An Accidental Love Affair

by Davida Ann Samenski

  Nicole gazed upward, her hand shielding her eyes. It looked more like a cottage than a house from this distance, with two levels rising from the cliff’s edge. “Do you go there often?”

  “Not as often as I’d like. Mum wants to sell it. I’m trying to convince her to let me have it, but so far it’s a no go.”

  “Why does she want to sell?”

  “The house is on the very edge of our land with too much public access to the beach and surrounding area. My parents like their privacy.”

  “I see their point, especially with your career.”

  “No one knows about me. I mean no one knows Reece Collins is actually Colin Woodhouse.”

  “So Reece is your pseudonym, like Cary Grant was for Archibald Leach?”

  He was impressed. “You do know your old Hollywood, don’t you?”

  “I have a Turner Classic Movie app on my phone.”

  He laughed. “Now that’s hardcore.” He led them down the path to the sandy beach, finding a spot near high rocks to lay out their picnic. “How is this? Does this spot suit you?”

  She smiled at him. “How did you know I don’t like direct sunlight?”

  He pointedly glanced at her hair and freckled arms. “It was a wild guess.”

  She stuck out her tongue. “It’s a curse to be a ginger.”

  He was spreading a blanket on the sand. “I think you’re gorgeous.”

  She scoffed. “I think you need glasses.”

  “I wear contacts.”

  She stared at him in disbelief. “Really?”

  He shook his head. “No, my eyes are good.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” she mumbled, twisting her lips.

  He stood up straight. “Why are you always putting yourself down? You have a very poor self-image.”

  She shrugged. “I’m realistic, Reece. I get up every day and look in the mirror, wondering if today I’ll meet my true love, and every night I go to bed disappointed. I see my flaws, and I know others see them as well. So, I figure there must be something wrong with me. I might write romances, but that doesn’t mean I believe in a happily ever after.”

  He dropped to his knees on the blanket. “How many guys have you dated?”

  “A few. Enough to know what not to expect.” She sat down beside him.

  “And what’s that exactly?”

  “Hearts and flowers. A country boy’s idea of a good time is drinking beer while watching NASCAR or shooting and skinning a deer. Yee-haw!”

  “Looks like you just haven’t found the right guy.”

  She slapped her leg. “Who is the right guy? Seriously, I’ve kissed so many frogs, my lips are chapped.”

  He laughed. “They felt all right to me.”

  She blushed. “Stop flirting with me.”

  “I like flirting with you. You blush and squirm, reacting to my words. It’s like you’re vanilla ice cream, and I’m the hot fudge. You get all melty and breathless, and I want to eat you up.” Her eyes took on a glassy glow, and she momentarily stopped breathing. “You’re doing it now.”

  Nicole looked away, breaking his hypnotic hold. She opened the picnic basket. “You’re just acting, Reece, pretending to like me that way.”

  His eyes narrowed as he moved toward her. “You think so, do you?”

  She lifted her head, seeing his approach. Her eyes widened. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m about to correct your misapprehension.”

  Chapter 5

  Reece grasped her arm, hauling her to her knees and pressing his body to hers. He could feel her heartbeat quicken against his chest. “Your heart is thumping like it’s trying to get away. Are you afraid?”

  “No,” she replied as she stared up into his eyes. “Should I be?”

  He tugged her T-shirt from her jeans. “Yes, Nicole, be very afraid.” He pulled it over her head, tossing it to the blanket. He glanced down at her breasts, barely covered by her lacy bra. He groaned as he buried his face in her cleavage. He kissed one mound and then the other, his mouth nudging the fabric aside until he took her in his mouth, suckling.

  Nicole braced her hands against his shoulders, arching her back, allowing him more access to her wanting flesh. She reached for the hem of his shirt, lifting it and sliding her hands across his abdomen.

  “Touch me, Nicole,” he mouthed against her nipple. “Feel what you’re doing to me.”

  She reached below his waist, taking him in hand. He was so very hard. She desired nothing more than to feel him, skin to skin. “Do you have a condom?”

  “It’s in my left-side back pocket.” He drew his attention to her other breast as his hands skimmed down her body, tracing over the indent of her waist and hips. His fingers popped the button on her jeans, lowering the zipper. “I wanted to do this right.”

  She laughed as she opened his slacks, sliding her hand inside the waistband of his boxers. “You’re doing fine, Colin.”

  He jerked at her touch. “I love when you say my name that way—all deep in your throat like a cat’s purr.” He eased his hand inside her panties, finding her wet with arousal. His pulse notched upward along with his erection. “I’d say you’re ready for me.” He slid her jeans down as far as her bent knees would allow. “Lift your leg, let’s get these off you.” She did as he bid, removing one leg from her jeans and panties. “Lay back, sweetheart.”

  Nicole reclined on the blanket, and he followed her down. “I guess this would be a good time to tell you I’m a virgin,” she joked.

  Reece paused for half a second. “Not anymore, you’re not,” he swore as he plunged home.

  Nicole arched upward, meeting him. He was big, hard, and she thought she’d die from the pain-pleasure of feeling him moving inside her. She wrapped her arms around his back, holding tight with her cheek against his shoulder. “Oh my god,” she moaned as her body tingled from head to toe.

  Reece clasped the back of her head, pulling her hair as he turned her face up to him. “I wanted to make this good for you.”

  “It’s not bad so far.”

  He hmphed as he took her weight onto his thighs, her buttocks resting against his bent legs. “I’ll make it better, I swear,” he said, tossing her down on the blanket and securing her legs around his waist.

  Nicole twisted left and then right, her body rising against his and her muscles clasping and relaxing as it moved. She’d never felt anything so intense in her life. Talk about rubbing someone the right way.

  A strange tingle was beginning in the pit of her stomach and spiraling all over. It traveled down to her legs and feet, curled her toes, and moved up her back to her shoulders and arms, flexing her fingers.

  Her body no longer belonged to her. It was about to explode, as electricity seemed to be blasting from every pore.

  The end was coming; it was nearly upon her as she met him thrust for thrust. “Don’t stop, Reece,” she moaned from deep in her throat. Her nails, sharp as talons, dug into his back, and her body contracted around his as she came.

  Dear God, she thought, give me some more of that. She rode the orgasmic wave as he continued to thrust, and his own movements grew crazy and wild.

  As one climax ended, another began. Reece froze against her with his own fulfillment as she cried out in release.

  He collapsed to his elbows, keeping most of his weight off her, kissing her face and hair as his heartbeat slowed. “Damn, girl, where’d you learn to move like that?”

  “I’ve had lots and lots of practice,” she quipped, her chest rising and falling in hard pants.

  He rose up slightly, frowning down at her.

  She grinned. “I watch porn.”

  His expression didn’t change. “To what purpose?” he asked, rolling to his side and slipping
from her body.

  “How else am I supposed to learn how to write steamy love scenes? Porn might be hardcore and nasty, but it gives me a basic starting point. It’s not like I can go out and do a field study.”

  He slung his arm over his face. “You are full of surprises, Miss DeLancey. Just when I think I’ve met a sassy, but nice girl, I find out she’s a freak.”

  Her eyes closed. She just experienced her very first vaginal orgasm, but it seemed he didn’t appreciate her enthusiasm. She hunched in on herself a bit at the criticism. “Even Usher and Ludacris wanted a Lady in the street, but a Freak in the bed.”

  Reece began to laugh. She had an answer for everything. “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” he said, focusing on her face. She wasn’t smiling with him. “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m sorry I’m not what you expected,” she snapped as she began to adjust her clothing.

  “What are you talking about?” Reece asked, taking her hand. “I didn’t expect anything from you.” He sat up, twisting toward her. “Do you think I’m criticizing you for your reaction?”

  She shrugged, looking away.

  “Nicole, I’m surrounded by fake people twenty-four hours a day, including in the bedroom. It’s a refreshing change to have someone enjoy sex with me like that.”

  “I don’t really,” she said, turning back to him. “I actually hate sex. It’s messy, sometimes painful, and downright boring as hell. If it wasn’t for my hand and my boyfriend Bob, I’d never know what an orgasm felt like.”

  Reece reeled back, nearly coming to his feet. “You have a boyfriend?”

  She chuckled at his reaction. “Yes, Bob as in battery-operated-boyfriend.”

  Reece sat on his haunches, relieved. The last thing he wanted to do was plow in someone else’s field. “So, you’ve never had a satisfying sexual experience before?”

  “Not really. Oh, I can fake it with the best of them, but to actually experience orgasm during the deed, nope.”

  “And your partner has never done anything to remedy that situation?”

  Her look turned scornful. “I’m sorry, but have you ever encountered the male species? You’re all so full of yourselves, in such a rush to meet your own fulfillment, you don’t stop to remember there’s another person there with her own sexual needs. A woman is basically a hole a penis gets shoved into, and it isn’t always the hoo-ha. To most men, any hole will do.”

  “Hoo-ha?”

  She rolled her eyes. “So it’s not the classiest word for vagina, but you get the point.”

  “Nicole, you’re a romance writer. You can come up with a better word.”

  “I’m also a freak, according to you, so any word will do.”

  He laughed, hugging her close. “Did you fake it with me?” he whispered against her hair.

  Should she tell him the truth? She smiled against his shoulder. “I plead the fifth.”

  ~ ~ ~

  They stayed at the beach for some time—talking, laughing, and basically getting to know each other. Reece convinced her to go swimming in the ocean, even though the water was freezing. He warmed her up quickly as he made love to her again, standing upright against the incoming waves and just beyond the breakers. Nicole clung to him as he moved her up and down on his hips.

  At one point, as her eyes scanned the cliffs above, she could swear she saw someone watching them. When she blinked, the person was gone. She figured it was a trick of the sunlight.

  They waded in, wrapping themselves in the blanket and snuggling against each other for warmth. Reaching for his slacks, Reece pulled out his phone and took a selfie of them cocooned under the blanket with her head resting on his shoulder and peeking up at him as his lips caressed her brow. When he showed her the pic, she asked him to send it to her, so she would always have a keepsake of this beautiful moment.

  A short time later, Reece packed up their picnic. Taking her hand, he guided them up the cliff side to the car. They drove away, heading toward the village pub. They were famished.

  As they sat in the common room, eating their meal, they talked very little, saying more with their eyes than mere words could express.

  “Are you ready to see the Cliff House?”

  “You want to go there now? It’s getting pretty late.”

  He shrugged. “I’m not in any hurry to get back to the big house, are you?”

  She shook her head. “No.” She blushed, glancing away. It was obvious he wanted her again; the blue in his eyes was deepening as he watched her. Note to self, she thought, Reece’s eyes darken when he’s in the mood.

  “Let’s go,” he said, laying money on the table. He nodded to the proprietor and escorted her out the door.

  “Does everyone in the village keep your secret?”

  “There are some who would trade my secrets for money, but most of the villagers allow my family its anonymity. My father grew up here and does a lot for the town.”

  “So you’re all one big family?”

  “Yeah, I guess we are.” They got in the car and drove away from the village, paying no mind to the vehicle behind them.

  Reece drove down the lane, parking outside the Cliff House. He loved this place with its breathtaking view of the ocean. Someday, when he grew tired of the Hollywood life, he wanted to live here. He wanted to stand on the cliff’s edge as he stared out at the waves; he wanted to walk the beach every morning and watch the sunset every night.

  “It’s Barton Cottage,” Nicole said, drawing him back to the present.

  “What did you say?”

  Her eyes cut to him then back to the house. “In Sense and Sensibility, the Dashwood ladies are forced to move to Barton Cottage when their half-brother inherits their father’s estate. This looks just like how I imagined the cottage would be.”

  Reece exited the car, coming around to the passenger side to help her out. “Do you think so?”

  She nodded. “It’s wonderful, Reece.”

  “You haven’t seen the inside yet.”

  “Does it have a fireplace that smokes?”

  He laughed. “A very large one,” he said, taking her hand and leading her down the pebbled path to the door.

  He paused before turning the key in the lock. “I thought you might want to shower. I had Maggie bring us some clean clothes while we were at the beach.”

  “That must’ve been her I saw on the cliff this afternoon.” She held her hand to her mouth in embarrassment. “Oh God, she saw us. She’ll think I’m another groupie throwing myself at you.”

  Reece held the door open. “Maggie’s not like that. She doesn’t judge.” He moved passed her to turn on a light. “Here, make yourself comfortable while I put on a spot of tea.”

  “You know how to boil water?” she asked as she walked toward the sofa.

  “I’m a man of many talents, Nicole, as you will soon find out.” With that cryptic remark, he left her alone.

  Nicole glanced around the room, surprised to find it looking so clean. Had Maggie straightened the place up for them? Now she was even more embarrassed. Did the woman suspect Reece was planning to seduce her?

  “Why are you frowning?” he asked, watching as she jumped in fright.

  She held her hand to her chest. “Ghosts make more noise than you do. Why were you sneaking up on me?”

  “I wasn’t. You were so deep in thought, you didn’t hear me return. Care to tell me what’s put that look in your eyes?”

  She pressed her lips together, crossing her arms. “I’m not comfortable with Maggie knowing what you had planned for me tonight.”

  His eyebrows rose. “What do you mean?”

  “It looks pretty clean in here. Maggie must have come and straightened up.”

  “I did that while you were writing this morning. Why do you
think I was gone so long?”

  Her shoulders relaxed in relief. “Oh, so Maggie . . .”

  “Has no idea about us.” He raked his hand through his hair. “I mean she suspects something on my part, but . . .”

  “What does she suspect?”

  He tucked his hands in his pockets. “I’ve never brought a girl home before. I’ve never taken anyone to the ruins and most certainly never brought anyone here. In Maggie’s eyes, that’s saying something.” He took a step toward her.

  Nicole’s heart thumped hard in her chest at his approach. “What about your eyes?”

  “My eyes say you’re the most special woman I’ve ever met, and I’d be a fool to let you escape.” He stopped directly in front of her, his hands taking hers and entwining their fingers. “I think I’m in serious danger of falling in love with you.”

  “After two days?” she asked skeptically.

  “Nine days. I’ve been crazy about you since the first moment we met.”

  “That was a long time ago,” she said sarcastically.

  He raised her hand to his mouth. “It seems that way.” He studied her face as he kissed each fingertip. “What about you?”

  She bit her lip, unsure how to reply. “I think I’m . . . going to get that shower. Where is it?”

  He took a step back, dropping her hands. “Straight down the hall is a bedroom with an en suite bath. You can’t miss it.”

  “Thank you.” She moved toward the hallway but paused at the threshold, peeking over her shoulder at him. “I picked up sand in a lot of hard to reach places. Think you could help me scrub it off?” she asked, teasing him with a come-hither look.