A small scream escaped Leila when Charles stood. Her chair collapsed to the floor and the sound echoed in the empty restaurant.
Where was Amara? Where was her husband?
Leila couldn't count on herself to put a stop to any of Charles's shenanigans. She held her bag to her chest as if to defend herself. She should have known coming here was a bad idea. Doing her best to remain unaffected by his stance, Leila lowered her handbag and stepped back.
"There's no moving on from me. You love me, Leila." In the past when she was young and stupid and believed love could change a man. "Remember?"
"I'm leaving," she replied instead.
"No. Leila-"
She dodged his hand trying to reach for her. Her heart was breaking but she forced a foot in front of the other until his hand dropped to her shoulder from behind. She smelt him before he spoke. Charles smelt like polished wood.
"Leila, let's just talk."
Why wasn't he getting it? Leila clenched her eyes shut, willing his hand to disappear.
The guard at the door was missing, she would have screamed for his help. But what would she have said? He wasn't hurting her. But he was touching her without her permission. Leila didn't turn to face him. She needed to remember that Charles wouldn't hurt her in an open place. He cared about his reputation.
"I don't want to talk to you," Leila replied at last. Her eyes lowered to the floor. "I'm married. I have moved on."
Another voice spoke before Charles. "Let go of her, Mr Charles Black." It was new, foreign but authoritative. Charles fingernails dug into her shoulder and she winced. "We don't condone this behaviour in our establishment."
Our establishment? His choice of words led her to believe he was the manager of the cafe. Leila feared for the future of the man's business. Charles could have Stone Cafe blacklisted.
The weight on her shoulder finally disappeared and she scurried out of the cafe without questions. Her breathing became regular when she was outside. She stood straighter when a car rolled to a stop beside her. Was Charles trying to kidnap her? He wouldn't dare.
The door of the backseat opened. "Get in."
Leila sat stiffly inside the car. Between facing Charles and sitting in the car with Kelvin, she wasn't sure which she would choose. Her husband scrolled through messages on his phone without paying her mind. She was relieved to see him but also curious.
"Did he hurt you?"
She didn't need to turn to feel the anger oozing from him. Curling against her side of the door, she played with the straps of her bag.
"No." The ensuing silence hung over them like a wet blanket. "Did you follow me?"
"No," he replied without looking up from the phone. She wanted him to look up so she could determine if he was mad at her. She didn't want him to be jealous over a scumbag like Charles. "I was having a meeting."
And he sent Amara to her. Even during a meeting, he was thinking of her. "Sorry I ruined your meeting."
For the first time since she entered the car, he dropped his phone. "Is Charles Black harassing you?"
"No." Her answer came out too fast. She cleared her throat and tried again. "No. We kind of used to know each other." His brow rose. "He wanted to see me. Old friends."
Kelvin made a sound she couldn't fathom. His gaze never left her face and it became harder to keep up the eye contact. "If you say so but I'm taking him off the project."
"What?"
"Stars Glow doesn't need him." It did. They could achieve a lot more with sponsors and she told Kelvin this. "If the other sponsors don't agree, they can go fuck themselves."
Leila had never seen him lose control like this and she wanted to fix it. She bridged the gap between them, a tad bit nervous as she took her husband's hand in hers. Kelvin's lips twitched and Leila tried to smile.
"Kev..." She wasn't sure what she wanted to say but she didn't want to ruin whatever relationship the two men might have. "It really is nothing, Kev. He did nothing."
"He did nothing?" Faced with such a direct question, she didn't know how to reply. Kelvin tilted her face and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "We are friends, right?" Her head was still reeling from the kiss but she managed to nod. She could not get used to his stolen kisses. "You can talk to me. I want to help."
"You are already doing enough."
Kelvin kissed her again. This time for more than two seconds but not long enough for her to react and respond. "I want to do more, Leila," he whispered.
If he wanted to do more, she would let him. "I don't want Stone Cafe to run out of business. The manager defended me." Kelvin gave her that knowing smile. It hit her then that he might have sent the manager. The late realisation made her spine stiffer. "Thank you, Kev."
"Are you hungry?"
Her arms wrapped around her stomach. "Yeah."
"Alright." Kelvin drew her closer to him, his hand rested on her knee but she made no move to pry his hand off. In fact, she liked it. "Do you have a location?"
Leila smiled for two reasons. One, he gave her a choice. Two, he didn't request for them to return to Pacific which was his usual dining spot. She looked outside the window to the familiar streets. There was an eatery she used to visit when she first moved here.
"Yes, I do," she said. To the driver, she gave him the name of the eatery and Kelvin laughed at it.
Planting a kiss on her hair, he said, "Let's get this pretty lady something to eat, then we can go home."
As usual, his compliment made her blush. She wrung her hands on her lap. "Aren't you going to eat?" Kev shook his head, she sat up and placed a hand on his chest. "I'm really sorry I ruined your meeting. Sorry."
"What did I say about apologising?" He frowned. Leila didn't want to get on his bad side. "I'm your friend, Leila. Most importantly, I'm your husband. You don't have to apologise for needing me."
A sigh slipped from her lips, she allowed him to carry her. She hid her face in his chest and he chuckled. He made her so shy and alive. "Tell me about you." Leila pouted. That question sounded like something that should be asked only at a job interview. "There has to be something."
"There's really nothing to tell." Kelvin's lips puckered and she flicked a finger over his nose. Their eyes met, she rolled her lip between her teeth when Kelvin's hand wrapped around her wrist. He peppered kisses all over her knuckles, and she sucked in air through her teeth when he kissed her wrist. Her nipples hardened. If he didn't stop teasing her like that, she wouldn't be blamed for whatever happened next. "Kev... I think..."
His lips claimed hers in a heartbeat. Leila was the one who pulled away first and smashed her lips on his again. She brought Kelvin's hand to her breasts, slipped her hands inside his jacket. Why was he wearing a shirt? A moan lumped in her throat when he squeezed her nipple and her head fell back. His mouth was on the skin of her neck, her collarbone. She wanted more.
"Leila" Kelvin's voice was breathless and ragged as her breathing, she pecked his lips one last time and they laughed. Usually, Kelvin initiated the kiss. "My Leila."
My Kelvin, she thought.
Her vagina throbbed, she shifted and her cheeks reddened when she felt something hard under her. She looked at her husband's face to confirm her suspicions and he grinned. Unlike her, he wasn't ashamed of his body's reaction to her. Holding her hand, he placed it over his erection and the tip of her ears turned red. He was big. Could that size fit inside her?
The thoughts clouding her mind were sinful but she loved them. She wanted to know what her husband looked like without clothes on. Kelvin laughed at nothing in particular and her eyes jerked to his face.
She didn't speak out loud, did she?
The rest of the ride was in silence but she didn't miss the way his fingers ran up and down her legs. She loved it. Even when his fingers moved past her knees and between her thighs, she spread her legs for him to have more access. A part of her knew they wouldn't have sex in the backseat of the car but it had been so long she was wild and naughty. She wanted to let loose, even if only for a minute, with her husband.
"Thank you for always being here for me," she told him when the car stopped. Kelvin smiled at his wife.
This smile was different, almost special. She palmed his face, her eyes locked onto his, then she kissed him. Kelvin was too stunned to move and Leila took advantage of that. She slid her tongue into his mouth, seeking entrance to taste and explore every corner of his lips. When he snapped out of the initial shock, he kissed her back with a feverish urgency that made moisture pool at her core. They pulled back, both of them panting and smiling at each other like they just won a lottery.
With their foreheads still touching, he said, "I hope you can learn to trust me, Leila." She would try harder. Having been away from home for so long, her friend circle was small. Her work friends didn't know much about her personal life but she would try to do and be better for her husband. "Are you ready to go in?"