by P. G. Van
Nick laughed throwing his head back as I sprinkled a few drops of water on my fingertips to wipe off the dried-up blood on his lower lip. To my relief, he stood still as I wiped off the blood and inspected the damage. The cut wasn’t too deep, and I hoped that it would heal overnight with no bruising on his face. Nick stood still with his arms loosely around my waist as I cleaned up the superficial wound in silence.
I broke the silence and asked, “Did you really set Anika up to piss me off?”
“What do you think?” he mocked as he peeled off the boxing pads.
I shook my head and said, “I don’t want to talk about it,” and added softly, “We are never doing this again.”
“We are not done yet,” Nick declared looking at me with clouds of desire in his eyes.
“Nick, please don’t….” My words were suppressed as his lips come down on mine with a deep longing, and I immediately felt my body welcome the pressure on my lips. He ran his palms along my lower back pulling me against his body, and I felt his arousal dig into me. I felt the blood rush through my veins to support the rapid beating of my heart as his tongue probed in through my lips.
I moaned against his lips when his tongue found mine and started to twirl and poke the inside of my mouth. He ran his palms under my damp t-shirt along the length of my back.
“I hate sports bras,” Nick grumbled against my lips as he reached around to place his palm on my breast confined by the bra.
I took in a sharp breath when Nick pulled on the stretchy material of my sports bra to gain access to my hardened buds. I moaned and threw my head back when I felt his fingers tips tease my hardened peak.
Nick trailed down along my neck with his tongue tantalizing the skin in contact with the tip. I jerked at the pressure that was building up inside me as Nick moved from one hardened peak to another in spite of the confinement of my bra.
Nick caressed one breast with his fingertips while his lips closed in on the other nipple that was yearning for the warmth. I arched my body and put both arms around him and pulled him closer. I felt the surge of my own pleasure encompass me as I felt the rippling sensations trigger deep down inside me. My body trembled as the waves of pleasure from within me met the ripples initiated by Nick’s lips on my hardened peaks. It was at that instant a sharp sound of metal hitting the wooden floor cut through the sound of my beating heart.
Nick pulled back to look into my eyes with a puzzled expression. When we realized that the clank was because I had dropped the metal water bottle that I was holding in my hand, Nick burst out laughing. I placed my palms on his chest and pushed him away while he continued to laugh. I adjusted my clothes and smoothened out the mess Nick had made of my hair.
“What is so funny, Nick?” I asked glaring at him as I picked up the water bottle that was rolling away on the ground.
He did not respond but shook his head as his laughter subsided. I looked at him and realized that his lip had started to bleed again.
“Nick, your lip is bleeding again,” I said as I walked towards him to inspect the injury.
As I approached him, he put both arms around me locking me in his embrace with my hands pinned to his sides.
“Nick, what has gotten into you? You need pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding or else the cut will take longer to heal,” I said annoyed about being rendered immobile.
“If you are concerned about the bleeding, figure out a way to get your hands free to take care of the cut,” he challenged with a wicked look on his face.
I wiggled and twisted with all my strength and the more I tried, Nick tightened his arms further around me. I looked at his lip hoping the bleeding had stopped but the cut seemed to have gotten worse and it continued to bleed.
I looked at him with anger simmering in my eyes as I reached up to take the tip of my tongue to his lips. I gently licked the blood from the cut and felt Nick shudder as if surprised. I inspected the cut after wiping off the blood only to realize that our kissing had deepened the cut and the blood was still seeping through the cut. I took a deep breath, and took my forehead to his lower lip and flattened his lip against my forehead to apply the required pressure. Nick took a sharp breath in and released me to bring his palms to caress my face. He planted a kiss on my forehead before making me look into his eyes and said, “Baby, that punch was hot, and I totally deserved the punch to my face.”
“Nick, please,” I said as I took my thumb to his bleeding lip. Nick ran his palms gently up and down my back as he looked into my eyes with his deep dark eyes. The intensity in his eyes combined with the gentle strokes on my back was building up my need for him and I felt the moisture gather in my pleasure zone. I took a deep breath to calm my throbbing heart and said shaking my head, “I should have never fallen for your boxing trap.”
“Yet, you did,” Nick teased mumbling against my fingertips as I still had my thumb pressed against his lip to stop the bleeding and added as he planted a kiss on the fingertips, “I thought I was going to melt when you licked the blood off my lips. You definitely know how to set me on fire.”
I blushed looking up at him and said, “I had no other way to wipe the blood to check on the cut.”
“Yes, you did. You could have done this,” he said and brought his lips to suck on my lower lip taking me by surprise and added against my lips, “But I liked the tongue action better.”
Nick dug his fingers into my loose ponytail and angled my head as his tongue traced the outer line of my quivering lips. I wrapped one arm around his neck to fist my palm in his hair while I stroked his chest with my other hand. I moaned as his tongue made its way past my lips to find my tongue. He teased my tongue before tangling his with mine as his lips came down on mine in a hot raging hunger.
A rapid thrill ran through my spine when I felt his hand slip through the waistband of my workout pants. I gasped against his mouth when his fingertips slipped past the soft material of my undergarment to tingle my clit.
I moaned in deep pleasure against his lips as he stroked the sensitive skin down below while he worked wonders with his tongue in my mouth. As he continued to tease and caress my hot spot with his fingertips, he ran his tongue along the inside of my upper lip and sent a shudder through my entire body. He continued with his sensual rhythm as he switched between flicking and poking the inside of my mouth with his tongue. He increased the tempo further with the probing and retreating of his tongue as he came down with a rough kiss.
My knees buckled and the pulsation in my mouth started to travel towards the apex of my thighs and when the waves of pleasure clashed into each other, I felt my entire body turn to jelly as I climaxed and was lost in the surge of my own sensations.
I gripped his hair with my fingers calling out his name and clung to him with my eyes closed relishing the heat in my ears as I throbbed and basked in my own lust.
Nick held me in his arms and stroked my back gently. I opened my eyes to meet his tantalizing eyes that were smiling at me.
“You were right, Nick. I was avoiding you because this is what you are capable of doing to me,” I said smiling at him.
Nick laughed with pure joy and asked, “Did you not enjoy this?”
“I did, and I want more and I want to give you more,” I said looking away from him and added, “but I have this nagging feeling of guilt and fear that keeps pulling me away from you.”
“I understand, Sameera. So, are you still pissed off at me?” Nick asked as he planted a kiss on my forehead.
“I am not, but I don’t want to do anything that may trigger the anger that you showed on our wedding night,” I said my voice shaking from the memory of his tone.
“I am so sorry, my love. I was an ass, and you know I just reacted without thinking when you said you wanted to move to the family residence,” Nick said in a firm voice as I buried my face in his chest and welcomed the feel of soft cotton on my face.
“I am willing to wait for however long for you to be my tigress in bed but until then, please
don’t avoid me. Even if you are angry with me, please don’t hide from me,” Nick pleaded and added, “I think us moving to the family residence is quite interesting. I love the fact that my mom and Ann are spending time with you.”
I smiled and said, “I am glad to hear that, and I love spending time with everyone. I have one more week before I go back to work so I have been trying to spend more time with everyone. You and I can carpool once I start work next week.”
“Sounds good, and I can’t wait for the poker night this weekend,” Nick said smiling.
“I can’t wait either. I haven’t seen Nate since they got back from India, and I can’t wait to see her,” I said with excitement.
“I am sure it’ll be a lot of fun,” Nick said smiling at me.
“It’s too bad Mitch can’t make it,” I said and added, “He said he had something planned already.”
“You invited Mitch?” Nick asked with surprise in his voice.
“Yes, I invited Raj and Rahul too, and Raj said he can make it,” I said cheerfully and added, “Rahul is going to make us dinner but won’t be joining us for poker.”
“I would have never thought of inviting the guys for the poker game, and I know those guys are big sharks,” Nick said smiling at me and added, “I am so glad you thought about inviting them.”
“Yes, the more the merrier, and I can’t wait for Friday night,” I said hugging Nick.
“Me too, baby,” Nick said planting a kiss in my hair.
Chapter Twelve
“What time do we start the poker game and what are we playing?” Nick asked as I stepped out of the closet in my salmon colored relaxed lightweight cotton tunic. I paired the buttoned half-placket tunic with comfortable dark wash skinny jeans and was ready to get the poker night started.
“We should start dinner at six-thirty and start playing at seven-thirty. I have asked everyone to come by around six,” I said my voice filled with excitement as I rolled up the long sleeves of the tunic.
“Sounds good. I will see you downstairs in fifteen minutes,” Nick said as he walked towards the bathroom and added in a teasing tone, “Bring all the money you have Mrs. Bhatia because I am going to win it all.”
“Dream on, Nick,” I said giggling and remembered that I needed to talk to him about my car.
“Nick, hang on,” I said and followed him to the bathroom.
“Yes, baby,” Nick said winking at me.
I walked up to where he was standing in the bathroom and said, “I am planning to tell Nate that she can keep the Mini-Cooper because I am sure I won’t need it.”
“It’s your car, love. If you are sure that you won’t need it, then you should give it to her,” Nick said smiling at me.
“Are you sure that you and I can carpool to work every day?” I asked and added before he could respond, “meaning, are you sure you want to be in a confined space with me for two hours a day?”
Nick laughed and pulled me to him and planted a kiss on my cheek and whispered, “I want to be in a confined space with you all day every day if possible. I am looking forward to our alone time in the car.”
“I am glad to hear that, and I am looking forward to our time together too,” I said hugging him and added cheerfully, “I am going to tell Nate tonight that she should keep the car.”
I took one final peek at myself in the mirror deciding to put on some sheer powder for some extra glow and added dark brown eyeliner. I finished up with a deep mauve lip stain that brought out the brown color of my eyes. I grabbed my phone and my small wallet with cash for the game and headed downstairs.
The smell of freshly made samosas hit me as I headed towards the kitchen. PammiMa had set up the dinner table for an early dinner.
“PammiMa, it smells amazing in here. I can’t wait to eat the samosas,” I said as I looked at the food that was set up on the table.
“Thank you Meera. Let me know when you all are ready to eat, and I will get the naans ready,” PammiMa said smiling at me.
I smiled at her and went into the family room to call Nate.
“Are you all set for the game, Meera?” Nate asked cheerfully as soon as she answered.
“Yes. We are all set. When will you guys get here?” I asked with excitement.
‘We are ten minutes away so we will be there a few minutes after six,” Nate said after confirming with Srini.
‘Okay, I need to tell you something, and I need you to listen without objecting to what I am about to say,” I warned Nate.
“Okay. What is it?” Nate asked sounding alarmed.
“Nick and I talked about riding together to work when I go back to work next week so I won’t be using my car. I want you to have the Mini-Cooper because I know how much you like driving that car,” I said in a quick flow of words without giving Nate the opportunity to object even if she did attempt.
“Meera, I know what you are trying to do here. I will buy the car if you are not going to use it, but I am not taking it for free,” Nate said in a stubborn voice.
“Nate, I am not selling it, and I don’t need the car. Dad may have purchased it right after my graduation, but it was for both of us. I am just telling you that I won’t be using it anymore,” I said in a flat voice and added, “I am not discussing this further. The car is yours, and I will see you guys soon. Bye, I love you,” I turned the phone off before Nate could say anything else.
Thirty minutes later, we had the entire group in the family room talking about their past poker games and about how everyone had been waiting for this night.
Reetu and Sam were the first ones to arrive, and Reetu looked stunning in a midnight blue long sleeved maxi dress. The dress had tiny round mirrors and red thread work adorning the yoke and the neck panel, and the work continued on the band collar as well.
“I love your outfit, Reetu,” I complimented as she walked towards me in the family room while I sorted out the chips for the nine players we had that night. Reetu and Nick’s mom did not want to play, but they agreed to watch us play.
“Thanks Meera. Can I help with the set up?” Reetu asked cheerfully.
“I am almost done. Are you sure you don’t want to play?” I asked her.
“I can’t gamble my hard-earned money away so I am just going to watch today,” Reetu giggled.
I smiled at her and said, “That’s okay. I am glad you were able to join us.”
Nate and Srini arrived soon after and Nate put her arms around me planting a kiss on my cheek and asked rather emotionally, “How is everything, Meera?”
“Nate, I am doing well. Really good actually, but now I am depressed about going back to work on Monday,” I said winking at her.
“Nate, why don’t you grab a drink and we can chat up later,” I said putting a stop to her never-ending questions. I figured that she wanted to make sure we were doing well as a couple especially after what she saw at the wedding.
It was past seven-thirty by the time we all gathered around the large dining table that could seat a dozen people and started the set up for poker night. We had nine players as Nick’s mom and Reetu decided to watch from the sidelines and watch the big sharks play. I found myself sitting at the head of the table with Nick to one side and Nate on the other side.
“How much are we playing for?” Ann asked as she sat down next to Nick.
“Twenty?” I suggested and Nick shook his head and said, “Not enough. We should play for a hundred dollars.”
“Nick, that’s too much,” I objected.
“How about fifty dollars?” Srini suggested.
“Works for me,” I cheered.
Nick wasn’t convinced and said, “I will play for fifty dollars if we play the next game for a hundred dollars.”
“What? Why?” I objected.
“Let’s get started with the first game first,” Nate urged sounding extremely impatient.
As we started with the first round of Texas Hold’em, I started reading into how everyone plays. My first read was on Nick, an
d it took me a few rounds before I realized he was good at the game. He knew how to mask his expression, reveal enough to lure the other player, and he played very frugally and strategically. I was surprised at how conservatively Nick placed his bets and played his hands. If I had not known better, I would have fallen for his traps more than once. I thanked my stepdad quietly for teaching Nate and me how to play poker and how to read the other players and change the betting strategies based on the community cards.
“I am all in,” Sam declared half way through the game.
“Sam, do you even know how to play?” Reetu teased winking at him.
The group at the table chuckled, but Sam did not look happy with Reetu’s comment. I noticed Ann frowning and wondered if it was a reaction to Reetu’s comment. As if Reetu realized that Sam did not like her comment, she smiled at him and said, “I was kidding, Sam.”
Inspired by Sam, Ann and Raj went all out in one of the rounds when I had a flush. Everyone else had folded in that round, and it was Nick’s turn to go next. He looked at me with his penetrating eyes and continued to stare at me to the point where I started to feel the burn on my cheeks. I held my chin high and stared back at him while the rest of the gang were getting extremely impatient.
“Nick, can you decide what you want to do if you are done staring at Meera,” Sam teased.
“I am trying to figure out how good her hand is Sam,” Nick said without looking away from me.
“Do you do a good job of bluffing baby?” Nick asked me in a teasing tone,
“You will never find out,” I teased back and added, “you can’t take all night to decide how to play one hand, Nick.”
“Alright, let’s do this. I’ll see your twenty and raise you fifty,” Nick said in a cool voice.
“What. That’s too much,” I objected.
“We had no limits on the betting amount did we?” he challenged.
I looked at him and thought twice about matching his outrageous bet. I looked at Nick and all I saw was the cool calm face, but I saw something else in his eyes; the devious tinge in his eyes, and it was at that point I knew he was bluffing. I took a deep breath and thought for one more time as Nick continued to bore into my eyes with his dark eyes.
