by Ava Ashley
“And guess what today’s winner gets?” Liam pauses with a huge grin on his face and looks around, trying to catch as many eyes as he can before continuing. “A romantic overnight trip with Rafe to a cabin in the mountains.”
And they go nuts.
“And how do you win that?” Another dramatic pause. “Rafe is going to grade you on your massage abilities.”
During the murmuring, I actually hear one of them say something about a happy ending. This could get out of hand real quick. I hold in a laugh that actually hurts my sore ribs.
“I’ll go first!” Heather calls out, along with several others.
“Now hold on, let’s let Rafe relax a bit first. You can get a drink and snacks from the bar. Enjoy the pool while you’re here.” A second later, music blasts out from speakers somewhere and three waiters bring food out. The ladies rush me and I hold up a hand.
“Now, now, you heard Liam. I need a drink to start the day.”
Heather rushes off, I assume to get me a drink. The other ladies converge around me, talking and peppering me with questions. I do my best to keep up with the onslaught, not that I’m complaining. While I’m talking to Mel, Zuri sneaks around and starts on my shoulders. She digs in hard, putting her full weight into it.
“Ouch!” I don’t mean to, but I push her hand off my shoulder.
“Too hard?” She starts again, much softer this time.
“No, that’s fine, Zuri,” I say, glad I remember her name. “Thanks for starting things off.”
Mel is smirking up at Zuri until she notices I’m watching her. I try not to change my expression, but damn, this brings out the ugly side.
I’m glad I’m sitting up. I had actually thought about saying something about the scars on my side and back, but maybe it won’t be an issue. It’s even possible other people don’t notice them as much as I do.
“Can I go next?” Mel asks sweetly.
“Sure,” I say. Liam’s assistant is in charge of writing down scores, one to ten. I have my hand down at my side and hold up two fingers.
Mel is much better as she rubs my shoulders, then she leans close and moans in my ear. It sounds like she’s having sex back there, making me chuckle, but it does feel good. I find myself wanting to get into it and relax more. I close my eyes for a few minutes, but soon decide I want to watch the ladies. They are standing and sitting around in their cliques, talking, drinking, and eating. I finally spot Lily. She’s closer to the house, like she wants to hide. That’s not like her. Did yesterday throw her off-kilter? I try to catch her gaze, but she won’t look my way. What the hell was she going to tell me?
She’s wearing a lacy, almost see-through, white top over a red bikini and worn jean shorts. It’s hot as hell. I can’t let that affect me though.
But I also can’t help but want one of her massages. I finally catch her eye and motion with a finger for her to come here. Her eyes widen at first. Then a flash of genuine pleasure crosses her face, but she quickly covers it with a relaxed expression that doesn’t reveal as much. She sets down her almost empty glass and starts my way.
I lean my head back to talk to Mel. “Thanks.”
“Did you like that, baby?”
“Yes. Very much. Too bad we have to keep them short today.”
“Oh, don’t worry about it. There’s plenty more where that came from.” She winks at me and struts off to the bar for another drink.
I give her a six. I’m going to be stingy with my high grades. It’s early on, and I’m hoping to find some gems in the crowd. Maybe this competition wasn’t such a bad idea, after all. A massage might go a long way in telling me how I like each woman’s touch.
From Lily’s expression, it’s pretty clear we’re both thinking about our unfinished conversation. We used to communicate with just a look, and it feels good to do that now. It reminds me of all our history, good and bad. We helped each other through hard times.
She steps behind me without saying anything and kneads my shoulders, pulling her hands close together to get the spot right under my neck. Then she moves up to gently work my neck muscles from the back and around to the sides. She knows I like her to ease into it. Sometimes my muscles are bunched up so tightly, anything else just intensifies the soreness. After my neck, she gets my shoulders and spreads out to my upper arms. Her hands leave my back for a second like she’s done already. But then she pulls up a chaise lounge next to me.
“Lie down.”
I obey, trying not to smile in front of everyone. Seeing her be a bit bossy and confident turns me on, so it’s fortunate that I’m lying on my stomach.
I get comfortable, close my eyes, and feel her hands start at the top and work slowly down my spine. She uses the heels of her hands in circular motions, rubbing the muscles out from the middle.
“Oh my God, Lily.”
Her hands work under my shoulder blades and get the tiny spot on the right side that can knot up under my shoulder blade. She remembers that and gives that place more attention.
Lily massages all the way down to the top of my ass and then slowly back up to my shoulders, remembering what I like. It’s everything I had hoped for, and maybe even better than it was before. She blows them all away. Of course, she had an unfair advantage because I pretty much trained her in how to massage me. Back in high school, she massaged my sore muscles after my grueling wrestling practices. I decide, in the end, this advantage is okay. Our history has been working against her all this time.
I feel Lily’s hand work up my back again and down my arms. She focuses on one and then the other.
“Okay, Lily,” Liam says. “We have to keep moving.”
She rubs my shoulders one last time, on the very edge where my biceps get sore, then gets up.
I try to look up at her, but she’s walking away. “Thank you, Lily.”
She turns back and smiles.
I sigh. I’m good to go now, but I’ll have to let the other women have their turn. So while I’m going through that, I notice Lily enjoying some time in the pool. After two hours, I can’t take any more sitting still.
“I need a break,” I tell the two girls waiting. “Just a short one. I’ll be back, I promise.” Before leaving, I lean over and plant a kiss on Heather’s cheek. Then I take a running jump and cannonball into the pool. I come up and hear screaming.
Guess I splashed Mel and a few of her girls. They’re angry at first but try to play it off when they turn around and see it’s me. I laugh and send another splash their way.
“How about a game of volleyball?” I ask the ladies in the pool. Heather jumps in too. We have a ball but no net, but we make do anyway. I need to have some fun and get moving.
We mess around, hitting the ball back and forth and not keeping score. When no one gets the ball, it splashes the closest people. About an hour passes and Liam sends an assistant in a swimsuit in.
“Liam says you should go back to getting massaged. We still have five girls.”
“All right,” I say. It turns out there are several ladies with some skill, and I end up giving out two eights. After my last massage, I step inside the house with Liam for a few minutes to discuss the scores. Afterward, he gets everyone’s attention to announce it.
Mel has a smile on her face, but I see her glance around with a hint of nervousness. So many of the women look hopeful as Liam pauses.
“And the winner is... Lily!”
A wave of surprised noises erupts, but no one is more surprised than Lily. She covers it quickly, and almost everyone glances at each other and Lily with confusion. I can’t believe she didn’t know—I gave her a ten.
When it grows quiet, Liam takes Lily and me aside to fill us in on details for the evening. Lily is still wide-eyed with surprise that she won.
Liam steps away and I lean down to her ear and whisper, “So I’ll see you in the limo.”
“See you soon,” she answers, her voice breezy.
I decide to sneak in an easy jog on the beach on my
way back to my house. I want to shower before tonight’s “romantic evening.”
I make sure not to make eye contact with Lily on my way out, and I don’t think about what I’ve done until I’m running. She earned a ten. She was the best by far, and I’m not going to be unfair simply because things are complicated between us. And I’ll be honest at least with myself; she and I need to talk.
The next hour flies by, and the limo is out front before I know it. We drive back to the beach house, and I step inside to get Lily just as she starts down the stairs wearing a black, spaghetti strap tank top, a skirt, and lacy high heels. The top is lacy, too, making it almost look like a dress. She pauses when she sees me, self-conscious for just a second. We don’t smile, just stare as she proceeds down the last steps, where I take her bag from her shoulder. That outfit hugs her body, showing off every curve and dip.
She glances up at me, and it’s a loaded look. We have a lot to talk about. Soon. Maybe tonight. We go outside and slip into the limo. It takes us away to catch a ride in a helicopter. They hid the camera this time so we don’t have to sit opposite of a cameraman for a change.
“Whisked away,” Lily says with a glance out the window. I lean back and stretch my arm across her shoulders. It’s a habit even after all this time, but I’m still shocked when she reaches up and links her fingers through mine. Also out of habit. And it feels strangely intimate and new.
What are we doing?
I don’t ask the question out loud. I don’t want a real answer.
I just need to talk to her and get this out of my system. That’s all.
She tilts her head back and looks my way. After a long minute, I touch her chin with my finger and turn her head until her lips are right next to mine. I pause there, but then I stop thinking and lean down. Our lips meet. It’s soft and sweet. Until suddenly, I turn my body as I grab a fist full of her hair to pull her head back and sink my tongue into her mouth. She kisses back just as fast and hard, kiss after kiss, asking for more.
I break apart to say her name.
She’s panting.
“Rafe,” she whispers, and I run my hands up and down her sides, across her hips, her waist. Her body arches into my touch. I dip my head to nibble her neck, then bite. She gasps and grabs me by the hair when I do that.
“Goddamn, Lily, what are you doing to me?”
Chapter Fourteen
Lily
I gaze up at Rafe and see his eyes half open in desire. He searches my face and traces a finger over my mouth.
“Rafe... Why did you change your mind about me?” I ask quietly. Sure, he finally talked to me yesterday and flirted, but that didn’t change everything.
He pulls back just an inch, searching my eyes.
“You do something crazy to me, Lily. I couldn’t fight it anymore. I wanted to see if your touch would still fix everything.”
Fix everything? Does he want me because it’ll fix something now?
His mouth comes down on mine. His hand slides up my leg and body, molding me like wet clay. I want to talk about it and understand, but my mind is shutting off. But what will he feel when I talk to him, when I explain what happened to me? I push that thought away. We’ll talk. Soon. Not here in the limo.
He slips his hand down between my legs to rub me through my clothes, making me press against him and moan into his mouth.
“Damn, you’re wet already, aren’t you?”
He leans one elbow on the back of the seat behind me so he’s over me, kissing me and touching me, making my body heat up and aching desire seep through every inch of me.
I flatten a hand on his chest, feeling it rise and fall. I slide my hand over his smooth skin up to his neck and back to his hair. His tongue caresses mine; then he nibbles on my lips before kissing me deeply. The feel of his tongue on mine sends heat straight through me. I’m aching to feel him inside me.
His hand moves to take mine and hold it hostage above my head. My hips move on their own accord, wanting his hand back between my legs. Need and desire take over.
We kiss until I can hardly breathe, and then he goes back to my neck. As his mouth kisses up to my ear, I lose it. My body arches into his, one leg sliding up his to curve around his body.
“Lily,” he says, but keeps kissing me. “Lily, wait.”
I clench his shirt in my hand, aching for him.
“They’re still taping,” he says quietly in my ear.
I almost don’t care. I want him. He wants me. He knows he does. He can’t deny it.
But I try to think straight. Maybe he doesn’t want it as badly as I do. Or maybe he is just concerned with being taped.
He leans back but doesn’t let go of me. “Wow.” He runs a hand through his hair and looks at me again, his eyes still clouded.
“Yeah, wow,” I say on a breath. My body throbs and tingles. It’s clear we still have explosive chemistry and know how to touch each other. I could never get enough of him.
I hear a click and a voice comes over the intercom. “We’re coming into the airport now.”
Rafe leans back away from me and runs a hand down his shirt, then glances over at me to do a once-over. It’s probably to make sure my clothes aren’t messed up, but it sends a shot of hot need and pleasure through me.
Outside, it’s just starting to get dark and the helicopter is lit with bright points of light. The blades are spinning, but the limo pulls up fairly close. A thrill runs through me because I haven’t done anything like this before. For some reason, even though I’m afraid of heights, flying has never bothered me. I guess it’s a different kind of height.
We exit the limo and the wind from the helicopter blades sends my hair flying around. The driver hands our bags to us and waves goodbye. Rafe rests a protective arm around my shoulders as we hurry to the open helicopter door and climb in.
The copilot turns around and motions for us to each put on a headset. That helps with the engine noise I notice.
“Welcome, Rafe, Lily,” the pilot says. “I’m Marcus Tebul. I’ll be flying you to your cabin for the night. You’ll find your seatbelts right there. Let James here know if you need any assistance... and now, are you ready for takeoff?”
“Sure are,” Rafe says, wearing a naughty smile. I duck my head, wondering if the pilots can see my expression.
We lift into the air and I turn to the window to watch the ground fall away. The skyline comes into view with lighter blue over on the horizon. The city is a thousand lights that blur together as we rise. I feel safe inside the helicopter when normally I get dizzy when I’m high up. It’s a fun feeling this time. I laugh and turn to Rafe as he takes my hand, and our gazes lock for a minute.
I’m not sure if things are better or if we’re caught up in the moment. I almost don’t care. It feels so good to hold his hand and see him smile when he looks at me. Our fingers are threaded together and he squeezes my hand. Maybe he understands just how I feel. I want to talk to him now, get everything out, but the pilots can hear anything we say over the headset. So I just hold his hand and look out the window.
The world grows dark and the stars come out. The lights all fade away except for the occasional house in the hills. Then I spot a brightly lit area up ahead. As we get closer, I see it’s a landing pad. The house is harder to see because it’s not so brightly lit. The flight is over all too soon and we set down. The engine and blades wind down but don’t turn off, and the copilot comes around and opens our door.
He escorts us halfway to the cabin, where he shakes hands with Rafe and then me.
“Enjoy your evening. We’ll see you tomorrow.”
We watch him walk back and Rafe takes my hand again. He has both our bags in his other hand. Up ahead, I can see it’s a deluxe cabin, as promised. The helicopter leaves as we reach the house, where Rafe takes out a key to let us in.
“Ladies first... One beautiful woman first, that is.” He swings open the door and holds his arm out for me to enter. His hand slides across my side as I walk p
ast him, and I catch myself looking into his eyes again.
When I step inside, I’m surprised by the aroma of a delicious dinner and my stomach growls. Eating hasn’t been a high priority with everything else going on, and suddenly I feel famished.
“That smells...incredible.”
“I hope you still like seafood. The caterers prepared a seafood bisque.”
The caterers? So he cooked dinner for Kara but not me tonight. I try to tell myself there wouldn’t have been time. It doesn’t matter.
I walk farther into the cabin to explore around while Rafe takes our bags to the bedroom. At least, I assume that’s where he’s taking them. Maybe we each have a room. I’ve tried not to think about it, but now it consumes my mind. What if someone else had won a night with Rafe? I can’t handle it and push the thought away. Instead, I check out the dining table, decked out in candles and ornate dining utensils. Champagne and Moscato chill in two ice buckets. A heated pot holds the bisque while I find other things under covers, including skewered shrimp and fish fillets.
Rafe returns and crosses the room while gazing at me. I can see confusion in his eyes, and I realize how torn he is. He’s wanted me off this show and out of his life again. But here we are. I finally have my chance to talk to him. And, apparently, he wants answers.
When he reaches me, Rafe pulls my body against his, one hand sliding around my waist while the other threads up into my hair. Suddenly, he grabs a handful of hair and pulls my head back, taking my mouth in a deep kiss. His groan vibrates through me as he steals my breath. Then, as quickly as it started, it’s over. He steps back, leaning on a chair like he needs the support for a minute. I want to say something, but he pulls a chair out for me.
“Shall we eat?” The flirty, charming Rafe is back. The moment of vulnerability is over. He opens the champagne and pours a glass for both of us.
“To new beginnings,” he toasts.
I’m surprised and speechless for a few seconds. Then I raise my glass and toast with him, adding, “To new beginnings.”
For him?
For me?
For us?
