by Rosie Praks
“Shut up, Hunter,” Anton said.
There was a quiet spell. Hunter didn’t know what to say. And Anton didn’t really speak either, until Hunter decided to destroy the awkward silence.
“Anton, I’m really sorry for yesterday,” he said. “I know I should have spoken to you when I was at our house, but I just don’t have the guts. But now, I want to apologize. I love Clarice. I don’t want to lose her.”
There was a long pause before Anton said, “I’m not stealing her from you, Hunter. I’m glad you’re acting this way. I hope you’ll continue to love her.”
“Don’t worry, Anton. I’ll love Clarice lots,” Hunter said, looking at the closed door of Clarice’s bedroom. Even when he snapped his phone shut, he was still staring at her door.
“Forgive me, Clarice,” Hunter whispered at the closing door, the grin on his face so wide. “I was only pretending to be mad to test you. And it showed you cared for me too.” Then he swiftly dashed off to grab his pillow from downstairs.
When he got back, Clarice was already asleep. Kissing her forehead, he nestled her within his arms and slowly he fell asleep too, dreaming about making love to her until morning broke through.
Chapter 18
Hunter was essentially digging his own grave. The plan for wanting Clarice to show a bit of care for him by conning her last week had only backfired on him tenfold, because now he’d fallen so deep into her that those kisses every morning and night weren’t enough to appease his sexual hunger anymore.
Worse yet, to be able to sleep next to her but not be able to touch her or make love to her when they were both in the same room was simply pure torture, especially for his little brother downstairs. And it was all because of that damned pillow separating them.
But who was to blame but himself, since it was his big mouth that had suggested the idea in the first place? Now Clarice was only following through with his suggestion. Each night when she tossed and turned, he would wish she would kick aside the pillow. But no, that damn rigid avocado, she was so subtle in her movements that the pillow remained where it was in the middle of the bed.
He knew if their situation continued to pan out this way, he would for sure spill. And last night had proven that theory. It’d all started with him wanting to tease Clarice before going to bed. He was having so much fun teasing and kissing her when suddenly—
“Ah, shit. Sorry, baby, I gotta go.” He had scurried off to the bathroom just in time before his little brother released its potent power.
So now here he was sitting in the kitchen, his eyebrows creased into a frown, his eyes glaring at the ceiling, hand propped underneath his chin, deep in thought. He’d decided from last night’s experience that he could no longer be satisfied with a nibble. What he needed was a full main course, from entrée straight to dessert. But he needed a plan, a plan in which she would agree for him to devour her. After all, he was a lion, and lions require a full meal, not just a little nibble on a piece of lamb like Clarice had offered him.
But no matter how hard he thought, he just couldn’t seem to think of the perfect plan for her to agree. Thinking about that little rat, Hunter thought perhaps he could help. And one phone call later had Hunter sitting in front of Max and Clarice’s two best friends.
“So you’re the infamous Hunter that made Clarice pregnant,” Whitney accused Hunter right off when he arrived at the café.
“Yes and no,” Hunter said, sitting down.
“Humph.” Whitney huffed, eyeing Hunter suspiciously, and then turned to Elise to whisper into her ear. “He’s awfully young-looking, isn’t he?”
Elise only laughed. She turned to look at Hunter and said with a smile, “Glad to officially meet you. So I assume all those flowers you got from Only You were for Clarice?”
“Yeah.” Hunter smiled, pleased to see his friend from the floral shop.
“Big bro here has some problem and would like us to help him solve it. Right, big bro?” Max butted in.
“You could say that,” Hunter commented, scratching his head in frustration at his unresolved dilemma. “The deal is your cousin isn’t returning my feelings.”
“You wanna elaborate on that, big bro?”
“She… she… It’s frustrating. I kiss her and tell her I love her constantly, but she’s so stubborn. She only allows me two kisses a day, in the morning before she disappears off to work and at night before we part ways to bed. She lets me sleep on her bed, but we have a pillow to separate our territory. I don’t know what to do anymore.”
“And you want more than that?” Whitney asked, an accusing finger directed at Hunter.
“Well, as the father to our baby, I think I deserve more than two kisses a day,” Hunter muttered sadly.
“Men are stupid. Inside their brains, they’re all clogged up with lust. God, I hate them,” Whitney grumbled, folding her arms in annoyance.
Elise patted her friend’s hand and turned back to Hunter to give him a sympathetic smile. “Have you tried talking to Clarice about this?”
“I have, but she won’t give in. She said she’ll give me until our baby is born to prove I’m worth it, but apart from those two kisses a day, I’m not getting any more incentive from her.”
“Tell me again why we’re helping this man,” Whitney prompted, standing, obviously fed up with Hunter’s behavior.
“Sit back down, Whitney.” Elise dragged her friend back into her seat. “We’ve known Clarice since she was young, and this is her happiness.”
“Her happiness, E?” Whitney asked, incredulous. “He’s clearly a man prowling in lust. How could you say it’s Clarice’s happiness?”
“Because have you ever seen Clarice let anyone live with her or allow anyone close to her before?” Elise asked. “Remember Clarice had been bullied since she was young, losing her self-esteem. It was only when she met us that she was about to open up. I’ve never seen her this cheerful before. Don’t you want her to experience this happiness at all?”
“Clarice was bullied when she was young?” Hunter asked, butting into the friend’s private conversation.
“You don’t want us to talk about it. Otherwise, you’ll lose your man power,” Max commented.
“Why?’ Hunter asked.
“Because all tales end the same way. Tears and snots.” Max reclined in his chair and sipped his orange juice. “Urgh.” He made a disgusted face. “This orange juice tastes horrible. Why can’t they make it like Clarice does?”
“Clarice makes good orange juice?” Hunter asked.
“You bet. She makes the best,” Max answered.
“Have to taste her orange juice sometime, then,” Hunter added. “But back to my current dilemma?”
“Yes. Well, the current dilemma…” Max began, twirling the straw in his orange juice before taking a sip. Then he eyed Whitney and Elise.
“There’s only one way around it,” they all said in unison.
“And that is?” Hunter asked, looking at all the three sitting in front of him.
“Don’t give her any more kisses.”
Clarice was restless. The day was as uneventful as watching paint dry. There were so many errands to run, yet she didn’t accomplish anything. Baby outfits, clothes, shoes, socks, merino underwear. The list went on, but she just didn’t know where to start. To top it off, she was told to read all the books and pamphlets about babies. Hadn’t she already read enough about this subject? She did plenty of research before she thought of having a baby. So why did that person ask her to read them all again? And just thinking about that person, he came in her door at that time.
She eyed him as he walked into her lounge like he practically owned the house, so comfortable in his new living environment. He came and gave her a peck on the cheek, as if that were what one would do when they loved each other. Then that person went to the fridge to take out her freshly squeezed orange juice she’d just prepared for Max, poured a glassful, smiled his cheesy grin at her, and downed it all in one go. Once he
was finished, he rinsed the glass, put it in the dishwasher, and came over to sit beside her, then rested his head on her lap.
“I can see why Max likes your orange juice, Clarice,” he said. “You sure make the best. Much better than any I’ve tasted.”
Hunter wasn’t supposed to behave as the loving husband. Dear heaven, they weren’t even married. She could feel her mood plummeting in a dark spiral, distracted and foul. She didn’t want him to do this to her. Because she realized she had fallen in love with him and she was sure before the nine months was up, Hunter would pack up and run away from her.
“Could you get off my lap now, Hunter?”
“Is my head too heavy?”
“Yes.” She lied.
“Sorry.”
Hunter only got up and resumed what he was doing, leaving her all alone in the living room.
That was strange. Why didn’t he give her his usual pecks? Was he sick of their kisses already?
What Clarice didn’t know was Hunter was busy scheming to get her into bed that night, with her consent. He was deliberately making himself enticing so she couldn’t resist him any longer and would break down.
Later on that night, Hunter put his plan into action, deliberately sneaking into her room and using her shower. Removing all his clothing, he made sure it was exactly 10:30 p.m. when he turned on the shower and entered.
Hunter knew Clarice’s daily routine like the back of his hands. She woke up exactly at 7:00 a.m. She went to work at exactly 8:30 a.m., and she did not arrive home until 5:30 p.m. Routine meals usually happened at 7:00 p.m.
“Oh, sorry I used your bathroom, Clarice. The guest bath didn’t have any hot water. I hope you don’t mind,” Hunter said, deliberately showing Clarice his full frontal package as she walked into her bathroom as predicted. “I won’t be too long now. You want to use the sink to wash your face?”
Clarice’s eyes opened so wide that her eyeballs could have dropped to the floor. She could only open and close her mouth like a gasping fish, as she was too shocked seeing Hunter in her bathroom, naked.
“Clarice?” Hunter probed again when she continued to gawk. “Do you want to use the sink?”
Clarice swallowed but tried to regain her senses when Hunter called out to her. Was she meant to answer him? Her brain had completely lost all function when she saw his male anatomy in full view.
“I’m… I’m fine. I’ll… I’ll… wait until you’re finished.” Her face blushed red when she took in all of Hunter’s glory, her breathing labored. She realized if she stayed here for a minute longer, she was going to explode. So she quietly exited into her room and went into her bedroom. Once there, she closed the door and inhaled a deep breath. Climbing into bed, she closed her eyes and calmed her breathing, trying very hard to forget the image of Hunter out of the shower, but…
Oh, dear heaven. His body was trickling with droplets of water. His hair clung to the back of his neck and some stuck to his cheeks. He was a god. Hard, taunt, and chiseled in all the right places. Hunter… he… looked… looked… so…
Alluring.
Her breath shuddered. Oh, God, please help me. She’d never felt this lustful in all of her life. Everything came crashing down all at once. And then she realized one thing. She was aroused. Very, very aroused.
It’s okay, though, she told herself. She’d have her dosage tonight. Hunter would kiss her and then she’d be fine again. As long as Hunter kissed her, then she should return to sanity again.
With this thought, Clarice lay in bed, waiting for Hunter to come by per his usual routine, kissing her on the lips before sleeping on his side of the bed.
But tonight, though, something was off. Hunter didn’t turn up at his usual time.
Clarice pondered this and then became agitated. She started chewing on her bottom lip.
What if Hunter doesn’t want to come up to say good night anymore? she thought. What if he is tired of me already?
Clarice was about to get up to investigate when the door to her bedroom squeaked open. She hastily ducked underneath the blanket again. Once her aroused body was fully covered by the blanket, she turned to Hunter and eyed him with lusty intent.
Hunter wanted to snicker when he saw Clarice looking at him with big doe eyes. But he couldn’t. He had to keep up the pretense. Instead, with a straight face, he went to sit beside Clarice on the bed and fluff up her pillow.
Why is he not touching me? Clarice thought again when Hunter continued to fluff the pillow, totally ignoring her presence.
“Hunter…”
“Mmm. What is it, baby?” Hunter asked innocently.
“Nothing,” she said, her face flushing before turning the other way.
There is no way I’m going to ask him to kiss me. No way at all.
Hunter took a deep breath. He too was trying to hide his desire, but obviously it was starting to wear him down. Nonetheless, he must even though it was very difficult. He knew Clarice wanted him. He just had to wait for a bit longer. Clarice was just stubborn. But she would yield; he was sure of that. She was already eating out of his hands with the way she reacted in the bathroom.
Clarice gazed at Hunter with seductive allure, her eyes filled with lust, her face flushed red with desire that she almost could not contain. She was so tempted to just ravish him right there and then, but her small string of honor kept her together. But she didn’t know how long this honor of hers would uphold. She bit her trembling lip, stopping them before they released a desperate moan.
Hunter almost broke loose too. Clarice looked so captivating that he just wanted to jump at her at this point, but he kept himself on a leash. It’s almost time. Clarice is almost at her breaking point now.
“Hunter,” she spoke quietly with a strong hint of desire, her little finger tugging at his shirt for attention.
Hunter glanced at her gesture. Was she asking him to stay with that little gesture? He smiled. Had his plan worked out already?
“You look flustered. Have a good rest. I won’t disturb you.” He continued to act ignorant.
“Hunter.” Clarice tugged his shirt harder now, which just pleased him even more.
“Yes.” Hunter turned back, trying ever so hard to turn on a straight face when in fact he just wanted to smile broadly.
“You… you… you’re not going to kiss me good night?” Clarice asked in embarrassment.
Please, just one little kiss to dispel this urging desire within me. That’s all I ask for. And then her moral sense kicked in. Are you bonkers? What in heaven’s name? Stop it right now.
“No. You look sick. I don’t want to disturb you,” Hunter said.
“But.” Clarice couldn’t hide her disappointment. It wasn’t Hunter’s fault that he didn’t want to touch her. She told him specifically not to have sex with her. So he was only obeying her law.
“Is there anything else you need? Water?” Hunter glanced at the water jug on the side table. “If not, I’m going to my side of the bed now.”
“Ah?”
“Yes, baby?” Hunter pretended to act like he didn’t know what she needed.
Clarice bit her lip. How low could she get? She was practically begging. She’d gone that lascivious.
“You seriously don’t look well, Clarice. Maybe I should take you to see Dr. Flint tomorrow,” Hunter said, putting his hand to her forehead.
Clarice tore away his hand, muttering under her breath, “Stop worrying about my general health for once and start worrying about my sexual health. I’m dying here.”
“What did you say?” Hunter asked.
“I’m just saying I’m fine,” Clarice said with a trembling voice laced with so much need.
“Your voice sounds raspy too. You should sleep now.”
“But, Hunter!” Clarice shut her eyes. Was he really playing a game with her here? “Are you seriously not going to kiss me good night?”
“Not until you’re well. Then I’ll—”
Clarice snapped. She violently wra
pped her hands around Hunter’s neck and pulled him down to lock his lips to hers.
“Hey, Clarice. Don’t blame me if you—ummm.” Hunter couldn’t finish his sentence because Clarice attacked him with another spellbinding kiss.
“It’s all right. Just kiss me. Please kiss me,” Clarice let out when she unlocked her lips from Hunter’s. “I give you permission. Just kiss me please.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want to impose—” Again, he was cut off midsentence. But he didn’t care because his plan had worked out.
On the other hand, Clarice was cursing herself. Oh my God. Clarice, you are a cougar pouncing on young Hunter. But it doesn’t matter because tonight, Hunter will be mine. I’m finally at my limit and I don’t care anymore.
Tonight is the night I’ll get my full course, Hunter thought.
And both smiled at the prospect.
Chapter 19
How long have I waited for this moment? Hunter thought as Clarice hungrily devoured his lips. How long have I waited for Clarice to give me her consent, waiting for her to fully submit to me?
The wait was too long, far, far too long. But now that he was here in the action, Clarice giving him free rein to do as he wished, the only thought running through his mind was that he wanted this experience to be special to her. He wanted to make love to her, to tell her through his actions that he loved her.
Sure, he had many experiences in the past, properly winning him the trophy of being the number one best male stud in sexual pleasure, something he wasn’t so proud of now. But Clarice was innocent in this area. It was only her second time.
The first time she had offered her body to him, she’d thought he was Anton, so that didn’t really count. Tonight would be the very first time they would cross the boundary fully aware.
Tonight he wanted Clarice to remember everything about him. Every single touch, every single taste, every single scent—he wanted to embed those memories in her mind. He wanted this whole night to revolve only around him so she could never forget him, never live without him. So bit by bit, he took it slowly.