His tongue slide between her lips; his mouth devouring hers hungrily. Heat exploded inside her body and she trembled with yearning; her tongue stroking his tentatively. He ended the kiss abruptly and she almost mewled in protest; the blissful sensations he had awakened in her body craving to be sated. Her cheeks stained with embarrassment as the fog of desire dispersed from her brain and she remembered where she was.
“I… I think I need to use the ladies room”, she stuttered; quickly disentangled her limbs from his and virtually running from the dance floor.
She went straight to the ladies room and closed the door securely behind her; willing her racing heart calm and cursing herself for allowing the kiss to happen. Her hand rose to her lips in an effort to quell the delicious tingling impression of his mouth.
She gave herself a mental shake; she couldn’t allow a repeat of what had just occurred a few moments ago. She had no sexual obligations to him as far as the contract stipulated and she had no intention of falling into Sebastian’s bed. She hardened her resolve; she was there to complete a job and she intended to see it through with no exceptions. With that she repaired her makeup and returned to the ballroom.
Fortunately, the evening progressed with minimal complexities except the heightened awareness that seemed to permeate the atmosphere encompassing her and Sebastian. They were conversing with Brandon and Matthew when his father appeared and the air suddenly grew frigid around them and both men quickly excused themselves.
She had expected a striking resemblance between father and son. However their only discernible similarity was their brown hair, of which the older Bradley’s was streaked with silver strands. She felt Sebastian stiffen beside her as he approached.
“Brad”, William greeted with a nod, his wrinkled face as hard as granite.
“Father”, Sebastian responded, mimicking his father’s nod and meeting his cold stare unflinchingly.
“And you must be Paige”, he said, his face creasing into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, “my wife has been going on and on about you these past weeks”.
She smiled, not certain what to make of the situation, “I guess I am, Mr. Bradley”.
“Let’s just hope he does not so carelessly lose you as he did Elizabeth”, William said grudgingly; his smile unwavering, and she felt the rage emanating from Sebastian.
“Well what do they say”, Sebastian’s voice didn’t raise an octave but it was as cold as ice, “you win some, you lose some. But I’d like to think I’ve gained”, he snaked an arm around Paige as he spoke and drew her closer.
They were both silent for a moment and a war of wills seemed to rage between the two as dark eyes caught and held brown until finally William glanced away.
“It was nice meeting you Paige”, then to them both, “goodnight”.
“Goodnight”, they replied in unison.
“Let’s find Helen and tell her that we are leaving”, Sebastian said, his lips curling scornfully, “I’ve had enough of this party”.
“Ok…”
Her heart ached for him as she saw the emptiness in his brown eyes and she wanted to hold him in her arms and soothe his sorrows away. She wondered for a moment who Elizabeth was but shrugged the notion aside, resolving that it was of no concern to her. She could sense that Helen knew what had transpired in her perplexed expression as they exchanged goodnights before leaving for his penthouse.
She thought of saying something; offering a modicum of comfort but she recalled how disastrous their encounter at breakfast had been and chose to desist. She had learned by this that Sebastian Bradley was not a man to be rushed; rather he was one who did things in his own time and he would speak only if he choose to and nothing she did could affect a change of heart in him.
She wondered what had fuelled such an unpleasant spat between Sebastian and his father and whether or not it was a rare occurrence. She observed the hard jut of his chin in the dim light of the car and decided that whatever it was troubled him greatly.
“Will you be OK?’ she asked softly as he turned in the direction of his study as they got to his apartment.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” he frowned, yet the tension she had sensed earlier was still present in his stance.
“I baked chocolate chip cookies today and there’s milk in the fridge if you need a nightcap”
“I’ll bare that in mind”, he responded tersely, before striding towards his study.
“Goodnight…”she mounted the stairs slowly, the reminder of Sebastian’s tantalizing lips on hers, foremost in her mind and she knew her chances of sleeping were next to none.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“PLAYING HOUSEKEEPER AGAIN, I see”, Sebastian commented derisively as he strode into the kitchen and retrieved a bottle of water from the refridgerator.
“Good morning to you…too Sebastian”, she faltered as she openly admired his muscular arms and chest, “you didn’t seem to mind very much while you were obviously enjoying my chocolate chip cookies”, she indicated to the empty jar on the marble contour.
He was dressed in plain white t-shirt, sweats-pants and sneakers; a white cotton towel thrown around his neck. Although quite simple; she found his ensemble very sexy and she couldn’t help staring.
“Touché”, Sebastian murmured before lifting the bottle of water to his lips and drinking greedily, “but if I wanted a helper I wouldn’t have hired an escort”.
Her cheeks flamed at his insult, “I’m a Chef, cooking is what I do… and would you mind not calling me…that”
He laughed throatily, “To describe you as a prude would be an understatement. You certainly chose the wrong profession”.
She diverted the conversation to safer waters, “were you at the gym or did you go for a run?”
“Gym, I go there every morning as long as I’m not away on business”.
“That sounds interesting”, she said excitedly, “can I come along?”
“Suit yourself. I have to get dressed to go into the office”, he said before quitting the room.
She returned to preparing the ingredients for her chocolate cake and slipped it into the oven. She was placing pancakes and eggs unto a plate when he returned in a charcoal suit; his hair neatly combed back from his face and his briefcase in hand. He made no comment as he accepted the food and devoured every last morsel.
“Did you sleep well?” he asked suddenly, his eyes alight with amusement over his coffee cup.
She was taken aback by the question; “yes…”she refrained from mentioning that she had spent the better part of the night, reliving their sizzling kiss.
“You don’t sound too sure. You should have simply come to my bed. You might not have slept much but it would’ve certainly been an eventful night."
“Whatever…” she said sarcastically, trying to calm her racing heart at his suggestion.
“The invitation is always open."
“That’s very kind of you but I doubt I’ll be taking up the offer anytime soon”, she said sweetly.
He smiled devilishly, “we’ll see. I have something for you…” he flicked open the briefcase and withdrew a credit card and a car key and gave them to her.
Her jaw slackened as she saw the logo on the car key “Is this a..?”
“It’s a red Porsche Panamera, its outside. The valet will show it to you”, he said standing.
It was bad enough that she had to accept the outlandishly expensive wardrobe but this was too much, “I can’t accept this… it’s too much”
“It’s nothing for you to take so personal. I’m certain the contract clearly states that you would be provided with a car of my choosing…” he said impatiently and she shrugged in resignation.
“I’ll email you my event schedule for the week”, he said striding towards the door.
“Wait! What am I supposed to do for the rest of the day?”
He looked at her as if she had lost her mind, “I gave you a credit card didn’t I?” he declared and she blinked idiotica
lly, “Please be reminded that it has a limit” with that he left the room.
THE NEXT FEW DAYS DRIFTED BY slowly and as the ending of the week drew near, Paige wished that she never saw a ballroom, ever again. She longed for the quiet evenings when she would have chicken soup for dinner in her pajamas or sit on the floor in front of the fire with a bowl of chocolate ice cream.
She quickly settled into a normal routine; if one could consider attending charity galas and dinner parties night after night as normal. As arranged, the following morning she awoke at daybreak, donned her gym gears and rushed downstairs to await Sebastian. She soon discovered that getting information from Sebastian was as tedious as extracting a tooth as she endeavored to formulate a semblance of conversation during their work-outs at the gym. Nevertheless she had learned that he was seven years her senior, loved apple pie and was allergic to most seafood.
She spent her afternoons creating recipes, combining the ingredients and preparing each, after which Anne would sample and if deemed palatable they would share it with Jimmy. The excursion reminded her of days past when her father was alive and they would cook together and he would teach her how to tweak her ingredients to add her very own flavor.
Joshua’s condition had still not stabilized, which was a matter of great concern to Paige, thus her visits stretched from early afternoon until it was time to return to the penthouse and dress for whatever dinner plans Sebastian had. He would drop her off at the apartment each night and then disappear until very late in the nights or the wee hours of the morning. She had often wondered where he could have gone but concluded that he must have a woman someplace and as such had to see her at some point.
She often lay in bed at nights wondering what sort of woman would allow their man to live with another woman. Was it someone she had met during one of their outings? Did such woman know of the details surrounding her and Sebastian’s relationship? She thought of the kiss they had shared at his father’s dinner party and she wondered what it would be like to be that woman. She considered how she would feel if he came to her bed and stroke her body until she was consumed with the wonderful feeling he ignited within her.
She knew there was nothing to impede her as Sebastian had made it clear that he desired her and besides women had casual flings all the time. In the end she had shrugged aside the wayward thought. Sebastian would most likely believe that she was selling herself to him and she did not want to be seen in that light. Perhaps if she had met him at a restaurant or even on the streets, she would have considered it, but the present situation complicated matters.
Eventually she would fall asleep; the thought of what might still be, fresh in her thoughts.
CHAPTER TWELVE
PAIGE MOANED IN AGONY AS SHE lowered herself carefully into the soft leather couch, painstakingly removed her sneakers and lay flat on her back; every single muscle in her body aching.
They had been going to the gym every morning for the past three days and while she had been slightly sore since her first work-out; currently she felt as if she had been run over by a truck.
“I told you to take it easy”, Sebastian scolded, his eyes shining with amusement.
“Liar”, she moaned, even the effortless task of speaking caused her pain, “you dared me to race you on the treadmill and to lift those weights”.
“And you didn’t even win for all your troubles”, he taunted and she threw a cushion at him, whimpering with the effort, but he sidestepped it, “alright, alright. I’ll put you out of your misery. I’ll be right back”.
She grunted a reply as he disappeared down the hall and returned a short while later; a tube of pain reliever gel in hand. She extended a hand to collect the tube and was shocked when he knocked her proffered hand aside and lifted her feet unto his lap as he sat. She yelped in pain, her astonishment momentarily forgotten, as his sturdy male hands massaged the minty ointment into her calves, travelling to the hem of her gym tights which was mid-thigh in length. Eventually the stinging pain subsided into a dull ache and heat pooled in the pit of her stomach as his warm palms glided over her legs.
“Up”, he instructed, as he paused and gripped the tail of her t-shirt.
Her heart lodged in her throat, “that’s ok. I’ll do that”.
He ignored her comment entirely as he merely pulled the t-shirt over her head and flipped her unto her stomach. She sighed in resignation, moaning as he prolonged his ministrations on her back and arms and ended his task with her stomach.
“You have a sexy moan”, his eyes were glazed with heat as he lightly stroked her stomach, “Is that how you moan in bed?”
She froze, entranced; her heart lodged in her throat as his hands shifted to her collarbone and subsequently her cheeks; his eyes devouring her lips as his face descended towards her.
“Pancakes…” she blubbered, breaking the trance as she slithered from his grasped, “I… I… should make pancakes for breakfast”, she stood and groaned as her aching feet rebelled and she sank back into the couch and he laughed uproariously.
“I’ll order room service. You should rest today and you’ll feel better soon”, he said between chuckles as he seized the phone from its holster on the side table and disappeared down the hall.
She released a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding and dunked her head into the sofa in embarrassment. Why did she always find herself in such awkward situations with Sebastian? She asked herself. She couldn’t decipher the strange feelings he elicited inside her and she had to admit; they scared her almost to death. His very presence unnerved her in a peculiar manner.
While she had always been described as a chatterbox, whenever she was in his company, she found herself prattling in a desperate effort to distract herself from the yearning his presence ignited within her body. She hauled her mind from such destructive thoughts as she rose carefully from the couch and trudged slowly to her bedroom.
PAIGE DRAPPED HER APRON ON THE counter and ran towards the door where the doorbell rang incessantly.
“Brandon!” she exclaimed as she opened the door, “what a pleasant surprise. Come on in”, she invited; shifting to give him access.
“It’s nice to see you again”, he murmured, smiling, “I called Brad a moment ago and he said he’d be down shortly”.
It had been two days since Sebastian’s heated massage on the couch and her body still tingled at the memory of his expert stroking.
He sniffed suddenly, “Is something burning..?”
“Oh my God! My steak…” she dashed through the hallway into the kitchen. Flicking open the barbeque grill, she deftly flipped the mouthwatering chunks of meat.
“You can cook!” Brandon exclaimed from somewhere behind her.
“I’m a pastry chef”, she said offhandedly, stirring her barbeque sauce, “but I like to mess around with different cuisines”.
“No kidding…I’m a gourmet chef. I have a restaurant…several actually."
“Really..?” she whirled to face him, “My… dad was a…a gourmet chef”, she glanced away to hide the pain in her eyes, “would you like a slice of pie…coffee…”
“Thank you.” he said as he settled into a chair around the breakfast bar, “Why did your dad leave the cooking world?” he asked conversationally as he bit into a slice of cherry pie.
“He died."
“I’m sorry”, his clear blue eyes clouded with sadness.
“So you’re a gourmet chef huh”, she said chirpily, shirking her melancholy feelings, “well you better hurry up and eat and take a look at my barbeque sauce. I think something is off about it”.
He laughed throatily, “my pleasure”.
He finished his pie and coffee, all the while singing her praises, after which he donned and apron over his navy blue t-shirt and jeans and they begun the mission of perfecting her barbeque sauce. They talked and laughed as he gave her several suggestion and perks about the art of food creation.
Brandon was teaching her a few tricks to using a kn
ife as they sliced tomatoes for a salad when Sebastian appeared.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“DID YOU GUYS FORGET TO INVITE ME TO the cookout?” Sebastian said coldly and her eyes flew to his chiseled features and the knife sliced into her index finger and blood oozed unto the counter.
“Damn!” Brandon swore, gripping her finger and propelling her towards the sink where he turned on the tap and held her hand below it, “rule number one, never lose focus when using equipments or utensils. Brad, get the first aid kit”.
“Don’t you think that will need stitching”, Sebastian murmured close to her neck and she shivered as his warm breath fanned her nape.
“I’m fine; it’s just a small scratch. I just bleed a lot, that’s all."
“I hope you don’t cut yourself very often or you’ll bleed to death at this rate”, Sebastian murmured gruffly, “I’ll get that first aid kit”.
“I’m fine… really”, she forced a smile as Brandon led her to a chair and pressed a stack of paper towel unto the wound.
“Well it’s not deep, thank God, but it will still need to be cleaned and covered with a sticking plaster”, he said as soon as Sebastian returned; examining her finger closely and a hot blush stained her cheeks.
She felt like a manikin on display.
“Do you mind?” Sebastian said irritably when Brandon reached for the kit and Paige wanted to sink through the floor.
“Oh”, Brandon said, gently placing her hand on the counter and shifting so that Sebastian could take his place opposite her, “I deal with these situations all the time at the restaurant…I’ll check on the steak”.
“Thank you”, she said, smiling and Sebastian clenched his teeth as he busied himself with tending her injury.
She thought of offering to treat the gash herself but decided against it as she remembered that they were supposed to be together; after all this was what couples did, care for each other.
“This might hurt a little”, Sebastian warned and she bit her lip to prevent herself from crying out as he dabbed her finger with the anesthetic and applied the sticking plaster. Warmth spread through her as she witnessed the gentleness with which he administered to her.
Unlawful Escort (Unlawful Series book 1) Page 5
