The Great Ex-Scape

by Jo Watson

  He came even closer. “Well, that was quick.” He cleared his throat and looked awkward.

  “You too,” I said, sounding equally awkward.

  I walked onto the beach and stopped. Alex was now ankle-deep in the water. He wasn’t wearing a shirt and drops of water were sliding down him like warm, gooey chocolate. I stared in awe. What else was I meant to do? He was just so magnificent and manly and wet and hard and I wanted to reach out and touch him. In several places.

  “I didn’t . . .” Alex suddenly said. “We didn’t . . . have sex.” He closed the gap between us.

  “You didn’t have sex?” I asked, the inflection of my voice shot up, as if I was excited.

  “But well done to you!” He gave me another strange double-thumbs-up; it looked so forced.

  I shook my head. “I didn’t either,” I admitted quickly. “I tried. But I couldn’t.”

  “Me too,” he said. “I don’t think picking women up in bars and bringing them back to my hotel room is my thing.” He smiled.

  “Oh, so Alessandreeeeee is not your kind of thing?” I couldn’t help the sarcasm in my voice.

  “Not really actually.”

  “I thought Alessandreeeeee would be everyone’s kind of thing.” Still with that sarcasm.

  Alex smiled. “She might be everyone else’s, but she’s not mine.”

  I smiled back at him. “George wasn’t my kind of thing either.”

  We both looked at each other and then, perfectly timed, both let out long, loud sighs. I put my hands on my hips and stared at Alex.

  “I feel like we’ve come this far, though . . .” he started. “I mean, we’ve done everything else on the list, except this.” His eyes drifted down to his hand and he started picking at the green ribbon around his finger.

  “I know,” I said. “And I even waxed and shaved my . . . you know!”

  He smiled. “And I read all your articles on the G-spot in preparation, just in case I needed some refreshing.”

  “Really? Where did you read them?” I asked.

  “Online. I Googled you and I’ve subscribed to the magazine online, so whenever you write something, I’ll be notified immediately.”

  “You did?” Something about that made me really happy. “Well, I’m sure if you’d gone all the way, Alessandreeeeee would have really appreciated that.”

  “I thought so too. It’s a pity I didn’t get to try all my newly acquired tips. And I’m sure George would have appreciated all the landscaping you went to such painstaking effort to do.” He smiled playfully.

  “Thank you, I appreciate you saying that.” I smiled back at him. “It’s just such a waste that it remains unseen.”

  “I couldn’t agree more.” Alex started nodding, and then mid nod, his smile began to falter and he started looking at me in that way that he’d looked at me the other day.

  “What?” I asked nervously. My heart starting pounding in the back of my throat.

  “When last did you go for a midnight swim in the sea?” he asked.

  “Never.”

  “It’s very refreshing. And it clears your head.” He started walking backwards into the sea once more.

  “Is that why you were swimming? Clearing your head?” I asked.

  He held his hands out and beckoned me. “Come.”

  I looked around to see if anyone was there. The coast was clear. So I pulled my dress off over my head and tossed it in the sand.

  “Nice underwear,” Alex said.

  “Thank you.” I stepped into the water. It was so warm and clear.

  Alex continued to walk backwards until the water was at his waist. I followed him in and soon I was standing opposite him.

  “We did make a deal though,” he almost whispered. “To get through the whole list, together.”

  “We did.”

  “It would be criminal not to honor it, wouldn’t it?” Alex said.

  “Definitely.” I swallowed hard, the tension that was building in the space between us was electric.

  “I mean . . .” He paused for the longest time. Tension building and building until I almost felt sick from it. And then he finally spoke, “We could?” His words instantly set me on fire.

  “We could,” I replied breathily.

  “Only if you wanted to,” he added quickly.

  “Do you want to?” I bit my lip; the excitement was almost too much to contain inside me.

  “Only if you do.” His eyes drifted down to my mouth and I felt them burn.

  “We did make that other promise too,” I said, letting my eyes drift down to his lips too.

  “Rule number one?” Alex asked, still staring at my mouth.

  “Mmmm,” I mumbled.

  Alex took a small step towards me. “It wouldn’t be like that,” he pointed out, bringing his eyes up to mine. “It would be two friends, helping each other out.” He started leaning towards me. “Just two buddies helping each other out,” he said again, softly and slowly. He’d leaned so close that his lips were mere centimeters away from mine, I could feel his breath on my face.

  “Two buddies . . .” I echoed.

  He nodded. “It’s the least we could do for each other. After everything we’ve been through.”

  “The very least,” I said breathily.

  “The absolute least,” he echoed.

  “It’s just sex,” I said.

  “Just sex,” he repeated, and then his lips came down on mine.

  CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

  I was expecting fireworks, and explosions, and crazy heat and hunger like that video of us, but it wasn’t like that at all, and it threw me.

  The world stopped and everything ceased to exist. The only thing that existed were his lips on mine. His lips . . . so slow and searching. As if they were trying to pull something out of me. Fetch something from deep inside. He brushed them against mine softly, like the touch of a butterfly wing. I parted my lips because I wanted, needed, more of him.

  He paused and exhaled into my mouth. I breathed in deeply, filling my lungs with the sweetest smelling air. And then he slid the tip of his tongue into my mouth. Warm, wet, soft. My tongue met his and as if they had known each other their entire lives, they started engaging in a complicated, intricate, sensual dance. Somehow they knew every step.

  His hands were on my back. Squeezing, kneading my flesh between his fingers. Gripping at me hungrily. I pulled him closer until my breasts were flattened against his hard, strong chest.

  The kiss deepened. It didn’t speed up, we stayed in that slow, steady rhythm that made my limbs feel like they were floating and melting all at once. The dance in our mouths reached a crescendo; our tongues stroking, massaging, lapping at each other.

  But when we realized that there was no way of being buried deeper in each other’s mouths than we were right now, the kiss changed.

  Fast. Hot. Demanding. Furious and needy. Greedy for more. Any rhythm we had was gone now. It was rough and the movements jagged. His hands travelled lower and he cupped my ass, squeezing hard. And then, in one swift movement, he lifted me. I gasped immediately but wrapped my legs around his waist tightly, clinging on like I never wanted to let go. I wrapped my arms around his neck, laced my fingers in his hair and pulled his head back. I kissed his exposed neck and then he moaned as I ran my tongue up the length of his neck. I tasted cologne. It was bitter on my tongue.

  Alex held onto me tighter. He started moving me up and down against him. Against his big hard length. This time I moaned as the pleasure shot through me like lightning. The waves around us lapped violently as he moved me faster and faster. I clung onto him, unable to kiss now I was so overwhelmed by pure pleasure of this moment. And then . . .

  “Oh God,” I moaned loudly. This hadn’t happened in a while! In a long, long, long while. But that didn’t mean that I’d forgotten how good it felt. It hit me hard and fast and unrelenting. Not stopping. My muscles stiffened and I clung to him. My body shook uncontrollably as the last wave rushed through me
; up my stomach, across my breasts, up my neck, into my face, lips, eyes and out the top of my head.

  And when it was over, I was rendered limp. Like a marionette puppet with its strings cut. With my head buried in his neck I tried to catch my breath again. My heart pounded against his chest like it was trying to escape. Like it wanted to crawl into him and be a part of him in some way.

  After a few moments, Alex let go of me and I slipped slowly down his body and back into the water. Like melting ice-cream down the side of a cone in summer. I was almost in a liquid state now and think I would have puddled into the sea had Alex not wrapped an arm around me and kept me standing.

  I slowly raised my head and looked at him.

  He was looking down at me now as if I was the only thing that existed to him. No one had ever looked at me like that before. With such singular, intense focus.

  He lowered his lips back down to mine, planting a small kiss.

  “Come,” he said, extending his hand for me to take.

  “Where?” I asked dreamily.

  “We’re only just getting started.” He took my hand and we began walking back to the beach together.

  CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO

  My skin was hot, but his fingertips were cold against my back as he unclasped my bra. He pulled it down slowly, letting the rough lace graze my nipples as he went. A dizzying sensation was building in me, and had been since we’d walked into my room. But he did nothing. My hunger was being teased and tormented. My patience was being stretched to breaking point. Anticipation grew until it was a caged animal that begged to be released. I’d told him to tease, but I needed him to release me from this torture as I stood in front of him, breasts bare and exposed, and all he did was look at me.

  “Please,” I finally whispered when I couldn’t take any more of it.

  “Please what?” he asked. His voice was sex and desire.

  “Touch me.” I reached out and took his hands in mine, bringing them down and placing them on my waist.

  “But then I would have to stop looking at you,” he said. His voice was laced with the kind of awe and admiration that a woman can only ever dream of hearing.

  His obvious desire for me filled me with a kind of confidence that I had never known before, so I took a few steps backward, until he could see all of me. Head to toe. I’d never done anything quite like this before. But I was going to do it now. For him. Because he was looking at me like that, making me feel like the sexiest woman that had ever existed.

  I placed my hands on my stomach and then slowly dragged them down until my fingers slipped into the top of my panties. Alex’s eyes widened as he stared at my hands with such concentration. Slowly, teasingly, I pulled just the one side down over my hip. Alex let out a long breath, I could see how turned on he was. How he was hanging on my every move. But what I didn’t realize was how turned on I would be showing myself to him. Fireworks were going off inside me, shocking back to life parts of me that had been dead for so long.

  I started to pull the other side down and I didn’t stop this time. I let my panties fall, pool around my feet, and I stood there in front of him totally naked. His eyes moved over me in slow circles. Looking at every single inch of me. My body was now throbbing for him. My chest was rising and falling as my breath came out in short, sharp bursts as if I was panting. He wasn’t even touching me yet.

  “Please,” I begged again.

  Alex walked up to me slowly. His shirt was off, but he was still wearing his bathing trunks. I wanted them off. He stood in front again and just as I was about to reach out and pull those pants off him, he dropped to his knees in front of me.

  “Oh my God,” I gasped, shuddered, and my whole body shook as he placed a kiss on my inner thigh. The kisses moved higher and I reached down and gripped the top of his head as it nuzzled between my legs, pushing them open a little more.

  “Since you went to so much effort . . .” he whispered against my inner thigh. I started giggling but stopped the second his mouth came down on me. His lips and tongue came into contact with that place that made me cry out immediately. I looked down at him, worshiping at my altar. I gripped his head tighter, holding it in place as he worked some kind of magic that made me feel like gravity no longer existed. I was floating and then I was clenching every muscle in my body and panting until I finally moaned. Loud, long guttural. Coming from a primitive place inside me that I wasn’t able to hold back.

  He slid back up me, dragging his fingertips over my body as he went. But as soon as he was there, I dropped down to my knees. Before I’d even touched him, he let out a breathy moan. I tugged at his pants, pulling them off and immediately, without any hesitation, I drew him into my mouth. His entire body shuddered and the more I did it, the more he seemed to shake and tremble, until he stopped me and pushed my head away.

  “Stop,” he said breathlessly. And I loved it. I loved knowing that I had almost taken him there just with my mouth. He pulled me to my feet and walked me backwards until I reached the bed. Then he pushed me forcefully and I fell back onto it with a bounce. He quickly climbed on top of me, pressing his body into mine. The weight of him crushed me into the bed. I felt so overpowered now, in the best way possible.

  He brought his mouth down and kissed me slowly and gently once more. His mouth left mine and he trailed small kisses over my chin and onto my neck. The kisses moved down to my collarbones and then lower, until he reached my breasts. I arched my back, making it quite clear what I wanted. That I wanted his mouth on them, his tongue circling and his teeth nipping. And he gave that to me. And more. It all felt so delicious and I was almost delirious from all the pleasure crashing through me. A ball of frenzied energy was starting to build deep inside me now. It set my insides on fire and made me writhe and thrash and it made me want more . . . I only wanted one thing now, though. I needed him inside me, touching that energy inside.

  “Please,” I was begging again. I pulled his head back up to my mouth and opened my legs for him to slip between. I reached behind me and grabbed at my bag, it was on the bedside table. I scrabbled frantically for the condom that I’d found in the club bathroom. “Please,” I begged again and almost threw it at him.

  I closed my eyes. I heard the wrapper being ripped open. I heard the snap of the latex and I braced myself. Anticipation. Want. Need. I felt like I was going to explode if I didn’t have him. Now.

  And then in one movement that caused me to cry out, he drove inside me. I threw my head back as he moved in and out of me with a hard, fast, deliberate rhythm. I heard myself saying his name over and over again in a whimper as he pushed my knees up against my chest as that ball of energy inside me ignited and exploded.

  And then he stopped moving. “Look at me. Open your eyes,” I heard Alex say when my head stopped spinning and I stopped seeing stars behind my eyelids. I obeyed him. He was so close to me now. His nose touching mine. His eyes boring into me. And then, slowly, so slowly, he started moving inside me again. Oh God, was this really just sex?

  I grabbed the sides of his face and held him in place, looking into his eyes. His pupils were big and dilated and his eyes dark and stormy. Our hearts started beating together as one, beating against our chests as we rocked back and forth in a motion so slow, small and subtle.

  “Val,” he whispered, not breaking eye contact.

  “Yes?” I whispered back.

  He shook his head slightly. “I don’t know,” he said, a tiny moan escaping his lips.

  “What?” I asked, raising my hips up and grinding them against him slowly.

  “I don’t know if I can put it into words,” he said. His voice coming out in jagged little bursts.

  “Then don’t use words,” I said breathily.

  At that, everything stopped. He stopped moving and everything went very still. As if the world suddenly froze. The bed melted away, the chairs and the tables, all disappeared. Once more, it was only the two of us. He held my gaze intensely and I wondered what was coming next. The mood
between us had suddenly changed. Like a switch that had been flicked on, or off. Alex looked different. He smelt different. His body felt different. I felt different and everything suddenly felt so unfamiliar yet . . . right. I felt myself stepping over some kind of boundary and entering uncharted territory where nothing was the same as before.

  This was really starting to feel not like just sex.

  He started moving again and I moaned, caught off guard by the sudden motion. His movements grew faster and faster again and I joined in, lifting my hips up and down to meet his thrusts. We moved as one and it felt like we were seeping into each other’s pores, becoming a part of each other as we stared deeply into each other’s eyes.

  And suddenly we were rising up together. Up, up, up, up like a rollercoaster climbing to the top. We teetered at the top for a while, holding our breaths and waiting for the inevitable fall . . .

  And then we fell. Plummeted. Raced down together screaming as our stomachs dropped and we struggled to catch our breath.

  That definitely wasn’t just sex. And every single part of me knew it.

  CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE

  We lay on our backs looking up at the ceiling. We hadn’t said a word since falling out of each other’s arms after having the best, best, the best, sex of my life. Sex where I had actually said his name over and over again, and sex that had there been walls to beat with my sweaty fists, I would have.

  We were holding hands, but that was our only physical contact. We were both completely naked, my hot body was covered in a layer of sweat and when the sea breeze blew through the open window, a pleasant cooling sensation made me shiver slightly.

  Finally, Alex stirred. He turned to face me. He propped his head up on his elbow and looked down at me and then smiled.

  I turned my head to look at him better and found myself smiling back. “Well.” It was only when I opened my mouth and spoke that I realized how dry it was. “I guess we can tick that off the list.”