Attraction: (A Temptation Series Stand-alone) (The Temptation Series Book 4)

by Golland, KM

  ‘Dips?’ he questioned, fumbling with his keys.

  ‘Yes, like a slide ... wheee!’ I explained, sliding my finger down one of his dips.

  Derek chuckled once again and entered the house, heading straight for his bathroom. He set me down on the basin and just stared intently into my eyes. He went to say something, but I stopped him by placing my finger over his lips and whispering. ‘Sh.’

  I kissed him softly and proceeded to undress him, pulling his polo t-shirt over his head while he manoeuvred his boots off with each foot.

  Stopping again to just stare at each other, my heart filled with love. This man before me was a hero. He’d risked his life for people he did not know, saved them and stayed with them until they were safe. He was a gift and I planned on unwrapping and treasuring him.

  Derek lifted me off the basin and pulled my singlet top over my head. I unbuckled his pants as he unclipped my bra. We stripped each other bare without so much as a word and then stepped into the shower.

  When no words are spoken you can hear so much; the beating of a heart, the intake of a breath ... two people becoming one. There is no such thing as silence.

  With soft touches and gentle kisses, I helped clean the soot and dirt from his body, washing the remnants of his terrible ordeal away. When they were no longer evident on his body and washed down the drain, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my body to his.

  ‘Derek,’ I said, in a low but stern voice. ‘I love you and can no longer deny it. I can live with your family problems and I can live with the fear of your job. I can even live knowing that Alexander is yours. But I cannot live without you. I just can’t. I don’t want to.’

  A lone tear fell on my cheek and then travelled south until it formed part of the droplets of water cascading down my body.

  He lifted me up and pressed my back against the tile wall. ‘Then don’t. Move in with me. Make us what we “are”.’

  The cool of the tiles made me gasp. ‘And what “are” we again?’ I asked with a smile.

  ‘We just fucking “are”,’ he said, as he slid his erection inside me and pressed his lips to mine.

  As Derek and I made love in the shower, I realised what we were. We were one; two people who made each other whole. Two people in search of each other without even knowing it, and two people brought together by an undeniable attraction that could not be ignored. Attraction is a force that acts between oppositely charged bodies, tending to draw them together. Attraction cannot be fought.

  EPILOGUE

  Just under two years later

  ‘Hey! Get out!’ I yelled at Bryce. ‘No grooms allowed. Unless,’ I suggested playfully, wiggling my body, ‘you want to start removing your clothes.’

  ‘You ...’ he pointed his finger at me accusingly, ‘you and I are gonna have some words later. ‘And you ...’ he pointed to the sexy-as-fuck stripper straddling Alexis’s lap. ‘Back the fuck off.’

  Josh — also known as Mr Nude Australia — stepped aside with a knowing expression, as if this was not the first time an irate partner had stormed into the room during one of his performances.

  I watched in disbelief as Bryce walked with purposeful strides toward Alexis’ frozen frame, her expression extremely stunned. God, I don’t know why she was so against seeing another man naked and having him dance and wipe his sweaty body over her. It was her hens’ night, for fuck’s sake. Not to mention it was hot and he was a stripper, so it was harmless.

  She started to speak, seemingly to defend herself. ‘I didn’t know —’

  Bryce reached out, took hold of her hand and pulled her to his chest, pressing a forceful kiss to her lips in a show of ownership. He pulled back and looked heatedly into her eyes. ‘Want to go home?’

  She smiled and nodded enthusiastically.

  ‘Hey! No, you are not!’ I protested. ‘This is your hens’ night. You can’t leave with the groom. Who does that?’

  They both ignored me.

  Bryce bent down and hauled Alexis over his shoulder and, as he turned around and my eyes followed their retreating forms, I noticed Derek and Will. Derek was leaning against the wall with a sexy as hell grin on his face and Will was eyeing the stripper up and down with a look of disgust.

  Watching as Bryce made his way to the exit, I called out in protest once again. ‘You can’t do this.’

  ‘I can and I fucking well will,’ he replied.

  Lexi smiled with satisfaction and waved to me from her hung position over his shoulder.

  I flipped her the bird, which inevitably made her smile grow wider.

  Turning back toward Mr Nude Australia, I spied him beginning to pack up his shit.

  ‘Hey, what do you think you are doing?’ I asked angrily.

  ‘I just figured the show was over,’ he explained.

  Slumping myself down on the seat like a stubborn child, I twitched my finger at him. ‘It ain’t fucking over. I’ve paid for you to dance and remove your clothes. So dance and remove.’

  He shrugged his shoulders and flipped the switch of his stereo, replaying JT’s ‘SexyBack’. ‘If you say so.’

  ‘I do,’ I grumbled, crossing my arms conclusively.

  As he began dry-humping my lap and placing my hands all over his oil-covered body, the music was cut off yet again.

  ‘Off!’ Derek growled.

  I peeked over Josh’s shoulder to where Derek was standing. ‘What now?’

  ‘I can’t watch,’ he said, shaking his head.

  ‘Then don’t. Haven’t you got Miss Nude Australia in another suite? Go watch her,’ I responded with a dismissive and haughty wave of my hand.

  The thought of Derek watching a slutsky stripper did not sit well with me either, but I’d let it go for the sake of Alexis and Bryce’s hens’ and bucks’ night celebrations. Now, I was just pissed off and getting my stubborn on.

  Derek raised an eyebrow questioningly.

  ‘What?’ I sulked.

  ‘Baby, do you really want to do this?’

  Pouting and hanging my head, I groaned. ‘No, all right. Are you happy?’

  I gently slapped Josh’s backside to indicate he stand up. Then, following him to my feet and grabbing my clutch from the coffee table, I walked past the rest of Alexis’ friends. ‘He’s all yours, ladies.’ I then turned to Derek. ‘Fine. You win. Take me home.’

  He slid his arm across my back, pulled me to him and whispered into my ear. ‘With pleasure.’

  ***

  The following evening, I was still sulking over Alexis’ hens’ night failure. Derek had even tried to cheer me up by attempting to bake a choc-mint pudding. To be honest, I was not sure why he bothered. Yes, the man could cook a mean satay, but baking was not Derek’s thing. Plus, he hadn’t let me eat it yet, saying it was for later on, which probably meant, ‘I fucked it up and hope you will forget by then’. It did smell lovely though.

  Sitting at our dining table and expelling my grumpiness by harshly flipping the pages of my Cleo magazine, I nearly had a heart attack when ‘SexyBack’ suddenly sounded through the room.

  I shot my head up to where the iPad sat on the benchtop and found Derek standing next to it, fully kitted in his firefighter gear.

  Confusion instantly hijacked my mind, but when I realised what he planned to do, I couldn’t contain the smile that spread across my face.

  ‘Apparently I owe you a striptease,’ he said seductively.

  Swallowing heavily as an overwhelming sense of excitement swept through my body, I pushed my seat back from the table and patted my lap. ‘Giddy-up, officer.’

  He chuckled, then started dancing toward me, rolling his body enticingly. I couldn’t help it and laughed, tapping my feet in a running motion on the ground. Derek stopped in front of me with a grin that had the capacity to melt my underwear. The man — when in a cheeky mood — was a sight I would never get used to seeing. He lowered himself slowly and straddled my lap, taking off his helmet and placing it on my head before kissing my
nose.

  I leaned forward in an attempt to capture his lips with mine, but he shot up and spun around, slowly taking off his jacket to reveal his shirtless chest covered in nothing but tattoos and a pair of red braces.

  My mouth went dry.

  My vagina bats fluttered.

  My Carly-cave collapsed. Fuck. F.U.C.K. Fuck.

  Trying desperately to remain on the seat and not slide off in a pool of hormones on the ground before him, I gripped the table and firmly planted my feet on the floor.

  Derek raised an eyebrow seductively and hooked his thumbs under both braces while singing about shackles and slaves. He slid his thumbs down his braces and back up again, stretching them away from his body. I made a grab for his pants, but he stepped back and turned around, taunting me by moving his hips in a figure eight.

  ‘Argh,’ I groaned, ‘take it off.’

  He spun back around and removed the braces then slowly undid his pants, one tormenting button at a time. Suddenly, he gave me a quick flash of his cock.

  ‘Oh my god,’ I laughed. ‘You are commando under there.’

  The devilish smile that crept across his face triggered an overwhelming sense of excitement and eager anticipation — it was a look that promised a huge reward.

  Grabbing hold of my hand, he splayed it on his chest before sliding it down his body and slipping it into his pants while simultaneously gyrating his hips. Oh. My. God. Oh, my god.

  The warmth of his hard erection beneath my hand was a fucking welcome delight, my fingers happily clasping around it and stroking with ardour.

  ‘Carly,’ he growled, ‘I wouldn’t if I were you.’

  ‘Well, it’s a good thing you are not me then,’ I smiled, waggling my eyebrows and dipping forward to lick his delicious V muscle.

  He removed my hand and lowered himself onto my lap then began to unbutton my shirt.

  ‘Um ... apparently you are supposed to strip. Not strip me,’ I explained with amusement as my nipples hardened at the slightest touch of his fingers against my bra.

  ‘Shut the fuck up, baby. I’m in charge.’

  Stripping my shirt from my shoulders and throwing it to the floor, he grasped my breasts with both hands and massaged them with exquisite force.

  ‘Oh, fuck,’ I moaned and threw my head back, causing the helmet to fall to the floor.

  Instantly, his lips were on my neck, nipping, licking and sucking as he trailed them to my mouth. I grabbed him and ran my hands up his toned back, pressing him closer and wanting to feel as much of him as I could while our tongues stroked one another’s.

  Derek reached behind himself and took hold of my hands, removing them from his back so that he could stand up. I pouted at the loss.

  ‘Suck that lip in or I’ll bite it,’ he warned.

  Wanting to keep my pouty face and call his bluff, I struggled not to smile at his sexy threat.

  He winked then hooked his thumbs into his pants and pulled them down, allowing his cock to spring free prominently when he stood back up. I smiled and bit my thumbnail.

  Eye-fucking me intensely, he stepped up to me again and straddled my lap, thrusting his hips and rubbing his cock up and down my bare torso. I watched with sheer gratification as his crown glistened with pre-come while it slid along my skin. It was so fucking erotic, and I just wanted to grab it and impale myself on top like a goddamned human skewer.

  I let out a guttural moan and tried to buck my hips in order to relieve some of the ache I was feeling in between my legs.

  ‘You hungry, baby?’ he asked, licking up my neck.

  ‘Oh, yeah,’ I murmured in response.

  Derek pushed up from his seated position on my lap and made his way into the kitchen only to return with a cute little choc-mint pudding. Oh ... that was not what I had in mind when I said I was hungry.

  Confused, I gave him an unsure grin.

  He then knelt down and presented it to me. ‘You once asked for proof. Well, the proof is in the pudding.’

  ‘What?’ I asked, giggling.

  Displaying an adorably cocky grin, he indicated I take the pudding.

  Tentatively taking it from his hands, my face flushed as his insinuation dawned on me.

  ‘What?’ I said again, staring back at him, wide-eyed.

  ‘The proof is in the pudding, baby. Eat the fucking pudding.’

  I shook my head from side to side at a rapid speed. ‘I don’t want to eat it.’

  ‘Then just break the fucker open,’ he said.

  Slowly, I broke the small dome-shaped pudding in half to find a white gold and diamond ring nestled snugly inside.

  My eyes popped.

  My breath hitched.

  My heart exploded.

  Derek reached in and pulled it out, quickly dunking it in a glass of water to remove the pudding crumbs. He then held it in front of me and took a deep breath. ‘Hey, is it just me, or are we destined to be married?’

  A laugh mixed with an elated sob exited my mouth.

  He shook his head. ‘Na, that one was lame. What about this? I want a wife, so will you marry me?’

  I giggled and wiped the tears that were pooling in my eyes so that I could see him more clearly.

  ‘Na, I got it. How about ... baby, just fucking say yes?’

  Offering my hand, I nodded excitedly. ‘Yes, yes, I’ll be your Mrs Dik.’

  Derek hurriedly threaded the ring onto my finger then reached for my face, mashing his lips to mine.

  ‘Yes?’ he questioned, projecting a relieved happiness.

  ‘Yes,’ I replied through desperate kisses. Then, pulling away, I gave him a worried look. ‘But we can’t mention it yet.’

  ‘Why?’ he protested in exasperation.

  ‘Because it’s not fair to Bryce and Alexis. They are getting married in a few days. I don’t want to steal any of their limelight. After what they have been through, they deserve it and have waited too long for it,’ I answered.

  Derek kissed my hand, which held proof of his love for me. ‘Okay, we tell everyone after the wedding.’

  An overwhelming sense of contentment washed over me. I grabbed his face in my hands and gazed at him with adoration. ‘Boy, if you were a vegetable, you’d be a cutecumber.’

  He growled playfully, wrapped his arms around me and stood up, lifting me with him. As he carried me to our room, I prepared to set sail on a new voyage.

  Destination ... unknown.

  And I couldn’t have been happier.

  EXTENDED EPILOGUE

  Eight months later

  ‘Mum, it’s hideous. I’m not wearing this,’ I said with disgust as I swiped her hands away from my head.

  ‘Carly Josephine Henkley, you are my only daughter. You are wearing it.’

  Slumping in defeat, I rolled my eyes. ‘I’m your only child.’

  ‘Exactly, which is why you have no choice. I wore it on my wedding day. Your grandmother wore it on hers, and your great-grandmother wore it on hers. It’s tradition ... an honour,’ she said proudly, as she secured the antique comb to my blonde hair.

  ‘It’s ugly,’ I pouted, stepping away from her and the mirror. ‘I’m ugly ... and fat. Look at me! That’s it, I’m calling the wedding off,’ I announced, reaching behind to try and unzip my dress.

  Alexis stepped in front of me and placed her hands on my shoulders. ‘Oh no you don’t. Stop being a whiny little bitch. You are hormonal and pregnant. You’re not fat. Carls, you’re beautiful, and that baby bump of yours is beautiful too.’

  I shook my head at her. ‘I can’t do this.’

  Eight months ago, I said yes to marrying Derek. I took that leap. I’d wanted to. But back then I did not know that in a mere 243 days, I would not only be participating in the actual marrying that I’d agreed to, but that I’d also be five months pregnant with our baby.

  Applying a light pressure to my shoulders, Alexis gently coaxed me into a sitting position on the bed. ‘Yes, you can. You’re just nervous. Call it wedding jitters if
you must. Trust me, we all get them.’

  ‘Ha! You didn’t get them. You couldn’t wait to become Mrs Clark,’ I sulked.

  Alexis raised her eyebrow. ‘Um ... yeah I did, have you forgotten about my first marriage?’

  I searched my memory, recalling the day she married Rick. She was a mess and the epitome of a bridezilla. Granted, she was only twenty-three years old.

  ‘You were young, Lex. You had an excuse. I’m thirty-eight. I’m old.’

  Alexis laughed and grabbed hold of my hand which was resting nervously on my lap. ‘Well, I’m older ... and wiser. And I say you are stunning, glowing and a completely normal bride on her wedding day.’

  My body bounced just slightly with the dip of the bed when Mum sat to my other side and placed her hand on top of mine and Lexi’s. ‘It’s okay to be nervous, darling. So much has happened in such a short space of time. But you are ready.’ Mum looked down at our hands and blinked a few times. ‘I’m so proud of you. I’m proud of the both of you, actually,’ she said, looking up at Alexis and I. ‘Who would’ve thought thirty-four years ago when the two of you first met, that you’d both be sitting here now, hand in hand with families of your own. That in itself is rare and very special,’ she said, before giving our hands a light tap and standing back up.

  I watched Mum walk away and help Charli gather her rose petals as I deliberated what she’d just said. She was right. So much had happened to me and, surprisingly, I’d taken it well. Children of my own were never on the cards. I was too frightened. I still am.

  Seeing Derek’s excitement and love at the prospect of having his own family had eased that apprehension though. Don’t get me wrong, I’m fully aware it can all go pear-shaped. But I’ve realised that fearing the ‘what if’ is pointless, ‘what if’ being solely a possibility. Avoiding aspects of life for fear of a dark outcome only leads to a life unfulfilled; a life not properly lived. I intended to live mine ... with my husband and child.

  Looking down at my and Lexi’s entwined fingers, they soon became blurred as my eyes filled with tears.