She opened her eyes. Her artisanal light fitting twisted on the ceiling, the fluted golden-brown petals of wood casting arced shadows on the wall. Watching the shadows, she said:
“I was so blown away when Dad asked, I didn’t think it through. But it’s not what I want.”
She would have thought the admission would feel like failure. As though she was giving up, not only on all the work she’d put into the pitch, but on her relationship with her family.
At the end of the day, everything she’d done to win Chahaya had been for that. To prove she deserved a place in the family. All she’d wanted was to belong.
So much for that. She’d left Singapore and stopped talking to her family for a reason. If they didn’t love her now, as the not particularly wayward daughter whose main offence was that she’d built something of her own and didn’t mean to give it up to anyone else, they wouldn’t love her just because she was CEO of Chahaya. They’d respect her, maybe, but respect was a cold thing to walk away from a life for.
The thought was painful. But it was a relief, too. She felt like she’d put down a burden.
“But they’re my family,” said Renee. “That’s not going to change. I’m not planning to cut them off, unless they do it first.”
Ket Siong said, “I wouldn’t expect that of you.”
Renee turned her face so her cheek was resting on the back of the chair. The rattan cane was cold against her face, but it meant she could see Ket Siong. “So what makes things different now?”
“It’s been ten years,” said Ket Siong. “My mother moved on, she found a job she liked better. She’s retired now. And what happened, with Stephen… it changed things for me.” He met her eyes. “It made me realise love isn’t something to give up easily.”
This time, it was Renee who reached out. She sat up, perching on the edge of her chair, and trailed her fingers along the arcs of his eyebrows, stroking the bridge of his nose. The pad of her finger fit perfectly into the dent above his upper lip.
He was very still, watching her. Renee traced the shape of his mouth, memorising it as though they were going to test her later.
Ket Siong’s breathing was harsh. She could feel him trembling under her touch. She leaned over and pressed her lips to his mouth.
The kiss started out gentle, almost chaste, but it didn’t stay chaste for long. She wasn’t sure if he pulled her towards him, or if she clambered on top of him, but she ended up sprawled across his lap as they kissed. Long, languorous kisses, stealing her breath, Ket Siong’s chest moving rapidly under her.
There was something she should say. Renee pulled back so she could remember what it was, giving Ket Siong a little push when he tried to follow her.
“I like you, too,” she said. “By the way.”
Ket Siong’s smile spread across his face like sunlight. He ducked his head and then he was dropping delicate kisses along her neck, tracing a line down to the place where it joined her shoulder, his hands stroking warmth down her back.
Renee said against his hair, “Do you want to move to the bedroom?”
Ket Siong nodded. He slid an arm under her knees, the other around her back, and stood up, surprising a squeak out of her.
“Sweeping me off my feet,” said Renee, laughing.
Ket Siong pressed a dreamy kiss to the shell of her ear. A shock of sensation zinged through her, earthing between her thighs. She pressed them together and turned her face to his shoulder, found his collarbone, and bit down.
It occurred to her a moment later that possibly she shouldn’t distract him while he was bearing her full weight. But Ket Siong only shivered a little and carried on, through the hallway and into the bedroom. He laid her on the bed carefully, as if she was something precious, before drawing back.
“What is it?” said Renee, with a twinge of apprehension.
The expression in Ket Siong’s eyes reassured her.
“Just looking at you,” he said.
“Come here,” said Renee, pulling him down.
There was a lot of kissing before anything else happened. Ket Siong didn’t seem to be in a rush, which was nice, but after a while Renee started getting impatient. She managed to get his hoodie off and the T-shirt underneath. But when she got to work unbuttoning his jeans, he wriggled out of her grasp, pulled off her leggings and underwear, and tossed them over the side of the bed.
She made a noise of protest. Ket Siong looked intent, engrossed in what he was doing. His big warm hands holding her thighs open, he lowered his head and licked her.
Renee forgot about complaining. She fisted her hand in his hair, thrilling when he groaned against her, and gave herself up to pleasure.
She might have been a little noisy when she came. Ket Siong certainly looked smug when he hauled himself up the bed. He didn’t seem sure if she would want to kiss him. Renee kissed him a few times to put that beyond doubt, tasting herself on his lips.
