His responding laughter rumbled through his body, and his shaft twitched in her hands. She lowered her left hand to his balls and cupped them. With her right hand, she tightened her grip and began stroking his length, loving how the slipperiness of the gel allowed her to glide up and down with ease. When she spotted the precum gathering at its tip, Mia was eager to taste it—but not so eager to get a mouthful of shower gel. She ignored her urges for a little longer, then made light work of washing Thomas from neck to ankle from the front, before encouraging him to wash off the suds, which he did.
When he turned to face her again, she was still on her knees, ready and waiting to pick up where she’d left off. His eyes dark and heavy-lidded with lust, he drank in the sight of her and fisted his dick, pumping it a couple of times before aiming it towards her mouth. She opened for him willingly and gripped his backside as he removed his hand and continued to feed his cock between her lips. Then she used the leverage to urge him deeper, and deeper still, until his glans brushed her gag reflex. Thomas groaned.
Mia pulled back slightly, then worked on getting his cock good and wet with saliva before curling her fingers around the base of his shaft and beginning to bob her mouth up and down on it. She alternated between applying heavy suction and flicking her tongue around him, teasing and tormenting until it was clear he was on the very edge of climax.
He groped around clumsily for a moment, then tangled his hands in her hair, holding her head as she increased the pace. “Shit, Mia, that’s… so good. I’m gonna c…ome soon.”
Given that was the whole point, she didn’t bother to respond. Instead, she sucked him harder and faster still, shifted her left hand down to his balls again, then slipped a finger behind them to press and rub at the smooth skin of his perineum.
The extra stimulation pushed Thomas over the edge. His grip on her hair tightened, sending sparks of pain dancing across her scalp, and he gave a couple of jerks of his hips before his balls tightened, then shot their load into her mouth. She moved her hands back to his buttocks, digging her fingernails into his flesh as she swallowed his cum.
When he was done, he stepped back, pulling his cock from her mouth with a pop. Mia was just about to get up when Thomas slipped his hands beneath her arms and hauled her to her feet. Her gasp was cut off when he captured her mouth and treated her to a slow, smouldering kiss.
He broke it off for just a second to give her a wide smile and say, “Your turn,” before continuing the kiss as he slipped a hand between their bodies and sought her pussy, which was slick and eager, her clit throbbing with need.
She moaned into his mouth as he touched her sensitive flesh. First he cupped her in his big, warm hand, and gave a rough squeeze, causing Mia to grunt and jerk her hips, urging him on. But he didn’t need any encouragement, not really. Sweeping two of his fingertips up inside her seam, he gathered her juices and swiped them over her swollen, needy clit. Then he began alternately circling and pressing the tiny bundle of nerve endings, sending bolts of pleasure shooting through her entire body. Pressure built in her lower belly, increasing with every passing second, each measured stroke of Thomas’s talented fingers.
Before long, she was clinging to him, concerned her already-trembling legs wouldn’t hold her up when she came. But then, not unlike the bursting of a dam, her orgasm hit, and the concern was wiped out of her head entirely, leaving only sensation, only pleasure, which gradually morphed into intense satisfaction.
Thomas wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, then pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Come on,” he said softly, “let’s get you cleaned up now.”
With that, he carefully manoeuvred them both so they’d swapped places and the shower beat down on Mia’s tingling skin. She stood there, still and silent in her post-orgasmic haze as he swiftly but skilfully washed and rinsed her hair, then did the same to her body. After checking they were both soap- and sud-free, Thomas switched off the water, then stepped out of the bath. She watched with mild disappointment as he grabbed one of the towels she’d put out and wrapped around his waist, covering up some of her favourite parts of him.
But she couldn’t resist smiling when he picked up the second towel, approached the bath and held it out for her. She stepped out carefully, and murmured her thanks when he engulfed her in the soft, fluffy, fabric conditioner-scented material and carried her into the bedroom. “Well,” she said thickly, having finally regained her voice, “that was fun.”
Thomas chuckled and put her down on the bed. “That’s an understatement. Shame we haven’t got time to carry on.”
She frowned. “What? Why?”
He jerked his head towards the wall clock, which was just a few minutes short of five o’clock.
“Oh, fuck! How the hell is it that late already?”
With a smirk, Thomas replied, “They do say time flies when you’re having fun, don’t they?”
She stuck her tongue out at him, then leapt from the bed. “God, I’d better get some clothes on and get back to the house before he phones. He might have phoned already—he said the latest he thought he’d be out of the meeting was half past five. Fuck!”
As she scurried towards the wardrobe, Thomas said, “What are you doing? Wearing some of my clothes? I don’t think that’s a good idea, do you? Normally I wouldn’t mind, but…”
Opening the doors and delving inside, she said without turning around, “Don’t be daft, of course I’m not putting on your clothes. I’m putting on mine. I’ve just had a shower—I don’t want dirty clothes on.”
“You’ve got clothes here?” he said, his tone incredulous.
“Yes. Bloody hell, didn’t you notice there was stuff in here that wasn’t yours?” She’d found everything she needed, so she gathered the items in her arms and carried them over to the bed, where she put them down. “I’ve got toiletries and makeup here, so why not clothes?”
“Toiletries and makeup?”
Mia rolled her eyes, then dropped the towel and began getting ready. “Christ, I’m beginning to think you could get burgled and you wouldn’t notice. Good job there are great big bloody walls and gates around the estate, isn’t it? Hey,” she called as she realised he was still standing in his towel, staring at her half-naked form, “you need to get ready too, remember? Unless you want to meet Arjun in a towel?”
Smiling, he made a rude gesture with his fingers and turned to retrieve his own things, muttering about clothes, toiletries and makeup, much to Mia’s amusement.
She couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed. But now he had, he didn’t seem to be making a big deal of it, so that was a plus. She wasn’t surprised—they spent so much time together now that they were incredibly comfortable in each other’s company. When she was home, she more often than not stayed overnight at the cottage, then hurried back to the main house early, before Betty or James arrived. Sometimes, she let Thomas head out into the gardens and start work so they wouldn’t be seen together. Then she’d casually wander back to the house, and if she did bump in to the butler or the housekeeper, she’d say she’d been for a walk in the grounds, which was a perfectly believable explanation since it was something she’d done on a fairly regular basis for years—though not usually quite so early in the morning. Though none of that mattered at weekends, since they didn’t work then.
“Okay,” she said as she pulled on her boots, “I’m gonna dash up to the house now in case he’s been phoning, and I’ll sort my hair and makeup out there—I’ve got a bit of time since he doesn’t have the address for here yet, so the closest he could have got without more information is the village. And then he’ll have to go and get the food, so I can definitely make myself presentable—”
“Mia?”
She paused in her task of putting her jewellery back on. “Yes?”
“Stop dithering and just go, would you? I’ll get sorted, put your stuff in a bag, and be right behind you, all right? And I’m honestly okay with either pizza or Chinese—you know my usual order.”
“Okay.” She took a step towards the door, then stopped.
Thomas frowned. “What is it now?”
“Where should we eat? The dining room seems a bit… formal. It’s not a bloody dinner party. But then the kitchen seems so…” She shrugged.
“Ah, you see, that’s the trouble with having such a big house. Too many rooms to choose from.” He grinned.
She shot him a dirty look. “Thanks, Tom, that’s very helpful. So much for not wanting me to get stressed out.”
He crossed the room and put his hands on her shoulders, regarding her seriously. “I’m sorry, I was just teasing.” He gave her a quick peck on the lips. “Listen, I know you like this guy and you’re worried about how he might react. But thinking positively, if he sticks around, you want him to get to know the real you, right? Therefore we should eat wherever you feel most comfortable. If he doesn’t like it, then he’s not going to fit in with you anyway, is he?”
“No, I guess not.” She smiled. “There’s that genius I know and love!” She reached up and playfully ruffled his hair, then danced away from him before he could retaliate. “See you up at the house in a few,” she threw over her shoulder as she hurried from the room.
“Not if I see you first!”
Chapter Twelve
Despite having anticipated it, Mia jumped violently when the buzzer for the main gate went off. Her heart pounding, she hurried over to the wall panel in the kitchen and pressed the button. The screen flickered to life, and Arjun’s smiling face appeared, his skin tone a little washed out by the bright security lights that were currently pointing at him.
“Hi, Arjun! Glad you found it all right in the dark. I’ll open the gates, just come on up the drive and park in front of the house. I’ll be at the door to let you in.”
“All right, see you in a minute,” he replied, then gave a funny little salute before pressing the button to close his window.
She turned to see Thomas pulling a face from his position at the kitchen table, which was where she’d decided they’d eat. She and Thomas had set it up with place mats, plates, glasses, and paper napkins. Raising her eyebrows, she asked, “What’s up with you now?”
“Ugh, he even has a sexy accent. This guy is just so perfect I’m beginning to wonder whether you even need Elias and Alex, never mind me!”
“Oh, stop it!” She walked over to him shaking her head, then kissed him softly. “I don’t have time to massage your ego right now—he’ll be at the door any second. If you’ve changed your mind about meeting him…”
“Are you kidding?” He grabbed her hand and sat up straighter in his chair. “I’m dying to meet him. I want to see if I can find fault with him!”
Mia couldn’t help chuckling. “You think he’s so great, maybe you should date him, too. That would certainly add an interesting dimension to things.”
Thomas frowned and opened his mouth to reply, but before he got chance to give voice to whatever had caused his brow to crease, the doorbell rang.
“Be nice, all right?” she said, giving Thomas a warning glance before hurrying to let her visitor in. Along the way, she smoothed her hair and made sure her clothes were straight. When she arrived at the door, she took a deep breath, then let it out as she opened up. Smiling, she said, “Hi, Arjun. Welcome. Come on in!”
She stepped back, and Arjun crossed the threshold, laden down with pizza boxes and with a carrier bag swinging from one hand. “Thank you.” He took in his surroundings, then turned to her. “You have a beautiful home, Mia. Naturally I couldn’t see much of the gardens in the dark, but I’m sure in a few weeks they’ll be bursting into life.”
Her smile widened. That was a topic that he and Thomas would be able to discuss, and hopefully discover some common ground in the process. “Thank you. And yes, absolutely. It’s always a great time of year when shoots start appearing. I’m always glad to see the end of winter.” She closed the door. “Come on through. We’re eating in the kitchen—I hope that’s all right?”
“Of course,” he said with a shrug. “Lead the way.”
“Great. Can I take anything?”
“No, it’s fine, thank you.”
With that, she led him to the kitchen, thinking for what had to be the millionth time since her father had died what a weird life she was living. How was it possible that she was about to sit down and eat pizza with two hot guys and then discuss her increasingly complicated love life?
Thomas jumped up as they entered the room, a polite smile on his face, but with a glimmer of uncertainty in his eyes that Mia was sure only she would recognise. He waited until Arjun had put his load down on the table, then stepped up to him, right hand outstretched. “Hello, mate, nice to meet you. I’m Tom.” Mia watched their exchange with interest and not a small amount of anxiety, checking out their body language for any possessiveness or aggression, but found none.
Arjun, who’d known Thomas would be joining them—albeit not the reason why—since Mia had mentioned it on the phone, returned the smile and shook his hand. “I’m Arjun. Good to meet you, too.”
They let go, and Arjun immediately turned to Mia. “I can say hello to you properly now, since I don’t have my hands full.”
She smiled and happily accepted his hug and another double-cheek kiss, not feeling she had to jerk away this time, like she had in the pub. Nobody here was watching them—except for Thomas of course, but that was completely different. She allowed herself a second to bask in the scent of his cologne—something deep and masculine, and delicious. She’d got a hint of it earlier, but since it wasn’t overpowering and she’d kept a bit of distance between them, it really had only been a hint. Pulling away a little reluctantly, she said, “Thank you for bringing dinner. I guess we should dig in before it starts going cold.”
“Yes,” he replied, “we should. Lunchtime feels like it was a very, very long time ago.”
They sat down at the round table, with Mia in the middle. Thomas poured them all drinks, while Mia and Arjun opened the various boxes and arranged them so they were within reach of everyone. “This smells delicious,” Mia said, then reached out and pulled a slice of the nearest pizza onto her plate, before snagging a handful of potato wedges. “So, how was your meeting, Arjun?”
He had been midway through having a drink when she’d asked, so didn’t reply right away. He swallowed, then smiled and nodded. “It went really well, I think. You can never be sure about these things—I’ve come out of meetings before where I had a great rapport and everyone seemed enthusiastic, but then the answer was a no. And on the other side of the coin, I’ve had meetings which I thought had been appalling, but ended up with a positive response. So I guess it could go either way, but my gut is telling me that it’s a yes. I mean, like you said earlier, Mia, it’s a no-brainer on their part, isn’t it? Scholarships, funding, mentorships… what’s not to like?” He turned to Thomas, who was busily demolishing a slice of pizza. “I’m sorry, Tom, you probably have no idea what we’re talking about.”
His mouth full of food as it was, Thomas waggled his hand, indicating that it didn’t matter.
With a gracious smile, Arjun returned his attention to Mia and continued, “All I can do is wait and see. They’ve said they’ll get back to me by the end of the week. But it would be a really great opportunity for them, and for me.”
Mia couldn’t help thinking it might be a really great opportunity for her, too, if it resulted in Arjun being in the area more often. But she kept that sentiment to herself for now—it was way too early to be thinking like that. It was still entirely possible he would learn of her “relationship status” and run for the hills, never to be seen again. “Let’s hope they make the right decision, then,” she said.
Arjun nodded, having now taken a bite of food himself. Mia then turned to her other side and said, “Hey, Tom, Arjun was talking about how amazing the gardens are going to look when spring arrives…”
“Yeah?” Thomas coughed, probably to cover up t
he surprise in his voice. “They will, hopefully. There’s been a lot of prep work gone in, but there’s lots more to do, of course, and it’s a huge area, keeps me incredibly busy…”
At that, the three of them fell into conversation, sticking with safe topics like the gardens, the weather, books and music, as they ate and drank.
The entire time, Mia felt as though she was in some kind of limbo. Although she was comfortable in Arjun’s company, and enjoying herself chatting with him and Tom, she couldn’t entirely relax while the real reason for Arjun’s visit still hung over their heads. As she glanced at the table, though, she realised that between them they were making light work of the food, so it wouldn’t be too much longer before the conversation turned to more serious topics. One in particular.
Sure enough, once they’d all finished eating and Mia and Thomas had cleared the table and returned to their seats, Arjun flicked his gaze between her and the gardener. A tiny line appearing between his eyebrows, he said tentatively, “Is it okay, er, to talk now?”
Mia’s heart clenched, but at the same time she was glad the wait was over. She’d always thought that when it came to the unpleasant things in life, the anticipation was often worse than the actual thing. She was also impressed at Arjun’s subtle, albeit not particularly articulate, way of saying So is he going to be here for this conversation, or what? She and Thomas hadn’t been at all affectionate since Arjun’s arrival, but she’d be incredibly surprised if he actually thought they were just friends, or merely employer and employee. Well, if he didn’t suspect, he’d know for sure very soon.
“Yes,” she replied with a decisive nod. “Tom is here for a reason. Unless you object?” She hoped not, because if he wasn’t happy in Thomas’s presence, then the whole reason for this awkward encounter was null and void.
Arjun shook his head emphatically, his eyes wide with concern. “No, of course not. I just wanted to make sure it was okay to speak freely.”
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