Chapter 10: After The Party.

“So, do you have a girlfriend?” Laura asked James, who was trying to steady her, so she didn’t fall off his lap.

“Don’t you think it’s too late to ask me that after everything you’ve done today?” James asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, do you?” Laura continued to ask.

“I don’t,” James answered, wondering where she wanted to take this conversation.

“Wife?” she asked, realising that he may have one.

“I’m not married either,” James answered with a chuckle.

“Then what do you think of me?” Laura asked him.

“Hm? What about you?” James asked, wanting her to be more clear.

“Since we are both single…” Laura said and trailed off, not knowing how to explain herself. It was like she realised that this wasn’t going to work if she was the only one interested.

“Are propositioning me?” James asked, feeling mildly surprised. When Laura heard him she looked away, feeling both nervous and regretful.

“It’s the first time you are avoiding my gaze since we met,” James said with a smile.

“I’m not avoiding your gaze,” Laura responded defiantly, but continued to look away. James smiled even more when he saw her like this and held her more securely. The both of them were single, and his mother has been pressuring him to get married. He was also very attracted to Laura. He was just sceptical about how much she had thought the decision through.

“We should talk about this when you're sober,” James concluded.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to have this conversation if I’m sober,” Laura said and pretty much got comfortable on top of him. James looked at the woman, who was now lying on top of him and wanted to be reckless for once.

“Are you sure you won’t regret this tomorrow?” James asked her, and Laura lifted her head to look at him. She even stretched out her hand to touch his face, as if trying to assure herself that it was real and not a figment of her own imagination.

“I am certain that I won’t regret it,” Laura said and smiled at him. It took James everything he had not to kiss her pouty lips at that moment.

“Okay, let’s see where this leads us,” James said with a helpless smile. He has only had a few relationships, despite how colourful his sex life had been in the past. It had already been four years since his last relationship and he hadn’t really been thinking of getting himself into a new one. He looked at Laura, who let out a comfortable sigh while laying on top of his body.

The two stayed like that, with James leisurely sipping on his drink as people slowly started dispersing. When Lucas left with his girlfriend, Jason came to interrupt the good time that the two were having.

“So we are going to the after-party. Do you two want to come along?” he asked and rather than look at James, he was looking at Laura. He knew his brother wouldn’t come with them, he wouldn’t be able to handle loud places after being drunk all day.

“Um,” Laura started and turned to James, who looked completely disinterested and then looked at Jason apologetically.

“Hahaha, I understand, we’ll just go on our own,” Jason said and walked away as he waved at the people that were waiting for him to finish talking to James and Laura. Everyone stood up and left, and soon, only the two of them were left on the terrace.

“Aren’t you cold?” James asked her after a few minutes of silence.

“No, you are quite warm,” Laura said and turned to lie on her stomach, resting her chin on his bare chest to look at him. The more she continued to look at him, the happier she became. She felt like she was getting closer to fulfilling her dreams.

“What are you smiling about?” James asked and teasingly rubbed the corner of her upturned eyes.

“It’s nothing,” Laura said, and tried to hide her smile. James moved his thumb lower, shifting his attention from her green eyes to her full lips that were still twitching because of her bad attempt at trying to hide her smile. His thumb moved from the corner of her mouth, tracing over her lower lip to the other corner and back. At this time, Laura had even forgotten what she had been happy about and her entire being was focused on the finger that was tracing over her lip.

James looked like he was in a trance as he did this. His thumb gently pulled on her bottom lip, exposing the pink inside of her lip. Laura’s eyes were completely focused on his expression and she did not know what it was, but she could already feel her body react. It was like he could accurately predict her next actions.

He pressed his thumb against her closed teeth and Laura opened her mouth as if it was the most natural thing to do. She closed her lips around his thumb and teasingly scrapped her teeth over the pad of his finger, snapping James out of his trance. James blankly stared at Laura for a few seconds as she licked the finger in her mouth before he pulled his thumb out of her mouth.

“I think we should go to bed,” James said and unceremoniously lifted her and got her off his lap. He was already hard, and he did not want her to find out. If he stayed here with her for another twenty minutes, he could guarantee that she would not be waking up the next day.

“Why, all of a sudden?” Laura asked as she watched James down his drink and even go a step further to chew the ice.

“It’s late. If we stay up here, we’ll end up doing something stupid,” James said as he stood up from the lounge chair.

“That’s what I was hoping for,” Laura said boldly as she too stood up. Now that she was looking at him from up close, she could see that he was being serious and wasn’t really leaving any room for discussion.

“Can’t we spend some more time together?” Laura asked him, feeling aggrieved.

“We still have tomorrow, for now. It’s best if we both turn in,” James said and took her hand in his, ready to escort her back.

“Well, can I at least get a kiss?” Laura asked, and the serious James felt his facade break down.

“That’s the last thing you want to do,” James said with a subtle smile, but continued walking with her. If he wasted more time with her, it looked like she would end up doing whatever to get what she wants.