Sweet Little Lies

Chapter Twenty-Four

Somehow he had gotten her to agree to meet up with her the next night after her shift. To this day, she doesn't know why she went that night, but something had pulled her in his direction. Weekly meetups turned into secret dates, and months later she found herself in love with the heir to a rival gang.

She rested against the wall, her hand holding his cheek, thumb petting his cheekbone. "If you keep staring at me, you're gonna get us in trouble."

"Let them know." He muttered, kissing her once more, "Maybe then other men will stop ogling you."

She snorted, "You're imagining things."

He gave her an amused look, shaking his head, "How many times do I have to tell you you're the most beautiful woman in the room?" Her lips spread into a wide grin, but she tried to hide her face in his neck. He wasn't having any of it, pulling her back in front of him. "You really look stunning, Astrid."

Her face was burning as she shyly said, "Thank you."

"This dress." He looked her up and down. "One of these days I'm gonna thank Willow."

The champagne colored slip dress wasn't something she would normally wear. While her two best friends loved fashion and dressing up, she was more casual. Most of the galas and charity events she attended, Willow or Ivy would show up with a dress bag, her measurements memorized by the two. This dress was no exception.

The color was perfect against her brown skin, paired with a gold chain necklace that Tai had gotten her a few months prior. His fingers played with the chain absentmindedly as she asked coyly, "You like it?"

"You have no idea."

"Do you want to know a secret?"

He grinned, nodding.

Lifting up on her tiptoes, she whispered into his ear, "I'm not wearing anything underneath."

Tai stilled, his hand flexing on her hip. It's not like she had planned going completely commando, but the material of the dress showed everything. Even the seamless thongs she owned were showing through, so she decided to go without. Her boobs were all taped up, but other than that, she was completely nude underneath.

A low groan emitted from him, and within a second, he was pulling her farther down the hallway until he found a room. It was an old billiards room, but she barely got to look around before he was kissing her madly.

†††

An hour later, they were dancing.

Through the vent, they could hear the live brass band playing from downstairs. The slow sway of their bodies had Astrid closing her eyes, cheek resting against Tai's shoulder. Her legs had been a little shaky at first, still recovering from the sex they had just had, but now were steady enough to follow his lead.

She wished they could stay like this forever, but reality was beginning to set back in. They had been gone too long, and people would begin to notice.

As the song ended, she raised her head and looked at him softly. His shoulders deflated, "Don't say it."

"I'm sorry, Tai." She said, "I'll leave first. You can follow in five minutes."

A long, frustrated sigh left him. After a moment, he looked back at her, eyes glinting with steel, "What's stopping us from going down there together?"

Astrid frowned, "You know what."

"Things are different now." He insisted, "The Styles and Malones have tied themselves together. Why can't we?"

More and more, Tai had become impatient. He didn't want to hide their relationship any longer. It was exhausting and not exactly healthy for either of them, but it was necessary.