One Hot Winter's Night

by Woods, Serenity

  “As friends?” she said impishly.

  He sighed and then smiled. “As friends. Sure.”

  “Okay.”

  “I’ll go back to my room and get changed and meet you in the foyer in, say, fifteen minutes?”

  She agreed. He slipped a hand behind her neck. Gently, he kissed her. Then, without another word, he left the room.

  Cat dressed, feeling lighter of heart. One day, he would meet someone else and then it would have to stop, she accepted that. But until then, she was happy to have some fun when they happened to meet.

  She pulled on jeans, a warm jumper and a jacket, and then popped down to Alexander’s room to make sure he didn’t want to go with them. He’d been before and she wasn’t surprised when he said no. She ignored his smile of pleasure when she told him she was going with Heath.

  “As friends,” she told him.

  “Of course.”

  Sighing, she left him smirking and caught the lift to the foyer.

  Heath was already waiting. He wore tight, dark blue jeans, a black wool sweater over a white T-shirt, and a black jacket. Quite possibly, he looked better in casual clothes than he did in his three-piece suit. She thought about the waistcoat. Maybe not. But it was a close thing. She suspected that, whatever he wore, she would find him mouth-wateringly desirable.

  They caught a taxi the short distance to the museum and made their way through the exhibition halls of the vast site, studying the Emperor Qin’s breath-taking array of pottery figures with awe. Cat knew that no two figures unearthed so far had the same features or expression, but it was only when she stood at the foot of Pit 1 and looked at the rows and rows of thousands of terracotta soldiers that she fully understood the vastness of the project.

  The army of statues obviously fascinated Heath, but it seemed that she captivated him even more, because every time she turned to say something to him she found him studying her, a small smile on his face. He also thought it was greatly amusing that the Chinese tourists kept staring at her and nudging each other. She couldn’t work out why, and he wouldn’t tell her, but when they were strolling through the gardens in front of the museum and a family asked him to take a photograph of Cat with them, he seemed to think it was the funniest thing in the world and chuckled for ages.

  “It’s usually my hair that draws the attention,” he told her once she’d managed to extricate herself from the group, embarrassed.

  “They like my hair?” She touched the blonde locks self-consciously.

  “Well, have you ever seen a blonde Chinese woman?” He grinned at her. “Your chest might have had something to do with it as well.”

  “My chest? What’s wrong with my chest?”

  “Absolutely nothing, sweetheart—it’s just a fair bit larger than the average Chinese female’s.”

  She glared at him. The glare turned to a wry grin as she saw the twinkle in his eye. She couldn’t remain cross with him for long, and was enjoying herself too much to be angry.

  “Stop staring at me,” she said anyway. “It makes me nervous.”

  He laughed. “All right. Just until we leave the site though. There’s enough here to hold my attention for thirty minutes. After that, there’ll be no holding me back.”

  So they wandered around more exhibits for half an hour, and true to his world he studied the artefacts, comparing them to other relics displayed at Te Papa or that he’d seen elsewhere. They had a lengthy discussion about whether the arrowheads were better than the ones discovered at Maiden Castle in Dorset, and debated the best preservation technique for bronze objects. He argued his case vehemently, citing various methods he’d seen used and challenging her to come up with a better answer, which kind of made her swoon. Most men found her interest in dead people’s things dull and boring. Heath seemed to revel in it.

  She studied him as he bent to look at a restored stone helmet. He turned his head to look at her, straightening as he saw her watching him. He raised an eyebrow, his hazel eyes alight with amusement. “What?”

  “Nothing.” She couldn’t put her feelings into words. “I’m glad we’re friends,” was the closest she could manage.

  He looked at her for a moment. Then, in the middle of the museum, surrounded by Chinese tourists who now watched them wide-eyed, he bent his head and kissed her. He didn’t say anything else—he didn’t need to. The kiss said it all.

  Chapter 22

  After they’d finished at the museum, they returned to the hotel and made their way to the business centre to await the decision on where the new display of Terracotta Warriors was going to visit first. The announcement came only half an hour later, and she wasn’t shocked to find out it was the British Museum. She gave Heath a triumphant grin. He gave her a look that told her she was going to regret her bragging when he finally got her back to the bedroom.

  She wasn’t to be disappointed. Heath made a lame excuse to Alexander, something about needing to talk to her about cooling temperatures, and he practically dragged her back to her room, where he proceeded to take a long and leisurely hour proving just how friendly they were.

  “Wow,” she said afterward. “You just keep getting better and better.”

  “By 2015 I’ll be phenomenal,” he said, straight-faced. “And we’ll be really, really good friends.”

  She met his gaze for a moment and then looked away. By then he would have met someone else, a woman who wasn’t afraid of being in a relationship, who would be excited to date him properly, get married, have kids. Cat shivered. She didn’t want to think about the future. It made her head hurt.

  He cleared his throat. “I don’t suppose you’d consider coming to dinner with me this evening?”

  “I promised Alex I’d meet him at eight.” She knew her voice was defensive.

  “Okay. All I will say is: six left.” He picked up the packet of condoms and waggled it at her before placing it in his pocket.

  She started to laugh. He was hopeless. “There’s no stopping you, is there? Don’t you ever get tired?”

  “Nope. I seem to have a limitless libido where you’re involved.” He sighed. “Looks like I’ll be having another flute solo this evening.” He started to get dressed.

  The thought of him pleasuring himself while he thought of her made her heart race. He turned back, and she realised she was staring at his crotch. Her cheeks red hot, she looked up guiltily. Had he guessed what she was thinking?

  His gaze was volcanic. Yes, he had. He put his hands on his hips. “Now that’s extremely unfair.”

  She clutched the duvet to her. How come they’d just had sex and she wanted to jump him again? “Come to dinner with me and Alex,” she said, surprising herself.

  He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think he’d be too pleased with that suggestion.”

  “He’ll be fine. He’s only protective of me. It’ll do him good to be tortured a bit.”

  He grinned. “Okay. I think he deserves it after the penguin episode.”

  She picked up the penguin and kissed its nose. “Actually I’m thrilled with little Foxy here.”

  “Foxy?”

  “A penguin called Fox. I thought your sense of irony would like that.”

  He picked up his glasses. “I don’t think Mr Fox is keen to be compared to a stuffed toy.”

  “Oh, I don’t know. They’re both very cuddly.”

  He put the glasses on and gave her a determined look. “The Silver Fox is not cuddly.”

  She studied him. “No, you’re probably right.” Cuddly didn’t do him justice. Delectable, gorgeous, sex-on-legs, yes. She licked her lips. It took all her self-control not to push him onto the bed and rip all his clothes off.

  “You carry on looking at me like that,” he said wryly, “and there won’t be time for dinner.” She smiled, licking her lips again, letting her desire show in her eyes. He folded his arms. “Okay, for that I’m going to get you slightly drunk tonight.” He tipped his head, giving her a wicked smile. “Then I’m going to make you play o
ut one of my fantasies.”

  “Which one?”

  “I’m not going to tell you. But I’m going to be thinking about it all evening, and every time you look at me you’re going to wonder what’s on my mind.” He pulled on his jacket and shoes. “I’ll see you in the restaurant, eight o’clock?”

  “Okay.” She was already missing him.

  He gave her one last, hot look before leaving the room.

  When Alexander knocked on the door just before eight o’clock, she was putting in her earrings. She opened the door and let him in, then went back into her room and slipped on her shoes. She wore a chocolate brown V-necked sweater and a calf-length beige skirt, with sheer black thigh-highs and black high heels. She’d pinned up her hair, leaving soft tendrils to fall around her neck. Alexander smiled as she grabbed her bag and walked over to him. “You look lovely, my dear.”

  “Thanks.” She cleared her throat. “Alex… I hope you don’t mind. I…um…invited Heath to dinner.”

  He studied her thoughtfully. “I see.”

  “I kind of felt I should. He’s pretty cross with you.”

  “With me?”

  She showed him the penguin. “He went all over China looking for this.”

  Alexander burst out laughing. “Well, well. At least he tried.”

  “That was wicked. You knew he’d never heard of the biscuits.”

  “Of course he has—he went to Oxford for his MA and PhD so he must have lived in England for several years. He was being dense.”

  She followed him out of the room, letting the door click shut behind her. “How do you know he went to Oxford?”

  Alexander shrugged. “I did some research.”

  “Oh, did you?” Her voice burned with disapproval, and he cleared his throat uncomfortably.

  “I was just…”

  “Stop thinking about him like an Edwardian suitor,” she said irritably. “We’re friends. With benefits.”

  He looked across at her but didn’t say anything.

  They reached the elevator and he pressed the button, and they stood in awkward silence until it went ping. She felt irritable and nervous about the meal. How was she going to get through it with the two of them concocting every sort of plan behind her back?

  In silence, they went down to the ground floor, and he offered her his arm. They walked to the dining room together, he leaning heavily on his cane.

  Just before they got to the doors, however, he stopped.

  “Cat…”

  “Don’t,” she said immediately. “Please.”

  He reached forward and kissed her. “I was only going to say sorry.”

  “Oh.” Her cheeks went hot. “I’m sorry too. I’m kind of on edge tonight.”

  “Well, don’t be. Let’s go and have a nice time together, shall we?”

  She nodded. “Okay.”

  They walked through the doors into the dining room. Heath was already there, seated at a table by the window, reading a paper, but he put it down as they came in and stood to welcome them. He still wore his jeans, but had donned a casual light-blue shirt and dark grey jacket. He looked gorgeous, his silver hair shining in the subtle lighting. He wasn’t wearing his glasses, either, and she realised he must have his lenses in. He looked her up and down before kissing her on the cheek, his eyes warm with approval. “You look lovely.”

  “Thank you.” She suddenly felt very self-conscious with the two of them there, and as she took the seat opposite him, she knew her cheeks were reddening. She was going to have to stop blushing every five minutes when he was around.

  Heath shook Alexander’s hand. “Are you sure you don’t mind me joining you?”

  “Of course not.” Alexander sat to Cat’s left, hooking his cane over his chair. “Did you have a pleasant afternoon?”

  Heath looked at Cat, and she started laughing. He gave Alexander an exasperated look. “I can say with authority that Chinese shops are severely lacking in Antarctic cuddly toys.”

  “I admire your stubbornness,” said Alexander, amused.

  “Oh, I always get what I want.” Heath winked at Cat. Alexander caught the look and raised an eyebrow at her.

  She picked up the menu. “You two have got to promise not to gang up on me tonight. One of you teasing is bad enough, but both of you…”

  They laughed. Underneath the table, Heath stretched his long legs out, brushing hers. She didn’t look up, but she smiled.

  They ordered their meal and a couple bottles of wine, and Cat finally began to relax as she sipped from her glass. The two men kept the conversation light, talking mainly about archaeology, and she phased in and out of the conversation, joining in, but maybe being a little more reserved than she would normally have been.

  She felt strangely shy. These two men both knew her intimately in different ways, and between the both of them, she had hardly any secrets. She was an incredibly private person, and didn’t quite know how to deal with this situation.

  The two men had stopped talking, and she blinked as they both looked at her with amusement. Alexander glanced away, smiling, and picked up his napkin to lay it carefully across his legs. Heath just grinned at her, however, and she realised she’d been staring at him. He flicked a gaze at Alexander, saw he was looking away, and mouthed: “Six,” at her, drawing the number in the air with a finger. Then he winked.

  Cat looked down, biting her lip, suddenly remembering his promise to her that he was going to get her slightly drunk. Every time you look at me, you’re going to wonder what’s on my mind. She glanced up at him again. He knew exactly what was going through her head as he sat back in his chair, fingers linked, a saucy smile on his lips.

  She cleared her throat. “I’m just going to powder my nose before the meal comes.” Casting him a warning glare, she stood and left the table. Jeez, she thought as she made her way to the ladies’. How did he do it? How was he able to keep her in a sexual haze for hours on end?

  Chapter 23

  Heath watched Cat walked away, admiring her butt in the tight skirt, knowing he’d got to her. He loved making her blush like that—it was like a neon light coming on every time she thought about having sex with him.

  He glanced across at Alexander, whose expression was unfathomable. Heath sipped his wine, saying nothing, sensing the older man was about to say something. He was right.

  “She’s not going to make it easy for you,” Alexander said.

  “I know.”

  “The ‘friends with benefits’ thing was your idea, I guess?”

  Heath gave a short laugh. “She said she missed me. And it upset her. She doesn’t want to get involved. I’m still not sure why, but I know better than to push her. I just suggested that if we happen to be in the same vicinity, we make the most of it.” He sipped his wine.

  Alexander rearranged his cutlery. “And she was happy with that?”

  “The idea appealed to her. The reality…the idea of being able to see other people… She wants her freedom, but I don’t think she was so keen on me having mine.” He grinned.

  Alexander frowned. “Are you saying you’ll continue to see other women?”

  “Alex, give me some credit, please. I’ll wait for her.” Heath played with his napkin. “I always get my own way in the end.”

  Alexander seemed amused at that. “Yes, but that was before you met Cat. She’s particularly stubborn. Still, I hope you’ll persist. I gave your words quite a lot of thought.” He sighed and leaned back in his chair. “I’ve always tried to give Cat confidence, to make her feel able to stand on her own two feet and have a steady job and a place to live. If something happens to me, the house goes to her. And she’s invaluable to the British Museum—they’ll never let her go.”

  He studied his fork. “But what you said rang true with me. And because of that, I think there’s something you should know.” He looked up at Heath, his light blue eyes clear. “I’m not a well man.” Heath’s eyes slid to his cane, and Alexander added, “I don’t mean the l
imp. I have a heart condition.”

  Concern flickered through Heath. “I’m sorry to hear that. Does Cat know?”

  “No.”

  He turned the wine glass around in his fingers. “Are you going to tell her?”

  “No. I don’t think she’ll cope well with the news. She’ll fuss, and force me to take it easy, to stay at home, and I don’t want to do that. Until I hurt my knee, I was an active man. I’ve always travelled, seen the world, and I don’t want to stop now. But I just thought you should know. If something were to happen to me, I hope you’d be there for her. Even only as a friend.”

  “Of course.”

  “You promise you’ll look out for her?”

  “Yes, I promise.” Heath said it with absolute faith. He had no doubt at all that he would eventually be able to talk her into having a relationship with him. They were too good together. There was no excuse she could come up with that would convince him staying together was a bad idea.

  He glanced across the room. “She’s coming back.”

  “Please don’t tell her,” Alexander begged.

  “I won’t.”

  Cat approached the table and slid into her seat. She looked at Alexander, then at Heath. “Okay, you can stop talking about me now.”

  Heath mimed zipping up his mouth, and she laughed and sipped her wine. He hadn’t been joking when he’d said about getting her slightly drunk. Not hammered, obviously, he didn’t want her falling asleep while he was making love to her, but in his experience, a glass or two of wine was the best way to loosen up and release your inhibitions, and, for what he had planned later, he needed to make sure she was nicely relaxed.

  As Alexander poured her another glass, she glanced up at Heath, and he met her eyes. They studied each other for a moment, and he could see the curiosity deep in the silvery-green orbs. She was wondering what he’d planned for the evening. He smiled and raised his eyebrows knowingly.

  His gaze dipped to her breasts where the V of her sweater showed the top of her cleavage. He could just see a hint of the black lace of her bra. Hmm. Black lace. Nice. He felt a twinge in his pants and shifted in his seat. Raising his eyes to hers again, he saw the amusement lighting them. Who was playing whom here?