Page 52 of Power

I blushed at his possessive intent. “Don’t worry, no one is looking except for you,” I flirted back.

“What were you thinking of ordering?” Blake turned to me, oblivious to our conversation. Shyam didn’t appreciate the interruption and glared at Blake like he was about to strangle him, but he was a big boy and could deal with me receiving attention from my friends on my own birthday.

“Hmmm, it’s between the risotto and the gnocchi. They’re both sooo good,” I replied as I examined my menu.

“How about I get the gnocchi, you get the risotto, and we share?” he asked, leaning in closer to look at my menu. He looked handsome in his sports coat, white t-shirt, and jeans—like an all-American hunk. He had a sweet personality to match. He would make some girl lucky one day, just notthisgirl.

I folded my menu closed and placed it on the table. “Oh, I couldn’t ask you to do that.” I was glad things weren’t awkward anymore, but I didn’t want to lead him on either.

“No, really. I don’t mind,” he insisted.

I could feel Shyam fuming next to me at our exchange. His jaw was tight, and I could tell he was probably clenching his fists in his lap. I had never told him about Blake because we didn’t really share conversations about my friends. He had never discussed any of his friends with me either, but something told me he didn’t have many.

I looked up and noticed Nat was scoping out the scene playing out in front of her. Her eyebrow was cocked high and an amused smirk had spread across her face. She was loving the drama.

I decided it was probably just easier to give in to Blake instead of argue, since he wasn’t good at taking a hint. I would at least get my two favorite dishes out of it. “Okay, sounds good.”

The waiter came to bring us bottles of wine, or scotch, in the case of Shyam and Jai. He took our orders and cleared the menus before leaving us to our conversations.

“You look beautiful tonight,” Blake said, once again directing his attention to me.

My cheeks turned red and I awkwardly tucked an imaginary strand of hair behind my ear out of habit. “Um…thanks.”

I couldn’t bear to glance at Shyam’s face because I knew he was livid. I looked at Nat, and she had her palm pressed to her mouth tightly to suppress her laugh. I needed to remember to kick her ass later for getting me into this predicament in the first place.

Other than the soap opera happening around me, I was having a great time at my party. The conversation and wine flowed freely. Jai seemed really wrapped up in his conversation with Nat. Who would have thought they would have hit it off?! Everyone seemed to be getting along, except Shyam and Blake.

I had always felt alone since moving out to the city, but it was wonderful to know that these people had taken time out of their schedules to be here to celebrate with me.

The waiter returned with our food. “Here, take some gnocchi,” Blake said as he spooned some onto a spare plate for me.

“Thanks,” I said. I did the same with the risotto and passed it to him.

I took a bite of my risotto and closed my eyes, indulging in its richness. I let out a quiet moan as it melted on my tongue. I opened my eyes to find Blake staring at my mouth. I knew Shyam was looking, too, because I could feel the heat of his gaze on me.Shit.I’d thought I was being quiet, but I guess I was wrong.

“That good?” Blake asked.

“Mmmmhmmm,” I managed to murmur with my mouth full.

“You have a little bit of risotto here,” he motioned to the side of my lip.

I moved to wipe it off with my napkin, but Blake beat me to it, using the side of his thumb to remove it.

By now, even Jai was staring at the awkward love triangle. He was loving this just as much as Nat because he knew how pissed his brother was.

“Uh, thanks,” I said, dropping my napkin back into my lap. I chanced a peek over at the brooding man next to me. He calmly sipped his scotch and was even engaged in conversation with my friend Dave from my old job. He couldn’t disguise the fury in his eyes from me, though.

I continued to eat my food in silence, when I felt a hand from my left slide under my napkin and rest on my bare thigh underneath. I looked over to where the hand had come from and saw Shyam still engaged in conversation. I looked at my plate to keep from drawing attention to us.

His fingers stroked my skin, creeping higher under my dress. My breath hitched as he marked his territory. He wanted to remind me of who I belonged to.

The backs of his fingers rubbed against the front of my thong over my clit. I knew I was already dripping from the feel of my underwear against me.

My breathing picked up, and I was afraid of anyone noticing. I grabbed my wine glass and pressed it to my lips to hide the breaths that escaped from my nose.

His fingers rubbed against me faster. My body grew hot with need and sweat beaded over my skin. Nobody, not even Blake, could see his hand working me, since the napkin was large and took up my entire lap. If anyone looked at us, they would just think Shyam was sitting rather close to me, but that would be it. His arm was still since his wrist and fingers did all of the work.

I felt myself edge closer to my sweet release, just before those thick fingers pulled away from between my legs. An involuntary squeak of frustration escaped from me as I moved the glass of wine away from my lips.

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