My Brother’s Best Friend

The Sparks

ARELLA

MY HEART started a mad thumping in my chest. My knees wobbled when he looked down at me with blazing dark eyes. He wanted to see my reaction or he might believe the eyes were the gateway to the soul or something. Then he walked away.

A moment later, he was back with two glasses of red wine.

After he offered mine, he raised his glass for a toss. “To us.”

I let the sweetness and the acidity of the wine run down my throat. I needed to numb myself if I had to be honest tonight, which had been hard for me lately. I had been keeping a huge secret from my family. My grandma just died not knowing what I had been keeping from her. I thought I could keep it till the day I die, but Skip being back, I didn’t think I could hold on to it anymore.

Silently, I sat back to his comfy couch and heaved a sigh.

“It was just sex,” he started. I could literally feel the nervousness in his voice.

Skip is nervous? Huh! I remembered when he first kissed me.

“You’re eyes are magical. I’ve seen like these before.” My voice almost whispered as my throat suddenly thickened of the way he looked at me with flecks of hope and hesitation.

“I-I want to kiss you.”

My mouth fell open, but something down in my stomach fluttered. The butterflies formed a kaleidoscope of excitement all over.

My brain was fuzzed. My skin tingled. My body hummed. This was not my first kiss, but I was excited to be kissed by a stranger.

He leaned closer, his long paintbrush lashes fluttered close, touching his high cheekbones. His cinnamon-beer mixed breathing caressed my face, and my eyes willingly closed as he started brushing his lips tentatively as if testing the water. Then finally, he pressed them against mine, making me sigh in relief. My hands raked through his soft hair as he deepened the kiss, making our lips moved in harmony.

“I said I don’t care,” I answered after gulping the wine. I lied again.

“Want more?”

“Not now.” I stared at the black TV screen.

“You should.” The couch whooshed as he leaned his body on.

“Should I?” I turned my body to face him completely.

His head shifted. “You are the reason why I slept with her. I met her from the dating app I founded.”

My eyes grew big. “What app?” For a split second, I felt like I was caught in the glare of the spotlight.

“The app where you signed up to.”

My hands flew to my mouth, utterly shocked. His words slammed at me like a snowball as I continued staring at him.

“I’m glad you’ve been honest to someone you’ve never met in person, Reigh.” He gripped my knee, and it made me tense in a good way.

“W-what are you talking about?” I barely heard my words as my voice quavered.

“We owned the dating app. It was your brother’s idea actually. He wanted me to create an app for my dating purposes since I didn’t have time to have a serious relationship. Surprisingly, it grew faster than we anticipated. Your brother is  the co-owner.”

“Oh, my God!”

“Reigh, please believe every word I am going to say. I’ll be completely honest-”

I jerked to stand, feeling humiliated that he knew how I felt towards him. “Don’t tell me my brother asked you to chat with me on that app?” Was that how he knew me?

He emptied his wine in a gulp, then took a deep breath. He looked up at me. The look in his eyes made my anger strike.

“Answer me, Skipper!” I yelled, which wasn’t me at all. I used to get ordered, and not the other way around.

“Reigh, of course not. I mean, I was stalking you online while I was still in London.”

“What do you mean? Oh, God!” I took a step back, unable to take any more humiliation than I already had.

I stepped back when he reached out for me.

“No, Skip. Please, no. You knew my secret. You knew everything about me, then you told me not to lie to you when you are the one who’s lying to me!”

“Arella, do you think I don’t feel bloody overwhelmed that somehow you remembered me, and us? That you told me you like me? It was hard enough to not tell you back how I felt. I was barely holding every time I saw you.” He stood up, raking his fingers through his long hair in frustration.

I was utterly stunned for a while because his words touched me. By the looked on his face, I was sure he was telling the truth. And I knew the feeling of not being able to open up to anyone.

“How many times I want to kiss you, taste you, feel you again inside me? You have no idea how hard it is to hide my erection when my bloody dick wants you?”

I blinked back the tears, but it was too late. “You just want to fu- sleep with me?”

“God, no. But I unintentionally broke our code. I couldn’t fall for you back then. Your brother trusted me with his life, his family, and everything. I agreed to watch over you on the app. Your profile can only be seen by me, but it was because that’s what I want. You are the reason why I am here. Not just because of my family business and my mum. I chose to be here because of you when I found out you finally got divorced. It’s not that I want to destroy your marriage, but I was glad when I heard you were finally free from that arsehole.”

“How do you know my ex-husband?”

“It doesn’t matter anymore, Reigh.”

“It matters because you lied to me! Why didn’t you tell me you are hotsome? The picture doesn’t look like you.”

“I wore contacts, and it was photoshopped. When I saw your picture, I edited my profile right away.”

“Do you know who I was talking about then?” My face heated.

“Yeah. Unless you were talking about someone else.” He shrugged and smiled to confirm.

I blinked, trying to comprehend what he just said.

“We can’t do this, Skip. And I’m going home.” I shook my head and marched right to the door.

“Arella, I’m sorry! We both lied. That’s why I want us to be honest with each other this time.”

“There is no us, Skipper. We both lied. That’s the whole point. What else can we do besides lying? And this isn’t right. You are my brother’s best friend. And I almost jeopardized your life once, and I’m not gonna do it again.”

“The fuck you can’t! It’s time for you to take a leap and decide what’s best for you. Don’t allow anyone to control your life anymore, Arella.”

My heart panged when I saw the tenderness in his eyes.

“I wanted you since then, and I never stop. I just didn’t want to spend my years in prison that’s why I ran away. But I’m not running away anymore, Arella. I wanted us before, and it didn’t change a thing until now, I still want you. Fuck! I don’t think I can stay away from you. I’ve tried, but I still failed.”

He huffed. “Fuck best friends! I’d been holding my feelings for you for years for the sake of your brother. I should think about my wants, my needs, my heart, and my life this time.”

I was amazed at how frustrated he was about his feelings-spilling his guts to me.

“Hey. a fan, huh?” A deep male voice whispering in my ear made me shiver.

I turned around. The first thing I noticed was his eyes-they were different colors, but that was impossible. It could be from the light of the Arena. He had a handsome face that could only be seen on TV.

“Aren’t we all are!” I yelled in his ear.

He smelled cinnamon spice and musk. Hmm, interesting scent.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“I’m Linton,” he smirked. His hand held out for a handshake.

“Linton?” I barked into laughter. He could’ve fooled me because he was handsome, but I knew he was lying because there was no way he was related to Axson Linton. Axson was a British, and this Linton was an American. Fine, lie to me, and I’ll do the same. Call it quits.

“And shouldn’t you be telling me yours?”

“It’s Reighan. Just call me Reigh.” I shook his large hand, and it surprised me when he didn’t let my hand go.

The sparks.

My world skidded to a halt, mesmerized by how fate played us well. I was stunned stupid just for a moment, then ran back toward him. I grabbed the back of his head and crushed my mouth over his. I took his gasp of surprise into mine. Then the electricity exploded.

My heart thumped wildly when he instantly responded, snaked his powerful arms around me, and pulled me tightly into him.

Why am I holding back when we both know what we want and we are attracted to each other? He was right. Fuck my brother! I was crazy over those gorgeous eyes back then, and now I was insane.

He groaned when I bit his lip and tugged it. Then he got his chance, thrusting his tongue into the well of my mouth.

I moaned to his taste-it seemed familiar, yet still full of surprises. The sweet taste of the wine flooded in our mouths. And if heaven was real, then this was it.

Our tongues tangled together. My fingers grasped his long silky hair as I pulled him closer, pressing my body into his hard one. His bulge was sweet torture. I was completely overwhelmed by the intimacy that swirled around us-it was almost unreal.

We were both panting when we broke apart. Skip continued planting kisses on my face, my eyes, my cheeks, my jaw, and down my neck.

“W-we should stop.”

“Make me,” he mumbled in a raspy voice. “Feel that?” he asked shamelessly as he pressed his huge bulge on my lower abdomen, then nibbled my earlobe. The heat on my body reached the boiling point.

I’m royally turned on.

“I can make you stop but not tonight.” My voice was a breathless rasp. I attacked his mouth again, then stopped to pull his shirt off his head.

“Sure about this?” His bun loosened down.

I couldn’t help but appreciate the perfect body he had. “Really? Now you’re asking me, huh? Is this some kind of a British joke?”

He chuckled softly.

“God, Skip. You’re a beautiful creature.” His was drool-worthy.

“And you are gorgeous.” His face smirked cockily.

Then I strolled my gaze down to his hard and fine chest, tracing the tiny golden hair sprinkled across it. I traced my thumbs to his little nipples, making him hummed with pleasure.

“My turn, love.” He lifted off my shirt in a blink. “Hmm, let me see what’s behind this black lacy bra. They’re already worth a hard-on, but I’m bloody greedy. I want more. I want to taste them again. I’m actually dying here, so wanna change your mind, Reigh? Do it now.” His lazy and sensual gaze made my heart freeze.

“No.”

“Good.” He lowered his head down and bit my nipple through the material of my bra, making me jerked backward in pleasure.

“Did I hurt you?” His ablaze eyes bore mine.

“No. It feels good, and I haven’t felt this in a while,” I told him honestly. No sense of lying anymore. I wanted this more than the air I breathed. For now.

Without looking away, he unclasped my bra, lowering the strap slowly. My C cup size breasts fell down.

“Look at what I missed?” His voice was raspy and sexy. He licked his lips and lowered his head down again, kissing the plump of my breasts alternately. “Dark pink.” He looked up with eyes heavy with lust. He took my nipple into his mouth. The scorching hot of his mouth sent a blazing fire all over my skin. Then he sucked hard, sending heat right through my wet core.

My head fell back. “God!”

“Skipper.”

“Stop being cocky, Linton. I want us in your bedroom now, please?” I begged and surrendered. “Or just on the couch.”

When he didn’t respond, I opened my eyes. He was staring at me with his desire-flooded eyes.