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𝐇𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐬
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We're in the car on the forty minute drive back to the hotel and Phoenix is telling Aziel and Aspen about everything that happened yesterday.
I've been silent ever since we got in the car, except for a quick 'hello' and 'thanks' to Aziel and Aspen.
I've been thinking about the nightmare I had and what occurred after that.
I didn't even know what the fuck I was doing. I'm gonna blame it on my subconscious. I just needed reassurance that she was actually okay. And then when I started touching her lips, and I saw her nipples through my shirt (that she's currently still wearing) I lost it.
Her skin felt so fucking soft and I kept telling myself to stop, that this was Phoenix of all people, that this was dangerous territory. If I needed a quick fuck because I'm too horny I could've gone to literally any bar or night club.
But fuck, the sounds she was making while I was sucking on her neck. Half of me wants to hear what she sounds like with my mouth on other places on her body or when I'm inside her and the other half doesn't want that to happen ever again.
It won't happen again. We need to focus on the real reason why we're here. The only way that's ever happening again is if I have at least ten shots before-hand.
Phoenix was right, that was a one time, in the moment, thing.
♚♚♚
••••
𝐏𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐱
••••
I'm in the middle of plucking my eyebrows when Aspen barges into my room, which startles me, making me pluck more hairs when I wanted to.
"Ooh shit, sorry." Aspen winces as I suck in a sharp breath.
"It's fine, what's up?" I ask, rubbing my eye and seeing her laptop in her hand.
"Okay, so while you and Hayes were out for that job the other day, Aziel and I found something." Aspen sits on my bed and I walk over sitting next to her.
"Get this, we saw Andrey's right hand man, what's his name again?"
"Alek, I'm pretty sure." I tell her.
"Mhm, him. We caught him on the street cameras. It was only for a split second because he was moving between alleys." She shows me the screenshot she took. It's super zoomed in and pixelated but I'm pretty sure the man with a scruffy beard is him.
"So just to be sure, I put the screen shot into the agencies data base to scan all our wanted faces, and 'lo and behold, it's definitely him." She explains. "After that, Aziel and I watched the street cameras again to see where he was going. We just barely caught a glimpse of him going into a small restaurant." She shows me the footage.
"Turns out, the restaurant was only like two minutes away from the hotel." Aspen smiles, "So Aziel and I went to it and sat a couple booths away from him. About like five minutes later another guy came in and sat with him. They started talking making small talk and whatever
"Then Alek told him about this event he was hosting. I guess basically it's a thing for other people in his business," She purses her lips, "To make deals with each other. Or for other people that are trying to get their illegal products on the black market, they can try to pitch them to other people there."
"Did you find out when it's happening?" I ask.
"Mhm, a week from today." Aspen informs me. "I got the address for it too." She pulls her phone out from her pants and shows me a picture. Alek is passing a piece of paper to whoever he's talking to with the address written on it. We can just barely make out the words, but its legible.
"Aspen," I smile at her, "You smart piece of shit."
She laughs, "Please compliment my brain more often."
I take the phone from her so I can airdrop the picture to my phone, "Seriously I have no fucking clue what I'd do without you." I smack a big kiss on her cheek.
"I know, I know," She flips her straight black hair over her shoulder, "I'm a genius."
"Yeah, really, Cole wasn't kidding," I chuckle, "An IQ of a hundred and fifty-two. My god."
"If you keep telling me how smart Director thinks I am, I might fucking die." Aspen's smile is giddy.
"Wanna get drunk to celebrate your genius-ness?" I smirk.
"Ugh, I love being in countries where I can legally drink." She sighs happily.
♚♚♚
Aspen is hilarious when she's drunk. Or maybe it's because I'm drunk...
"We haven't even explored like...so much of the ocean so-" She's in the middle of rant about how mermaids have to be real when she suddenly stops. Staring at something. I follow her gaze to my neck.
Where hickeys are decorated all over my skin...
Uh oh.
I see the wheels start to turn in her head as her eyes widen. It's only been a day since the whole Hayes and me thing. I think we've both been trying to avoid each other because I barely see him around the hotel room.
"Aspen..."
"Phoenix..." She deadpans me. "Did they..."
It takes me a second to realize that she's referring to Adras and Damian.
"I'm gonna kill Hayes!" Aspen starts to jump out of the bed but her impaired movements from the alcohol allow me to grab her before she gets to far.
"No! No, they didn't do anything, it's not from them..." I trail off knowing she's smart enough to infer the rest.
"Oh. My. God." She deadpans me again. Then she bursts out laughing.
"It's not funny!" I hit her with a pillow.
"You...and...Hayes..." She says between laughs.
"Stop!" I tell her trying to fight my smile.
"Aziel's gonna freak out," She's still laughing. "Oh god, I gotta tell him. I need someone to laugh with me at this."
"No!" I grab her before she can get up. "No fucking way can Aziel find out about this."
"Why?" Aspen whines.
"Because he's gonna think his whole 'fighting it out' idea worked, and then he's gonna start trying to play cupid."
Aspen's face is contemplative for a seconds before she bursts out laughing again. "I still can't believe that." She gestures toward my neck. "How? And why?"
"I don't even fucking know." I sigh flopping back onto the pillows.
"I'm shocked you even let him touch you."
Yeah, me too...
Aspen takes a sip from the vodka bottle, wincing as she swallows. I put my hand out for the bottle and she hands it to me. I take a large swig from it.
"I can't explain how it happened, because I doubt Hayes wants people to know," I tell her, "But it sounds weird and cliché, but I guess we were kind of in a different world in that room. Especially after everything that went down that night. I don't know, I guess I trusted him so much and mixed with all the anxiety from the night, it just happened."
Aspen nods understandingly, "That actually makes sense," She pauses, "Or maybe we're just drunk."
"Probably a little bit of both." I chuckle.
"I won't tell Aziel." She puts out her pinky. "But if he somehow finds out because of Hayes or your neck, I can laugh about it with him, right?"
Laughing, I put out my pinky and lock it with hers, "Sure, but I doubt he'll be laughing when he finds out you knew and didn't tell him."
"Oh shit. You're right." She winces. "Oh well, girl code." She shrugs.
Suddenly the door to my room bursts open and Aziel is frowning at us. I stiffen sitting up quickly, praying he didn't hear our conversation.
"You guys were getting drunk without me?" He whines. I see Aspen relax probably thinking the same thing that I was. We both look at each other and burst out laughing.
"Your welcome to join." I hold out the bottle to him. He walks over and takes a big gulp of it.
"Damn dude, save some for us." Aspen snatches the bottle from him.
"What are we talking about ladies." Aziel jumps on the bed between us.
"Aspen was in the middle of a rant, telling me about how mermaids have to be real."
Aziel's eyes widen. "No she's right because look..."
Then Aziel joins Aspen's rant about mermaids and I listen to them willingly, glad for a distraction.
♚♚♚
This chapter was a little shorter, oh well, double update next time!!
I love Aspen and Phoe bonding <3
Also I'm sorry this is late, I literally forgot to upload againnn ugh