His hand slides over my ribs to grasp a breast, then down to circle my clit. I reach behind me, wrapping a hand around his neck, wanting him to stay near. He continues to thrust and circle, and just as I’m about to tell him to slow down, I realize it’s too late.
“I’m close,” I gasp. “Fuck. I’m too close.”
His groan is against my ear, his breathing labored. His finger circles faster; his teeth sink into my shoulder. I come apart and so does he, pressing me tight to him as his chest rises and falls too fast.
I had no idea that sex could be…this. That I could come so easily and want to do it all over again the instant I’m done, that it could make me feel closer to someone than I already did.
I’m sure it’s not as much of a revelation for him, but it’s hard to imagine this isn’t special. Surely sex this good isn’t the norm for everyone all the time?
His breathing grows even, and I start to drift off. God, what I’d give to just stay here and fall asleep beside him.
“I should go,” I say groggily. “I need to be out of town before rush hour.”
I start to sit up and he pulls me back to him, kissing me hard, with his hand on my jaw. If I didn’t have my kids, I’d stay here forever. I’d spend the rest of my life in this commitment-free no-mans-land, hoping I could change his mind.
He releases me and our eyes lock. I want to say something, but the words are all caught in my throat and I’m worried that if I start to say them, I’ll burst into tears. Because this was the best afternoon of my life, but it’s hard to say that aloud knowing it’s over and will never happen again.
26
CALEB
My scotch is down to ice. The airline attendant gives me a refill without raising a brow at the fact that it’s my second one. I wouldn’t be so generous in her shoes, given we’re only in the first hour of an eleven-hour flight.
HARRISON
Mark said you and Lucie went to your hotel room yesterday in the middle of the conference.
She was upset. She needed a break. That’s all.
It’s fascinating how different companies operate. I don’t think I’ve ever suggested an employee take a break in MY hotel room.
If you and Lucie are going to continue taking a “break,” make sure you don’t text about it. I bet her husband’s watching her phone somehow, and we still don’t even know that Kate’s gotten the papers, which could bite you in the ass.
I groan. Fuck. Fuck me and my fucked-up decision-making. Fuck me and my insane lack of self-control.
I knew it was a mistake with Lucie, but it was like throwing the first punch in a fight—I did it because I no longer cared about the consequences. Because even if it caused more problems than it solved, in that moment, nothing mattered more than kissing her, than ending the torment of wanting her day in and day out for fucking months.
As if it was ever going to end the torment.
Lucie isn’t a meal you eat because you’re hungry. She’s exotically wrapped candy that leaves you hungrier than you started. It’s been less than a day since she was in my bed and I’m already fucking ravenous.
I need weeks, months of her to get full. I need a year of her clenching around me as I drive inside her. I need a decade of that stunned inhale as I bury my head between her legs, a century of her looking up under long lashes as she takes my cock in her mouth.
It’s midnight back home when we land, early evening in Tokyo. I should simply be relieved there was no fall-out from the incident with Robert Underwood, but instead I’m thinking about Lucie, just like I did last night, as I laid awake for hours, trying to make an impossible situation possible.
My host drives me to Nobu for dinner. Fucking Nobu—the exact fucking restaurant that guy plans to take Lucie to. You can’t get out of here for less than a hundred and fifty a person, yet they are going on a first date.
If it doesn’t work out with him, I’m sure Wyatt will offer her the moon in his place. God knows he probably could offer her the moon with as much as I pay him.
I glance at my watch. California is seventeen hours behind. She’s sound asleep by now, and while I’m asleep, she’ll be heading into the office, where another guy has a clear path in my absence.
God, what the hell was I thinking, leaving her there to be wooed by some asshole who’ll tell her anything she wants to hear: I love kids, Lucie. I can’t wait to take mine to Disney. I’d love to take yours to Disney. When can I meet them?
I pick up my phone, ready to text. Don’t go out with Wyatt, Lucie, I’ll say. He’s a dick.