She clung on to him, hands gripping and ungripping the fabric of his T-shirt, hair wild around her face as the pleasure mounted. She realised that she was losing all grip on reality; everything was now dominated by the feel of his fingers on her and in her, on the exquisite edge of sensation that was building up in waves, bigger and nearer and closer and…Oh! Everything exploded. Everything. For what felt like minutes, the orgasm ripped through her body with such ferocity she thought she might black out.
Her face collapsed forward, buried in his chest, as he stroked her hair and kissed her and murmured her name. Eventually she took a deep breath, looked up at him. At this virtual stranger; at this man who’d just shown her everything she thought she knew about sex was wrong. That everything she’d believed to be good in the past was just a pale imitation of what it could be. This was what sex could be, should be, like.
It was a revelation.
Rob’s pupils were enormous, and she could still feel his huge erection through his jeans. He’d waited. Held off. Accepted her need, and given her what she wanted. And it must, she thought, sliding from the counter and on to her wobbly legs, be killing him.
She dropped down to her knees, unbuckled his belt and released him. Jesus. What a monster. Hard and happy and ready to go.
“You don’t have to—” he started.
“Shush. I want to. I really want to. And I think you,” she said, leaning in to run her tongue all the way along his shaft, “want me to as well.”
She took him into her mouth, licking and lapping and exploring, finding ways to pleasure him despite his size, her tongue flickering everywhere, her hands stroking and rubbing and building up in a rhythm that was clearly right for him. She reached round, gripped that improbably perfect backside of his, and urged him on even further; lifted her breasts so their soft flesh cushioned him; sucked him until he could take no more. He gasped and shuddered and finally came.
“Jesus, Leah!” he said, pulling her to her feet. “Were you trained in a bloody bordello?”
“Same could be said for you,” she replied, wrapping her arms around his waist and snuggling into his chest. “Except, you know, a bordello for boys. Happy Christmas, Rob.”
He laughed; he knew they shouldn’t have done it, but frankly he didn’t care. Sometimes the body wants what the body wants. And the brain can go to hell.
“Happy Christmas, Leah.”
She held on to him like she was drowning.
“Sorry,” she said, face still crushed against his chest, “but my legs are wobbly. I think I might need a lie down.”
“Um. Not a problem,” he said, feeling himself hardening again already. Waiting for sanity to return and realising he might be waiting a while; having Leah’s bare breasts rubbing up against wasn’t exactly a passion-killer.
He held her hand and led her towards the bedroom in the darkness. It was only when she sat down with a small ‘ouch’ that he realised she’d been limping all along.
“What is it?” he asked, hoping he hadn’t done something to unintentionally hurt her. Surely he hadn’t…Not yet, at least.
“Plate. In foot. Sorry. Got distracted earlier. Concentrating on other body parts. Probably could’ve amputated one of my toes and I wouldn’t have noticed.”
“Idiot,” he said affectionately, getting up to fetch the long-forgotten candle, along with a small bowl of warm water and a cloth. It gave him a minute to cool down. In all sorts of ways.
He kneeled down before her, lifting her foot in the candlelight to examine it, gently wiping and stroking until the tiny sliver that was wedged in her flesh came free. As he washed the small wound, face intense in concentration, Leah felt something shift in her heart.
His face was so focused; his touch so soft and tender as he worked, so careful not to hurt her. Minutes earlier he’d been an animal – all heat and need and hard sex. Now he was kind. Kind. Yep. That was the word – and that was what was her undoing. Kindness. She didn’t realise how starved of it she’d been until now, she thought, as tears sprung to her eyes. Her and Doug…they’d rubbed along okay. He’d not been cruel, not until their wedding day at least. But they’d not been close either, not cherished each other enough.
Rob looked up. He saw her crying. Saw big, round tears spilling from the corners of her amber eyes, trailing over the peach of her skin and pooling in her neck. He felt a constriction somewhere tender in his chest; in a place he thought he’d shuttered up forever.
“What is it?” he asked. “Am I hurting you?”
“No; no you’re not. It’s just…It’s been a weird couple of days. The wedding. The running away from the wedding. And now this. It’s all been quite a lot to take in. ”
“Of course it has,” he said, keeping his face neutral. If she started sobbing about how much she still loved her ex right now, he wasn’t sure his ego could take it. Most women, after kitchen lust with Rob Cavelli, only had eyes for him. Still. There was always a first time.
“It’s not him,” she said, as if reading his mind, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “Not Doug. It’s everything. The fact I lived with him. That I agreed to marry him, when all the time, I never even really loved him, I know now! I just needed the security, I think. My parents died when I was 18, and I was on my own until I met him. It wasn’t Doug I fell for – it was the idea of Doug, and everything he could offer me. A home, a family, our business, all binding me to another human being. Being part of something, not being alone any more. It wasn’t fair to either of us. And now, after what happened, I wonder if he knew that too, deep down. I’m glad I found out before it was too late. It was an awful way to get a wake-up call, but maybe I needed one. It was the best thing for both of us. I need a fresh start. I need a new life. I need—”
“Leah,” he said, sitting next to her and holding her wet hand in his. “Stop. I have to tell you, before you go on, that I’m not the man to give you what you need. Despite what just happened. Please don’t ask it of me. I’m not capable. I’m broken. Parts of me don’t work any more, and I don’t think anyone can fix them. I like you, Leah. And, well, wow to the sex part. But more than that? I don’t have it in me to give, and I don’t want to lie to you. Not now, when you’re hurting so bad; not ever. You deserve better than Doug. And you damn well deserve better than me.”
Leah squeezed his hand, gazed up at him from tear-wet lashes. Oh, she thought, he was so completely beautiful. As beautiful as a man could ever be. She lifted her hand, traced the hard outline of his jaw, and smiled. He might not be God, but he was definitely a gift from Him. A Christmas gift to give her hope, and friendship, and possibly multiple orgasms.
Tomorrow, or the next day, or the one after that, she knew she had to face her new reality. But right here, this was all she needed: the perfect distraction, and a salve for her pain. It wouldn’t last, but then again, what did? Life, she had to accept, was a fragile beast: you could do your best to control it, but it was a wild thing, with a will of its own. There was no security, no certainty. People died. People betrayed you. So for now at least, she’d live in the moment.
“You don’t know what I was going to say, Rob. And don’t worry, one quick fumble in the kitchen doesn’t mean I’ve fallen for you. But thank you, for your kindness, and your honesty. I don’t expect anything of you, Rob. We don’t even really know each other, and I certainly don’t think you’re my knight in shining armour. But we landed here, together, at this time, and well…call me an old hippy, but I think it was fate. That right here, right now, we can help each other. I don’t need a boyfriend. Or a husband. Or a family – I need to learn to be me, without anybody else. Does that make sense?”
Rob nodded, gesturing for her to go on. He wanted to hear what she said – with Leah, he’d already learned to expect the unexpected.
“And as for parts of you not working,” she said, “ well, other parts of you definitely do work, so perhaps…” her hand trailed down to the lean muscle of his thigh, fingers stroking upwards, “we should concentrat
e on those. Let’s have this one Christmas together. No expectations. No promises. We don’t have a past, we don’t have a future. We have the present. Just a lot of laughter, and some truly phenomenal sex. What do you say?”
“I say that sounds like the best Christmas I’ve had in years,” he replied.
Chapter 5
“Now that,” Leah said as she woke up, her tousled blonde head poking its way out from the duvet, “is a mighty fine view.”
Rob was standing at the window, staring out into the fields. Completely naked. Those broad shoulders, bulked biceps; the smooth skin of his back rippling with lean muscle as he turned to smile at her. Tapered waist; the powerful length of his thighs. And right in the middle, the cherry on top of the pie, that utterly breath-taking backside. What a body. The kind she’d never seen anywhere but a movie screen before now.
She’d got to know every inch of it over the last three days. In great and glorious detail. The bag she had with her was intended for hand luggage, and contained a bumper pack of condoms tucked away for the honeymoon that never was. Another little Christmas miracle, and one that allowed them both to explore each other in ways that had left them tingling and exhausted. Three days of unparalleled pleasure, cocooned in their cottage in the snow.
“There’s been a thaw,” he said, turning to walk back over to the bed. Lord, he was magnificent. Every abdominal an awesome outline; every movement perfectly graceful; every flash of those dark brown eyes enough to make her wet. In a good way.
“You might,” he said, climbing into bed next to her, “be able to leave soon. And I need to get back to work.”
“Oh, well,” said Leah, rolling next to him and reaching across to trace the hard contours of his muscled chest. Hard and muscled but covered in the most gorgeous velvety skin she’d ever touched. It hardly seemed fair it should belong to a man. “That’s good news.”
Was it? She wondered. She wasn’t sure at all. She wasn’t sure she wanted to leave this fantasy she was wrapped up in. She wasn’t sure she wanted to leave this alternate reality they’d created together, where they were both safe from the stresses and pains of the outside world. It felt so right, being here with him. Exciting and peaceful all at the same time. Couldn’t she just stay here forever, living an eternal Christmas with Rob Cavelli? Touching this amazing body, listening to that sexy American drawl, looking into those deep, pain-tinged eyes of his? No. She knew it couldn’t last. They’d struck a deal, and going all clingy now wasn’t part of it, no matter how much she wanted to. Even the thought of it ending brought her to the edge of tears, and that wasn’t fair on him.
Instead, she ran her hand down over his chest, across the planes of his taut stomach to the ridge of his hip bone. That way, she knew, lay madness. Wonderful, soul-shaking, brain-busting madness.
“Go any lower and there’ll be consequences,” he said, his voice stern.
“That’s what I was counting on,” she replied, letting her hand drift casually down to stroke his already hard penis. It twitched in her hand and she smiled, trying and failing to circle its breadth with her fingers. Wow. The stuff of legend.
There was one condom left. It seemed a shame to waste it. Especially if this was going to be their last time. She shut that thought out of her brain. It didn’t feel good, so she chose to ignore it.
She turned away from Rob, onto her side, presenting him with her back and pretending to yawn.
“You know what?” she said, smiling to herself, “I’m tired. It’s going to be a long day. Let’s get some sleep.”
Silence. She stifled a laugh as she pictured his disbelieving face.
“Yeah? Too tired, huh?” he asked. She felt his long, lean body slide against hers; the press of his erection against her bottom; the warmth of his breath on her face as he pulled back her hair and nibbled her earlobe. His arm slipped under hers, his hand found her breast; rolling and teasing and stroking until her breath was coming in quiet bursts of anticipation.
He threw one leg across her hips, pinning her next to him, and she could feel the tip of his manhood sliding between her thighs. God, she knew a good place for that to go. She wriggled around, trying to catch the angle.
His mouth had moved to her neck; was working its magic across all those pleasure zones she never knew she had until he made them come alive. His hand stroked downwards, over her stomach, one finger trailing its way towards her centre. Ooh. Now that felt nice, she thought, stretching a little, feeling a now-familiar throb humming away inside her.
“If you’re tired,” he said, even the whisper of his words on her skin erotic, “you should take it easy.”
He pulled away, and she started to protest. She’d never been any good at treating ’em mean.
“Shh,” he said, rolling her over so she was lying face down, head resting on a plump goosedown pillow. “You just stay there, take a break – and let me do all the work.”
She smiled into the pillow. Well. Who was going to argue with an offer like that?
She stretched her arms above her head, and he captured both her wrists in one of his hands, holding her still. His free hand roamed over her body; her neck; sliding round to her throat, over her shoulders. Skimming over her upturned bottom, down to her thighs. He followed the touch of his fingers with the touch of his lips, blazing fire all along Leah’s body. She started to writhe, keen to participate now they’d started.
“No. Just stay still,” he said, his voice low and husky. She was so beautiful, he thought, exploring every nuance, every hill; every dip and curve that made up the topography of her flesh. The falls and rises, and sweet, sweet valleys. So responsive, so generous, so god damn sexy. He’d never met a woman so naturally in tune with her body and its needs – she was totally uninhibited, greeting each experience, each orgasm, as though it was her first.
He placed his hand between her thighs. Slowly upwards, until he hit home. Used his fingers in the steady rhythm he knew drove her wild. Watched her yelp and twitch with pleasure as she came, clamping hard around him, eyes glazing and drifting away to wherever it was she went when she climaxed.
And now, he could tell from the wriggling of her peachy butt and the snuffling sounds she was making into the pillow, she was ready. More than ready. He slid the condom on, parted her legs, and plunged straight into her.
Leah pulled in breath. She hadn’t expected that, she registered amid the shock and the pleasure. So quick, so sudden, so deep, when she was still tingling from the touch of his fingertips, still reeling from the pleasure-shock of her orgasm. And now he was inside her, so deep he might come out the other side. It felt glorious. Her hips rose and fell to meet his thrusts, her fingers clenching the pillow until her knuckles turned white. He was holding her hips now, raising her slightly as he kneeled behind her, plunging into her again and again, faster and faster, pounding at her pelvis with an animalistic need.
“More!” she said. “Give me more, Rob!”
Leah’s words pushed Rob over the edge and he slammed into her furiously, over and over, growling her name as he exploded inside her. He fell forward, spent and sore and still shaking with one of the most mind-blowing orgasms he’d ever had. He rested his face against her sweat slicked back for a moment as he caught his breath, then turned her over, climbed on top, wrapped her body in his arms so tight he could have stood up and carried her. If his legs had been capable of movement, that is.
“Jesus, Leah,” he said. “What was that?”
“I don’t know,” she murmured, voice muffled as she kissed his chest. “I was hoping you’d tell me. Certainly nothing that I’ve ever encountered before.”
“Leah,” he said, after they both regained their breath. “Come with me.”
“Again? I’m not sure I’m capable yet. I’ll need at least five minutes recovery time.”
“No. Not that. Come with me. To Chicago.”
Chapter 6
She’d assumed Rob said what he said because his brain was fried by great sex. It was afte
rglow talk, Leah thought; the kind nobody should ever be held accountable for. There should be some small print in legal documents stating you couldn’t make life decisions in the fifteen minutes following orgasm.
But once it became clear that the weather was changing, and it was going to be possible to fly the next day, he stuck to his offer. Long after the hard-on had faded. That one, at least.
They were in the bathroom, and Leah was perched on the edge of the tub, watching in fascination as he went about the business of transforming himself into a totally different person.
“I don’t mean as my lover,” he said, meeting her eyes in the mirror. “You have to understand that.”
Leah nodded, not really listening. They’d showered together, which had obviously taken a lot longer than it should. They were now both exceptionally clean and exceptionally satisfied. Leah had wrapped herself up in his big white cotton robe, and sat back to enjoy the show.
There was something terrifically intimate about watching a man go about his rituals. Especially shaving. Something masculine and erotic and arousing. Then again, she thought, she could probably watch this man do his shopping at Sainsbury’s and find it erotic. Especially in the fresh fruit aisle.
Inch by creamy inch, he was losing the thick, blue-black stubble that had coated his jawline since she’d known him.
He’d soon step out of the jeans and T-shirts and sweaters. Emerge as a clean-cut, hair-brushed, after-shaved, totally delectable creature in the impossibly chic charcoal grey suit he already had laid out on the bed.
He would look fantastic, but she wasn’t all together sure she wanted the old Rob to say goodbye just yet. The new Rob already seemed more tense, and only half his facial hair was gone, washed down the drain along with all his easy charm. The new Rob was sharper, more business-like. Less happy.
This exceptionally white Christmas was ending, and like the snow outside the cottage, their blissful, fabricated world was melting away. Leah had no idea what would be left when the last drifts had gone.
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