Total pages in book: 176
Estimated words: 164533 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 823(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164533 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 823(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
“Congratulations, you found us,” I said, suddenly overcome with shyness and unable to look either Rhys or Aidan in the eye as I sat up. I was also annoyed he’d interrupted the best few minutes of the summer so far.
Rhys rose to stand then reached down to pull me up with him. His warm palm slid across mine, and I could almost forget Aidan was in the room when our eyes connected. It was only then I realised he hadn’t said yes or no to my proposition.
Though, surely, the kiss meant he was on board.
“Right, now I just have to find Derek and Milly,” Aidan said, glancing between Rhys and me. “They’re probably hiding together as well, smooching away in a quiet corner just like you two.”
Ah, hell. Was it that obvious we’d been kissing? Self-consciousness trickled in because if Aidan knew, then there was very little chance he was going to keep his mouth shut. Everyone else would find out, and Derek was probably going to give me one of his disappointed looks.
Just wonderful.
12.
Rhys
Still convinced I’d hallucinated the last twenty minutes with Charli, I almost let her leave the room. I came to my senses just in the time to grab her hand and pull her back.
Aidan had gone off in search of Derek and Milly. She turned to me, those gorgeous hazel eyes expectant and a little self-conscious. I remembered her right after she’d blurted her idea for us to have sex, to lose our virginity to each other so it was no longer hanging over us. There’d been a vulnerability in her voice like she’d wanted to snatch back the words as soon as she’d uttered them. An affection had spread through me. I’d wanted to tell her she didn’t ever need to feel there was anything she couldn’t ask me. I was so gone for her at that stage I’d grant her anything she asked for. But I couldn’t grant her this, at least not on the terms she suggested.
A few strands had fallen free of her hair tie, and I brushed them aside, savouring the feel of her silky skin. “The answer is no, by the way.”
She blinked, her eyelids fluttering as she realised what I was referring to.
“Ah, well, okay,” she swallowed thickly. The thread of disappointment in her voice made something tighten in my chest. “That’s fine. Sorry. It was a stupid idea.”
She tried to pull her hand away but I held firm. “It wasn’t a stupid idea. I’m just not going to make some meaningless agreement to have sex with you, Charli. I want you but only if you want me, too. Not because it’s something to get out of the way, but because we’re both so consumed with wanting that we can’t resist getting lost in each other.” I stared at her, and a hazy look came over her eyes. It was almost impossible to resist kissing her again when she looked at me like that. Pulling back a little, I cleared my throat. “Besides, the lads might rib me about being a virgin, but I don’t care. I’ll have sex on my terms, not on anyone else’s.”
Charli blinked like my words had put her in a trance. To be honest, I hadn’t known I had those sorts of words in me, but she had a way of bringing them out.
“Wow, um, okay.” Her chest rose and fell, and she looked a little overcome. Her eyes came to mine, her lashes fluttering, colour high in her cheeks. “In spite of what Derek and Aidan seem to believe, I’m typically not very good at being forward with guys I like. So, just to be clear, I do want you, Rhys.”
Seriously, this had to be a dream. She was too perfect, too gorgeous and sexy, and so fucking lovely. My home life was a mess, and I was still worried about Mam and how Dad was going to react to being served divorce papers. Not well, I expected. Being with Charli felt like an escape from all that, one that almost seemed too good to be true. But it wasn’t. It was real. I knew from the sounds she made when I kissed her that it was real. From the way her skin grew flushed and her breathing quickened. How her hand had slid down my body, seeking to touch.
I stepped towards her and kept stepping until I’d backed her into the wall. She gasped when my hands went to her neck, softly caressing before I brought my mouth to hers. I kissed her with confidence, my tongue sliding along hers while my thumbs caressed her throat. She turned pliant beneath me, her arms going around my waist and pulling me to her. I was rock hard, her full breasts pushing into me from beneath the hoodie, my hoodie, and I wanted nothing more than to tear it off and kiss them, run my lips and teeth and tongue over what I knew would be the most perfect tits.