Family Matters

Xavier

I’m observing the girls raise their glasses in honor of Bella’s birthday when I notice my brother and Ethan abruptly stand and make a beeline for them. I don’t have the chance to intervene, not that I particularly want to, so I rise and trail behind them. Bella’s surprised expression when she spots us approaching is hard to miss.

As we reach their table, Austin and Ethan predictably start flirting with the girls. To my surprise, or perhaps not, Bella’s friends flirt back. They inform us it’s Bella’s birthday and I see Bella struggling to silence them.

“Each of you must give her a kiss, as the button’s rules dictate!” One of her friends orders. Oh, hell no! I’m certain these two eager beavers beside me are ready to seize that opportunity. I glance their way and see my brother and Ethan inching towards her.

I snap my head their way and shoot them a warning look. They freeze instantly. Wise decision.

I turn back to Bella and she seems a bit uneasy. She excuses herself and heads for the restroom. As she passes Austin, I see him reach out and plant a kiss on her cheek. Didn’t I just warn him?! He better keep one eye open tonight!

The moment she’s out of sight, I smack Austin’s arm and give him a stern look. Hopefully, he’ll understand that’s my ‘back off’ glare.

I exit the booth and trail Bella to the restroom, waiting for her outside. I’m unsure of what I’ll say to her. I don’t even know why I followed her. I lean against the wall near the restroom door, contemplating my words for when she emerges.

The first thing I need to tell her is to discard that button.

After a few minutes, she finally exits the restroom. She doesn’t notice me, so I call out to her before she gets too far.

“Bella!” I call, grabbing her elbow. She jumps, letting out a cute squeal, and punches my arm…hard.

“Ouch!” I exclaim, rubbing the spot where her fist made contact. Damn, she’s strong!

“You scared me!” She retorts, swatting my arm again.

“Apologies! I didn’t mean to. I was just trying to get your attention.”

“Well, you’ve got it now. Need something or did you just follow me here to scare me?”

Her irritated tone mixed with her sarcasm is strangely attractive. I love her directness. And her eyes are captivating.

I’m so entranced by them that I don’t realize she’s speaking to me. She snaps her fingers in front of my face, breaking my trance.

“Hello! I asked you something!”

“Uh…yeah…um…” Damn! Am I stuttering? I never stutter. I clear my throat and point at her button. “What’s with the button?” She looks puzzled.

“It’s a birthday button. It’s my birthday. Not a big deal.” Great. Now she thinks I’m a fool.

“I just meant you don’t seem like someone who’d wear a button that draws attention.” She still looks confused and I can’t blame her. I’m confused too. I don’t even know where I’m going with this.

“Why do you care?” Good question. The truth is, I don’t want anyone else kissing her, but I can’t tell her that. So, I lie.

“I don’t.” I can tell by her expression she’s trying to figure me out. She steps back and crosses her arms, and I won’t lie, her look is turning me on. Honestly, every look she gives me is turning me on.

God! I need to stop!

“Firstly, you’re right. I don’t usually seek this kind of attention. But it’s something my friends gave me for my birthday, so I’m wearing it.”

I never pegged her as the type to enjoy such antics. Why couldn’t her friends have just gifted her a teddy bear or a coffee cup? It would have saved me a lot of stress.

“And if I didn’t wear this, they would have murdered me.”

So now, I’m left with no choice but to knock some sense into these little shits who think they can kiss her because of that damned button.

“And secondly, it’s really none of your business.”

She’s mistaken there. It is my business; she just doesn’t realize it yet.

“You’re right. It’s none of my business.”

What a blatant lie!

“Are we done here or are you going to question me about my shoes next?”

Who does she think she’s talking to with that condescending tone?

“Yeah, we’re done here.”

Apparently, she’s talking to me... and I’m letting her. She starts to walk away but I grab her elbow to stop her.

“Bella, wait!” When she turns back to me, I lean in and kiss her. Her lips are so soft, and I can taste the strawberry lip gloss she’s wearing.

Strawberries are now my favorite fruit. I lick her bottom lip, asking for more. She opens her mouth for me and I deepen the kiss. She lets out a soft moan.

“Mmmm….”

Damn! That sexy moan of hers sends shivers down to my toes. I should have worn looser jeans. Her hands slide up my chest and into my hair. Her touch is electrifying.

I pull her closer and let my tongue explore hers.

It takes every ounce of my self-control not to take her back to my office and give her a real birthday present. I reluctantly pull away and rest my forehead against hers.

I cup her face with one hand and look deep into her beautiful eyes.

“Happy Birthday, Bella.” I whisper against her lips. When she looks up at me and smiles, I know this woman is going to be my downfall.

As we head back to our table, I tell myself I shouldn’t have kissed her because now I want more. I’m not looking for a relationship and I’m sure she’s not into casual hookups.

But do I really want just a casual hookup with her?

We reach our table and I see her friends on Austin’s and Ethan’s laps. They didn’t waste any time getting with these girls.

Then again, I just kissed Bella and was ready to take her up to my office so I’m no better than them.

Her friends introduce themselves to me and I can tell they’ve had quite a few drinks while Bella and I were away.

I glance at our table and sure enough, there are at least ten empty shot glasses sitting there.

After the introductions, Bella’s friends whisk her away to dance. Shit! I forgot to make her take off that button! What the hell is wrong with me?

I’m usually not this forgetful but when I’m around Bella, my brain turns to mush.

I watch them as they head towards the dance floor and I see the guys drooling as they walk past them. I know they saw her button and are thinking of ways to get to her.

Now I’m annoyed, and I want to just rip that stupid button off her.

I see Bella turn and look up at me. I know she can tell I’m not happy.

***

Cassie

I’m standing in the hallway near the bathroom, wrapped in the arms of one of the sexiest men I’ve ever met. And he just kissed me! I mean, he kissed me in a way that makes my knees weak! Maybe this button wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

No. No. No. Pull yourself together, Cassie! He’s probably just looking for a quick fling. This isn’t going to work. I can’t let myself get involved with this guy, no matter how great a kisser he is.

I bet he’s great at other things too.

Oh my god! Stop it, Cassie! This is how you ended up with that jerk, Kyle. But this time it feels different. Or maybe that’s the alcohol talking?

“Happy Birthday Bella.” He says against my lips. I smile back at him and look deep into his eyes. I could stare at them all day. This is such a tender moment we’re sharing right now. I’m thinking I should probably tell him my name isn’t Bella.

“Appreciate it,” I murmur, brushing my lips against his. He reciprocates with a tender kiss that ends all too quickly. His hand finds a place on my lower back, guiding me back to our booth.

As we near our tables, I notice Chelsea and Abbie have relocated to where the guys were initially seated.

And they weren’t just sitting there—they were perched on their laps, flirting as if there was no tomorrow. Talk about speed!

But who am I to judge? I just shared a breathtaking kiss with a guy I’ve barely spoken to before tonight. They spot us approaching and all I can do is roll my eyes and chuckle.

“Finally! We thought he’d abducted you!” Chelsea hollers from Flirt 1’s lap.

“Apologies! The line was endless! You know how it goes,” I respond. She giggles at something Flirt 1 murmurs in her ear before she and Abbie both spring up to hug me. How many drinks have they downed already? I glance at the table, noting the mountain of empty shot glasses. Quite a few, it seems.

“These are Austin and Ethan,” Abbie informs me, gesturing to the two guys. Finally, we have names! I extend my hand to shake theirs. Abbie then turns to Mr. Moody. “And you are?”

“Xavier,” he replies, reaching out to shake her hand. So, no more Mr. Moody, I guess. Chelsea and Abbie introduce themselves to him before sauntering back to Austin and Ethan, straddling them on their seats. My friends are shameless.

“Well, it’s been a blast getting to know you, but now that our girl’s back, we’re off,” Chelsea announces, hugging Austin while Abbie hugs Ethan. Then Chelsea turns to me. “Alright, birthday girl! Time to let loose!”

“We can’t let that button go unused, can we?!” Abbie adds. As I said, absolutely shameless. They each take my hand and guide me to the club’s main floor. They didn’t even give me a chance to say anything to Xavier.

As we weave our way towards the dance floor, I steal a glance at him. He’s watching us navigate through the crowd and boy, he doesn’t look pleased.