Page 23 of Crashing Into You
Bryce
Taking Claire back to our suite is torture.
We stayed at the club long enough to get our photos taken a few times, kissing on the sofa, slow-dancing on the tiny dance floor. The whole time I was conscious of how much I wanted her, how, had she been any other woman, I’d have already had her back in my hotel room, stripping off that wisp of gold silk, making her moan.
We made a deal. And I’m going to let her set whatever limits she wants.
But it’s tough to hold back as we enter the shadowy living room, the city skyline glittering beyond the long windows. I go to turn on the light but Claire stops me.
“Leave it off,” she says in her soft voice. She heads to the window, the light from outside shining through her dress, silhouetting her curves. Jesus.
“Leave it off?” I come to join her, and we stand there together, staring out at the city.
“Hmm. I like the way the city looks at night. I’ll probably sleep with my curtains open.”
I clear my throat. “Is that right?” I try desperately to not think of her lying in bed, naked, light gleaming from her skin.
“Yeah.” She smiles, turning to me. “I like watching the sky change. It’s one of the things that’s nice about my house.”
“That and the killer ocean view.”
She’s still looking up at me, her gaze dark, her face silvered by the light outside. As though it had a mind of its own, my hand drifts to her hair, tucking it behind her ear. Her lips part.
It is taking every single ounce of willpower not to kiss her right now. Or drag her into the next room, throw her on the bed and flip up those skirts. Fuck her in nothing but those high heels she’s wearing.
“We should get some sleep.” My voice strangles in my throat, my dick uncomfortably hard.
“Yeah.” She looks briefly disappointed, though.
“Do you mind if I take a shower first? I’ll be quick.”
“Uh, sure. I’ll wait out here.”
Jesus. I’m so tempted to ask her to join me. But I need to be so careful here. We have a month. I don’t want to blow it on the first night. I head into the bedroom before I can do anything I’ll regret, stripping off my clothes, my dick heavy with need. I turn on the shower in the ensuite, letting the water run cold. And I pleasure myself as I stand beneath it, imagining Claire’s soft heat riding me, her nipples under my fingers, muffling my groans just in case she can hear me.
When I come out, she’s still standing by the window, looking out at the gleaming city. I go to her and we stand there for a moment, together. Then she turns to me. “Ishould go to bed.” The words come out like a sigh, as though she doesn’t want the night to end. I lean in, unable to resist, and kiss her cheek. Her hand flutters up to my chest, resting there for a moment. And I feel like fucking Superman wrestling a planet as I step away from her.
“Night.”
“Night.”
Afterwards, curled up on the pull-out couch, I reach out my hand as though I might find her lying there. But the bed remains empty. And I sleep, eventually.
ChapterTwelve
Claire
“You need to tell useverything.”
Joss puts a plate loaded with dips, crackers and chopped celery sticks on the coffee table, then plops herself down on my sofa. She leans forward, her expression expectant.
“And we meaneverything,” adds Sal, shooting me a fierce glance as she fills our wine glasses from the bottle on the table. Outside, the sky is turning to lilac and peach, the humming ocean reflecting the colours of the clouds. Candles flicker on my kitchen island and on the long table by the windows. It’s a perfect summer evening. A girls’ night in with my friends– something we’ve done a hundred times before.
So why do I feel so nervous?
I came back down the coast the morning after our “date,” instead of staying in Melbourne with Bryce, but only because I had to work. I spent most of the day staring at the poster of him behind the till, unable to quite believe this is the same man I spent half the night kissing in a nightclub. It’s not going to be tough to pretend this is real, to be honest.
My phone, sitting on the kitchen island with Joss’s and Sal’s, buzzes.
