As Hannah sat on Tariq's lap, she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

His magnetising hazel eyes bearing deep within hers, as though trying to peer into her very soul. She did not miss his 'not yet' when he mentioned wanting a relationship, but did not dare ask what he meant by that.

Exhaling softly as she closed her blue eyes, her mind debated on what to do. On the one hand, she could not deny that there was an almost indescribable attraction between them. The sex had been nothing short of amazing and she definitely wanted more. But another part of her remained hesitant. It was common knowledge that frequently being in the company of another person always lead to some form of feelings being developed. Truth be told, Hannah was not really sure how she felt about that right now.

She did not want to get hurt or unintentionally hurt Tariq, as he seemed to be a nice guy. Not to mention his ties to Damien and Mikayla. She definitely did not want to make things weird within the group.

Hannah was not one to deliberately go around breaking hearts, but unfortunately at times it happened anyway. Given the chemistry between the two of them, she knew that spending more time than necessary around Tariq would definitely lead to something. To what, she was not exactly sure as of yet. She could almost hear Mikayla's voice chanting for her to go for it anyway.

Reopening her eyes, she found Tariq looking at her, his gaze almost reverent as he sat there, patiently waiting for her to say something. She admired that he had not tried to touch her sexually, not once since he entered her home. His fingers remaining perfectly still as they held her waist, she could feel the heat of his touch burning through her clothes. Silently she wondered if he was holding himself back as much as she was.

"Okay," she suddenly said, her fingers playing with the neckline of his shirt.

A look of slight surprise came over his face, "Okay?"

"Yes, I'll do my best not to push you away." Hannah replied, adding a witty remark, "But I can't promise that I won't if you annoy me and I end up changing my mind,"

Tariq's facial expression immediately changed as bright smile came upon his face, "Fair enough. Although I'd suggest that if I'm driving you crazy, you can always just strap yourself in and enjoy the ride."

She pinched his shoulder as she made a sound of displeasure at his joke.

"I'm only kidding, I will do my best not to annoy you too much then," he said seriously as he added, "and with that, I'll take my leave."

It was Hannah's turn to look surprised as she got off of his lap and watch him stand, "You're going?"

"Would you rather I stay?" he asked before continuing, "I figured since I'm the first lover you've brought into your apartment, I shouldn't push my luck and try to spend the night. We both know what would happen if we started to kiss on that couch."

Her body involuntarily twitched at the word 'lover' and so, to cover the moan that escaped her lips, she quickly stretched her arms above her head.

"I suppose you're right, having you spend the night might just overload my poor senses. Who knew you could be such a gentleman?" Hannah teased.

Grabbing her suddenly in his arms, his lips brushed against her as he whispered, "I can be whatever you want me to be my dear."

Tariq stared into her eyes for a moment before kissing her soundly. His lips moved purposefully over hers, branding her with his touch. Hannah's hands held on to his upper arms to steady herself as she kissed him back passionately. After a few moments, they slowly parted, their breathing ragged.

"Good night my dear Hannah, I'll call you tomorrow," Tariq said as he kissed her forehead and let himself out.

"Bloody hell!" she exclaimed as he left.

Hannah dropped herself back onto her couch with her head facing up as she stared at her ceiling. Her cheeks were flushed and her body was on fire. She could still feel the lingering effects of Tariq's kiss and desperately wished that he had not left. It was clear that, had he pushed to spend the night, she would have without a doubt allowed him to stay. She did not like that she was finding herself slowly breaking her rules for him.

She murmured in slight confusion as her fingers touched her swollen lips, "What is it about him that just makes me feel so reckless?"

————— ▲ —————

It was a relatively quiet Friday afternoon.

Tariq sat in his office looking out of the large window, his mind contemplating over the events since he arrived in London. He had a lovely view of St. James Park and it was easy to get lost in his thoughts each time he looked through the glass panes.

His father had been harassing him for the last two years to take up residence at the London office in order to overseer some business decisions. In truth, he did not really want to live in London, it was a lovely city but a bit too bleak for his taste.

Tariq had agreed to visit the office for a bit, as he planned on staying a few weeks to help Damien sort some things for the wedding. However, upon waking up next to Hannah on Sunday, he decided that instead of staying a few weeks he would remain for as long as it took to woo the beautiful woman.

"She's mine, I wonder if she knows it yet," Tariq said softly to himself with a smile.

During the last two weeks, he had met with Hannah almost every day. The sex continued to be amazing, it surprised him at how much his body still craved her. He realised that, no matter how many times they were intimate, he would never be able to get enough of her.

They visited a few hotels while she bounced wedding ideas off of him. A few of those evenings they went over to Damien and Mikayla's penthouse to get their input as well as to cross things off of Hannah's extensive check-list. Tariq had to admit, she was a very loving and devoted maid of honour and she took her duties seriously.

"Borderline dictatorship sometimes," he chuckled while continuing his contemplation.

Things were running smoothly as far as all the wedding planning was concerned. Hannah had introduced him to Mikayla's Trini Thursdays and he found himself enjoying it immensely. The Caribbean spices were very similar to some that they used in Qatar; particularly the use of cinnamon, cloves and ginger.

He found himself looking forward to Thursday evenings. It felt like two couples having a great time together on a double date, rather than an engaged couple hanging out with their respective best friends.

"Perhaps in time that will change and we could be two couples indeed," Tariq said to himself.

Hannah remained as feisty as ever, downplaying her attraction to him. But what her mouth could not say, her eyes and body did. There was no doubt in his mind that she liked being around him.

He enjoyed their witty exchanges; and he was in no rush at all to force any labels upon them. Tariq knew that a woman like Hannah could not be controlled, she had to come to him willingly and on her own terms.

Quite frankly, he loved her unfiltered mouth and her vivacity. He could not imagine her any other way. There was just something about Hannah that ignited something deep within him. Every time he touched her; he felt a tremor throughout his entire body. He could not explain it, but he needed her; needed to touch her, to be near her. Tariq had never experienced anything as addictive as her before.

A grin broke out on his face as he looked away from the window and began scrolling through some of their text messages. It included a few faceless nudes and raunchy voice notes, as well as various pictures associated with wedding decorations. Tariq could not help but smile wider as he re-read some of her witty replies, one in particular always made him laugh.

Hannah:
"I miss your head between my thighs 😇"

Tariq:
"Do you now?"

Hannah:
"I want to rub my pussy against your face..."

Tariq:
"I love it when you do that 😍"

Hannah:
"😉I know you do"

Tariq:
"I'd live between your thighs if I could."

Hannah:
"Oh yea! Talk about a vagina condo 🤭"

Tariq:
"Wtf??? 🤣"

As he continued reading through their text box, his minded was filled with non-stop images of her. Suddenly, his mobile phone rang, bringing him out of his deep thoughts.

A picture of Hannah, skinning her nose back to look like a pig, lit up his screen. It was a ridiculous picture, her blue eyes huge and bulging, her mouth gaping open with her tongue sticking out. She had taken his phone and put that as her Caller-ID display picture sometime last week. Needless to say, when he first saw it his laugh was raucous. Since then, it always made him smile whenever he saw her calling.

"I was just thinking about you," Tariq answered the phone.

"Was it rated mature?" Hannah teased.

Chuckling softly, he replied, "Something like that."

Making a pleasurable sound over the phone she went onto say, "I'm just calling to confirm about tonight. I want your opinion on the Crimson Monarch Hotel, it's my top choice."

"Reservations are at 8:15pm and I'm picking you up at your place for 7:30pm." Tariq confirmed before he went onto ask, "Have you given any thought to if you decided to spend the night or not? Tonight, would be perfect, tomorrow is Saturday, we can sleep in a bit before we have to go to the boutique."

Laughing softly Hannah responded, "Maybe, maybe not. See you later handsome enjoy the rest of your day."

Tariq smiled as he hung up the phone. Of course, when she was being witty, she could never give him a straight answer. She would not be Hannah if she did. But from the playful tone in her voice, he knew that she would be spending the night and the thought caused his heart to beat faster.

————— ▲ —————

"So, are you going to spend the night this time? I mean you guys have practically been dating for two weeks, that's like five years in your books" Mikayla's said playfully over the loud speaker of Hannah's mobile phone.

Hannah grumbled as she video chatted with her best friend, "You know, I like it better when you're being polite and not saying everything that comes to mind."

"What, the mighty Hannah can't take a bit of teasing? But damn though you look amazing! You definitely can't bend over in that without flashing your panties." Mikayla commented.

"What panties?" the blonde chuckled while looking at herself in the mirror.

Hannah, as usual, was not wearing any undergarments. The lake green floral lace, body-con dress hugged her body perfectly. The gorgeous fabric went high at both the neck and hemline. It showed off her smooth long legs while the cut-out designs in the back gave teasing glimpses of her bare skin.

Her hair was in a low twisted bun and she puckered her lips as she finished applying an amber coloured gloss to them. She wore a pare of nude strappy heels and small diamond stud earrings to tie everything together.

Mikayla made a tsk sound, "Oh you nasty woman you. But don't dodge my question!"

"Alright! Don't throw a paddy!" Hannah mumbled, "I've been thinking it over and I decided there's no harm in it. I want to so why not yea, plus there's penis involved."

Chuckling Mikayla asked, "He hasn't spent the night at your place as of yet right?"

Shaking her head, "You'd have been the first to know. So no, not yet..."

Mikayla interrupted, her voice coming over melodiously as she could be seen jumping around on the screen, "Ooooh, you said not yet! This is so exciting!"

"Would you calm down?" Hannah pleaded seemingly a bit embarrassed.

"No way! You've been harassing me to get laid for years! Now it's my turn to take the mickey and pester you about your little boyfriend," Mikayla teased.

"He's not..." she tried replying.

Once again Mikayla interjected, "Yea yea, boy toy, boyfriend, same thing, who are you fooling. He's lasted longer than anyone since you know who."

Hannah made a funny face and stuck her tongue out at the phone screen.

Laughing softly Mikayla went on to say, "I'm just happy you're going with the flow and not turning your nose up at the idea like you usually do. Anyway, get off the phone and go finish get ready, see you tomorrow! Love you!"

"Love you too Miky," she answered.

Tilting her head to the side, Hannah continued to look at herself one last time in the mirror. Mikayla's words continued to play over in her mind. There was clearly something about Tariq that made her go against her normal behaviour.

With a sigh, she analysed the last two weeks, things had been going better than predicted. Hannah had expected to be tired of Tariq by now, but she had come to realise that she liked his company more than she cared to admit.

If she was being completely honest with herself, they were behaving as though they were indeed dating. They ate dinner almost every night together, and sometimes met for up for lunch. Although she tried to pass it off as casual meetings to discuss the upcoming wedding. However, there was no way she could avoid the curious stares when flowers were delivered to her workplace. Usually she would have her secretary throw them out, but she proudly displayed the gorgeous bouquets in her office.

Of course, at the end of it all, they wound up sleeping together almost every time they met. Hannah thought that their chemistry would have died down by this time, but it only served to grow more intense each time they touched. However, asides from the amazing sex, Tariq was very easy to be around. He was smart, funny and very considerate of others as well as easy on the eyes.

He seemed genuinely interested in her and her feelings, and was always eager to hear whatever she had to say. Not to mention his witty comebacks proved to be very stimulating, both on her mind and body.

Tariq had also proven to be really useful where the wedding planning was concerned. As it turned out, he really did have a great eye for detail and had suggested things that she had not initially thought about. Which is why she asked him to come check out the Crimson Monarch Hotel, to get his opinion on it.

Earlier that week, Tariq had asked her to spend the night seeing as his place was in the heart of Westminster, making it easier for her to get to work. Of course, his penthouse was a mere ten minutes' walk away from Damien and Mikayla's place. Which Hannah found to be very convenient as she relished in walking between the two buildings.

She had been impressed when she first visited his place, it was not what she had expected. The modern space was located on the top floor of a five-storey building. The entire left side of the penthouse was a wall of windows angled at sixty-five degrees. It flooded the open concept living area with natural light. There was also a wrap around balcony that provided panoramic views of the city. She had enjoyed laying in his bed and had found herself thinking about spending the night while curled up next to him, fantasising about her naked skin pressed against his, as his arms held her while they slept.

That particular image had scared her a bit as, in her mind, it felt a bit quixotic. She did not think that she was capable of romance. Hannah had never been a woman to drop to her knees at the thought of a man. The only way she would ever be on her knees would be when she was in a mood to give a blowjob.

For the life of her she could not understand why the idea of cosily curling up with Tariq seemed to appeal so much to her. It was uncanny and frightening at the same time.

"I don't cuddle, I fuck," she mumbled.

Although, if she was being honest with herself, Tariq did not just fuck her, he also made love to her and worshipped her body. She had enjoyed every minute of it, perhaps deep within her there was a romantic side buried.

In fact, Mikayla had often told her over the years that she was, even if Hannah never really saw it in herself. She could offer romantic advice to others, yes, but when it came to her own life, the idea of it often made her cringe. Though, where Tariq was concerned, she found that she was not wincing as much as usual. The sound of the doorbell brought her out of her thoughts.

Hannah grabbed her clutch with a smile. Opening the door, her breath caught in her throat as she saw Tariq standing in the hallway. The black razor edge slim fit suit and white shirt fit his body exquisitely and she found herself licking her lips.

Tariq's eyes racked over her body in return, his eyes seeming to dilate as he entered into her apartment and pushed her against the wall. A soft curse was heard before his lips were suddenly upon hers as he kissed her hungrily. She felt her legs tremble as her hands wrapped around his neck, returning his kiss zealously.

As they broke to gasp for air, Hannah whispered against his lips, "We're going to be late if we don't leave now."

"Sorry, you're just so damn tempting in this dress. I want to take you right here, right now." Tariq replied huskily, his eyes giving her a once over again.

Hannah moaned appreciatively as she pushed up against him seductively, teasing them both. Closing his eyes for a moment, he struggled to fight the carnal urges that he felt.

Sighing softly as he looked at Hannah once more, he took her hand in his and said, "Let's go, before the rest of my self-control disappears."

——————————

A/N: I just love their interactions so much!

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