Distraction and Observation (Manifesto)

[Nesrin Aziz]

Eddie said he’d be fine, but Nesrin’s eyes narrowed coyly for the misdirection that the touch of his side betrayed. Instead of pointing it out her fingers played with the buttons of his shirt, sharing in his heat, but she didn’t resist his command of her. He wasn’t wrong to assume she was still keen to leave, though the opened door of the cab gave her a moment’s pause. Those were old instincts, old rules – not even her own experiences, but the sorts of warnings she’d grown up hearing. Not that Eddie was remotely that kind of threat, but she could still feel the adrenaline in her system, and it leaned her back into instincts that once kept her alive. Chivalry wasn’t so alien to her these days, but it still made her suspicious before it made her grateful.

She slid across the heated leather of the back seat, into darkness that was ambient rather than oppressive. Inside it was as posh as one would expect for idling outside Moscow’s most elite nightclub – poised for spontaneity and discretion, she imagined. The thought curled a smile to her lips as Eddie climbed in after her. He leaned to press a whisper in her ear, and the low timbre of his voice sent a shiver of anticipation right through her.

Nesrin was amused that he cared about her comfort, but Rhi was enamoured of her protector, and Nesrin was more than content to play the part. It was just roleplay, not a lie. Nesrin would be pulling him into her by now, laughing away his sensibilities in favour of exploring the connection, but Rhi let the seduction unfold at his pace. Most gentlemen didn’t remain gentlemen forever, and a part of her was curious to see at what point he’d loosen the reins on his own desire. He said he’d been looking for distraction tonight after all, and she was happy to be that fantasy.

“You make me feel safe, Eddie.” She leaned to whisper it back, both promise and permission – he could tell the driver to take them to his address. She didn’t untangle from the intimacy afterwards, close enough to kiss if he was brave enough, or to intoxicate him with the possibility of it if he was not. “I don’t know what I would have done without you tonight.”