by Alice Raine
Giving his offer a moment’s consideration, I nodded in thanks and headed back up the stairs, where the front door was being opened by Sean. ‘I saw you out of the window. Wanna crash here?’
Nodding, I followed Sean inside to the empty kitchen where he grabbed two beers from the fridge and handed one to me. ‘Thanks Sean. It didn’t feel right to leave her.’
Clicking his beer bottle against mine, Sean nodded. ‘I would feel exactly the same.’
We wandered through to the lounge, which was also empty. ‘Caitlin wanted an early night but Allie went with her to get her settled. I expect they’re gossiping,’ he murmured with a knowing smile.
We sat in companionable silence for several minutes before Sean crossed one leg over his opposite ankle. ‘Talking of gossip, you want to fill me in? You and Cait certainly seemed cosy this evening.’
Giving him an amused look, I rested my head back on the sofa. ‘I think we’ve sped up our relationship a bit. She’s really opening up.’
‘I’m really pleased for you. You two look great together.’
I smiled and closed my eyes as I allowed weariness to get the better of me.
‘Are you going to sleep in with Cait?’ Sean asked. His words made my body tingle with the prospect of curling up with her in my arms, but I shook my head almost immediately.
‘God no. After what she’s been through, she’s fragile.’
Nodding his understanding, Sean gave the sofa cushion next to him a pat with his hand. ‘I’m afraid you’re going to have to sleep on the sofa then.’
‘The sofa is fine.’ After everything that had happened today, I very much doubted I’d be getting much sleep, regardless of how tired I was.
Thirty-two
Cait
The last hour had dragged by. Every time I glanced at the clock on the bedside table, only another minute seemed to have passed. I was tired, but I literally could not sleep.
There was way too much going through my head for me to relax. It had all been a bit of an emotional overload, so it was no wonder my brain couldn’t seem to shut down.
Checking my mobile for about the tenth time, I still found no messages from Jack. Scrunching up my face, I flopped back on my pillow with a sigh. I’d been hoping that he’d send me a goodnight text when he got home, but he probably hadn’t wanted to disturb me.
Chewing on my lip, I debated giving him a call. I wanted to speak to him so badly but it was the middle of the night. I knew he’d said I could call any time, but I couldn’t wake him up just to hear his voice. After laying there for another nine painfully slow minutes, I settled on sending a text.
To: Jack F
Thank you again for saving me today. And for a lovely evening, I had a great time. I hope you aren’t too tired for your shoot. Sleep well xx
Once the message had sent I lay back, still clutching my phone to my chest. Seconds later it rang, flashing up Jack’s number, and I answered with a smile.
‘Hey, sweetheart. Are you alright?’ His voice was so rich and deep that I immediately shivered as an unexpectedly sudden shot of lust pulsed through my body.
Clearing my throat, I snuggled down in my duvet and then answered. ‘Yeah, I couldn’t sleep. Sorry if I woke you.’
‘You didn’t. I couldn’t sleep either.’
It seemed easier to confess things in the dark, and my next words slipped out with barely a thought. ‘I ...I really wish you were here.’ Down the line I heard him give a contented sigh and there was the soft swishing of material like he was rolling over in bed.
‘Actually, I am. Sean invited me back after you’d gone to bed. I’m on the sofa, you can sleep in peace.’
He was here? In the other room? My pulse leapt at the knowledge of his nearness and I felt my skin heat with excitement.
‘Oh, OK. Goodnight then.’
He had obviously misinterpreted my words and thought I wanted him here to feel safe, but what I’d actually meant was that I wanted him here because I missed him, missed being held by him and touching him...and kissing him.
Hanging up, I immediately slid from the bed, intent on setting him straight.
Jack
I hung up with a sigh. I’d have given anything to go to her room and pull Caitlin into my arms, but I wouldn’t rush her, so I closed my eyes and tried to calm my breathing enough to make sleep a possibility.
Who was I kidding? Sleep was nowhere in sight. All I could think about was the fact that Caitlin was here, in bed. Images of her lithe body curled beneath a sheet filled my head: chestnut hair spilling across her pillow, skin flushed from the heat of the room, nipples erect when she threw the sheet back...I expelled a frustrated breath and ran a hand over my face. Fantasizing like that was not going to do me any favours in the sleep department.
Suddenly I heard a sound, which had my ears straining for more. A brief flicker of a shadow crossed the ceiling and I shot upright. Shit! Something was in the room. My heart rate flew up at the possibility that Greg might have got in, but as I bolted upright I saw Caitlin highlighted in a sliver of moonlight, standing in the doorway dressed in what appeared to be a long T-shirt.
The realisation that she had come to me had my already heightened pulse absolutely skyrocketing.
‘Hey ... I feel a bit weird asking, but...can I...can I...’ Caitlin was stuttering like crazy and I wondered what on earth she was going to ask. ‘Can I snuggle in with you while we sleep?’ she croaked. ‘I... missed you.’
I felt like all my Christmases had come at once. That question she could ask me any day of the week. ‘Of course, sweetheart.’ I lifted up the corner of the blanket without hesitation and held out a hand.
The speed with which Caitlin practically flew across the room inflated my ego no end, and before I’d had time to register it, she was under the covers and snuggled up beside me. She placed a leg across my torso, before speedily shifting it down and settling against me. An immense sense of calm enveloped me as I inhaled her sweet scent, but as I wrapped an arm around her and gently pulled her closer I noticed that she was tense and shaking. ‘Hey, you’re trembling, are you cold?’
‘No.’ Her voice sounded strange, but it was too dark for me to look at her face. One answer sprung to my mind that had me kicking myself.
‘Are you scared?’ I swallowed hard. ‘Of me?’
‘No, no, it’s not that.’ Her immediate response reassured me, but I still wanted to know what was troubling her. Caitlin tentatively lifted a hand and placed it on my chest, but I could definitely still feel a light shaking. ‘I just didn’t expect you to...uh, be so...um, undressed.’
Shit, of course! I was naked! That must be why she had shifted her leg so suddenly, she must have felt my groin against her thigh. Oops. When I’d had my freak-out on the beach, my clothes had got soaked, even my underwear, so although Sean had leant me some clothes I’d gone commando all night.
Being with Caitlin felt so natural that I kept forgetting how carefully I needed to tread, but rubbing my naked body against her was definitely pushing some serious limits.
‘Shit, I’m so sorry. Earlier when I...spilt the coffee...all my clothes got wet. Allie put them in the washer and I borrowed some off Sean, but I didn’t really want to wear his underwear.’ Pushing myself upright, I tried to hold the covers over my groin so I could climb from the sofa. ‘He did give me some boxers, hang on.’
There was a second of awkwardness when I had to slide from under the sheet, but Caitlin looked away and I quickly pulled on the grey briefs.
‘I’ll put the jeans on too.’
‘No, don’t.’ Caitlin’s small hand reached up and gripped at mine, applying enough pressure that I had no choice but to abandon my jeans and rejoin her under the blankets. Once I was beside her, she pressed on the centre of my chest, seeming to urge me back down, and tilted her head up to meet my gaze in the moonlight. ‘Just shorts is fine.’
These were pretty small briefs, which didn’t do much to hide my modesty. ‘Are you sur
e? I don’t mind.’
‘I’m sure. I trust you. Besides, you’re cosy like this.’ Closing my eyes, I tried to supress the smile that spread across my face at the way her fingers were giving my chest a tentative exploration.
As I settled myself down and carefully adjusted against Caitlin I realised I could feel the weight of her bare breasts against my chest. Shit. That sent a jolt of lust coursing through me and I felt my cock twitch then immediately start to harden. Damn. This was going to be the best, but most challenging, night of my life.
Cait
As I lay in Jack’s embrace, two things kept swirling in my mind. Firstly, the feel of his hot groin under my leg when I’d accidentally rubbed against it, and secondly, our kiss earlier. It went round and around in my head: gentle lips, soft, warm caresses of his tongue, hands in my hair, my body igniting under his touch...
‘Are you asleep?’ I whispered, my voice sounding ridiculously needy.
‘No. I can’t sleep. Are you OK?’ Jack didn’t sound sleepy at all, so using the darkness of the night to bolster my courage, I propped myself up and used one hand to feel out where his face was. As soon as I was sure of my target I leant up and placed my lips on his.
Jack’s response was immediate as a groan resonated through his chest, making my nipples harden and press into his side.
My lips moved tentatively at first, but the longer I kissed him, the surer Jack seemed to get, and after a few minutes his control seemed to shatter as his hands went from lightly resting against me to gripping my waist and tugging me against him. It was amazing. I’d never felt so wanted, so sexual.
There was one small issue nagging at me. Something I should have just told Jack about earlier, but a fact I had omitted.
I tried to push my worry aside and lose myself in the kiss, which worked for a few moments, but as his tongue worked skilfully against mine, whipping me into a frenzy, my worries came flooding back. Jack was older and far more experienced than me. Would he really want to bother when he realised just how inexperienced I was?
Overcome with horrendous self-consciousness, I rolled away to gain some space but only succeeded in rather clumsily wrapping myself in the blanket and falling from the sofa.
‘Oppff.’ The air flew from my lungs as I scrambled to sit up, but as I was pretty much a human sausage roll I ended up flailing and flapping for a good few seconds before managing to free myself. Ugh. I was such an idiot I could hardly bear it.
Propping myself against the coffee table, I watched in embarrassment as Jack–now completely and rather magnificently uncovered–hastily sat up. The briefs really were very tiny. Even in the moonlight his excitement was easy to spot tenting the front. I felt my cheeks flame at the impressive bulge before he grabbed a pillow and awkwardly shoved it over his groin.
Poor guy. My stomach churned as I wondered if perhaps I really was a prick tease. God, had Greg been right about me?
Feeling woozy, I lurched unsteadily to my feet, and saw the sanctuary of the balcony to my right. ‘Sorry,’ I muttered shakily. ‘I just need some air.’
The walk across the room was surprisingly difficult, because after his amazing kiss my legs seemed to be the consistency of loose rubber bands. Thankfully my trembling fingers didn’t let me down and I managed to flick the latch up before sliding the door open and feeling the cool of the night on my face.
‘Umm, OK.’ Jack’s mumbled response was barely audible over the rushing of blood in my ears as I practically ran through the doors and sucked in a lungful of the refreshing sea air.
The balcony was heavy with shadows and I allowed the soft sound of the waves breaking on the beach to calm me as I attempted to steady my hammering heart.
I was mentally kicking myself. Firstly for getting so carried away, and secondly for leaving the room like an idiot. He was, after all, my dream man–practically perfect. If I couldn't bring myself to let down my final wall with him, I’d probably end up single for ever.
I stared out at the inky black waves and tensed as I heard the patio door open behind me with a quiet squeak.
‘I’m sorry. I should have exerted more control,’ Jack murmured.
Closing my eyes, I drew in a long breath and shook my head. ‘No, it wasn’t you. You didn't do anything wrong. I got carried away and now I feel...well, I’m way out of my depth here.’ Finally plucking up some of my waning courage, I turned to Jack and saw that he was still shirtless, but had now pulled his jeans on. The top two buttons were undone and gave a tantalising glimpse of the teeny tiny grey shorts below.
‘There’s something I should have told you earlier,’ I whispered. Once I’d told him this final nugget, he’d know every single one of my secrets. ‘You’re amazing, and I'm...’ I was willing myself to say it, but my throat constricted so tightly that words didn’t seem to fit out any more. Jack stepped closer and carefully placed a hand on my shoulder.
His touch soothed me, as it always did. ‘I'm so ordinary and...’ I felt wretched. Why was this so bloody difficult to say? Maybe being single was easier after all.
‘What is it?’ he encouraged.
Oh God, it was now or never. ‘I'm a virgin, Jack.’ I blurted the words out as quickly as I could and turned my burning face to the floor, examining the iron nails in the decking in great detail. ‘Apart from ...the attack, but I refuse to count that.’
Wrapping my arms around myself, I felt my face flush with searing heat and was immensely relieved that the porch was only lit by the soft glow from the moon.
Silence hung for several moments, but then I felt his thumb on my chin as Jack gently forced me to turn my face upwards. I saw that his eyes were full of tenderness and his lips had formed into a gentle smile.
‘Oh, sweetheart.’ His voice was hoarse and he gently gathered my tense body into his arms and held me to the security of his warm chest until I began to relax. ‘Is that what you were worried about?’ He sounded immensely relieved and even chuckled. ‘That just makes you even more special,’ he mumbled as he placed a kiss on the top of my head. ‘And by the way, you are far from ordinary.’
Leaning back, I saw his expression was fiercely intense. ‘Without one word of a lie, Caitlin, I can say you are the most amazing woman I have ever met. No one else has come close to how I feel about you...and your lack of experience doesn't bother me one bit. In fact, if I’m being truly honest, I find it extremely attractive. It’s a big turn-on,’ he added in a lower, seductive tone that made my tummy flip over several times.
Well, that certainly boosted my self-confidence somewhat.
‘So even before your ex...there was no one?’ Jack asked quietly, causing me to immediately shake my head. A smile cracked on my lips as I realised just how good it felt to finally get it off my chest. I hadn't told anyone my secret for years.
‘No. I had boyfriends, but nothing serious. Then when I was old enough to be interested in the idea of sex I decided I would wait for the right man. He never really came along.’ I shrugged, forcing images of Greg from my mind. For a few months I’d thought he might be the one. How very wrong I’d been.
‘After a while of waiting, I met Greg, and then after the experience with him I stopped dating completely. So here I am, twenty-seven and a virgin.
‘So you know, no pressure or anything, but there’s a vacancy in my life for a Mr Right.’
‘No pressure at all...’ he laughed, his arm immediately tightening around me as he laid his head on my hair and kissed my temple. ‘How am I doing so far?’
‘So far? Hmm, I’d say you’re lining up pretty well,’ I grinned.
He hummed his happiness, and it vibrated through me. ‘Just being with you makes me feel like the luckiest man alive.’
He always said the most amazing things. With the way he made me feel, I had a feeling the wait might not be so long after all.
Thirty-three
Allie
‘Are you awake, babe? I’m heading off to work.’ Sean’s face floated above me as he leant o
ver the bed, looking and smelling like some gorgeous Adonis that my sleepy brain had conjured up.
As he placed a lingering kiss on my lips, I giggled and pulled him in. ‘Can’t get enough of me, eh?’ he quipped, before giving me exactly what I had wanted and deepening the kiss. He was real alright–no dreamed-up lover could ever be quite this good or this cocky.
After a few more seconds he leant up, looking flushed and amused at my protesting moan. ‘OK. I’m going. I’ll be home early, so I was wondering if you fancied going out somewhere.’
That certainly woke me up. Out?
Propping myself up, I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and looked at him. ‘Like a date?’ I asked, a nervous flutter rising in my belly and making my chest feel a bit tight.
‘Yeah. What do you think?’
Wow. After the press conference we’d decided to give everything a while to settle down before going out in public together, but thinking about it, that had been a few weeks ago. It was probably time we actually left his house together rather than just hiding away and shagging each other’s brains out. I’d get a vitamin D deficiency soon if we didn’t start getting out and about more often.
‘It sounds good...’ I paused. ‘But what about Cait? I don’t want to leave her on her own after the Greg thing, and Jack said he was working.’
‘Good point.’ Nodding slowly, Sean rubbed his jaw. ‘You mentioned her friends from the studio were dying to see my house, maybe she could invite them over?’
I knew Mel and Lisa would jump at the chance to nosey around the beach house, so it seemed an ideal solution.
‘That sounds perfect.’
‘Glad to hear it,’ he smiled.
‘So...where do you want to go tonight?’ I almost felt shy, which was ridiculous.
Shrugging, Sean shoved his mobile into his jeans as he prepared to leave. ‘I was thinking maybe see a movie?’
I found myself nodding at how normal, and lovely, that sounded. ‘OK. Movies it is.’
