sarah catches my arm sitting me back down, her eagle eyes having seen Leila too.
“Let her regroup and try again, she’s only just laid eyes on him and I’m guessing it threw her. Give her time to do this on her own.” Sarah is always the wise one and I nod as we watch impatiently for any sign of her return. I can’t help catching the way Daniel’s head tilts in the same direction and I know he’s watching for her coming out, he didn’t see her the first time. His body language is emanating all kinds of fear and tension. The boy is seriously desperate to see her, it’s so touching. If Leila can’t see how much he loves her then she’s quite frankly a fool.
It feels like a long time of Sarah and I passing silent tense facial expressions before she nods toward the distance. I turn to see Leila walking out with head held high, a look of pure defiance on her pretty little face and the stride of a woman in complete bitch mode. She looks at us, locking onto her focus, before marching our way on a mission. She turns as she gets to the DJ box swinging her hips sexily as she makes her way toward him, leaning in and touching the DJ on the shoulder, whispering something in his ear.
I catch Hunter out of the corner of my eye looking her way and he moves out. Jake’s hand on his chest stops him, suddenly, and Jake leans in saying something in his ear. Close and serious and Daniel nods without tearing his eyes from his prize.
The DJ nods at Leila and seems to put on whatever request she has made as she moves back with a satisfied fake smile on that little face.
The sound of Pink “So What!” starts flowing across the room and I know Leila is trying to convey to Daniel that she doesn’t care one iota about his presence. She’s in full defensive mode and the walls are up. Her song choice is one of attitude and I don’t need you.
So definitively Leila She’s obviously found her spark again and Daniel better bring his backbone.
She turns to saucily saunter away from the DJ booth and I’m drawn to the fact that Daniel is almost upon her, catching her arm mid-stride, she recoils and tries to haul it from him. But he just keeps a strong hold tugging her back with him by the wrist to the booth. His arm stretched out as she tries to go the opposite way, but he keeps a firm hold of her while leaning into the DJ and saying something. He holds out what looks like a hundred-dollar bill then the music is cut instantly. As soon as the softer notes of a new song starts Hunter turns back to the deathly still, glaring, girl in his grip.
Ed Sheeran “Thinking Out Loud”, waves across the room and I can’t help but smile. Hunter is taking my advice, doing this the softly, softly way. I could almost applaud him right now; instead of bringing his wild cat back to heel he’s sweeping her off her feet. He should have done it this way long ago.
The only thing on his face right now is fear, and I watch in fascination. Her little chin lifts and bristles with defensiveness, his body sags and he becomes completely submissive to her, almost in response, reading her.
Daniel is not being his usual dominant, cocky self with his little fury girl. He’s reaching inside showing her a part of him that obviously existed when she was sixteen years old, when he’d made her first time with him memorable. A part of Daniel I’m guessing no one ever really gets to see.
Jake slides in next to me, placing two beers on the table, sliding an arm around me and joins in on watching The Hunter and Leila Show.
“I told him to stop with the games and just talk to her, like a normal person; to stop acting like this was all some “casual see where it goes bullshit” and just be honest with her,” he says huskily.
Games huh? Not so long ago I knew a certain guy who was rather partial to our little games. That guy seems to have calmed down nowadays though.
I smile up at him, warmly, receiving a kiss on the forehead as a reward before my eyes snap straight back to the couple that I really want to sort things out.
Leila tries to tug herself away again, but Hunter won’t let go, despite her resistance her normal fire is absent, and she turns her body instead, so she can look away from him. He only steps closer so he spoons her, his hand instantly moving to her hair, gently brushing it away as he leans in saying something in her ear. His whole manner is soft and agonizingly sincere, and I can’t help feeling like we’re getting a glimpse into something deep and meaningful. The music flowing over the entire bar only adds to the heart tugging scene before me, the song, somehow, crazily Daniel.
Whatever he’s saying is having some sort of effect as Leila’s lip starts to wobble, and she bites on it to stop herself from crying. The music obviously giving a helping hand as her defenses start to crumble, lifting that chin again, tensing her body to try to resist. He lets go of her arm and runs a trail of fingers from her wrist to her shoulder, still bent in low, talking directly into her ear. She physically trembles and I smile, knowing exactly how Jake can make me feel by doing that, knowing Leila has zero chance with Hunter if she does love him. Brief tender touches have a way of going straight into your soul.
Daniel stands up straight, walking around her so they’re face-to-face. He tilts her chin up on gentle fingertips, softly. Leila stiffens and presses her lips together hard. She’s trying to stop herself from crying, stop herself from submitting, but Daniel is obviously doing an amazing job with whatever words are flying from his mouth. He has an expression of sheer adoration on his face as he moves in, slowly lowering himself to her height. He looks nothing like the boy I met so long ago, smug, and cocky, checking me out. Instead, there’s the softness of a heart on show, desperation to win back the woman who makes him whole. It pulls a little tug of emotion from my chest.
It’s obvious to the entire room that Daniel Hunter is well and truly deeply in love with Leila.
He delicately cups her jaw with one hand, brushing back stray hairs from her face with the other, he’s still saying something to her. In fact, the whole time they’ve been standing there, while she’s been in defiant silence, he hasn’t stopped talking to her. Her body is slowly loosening its stiff resolve.
A tear rolls down her cheek and he wipes it away with his thumb gently, kissing her where it was. There’s a body flicker a little at the contact. He leans in lower, bringing his mouth achingly close. Sarah and I are locked on, with bated breath watching and waiting. Captivated by every beautiful moment unfurling across the room, mentally pleading with Leila to let him in.
Jake’s drinking his beer, casually stroking my shoulder, not as fascinated by this emotional scene as we women are. I nudge his thigh and point, urging him to look and take some interest in what’s happening here.
Daniel and Leila are really connecting.
I glare at him as he smirks and shakes his head at me. He’s obviously a typical man after all, having no clue or care right now and looking moderately bored. Watching him means I’m missing them, so I flip my gaze back to the pair feeling Jake’s hand run across my head, petting me, because once again I’m so devastatingly adorable to him. I sigh, eye rolling at his typical guyness, and wait with bated breath.
Daniel is so close to her that their mouths are almost touching, he’s still talking, still moving painfully closer. Edging in, softly, keeping her eyes locked on his.
I wonder what the hell he’s been saying all this time?
He’s cradling her face and slowly the tension in her body seems to be sapping away. He’s breaking down the Leila defense system and the walls are slowly lowering. Finally, agonizingly, he bridges the gap and kisses her, painfully slowly, eyes fully locked. Their gaze, one of the gentlest and tender I have ever witnessed in my life and it tugs right into my stomach causing a huge pit of female emotion.
Sarah and I both clasp hands and gasp “Aww …” at that same moment I catch Jake eye rolling, dramatically, which earns him a smack on his thigh.
Unfeeling bastard.
As soon as Leila relaxes into Daniel’s kiss, their eyes close and he slides his arms around her waist and lifts her up to his height. Her arms slide around his neck and presses into him, so they mold together perfectly. All cute little compact curves against tall hard and athletic muscle, they make a gorgeous blonde couple.
Leila’s heels pick up, she bends her knees so any passing victim could be impaled on those shoes, but neither of them seem to care. They are oblivious to everything around them as they move into a deep passionate kiss with a lot of tongue, getting as close to one another as is humanly possible.
I know how that feels.
I shy away with an uncomfortable frown as their passion turns up a gear.
Okay, so cute when it’s romantic. But now it’s just a little pervy to be watching them hit full-blown erotica.
Jake leans into me and kisses me on the cheek. I guess that’s his little ‘Oh I’m happy for my mates’ gesture, and now he can get back to convincing me that I really want to go home. He seems to be completely unaffected by this scene and I wonder what the hell he’s done with my normally so loving Adonis. I guess that side of him only comes into play when it’s about us."
