Chapter 27: Chapter 27

- She’s with me

James's pov

On the third spin, the bottle stopped, pointing at me. Fear washed through me. From the few encounters I'd had with Lari, she seemed the vulgar type. I was almost certain her question would be sex-related. Little wonder I hate this game shit.

"Your turn handsome god," she said pulling me out of my thoughts.

I smiled sheepishly, seen as she caught the paranoid look on my face. Putting up a cool front, "T," I answered the unasked question.

I saw a glint in her eyes before she spitted her next words. "When last did you have sex?"

shit! Not that I expected anything less.

There was no way I was going to answer genuinely and look like 'just a boy' to them, but at the same time, I didn't want to answer in a way that would push Dei away. No, not just when I was starting to make progress with her.

Saying the truth would erupt too many questions from Dawn— 'What happened to that girl I hooked you up with at the bar? ' What happened to the girl I saw you heated with before you both left for a room at that party' 'You didn't get down with Amelia? And the hickies on her neck? You had spent the night with her '— and the list will go on and on.

He'd be right to ask those questions though, I would too if I had been in his shoes.

He had seen me go in a room with a woman before, and not once. I had spent nights with women the question was doing what? Pleasuring them and not me, I would pleasure them with my mouth and fingers, giving them what they'd describe as earth-shattering orgasms, but I never did get down on it.

I couldn't because, I'd become turned off when I would look down at them and see they weren't Dei, and I would hate them for not being her. For not been able to turn me on as she did. For not having her smile, her moan, or her laugh. And overall for not been her... she was the only woman I wanted writhing under me.

My pants started to tighten at thought. Only Dei could do that to me.

I felt her eyes on me and wondered for the umpteenth time if she could read my mind. I looked at her and saw a flicker of fear in her eyes for a nanosecond. She was scared of what my answer was going to be. Shit.

I knew if I stared a second longer I'd bare my heart out, so I quickly averted my eyes. But at that moment I knew what my answer was going to be.

"Yesterday," I answered and looked to her so she'd see what I was doing. "By 6 pm."

''Wooo. The man," Alex cooed and laughter erupted.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, but that didn't bother me. They didn't bother me, but the look on Dei's face did. She didn't get it. I felt physical pain in my chest the the hurt I saw in her eyes.

"Your turn to spin," someone said. I didn't know who. Didn't want to know who.

I sighed, Well fuck me.

I spun the bottle and it pointed to Eva when it stopped.

"T," she said before I even asked. I looked to Sia, asking for her help as I had no idea what I was going to ask and she agreed to help, in fact gladly.

Three more spins and it was Sia's turn to spin. She spun the bottle lazily and when it stopped, it was pointing to Dei.

I've had a feeling this game wasn't going to end well from the beginning, but now that it got to Dei, I was sure it wasn't going to. She might break me over and over again with anything she said or do, for the D.

''Dei your turn," Sia voiced.

''Dare" She sounded quite bored of the game. That would make two of us.

''Oh, come on, you can't pick dare," Sia objected and they argued about it for a while.

"How many lips have you tasted?'' Sia asked after Dei had settled for T instead.

When Dei didn't answer immediately I started to get agitated. I inhaled sharply when I saw her smug look. I held her eyes, pleading silently. For what, I didn't know. Just, please.

She looked away with the smug look still and I sighed defeatedly. Maybe it was selfish of me to want her to answer to be 'one'. Yes, it is.

I decided it didn't matter how many, me been her first kiss was more than enough for me. And I'll be her last.

I smiled secretly at the memory of our first kiss, although she didn't know it was me. She didn't know I was her first kiss— as she was mine.

It had been a mask charity gala hosted by her dad for kids the age of five to twelve...

I always noticed her. Noticed the tiniest things she does when I'd go with my parents to her for dinner. She was one treasure my best friend kept, he treasured his sisters with everything. He always told me how prepared he was to punch any guy that'd try looking at any of them, that's why I never told him I had a crush on her. On Deila, his little sister.

That night, she looked absolutely beautiful—dressed in a blue fairy gown with silver wings and sparkling silver heel that wasn't too high for a child her age. A silver tiara adorned her naturally thick hair held in a bun.

At first glance, I knew it was her, although she had a multicolored designed mask on. Her mask was almost as beautiful as her, but not quite.

As she approached her brother Dawn, who was standing beside me, I started to get tingles. She got to where we were and whispered in Dawn's ear, then patted his shoulder softly, not even giving me as little as a glimpse.

I wondered if she even knew I existed if she even knew my name... maybe to her, I was just one of her brother's mate. But that would be enough, I thought. If she even knew.

Later that day, I was standing with a cup of orange juice in my hand as I waited for Dawn when I saw her walking towards me. My hands suddenly shook nervously. As she stopped in front of me, I thought she was going to ask after Dawn, but she didn't.

She gave me the cutest smile and even though two of her front teeth were missing, she still looked to be the most beautiful girl in the room to me.

'Hi,' she said and my hands started to twitch with nerves.

'Hey,' I managed to say.

'What's your name?' she asked. There I had my answer, she didn't know my name. But then again I had a mask one that covered well.

I was going to answer her when she spoke again. 'You see my sister over there?' she pointed to another masked girl I knew was Sia, her little sister. 'She dared me t-t-to k-kiss you," she stuttered.

My heart started to thump in excitement. 'Can you do that? Kiss me I mean,' she said innocently.

I nodded and muttered an 'Okay' then she smiled.

The next second she was in my face. Before I could process it, she pecked me on my lips and I shut my eyes, not knowing what else to do. After giving each other 2 peeks on the lips, she parted and started to giggle cutely.

I rubbed my hands to my forehead, knowing I ruined the kiss with my loud pecks. 'I'm sorry it was too loud. It was my first," I told her.

She stopped giggling. 'Twas my first time too. That makes us each other first.'

'I could make up next time. I promise I won't be so noisy.' As soon as the words left my mouth her eyes flickered.

'Sorry, no next time,' she said and hurried off.

My next thought was, Dawn was going to have my head for this, and he did give me that punch he prepared when I had told him.

After thirteen years, I still smiled each time I thought about it. She had always been so smart.

"Just one." I was brought out of my trance by her answer.

A smile started to creep on my face. released a breath I didn't know I was holding in relief. I quickly looked away to hide the smile.

"One?" Sia exclaimed surprise written on her face and everyone else's in the room, ibiet.

"How about we make that two for you. I dare you to kiss Nat," Alex said.

As soon as the words left the fucker's mouth anger gripped me. That raging urge to beat him to pulp filled me. Who the fuck did he think was?

It wasn't even in his place to dare her. Fuck this stupid game, I cussed in my mental rage.

I willed myself to relax, assuring myself she wouldn't do it. Or would she? I got my answer when she muttered an 'okay' before standing.

She's going to do it, I worried, but still, I sat where I was, silently hoping she didn't.

Nathaniel took her hand and tugged her to him as he looked at me grimly. He knew. The fucker knew.

My impatience was on the verge of been snapped, still silently waiting for her to step away from him. I flipped when I saw her eyes started to flutter as he continued to lean in. I stood up with rage, walking to them and ignoring all the questioning eyes, and pulled her away from him.

I heard her gasp as she came in contact with my hard chest. Good, I thought. Still, I looked down to if she was okay. The look in her eyes was that of relief. Had she been hoping for me to stop her?

I looked at Nat. "Hell no," I said as calmly as I could. Still trying to keep a good font and not make it more dramatic than it already was.

I was on the verge of been angered and my anger wasn't something anyone would want to mess with. Hopefully, the Nat guy backed down without an argument, for his good.

He had the nerve to snicker. "No? No what? Are you her dad now?"

He reached for her hand. Did he want to still touch her? I asked myself amused. That wasn't even what was irking me the most, it was how he was referring to her... like she was an item. And how I also yanked her away like she was an item. I hated behaving like a Neanderthal, but I would do it again giving the situation.

I was fuming, but I held myself as I didn't want blood in my new penthouse.

"Don't you fucking touch her," I grunted my last warning.

He shoved my chest and I felt bad for him that he didn't take my warning.

"Let her come to me assho-" my fist made contact with his face before he could finish.

Deila gasped from beside me, so did everyone else in the room. Excluding the guy with a now bloodied mouth.

From my peripheral, I saw he was going to launch an attack —he raised his fist and was aiming for my face. I turned, calmly gripping his wrist as I brought him closer to me and twisted his hand to the back.

"Bro, that's enough now," Dawn intercepted, gesturing for me to calm down.

''Let him go, James," Alex spat.

I glared at him. "You started this asshole. So shut the hell up," I grunted.

Dawn was still gesturing for me to calm down, and calmness slowly started to fill me.

''Get out of my house." I let him go.

''Of course," Nat mumbled.

"Bastard," he snared when he touched the blood on his mouth and started for the door.

And then the idea to do something daring. came to me.

"Wait!'' I called after him and he stooped dead in his tracks.

When he turned to face me I smirked and grabbed Dei by the waist. I knew what I was going to do was Neanderthal of me as Dei always brought out a part of me I didn't know existed. I knew it might push Dei, but I was going to risk it. I was going to place my mark. She was mine.

I pulled her to me and held her eyes. My eyes trailed down to her chest, rising and falling from heavy breaths. I looked to see if Nat was still watching, he was— to my delight— with a confused expression on his face. I smirked.

I turned to Dei, leaned in, and claimed her lips. Smiling against her when she gasped. I separated, just because I needed to behold her beauty and then I claimed her lips again. Owning it. Possessing it, because she was mine.

She started to lose herself to the kiss, suddenly, she stopped. I cracked my eyes open to see her eyes widened like she just realized what she was doing. She stayed rooted on the spot when I expected her to step back from me.

I looked to the door to see Nat and Alex with irritated expressions on their faces. Good.

Resisting the urge to wink at them, I smirked instead. They scurried outside, but that wasn't my business. I passed my message already— stay the fuck away.

For the first time since the whole drama, I turned to see the faces of the people in the room. I was taken aback when I saw Sia smiling happily while Lari and Eva had gone pink. Dawn was grinning from ear to ear at the other side of the room. My attention was brought back to Dei when she cleared her throat and I felt her move away.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Dawn asked.

''Home," she replied, picking up her bag from the chair.

"We are coming with you," Lari rushed out and the girls trailed behind her.

Dei was already gone, probably in the car, before they reached the door. They said their goodbyes.

Lari was the last to step. "You not coming?" she stopped to ask Dawn. Figured.

He shook his head. "No. I'm either staying over with this complicated being," he paused, gesturing to me. "or sleeping over at mine."

She chuckled, waving to me and winking at Dawn.

I gave him a teasing look, winking at him as Lari had.

"Seriously man? You are going to pretend that didn't just happen?" he snapped.

"What?" I shrugged.

"You want to scare her off, huh?"

"You shut up. You were going to allow that slimy bastard to kiss her," I defended.

"And so? It's just a kiss. You don't get to control her."

I gaped at him. "Yes, I don't get to control her. But just a kiss? Just? Maybe to you, it would've been," I paused raking him with my glare. "How dare you even say that?"

"Whatever, you're not a Neanderthal, and you know how independent Dei is. She'd hate that you treated her like a child and then after, parading her like a trophy when you practically told Nat and his handbag to watch you kiss her. And most of all, she'd hate how aggressive you were with Nat." He snickered. "Did you see how she looked at you before she left?"

''Fuck that. She was going to allow him to kiss her dammit! She knew I was watching."

"Maybe that was why, plus you had sex yesterday. What right do you have to object to that?" he muttered the last part.

"I- You don't get it."

"Yeah, I thought as much. You just might've ruined things with her." he shook his head in disbelief.

I was reminded of the visible hurt I'd seen in her face when I told my "truth" I

Shit, what have I done?

"I'm going to take a shower man." I brushed past him going inside to my room.