Catch

by Kenyon, Toni

  "Matt, it's ten past five. You'd better wake up."

  "Hmm?" He wriggled, drew her closer to him and attempted to haul the sheets up over them again.

  She pulled away, shaking his arm gently. "Matt, you need to wake up - it's morning."

  He opened one sleep-laden eye and looked at her. "What you saying, gorgeous?"

  "We fell asleep. It's ten past five. You should probably shower - you'll need to get home and head for work."

  "What?" He looked at the clock, comprehension registering on his features. "Aw, shit." He sat bolt upright. "I knew you'd be trouble. What did you do, put a spell on me or something?"

  Oh, how she wished. "No. You slept like a baby – well, we both did." She pushed him playfully down on the bed, "No damage done, though. You've still got time to get home and ready for work and no one will ever be the wiser."

  He flipped her back up on top of him; his hard cock pressing against her stomach. "We could always have a quick refresher course before I go."

  She couldn't believe how much he turned her on; she could feel herself getting wet again. "Hm, sounds like a great idea."

  He grabbed her hair, pulling her down to him so he could plant a kiss on her willing lips. God, she liked it rough - it was such a turn on. Then he hesitated.

  "What's the matter?" Tamsen asked. He seemed to be losing interest and she hadn't a clue why.

  "My bloody mother's in town."

  "So?" She was confused.

  "She arrived last night with some idiotic notion of getting me back with my ex-fiancée."

  "Well, she hasn't got a hope, has she?" Tamsen kissed him passionately and he responded, fully aroused again.

  "No - " he tried to talk around her insistent kisses " - you don't understand."

  "I do." She continued the kissing barrage. "You can't come and fuck me tonight, you're seeing your mother, so you’d better give me a good one now before you go."

  He struggled vainly under her. "Tamsen." His tone was stern and he sounded troubled.

  She stopped being obstructive, a pending sense of doom filling her heart.

  "It's not that, babe."

  He really was disturbed. She felt sorry for him.

  "What is it? You can tell me."

  "Mother's parked in my spare room at the moment. She'll know I haven't been home."

  "You're a big boy - you can stay out all night if you want too." She kissed him playfully on the nose. "And besides, wasn't I worth getting into trouble for?"

  He smiled. "Oh, hell, yes."

  "Well, then, stop your whining, give me the shagging I deserve for keeping you out all night, rush back home and tell Mother a huge pack of lies and all will be well."

  "You're evil."

  "I know. Now shut up and get to work."

  He grinned. "But what'll I tell Mother?"

  She gave him a wicked grin. "You'll think of something. You're a lawyer."

  Tamsen sprawled across her bed, wrapped in a sheet, feeling deliciously used and abused. She'd just seen Matt out the front door; he'd refused all offers of a shower, citing in his defense that her bathroom was too much of a risk. The chances of him spending any more time around her naked and ever getting home for a change of clothes were apparently two inconsistent concepts.

  She'd pouted, but he was probably right. If he'd showered she'd have joined him and they'd have had another marathon session. So he'd left - probably smelling like he'd spent the night shagging.

  Tamsen wondered how the scene would play out when he got home. By all accounts his mother was a battle-ax. Poor Matt, he was in for a hell of a time. Part of her felt guilty, the other part was too busy drifting off into post-coital bliss. She didn't have to be up for at least another hour.

  Life, she decided, was definitely looking up.

  Matt couldn't believe he was sneaking into his own home. With any luck his mother would be asleep and he'd be able to fudge the time he got in. Why he thought there might be a chance he could manage that now when he'd failed miserably as a sixteen-year-old he couldn't fathom.

  So far, so good. If he could make it to the bedroom, without bumping into her he was sweet.

  Safe inside his bedroom, he could feel his heart beating rapidly. He leaned up against his closed door and stifled the overwhelming desire to giggle hysterically. He'd pulled it off. All he had to do was make the bed look slept in and get himself in the shower and then even he would almost believe he'd been here all night.

  He threw the pillows around on his bed, feeling ridiculous. How the hell had he managed to get to this stage in his life and still be trying to pull the wool over his mother's eyes? Maybe because it was easier than fronting with the truth.

  The evening he'd just had with Tamsen was one of the best he'd had in a very long time. She was great. They'd laughed, enjoyed each other's company, had plenty to talk about - and then there was the sex. Lord, the sex.

  Showered, he climbed back into corporate battledress, checking his watch and debating whether or not he had time for breakfast. A quick coffee would have to suffice.

  Matt realized he was happy and content - he'd forgotten what that felt like. It was amazing what good company, good food and great sex could do for a man's outlook on life. He really was a simple man with simple needs.

  He cast a backward glance at his "slept in" bed. Best leave it as it was, as much as that grated; he might as well make the charade convincing.

  He'd half drunk his coffee and was just looking for a pad and pen to leave a note for his mother when she walked into the kitchen.

  "And what time did you get in?"

  "Good morning to you too, Mother. Lemon looks really great on you. Is the robe new?" He leaned forward and planted a kiss on her forehead.

  Marguerite’s petite, delicate frame sheathed an iron will. Many were fooled by her fragility; Matt was not. He knew the warrior woman within.

  He asked, "Would you like a cup of coffee? The jug's just boiled."

  "You know I don't drink that instant muck, Matthew."

  "Well, there're beans or grounds in the pantry, and you shouldn't have any trouble with the machine - you did buy it."

  She looked hurt. He still hated it when she played the I'm-a-victim card with him; she was not and had clearly never been a victim in her life. "Aren't you going to have breakfast with me? I travel all the way from Sydney and my only child can't even find the time to sit down and have a decent discussion with me."

  He sighed, looking at his watch. If he didn't get away soon he was going to get stuck in rush-hour traffic and he detested that. "Mother, I've got to get to work. I promise, I'll be home about six tonight and I'll take you out for dinner. We'll catch up then. How does that sound?"

  She brightened. "That sounds fine, Matthew. I'll keep myself busy until you get home. It's pretty clear I haven't been uppermost in your mind since I arrived."

  "I've got to go." He hugged her awkwardly. "I'll see you at six."

  She called after him. "What shall I wear, Matthew?"

  "Whatever you're comfortable with, Mother." He'd work out where to go for dinner based on what she chose; it was easier that way. "Casual" was a concept his mother neither acknowledged nor chose to understand.

  Tamsen's foot tickled. She was vaguely aware of a raspy feeling, followed by sudden and intense pain.

  "Ow, Azriel. Stop it, you beast." The cat was licking and chewing her foot, a sure sign she'd slept in past the little horror's breakfast time. "No need to worry about an alarm clock when you're around, is there, boy?"

  He padded up the bed and started rubbing himself insistently against her hand. If she didn't get up he'd move to her face and start chewing her chin. It was an amusing ritual she'd grown used to, but she didn't particularly want to get out of bed this morning. Far too many shenanigans during the night, she suspected.

  Locating her negligee on the floor, she smiled at the memory of how it got there, popped it on and headed to the bathroom, Azriel darting between her legs and
in danger of tripping her up. He was an affectionate little man and she was grateful for his company.

  I'm late starting the day today. Her friend, the blank page, waited patiently for an explanation while she collected her thoughts. Only Azzie and I at home. Gina's God knows where, and for the second morning in a row I can hardly close my legs due to the amount of time they spent with gorgeous Matt between them. I feel like such a decadent creature but he's wonderful. I've never met anyone like him. I can't wipe the smile off my face. He just has to be the most amazing person. We've got so much in common it's scary. Horror of horrors, I'm not going to be able to see him tonight. His mother's in town. Some desperate attempt to get him and his ex back together. Over my deceased body! This one's worth fighting for. I hope she's up for it. Sounds like it could be Prada handbags at fifty paces.

  Tamsen set about locating something that resembled food for breakfast. The food fairies hadn't been in during the night and restocked the cupboards. A lone and battle-weary banana was all that was left of the fruit bowl after Matt's grape assault. It would have to do. At least there was still some dandelion tea on hand. She poured boiling water over the leaves and made short work of the banana.

  Azriel mooched back to his bowl, giving her another one of those is-this-all-there-is looks that cats perfect in order to keep cat-food companies earning billions of dollars per year.

  She giggled at him. "'Fraid so, pal. I'll do the shopping on the way home. What would you like this week - salmon or chicken?"

  He looked at her as if she'd lost the plot. Today, she decided, he could be right.

  Life was good. There was an industry gathering coming up in Wellington this weekend and Gina was heading down with her on the train. They had both decided a side of shopping and girly fun should be thrown in for good measure.

  Matt pulled as far down the driveway as he was able. He really must get onto the workmen again - the landscaping was taking forever. How tough could it be, building a couple of retaining walls and planting a few more trees? Admittedly the site was steep, but these guys were supposed to be the best.

  His tolerance levels were shot. The day had been crap and the prospect of fending off his mother's concerted attacks didn't appeal. He'd resigned himself to a fight. Best see what she was wearing and work out where to for dinner.

  He had in his mind a little intimate upmarket restaurant in Parnell a client had recommended. Reservations were pretty tight, but his man had called and put in a good word. If they could be there within the next two hours a table was theirs.

  Dropping his briefcase in the foyer, he heard voices coming from the kitchen. Strange.

  "Ah, darling Matthew, I thought I heard your car." Marguerite met him in the lounge, a glass of champagne in her hand. She never drank alone.

  He looked around but couldn't see anyone. "Is there someone here? I thought I could hear voices."

  "Hello, Matt."

  Every hair on the back of his neck came to attention. His palms broke out in a sweat and he had the urge to run out of the house. He had to check himself; it was his house.

  "Angie." Her name stuck in his throat. "Fuck!"

  "Matthew. Language, please." Marguerite had a pained expression.

  He'd give her pain, he thought. "What the hell are you doing here?"

  "I invited her, Matthew. She's graciously consented to come out to dinner with us so we can tidy up this whole misunderstanding."

  "Over my dead fucking body." Matt felt a flush of rage rising in a torrent from his aching gut. All the frustrations of the day had been looking for an opportune moment to unburden themselves, and this was it. "You can get the hell out of here." Matt directed the stinging missiles of his words at Angie.

  Angie just stood there, an infuriating, superior look on her face. Matt had resigned himself a long time ago to the fact she and his mother worked hand in hand. But the audacity of her, to arrive here now and expect...it was too much.

  "Now, Matt, don't be like that, darling." She even sounded smug.

  "Don't fucking darling me." He shot her a look he hoped could kill but she didn't even flinch. He was swimming in shit, no match for their combined talents.

  "If you're not going to leave, you two can do what you like. I'm gone." No way was he spending an evening with arsenic Angie. "And you - " he jabbed a finger in Angie's direction " - had better be off the property when I get back or I'll call the police and have you physically removed."

  "Matthew!" His mother looked mortified.

  "I'd advise you to stay well out of this, Mother. The Angel Gabriel will be welcoming Lucifer at the pearly gates before I get back with this bitch."

  Blinding, white-hot anger fueled his return to the car. Only as he backed out the driveway did he realize he had absolutely no idea where he was going.

  Tamsen busily unpacked the groceries, a chore she hated. It was bad enough she’d had to spend all that time dragging herself around the supermarket aisles, dodging pensioners and children. And the men! Those same men who were able to park cars on ten-cent pieces, but didn't seem to be able to apply the keep-right rule in a simple supermarket aisle. Now she had to haul the darned stuff into the kitchen and unpack it. Where was the justice?

  The intercom buzzed. She wasn't expecting anyone. Surely it wasn’t Gina being delivered home drunk again?

  "Hello?"

  "Tamsen, it's Matt. Sorry to arrive unannounced."

  "Not a problem." She punched the security gate lock to let him in the building. "Come on up."

  Oh, joy. She felt like jumping up and down on the spot. He was supposed to be going out for dinner with his mother. What could have happened? Did she really care? The point was he was here. Her mind ran off in all sorts of dirty directions. What a bonus.

  She cast a glance over the kitchen - the mass of displaced food items plus plenty more still waiting to be discovered hidden inside opaque plastic. What the hell, the mess wasn't too bad.

  At the knock on the door she almost sprinted to greet him.

  "Azzie, get out the way." The black ball of fluff was sitting patiently at the door so she picked him up. "You know it's not time to go out yet."

  "Hey." Matt looked strung out. His tone was jovial but it didn't match the sadness that Tamsen saw in his beautiful brown eyes. "Didn't know you had a cat."

  She was touched to see Matt tickle Azriel under the chin. Azzie purred in appreciation, a good sign. The little man had always been quite the judge of character.

  "Yeah, he loves it up here on the fourth floor. He'd like to get out at this time of night though. I take him down with me in the morning. He gets to gallivant around all day and then he spends the night up here with us. He's rather cool, don't you think?"

  "I do."

  Tamsen shut the door and put the cat down. Azriel had got no more than a couple of feet from them before Matt collected her in a huge bear hug, his whiskers scratching the side of her neck as he nuzzled her. He felt good, even if his scent was strong and acrid; he still wore the stress of the day.

  It made no matter. She longed to crawl inside him, be devoured and consumed by him. He made her crazy with lust. His mouth found hers. His kisses were urgent, angry even. She didn't care. Her body reacted instantly to his frenzy, her core temperature rising with the flush of desire. As he pressed her against the wall of the hallway she felt alive, vital, lost in the moment.

  "God, I need you," he gasped. "It feels like I need to kill someone, or fuck."

  "Fuck away."

  CHAPTER NINE

  Afterward they both slid down the wall until they were sitting on the cool floor, having taken care to untangle a mass of sweaty limbs and twisted clothing. Tamsen noticed beads of sweat running in small rivulets in front of Matt's ears. His chest heaved as his breathing slowed.

  Tamsen laid her head against his damp upper arm and asked, "What that was all about?"

  He looked across at her, a sheepish grin taking shape. "Er, I'm not actually quite sure." He kissed her on the
crown of her head.

  "Maybe we should get cleaned up and you can tell me why you're here and not having dinner with your mother, hmm?"

  "A very good idea." He grinned wickedly. "You just want to get me in that bathroom of yours again - I know your game."

  She laughed out loud. "You don't think there's much chance of seduction after that little performance, do you?"

  "I have to admit, you might have a point there."

  He looked around, searching for the remains of his clothing. "What is it about you? I seem to be developing this habit of tearing my clothes off in the most inappropriate places." Matt's shirt buttons lay scattered across the room - he'd been in such a hurry to get his clothes off he'd almost shredded them.

  She stood up, searching for her missing panties, which seemed to have vacated her jeans in the rush. "I'm just a devil woman is all."

  "You're not wrong there." He was collecting buttons off the floor. "Don't suppose you're much of a seamstress, are you?"

  "I'm sure I've got a sewing kit stashed somewhere."

  "Stolen from some unsuspecting hotel, no doubt."

  "How did you know?" She laughed.

  "Just a wild guess."

  "Come on, you." She smacked him playfully on the bottom. "Bathroom."

  Matt sat shirtless on the leather sofa watching Tamsen sew the few buttons he could find back on his shirt.

  "My, you're a woman of many talents."

  She stopped work and smiled. "I am and you haven't even seen the start of them yet."

  "Is that right? Keep up with that sort of dirty talk and you might have another bout of raping and pillaging on your hands."

  She laughed. "I thought it was the victim, not the perpetrator, whose clothes got shredded."

  "Ah, so I'm lousy at role play." He shrugged. "Maybe you can teach me a few tricks."

  "I'm sure I can."

  He knew she could. He’d had no intention whatsoever of having sex with her when he walked in the door. He hadn't even realized quite how uptight and angry he was with his mother until he got here. In fact, he'd been surprised to find himself on the motorway coming in this direction. His anger and humiliation at the scene he'd come home to still burned deep. His mother had gone way too far this time.