Page 6 of High Stakes

I shrug, “Usually. What’s the point in owning a club if you have to serve yourself?”

Bella

I swallow my drink in one go because I feel uncomfortable. Carl's completely ruined my night and now I’m stressing about where I’m going to stay. If I was a normal girl of my age, I would probably hook up with some random guy and spend the night with him, only I’m not normal. I’m starting to feel like holding on to my virginity for the right one has become a hindrance.

It’s not like I woke up one day and decided I was going to save myself, it just kind of happened. I haven’t met a manthat I’ve wanted to go that far with. The thought brings my attention back to the gorgeous God, sitting opposite me.

“Do you own this club?” Aria is quizzing him.

“Sort of.” He finishes another drink and indicates to the bar that he needs a refill. It must be nice to hold that much power, and boy can he drink a lot.

“How can you sort of own a bar? You either do, or you don’t. Why did you turn up at Bella’s today?”

He shifts in his seat looking uncomfortable. “She already knows why.”

“No, I want the real reason,” insists Aria, “Why would some hot, club owning man, with people that run around after him, just turn up and pre-warn a girl about that. Why would it bother you what happens to her?”

I feel like I should jump in and rescue him from her never-ending questions, but I want to know the answer to this one, Arias got a point. Suddenly I’m shoved along the booth by the bar man. He grins at me as I squash up next to Aiden.

“Hey gorgeous ladies, your night doesn’t look very fun from where I was standing.”

“We were trying to get to know this mysterious man here, but he’s not giving much up.” says Aria.

Raff gives me a mischievous grin. “You want to get to know my man here, Bella?”

I feel myself redden with embarrassment, and I stare down at my drink. “It’s Aria that wants to know him, not me.” I’m mumble before kicking Aria under the table.

She laughs, “I just find it odd that he keeps popping up to rescue Bella, are you even single?”

Aiden gives Raff a warning glance, and when he notices I’ve witnessed it, he stands abruptly. “If Bella wants to ask me shit, then she can do it herself, we aren’t in school.”

We watch in surprise as he stomps away. Raff shakes his head, still grinning. “Don’t mind him, he gets moody quicker than a woman. No offence.”

We carry on our night. Shots and various cocktails are constantly being brought to the table, all compliments of Mr. Tremos. Aiden occasionally appears, chatting to various people, before disappearing again. It just adds to his mystery.

It’s not long before I’m starting to feel sick, and I realise I haven’t been this drunk in a long time. I look around and notice the other girls we arrived with are nowhere to be seen. I get to my feet, grabbing on to the table forsupport because my head is seriously spinning but I need to pee. “Toilet,” I explain, when Aria and Raff stop their conversation to look at me.

I stumble my way to the bathroom and stand in the queue, wondering why the hell we have to wait when this is supposed to be VIP treatment.

I pull out my phone and notice I have fifteen missed calls from Carl. “Wanker,” I mutter, deleting them.

“Charming,” rumbles a deep voice from behind me. I jump in fright, dropping my phone.

“Shit.” I bend to get it, and lose my balance, falling on my backside. I look up at Aiden, who doesn’t look amused by my stumbling, drunken self.

Sighing heavily, he swoops down and grabs my hands, tugging me back onto my feet. “Come, you can use my bathroom.”

I rub my backside, then shove my phone back in my clutch bag. How many times can I possibly embarrass myself in front of him?

Aiden leads me back through the club, his huge hand encasing mine. He stops by the booth and says something to Raff and Aria. I notice how cosy they’re looking together and make a mental note to ask her about it.

We continue on and into an office. It’s huge and there’s an entire wall off books which impresses me slightly.Before I can question him, he draws my attention to an elevator by pressing the call button. The doors open and he waits for me to step in, before entering himself and punching a code into the panel. The minute the doors close, I inhale and hold my breath. Anticipation pours from me, and I can’t stop the slideshow of possible scenarios playing through my imagination. Him kissing me or pushing me against this elevator wall and demanding I fuck him. I shudder and press my thighs together, trying to ease the ache that he's unaware of.

The doors open into a lobby. It reminds me of a hotel. There’s a large white door directly in front of us and he leads toward it, opening it and pulling me inside. My mouth falls open. The place is luxurious with a minimalist look and floor to ceiling windows that I’m sure have a fantastic view over London. “Wow, you’re like Christian Grey,” I blurt out without thinking. He rolls his eyes in amusement. “But you look like that actor, the one from Game of Thrones, Drogo.” He leads me to the kitchen area and sits me on a stool. “Oh my god, you really do, what’s his name?” I say it more to myself than to him.

He sighs and hands me a glass of water, “Jason Momoa.”

“Yes, that’s him,” I say with glee, clapping my hands together. “You look just like him, only without all the hair. I really need to pee.”

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