The South West Series Box Set

by Rebecca Paulinyi

  “You don’t have to,” she whispered back, putting down the teaspoon and closing the gap between them.

  Somewhere in the time since she’d spied him asleep on the sofa, he’d slipped his jeans back on, although they weren’t buttoned and his shirt was still very much on the floor. She was aware of the feel of his bare skin against her, the fact that she wore only a thin nightie over her underwear, and that his stubble was scratching deliciously against her skin as he pressed his lips first to the side of her neck, then beneath her earlobe, then tantalisingly close to her lips, making a quiet moan escape from them.

  Then there was no messing; their lips met, her back pressed into the sink, teas and coffees forgotten in this moment of pure heat. She didn’t care this time that she was out of breath, didn’t care that there was no possible way she could stop this train of events. He was so warm and solid beneath her hands, and made her feel so electrified, and if you couldn’t bend the rules in times like that, when could you?

  Besides, she liked being spontaneous.

  Once again it was her who broke the kiss, and she revelled in the look of desire in his eyes for a moment, feeling in that moment like the most powerful, luckiest woman in the world, before crossing her arms and pulling the nightie over her head, dropping it into a heap on the floor.

  After all, he’d seen her in her underwear before; kissed her in her underwear before.

  “My room’s a mess,” she said, and he shrugged.

  “I don’t care. But we don’t have to-”

  “I want to. I’m not drunk anymore, Caspian - except on those kisses.”

  She led him to that door that had been so hard to close the previous night and pushed it open, not caring about the pile of clothes in the corner or the fact that they’d technically only had one date. This was another day, it could count as two; and to be honest, she didn’t know if she had ever in her life felt a connection like the one they seemed to share.

  His unbuttoned jeans came off easily, and, feeling like every touch of his fingertips on her bare skin was burning a trail of the fireworks to come, Beth kicked the door closed.

  Chapter 18

  If she had slept well the night before, it was nothing to how she slept that morning, her legs tangled with Caspian’s beneath the white duvet cover, hair thoroughly mussed and energy spent - at least for now. They had both slipped into a deep, sated sleep that lasted well through the morning, their hot drinks forgotten, cold on the side, the possibility of breakfast a distant memory.

  Caspian awoke first, but didn’t move; Beth’s blonde hair was spread over his arm, her legs entwined with his, her back pressed against him, and for a few minutes he watched her sleeping, feeling a little in shock at how this week had played out. When he’d seen her there, on the beach in her dripping wet underwear, he’d known there’d been a spark; known he wanted her - but he hadn’t realised how overwhelming that feeling would become, nor how passionate he could have found simply kissing her. And this morning, well… there weren’t words for how perfect the morning had been, even down to this, holding her and watching her breathe slowly in and out, shafts of sunlight making her hair glow golden on the white pillowcase.

  Beth rolled over then, and slowly blinked, her eyes adjusting to the sunlight from the unclosed curtains, and beamed when she saw him propped up on an arm next to her.

  “Good morning,”

  “Good morning, again.”

  “I feel like I’ve slept forever,” she said, yawning and stretching her legs beneath the covers, although they reached nowhere near the end of the bed.

  Cas glanced at his watch. “It’s not far off twelve, so we’ve slept for a while.”

  “I was exhausted, apparently.”

  His eyes glinted as he grinned. “I can’t think why.”

  She laughed, a deep throaty laugh that shook her whole body, and his as well, entwined as they still were.

  “I think there’s a few reasons,” she said. “But I am absolutely starving, and you distracted me this morning from tea and breakfast.”

  He leant and pressed a kiss to her lips. “A bad distraction?”

  She shook her head. “A delicious distraction.”

  “Good. So, that date next Sunday - we’re still on?”

  “I’m in.”

  He grinned. “I’ll pick you up at six, is that okay? Since I did promise to have you home at a reasonable time, for a work night.”

  Beth was fairly sure the chances of her getting an early night, if the morning’s activities were anything to go by, were rather slim, but a six o’clock date sounded perfect.

  “Do you want lunch?” Beth asked, sitting up but keeping the duvet clutched to her chest.

  “I’m afraid I’ve got to dash off,” he said, reaching out of the bed to grab his clothes. “Sorry.”

  “It’s okay,” she said, but she was sure the disappointment showed on her face. She knew she was being greedy; she’d had all night, all morning, all of him…

  “I take my mum out for lunch on a Sunday,” he explained, pulling on his jeans and searching for his shirt, before realising it was still in the living room. “Whenever I’m here.”

  “That’s nice,” she said, waiting until his back was turned to reach out and find her own underwear - although her nightie, she knew, was still in a pool on the kitchen floor.

  She hesitated to get out of the bed, until Caspian offered her his hand. “I’ve seen you in your underwear before,” he said, and though the comment caused her cheeks to glow red, she shed the duvet and followed him into the living room so they could retrieve their respective clothing items.

  “Let me get properly dressed,” she said, “and I’ll walk you out.”

  He was fully clothed when she reappeared in a simple dress, having dragged a brush through her hair once more that morning, and even though his shirt was a little creased, he still looked as good as he had done the night before.

  “Thanks for a lovely evening, and morning, Beth,” he said.

  “You’re very welcome, Caspian.” She paused. “I know how awful this sounds, but I feel like I should probably know your last name…”

  “Oh, god, yes, definitely. Caspian Blackwell.” He reached out his hand to shake hers, and she giggled at the formality.

  “Beth Davis.”

  “Elizabeth…”

  “Just because I use your full name…”

  “Yours is beautiful.”

  She screwed her face up. “You’re just flattering me.”

  “Never,” he said.

  Beth led the way down the stairs, where the chip shop was bustling with lunch time trade. She saw Sam catch her eyes, saw him clock Caspian, but she said nothing, not even a greeting.

  She was pretty sure she heard a wolf whistle as they exited the front of the shop, and resolved to kill him later - or at least glare at him a lot.

  “I’m very glad I saved you from drowning,” he said as they stood on the side of the street, the water calm in the sunshine that had reappeared from wherever it had been hiding.

  “I’m glad I accidentally left my bra in your towel,” Beth answered, her tongue wetting her lips in anticipation of the kiss that she was sure was coming. Several kisses down, and her whole body still hummed at his presence, craved that contact, that reaction that he caused to ignite within her.

  They kissed without caring that people were passing them in the street, nor that they were in the way, and then he was gone, and Beth couldn’t help but watch him as he disappeared round the corner to wherever he had left his car the night before.

  She wasn’t surprised that there was a comment when she returned to the shop; Sam couldn’t resist, even with several baskets of chips on the go and a shop full of customers.

  “Quick work, Beth!”

  “How do you know he’s not my husband, or some long-distance boyfriend?” she asked, sticking her tongue out when she thought no-one else was looking.

  “Pretty sure I recognise him from round he
re,” he said with a laugh.

  Beth rolled her eyes, but laughed too; he could tease all he liked, but it wasn’t going to stop her feeling like she was floating from the last twenty-four hours of bliss.

  ***

  After a slice of toast or two to settle her slightly hungover stomach and stop her feeling so ravenous, Beth finally climbed in the shower and spent far too long enjoying the feeling of the water pouring over her and grinning to herself. She couldn’t help but replay the night - and the morning - in her head, marvelling at how things had changed since she’d made the decision to move to Dartmouth and press reset on her life.

  A very welcome text from Lee was waiting for her when she finally got out of the shower, feeling a little dizzy from the heat and the steam, and threw herself onto her unmade bed.

  Having a Sunday dinner at 4ish, fancy joining us? Sorry for the late notice, I forget how close you are! L xx

  She replied as soon as she’d read it. Sounds perfect, I’m starving and have gossip!!! Xx

  Intriguing! X

  Well, there was no way Lee wasn’t going to ask with a tease like that, Beth thought, but she didn’t care - she was ready to tell her big sister about this man that had appeared in her life when he was least expected, and who was as keen to try being spontaneous as she was.

  With no mad rush to get there, Beth took her time blow drying her hair, picking out another set of matching underwear - pink, this time - and another shift dress that was so simple to wear when the weather was this pleasant. She considered tidying up, but decided that could be done another day; even with work, it wasn’t like she didn’t have the time, and besides, she felt like the week before their planned date might drag a little. Belatedly she had realised that she didn’t even have his phone number, nor he hers, and while she tried stalking him on social media for a good half an hour while she procrastinated about getting dressed, she could find no trace of him.

  The only mention she did find online was a simple website for his publicist business, although regrettably there was no photograph. (She thought about mentioning that to him when she next saw him - after all, he was bound to be exceedingly photogenic, and she felt as though it might persuade people they needed his service - but then realised how stalkerish that might look.)It did have a contact number, although she didn’t think she’d dare ring his work number unless she had no choice, but at least it was something. It was too easy to think he was all a figment of her imagination without anything tangible of him to call or check.

  At least she had his surname - although she guessed there weren’t that many Caspians living in the South West of England.

  With an hour before she needed to be at Lee’s, Beth positioned herself in front of that view, with the sunlight glinting off the windows and the water, and lost herself in writing once more, remembering Caspian’s words of encouragement with a glow.

  ***

  “When you said you were cooking a roast dinner, I presumed you actually meant James,” Beth said, sat at her sister’s dining room table, watching a slightly flustered looking Lee balance two plates while trying not to knock the gravy off.

  “Shut up, you, I can cook!”

  “I know you can, but you don’t tend to choose to. And you’re sure I can’t help?” Holly was happily playing with toys in her high chair, and James was showering after finishing his shift - and yet Lee had insisted she was fine.

  “No, no, I can do this…”

  “Just because you’re soon to be married again, doesn’t mean you have to present the perfect image of domesticity, you know,” Beth said, grabbing a dish of carrots that had narrowly missed being knocked all over the floor. “You’re a modern woman, there’s nothing wrong with letting James cook.”

  She could tell her sister was getting wound up, but found teasing her to still be amusing.

  “I know that,” Lee said through gritted teeth. “But he always cooks, and I want to do this.”

  “Mama!” Holly called, seemingly for no other reason that to get attention, and Lee paused to fuss over her before getting back to dishing up.

  “You can get the cutlery out, if you want to help. And cut the smart comments!”

  “Yes ma’am,” Beth said with a giggle, setting the table and with a smile plastered on her face.

  “And once we’re done with dinner, I want to know why you can’t stop smiling, and what the gossip is, all right?”

  “Okay,” Beth said. “But I warn you, it may not be suitable for little ears - or male ones for that matter!”

  They were both cracking up with laughter when James walked in wearing a t-shirt and jeans, rather than his uniform, and with damp hair that had clearly been freshly towel dried. “Do I want to know?” he asked with a grin, and they both shook their heads.

  Despite her teasing, the roast was delicious, and Beth and James made sure to repeatedly praise the chef; Holly ended up with gravy in her hair, which they assumed meant she’d enjoyed it.

  “I’ll wash up,” he said, as Beth tried to clear the table. “Go on, you two go and sit in the other room.”

  “Thanks love,” Lee said, leaning over carefully to give him a quick kiss with a filthy Holly in her arms. “Let me go and clean this monster up, Beth, then we can catch up, okay?”

  “I’ll make the tea!”

  “There’s wine if you want it,” James offered, “We can always drop you back.”

  “No, thanks - had plenty last night, think tea is all I want today!”

  “Fair enough.”

  Lee reappeared as Beth was carrying two mugs into the living room, and once Holly was settled on the carpet with a toy, she turned all her attention to her little sister - in size as well as age - and readied herself for the gossip.

  “Spill, then, you’ve had me intrigued all day!”

  “I like to be of interest,” she said with a smile, feeling her cheeks warming a little.

  “Who is he then?!”

  “Who said there was a ‘he’ involved?”

  “I can just tell!”

  Beth laughed. “Okay, okay, it’s a he. We met at the beach, swimming.”

  “Very romantic,” Lee said, sipping her tea and waiting for more.

  Beth wasn’t sure whether it had been romantic or just downright sensual, but she didn’t contradict.

  “So, I need no judgment now-”

  “No judgment here,” Lee said, holding up a hand in the air. “Not your mother!”

  “Oh, and no mentioning it to her, either. Anyway, so it was a moonlit swim in the sea-”

  “Not very safe, Beth.”

  “Sounds like judgment to me!”

  Lee put a finger to her lips and said no more.

  “And I had spontaneously decided to swim in my underwear.” Lee gasped. “And when I got out, he lent me a towel, and-”

  “You did not have sex with him on the beach?!”

  “No, I didn’t, as a matter of fact, Miss Non-Judgmental. But he did end up with my bra in his possession - completely innocently, I might add - and that was that.”

  “So nothing happened?” Lee asked, moving to the edge of the sofa to hear better.

  “Not that night…”

  Lee grinned and waited.

  “So then I see him at work, with his mother, and of course he mentions the underwear and that he could return it to me when he swims that night… And one thing led to another-”

  “You can’t skip details like that!” Lee protested.

  “I can! You’re my sister, you don’t get all the details. So, there was some pretty amazing kissing in the ocean, I’ll tell you that - and then last night we went out on a date.”

  “A proper date?”

  “Yep, dinner, drinks…”

  “And…?”

  Beth knew she was blushing now. “It was amazing, Lee. He is drop dead gorgeous, I mean, you couldn’t make up how tall, dark and handsome he is - and he stayed over. On the sofa.”

  Lee’s face dropped at the end. �
�Oh, I thought…”

  “Well, it was only the first date,” Beth said, but she was smiling. “What happened this morning is a whole other matter…”

  “So, that’s why you can’t stop smiling!” Lee said, grinning herself. “And you’re seeing him again?”

  Beth nodded. “Sunday. I don’t know what will happen, but I’m okay with just going with the flow, to be honest. I wasn’t looking for a man…”