“Sure. I understand.”
“On another note, I got the photo you sent after Gideon’s hair makeover. Wow, wow and wow.” I can tell she’s making an effort to sound cheery, but it’s still coated with so much sadness.
“Thanks.” Given the circumstances, I try hard to hide my giddiness. I have to admit I love my new look.
“I have a sneaky feeling you’ll break hearts tonight. Watch out, London. Here comes the Southern Belle.”
Huh? “I’m not going anywhere anymore. Other than the delivery guy who’ll bring me the takeaway meal I’ll be ordering later, no one else will get to see my hair until I go buy my groceries tomorrow afternoon. Even my roommate isn’t here. She’s spending the weekend at her boyfriend’s.” I chuckle.
“No, no, no, Delilah. This is precisely why I called instead of sending you a text message. You shouldn’t stay home. It would be a crime,” she declares.
What is she talking about? “Piper, I’m not going out to a bar on my own,” I protest.
“You look incredible. You have to allow others—and by that I mean men—to appreciate your beauty.” Her words take me aback. “Hush isn’t just a bar. It’s a lounge.” She says that like it makes much of a difference. Even in her moment of sorrow, she’s still as chichi as ever.
“Po-tay-toe, po-tah-to. It’s the same to me, Piper. Bottom line is, I’m not walking into a bar-slash-lounge alone. That’s just never going to happen.” Seriously. I haven’t lost my marbles.
“Why not?” she challenges.
I could list a million reasons, but I keep it simple. “One, I’m a foreigner. Two, I’m a woman. Three, I’d have to be high like a kite to ever attempt anything that ridiculous.” My heart is palpitating at the thought.
Piper comes back with a feisty repartee. “One, it’s not like you’re in a tiny remote Russian village where no one speaks English. Two, women in London do it all the time. Not to mention Hush is located in one of the poshest neighborhoods in the city. Three, living on the edge when you’re in complete control of all of your senses is the only way to go. You’ve already started your makeup. You’ve selected your wardrobe. You know which killer shoes you’re going to wear. You’re all set.” The way she says that, it sounds all so simple. “Do something you’ve never done before. It won’t kill you.” I beg to differ. “Take a taxi, go sit at the bar, have a drink or two, strike up a conversation with a stranger and then call it a night. You don’t have to stay for a long time and you don’t have to go home with anyone at the end of the night if the chemistry isn’t there.” That last one is so never going to happen.
“I don’t know, Pip—”
“You must go, Delilah.” Her statement is so forceful. “I know I’m being pushy, but woman, you’re smoking hot and I have no doubt once you’re all done up, you’ll look even more incredible.” Her tone softens. Well, if you put it like that. “I know one of the bartenders working tonight,” she says. “We go way back. I already texted him earlier this week to let him know I was coming tonight. I wanted to see if he’d be working. As luck would have it, he is. His name is Jeremy Spiviac. I’ll send him a text message and ask him to watch over you—that way you won’t feel like a fish out of water.” You want to bet? “You can’t miss him. He’s this tall blond with piercing blue eyes—like yours.” I remain silent. I guess she takes it as a sign of my acceptance. “Delilah, I think it would be a liberating experience for you to go out on your own like a big girl. In fact, something tells me if you’re up for the challenge, you’ll thank me on Monday morning.” My mind is churning at warp speed, desperate to find ammunition to shoot holes in Piper’s reasoning. Nothing comes up. “Listen, just go for one hour. If you hate it, at least you’ll be able to cross that experience off your list.” She’s really pushing this hard.
After a few minutes of hesitation, I speak. “Well, it would be fun to show off my new hair.”
“Exactly. Nothing boosts a girl’s ego and confidence like a guy gushing all over her. That feeling will carry you through the week. It might not be as mind-blowing as giving your fanny a good old-fashioned workout—”
“Piper,” I exclaim, horrified.
“Okay, I’ll be good. Just go out and show off your sexy self. That’s all I ask for tonight.” Her tone is so cajoling.
“Okay, you win. I’ll go. I doubt I can manage a whole evening out by myself, but I can wrap my head around enjoying a few drinks and a bit of conversation with this Jeremy guy.”
CHAPTER 7
Xander
It’s good to be back home, I tell myself as I get out of the taxi and step onto the pavement. Between the lack of sleep and my desire to party my head off, it’s unthinkable for me to drive my car tonight. As I scan my surroundings with a huge smile plastered on my face, I’m happy I made that wise decision. The affluent neighborhood is buzzing with activity. Smartly dressed men and women are making their ways to the restaurants and lounges lining the street. I have a feeling it’s going to be an amazing night. I can’t wait for Ethan to get here.
It’s eight o’clock at night now and it’s hard to believe I was still in LA a few hours ago. I waddled on the plane exhausted ten and a half hours ago still in party mode. Heck, I was still half drunk. It’s been one industry party after the other. Thursday night was the pinnacle. I had three parties in one night—the last being a huge bash at my friend Craig Taggart’s Malibu mansion. Craig is one of the biggest execs in the business. He also happens to be one of the youngest. He’s not even thirty yet and he’s made quite a name for himself. Ethan and I have known him since we were all teenagers. He and his mates were our American competition. Ethan took a different career path, but it’s surreal how Craig and I get to work and play together.
Craig surely knows how to throw a party. Everything is so plentiful—especially the hot women. I didn’t leave his place until nine the next day—there were a bunch of partygoers who were preparing a gargantuan breakfast on a Friday morning. Imagine that? I stayed because I was still having too much fun to bother with sleep. When everyone set off on their day, I went back to my hotel, showered, changed and dashed off to my last series of meetings. At seven o’clock last night, I left the City of Angels at the back of a chauffeured car and headed straight to LAX. Needless to say I slept all of the way back.
I landed in London at six. My chauffeur rushed me home by zooming through the afternoon traffic jam. Even on a Saturday, the roads are insupportable. When I get back to my place, I jump in the shower to wake up. Once I wash off the distinctive film and stench that are inevitable when you’re on a plane crossing half the planet, I prepare a strong double espresso to give myself a burst of energy. Two cups later, I’m human again. I don a new dark grey suit I bought last month and a crisp white custom-tailored shirt. No tie. Not tonight. It’s the only day of the week where I’ll break my rule—unless I’m going full-on casual. That’s a different story. I put on a pair of Foster & Son bespoke shoes and voilà. An hour after I walk through the doors, I’m out again. I didn’t even allow my ass to touch the sofa.
Ethan and I have big plans. I’d be crazy to let a little fatigue get the better of me—not when there’s the promise of a threesome.
Ethan texted me while I was up in the air to let me know he had to push back his flight. His wealthy client insisted on a yacht trip early this morning that had them sailing around the Mediterranean Sea since six o’clock. He was due to fly out of Nice at five. Since it’s only a two-hour trip, he should still make it back on time. “Hopefully he’s already landed,” I say aloud.
I’m still debating if I should go wait for him at the table we reserved at the restaurant or if I should head to the adjacent lounge area for a drink. I look around, trying to decide, when a sexy blonde with short curly hair and plenty of curves trapped in a red fitted dress walks by me. Her ultra-low-cut V-neck hides very little. She’s headed straight to the lounge. And she’s walking in alone. That’s promising. My decision is made. Drinks first. Our reservations
aren’t until nine anyways. This should give me plenty of time to get to know this buxom blonde a lot better. I pull out my phone from the inside pocket of the jacket to text my best friend to let him know I’m already here, but his name flashes across my screen. I pick up immediately.
“Xander,” he cheers.
“You’re back? How was Monaco?”
“Gloriously sunny, packed with indecently rich people and the streets are lined with a bevy of gorgeous women everywhere you turn. Basically it’s as decadent as always. All in all, it was fucking amazing.” Ethan never leaves an important detail out.
“That sounds eerily similar to my own business trip.”
We both laugh.
“Where are you? When the taxi dropped me off at my place a few minutes ago, I immediately popped by yours, but you were already gone. I thought you were going to wait for me.”
“I know. I was restless,” I say. “I decided to come and wait for you at the restaurant. I’m still outside. I might check out the lounge first.”
“Xander, you’re an hour early.” He chuckles.
“If I sit down, for even one minute, I’ll be out like a light and I won’t wake up until Sunday midday. We can’t have that.”
“No, we can’t. Please insert a heaping dose of sarcasm here.”
“Bugger off, Ethan,” I retort.
“I can’t wait to see you either, my brother.”
He’s making fun of me. I ignore him. “I’m so ready for tonight, mate.”
“So am I. My cock has been twitching since we talked a few days ago. It doesn’t matter how many times I wank, I’m still hard. Of course, I’ve been rubbing one off thinking of a certain curvy American, but at this point if my cock isn’t going to be inside her pussy tonight, we’d better find a luscious woman who will get both of us off like rockets.”
I guess I’m not the only one who’s horny as hell. There’s no denying it, Ethan is raw. When he goes without for a few days, his feral nature can be quite overpowering. It sounds like tonight we’ll leave one lucky lady panting for more.
“Give me one second,” I say, looking around me. People are gathering in front of the restaurant. They might be oblivious now, but certain words jump out at you no matter how engaged you are in a conversation. I walk a few steps away from the crowd. It’s not the epitome of privacy, but it will do. “Same here. I might not know this Texan curator you’ve been going on about, but your description of her has been haunting me for the last couple of days. In fact, a few nights ago at Craig’s party, I was a very good boy. I only played with two women. I allowed a couple of twenty-year-old blondes to suck my cock,” I confess.
“Twenty?” He sounds shocked. “Xander, you keep lowering your age threshold. At this rate you’ll be fucking teenage girls again.”
“In my defense, they were identical twins, curvy and they had giant tits—fake, mind you, but I’m not one to judge when I’m in LA.”
“Of course not.” Ethan’s sarcasm doesn’t go unnoticed.
“I couldn’t possibly say no to that. I’m sure you wouldn’t have passed on that opportunity.” He doesn’t fool me. “One cornered me and pushed me into a room where her naked sister was waiting. They wanted me to talk dirty to them until I released myself at the back of their throats. It’s the whole British accent thing,” I explain. “As a gentleman, I obliged.”
“No doubt.” Ethan chuckles. “So you’ve already had a threesome?”
“No. The twins didn’t touch each other and I didn’t fuck them. They did beg. They even offered their asses once I dropped my trousers and they caught sight of my cock, but I abstained. Shagging two women at the same time isn’t bad, but I’d much prefer sharing one with you. I haven’t been inside a pussy since we had that conversation on Wednesday. That’s three whole days, mate.” I say that with pride. “I want to be hungry for tonight.”
“You’re crazy, Xander.”
“I prefer hardcore,” I respond.
“I’m sure you’ll be on edge tonight. You’re a fucking animal when you go without for a few days.”
“What are you talking about?” I exclaim. “I’m like that when I haven’t released myself inside a woman in twenty-four hours. I’m well past being an animal.”
“I stand corrected.” Ethan laughs.
“Have you been with anyone since your Monday and Tuesday all-night sex marathons with Shelley?” Ethan might try to pretend to be a saint, but we both know his sexual appetite matches mine. Shelley McDonald is his on-again, off-again booty call of the month. Just like me, he tends to keep his relationships short-lived.
“You tosser. Quit being such a wiseass.”
“Are you choosing not to answer?” I know I’m being cocky, but I know Ethan too well.
“No. Wednesday night I was at a gala. There were a few attractive women, but none who really caught my attention. After seeing Delilah that morning I wasn’t in the mood to find a substitute. I really want her. It goes without saying that Shelley wasn’t even a consideration. It was much more enjoyable to go home and wank thinking of Delilah.”
“Translation, I’m not the only one who’s eager.” I grin from ear to ear, already knowing he can’t see me.
Ethan laughs. “No, I guess not.”
“It should be good tonight then. In fact, I might have spotted a candidate.”
“Already?” I hear the surprise in his voice. I don’t know why. He knows how I operate. “I thought you were still standing outside.”
“I am. She was headed to the lounge area. I was just about to tail her when you called. It’s a good thing I reserved a private chill-out room for after dinner. Now I see we’ll definitely be able to put it to good use.” I chuckle.
“You’re impossible.”
“I’m serious,” I quip. “I intend on having my cock inside a woman’s ass as soon as humanly possible, mate. Hers would do just fine. There’s no time to waste. I’m already losing my mind as is.” I laugh.
“I take that back. You’re absolutely mad, Xander.”
“You can mock me as much as you want, but there’s a method to my madness.”
“I’m all ears.”
“Since we don’t know if the woman we’re both interested in has been with two guys before, we need to prep her. The chill-out room will also give us the opportunity to determine if this is the kind of girl we want to take back to our place or if we get a room at a hotel for the night. I think I’ll—” I stop in my tracks when a short brunette with enviable curves waltzes by me in a pair of sexy sky-high sandals that would make Ethan drop to his knees and worship her feet. As lovely as that flirty bright pink dress she’s wearing is, I suspect it would look a whole lot better off. “Scratch that. I just noticed a drop-dead-gorgeous brunette walk by me. Guess where she’s headed?”
“The lounge?”
“Indeed she is. Mate, I’ll be the tall handsome guy with a huge grin on his face as I seduce the blonde or the brunette… or both. We haven’t had a go at two women at the same time in a very long time. Maybe tonight’s the night,” I suggest.
After Adele, Ethan and I corrupted two Dutch tourists we met at a bar near closing hour. We fucked both of them at the same time. It did help that they were bisexual and super nasty. We went at it all night without giving them much rest. The second we were ready to shoot our loads again, we were pounding them. That was quite the dirty night. A few months later we did the same to a couple of hot Spanish nurses who were in town for a convention. Emotionally we couldn’t handle being with just one woman. Fucking two lessened any chance of us getting involved.
“That’s too much work, Xander. Let’s keep it simple. Pick one.”
Thanks for bursting my bubble. “All right.”
“Don’t sound so disappointed. Since you partied all night Thursday and you were on a plane all of last night, you’ve gone without sleep for a few days now. You might want to pace yourself in order to keep up,” Ethan advises.
“I’ll keep up just fi
ne. I always do.” I quickly dismiss his worries.
“I’m glad to hear it. I’ll meet you in the lounge. I’m on my way. It shouldn’t take me more than half an hour. Hold the fort until I get there.”
“Aye aye, Captain.”
CHAPTER 8
Delilah
“I can do this, I can do this, I can do this,” I coax myself.
After hanging up with Piper I called my cousin in a panic. I know I’m second-guessing myself, but I just can’t help it. Left to my own devices, my bravado fizzled faster than the bubbles in a glass of Coca-Cola sitting under the Texan sun in the middle of July. I was praying Maggie might also think that going to Hush by myself was a terrible idea. Alas, I was to have no such luck.
Maggie’s sided with Piper. Maggie also feels that it would be a crime not to flaunt my new hairdo. A part of me really just wants to run and hide under the covers, but another part is dying to find out how it feels to step into the role of this seductive vixen everyone seems to think I’ve become.
Gideon definitely worked his magic. I was so elated when I stepped out of the salon that I didn’t only send a selfie to Piper, I also sent one to my roommate Jackie, Maggie and my mom. They all had the same reaction. Fueled by their compliments and Maggie’s words of encouragement, I decided to take a chance. After changing six times, I finally decided on an outfit that boosts my confidence like crazy. I added a few simple pieces of tasteful jewelry, slicked one more coat of gloss on my lips, slipped into a pair of super-high heels and I was ready for the night. At least I think I am.
Deliciously British Page 10
