To top it off, the presence of other magnates like Archer Cardale and Claire Delaney made it difficult for security to handle everything properly.
While the man was sending a scathing glare in the reporter's way, Claire was admiring his side profile.
He was charming.
Her gaze wandered off to the small mole near the corner of his lips before trailing down to his clenched jaw.
And especially manly.
Claire did not like it at all. She was not talking about the kiss.
She loved the kiss. It passed off as the best kiss she has ever had in her entire life. She felt so consumed at that moment.
She did not like the timing. She did not like the situation.
Because this man surely deserved more attention but unfortunately, they were not meeting again since she had a rule.
That was to not make out with the same man twice.
The lust of the sirens can overpower their sanity.
And Claire did not want to be the one taking innocent lives here.
They were here because of their goal. Once they achieved it, they would be back in their world.
Till then, she would have to tame her raging powers and balance her emotions.
One wrong step and their years of schemes would crash.
She must not misuse her powers and she must not let any human know of her secrets.
As the reporters left, the man twirled her with one of his hands wrapped around her waist.
He closed the door with one hand, pinning her to it.
''Claire Delaney huh?'' His lips curled up in a threatening smirk, ''This is the first time a woman forced a kiss on me. Do you know the consequences?"
''Come on…'' Claire snapped out of her daze, ''It was just a kiss. Don't make a fuss,'' she pressed her palms on his chest, pushing him away.
He did not budge from his place.
Of course, she had not used her powers this time as she did outside when she pulled him down for a kiss.
Claire sighed, ''You are a piece of art I was admiring a few seconds ago. That's why I was not intending to expose you….'' Noticing his darkening face, she stepped closer to him until her body touched his rock-hard chest, ''…How can you accuse me of forcing the kiss when you are so hard?'' she whispered beside his ear.
The man stiffened when he felt her knee-grazing on his crotch, caressing his hardness.
His eyes narrowed slightly when he felt himself throbbing at her slightest touch.
Claire smiled, ''Come on, now. Let's get over it. It was just a kiss,'' she pressed both her palms on his chest and pushed him back.
This time, the man let her.
He took a few steps back from her and she stepped inside the suite.
He glanced at her back, noticing how her hips swayed in that little black dress with every step she took. Earlier when she pressed herself against his chest, he could feel her hardened nipples grazing against him.
She was turned on too and he pacified himself with the fact that he was not the only person who was so hard and bothered for a woman whom he met for the fucking first time.
Walking towards the King-sized bed, Claire pulled out a tissue paper from the tissue box kept on the bedside table.
Looking around, she walked back to him.
''Pen, please?" she extended her palm towards the man, her gaze settled on the pen in his shirt pocket.
She was wearing a white mask that covered half of her face. As her black eyes focused on him, he remembered how misty those eyes were when he was kissing her.
He wordlessly took out the pen from his pocket and handed it to her, wondering what she was up to.
Claire turned around and placed the tissue on the wall.
The man's gaze shifted to her fair neck which came to his sight when she tilted her head, her mid-length hair falling to one side.
Claire turned around and handed him the tissue.
He glanced at the number written on it. There was a note at the bottom of it that said 'Call this number for compensation'.
''You know who I am,'' Claire said, ''This is my secretary's contact number. So, whatever you want as compensation, you can contact him for it. No matter what, it was my fault today,'' she sighed.
If this scene was witnessed by anyone else, they would have been stunned. Well, except for Elvina.
Only Elvina knew how her sister was but the world saw Claire as a moody artist who was short-tempered.
Those were their character designs so that they could enter the Cardale house.
Claire Delaney, the arrogant CEO was supposed to bully an ordinary servant, Elvina. And Emir Cardale was supposed to sympathize with the pitiful girl's situation and his sympathy should have turned to love eventually. But their plans crashed when Elvina changed the target from Emir to Archer.
Now, there was no point in pretending to be someone they were not because Elvina was already inside the Cardale Family, by hook or by crook.
While the man was focused on the note in his hand, Claire cleared her throat.
He looked up at her, ''Since you kissed me, you should show me your face. It's only fair, am I right?" He took a step towards her, his fingers gripping the edge of her mask before he tugged on it.
Claire did not stop him. After she attended Archer Cardale's wedding, her face was all over the news.
Moreover, this man was going to forget her face anyway. There was no point hiding it from him. She might as well bless his eyes in return for the 'one-in-a-lifetime kind of kiss'.
''Like what you see?" She asked the man whose gaze was focused on her face.
His gaze trailed from her beautiful ebony eyes down to her lips which were still swollen from the kiss they shared.
The corner of his lips tugged up but just as he opened his mouth to say something, she cupped his face, startling him, ''Now, listen to me. It was nice kissing you."
Claire took another step towards him till there was barely a few inches gap between them, ''But this kiss never happened and you don't know me from now on,'' she placed her palm on his face and his eyes closed, she felt his eyelashes stroking her skin.
''Gotta go, Love,'' she whispered, taking a step back from him, ''Never see you again.''
Claire's palm slid down his face and she turned around.
Opening the door, she stepped out of the luxurious suite.
The man's eyes snapped open.
He looked at her retreating back quietly.
'Ring Ring'
His hand slid inside his pockets as he took his phone out before glancing at the caller ID.
He answered the call.
''Boss, it's your birthday but you are not here. The VIP guests are all looking for you,'' The man on the other side said, ''Mr. Cardale is here...''
His eyes flashed, ''Is he? I'll be there,'' his expressions tensed slightly before relaxing.
Claire stepped out of the room without looking back at the 'kisser' who gave her butterflies a few seconds ago.
She adjusted her mask and continued walking till she was at a good distance from the room.
Claire stopped in her tracks when she did not see anyone around. The media had long left and now she was alone, away from all the crowd and away from the rush of the birthday bash.
She pressed a palm on her chest and leaned back on the wall. Her racing heartbeats gradually calmed down.
That dangerously handsome face flashed in her mind, ''You are not seeing him again. Calm down now,'' she could still feel the taste of those lips against hers.
His dominant touch and his threatening voice when he talked to those reporters were still vivid.
...
Unaware of her sister's situation, Elvina fled from the reporters and reached the room where they were supposed to meet the gun dealer.
As she stopped in front of 'Room 906', Claire's subordinates who were standing outside greeted her.
Not many people knew her identity as Claire's sister but these people and their Chief were aware of it.
Unbeknownst to them, there was a restriction placed on them.
She had fed them with potions of siren's tears with a curse on them. If their loyalty ever wavered, then they would lose their lives. But as long as they stayed loyal, those tears would be like a blessing to them, nourishing their body and soul.
'Click'
The door opened and Elvina stepped inside the suite which was engulfed in darkness.
She closed her eyes. She could not sense anyone's presence in the surroundings.