Chapter 10: Tease Me Now

Alijah sat at her desk, going through emails. She had to admit to herself honestly; it was one of the least favorite tasks of her job. She was responsible for going through all the emails that came in as business propositions. She then had to determine which were legitimate and which were merely a waste of time before forwarding the actual proposals to Kieran.

Every day, it seemed as if more and more of them came in. She was starting to think there was a damn Submit Your Business Proposal section on the website. Had she not known for herself that there wasn’t, she wouldn’t have ruled it out.

She’d just finished reading one proposal about genetically engineering honeybees to gather the world’s fecal matter and reproduce it into honey. She was getting frustrated with all the stupidity that was apparently in the world. It took all she had not to email the man back and ask him how many sandwiches short of a picnic he was. Instead, she promptly sent that email to her trash folder.

Alijah had known before that people would do anything to make a quick buck, but she hadn’t known they would go to the extent of losing all common sense and spewing the first ridiculous thing that came to their mind. Placing her head down on her desk, she groaned.

“Ms. Douglas, can you step into my office, please?” Kieran’s voice questioned over her phone’s speaker.

Standing to her feet, Alijah smoothed out her knee-length skirt before proceeding into her boss’ office. She didn’t bother to knock since he had requested she come and just opened the door, allowing it to close gently behind her.

He was standing looking out the bank of windows, his back to her as she made her way across the office in his direction. She was halfway there when he turned, and those hazel eyes locked her into place.

It was as if the distance between them had never existed as he closed it quickly. Placing his hands on her waist, her body was pulled flush against his. Alijah gasped at the sudden action, but his lips promptly swallowed it.

The kiss was vigorous, and it seemed to help Alijah relieve some of the stress and frustration she was holding on to as she battled with him for dominance. She was sure he expected her to let him have it, but she wasn’t about to do that.

His right hand began to travel up the inside of her right thigh. She felt her skirt rising, starting to bunch up with the action. As his hand came into contact with the fabric of her panties, Alijah grabbed his wrist and removed his hand from under her skirt.

He groaned against her lips, and Alijah did everything in her power not to laugh. He had been calling her into his office all day. Each time ravishing her lips, but she wouldn’t let him get much farther than that. Determined that the first time anything happened between them, it wouldn’t be some office quickie.

Kieran’s hand began to snake down her back until he was cupping her ass as he punished her lips with his. He brought his right hand down on her left cheek, and Alijah moaned into the kiss. He then proceeded to do the same with the opposite side before slapping both of her ass cheeks — the final action causing her to latch on to his lower lip with her teeth.

She released his lip and took a step back, breathing deeply. She looked up into those hazel eyes and saw they were dark with desire.

Kieran leaned back down and whispered against her lips, “You better stop teasing me,” he then smacked her ass again before releasing her and making his way back to his desk. “We’re going to Mirage tonight,” he informed her.

“The new club that’s opening up? I never pegged you as a club-goer.”

“I’m not normally, and it’s more of a lounge than a club,” Kieran replied.

Alijah nodded her head. She had read an article about the new place in a magazine and thought it had been called a club, but perhaps she was wrong.

“What time are we going?”

“Ten. Traffic will be hell since its opening night. Not to mention it’s Fourth of July weekend, so be ready by nine.”

Again, Alijah nodded before heading out of his office and back to her desk. She was in no mood to finish going through the email proposals, but she knew it had to be done.

Alijah had finished going through all of the proposals and had attended two afternoon meetings by the time four-thirty rolled around. Pulling up Wayne Farley’s contact information, she dialed his number, waiting on him to pick up. She was just about to hang up when she heard his voice on the other end.

“This is Wayne.”

“Hello, Mr. Farley. This is Alijah Douglas, Kieran Cayman’s assistant.”

“Yes, Ms. Douglas. How are you?”

“I’m well, thank you. How are you?” Alijah questioned politely.

“Can’t complain. To what do I owe this pleasure?”

“I was calling to ensure that your meeting with Mr. Cayman was still on for next week?”

“It sure is. I’ll see you both at ten sharp.”

“Thank you, Mr. Farley. You enjoy your weekend.”

“You do the same, Ms. Douglas.” With that, the two of them ended the call.

For the next twenty minutes, Alijah made a list of things to do Monday and placed appointments, conference calls, and meetings into her calendar with reminders. At five, she shut everything down and locked up anything that contained pertinent information before gathering her things and heading toward Kieran’s office. He was opening his office door and coming out, briefcase in hand, to her surprise.

“Well, this is new,” she stated. “I didn’t think you were capable of leaving at a decent time without being dragged away.” She then teased as they stepped onto the elevator.

He leveled her with those hazel eyes, and the look he gave her was one more deadly than if he’d been glaring at her. It was filled with pure unadulterated lust.

“Keep teasing me. I dare you,” he responded as the elevator opened on the first floor.

Alijah stared at his back for a moment before following him off the elevator and out of the building. Timothy was waiting for them and opened the door immediately when he saw them.

Kieran stepped aside, allowing her to get into the car first, and Alijah knew it was because he wanted to stare at her ass. Once he had climbed in and was settled, Timothy closed the door making his way to the driver’s side. No sooner than he had pulled into traffic, Kieran raised the partition between them.

Alijah was pulled into his lap when it was up, straddling him, which caused her skirt to bunch at her thighs. His hand went to the back of her neck and pulled her forward, causing their lips to touch barely.

“Tease me now,” he stated, his lips brushing over hers before capturing them in a solid kiss.

Their lips moved in synchronicity, fluid against one another. Kieran pulled away long enough to bite her bottom lip. Eliciting a gasp from her before he claimed her mouth again, snaking his tongue inside.

Alijah groaned as their tongues battled for dominance. They both wanted control. She could tell it was going to be an everyday thing for them. Neither one wanted to relinquish their control, which made it even more exciting and immensely turned her on.

When Kieran removed his lips from hers again, she wanted to groan out her protest but stopped short when she felt his lips leaving kisses up and down the side of her neck. She felt his fingers in her wild curls and gasped as he gripped them, pulling her head back. He moved his lips to trail up the column of her neck before nipping it lightly.

“Tease me now, Alijah.”

She couldn’t even respond. Alijah knew he was getting her back for teasing him throughout the day, as he had put it, but she didn’t care. With his hands gripping her hair and his lips on her body, she could care less that he was essentially teasing her. She just didn’t want him to stop.

Unfortunately, she would not be getting what she wanted. Placing one final kiss on her lips, Kieran lifted her from his lap and straightened his shirt. Alijah hadn’t been aware she had been gripping it.

While he did that, she went about straightening her skirt. She glanced outside the window and noticed that they were only moments from the condo.

Once they arrived, Kieran informed her of a video call he had, stating he didn’t know when it would be done and reminding her to be ready by nine.

Making her way into her room, she decided to find what she would wear later that night. She didn’t know if they were going for business but figured they most likely were. She knew she needed to look professional, but she also wanted to look sexy. He claimed she had been teasing him all day; she wanted to really tease him tonight.

Going through her closet, she finally decided on a blue dress. It would come down to her knees while clinging to her body. The straps were about two inches wide, and while the dress would push her breast up and wasn’t overly revealing — sensual … that’s what she planned on being for the night. The dress would also cover her tattoos, and she wanted him to be surprised to see them when he peeled her out of it. Alijah decided that she would pair the dress with silver shoes and accessories.

Once she had everything laid out, she decided to sit in her window seat and paint a little before she began getting ready. She made a mental note to put her painting away just in case they ended up in her room tonight. She couldn’t be sure how tamed they would be.

Kieran was very close to saying to hell with the opening. At that moment, he would have much rather bent Alijah over the back of the couch and fucked her until she couldn’t walk. The dress she wore hugged her body in all the right places, and her heels gave the illusion that her legs were two miles long. Her hair was in its naturally curly state, and she wore little makeup.

He was in front of her in three long strides, pulling her body against his. He had every intention of devouring her lips, but her hand on his chest stopped him as she pushed him back.

“You’re going to mess up my lipstick,” she informed him.

Kieran raised an eyebrow at her, wondering if she thought he cared. If she did, she was sorely mistaken. He placed his hand on the back of her neck and brought his lips down to hers. Ignoring the fact that she pushed against him for him to stop. After a few seconds, she stopped fighting him and began to kiss him back with just as much vigor as he was kissing her.

When he pulled back, he slowly watched as her green eyes opened. They then narrowed at him. He knew it was because he hadn’t listened to her, but he didn’t care. He enjoyed her attitude at times.

Kieran watched as she reached up and began to run her thumb across his lips, he assumed, to remove the lipstick from them. She did his top lip first and then his bottom. Before she could pull her thumb away, he caught it between his teeth and began to suck on it lightly.

“We’re going to be late,” she informed him after a second. Releasing her thumb from his lips, Kieran stepped aside and allowed her to lead the way. As she did so, she fixed her lipstick.

Once on the elevator, Kieran pressed the button for the parking garage instead of the first floor. He had decided to drive tonight. Not knowing what time they would return. He didn’t want to keep Timothy up at all hours of the night.

They made their way over to his Porsche, and Kieran opened the door for her before going around and getting in on the driver’s side. He started the car and headed towards Mirage.

The ride was quiet except for the soft murmur of music on the radio and the sound of the tires on the road. What usually would have been a thirty-minute drive took them almost an hour by the time they got to the front of the club where the valet was for the opening.

Kieran got out and handed the young man the keys before he walked around and opened Alijah’s door. He helped her out, placing his hand on the small of her back and leading her toward the front of the line.

There were photographers everywhere taking pictures. A few of them shouted his name and asked him questions, but he ignored them and continued to the door. The bouncer nodded at him before stepping aside and allowing them in.

As they stepped inside, Kieran looked around. It never ceased to amaze him how Nik could give a place a club and lounge effect, but his friend did it effortlessly. The music was loud, but not overly so. There were two bars — one on each side of the building. The right side was definitely for all the people that came merely to dance and drink, while the left was for those who wanted to drink and lounge around.

Looking up, Kieran saw what he knew was Nik’s office. The wall facing the club was mirrored glass. He also noticed that Cruz had provided the security equipment, but he wasn’t surprised. Cruz’s security company was one of the best in the world, in his opinion, and they each utilized it.

There was one thing about Nik’s clubs that were forever consistent, and that was where he placed his VIP section.

With his hand still on the small of Alijah’s back, he guided her through the crowd of bodies and the many tables occupied by people to the back. When he got closer, he noticed Cruz and Paetyn were already there, sitting in one of the sections. A few other people were seated in different sections. He recognized a few, but he didn’t feel inclined to speak to them.

As they stopped in front of the couches, the two men rose to their feet. Their eyes were on Kieran before shifting to Alijah.

“Paetyn, Cruz…this is Alijah Douglas. Alijah, these are friends of mine, Paetyn, and Cruz,” he introduced over the music. The music wasn’t as loud in the back where they were, so he didn’t have to battle with it to be heard.

“You mean you have friends?” Alijah questioned him with a raised eyebrow, those green eyes shining with mischief.

Paetyn began to laugh at her statement while Cruz wore a look of amusement but didn’t say anything. Shifting his eyes down to look at her, he gave an irritated look, though he didn’t feel that way. Only to have her wave him off. She then stuck her hand out for each man to shake.

“It’s nice to meet you both,” she stated politely.

Kieran gestured for her to sit, and when she did, the three men followed suit. Kieran stopped a passing waitress and asked that she bring them a bottle of Chateau Palmer and a bottle of Inverleven Duncan Taylor, and glasses. He knew Nik would have a supply of both since they were his favorites.

Kieran began to look around Mirage some more. He had always been one to check out his surroundings. If something was going to happen, he liked to be the first one to know. He didn’t know how long he had been looking around, but Paetyn’s voice pulled his attention back.

“So, Alijah…how do you know Kieran?” His friend questioned.

“Well, I have the grave misfortune of working for him. I’m his assistant.”

Kieran turned his attention to her and saw she had a smirk on her face.

“That must be terrible. He’s a hard-ass.” Paetyn told her.

“It isn’t too bad. I’m not easily intimidated, so we bump heads…a lot. I win most of the time. I let him rest the time, so he doesn’t feel bad.”

Kieran’s mouth twitched as his friends both laughed. Paetyn stating through his laughter that he liked her. Leaning in, he brought his lips to her ear.

“Are you teasing me, Alijah? Because if you are, I will be forced to reciprocate,” he pulled back and found her looking at him with desire-laced eyes.

“You promise?” She questioned.

Kieran’s first instinct was to attack her lips with his. However, the arrival of his ordered drinks stopped him, and he watched as the waitress sat down the wine he’d ordered in a bucket of ice. She then sat down the bottle of scotch and then another bucket of ice: four wine glasses and four scotch glasses. She fluttered her eyelashes, asking Kieran if that would be all. He merely nodded and turned his attention to the wine, preparing to uncork it.

After he poured them a glass, he passed them out before taking his own. He watched as Alijah swirled hers in her glass before smelling it lightly. He then watched as she brought it to her lips and sipped it.

Kieran took a sip of his own wine before turning his attention back over the crowd, but not before Cruz caught his eye and gave him a knowing look. He ignored his friend and swept the room again.

They’d been sitting for about thirty minutes. Kieran had been otherwise silent, but he’d been listening to Paetyn and Alijah’s conversation. Cruz would comment now and then, but he wasn’t one for many words often, especially first meeting a person.

He had just finished his second glass of wine when he saw Nik approaching through the crowd. He stopped at the section before theirs, checking on his customers before making his way over. Kieran stood and greeted his friend, congratulating him with a man hug. He then held his hand out to Alijah, which she took and stood.

“Alijah this is my friend Nik. He owns Mirage. Nik, this is Alijah.”

Alijah held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Nik took her hand in his before bringing it to his lips and brushing a soft kiss against it. “Trust me. The pleasure is all mine.”

Kieran watched as Alijah slowly removed her hand from Nik’s before reclaiming her seat. Everyone else followed suit, and Nik took up residence on the last couch by himself.

“Alijah,” Nik started gaining her attention after he’d been looking at her for a few moments. “How do you know Kieran?”

Kieran watched as Alijah took a small sip of her second glass of wine before setting it on the table and giving him her attention.

“I work for him,” she stated simply,

“I figured as much.” Was Nik’s response.

“Oh?” Alijah questioned and uncrossed her legs to lean forwards and stare straight at him. “And why is that?”

Nik was about to answer, but Kieran leveled him with a gaze that would stop a bullet cold in its tracks. He knew that whatever Nik was about to say would piss him off. He knew his friend well enough to know that, even when he was playing, as Kieran suspected he was doing now, Nik didn’t know when he’d gone too far.

“I just did,” he stated with a shrug.

Kieran watched as Alijah went to say something. No doubt it was something smart and would put Nik in his place, but at that moment, some song came on with an upbeat tempo, and he saw her whole-body language change. She sat back and turned her attention to him.

“Will you dance with me?” She questioned hopefully.

“I don’t dance.” Was his simple reply. She pouted at him, and as cute as it was, Kieran was not giving in. “The answer is still no.”

She glared at him. “Fine.” It was her only response before she rose from her seat and headed out of the section and towards the dance floor.

Kieran watched her as Paetyn began filling the scotch glasses with ice from the second bucket brought and pouring scotch into all four of the glasses. Nik cocked his head to the side as each man grabbed one, looking at Kieran.

“Are you fucking her?” Kieran ignored Nik’s question, opting to sip the scotch instead. It was smooth and went down easy. “Do you plan on fucking her?” Nik then questioned. Not at all phased by the fact his first question wasn’t answered. “If you plan on it, I don’t blame you. She’s sexy as hell. Not your usual type, is all. So, if you’re not going to sleep with her, I’d like to. You know I love all women in general, but chocolate is my favorite candy.”

Kieran gritted his teeth. While he knew Alijah wasn’t the type of woman he usually would pursue, she was the only woman he could see himself pursuing at that moment. Regardless of Nik’s “love of chocolate,” as he essentially said, he wasn’t about to let the other man think he had a chance. So, without words, Kieran gave Nik an even more fierce glare than he had previously given him. It said everything it needed to, and his friend put up his hands in surrender.

He took another sip of scotch before turning his attention to the dance floor. When he did, his eyes narrowed. She was dancing, but she wasn’t alone. Some guy had walked up and started dancing with her. When he stepped closer, Kieran almost rose from his seat but stayed put as he watched Alijah place her hand on his chest and step back.

He couldn’t tell what was being said, but from the looks of it, the man had started an argument with her, and Kieran almost felt sorry for him. He knew Alijah would not take whatever he said lightly.

When he saw her place on hand on her hip and point her finger at him, he knew the other man was about to receive a lashing. She finished what she had to say, then turned her back on him and headed back towards the VIP section.

Alijah had just made it back to them when the man that had tried dancing with her grabbed her arm and spun her around.

Kieran didn’t think; he just rose to his feet and grabbed the man’s hand, placing more force on it than he needed to before removing it from her arm. He then realized the young man had been seated at another section when they entered.

“Are you okay, Alijah?” He questioned. Instead of answering him, Kieran listened to her fire off at the man in front of them.

“Don’t you ever put your fucking hands on me again. I will break every single one of your fingers,” she snapped out.

The young man sat there looking at her as if she was crazy, and for a moment, Kieran thought she was, but he knew that women tended to get violent when you pissed them off or invaded their space unwantedly.

“Why are you still standing here?” She bit out again when he didn’t immediately turn and leave.

Kieran wrapped his arm around her waist, his fingers splaying against her stomach, and pulled her back into his body. It seemed that he didn’t need to worry about her. She was perfectly capable of fighting her own battles. Though had the situation elevated, he wouldn’t have hesitated to place the young man on his ass.

As he began to walk away, Kieran retook his seat, pulling Alijah down into his lap. If Nik had any more doubt about his intentions with Alijah, they were shattered upon that action. His friends knew him well. Knew that he was never publicly affectionate with anyone he wasn’t pursuing, and even when he did, it was minimal.

He picked his glass back up and brought it to his lips, taking another sip while he reached up with his other hand and pulled one of her natural curls, watching as it sprung back into place. He loved her hair, liked the way it always looked as if she’d been thoroughly satisfied yet kempt all at the same time.

“What are you drinking?” She questioned as he grabbed another curl.

“Scotch. Do you want some?”

“No, I don’t like the way it feels going down my throat.”

“This is smooth. I promise you’ll like it,” he stated, placing his cup to her lips.

Kieran tipped the cup, and Alijah tilted her head back slightly, and he watched as she allowed the liquid to slide down her throat. He was so caught up in watching that he tipped the cup too much and caused a bit to slip down her chin.

He placed his cup back on the table and kissed her chin before trailing his lips up. Removing the liquid as he went. He then placed a soft kiss on her lips, fully aware that his closest friends watched him the entire time. When he pulled back, her bright eyes had darkened.

“Can we leave?” She whispered, and Kieran knew precisely why she wanted to. It was the same reason he’d almost not made it when he saw her in her dress, but he didn’t want to dip out too early on his friend.

“Give me another hour, baby, okay?”

Alijah nodded her head in agreement and turned on his lap to face his friends, sparking up a conversation with Paetyn.

“So, Paetyn, tell me what you do for a living.”

“I’m a Restaurateur.”

“Really? Do you own any restaurants in the city?” Alijah then inquired.

“I do. You’ll have to have Kieran bring you some time.” Was his friend’s response. Kieran watched as Alijah nodded before turning her attention to Cruz.

“What do you do, Cruz?”

“Security.”

Kieran drank the rest of his scotch before leaning forward to place the glass on the table. This caused Alijah to lean forward as well, making her slide backward in his lap over his groin. When he leaned back, she slid forward a bit to regain her previous position, and he placed his hands firmly on her waist to stop her.

At that moment, the waitress walked by, and Alijah flagged her down. The woman stopped and looked at Alijah before her eyes fell on the four men. Kieran was sure she was about to flirt with one of them, despite Alijah being in his lap, when she realized her boss was one of the men sitting among them.

“What can I get for you?” She questioned Alijah.

“Can I get a White Russian? Made with milk instead of cream.”

“Yes, ma’am. Anything for the rest of you?” The waitress then questioned. The men shook their heads, and she headed away to place the order.

“So, Alijah,” Nik started. “You’re rather comfy there…sitting on your boss’ lap.” Kieran shot Nik a look, but his friend ignored him. “I mean, it isn’t all that professional, is it?”

Kieran watched as Alijah turned her head to Nik slowly, and he almost felt sorry for his friend. He couldn’t see her face, but he knew those green emeralds were smoldering with fire.

“I could say the same of you and the number of female employees you’ve slept with. We could play a guessing game to see just how many there were. However, I don’t think I could guess a number high enough.” Alijah bit out.

Kieran saw the shocked look on Nik’s face as his other friends began laughing uncontrollably. Nik wasn’t used to women not falling all over him. Regardless of what he said to them. So, Kieran knew that the fact that Alijah snapped at him caught him off guard.

“What makes you think I sleep with my employees?” Nik asked, trying to recover.

The waitress came back and handed Alijah her White Russian at that moment. Alijah thanked her and took a sip as the waitress walked off before turning her attention back to Nik.

“Because you’re that type,” she told him simply.

Kieran found himself laughing as he slid Alijah off his lap before leaning forward and placing more ice into his cup. He then refilled it with scotch. Alijah’s eyes watched him as he drank half of it before sitting back.

“You do realize you drove tonight, right? Timothy didn’t bring us.”

“I’m perfectly fine to drive, and even if I wasn’t, you could. We’re fine,” he responded.

She didn’t respond to him as she slowly sipped on her drink and once again began talking to Paetyn.