Chapter 12 Sensual Rivalry

• "You really think you're going to outdo me tonight?" Ethan's voice was silky, mocking, as he leaned casually against the bar, his eyes locked on mine.
• I smiled, swirling my drink, sipping it slowly as the warmth of the liquor worked its way through me. We sat in our usual spot-a dimly lit, velvet-couched lounge-secretive in nature, like those who filled it. The kind of place where anything could happen and nothing was off the table.
• Ethan, please," I said, my voice dripping with playful disdain. "We know I will always win."
• He lifted an eyebrow, and his lips curled into a sly grin. "Is that a challenge, Jasmine?
• "Only if you are game." I leaned in closer, my voice low enough that it almost got buried beneath the thumping bass of the music. I could feel the heat between us, the cranked-up tension of a familiar dance of unspoken dares and escalating stakes.
• He chuckled low, his fingers brushing against my arm and sending shivers down my spine. "Game on."
• It was one of those nights that unfolded with the seamless precision of a rehearsed performance, each one of us taking turns, playing our part, pulling others into our orbit. Ethan started at the bar with a blonde, his mouth inches from her ear, speaking low, watching her giggle and blush, her fingers sliding up his chest. I watched, feeling competition fire in my gut.
• Not one to be outdone, I set my sights on a dark-haired man who was leaning against the opposite wall, his eyes sparkling with curiosity at mine. I moved toward him, my hips swaying enough to reach out and grab his attention. His eyes cruised down before snapping back up to my face.
• What's your name?" he asked, his voice thick with an accent I couldn't quite place.
• "Jasmine," I purred, letting my hand fall on his shoulder. "And?"
• "Nikolai," he returned, eyes darkening with interest. "You here alone?"
• I shook my head, my head inverting just a little towards Ethan, currently wrapped around the blonde. "Not exactly. But tonight's all about having fun, isn't it?
• Nikolai smirked, his hand slipping to the small of my back, pulling me closer. "I like fun."
• It wasn't very long before things started to heat up. Ethan and I continued our seductive dance, drawing Nikolai and his blonde friend, Sasha, into our confused web of one-upmanship. We found a quiet corner, our bodies pressed together in a tangle of arms and legs, lips and searching hands.
• Ethan's eyes met mine across the dim space, the challenge between us silenced but simmering. I felt Sasha's fingers trace the line of my jaw, her lips brushing against mine in a light teasing kiss. My pulse quickened, the mix of sensations too much as Nikolai's hands roamed my body, his fingers digging into my hips and hauling me against him.
• I glanced over at Ethan now, feasting on Sasha's neck, his hands tracing her curves with a familiarity that twisted my stomach. It was supposed to be a game, this continued cat-and-mouse of who could push it further, but something in the way Ethan lost himself to her touch rankled me.
• "Fuck, you're so good," Nikolai muttered into my ear, his hot breath on my skin as he pressed harder against me; friction built up a delicious tension that yanked a gasp from my lips. I dug my fingers into his shirt, hauling him nearer, but my gaze kept drifting back to Ethan.
• He caught my gaze, smirking against Sasha's shoulder as if to say, Are you jealous, Jasmine? I gritted my teeth, grinding harder against Nikolai, determined to match Ethan's intensity, to prove that I could handle this. But the twinge in my chest was growing harder to ignore, a sharp pang of something I couldn't quite name.
• Sasha moaned loud, the soft gasps and grunts from Nikolai audible in the air as my body took on the rhythm, the heat and scent of sweat and arousal thickly around us, but my mind kept slipping back to Ethan. His hands touched Sasha with an ease that felt too intimate, his hands lingering on her skin as though he savored each and every second.
• "Fuck, Jasmine," Nikolai growled, his grip on me tightening as he pulled me down, moving our bodies in sync. But my head had wandered off, tangled in that complex knot of emotions brought about by watching Ethan. I tried to shrug it off, trying to lose myself in pleasure, but every time I closed my eyes, I could see Ethan's face, his smirk, and the whispered words to Sasha.
• Nikolai came with a sharp gasp, pulling me from my daze. I came shortly after, the release washing over me in waves, though the usual satisfaction was muted. Disentangling myself, I slid off Nikolai's lap and readjusted my dress, my eyes flicking over to where Ethan was finishing with Sasha. He met my gaze, expression unreadable, but the challenge was still there, simmering beneath the surface.
• While we gathered our things, Sasha and Nikolai exchanged numbers with Ethan-the playful banter that filled the space between us a direct reflection of them. I forced a smile, but inside, something shifted-a realization that this game Ethan and I played was slowly beginning to blur the lines of our unspoken rules.
• "You seemed a little distracted," Ethan teased, nudging me as we walked toward the exit.
• "Just keeping up with you," I shot back, my voice tight.
• He chuckled then, his arm wrapping around my shoulders in a possessive yet somehow very distant way. "Sure you were.
• I leaned into him, masking the churning emotions beneath a veneer of casual ease. But as we stepped outside into the cool night air, a strange and pervasive feeling couldn't be shaken that tonight was different. It wasn't anymore just a game of rivalry; it had grown into much more, and Ethan's attention being elsewhere had touched a nerve that I hadn't anticipated.
• And for the first time, I began to question whether this was all about winning anymore. Maybe, just maybe, what I was losing was so much more important.