‘Fuck, you’re beautiful,’ he all but breathed as he raised his head to admire her. She smiled up at him, every part of her burning for him as she registered the desire in his eyes. She felt more desirable than she had in years and couldn’t bring herself to reply, so instead she reached out and ran her hand down his chest.
Rock-hard muscle rippled beneath her touch, spurring her to go lower. Still lost in his gaze, she pressed her hand against the mound in his jeans and he swore again, before dipping his head and capturing her mouth. His tongue duelling with hers, she moved her hand slowly up and down and then boldly planted it inside his waistband. She heard his sharp intake of air and it corresponded with hers as she felt his hot, silky length. Every cell in her body quivered as she closed her hand around him and squeezed hard. It had been so long since she’d held a man in this way and she’d forgotten the power it invoked. The fact she could make him hard and desperate was a heady drug and, like an addict, she wanted more.
Stilling her hand and reluctantly tearing her lips from his, she looked into his eyes. ‘I think we should take this into the bedroom.’
Angus nodded and offered her his hand so she could lead him.
He’d barely kicked the door shut behind them before their lips reconnected and their hands were all over each other again. There was little finesse as they stripped off their clothes. They didn’t make it to the bed, dragging each other to the floor, which thankfully was covered in a plush, thick carpet. Simone wouldn’t have cared if there were hard, icy-cold tiles beneath them.
She reached for Angus, pulling him down so his heavy length was pressed against her as he once again kissed her into oblivion. Their legs entwined, their hands roved over each other, touching intimately yet barely making an indent in their cravings.
He explored her neck, her breasts, her less-than-perfect belly, yet every sound he made was one of admiration. She raked her fingers over his back, cupped his tight buttocks and yanked him against her so that his erection was almost inside her. But as his lips found hers again, he slipped his hand between their sweat-soaked bodies and touched her in a way that made her cry out.
‘You like?’ he asked, his voice low as he pulled back to look at her.
If not for the sliver of moonlight sneaking in through a gap in the curtains they’d have been in pitch darkness, but her eyes had acclimatised enough that she could see him and what she saw she liked, very much. She nodded and his lips twisted into an assured grin as he resumed his efforts, delving his finger deep inside her.
Pleasure rippled through her as he touched her exactly how, exactly where, she needed. It wasn’t long before her breathing quickened and she was quivering beneath his touch. She cried out, digging her nails into his shoulders as he covered his mouth with hers, silencing her scream.
She couldn’t remember ever being so vocal during sex—granted it had been a long time—but Angus brought out the wild animal in her. Hungry for more, she clung to him as she wrapped her legs around him. His penis slid right into her and she moaned as her body accommodated him.
He felt enormous. He felt divine.
They began to move together, her butt rubbing against the carpet as another orgasm rose within her. Angus knew all the right buttons to push. All her nerves and anxieties about sleeping with a man again flew out of the window as they came in spectacular unity. Had that ever happened before?
‘Jesus,’ Angus hissed, his breath hot against her neck. And that pretty much summed up everything going through Simone’s mind as well.
As they lay there together, their bodies slick, their hearts racing and the scent of sex emanating off them, she couldn’t quite believe what she’d just done. Had she jumped into bed—or rather fallen to the floor—with Angus because she’d overindulged on wine? Part of her wished she could accept this explanation but she’d only had a few glasses and …
Who was she kidding? There’d been something between the two of them from the moment she’d laid eyes on him—a spark that hadn’t been there when she’d met Logan, or if she was honest with herself, when she’d thought herself in lust with Ryan. The feelings Angus ignited didn’t take any effort whatsoever. And fighting them had been impossible.
‘We didn’t use a condom,’ Angus whispered after a long silence.
‘It’s okay,’ she replied, ‘I’m safe.’ She’d only just finished her period, which was a good thing, considering she’d given not one thought to contraception until now. She’d gone on the pill briefly last year, when it looked like she and Ryan were getting closer, but she was so damn terrible at remembering to take it that she’d stopped. Since then, she hadn’t needed to worry about such things and she’d never considered that when she finally had sex again it would be like this—on the floor with the brother of the man she was supposed to be dating.
She pushed that guilty thought aside, not wanting to ruin the moment. Obviously this was something she would need to address but right now the only thing she wanted to address was the delicious male lying on top of her. Already she felt her desire rising once again. She cupped his face and pressed her lips to his, a non-verbal thanks for making her feel alive, making her feel like a woman again.
* * *
It was turning into the longest night of Frankie’s life. Not because of the stressful situation with the cake or the fact she’d been awake hours past her bedtime, but because being alone with Logan set every cell in her body on fire.
One minute they were working hard, chatting amicably and the next minute there was weirdness between them. There’d definitely been weirdness when she’d been tending his cut. It had taken everything she had to stop her hands shaking, every ounce of her self-control to stop from curling her fingers around his calf and running her hand up and down his leg. Good grief! What would he have thought if she’d done so? What would Simone say if she knew how Frankie’s mind had been working when it should have been focusing on the cake? Her sister had willingly given up a night of hot sex with her boyfriend so that Frankie didn’t have a nervous breakdown, and what did she do to repay her? Kept imagining she was having hot sex with him instead.
It was an honest-to-God miracle she’d achieved anything over the last few hours.
And the worst thing of it all was she couldn’t work out whether the weirdness was just her or whether Logan felt it also. Occasionally when she’d looked up from a task, she’d caught him watching her and their gazes had held a fraction too long. She’d swear she felt an actual electrical impulse between them but then Logan would look away again, go back to whatever it was he was doing, and she’d convince herself that any feelings he might have for her were platonic or concoctions of her vivid imagination.
And that made her feel like weeping because after hours in his company, she hadn’t discovered he told really bad jokes or was in a secret cult or watched Magic Mike in his free time. She hadn’t discovered anything remotely unlikeable about him, except the fact he was clumsy in the dark—and even that was kind of adorable. Instead, her inappropriate feelings had multiplied a zillionfold.
Thank God they were finally finished and, despite her distraction, had somehow managed the impossible and created a beautiful cupcake tower that made her throat close over with emotion when she looked at it. If anything, it was better than what she’d spent the last week or so labouring over, and much of that was down to Logan. He’d excelled himself, not only by being her assistant, but by fashioning the most amazing cupcake stand. Looking at their magnificent creation now, she had to squeeze her eyelids together to stop herself from crying.
‘Hey.’ She felt Logan take a step closer to her and every organ in her body froze as he placed a comforting arm around her shoulder. ‘There’s no need to cry. We did it. You might even get a few hours’ sleep before having to report for bridesmaid duties.’
Just the way he said ‘we’—as if they were a team—made her shiver. In response he rubbed his palm up and down her arm, which only made her more emotional. She sniffed, opened her eyes and turned
her head to look at him. He was so close she could see the fine hairs of stubble poking out of his chin and the speckles of grey in his dark eyes.
‘I’m crying because I’m—’ She meant to say ‘happy’ but the word died on her tongue. Yes, she was relieved about the cake, but her heart ached with the knowledge that Logan was off-limits. It was bitterly cruel that she’d met the man of her dreams and once again, he was unavailable. Talk about Mr Wrong.
‘I know …’ he whispered, and her aching heart stilled as he lifted a hand and cupped it against her cheek, meeting her gaze with his own intent one.
Before Frankie knew what was happening, their lips met with what felt like an electric shock. A very pleasurable one that turned every bone in her body to jelly. His lips were soft but firm and sweet on her mouth and his hands cupped her face as if she were the most precious thing in the world. She’d imagined this moment a hundred times, yet nothing compared to the reality. She closed her eyes as his tongue swept along the line of her lips. Whimpering inside, she opened for him, wanting to enjoy the taste of him, wanting this moment to never end, but …
This is wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.
Alarm bells sounded loud and clear inside her head. Her conscience warred with her body—her brain yelling at her to pull back, while her hormones screamed like wild banshees for her to keep going. She despised cheaters, and here she was kissing her sister’s boyfriend. She couldn’t hate herself more.
Logan must have realised what they were doing at the same moment, for he tore his mouth from hers and huffed out a breath. Then they simply stared at each other, neither of them saying anything for quite some time. The room was silent—all Frankie could hear was the frantic beating of her own heart. Her fingers tingled with the need to touch him, yet this time she summoned all her willpower to resist.
‘Sorry,’ Logan said finally, rubbing his hand over his jaw. ‘That was …’
Lovely. Amazing. Magical. Even better than the first time we kissed? Because this time he wasn’t just a pretty face. This time he was a man she truly liked and respected.
‘Wrong?’ she finished for him. ‘I know.’ Her voice cracked on the admission as guilt swept over her.
He took a deep breath, his eyes undeniably hot with desire. ‘But good.’
‘So good,’ she whispered back, unable to tear her gaze from his. She wanted him more than she’d ever wanted any man—anything—in her life, and the way he kissed her, the way he looked at her, told her he felt exactly the same way.
He took a step back, putting necessary distance between them. ‘If only we’d met earlier, under different circumstances. I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I have really strong feelings for you,’ he continued. ‘I have done since the day we met, but I’ve tried to ignore them, not wanting to hurt Simone.’
‘Me too.’ Frankie’s eyes burned with tears again as she nodded. Hurting her sister was the last thing she ever wanted to do. What a god-awful mess!
‘The last few hours with you have been so much fun, but also infuriating. Being near you drives me crazy, but my feelings aren’t simply carnal, they run way deeper than that.’
She understood. She felt exactly the same. In any other situation, his words would have been music to her ears, but she heard the ‘but’ behind them and knew what was coming.
‘But I’ve been cheated on before,’ Logan said, ‘and it’s awful. I know you don’t want to sneak around behind Simone’s back any more than I do.’
‘Of course not,’ she whispered, thanking the Lord that one of them had some restraint, as she wasn’t sure she’d have stopped if he hadn’t. ‘So what do we do now?’
Although she didn’t want to hurt Simone, he couldn’t be considering staying with her, could he? Not now. There was no way Frankie could cope if she had to keep seeing him and pretend she didn’t want to jump his bones. And then there was acting normal around Simone—that was going to be hard enough. They’d never had secrets from each other, but this kiss was one thing she would have to take to the grave.
‘I’m going to end it with her,’ he said and all she could do was nod again, relief combining with the terrible guilt that was weighing down her heart.
But that relief was short-lived. She wasn’t stupid. She knew as well as he did that he couldn’t dump her sister and then start going out with her the very next day. ‘And … after that?’
The way he looked at her made her heart skip a beat. ‘I want to pursue this with you, Frankie. More than anything. But I don’t want to come between you and Simone. What do you think we should do?’
She sighed. That was the million-dollar question. What was the protocol in situations like this? Was there a specific time period they should wait before announcing they were seeing each other? Would they find the answer on Google or were they being ridiculous even contemplating getting together?
‘I want to be with you too,’ she admitted, ‘but I’m not sure how to make that happen without hurting the closest person in the world to me.’ It broke her heart confessing this, but right now the thing she wanted most in the world seemed impossible.
‘I understand.’ Logan smiled sadly and reached out. She felt his hand close around hers. He squeezed gently and although his warmth enveloped her, this time it was a show of support, not the start of something else. ‘Let’s just get through the weekend,’ he said. ‘I’ll talk to Simone and we’ll take it from there.’
‘Okay.’ She extracted her hand from his for fear that if she didn’t, she’d never want to let go. Who knew for how long the memories of this kiss would have to be enough. ‘Thank you again for helping me with the cake.’
‘It was my pleasure,’ he said. ‘I didn’t want to be anywhere else. Now, let’s get you to bed. Don’t think about the cake again. I’ll get Angus to help me carry it over to the function room and I promise you we’ll get it there safely.’
Despite her eyes struggling to stay open and her limbs heavy with fatigue, Frankie couldn’t help wishing she was taking Logan to bed with her. Something fluttered low in her belly at the thought. How the hell she’d get any sleep after what had just almost happened between them, she didn’t know. She only hoped that tomorrow she’d make it through the day on adrenalin.
After one final look of admiration at their creation, Frankie and Logan left the cottage, closing the door quietly behind them. It was four o’clock in the morning and still pitch dark outside. Logan got out his phone and used his flashlight app to light the way for them out of the manager’s courtyard, which was adjacent to the rest of the resort.
Once they were in the main complex, a row of low garden lights that edged the paths between the villas lit the way.
‘Do you want me to walk you to your room?’ Logan asked.
‘No, I’ll be fine.’ Safer not to, Frankie thought. Somewhere in the distance she heard the eager crow of a rooster. ‘I’ll see you in a few hours.’
‘You will.’ He looked down at her and for a moment she wondered if he might kiss her again, but instead he sighed, shoved his hands in his pockets, turned and stalked in the direction of the villa he was sharing with Angus.
It wasn’t cold but she shivered as she watched him go.
* * *
The sound of the key turning in the apartment door startled Angus and Simone from their bubble of bliss. Reality struck like a hard blow to the side of his head as he looked down at the beautiful woman in his arms. She froze and her eyes widened as if she too had just realised exactly what they’d done. While they’d been in the throes of passion, alternating between dozing and having sex for what felt like hours on end, they’d entirely forgotten the world around them, the people they loved. But now the truth of the situation came crashing in.
He was a bastard of the highest order, sleeping with his brother’s girl, and he had to get out of there quick fast.
‘Frankie,’ she whispered, her tone urgent.
But he was already on the edge of the bed, scrambling around in the dark for
his clothes. Simone switched on the bedside lamp and he found his jeans, his jocks and shirt. He shoved them on in record time, fumbling with the buttons, making the mistake of turning around while he did so. Simone was sitting up in bed, her face pale and the sheet tugged up around her neck, but it was thin and the curve of her breasts was visible through the sheet, her nipples still peaked, reminding him of moments earlier, when he’d had them in his mouth.
God, she was hot. Recalling how she’d tasted had his dick hardening again, but that didn’t make what they’d done right.
‘I’m sorry,’ he whispered, needing to say something, but not wanting to risk Frankie hearing that Simone had a guest.
She shook her head. ‘It’s okay. It takes two to tango.’
He half-smiled. They’d barely gotten through the first waltz before he’d kissed her—or had she kissed him? He couldn’t recall, but they certainly hadn’t made it to the tango. ‘It shouldn’t have happened.’
‘I know.’
She sounded close to tears and all he wanted to do was climb back into bed, take her into his arms and comfort her, but that was a stupid idea for so many reasons.
Number one: his brother.
Number two: he didn’t get close to women anymore. Sex, yes; when he needed to scratch the itch, he knew where to find someone, no strings attached. But this thing with Simone felt terrifyingly like more than just sex. Simply being around her had him losing control of all his senses.
‘Look,’ he said, perching on the edge of the bed as he began to tug on his socks and boots. ‘Don’t beat yourself up too much. No-one need ever know about this. I don’t want to ruin things between you and Logan—’
‘Logan!’ Simone’s eyes widened. ‘I can’t continue things with Logan after this.’
He lifted a finger to his lips to remind her to keep her voice down. The last thing they needed was Frankie walking in. ‘Okay. Whatever. That’s your prerogative.’ Guilt swamped him at the thought that he’d ruined his little brother’s chance at love. He wasn’t sure how he was ever going to look Logan in the eye again. Hell, he was no better than Loretta. ‘But nothing more can happen between us, you understand that right?’
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