by Alexa Davis
“Sure, you can, handsome,” she drawled seductively at me, fluttering her eyelashes. “Anything for you.”
I was silenced by her blatant flirting; it made me feel a little weird inside. Usually, I would be trying to find the first place I could take her for some fun, even if I was supposed to be meeting someone, but since it was Blair, I really didn’t want to. I didn’t want to do anything to screw up our day together. “Thank you very much,” I ended up replying blandly instead. “I’ll just go and take my seat.”
I couldn’t help but notice her darting glances my way as she prepared my drink, which made me shift in my chair. I was grateful when Blair crashed through the door, providing me with a much-needed distraction.
And my God, I actually stood up to greet her, she looked so beautiful. Her hair cascaded down her back, her dress swished sexily around her hips, and I couldn’t stop glancing toward her breasts even though they were fully covered.
She was effortlessly sexy, casually glamorous, and damn it, that made me like her even more.
“Shall I get you a drink?” I asked quickly, needing to say something.
“Sure, a coffee would be great.”
The waitress glared at me with disdain as I ordered Blair a drink, making her feelings on my date very clear. I didn’t care, though; she wasn’t about to kill my buzz, especially as I had absolutely no interest in sleeping with her anyway. I was the happiest man alive – just to be with Blair was enough.
“So.” I smiled brightly as I placed the drink down in front of her. “What do you have planned for us today?”
“Erm, actually before we go anywhere, I just wanted to talk to you about something.” It was then I noticed her pale face, her stressed expression, and the shiver running up and down her spine. “Just to make life easier, I think it might be better if we just keep today between us.”
“What do you mean?” I needed some serious clarification here.
“I mean, don’t tell Maddie and Cameron, because they’ll make things really complicated.”
I burst into laughter, so loudly that it shuddered through my whole body. That wasn’t an issue for me – I didn’t want them to find out, either. The less anyone else knew about what was going on, the better. “Why? Are you ashamed of me?” I couldn’t resist teasing her all the same.
“Oh, yeah, that’s it. I can’t bear people to know that I have a posh English idiot as a friend. Do you know how humiliating that is?” She giggled with me, blushing lightly as she did. “But thank you, I really appreciate it.” She sat back in her seat and eyed me curiously. “I don’t know what we have planned for today, really. I assumed you’d tell me what you wanted and that I’d be able to plan around that.”
“So, you force me out of bed at this ungodly hour, and you don’t even have a plan? I don’t know what this is, but I am not impressed.”
“Come on, you fool.” She smirked and stood up. “Let’s get going. We’ll figure it out as we go.”
***
“Okay, I hate to admit it, but the touristy stuff is fun.” I shrugged, completely surrendering myself to her whims. “I might have argued in the beginning, but it turns out, you’re right.”
“Can I confess something to you?” she asked, while taking a long, very seductive lick of her ice cream.
I had to think that was just for me, or it’d drive me crazy! It certainly fell in line with the soft undertones of flirting that had been going on all day long. Our strong, intense chemistry was building with each passing second, and I was starting to think that tonight it’d end up in the bedroom...
Finally, the sexual tension would be dealt with.
“Sure, what is it?”
“I haven’t really done any of that stuff since I was a kid. That’s why I pushed so hard, but I’m glad I did now because it was awesome fun! It was even worth hanging out in that ridiculously long line at the Empire State Building.”
“I’m surprised you don’t see all that stuff all the time, being a photographer. Do you never shoot the New York skyline?”
Her face fell a little, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d stumbled across something that maybe I shouldn’t have. An unfulfilled dream that kept her up at night, maybe. “I would love to do all that, but really, I’ve fallen into editorial stuff with models. Plus, it’s really hard to get the right viewpoint to even take the picture.”
“Oh, my God, you should come to my apartment. The view from there is incredible! You can see so much of the city, you would love it. There’s a balcony, too, where you could shoot from.”
A pregnant pause fell over us as we both considered the implications of that request. That wasn’t exactly what I’d been offering when I made that statement, but now I found myself desperately hoping that she’d take me up on it.
“Anyway, next we should go to a museum,” she said, tactfully changing the subject. “If you’re up for it?”
I glanced at my watch, unsure of how much longer I could keep up this façade. Sure, I’d had a lot of fun with Blair. She was one of the only women I could spend all day long with, but the stirring excitement in the pit of stomach was gnawing at me louder, becoming more insistent. I wasn’t sure if I could stand it anymore. “I don’t know, I’m getting a little worn out. Maybe we could do that another day.”
“Okay, sure. Well, if you’re done, maybe I should get going.”
“I’ll walk you home,” I jumped in quickly, pouncing on the opportunity. “It’s not right for a beautiful woman such as yourself to be walking around the big city on her own.”
“I have been walking around New York on my own my whole life. I’m pretty sure I can do it now!” She eyed me curiously. “But, sure, you can walk me if you’d like.”
This was on – she sounded really excited. As she walked ever so slightly in front of me, I trailed my eyes down her body, focusing on her butt for just a moment too long. Any minute now I would finally get to see the Holy Grail, and I damn well couldn’t wait. Any thoughts of it being wrong were long gone.
I could hear Blair talking to me, and every so often I would make agreeable noises with her, but I could barely focus on her words. I kept thinking that she was the hottest chick I would ever be with, and that for the first time ever, once wouldn’t be enough. This might be the first girl to have me coming back for more.
“So, erm, this is me.” As Blair turned to face me, I was dragged right back into the present moment. This was the time I really needed to turn on the charm if I was going to seal the deal. “Thanks for walking me back... and for the really nice day.”
I stepped a little closer to her, hearing her breath hitch in her throat. Her eyes widened, and I sensed her heart beat hammering loudly. She was reacting to me. Any minute now she’d be curled around my body and we would be kissing.
“Well, I better go,” she interjected stiffly, completely shattering the dreamy magic quality of the moment. “I need to...”
As she indicated behind her, it hit me that maybe this wasn’t something that she wanted to play out in public. That was fair enough. If she didn’t want her brother to find out, I could work with that.
“Oh, sure, I would love to see the inside of your apartment. I’ve heard so many good things about it.” I sent her a wicked smile and a wink, making my meaning very clear. Despite her cold body language, the sizzling thrill was bursting between us, intoxicating me and drawing me in.
“Oh, no.” She stepped backward from me, leaving my body cold and alone. “No, I don’t think that’s... It’s not a good idea.”
My brain whirled, my heart skipped a beat. Was she turning me down? How the hell could I work around this? Maybe she didn’t want to just hop into bed with me, I respected that. This thing with Blair was different. I could take it a bit slower.
“Okay, so if you won’t let me come inside, then you must let me take you on a date. We can go somewhere really small and intimate, where no one will see us...”
“No.” Her face paled, and she shoo
k her head a little too rapidly. “No, we can’t go on a date. Thank you for the offer, but no.”
Shit. This was a nightmare. I couldn’t let it all just fall apart like that. I needed to get something. “You’ll let me come and watch you work again though, right?”
“Sure.” It felt like pity, but I was willing to take it. At least it was something! “I’m working at the same place tomorrow, so maybe I’ll see you then.”
As she scooted backward and vanished into the building, I felt completely deflated. I had never been turned down before, no one could ever resist my charm, and I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to act about it.
I was totally heartbroken, but at the same time I felt challenged, excited, like I wanted to know more. Maybe the fact that Blair was different than what I was used to was a good thing. Maybe this was exactly what I needed: a challenge to keep me on my toes. This just added to the taboo nature of what I had with Blair. She was beautiful, sexy without realizing it, fun, and now even more interesting. I got the strong sense that I wouldn’t be allowed to get bored of her too quickly.
As I walked away, my heart sunk and flew all that the same time. I had no idea what was going to happen next, which, after my constricted life, was an emotion that I adored. But one action I could be sure I would take was to go and see Blair at work tomorrow. She might have rejected me, but I didn’t feel like that was the end of us. Whatever we had between us, there was still something there. I just clearly needed time to let her see it, too.
Chapter 14 – Blair – Friday
His lips were all over me, his hands exploring my curves as he sent an incredible orgasm racing through my body. I was so utterly glad that I’d said yes. Letting him into my apartment was the best damn decision I’d ever made...
Beep, beep. Beep, beep.
“Oh, no,” I groaned loudly as my eyes flickered over the stark, bright lights bringing me crashing back into reality. Waking up from the best dream ever sucked. Reality sucked.
Maybe I should have let him in last night, just because I knew I would’ve woken up so much happier and satisfied, rather than with this unpleasant empty feeling I was currently suffering. Maybe the right thing to do wasn’t always the best thing.
I forced myself into a sitting position and rubbed my eyes hard. I needed to rid my brain of that dream. I needed to remember that I’d turned Marcus down for a whole range of reasons.
Just because we had an awesome day together – and everything about him was tempting – didn’t change any of the reasons why I shouldn’t be with him. He was still my brother’s friend and the object of my best friend’s affections. He would still go home to England eventually, where he’d likely continue with his playboy lifestyle...
So why did I feel like I was losing out on the best thing that would ever happen to me?
I stood and staggered across my apartment into my kitchen, loving the short distance. I couldn’t understand why Cameron wanted to live in such a massive home, where it was miles to get from one room to another. Having everything so conveniently within reach was one of the best things about this place!
Although as I tugged open my food cupboards, looking for something to satiate the hunger gnawing in my stomach, I realized that I might have taken my living very basic thing one step too far. Having nothing to eat was no fun whatsoever, especially when I wasn’t anywhere near in the mood to brave the outside world and the grocery store this morning.
As if on cue to make me terrible morning just that more dreadful, a knock on my door signaled an unwelcome visitor. Knowing my luck, it would be Marcus, here to torment me some more. I automatically smoothed my hair down, just in case...not that it would make much difference. I looked disheveled and exhausted anyway.
“Hello?” I called out tentatively, my heart racing as I did. Now that I’d thought there was even the possibility of it being Marcus, I needed to know for sure before I opened the door. Just in case I decided not to. I wasn’t totally comfortable with the idea of spending even another second with him while my feelings were so up in the air.
“Will you let me in, you freak?” Maddie’s sharp tones came ringing back through the door. “I have food and coffee here, and I’m struggling to balance it all.”
“Oh, God, sorry.” I swung the door open and let her inside. “Thanks for that, you’re a life saver. I don’t have anything in my kitchen.”
“No, you never do.”
I followed Maddie gratefully into the kitchen and grabbed the bagel hungrily from her. As I stuffed it into my mouth, relief flooding my system, she started on her one-woman tirade all over again. “I have decided that I need Marcus’ phone number. One way or another, I need to get to him. I know I’m probably putting you in a bit of an awkward position,” That’s putting it mildly. “But do you think you could speak to your brother for me?”
“Oh, I don’t know... You know how cranky he can be in the mornings.” I was desperately improvising now, looking for any reason not to do this. I wasn’t quite sure why. I had decided not to go for things with Marcus. I’d blown him off, getting rid of my one and only shot with him, so what did it matter if Maddie went there instead?
Yet somehow, I couldn’t quite make myself say what she wanted to hear.
“Can’t you just make up an excuse and go over there? You know Cameron is much more responsive to you face to face?” She clung to my arm and stared desperately into my eyes. “Come on. I know I’m asking a lot of you, but I would do it for you.”
I sighed deeply, knowing that she would. Maddie was a lot of things, but selfish wasn’t one of them. In fact, there was only one of us who could be called that these days.
I should never have seen Marcus without telling her, and I’d done it more than once, adding to the betrayal. The least I could do was give her a shot and listen to the graphic details of what could have been my sex life...
But I had my chance, and I blew it.
“Fine, I’ll go over to Cameron’s before work, tell him I need to borrow the computer, then I’ll ask for the number.”
“Oh, my God, thank you so much!” Maddie squealed and jumped up and down. “You have no idea what this means to me; you’re the best friend ever.”
That sent a cold, swirling feeling racing through my body, reminding me once more that I was in fact the total opposite. I had to do this, to clear my conscience. It was the only way I could ever feel good about myself again.
***
“What are you doing here?” Cameron snapped at me in a mock-pissed off tone of voice. “Don’t you have your own house to hang out in?”
“You know I come for the sparkling company and wonderful host skills,” I teased in reply. “And also, maybe because you have the computer with all the software I need.”
“Why don’t you just get your own?”
I didn’t bother to answer that. I felt like we both knew why deep down. I didn’t get my own PC because I liked hanging out with Cameron. Sure, we had our differences from time to time – it was definitely a love-hate relationship that we shared – but he was family. As we grew older, I felt our family continually distance itself, so this was my way of keeping my brother closer to me.
“So, erm...” My vision began to blur as I totally forgot what I was looking at on the screen. My mind got lost in the awful abyss that I now had to fall into. Once I got this number for Maddie, she would find a way to make it happen no matter what. And as much as I wanted to be okay with that, much as I needed to be a good friend, it really wouldn’t be easy. “I have a weird question for you, and I know that you’re probably not going to like it.”
“What?” His eyes narrowed, and he stared at me very suspiciously. “What do you want now? What do I have to do?”
“Oh, no, nothing like that... Maddie wants Marcus’ number. I know you warned her away from him, but I can’t make her see sense.”
“Oh, right.” His tone was far too breezy for my liking. He wasn’t going to agree, was he? I’d been banking on h
im shutting the idea down. “Okay, sure.”
“Really? I thought you’d be against the idea, to be honest.” My whole body was freaking out – my stomach churned, sickness floated, and my veins hurt from the spiking pain shooting all over me. Even reminding myself that nothing had happened did nothing to calm me down.
“Well, I think Marcus could use a little fun... And, you said that was all Maddie wanted, right? He seems different since he’s been in New York.”
My curiosity piqued. Does this have anything to do with me? I didn’t want to admit it, even to myself, but the knowledge that I’d had any impact on his life could potentially change everything. “What do you mean?” I asked innocently. “Couldn’t that be because of the family troubles you told me about before?”
“I don’t know. I think it might be more.” Cam tapped his chin thoughtfully. “I think he might be running away from a broken heart or something. He hasn’t been interested in any girls since he got here, and he was all for sleeping around when he first arrived. Maybe he needs Maddie to bring him back out of his shell – as long as she knows what she’s getting herself in for.”
He showed interest in me! I wanted to scream, but I didn’t. What if he wanted me as a quickie to get over this mysterious ex? What if I’d read things all wrong?
As Cameron handed me his phone displaying Marcus’ number, and I typed it into mine, I almost sent it to Maddie. I had my finger hovering over the button and everything, but something stopped me at the very last second.
I’ll do it later. I pushed my phone back into my pocket. Having it there, sitting against my ass with Marcus’ number on it was almost too much to bear. I could feel an intense heat emanating off it, making me acutely aware that it was there.
“So, what are you doing today?” I asked Cameron distractedly, just to give us another topic to talk about. “Busy day of working out, lunching, and generally having fun?”
“Actually, I’m playing golf today. It was supposed to be me, Tex – you remember Tex, don’t you?”