Page 19 of Reignite Me

“Go, tigress. I’ll come find you once we’re done.” I guide Thea towards the door, tapping her ass once more as she makes her way out to the hallway. Looking over her shoulder at us for a moment, she then proceeds back down the hall towards the bar. Once she’s out of sight, I turn my attention to Nick, who’s still standing with his arms crossed and eyes narrowed. I’ve known Nick the majority of my life, and one thing I’ve picked up on is his intimidation stance. The way he’s positioned now is considered his “signature” pose, and if he honestly believes this will scare me, he’s in for a rude awakening.

“How long?” Nick finally asks.

I could lie to him, tell him we’ve been hiding this from him for the last four years, but that would only fan the flames.

“Since Saturday, but this was a relationship built off fifteen years of friendship. Don’t lie to yourself, Nick. You had to have known I was in love with Thea, but you’re too stubborn to admit it.”

“Saturday? As in the day you had the promo shoot?” Nick’s chest heaves as realization hits. “You mean to tell me that woman inourpromo photos is my sister? You son of a bitch!” he bellows.

Before I know what’s happening, Nick’s fist flies into my face, smashing into my cheek. My head whips to the side, the taste of copper filling my mouth.

“So fucking what, Nick? Nina was the one who initiated Thea being in my shoot, without me knowing. And once I saw Thea, my world came to a halt. All the pent-up thoughts and emotions I’d pushed aside hit me like a Mack truck.”

“And when you said you spoke with her, you conveniently left out the part where you’re fucking her…why?”

“None of this is your business, Nick. But if you must know, tonight was the first time I’ve ever slept with her. After the photoshoot on Saturday, I knew that I needed to prove to her that she’s the one for me. I broke her heart four years ago. I was the reason there was a wall between us, why she never wanted to be around us.”

“You’re a piece of shit. What kind of friend are you?” Nick spits.

Suddenly, he runs at me, tackling me full force to the floor. His fist smashes into me once again, this time on my nose, causing blood to gush out. I manage to get the upper hand and knee him in the gut. A sharp gasp leaves him, and as he tries to regain his breath, I push him off and scramble to my feet.

“Nick! I’m not going to fight you on this. Our families have been waiting for this moment! What’s so wrong with me dating your sister?”

“You’re not good enough for her!” he wheezes out.

“Fuck you, Nick. Thea and I are together. Deal with it. Oh, and I hope you’re happy with the grand opening. Because I’m certainly not, since I’ve clearly lost my best friend and business partner.” I glare down at him one last time before I make my way out of the room. That last dig might’ve been a stretch, but Nick needs to realize he can’t stop us.

As I walk down the hall and through the door, I make my way towards the bar, completely bypassing anyone who tries to speak with me. Once at the bar, I nod to Lucy, signaling a drink while I reach for a towel to wipe the blood away.

“Ryk! What happened!?” Lucy exclaims when she notices the blood.

I keep the story brief, reaching for the glass she extends for me. “Nick was being a prick, which ended up in a fist fight.” I toss back the entire glass, letting the alcohol burn a treacherous path on its way down. Part of me believes this is the end of my friendship with Nick. Then again, we’ve been through too much for this one thing to ruin it all. But Nick also needs to see this was going to happen eventually. Maybe it shouldn’t have happened at our grand opening of Forbidden, but who gives a shit, really.

“Oh my God, Ryker! What happened?”

Thea’s voice cuts through my internal thoughts. Shaking my head clear, I see her walking around the bar and up to me. Grabbing my wrist, she pulls my hand away from my face, giving her a view of what Nick did.

“I’m going to kill him. Of course he couldn’t have waited until tomorrow to discuss this,” she mutters under her breath.

I smile at her as she takes the towel from me to wipe away the blood from my lip. Thea gazes up at me, the heat in her beautiful hazel eyes sending blood rushing to my dick.

“Don’t look at me like that, little tigress. I might need to grab one of the candles on the table if you’re not careful,” I whisper.

“Have I ever told you every time you would get into fist fights when we were younger and were left bloody and bruised, I would picture that while fingering myself? It’s such a turn-on seeing you this way.” Her voice drops seductively as her thumb traces my lower lip, smearing the blood. “Kiss me,” she whispers, dropping her hand.

Leaning in, I give her a gentle kiss, but only for a moment before pulling away again. “Have to be careful. Already have one black eye. Don’t need another,” I murmur.

Thea lets out a little groan while rolling her eyes then pouts.

“Thea, you’re not staff. Get on the other side of the bar,” Nick says as he magically appears.

Thea doesn’t follow his order. Instead, she moves so her back is pressed against my chest as I wrap an arm around her stomach. Nick glares daggers at us, but then Lily walks up, sliding herself around Nick, causing his sour attitude to melt. Lily winks at us while pulling Nick away, thank fuck.

“Fuck, this isn’t how I pictured our grand opening going,” I whisper to Thea then place a kiss right behind her ear.

“I’ve got a way to make it better,” she replies seductively.

Pulling away from my grasp, she tugs my hand back towards the bedrooms. But before we get close enough, Nina calling out for us stops us in our tracks. We turn around to see Nina, Natasha, Lily, and Nick coming towards us. The girls wobble in their heels, signifying they’ve had one glass too many, while Nick’s wearing a deep scowl. Nina pushes past me to grab Thea’s hand, tugging her towards the dance floor.

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