by K. K. Allen
“You have to try this.” She placed the forkful against my lips, forcing me to open my mouth.
When the food hit my tongue and I started to swallow, my moan matched hers. She took turns, feeding herself then me until the entire cake was gone.
She set down the fork and made a face. “Oops. We ate it all.”
I threw back my head and laughed at her play of innocence. If I hadn’t known better, I just might have believed her. But Chelsea, I was learning, had quite the appetite for dessert—something I should have found out during our five-course meal the other night, but after the fourth course, we’d just repeated courses one through four over and over again.
She handed my glass of champagne back to me, and we both took sips, our eyes locked and connected while the alcohol slipped down our throats and burned through our veins. I wanted so badly to kiss the woman who playfully swiped at her lips when she finished her glass. But for the first time ever, in the presence of a female I liked, I didn’t know what to do. I worried about making the wrong move, saying the wrong thing, pushing too hard. Ultimately, I worried that if I slipped up, Chelsea would want to end things, like she’d mentioned the other day. I didn’t know how this thing between us would play out, or what the wrong thing was versus the right, but I knew with every fiber of my body that I didn’t want it to end.
Chelsea tilted her head and smiled back at me with half-drawn eyes. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
Setting my glass on the tray beside us, I turned back to her with a shake of my head. “I don’t think I should tell you.”
Her hand moved to my cheek and ran against the bristles of the facial hair I’d trimmed to a perfect scruff that morning in anticipation of tonight. My heart was batting away in my chest. “Oh, I think you should.”
I wrapped an arm around her waist, keeping her locked to me as I shook my head again. “Maybe it’s your turn to tell me your thoughts.”
Chelsea moved her hand down to my chest, spreading my robe as she went. “How about I show you?”
I swallowed, bracing myself as she undid the fabric rope knotted at my waist. “I promise to pay very close attention.”
When her hand wrapped around my thick shaft, I bit my bottom lip, muffling my guttural reaction to her touch. There was nothing better than Chelsea’s small but strong hands gripping me like I was her personal plaything, there to stroke, squeeze, jerk, and fuck however she pleased.
Her smile was infectious as she leaned down and kissed me, her firm lips soft and wet as they trapped mine. Meanwhile, her movements quickened down below.
I was just starting to get used to her rhythm when she released me, pulled her robe open below, and centered herself over my cock. I watched her with so much pleasure as she sank down around me, shuddering at my base.
“Fuck me,” I cursed against her lips.
Something about Chelsea Banks made me completely lose my mind when I was buried inside her, like I was a Lost Boy flying through Neverland for the very first time, and her pussy was the fairy dust that made me believe.
“That’s the plan,” Chelsea responded coyly as she latched onto my shoulders and picked up her speed.
And off she went, bucking over me like she was racing for the finish line. To where, I had no clue, but I wasn’t about to stop and ask. I undid the knot that kept her robe pulled together on top then yanked it apart, freeing her breasts and attacking one with my tongue, then my mouth. I sucked her until she cried out, warning me of her oncoming release.
I flipped her onto her back, shoving the material of her robe out of the way then entering her again. Picking up her hips, I deepened my thrusts, trying to steady my pace to make sure she was right there with me. The second she squeezed around me was all the signal I needed to let go.
“This is exactly why I wanted to be careful with you,” Chelsea said through her heavy breathing.
I lowered myself around her, propping myself up by my elbows and kissing her softly on the lips. “Why’s that?”
She touched my lips, her eyes searching mine. “You’re an addiction, Liam Colborn. One I can’t afford to get hooked on.”
I ran my lips against her collarbone and worked my way up her neck to her mouth. When I pulled away, I looked deep into her eyes. “Well, that’s going to be a problem. Because I’m already hooked on you, Chelsea Banks, and whatever this is between us—I won’t make it easy for you to quit.”
28
Chelsea
Every day that went by wound my chest up a little bit tighter. Three weeks had officially gone by since Liam had arrived at the Hogues’ manor, marking one week left in his original plan to stay. He hadn’t mentioned his plans to leave, and I hadn’t asked him—mostly out of fear of knowing the answer.
However, the last weekend in Newport had definitely changed things for us—when we’d thrown all caution to the wind and stopped questioning the rights and wrongs of our relationship. Well, we’d stopped questioning it out loud. In my heart and head, my anxiety about the unknown was brewing like an approaching storm. I knew its wrath was coming, and I’d done a shitty job of preparing for the destruction.
I’d already attempted to board up the windows to my heart, but as soon as they’d been nailed shut, Liam had come along and busted right through them. To be fair, it hadn’t taken much. I was weak in his cyclone, only finding peace in the eye of the storm. Luckily, I was smart enough to know it couldn’t last forever. That had to give me some sort of advantage over the situation.
All I could ask myself was, What’s next?
During the days and evenings following our little getaway, the twins were the perfect distraction to keep my thoughts and eyes off Liam—until my off-hours, when he would find a way to sneak me off to breakfast or dinner on his bike, depending on my schedule. Somehow, he always knew exactly when it was.
It also meant my writing time was zilch. My editor had returned her notes, and they had been haunting me, causing guilt to settle in whenever I chose to spend my free time with Liam.
“Dinner tonight,” Liam whispered to me in the threshold of the twins’ bedroom. “There’s a place downtown I’d like to try.”
“I should get some writing time in,” I told him with a frown. I hated having to reject him, but I also couldn’t get too far behind on my goals.
He pouted his lips, showing his disappointment, then he nodded. “Okay, then let’s go somewhere right now.”
“What?” I laughed at his ridiculous suggestion. “I’m watching the girls. I can’t go anywhere.”
He made a face. “Sure you can. Let’s take a walk, go to the park, stop for lunch somewhere in the village. The girls could use some fresh air.” He turned to Elizabeth and Eleanor who were gazing up at us with wide, interested eyes. “What do you think, girls? Want to go for a walk to the park?”
They jumped up with excitement, dropping their dolls, one whose hair was now tangled in a hairbrush Eleanor had been using.
I sighed and turned to Liam with a gentle laugh. “Fine, but you get to pull Brendan off the phone. He’s been talking to some girl for the past hour.”
Liam chuckled before turning. “On it.”
Minutes later, we were heading down Blackstone Boulevard with Elizabeth on Liam’s shoulders and Eleanor on Brendan’s. At the park, we played chase and helped the girls down the slides until everyone was out of breath.
It was Liam’s idea to walk a little farther to Spill the Tea. Apparently, he hadn’t shown his face in there since he’d seen himself on television, but he was in need of a tea fix, so I agreed. The girls didn’t argue a bit. They knew if they went to visit my parents, they would leave on a sugar high we would all regret later. So we went.
Dread sank into my gut when we walked up to the tearoom and I spotted Gwen sitting at a round table outside with a small group of her friends. They had already seen us approaching and were waving before we could do anything about it. Not that I would have made everyone turn around, but I would have bee
n lying if I didn’t admit that I hoped to avoid the woman every time I paid my parents a visit.
“Chelsea,” Gwen said, clapping her hands together like we were old friends.
“Happy to see she’s kept up with the accent,” Liam muttered to me, making me stifle a laugh.
“It’s been ages.” Gwen’s friendly eyes had moved to the twins, but now they were on Liam, her lids shooting wide in surprise. “Oh my.”
Ignoring the woman’s reaction, I pushed the door open. “Has it been ages?” I smiled and placed my hands on the girls’ backs to keep them moving.
“Wait, dear. Aren’t you going to introduce me to your new friend?”
I pinched out a smile and darted a look at Liam. “Oh, of course. Forgive me. Gwen, I’d like to introduce you to my friend Liam. Liam, this is Gwen, a regular here at Spill the Tea.”
“You don’t say,” Liam said, his charming smile as perfect as could be. “It’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Gwen.”
I stifled a laugh at his exaggerated British accent.
Gwen’s mouth fell open at the sound of him speaking. “Oh, you’re British. How on earth did you and Chelsea meet?”
I jumped in, not wanting Liam to say more than he should, for his benefit and mine. “He’s just visiting the Hogues from London, Gwen. Don’t get too excited.” I smiled at Liam, hoping he understood my explanation to the woman.
“Very well,” she said, giving us both a suspicious glance, then her eyes widened again. “Wait. Did you say your name is Liam?” A smile blossomed on her face. “As in William?”
I looked at Liam, twisting my brows in confusion. But a second later, I made the connection before she even said a word. Oh, shit. No.
Gwen clapped her hands together with glee. “As in—”
Don’t say it. Don’t say it. Don’t say it.
“Willy?”
I. Was. Mortified. My entire body felt as if I’d just walked straight through an inferno. Thank God Brendan and the girls had zero idea what Gwen was talking about.
“Well,” I said, rushing the girls along. “I hope you’ve been well, Gwen. We better get inside. It was nice seeing you again.”
With that, I shoved everyone inside the tearoom and let the kids run behind the counter to greet my mom. Liam chuckled beside me while Brendan followed the kids but stayed in front of the counter.
I sighed and turned to Liam. “Is it normal to feel so anxious over a woman you hardly know? She’s just so nosy.”
Liam shrugged. “She strikes me as a lonely woman who lives vicariously through others. She’s a fan of yours, I’d say.”
I laughed. “A fan of my sex life.”
“With all those giant willies you manage, I can see why.” He winked and wrapped an arm over my shoulders. Leaning in, he pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Don’t worry, love. I know mine is your favorite.”
Mortified, I jabbed Liam in the side with my elbow, causing him to wince while laughing way too hard at his own joke. I joined Brendan at the counter, smiling at my mom, who had one twin in each arm as she let them pick treats from the glass display case. When she finally set the girls down, they each had a cookie in their hands, and she looked up at the rest of us. That was when she saw Liam coming up behind me.
I hadn’t thought much about my mother’s reaction to seeing me with Liam, but I had expected her to be shocked—then have lots and lots of questions.
“Well, hello there,” she greeted him with a curious twinkle in her eyes. “You’re back for another tea?” Then she looked between the lot of us and twisted her lips at me.
My pulse raced through my veins and my heart hammered away in my chest as I waited for the first question to strike.
“Sweetie,” she started, “do you mind giving this gentleman some room?” Then she smiled politely at him.
“Um.” Liam darted a panicked look between me and my mom. “That’s quite all right. She’s no bother.”
Brendan nudged my side and leaned over to me. “Are you going to tell her, or should I?”
Biting back my laugh, I gestured with my hands for him to do the honors.
“Actually, Mrs. Banks, this is Liam—a friend of my dad’s. Liam’s been staying with us for the past few weeks.”
“Oh,” my mom said, her eyes shooting wide in surprise then fading into whatever connection she was making. Her gaze shifted between Liam’s and mine. “So, then you two know each other.”
I nodded, suddenly wondering if I should have told her about Liam sooner. I definitely wouldn’t mention all the times she’d seen him on the television but hadn’t put two and two together. I imagined that one day I would tell her the funny story about the British Bachelor who’d often visited her tearoom when she was none the wiser, but for now, I was happy for the secrecy.
“That’s right,” I said. “Liam’s on holiday from London.”
“Is that so?” she asked him. “When do you have to return?”
There was an awkward silence that settled between us, namely Liam and me. I swallowed. He darted a look at me, but I didn’t dare turn to meet his gaze. I didn’t want to pressure him to respond, partly because I didn’t want him to respond at all—not until we’d had a chance to talk just the two of us.
“Soon, I’m afraid.”
Liam’s words were all the makings of a whirlpool, sending my heart into a spiral to the pit of my stomach.
“But I quite like the area,” Liam continued. “I’ll have to plan another visit once I take care of some things back home. Maybe Chelsea will be my tour guide again.”
I heard his follow-up and smiled, but my heart didn’t take the bait. It was far too deep, weighted with swirling debris of my thoughts.
“I’m sure she would love that,” my mom gushed. She looked genuinely pleased by his words, and it was then that I noticed her eyes were bright and shining. I knew that look of hope—hope that her daughter had finally found “the one” to settle down and make her grandbabies with, hope that just made the inevitable so much worse.
Liam was leaving. Soon. And I had no guarantees that I would ever see him again.
My heart had been aching all afternoon and into the evening after I left the twins to head home. How could I become so attached to a guy after three weeks? I was being ridiculous. I couldn’t even look at Liam after we left the tearoom for fear of bursting into tears or asking him what he meant by “soon.”
When was soon? In a day, in a week? A month? All of it was too soon, and it was my own damn fault for letting myself get in too deep. Hadn’t that been precisely what I’d been trying to avoid before succumbing to his spell?
The trouble was, I knew exactly what the breaking point had been for me. It was when he’d taken me to Newport and confided in me about his brother, when I’d felt the vulnerability wrapped around his words. I didn’t just have a crush on Liam. I wanted more of him just like that, vulnerable, raw, nothing like what I’d seen on that reality show.
I may not have wanted to believe it straight away, but Liam wasn’t the guy the media had painted him to be, and I was totally fucked.
I’d just thrown on some cotton shorts and a tank top when the knock came at the side door of the pool house. It was the first night in the past week that I hadn’t left it open for him to just walk right in. We’d gotten too comfortable, and I knew we had to change that. But also, I hadn’t been expecting him so soon, not when Simon and Bridget were home next door and everyone was still awake.
Glancing at the time, I confirmed it was only eight thirty, way too early for Liam to come by. By the time I pulled open the door a few seconds later, my head was spinning with all the reasons why he would show up unexpectedly. But all thoughts vanished when I got an eyeful of him outside my door.
He was wearing his favorite sweatpants that he’d labeled “easy access,” and that was all. His chest was bare, and his hair was wet like he’d just gotten out of the shower. My first thought was to step into his arms and run my hands through his
thick locks. My second thought was that he’d just left my bosses’ house looking like that.
“What are you doing here?” I hissed as I glanced over his shoulder like someone could be following him. But the entire section surrounding the pool area was closed off with tall shrubs and a gate. No one was there. No one could see us.
Liam chuckled and stepped inside, kicking the door shut behind him. Then he placed his hands on my hips and pushed me backward as he moved us into my bedroom. “Visiting my girl, of course.”
My eyes widened, and I shook my head, flattening my palms on his chest. “But Simon and Bridget could have seen you come here. You usually wait until they’re asleep,” I scolded.
He was still all grins as he picked me up and wrapped my legs around his waist. “I told Simon I had to go on a run.”
It was hard not to laugh at the ridiculous lie. Liam was a swimmer and as athletic as they come, but I’d never seen him run. “Wearing that?”
He shrugged. “Why not?”
I shook my head and rolled my eyes. I couldn’t even look at him. “They still could have been watching you, Liam. The entrance to the pool is a little bit off your pretend jogging trail.”
“Simon and Bridget were playing with the twins in the master bedroom. They didn’t see me.” Then his lids narrowed. “But I probably shouldn’t return until I’ve worked up a sweat.” His mouth dipped lower until he was at my neck, kissing and sucking while his hands made their way under my shirt. “I missed you.”
Those words. So simple, so sweet. At least they should have been. The problem wasn’t that he had said them but that I missed him too. The reality behind that sentiment was the scariest of all. Because it had only been a few hours since I’d last seen him. What would happen when he was thousands of miles away with a five-hour time difference? Just asking myself some basic questions tied my insides in knots.
He was running his kisses along my jawline when I swallowed and dared to bring up my fears. “We should talk, Liam.”