“Are you going to tell me what’s bothering you?” Aaron said quietly.
She looked to her left, the rise of the hill giving her a perfect view of the ocean, which was now a deep, dark blue.
“What did Joe say?” Aaron asked.
She turned surprised eyes on him. “How did you know?”
“I didn’t, but it was an easy guess. What did he say? Did he upset you?” His eyes were hard, angry.
“No, not really. He was nice, Aaron, and he’s only worried about you.”
“What did he say?”
“He only asked me what was going to happen at the end of the week. That’s all.”
Aaron’s lips thinned, but he bent to kiss her hair. “I’m sorry. I told him I didn’t want any talk of the future. I’ll have a word with him about it tomorrow.”
“It’s okay, I understand that he’s—”
“It’s not okay, Bridget. He’s upset you after I asked him not to talk about it, and that’s not on.”
“I don’t want to come between you and your friend,” she said. “Let’s not talk about it anymore. I had a lovely evening, and I want to make the most of the time we have together.”
He stopped walking and put his arms around her. She slid both of hers around him beneath his jacket, enjoying his warmth.
“Are we being crazy?” he whispered. “Spending this time together?”
“I don’t know.” She pressed her cheek to his shirt, inhaling the smell of his aftershave and washing powder. She didn’t want to think about it. “Do we have to quantify this, or qualify it?” It felt like holding a rose and instead of admiring its beauty, only trying to count how many petals it had. “Can’t we just accept it for what it is and live for today?”
He tightened his arms. “Of course. I’m sorry.”
She bit her lip hard to stop tears forming. Poor Aaron. She’d shoe-horned her way into his life and he’d had little say in the matter. Joe would have seen how difficult it had been for his friend to get over his marriage. She’d only thought of herself and her own desires.
She moved back a little, placed both hands on his chest, and looked up at him. “Do you want me to go?”
“No,” he said immediately.
“Aaron, think about it at least. I’ve not given you much say in things so far—you felt honor-bound to help me on the quay, and when I turned up on your doorstep there was little you could do except ask me to stay. I hadn’t really thought about it before now, but I’ve been really selfish.”
“No,” he said, cupping her face, “you haven’t. You’ve reacted to an attraction between us, that’s all, and I’ve done the same. Neither of us can be blamed for that.”
“But—”
“Do you really think I have no balls at all?” he said. “That I would have fallen for any woman who happened to be on the quay that day? Bridget, what has happened between us is as rare as a shooting star. It’s happened in spite of our better nature, not because of it. Of course it doesn’t make sense for us to spend time together when we know it has to come to an end—of course it’s going to hurt to say goodbye. But does that mean we shouldn’t have done it? Would you rather we’d parted at the hotel and never seen each other again?”
“No.” She shook her head vehemently.
“Me neither. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I don’t regret meeting you for one second.” He kissed her, then lifted his head to look at her again. “Do you want to go?”
“No.”
“You’re sure? You wouldn’t rather end it now, go back to the B and B, and head for the airport in the morning?”
“I don’t want to leave you.” Her voice caught, and sudden emotion made her eyes sting with tears.
“Then don’t.” He touched his lips to hers. “Fuck everyone else.” He did it again, longer this time, and she opened her mouth to his tongue and let him deepen the kiss. “I want you,” he said hoarsely, splaying his hands on her bottom and tightening his fingers. He pulled her to him, pressing his erection against her. “I need you. Say you’ll stay with me, Bridget. Come back with me and let me make love to you.”
“Yes,” she whispered against his lips, “God, yes please.”
So they walked the short distance back up the hill to his house, kissing all the way, a hunger threading through her at the thought of getting him naked, sliding her hands over his skin, and welcoming him inside her. They stumbled through the door, still kissing. He closed it, then pushed her up against it, pinning her there with his body while he continued to stroke his tongue into her mouth, sending all her nerve endings tingling.
“Mmm.” She lifted her arms around his neck, loving the way he seemed to want her so much.
He pulled back, tearing his lips from hers, and she complained, but he gave her a hot look that stole away the words, took her hand, and led her into the living room.
The dogs bounced around, acting as if they’d been gone for days when it fact it had only been a couple of hours. Aaron fussed them briefly, then let them out into the garden and closed the sliding door.
He took off his jacket and tossed it over the chair, and, while she did the same with hers, he turned on a couple of the lamps around the room, bathing it in a warm glow. Finally, he came back to her, moving up close so she had to lift her chin to look up at him.
Tonight she’d chosen a pretty pink top over a black flared mini skirt with opaque black tights and flats, and he’d already told her repeatedly how sexy she looked in it.
Placing his hands on her thighs, he slid them up to the top of the opaque tights and pulled the waistband down over her hips. Bridget let him pull them all the way down to her feet, leaning on his shoulders while he removed them. Then he pushed himself back up to his feet.
Taking her hand, he moved backward to the sofa and sat, then gave her hand a tug. Laughing, she fell forward, lifting a knee so she could sit astride him.
He pulled her tight to him, so she could feel the press of his erection against her mound through her thin skirt. She rocked her hips, closing her eyes at the exquisite sensation of him rubbing against her clit through the material.
“You’re right,” he murmured, his voice rough with desire. “We should live for the moment. For right here, right now.” He slid his hands up her top to cup her breasts, groaning as he discovered she was wearing a soft lacy teddy. He brushed her nipples through the lace, and she moaned and continued to rock her hips against his erection.
“How can this be wrong?” he said.
“It’s not,” she whispered, and she lowered her lips to his to claim them for a kiss.
Chapter Twenty-One
Aaron took the hem of Bridget’s top in his hands, lifted it over her head, and laid it on the sofa beside him. Her blonde hair tumbled around her shoulders like a pale yellow curtain, feeling like silk when he slid his fingers in it to cup her head.
Holding her against him, he kissed her for a while, not because he wasn’t desperate to touch her, or because she wasn’t giving him all the signs of wanting more, but because he was enjoying the buildup of pleasure. The pretty lace teddy clung beautifully to her breasts, and Aaron let his hands slide over them, taking his time to enjoy their shape and weight, and loving how she murmured against his lips and rocked against his erection when he brushed the tips with his thumbs.
When it came down to it, sex was about doing the right things in the right order and concentrating on the girl’s pleasure, as his own was always closely linked to hers. There wasn’t any magic to it. So why did this feel magical? Why did it feel more than sex? Part of Aaron’s brain puzzled over it while they kissed. She was beautiful, but then so were most of the girls he’d dated, in their own way. She was funny and made him laugh, and not everyone had a great sense of humor, so that counted in her favor. She was charming—even Joe, who had wanted to dislike her, he was sure—had been captivated by her, because she genuinely seemed interested in a person when she talked to them, and when her blue e
yes looked at you with fascination, it made your heart leap.
Or maybe it was just his heart that leapt. He couldn’t put his finger on why, but he was crazy about this girl, and that wasn’t going away any time soon. He could think of a dozen women he knew who he would have helped if they’d been in the same situation, but he wouldn’t have fallen in love with any of them. It had to have been Bridget, right then, right there. He was surprised that comets hadn’t blazed across the sky to mark the momentous event.
His thoughts were blurring now, his brain being overtaken by the rest of his body as it stirred and reacted to Bridget’s kisses like a sleepy bear rising after winter hibernation. That made sense, he thought dreamily as her tongue teased his—she was the goddess of spring after all.
She caught the hem of his T-shirt in her hands and lifted it over his head, murmuring her approval at the sight of his body. Feeling jealous, he tucked a finger under the strap on her shoulder and slowly eased it down, feeling the stretchy lace contract until it exposed her breast, her pale skin gleaming in the lamplight. She had rosy pink nipples, and he bent his head to one, sucking and feeling it harden in his mouth. She sank her hands into his hair, tipping back her head with a moan, so he spent some time swapping between both nipples, teasing them with his lips and tongue until they elongated and glistened like pebbles on the beach.
Cupping his face in her hands, she lifted it so she could kiss him again, and her hot mouth and urgent tongue sent his blood racing around his body and his heart pounding. He wanted this girl—wanted her so damn much—and it was becoming difficult to slow things down, his hormones urging him to take her and thrust them both to a blissful climax.
He made himself wait though, and slid his hands up her thighs and around the front of her teddy. Pulling it to one side, he slipped the fingers of his other hand down into the heart of her.
Jesus, she was wet and swollen and so ready for him, and he couldn’t stop a deep groan of approval escaping his lips. She murmured in response, giving little thrusts against his hand, and he slid his fingers deeper, inside her, pressing the heel of his hand against her clit.
She lifted her head to look at him, her lips—now free of lipstick—plump and blurred from his kisses. Aaron held her gaze as he stroked her, keeping his fingers slow and steady. She gazed deep into his eyes, and his heartbeat picked up at the desire he saw within hers, along with something else…
Not love, he scolded himself. Not yet. But affection, and need. She wanted him too—and maybe that was where the difference lay—that was what separated her from the other women who had passed through his life. Other women had desired fulfilment from his body, and Nita—in the early days anyway—had treated him as if he was something special.
But Bridget looked at him like he was a superhero, as if—were she in need anywhere in the country—he’d come swooping down in his cape and tights to save her. It could only end badly when she realized just how many faults he had, but it was wonderful for once for someone other than his son to look at him as if he could do anything, as if he was perfect in her eyes.
Her breaths were coming faster now, and he knew she wasn’t far from coming. Half of him wanted to continue, to feel her muscles clamp around his fingers and her clit pulse against his hand, but the other half wanted to be inside her, and that half won.
Withdrawing his hand, he kissed her as he pulled out his wallet, took out a condom, then unzipped his fly. Bridget moved back a little to watch as he rolled on the condom, her hot gaze making him even harder, if that were possible. When he’d done, she shifted until the tip of his erection parted her folds, then looked into his eyes as she lowered herself down.
“Aaahhh.” She exhaled, and he matched it with a groan. Not even sitting on his boat at the height of summer with his feet in the water, his dogs by his side, and Bob Dylan playing on the radio matched the fucking amazing sensation of sliding inside this woman, feeling her hot flesh close around him, her tight walls providing enough friction to drive him insane as she started to rock her hips and drive him in and out of her.
She cupped his face and kissed him, then pulled back again to look deep into his eyes as she thrust her hips, moving slowly. Aaron stared into the blue orbs, feeling as if he was looking into the sea, almost seeing her thoughts and emotions swimming beneath the surface like silver fish. To his surprise, they turned glassy, and he frowned and rested his hands on her hips, halting her movements.
“What’s the matter?” he murmured.
She shook her head. “I’m okay.”
“Bridget…”
She swallowed and rubbed her nose against his. “Just overwhelmed. I know this is just sex but it feels so…” She rocked her hips again and shuddered as she sucked her bottom lip.
“I know.” He trailed his hands up her body, over her soft breasts. “I can’t get enough of you. I love making love with you, and my body drives me to finish, but as soon as I’m done I want to start all over again.”
That wasn’t normal, was it? If this was just a fling, he should have sated his lust by now and moved on to someone new, without involving his heart at all.
“Tell me it’s not just me,” she whispered, thrusting harder now, kissing him hungrily.
“It’s not just you.” He wanted to possess this girl, to yell to the whole world that she was his and that no other man could touch her. He wanted to find the man who’d stood her up at the altar and smash his face in. He felt prehistoric in his passion and feral in his need, and sitting there with her on his lap was fantastic but it wasn’t enough, so he lifted up, holding her tightly, tipped forward onto his knees, and lowered her onto her back on the rug on the floor.
Her eyes lit with surprise and excitement, and her lips parted as he took over the thrusting, driving into her with the passion that thundered through his veins.
“Yes,” she said, breathless, wrapping her legs around his waist and digging her nails hard into his back. “God, yes, Aaron, yes, harder.”
The sweet bite of pain only urged him on, and he lifted up onto his hands and filled the air with her cries as he thrust them both to a mind-numbing climax. He came first, unable to stop his traitorous body, but he continued to thrust through the fierce pulses, conscious of her clenching beneath him as she gasped out loud. The contractions of her muscles only served to milk him further, and by the time she’d finished they were both hot, sweaty, and groaning, unable to do anything but lie there and let the hands of the clock tick around as their pulses slowed.
He didn’t ever want to move again, but he was worried he might be hurting her, so he withdrew, disposed of the condom, then collapsed onto the carpet next to her. She lifted her head and looked at the window, laughed, and lay back. “I didn’t realize we had an audience.”
He raised his head to see Tycho and Kepler both lying flat with their noses resting on their paws as if to say Again?
“We’ve probably scarred them for life,” she said. “They’re only young.”
“I’ll get them some good therapy.” He stretched out his legs and groaned. “I feel as if I’ve run a marathon. How are you able to wear me out to this extent? I thought I was fit.”
“I bet we’ve used up a thousand calories. I could totally diet if I did it this way.”
“The F Plan you mean?”
They both laughed.
She rolled onto her side to face him, resting her head on a hand. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” he said, amused.
She shrugged. “For making your life harder. I know you have it tough at the moment. The last thing I would want to do is complicate it for you, and yet I think maybe I have.”
“Yeah,” he murmured. “But I’m glad. For years now, I haven’t lived—I’ve only existed. I’ve gotten up, gone to work, come home, walked the dogs, seen Mat, and gone fishing. It’s a good life, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. But this week…” He wasn’t sure how to describe it without sound mushy. Maybe she liked mushy, though. “It’s
like everything was in black and white, and now it’s in color.”
Her smile spread slowly. “That’s a nice thing to say.”
“You’ve brought me back to life,” he said simply, reaching out a hand to wrap a strand of her hair around his finger. “I’ll never, ever regret that, no matter what happens in the future.”
Moving closer, she nestled against him, and he lowered his arm around her. “I wish we could stay here forever,” she murmured.
“Me too. Let’s pretend we can.”
The hands of the clock would carry on ticking, and the world would continue to turn. At the weekend, they were going to have to talk about what happened next. But the night was long, and Bridget’s warm, soft body promised many delights to come before the sun finally rose.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Bridget was aware of time running out, but she was determined not to let the loud tick of the countdown clock spoil their fun.
Thursday she spent travelling around the bay in her car, exploring, and then Friday Aaron managed to wangle a day off, getting his father in to cover for him, so he took her to a few new places, like the gorgeous Rainbow Falls, and Puketi Forest where the huge kauri trees grew.
Gradually, she felt she was getting more used to the area and the different lifestyle compared to Wellington. In the city, life was spent in shops and cafés during the day, and bars and clubs at night. Everything was geared toward work and going out to meet friends. Of course there were diversions for those who liked a bit of culture—from Te Papa museum to theaters to the Botanical Gardens, and Wellington was superbly placed for trips to the South Island. But life was just… different. Most people dressed smartly, for a start, whereas in the ‘winterless north’ everyone seemed to live in shorts and T-shirts, no matter where they worked or what the weather was like.
In the seaside town of Paihia there were lots of bars, restaurants, and clubs for holidaymakers, but it seemed that for those who lived there, their social lives consisted not so much of dressing up and going out, but of having friends and family—whanau, she corrected herself, liking the Maori word—around for barbecues or drinks out on the deck, or around the pool when the weather was nicer. People worked, of course, in businesses and shops in the small towns, but there were no large cities and little industry, with farming instead being a major employer, especially dairy farming.
Persuading Spring: A Sexy New Zealand Romance (The Four Seasons Book 4) Page 16
