Stanton Series Box Set: Stanton Series (Box Set)

by T L Swan

  “Is he always like this with you?” I shrug, unsure what to say, and slightly embarrassed. What must he have seen in the past? How many girls has he had this conversation with? I push these negative thoughts out of my mind. Stop it Natasha. Thankfully we arrive at my apartment shortly after and the burly bodyguard gets out and opens the door for us.

  “Josh, wake up,” I whisper.

  “I think we had better help you get him upstairs.”

  “Thanks Adrian, that would be great,” I gently pat Josh’s face and he wakes.

  “We are home Josh, get out of the car.”

  “Hmm,” he stumbles out of the car and wraps his arm around my shoulder. I guide him through the foyer and into the lift with the two men behind me, and a horrifying thought crosses my mind. Shit, is my apartment a mess? I can’t even remember. I definitely didn’t expect company tonight. We get to the front door and Adrian must be able to read my mind because he turns to the other man.

  “We should be good from here. I will meet you in the car.” He nods and disappears back into the lift. I smile.

  “Thanks Adrian, I really appreciate it.” He takes over holding Josh up while I find my keys in my bag and unlock my front door. I flick on the light and silently thank the lord my house isn’t as messy as I envisaged.

  “Come in,” I gesture to Adrian. He nods as he leads Josh in. I grab Josh’s hand and lead him up the hallway towards my bedroom.

  “Get into bed, baby. I will be in in a minute.” He nods and starts stripping off in the hallway in front of us. I smile and turn back to Adrian. He raises his eyebrows as he puts his hands in his suit pockets.

  “I’ve seen a very different man tonight to the one I know, Tash.”

  I smile. “It’s funny you say that, because tonight I have seen the first glimpse of the man I do know.” I flop onto the lounge. He sits down next to me and looks around my apartment.

  “Nice place.”

  I smile. “Thanks, I like it. Do you want the tour?”

  “Sure,” he smiles as he stands.

  “This is the living room,” I gesture around the room. “Kitchen,” I wave my hand around. “Bathroom,” as I show him the bathroom.

  He frowns. “I am so organising a bathroom renovation for you tomorrow,” he laughs. Ohh, I’m shocked. How rude, my bathroom might be brown nineteen–seventies shit but how dare he insult it. Who in the hell does he think he is, Donatella fucking Versace? He must have realised he’s insulted me. “I’m sorry… I just am so used to organising things. I just assumed that I am your personal assistant too. Now that you’re with Josh.” He has the ordacity to look embarrassed.

  “I don’t need a personal assistant,” I snap. That came out harsher than I meant it to. I look up and I can see the hurt in his eyes. Poor bastard, he’s trying to be nice. You’re such a bitch, Natasha.

  “But I could use a friend,” I smile. He smiles back and grabs my hand and pulls me up the hallway. There we see Joshua, spread–eagled and naked on the bed like a starfish, asleep. I look down.

  “I imagine you must have seen some sights. I mean, being with him all the time.” I walk past him back towards the lounge room, uncomfortable with where this conversation was going.

  “No, funnily enough I have never seen Josh touch a woman at all.” I frown at him. “Josh doesn’t date. Girls drape themselves off him, but I have never seen him like he was tonight. He’s different with you.”

  I smile, poor misguided Adrian. “Thanks for trying to save my feelings but I know what Josh is like. He’s way too affectionate to not touch girls. I’m not stupid.”

  He rubs my arm. “I think you underestimate him, Natasha.”

  I smile. “I wish. Do you want to grab a coffee in the morning?”

  He nods. “I will call you.”

  “Ok, sounds good,” and then he was gone. I was alone with my beautiful man, my beautiful, unconscious, smelling–like–a–brewery man who was sleeping like a baby. I take my phone out and snap a photo of him. I smile as I look at it; there’s one for the family album.

  “Wake up, precious girl,” his husky, whispered voice splinters my dreams and brings me into consciousness. “I need you.” He kisses my neck and runs his open mouth down its length to my collarbone. I slowly come to and inhale the strong scent of soap and toothpaste. He’s showered—what the hell time is it? It’s still dark. Why is he even awake? His strong body radiates with need. His arms are straining to hold his weight off me. I can feel the muscles contracted and the overwhelming power emanating from his body. He wasn’t exaggerating—he does need me I can feel it oozing from his every pore. “I’m aching for you, aching to be inside you.” Hmm, I like this wake–up call. I rub my eyes as my legs fall open.

  “Josh, what time is it?” I whisper.

  “It’s make–love–to–Josh time,” he smiles into my neck. His smile is contagious and I find myself mirroring him like an idiot. “Roll over presh. I need you from behind.” He rolls my hip so that I am on my stomach and then hitches my right leg up. My knee is level with my breastbone. Then he is on me. He pulls my hair to the side to gain access to my neck. His heavy breathing into my ear from behind sends goose bumps across my body, awakening every cell. His hand runs from my knee to my behind and back again. His fingers gently slide between my legs and he hisses when he feels me. “So wet,” he whispers. “You need me too. Do you know what a turn–on that is.”

  “Yes,” I whisper darkly. This is what his touch does to me: it leaves me vulnerable and begging, submissive even? Before I have time to analyse my thoughts on this, his fingers are inside me. Long, stroking, circular movements, stretching me open. I instantly lift my hips in a silent beg. I need more. My body needs more. As he bites my neck, he slowly sinks his heavy length into my wet sex.

  “Mmm,” he whispers. His arousal level is off the charts and he’s taking me with him. I’ve never been so hot for it in my life. His open affection for me tonight has opened a can of worms and I desperately want to please him. He pushes in and glides out in a slow movement. He’s so good at this. With his hands on my hips he lifts me until I am on my knees and he is kneeling behind me. He strokes my hair.

  “Is that ok, presh? Can you handle it? Tell me to stop if I hurt you.” I smile and nod. Even when he is beyond aroused he is still achingly aware that he is a very large man, and I am a ridiculously tight and inexperienced girl. I nod, too full to speak. He’s right, it is a tight fit. He slowly starts to move at a quicker pace and his two hands are on my shoulders pulling me back onto him. He feels so damn good. A sheen of perspiration covers both of our bodies and I feel myself start to quiver.

  “Not yet,” he snaps. “Let me enjoy you some more.” He moves me up until I am sitting on his lap with my knees on either side of his legs. Pulling my head to the side by my hair he gently swipes his tongue through my open lips and he kisses me with such tenderness I feel weak. My eyes roll back in my head. His hands move, one on my breast and the other down to my clit where he circles with perfect precision.

  “Circle your hips,” he whispers. “I won’t move, take me how you want me.” I groan as I feel his hard length move inside me when I circle. This man is hot.

  “Baby, why didn’t you go to the strip show tonight?” I whisper.

  He smiles into my neck. “Because you asked me not to.”

  “Is that the only reason?” I swipe my tongue through his lips again, daring him to give me the truth I so desperately want. He tweaks my nipple and my body shudders in response. I’m close. “Why would I want to watch other women take their clothes off? When you’re the only woman I see.”

  I smile as I kiss him again. “Good answer,” I smile.

  “Shut up and fuck me,” he growls as he starts to lift me and slam me back down onto his brutal length. His mouth is open on my neck, his breathing burning me from the inside out. My head rolls back as I ride his hard punishing rhythm, one that pushes me into a shattering orgasm. I scream into his mouth and my body shudde
rs as he bends me over and puts my elbows onto the mattress. He then really lets loose. A deep heavy rhythm. Shit. One that I don’t think I can take for much longer. I can feel him getting harder and I know he’s close. His hands are digging into my hips as he pulls me back onto him with such force I know I will have fingerprints on me tomorrow and you know what? I love it. He grabs my hips and stills himself, deep inside me, and groans from his stomach. I feel his heat inside me and I collapse onto the mattress, his sweaty body covering mine.

  When I woke up he was gone.

  The seagull’s cry wakes me from my daydream. Hot sun, beaming down onto my back. My hands drift in the water underneath my surfboard. This is why I love Australia. My morning ritual since being here: 6.00 am surf. I’ve missed my wave but I’m too relaxed to care. Being out here and being withher are the only two things that ground me and bring me back to reality. I feel like shit and my head is pumping. Why in the hell did I drink so much? The seagulls go wild again as I look to the beach and my stomach drops. Fucking bodyguards, two of the bastards. Ben will be back tomorrow, thank god. I can’t stand having these guys I don’t know around me. At least when Ben is here I just feel like I’m hanging out with a mate. I wish to god they would just catch him so I can have my fucking life back. I feel like a cockroach in a jar, trapped and isolated. Unknown to her, Natasha has been guarded. I smile at the thought of her going off like a firecracker. She’d see it as an invasion of privacy. I catch my last wave in and walk up the beach, shaking the water from my head.

  “Let’s go,” I gesture to the men and I walk towards home.

  Brad, one of the Australian bodyguards, laughs. “Your bitch is fuming.”

  “Yeah, I thought he would be.” I smile at the two men with me and shake my head. Adrian is a total prick when he’s angry with me. Nobody else is game—he’s got guts I will give him that. He, however, takes pleasure in it I’m sure. I walk in the front door to find Adrian sitting at my kitchen bench reading the newspaper. He looks up and then back at his paper, deadpan.

  I sigh. “Out with i. He shakes his head and silently sips his coffee. “Listen, if you came to my house to give me the silent treatment don’t bother. Do it from your house. I’m not in the fucking mood.”

  He holds his hand up. “Do not insult my intelligence, Joshua.”

  I roll my eyes. “You’re being a bit melodramatic don’t you think?”

  “Melodramatic,” he shrieks. “You ordered the body guards and me out of the pub so you could fight like a frat boy, Josh. Last time I looked you were the CEO of a billion–dollar company. Why in the hell did you get so drunk?” I shrug as I grab the orange juice from the fridge and drink it from the bottle.

  “God, get a glass you behemoth.”

  “It’s my house, get a muzzle. You’re hurting my ears.” He narrows his eyes at me. I turn my back to him and make a protein shake, my first of three today.

  “What if you had fought that guy and he slapped another assault charge on you? What then huh?” I frown and nod as I rub my eyes.

  “Do you reckon he slept with her?” I ask.

  “Oh fuck, not this again. You said she told you she had never been with him.”

  “Yeah, well why would he go to such lengths if he had never slept with her?”

  “Josh, you’re going fucking crazy.”

  “Maybe,” I crack an egg into my shake. “Anyway how did Tash know where we were last night? Maybe she was meeting him there and I crashed the party.”

  Adrian puts his hands on his hips. “You’re pathetic, you know that don’t you?”

  “Shut up.” I wince as my brain once again hits the sides of my skull.

  “Natasha came because I rang her.”

  “What. Why in the fuck would you do that?”

  “Because you were acting totally crazy.”

  “What if I was in a fight… and she saw. Don’t you remember her reaction when she saw me kickboxing.”

  “It was a cage fight you animal, and I totally support her. That’s not a sport, it’s barbaric.”

  “Whatever,” I roll my eyes. “Go home, you’re hurting my brain.”

  “I am going home actually.” He turns and walks towards the door. “I’m having brunch with Natasha.”

  Huh, what the fuck. I jump off the stool and follow him outside. “What did you just say?”

  “I said,” he wobbles his stupid head to accentuate his point. “I’m having brunch with Natasha.”

  “No you’re fucking not!”

  “Oh yes I fucking am. Just because you won’t take her for coffee doesn’t mean I can’t.”

  “You know why I don’t take her for coffee.”

  “No I don’t, I don’t get you at all. You’re obsessed with her, won’t stop talking about her, but you won’t let yourself spend any time with her.”

  “Because I can’t, you know that.”

  “Why can’t you?”

  “It’s fucking incest Adrian. It’s wrong. This is the kind of shit toothless rednecks who live in the damn swamp do, not millionaires and psychologists. It’s unheard of. And besides it is only going to make it harder when I leave, for her I mean.”

  “Oh yeah sure, harder for her. You’re a hypocrite.” He turns to walk off again.

  “Why am I a hypocrite?” I snap.

  He turns and pokes me in the chest. “Who has been my biggest supporter in my sexuality, Josh? Fight for what’s right, Adrian. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks, Adrian. You can’t put anyone’s happiness before your own, Adrian. You deserve to be happy, Adrian. Little did I know you wouldn’t have the guts to practise what you preach?”

  “It’s different,” I shout. “And you know that. It’s not just me or I would do it in an instant. There isn’t a fucking thing I wouldn’t do to be with her, but I would never hurt her like that.”

  “Like what?” He stills.

  “Her family will disown her if they know, and I care too fucking much to let her choose me over them. It’s a decision that in years to come she will regret and I know that for a fact.”

  “You asked her last night if she loves you.”

  “I did what?”

  “You heard me.”

  I run both hands through my hair again. “This is a total fuck up.” I nod and go to walk away.

  “Don’t you want to know her answer?” He smiles and I shake my head in sad resignation.

  “No, I don’t,” I sigh. I walk back down my steps towards my front door.

  “Yes!” he yells. “She said yes.”

  Oh fuck. What next, how much more am I supposed to take? I just can’t take much more.

  She’s killing me softly.

  I stalk back to my kitchen and scull my protein shake without tasting it. One night—I just need one more night. This is totally fucked. I’m like a drug addict waiting for my next hit and she is my drug of choice. I text Adrian.

  I forbid you to go out with her today. If I can’t spend time with her, you’re definitely not. Trust me—she could turn Elton John. But ask her to meet us at the Ivy tonight.

  This is it, I will just spend one more night with her and then that’s it. I will walk away.

  Chapter 14

  I’m shitty. So, so shitty. How dare he ask me if I love him and not say it back? What was it—a fucking test? Did I pass… asshole. He probably wants to see exactly how pathetic I actually am, and you know what? I’m astounded myself at just how well I passed. I got a high fucking distinction. He doesn’t call me, except in the middle of the night for a booty call. He leaves in the middle of the night so he doesn’t have to do the walk of shame in the morning. He doesn’t communicate at all with me unless it’s with his damn penis, as lovely as that is. That’s it, I know I’ve said it before, but I‘ve seriously had enough of his shit. If he does call me, which he won’t, but if he does, I’m going to tell him to take a hike. I smile as I listen to my thoughts. Even to my ears I know that’s a lie. I put my head in my hands as I lean onto the
kitchen bench. I hate having bastard–player–lover syndrome. Aren’t you supposed to grow out of this shit when you turn nineteen? I drag on my gym gear and head to the gym—anything to stop me from calling him, calling him and begging for him to come back.

  At 11 am I receive a text:

  Hi Tash, Sorry I have to bail on coffee but do you and your friends want to meet Josh and me at the Ivy tonight?

  Adrian x

  I press the delete button with such force I’m amazed I don’t crack the screen. As if I am going to turn up at the Ivy. He didn’t even text me himself. What a wanker. He can wait there all frigging night or go to hell, either or, I don’t care.

  10 pm

  I am in my flannelette PJs, the ones he hates. In spite of course, with Abbie and Bridget by my side commiserating, and drinking wine. We have decided he can go to hell. If he can’t call me himself, well then he bloody well can’t have me. I must say the thought of him at the Ivy with all of those beautiful women and him being, well, himself, is making me jumpy.

  “As if he won’t pick up tonight,” I sigh to Abbie.

  “You’re such an idiot,” she snaps. “I thought you wanted answers?”

  “I do,” I sigh.

  “Well, you are really going to get them here aren’t you?” I shrug my shoulders as I feel sorry for myself and blow out a breath, my head leaning back onto my lounge.

  Bridget chimes in. “Natasha, you are doing the right thing. He’s a self–absorbed prick, remember.”

  “What would you do then Abbie?”

  She smiles a sly smile. “I would go and look so unbelievably hot that he would be begging for mercy and then some.” I narrow my eyes. “Why don’t you go and set a trap?”

  “Like what?”

  “Arrive and then don’t go over and say hello but let him see you. And didn’t you say he liked dirty talk?” I nod. “Well, I would get my mouth so filthy it needs disinfecting and then I would go home without him. You watch, he’ll be begging for mercy tomorrow. And you know what men do when they are needy?” I shrug—really I have no idea about men, do I? “They talk,” she raises her eyebrows and gives me a wink. I bite my lip and look at Bridget who shrugs her shoulders. “Hmm, that does sound better than my plan I suppose,” I whisper.