Drive and desire

“See how she leans her cheek upon her hand.

O, that I was a glove upon that hand.

That I might touch that cheek!"

-William Shakespeare; Romeo and Juliet

•X A V I E R•

"How do I look?" Standing in front of my laptop, I asked Alex, whose eyes assessed body as much as the screen allowed and at last, he gave his approval by giving me a thumbs up. Winking at him, I turned around to set my hair and then sprayed a little amount of my favorite rose-scented cologne.

Wait, something wasn't right with him, no smile, no tantrums and no demands. That was weird as Alex always loved dressing me.

"What happened buddy?" I asked and sat down on the bed, pulling the laptop over my lap.

"I miss you, Daddy." He said, giving me his best sad look.

"I'll be back in a day or two. Until then you can turn the house upside down." I said to which he finally smiled.

"Promise?"

Chuckling, I said, "Promise." Later adding, "And will you be good to grandma and grandpa until I get back?"

"I will." He said, followed by yawning.

"Okay, buddy. You're way past your bedtime. Go to sleep."

"Love you, Daddy." He said, his eyes already closing.

"Love you too, kiddo." I said and then cut the call while putting the laptop at my side.

Making my way towards Evelyn's room, I knocked at the door gently and waited for her to come out. While doing so, I tapped the floor in annoyance at her tardiness.

After two or three minutes, she opened the door and my eyes moved to Evelyn as I sucked my breath when I saw her in that black dress, hugging all her feminine curves and highlighting her chest. She was wearing minimal makeup opposite to the times when she used to cake her face with makeup. And her wild red hair was hanging around her waist in a natural, messy way.

She had no idea how breath-taking she looked, or perhaps she had. Of course, she knew her effect on people as well as how to use that.

When I told her that Chris asked me to drive her to the venue, she turned flustered. Unknowingly, she bit her lips, and her action brought my gaze to her sweet plump lips, covered in red lipstick. A hot desire to kiss them erupted in my heart but I pushed it back.

Not wanting to show my feelings, I walked forward without waiting for her to come along as I heard her footsteps trying to match my pace but failing miserably.

Without uttering a single word to each other, we reached the parking lot where the car was parked. Unlocking the passenger side for her, I started the engine of the car.

"Thanks for everything, I mean for the ride and earlier in the conference hall." Her muffled voice reached my ears, and I refrained my eyes from going towards her, in that dress. It was a torture on my self-control looking her in that plain black dress, without any stupid decoration and pearls.

When I saw her shivering in the conference hall as Mr. Rivers talked about her mother. I couldn't stop myself, but to help her as she was very close to her mother. But the way she helped us seal the deal was so annoying.

"Whatever." I replied in an annoyed tone, keeping my focus on the road. After a while, I felt her tapping the floor of the car. From the corner of my eye, I saw her legs and without knowing, I let out a deep breath at the sight. Her pale toned legs were at contrast with the dark material and her flawless skin urged me to run my fingers along them, while I take her breath away and fuck-

Fuck! Fuck! I shouldn't be thinking like that. That was what she probably wanted, to fuck my sanity.

The drive was way more awkward than I initially thought as the space between us was charged with unspoken tension and the deafening silence just added to it.

When we reached the venue, I walked away from her as soon as I could.

Walking into the hall where the party was arranged, I saw Savannah who was sipping her drink and she might have noticed my frown from the distance because she immediately put away her drink and turned her face to the opposite side.

"I didn't know you were here in California?" I asked once I reached her.

"I had work, Xavi, remember I told you the day we had dinner." She replied.

"I don't remember anything." I glared at her.

"How would you be if you were too busy keeping an eye on your ex." She glared back, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"Fuck off." I said and she rolled her eyes. Grunting in annoyance, I walked towards the other side of the bar and sat down, asking the bartender to make a drink for me.

"Damn." I was chugging the liquor down my throat when I heard Matt's voice as he took his seat beside me. "Her little black dress makes me want to rip it off her body."

I threw daggers at him with eyes on hearing that. "What? Don't tell me you didn't want to know what's hiding under that tight dress." He smirked and my hands itched to punch him so hard that even his forefathers would feel the blow. But I wasn't stupid, I knew better than making a scene.

"Listen here Matt!" I leaned towards him. "I'm your boss and I control everything. If I see you talking shit about Miss Williams again, I'll make sure you never get a job again."

Matt's face twisted at first after which, he replaced the fear with his disgusting smirk. "Whatever you say, boss. But, let me see if that chick is interested in hot, meaningless sex."

His words angered me more and I controlled the immense desire of kicking him in the balls. "Get the hell out of my sight." I growled and he shrugged, walking away from me to Evelyn who had just now entered the hall.

Before I could stop Matt, Savannah stopped me, "You're not going anywhere. Who knows if she is really into that prick? It's not like she has really high standards."

Well, she was right, partially.