Ava Ever After

Chapter Nine

Thom watched as Ava chatted with a handsome gentleman that she had waited on. She was stunning and he couldn’t help notice that she seemed to have grown in confidence. An amused smile crept across his face as Ava flashed a cheeky smile, waggled her finger as a no, then tapped the gentleman on his nose, before blowing him a kiss and walking away.

“Are you sure you don’t want to sit in the office, Thom? It’s not like you to take to the floor. You’ve been here all night,” Gully said.

“No. I’ve missed this place, Gul. It’s like home and I doubt I'll get the chance to spend any more time here before I fly out. It’s nice to just relax and watch the ladies at play. I’ve missed them all, you know.”

It was a half-truth. Thom had checked the rota to see when Ava was next on shift and had purposely chosen their booth. It offered the best view of the club. He had decided he was going to invite Ava for drinks again. There was something about the tender way she had looked at him as their fingers touched that night that made him want her. It had been three days since then and she had been on his mind constantly.

“We all miss you when you’re not here, buddy. You stay away for far too long, mate.”

“I know bud, but the deal is almost done. One more to add to my empire. You know how business is, especially when they don’t want to let go and believe me, Frederickson doesn’t want to let go. He’s been such a pain in my arse.”

Thom took a swig of his champagne and saw that Ava was making her way to the bar.

“I'll grab another bottle and fill you in on the details,” he told Gully.

Ignoring Gully telling him that they had half a bottle on the table and a waitress could bring drinks to their booth, Thom slid himself out of his seat and made his way to the bar. He had been waiting for a chance to speak to Ava but Gully hadn’t left him alone at all. He knew that he could have just called her over but he also knew that Gully wouldn’t take kindly to Thom flirting with his waitress. Granted, Thom owned the club but Gully was the manager and even Thom had to follow the rules that had been put in place. Shaking off the guilt of going behind his best friends back, he gently tapped Ava on the shoulder.

“Hello, beautiful,” he told her as she turned to face him.

“Hi, there, handsome. Can I get you a drink or something?”

Thom swallowed the urge to tell her she could get him something - her naked self, spread eagle over his desk.

“Sure. I’ll take a bottle of your best champagne and a replay of the other night,” he said, flashing his dazzling smile.

The blush and hitch of breath from Ava was obvious and Thom felt his stomach flutter as he watched her struggling to gather herself. He saw her breasts rising with each breath, threatening to burst out of the bra that locked them away. Ava absentmindedly moved her hair off her shoulder and Thom pictured his tongue trailing a line from her neck to her n****e. Suddenly, Ava leaned toward him, her eyes clouded with need. He felt her breath on his neck as she stretched up to whisper in his ear and a low growl rumbled in his throat.

“Drinks after my shift?” She asked.

Her lip grazed his earlobe as she whispered and his skin exploded into goosebumps. It felt as though everyone had vanished and Thom fought the urge to f**k her right there and then. He had f****d plenty of women and all had made him hot and bothered in their own way but none made him react the way that Ava did. He couldn’t explain why but she was different and although he wanted to rip her clothes off and f**k her until she couldn’t take anymore, he also wanted to take things slowly, caress every single part of her and treat her like a princess.

“I'd love to, Ava.” His voice came out as somewhere between a groan and a whisper as he inhaled the scent of her fruity perfume on her neck. She was just a few centimetres away from his lips.

What the hell do you do to me, Ava? You have my heart racing, my palms sweating and my c**k hardening and all you have to do is smile. I want you so f*****g badly, he thought as he turned his face towards her neck.

“I see you’ve bumped into Ava,” Gully said as he came up beside Thom.

Ava blushed and Thom mentally kicked himself. He had completely forgotten where he was.

“I have. I was just whispering sweet nothings to her,” Thom said, with his dazzling smile.

“Behave, Thom. You might be the big boss but I’ll still kick your arse if you go teasing my ladies,” Gully mock scolded. “Ava, this is Thom Dupont. He’s the owner of this fine establishment and just so happens to be my best friend. I forgot to leash him before I let him roam the floor. Honestly, I could never leave him alone for more than five minutes and apparently, that still hasn’t bloody changed. Even at forty-seven, you’re still a dog in heat, Thom.”

Thom laughed and playfully punched Gully on the arm. “I might be the wrong side of forty but a dog in heat? I’m not that bad. Besides, I know the rules. No flirting with the staff.”

He could see the shock on Ava's face and he mentally kicked himself again, but harder. I should have just told you straight away, that I was the owner.

“Ava, please accept my apology, before Gully drags me to Clara and tells her to get her flogger on me. I would prefer to be able to sit without welts.” Thom flashed her a wink.

“Of course, Thom. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Gully, why don’t you take a seat and I’ll bring you and the boss some drinks?” Ava had glanced at Thom when she said boss and he caught the brief flash of disappointment that crossed her face. He couldn’t blame her at all. He had allowed her to believe that he was a customer and he knew he would have carried the pretence on for as long as he could. Ava was the only woman that treated him normally. She was the only woman who didn’t want to f**k him for his money. He couldn’t stop thinking about her and it had only been three days since they had met.

He watched as Gully nodded, gave Ava the drinks order and told her where they would be and his heart sank as Ava smiled her sweet, beautiful smile at Gully, then turned and walked away. She didn’t even glance at Thom. He knew he shouldn’t have cared, but he did.

He had f****d up before they had even got off the starting block.