Holding On

ғɪᴠᴇ

“How dare you, Kevin? How fucking dare you?"

Kevin Hook watched his best friend closely, following him with his eyes as the other man swiftly walked back and forth at his office door. Zain had begun pacing immediately after he'd stormed into Kevin's office five minutes ago, throwing out the occasional 'how dare you'.

Now Kevin's curiosity was mounting tenfold. Had his plan not worked as he'd expected?

“Man, you're going to make me dizzy if you keep that up.” He said tentatively.

Zain froze, then sharply swivelled to face him. His eyes were narrowed to slits, and if eyes could be bullets, Kevin would be dead meat.

“You gave her my fucking address. What game are you playing, Kevin?. What game are you playing Kevin? What the fuck?"

Kevin sighed, having expected his friend to be furious. “Hear me out Zain.‘

“I am, and your reasons better be impeccable.” Zain bit out.

“I just wanted to help you. you've been torturing yourself too much.”

“Torturing myself?.” Zain leaned forward, glaring into Kevin's eyes. “What you did, Kevin, that's torture. You know how hard it is for me to resist her.”

“That's the point!” Kevin's said defensively, hoping Zain would reason with him. “Frankly, I've never understood your need to fight Emma off so fiercely. You want her and that's not even something you deny. I understand that you are scared and...”

“I'm not scared”, Zain said without much conviction.

Kevin ignored him and continued. “She broke you before and you're scared she'll do it again. But think about it, she followed you to that cabin, Zain. And from what you told me last night, you were very clear with what you would take from her to work for her. And for the record, I don't think it's really about you working for her. She wants you, man. I think she might be in love with you.”

Zain let out a bitter chuckle. “Why? Because I'm suddenly so hot and different from the man she used to know?”

Kevin groaned in exasperation. “You don't have to have a relationship with her. She's been eating at your system ever since you met her and this is your chance to just fuck her out of your system. Then you can be free.”

Zain pulled back one of the chairs across from Kevin and slumped into it. He looked tired and weary, and for the first time, Kevin felt the fear going through his friend. “It's been two years, Kevin. Two years after she'd treated me like shit, and I still want her as much as I used to. I'm scared that if I allow myself to be with her, I wouldn't want to let her go. Until she leaves me.”

“What if she doesn't leave you? What if she?...”

“She thought I was unattractive and treated me like shit years ago, Kevin. Because I was fat.” Zain chuckled a mirthless chuckle. “What do you think is going to happen in the future, when I'm... When I'm...”

Silence fell over them, making Kevin's chest tight and his office suddenly too hot. When he'd orchestrated this plan, he hadn't thought completely of how Zain felt. What Zain was going through still felt to him like a dream, and he tended to forget how real it was sometimes.

Now the pain in Zain's eyes reminded Kevin of all of Zain's struggles in the last months, even before Emma had come back into the picture.

“Zain, we don't know that yet. They still...”

“They nothing Kevin. I'm not going to sit around and keep deluding myself that whatever shit they claim to be doing is going somewhere. I have to accept the reality of my condition for what it is.”

****

The silence in his car was eerily dreadful as Zain drove back to his cabin. His mind was racing. Racing with uncertainties and apprehension. He glanced at the pack of condoms he'd bought and wondered whether he was doing the right thing.

He'd thought hard as he'd left Kevin's office and decided to give Kevin's suggestion a chance. A weekend. Just two days, no strings attached, with Emma. A weekend of passion to slake all the lust for Emma that had been riding him for so long.

And maybe, just maybe, that would be enough to drive her out of his system.

At first, he'd thought that he was resisting her because he hated her. He'd actually made himself believe that. Until today in Kevin's office, he'd realized that it was far from that. It was the certainty that she was going to leave him eventually that was keeping him away.

That was why he was going to make sure to keep his feelings in check. Despite how much he wanted her, there was no way he could let himself go. Even if she wanted to be with him now, there was no way she was going to stay when she found out his truth.

Seeing that he was already in front of the cabin, Zain stepped on his brakes. Even though he'd bought condoms, a part of him had still hoped that she was gone, but the lights in the room proved him wrong and confirmed his fears - Em was home.

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🌼Ｅｍｍａ🌼

My heart falls back into place when I hear the screeching of car tyres. Having been left alone for hours with only the whisper of worry as a companion isn't exactly the greatest thing.

With the mood in which Zain had left, I'd fear that something could happen to him and it would've been my fault.

I take the food from the microwave and make my way to the dining area just in time to catch sight of Zain who seems to freeze at the sight of me. Without a word, he heads for the bedroom, and I sigh, wishing I had not been too frank with my confession. 

I sit on the oak chair, each second seeming like hours, but he finally does come out, walking toward the table.

“I can’t eat right now. I’m too full. You can eat what you can and refrigerate the rest for later.”

“I’ve already eaten. Are you sure you aren’t hungry?”

“Maybe not for food.” A lewd smirk emphasizes his words, his sexual connotation making my pulse quicken, My heart begins pounding against my chest. 

The shift in his mood takes me by surprise. Fidgeting under his gaze, I carry the bowls of rice and green peas together with the beef sauce and make for the fridge with legs that threaten to fail me anytime soon. I take slow, steady breaths, trying to regulate my unsteady breathing with all the sexual tension lingering in the room.

Before I can even turn, I feel Zain’s hands on my waist as my back presses into his chest, causing a startled gasp to escape my lips. My body practically melts as his lips find my ear, nibbling gently.

“I should’ve known that you were too obstinate to give up.” The timbre of his voice causes goosebumps to scatter across my skin. “I’ll be giving you only two options.” He swivels me around so quickly I can’t contain a gasp. “One, you leave and expect me at your fashion house on Monday, and two, you stay and risk all the consequences associated.”

I close my eyes, his male scent intoxicating my senses, my body arousing at the second offer, tingling the crux of my thighs with electric sensations. Leaving definitely doesn't appeal to me, so that leaves only staying as an option. “Number two.”

Before I can open my eyes, his hands apprehend my hair as he crushes my body to the fridge, his body hard and aroused. With a low growl, he crashes his lips to mine and buries his tongue into my mouth.

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Finally, we've gotten to the hot stuff. It's going to get even steamier. Thanks for reading!
LOL
-E!