Last Call
Page 34
“Look who’s here.”
I turn to see my friend doing his job, for once.
“Did you come here in your uniform just to make me feel worse about myself?”
Tyler laughs. “Have you just left her on her own?” He nods toward Jordan. “Someone could snatch her away from under your nose.”
“Don’t even think about it. You keep those skills hidden away under that sexy uniform.”
“I’m a fireman.”
“Whatever you say.”
“Confidence issues, Hayes?” Jordan appears suddenly from behind Tyler.
“All good, Ms Hill.”
“Thank you for being here.”
“It’s always a pleasure to know I’m satisfying your needs.”
“Are you two done?”
Tyler walks off, as I grab Jordan by the hand and drag her in front of me.
“I don’t like that guy.”
“Isn’t that guy your best friend?”
“Let’s not get carried away.”
“I thought you two were pretty close.”
“The only thing I want to be close to – right now and forever – is…” He leans closer to my ear. “…is your underwear, when I slide it down your legs as soon as we’re on your sofa, Headmistress.”
I feel her shiver.
“And now, if I may…” I pull her in to me and hold her tightly.
“What are you doing?”
“There’s music.”
“I can hear.”
“And we’re at a dance.”
“Exactly.”
“Our school dance.”
“I guess you could call it that.”
I hold her against my body, one hand on her back and the other linked with hers. I move slowly – I don’t know if this is the right music for a slow dance, but I don’t care. I’ve been dreaming of this exact moment for more than twenty years, and I don’t plan to let it just slip out of my grasp again.
“You have no idea how much I’ve wanted this.”
She tilts her head, looking at me. “To dance with me?”
“To take you to the dance. To be your knight in shining armour, to bring you flowers,” I finger the floral corsage I’d bought her for this evening, “and…”
“And what?”
“And to show you that I’m not the bad boy you think I am.”
She smiles warmly. “So, what are you, then?”
“I’m the man who loves you.”
She bites her lip gently, batting her eyelids.
“I’m the man who will love you forever; the one who will give you everything you always dreamed of.”
“Maybe I already have everything I’ve always dreamed of.”
Now I’m the one smiling.
“Maybe I’m exactly where I want to be with the man I love by my side.”
“Oh, yeah?”
She nods.
“Do you want that man in your bed later, too?”
“I want him wherever he wants me.”
I squeeze her tighter to me, sighing onto her lips. There’s an unbearable throbbing between my legs, held hostage by my too-tight boxers.
I rest my forehead against hers and close my eyes, enjoying the warmth of her breath tickling my lips, her sweet, sensual smell which overpowers my senses, and the feeling of her body as it vibrates against mine.
“Niall…” Her melodic voice makes me open my eyes. “Look.” She nods to our right, where my daughter and Carter are dancing. They’re not pressed together like us – thank God – but they’re intimate all the same. It’s just the right amount of intimacy for me.
“Do you think she’s okay?”
“I think you’re doing a really good job with her.”
“I think I’m a total disaster.”
“And I think you should have more faith in yourself.”
I turn back to her and smile. “And I think that we should get out of here.”
She raises an eyebrow, questioningly.
“And no, I don’t plan to fuck you in the back of my car. Luckily, I’m not sixteen anymore, and I have a house. Well, actually, that’s not even true – I still live with my parents. But you have a house, thank God, and I can have you there, later. All to myself.”
“So what do you want to do now?”
Thankfully, she overlooks my little monologue.
“Shall we get out of here for half an hour?”
She looks at me, curious.
“You still owe me a date. I won that tournament, and I want my prize.”
I wrap my jacket over her shoulders and she smiles gratefully at me. We’re walking along the bay, hot dogs in hand.
“This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind when I said I wanted to take you out for dinner. I had to improvise a little.”
“This is perfect.”
We sit down on a bench and throw the remains of our dinner into the bin. I take her hand and bring it up to my lips.
“Is it dark enough here for me to hold your hand?”
“I didn’t think we still had anything to hide.”
“Oh, no?”
“Unless I’m mistaken, you were actually my date to the dance tonight, Kerry.”
I smile. “Yes, I was. And I enjoyed it, Headmistress. I really enjoyed it.”
“I can see.”
I turn to her and take her face in my hands.
“I want to do everything with you. And I’d love you to do the same for me.”
“Are you talking about sex here?”
“No. Well, not right now – but that’s part of the deal, I guess.”
She laughs, and I press my mouth against hers.
“I love you, Headmistress. And I can’t wait to bring you back to a house of my own. And make you stay.”
“You want to keep me hostage and tie me to your bed?”
“I want to have you in my life indefinitely.”
“Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week?”
“Exactly. Do you think you could do that?”
“I think I’d have to weigh up your proposal.”
I sigh, agitated. “Just give me a little time to get everything sorted.”
“Take all the time you need, Niall. I’ll be right here with you.”
I sigh again, letting my words escape me. Since I’ve met this woman – since I’ve really known her – I’ve felt like a man who is ready to take a step in the right direction. And I want her by my side.
“There’ll be a contract to sign, eventually.”
“A contract?” she asks, curious. “I thought we said no more contracts?”
“This one will require both our signatures.”
She shakes her head slowly.
“And there’s no backing out of this one.”
Her face grows serious, now.
“Once you’ve signed this, Jordan, it’s forever.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I smile at her, because I know that she knows perfectly well what I’m talking about. I can see it in her wide, startled eyes.
“You can’t sign this kind of contract with anyone else.”
She listens anxiously.
“And I can never break this promise.”
“I don’t—”
“And when you’re sure; when you really decide to believe everything I’m telling you; when you trust me completely, I’ll be ready and waiting so sign it right beside you. Okay?”
“Just tell me where.”
“Mmm?”
“Where do I sign?”
I can’t stifle a huge, idiotic grin.
“I believe in us, Niall. In forever. But only if it’s with you.”
“I promise it will be with me, Jordan.”
“Then tell me where to sign,” she says again, impatiently.
I take her hand and bring it to my chest, as a tear starts to trail down her cheek.
“Here, Jordan.”
I press my hand against hers as we feel th
e crazy hammering of my heart.
“You have to sign here.”
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