Part 60 (1/2)
Act cool.
”Sure, just for a little while. You can introduce me to your cat.”
Shaun's place is central to Greenwich, amongst the listed Georgian houses and close to a park. Close to the bus stop, people spill out of a house with the thud of music beating through the open doorway. A small group sit on the low walls outside the large house and I don't look over.
”They're a pain in the a.r.s.e at that house,” Shaun remarks as we approach his. ”Imagine living a couple of doors down from that every night.”
”Every night?”
”Well, several times a week. This looks like a big one though.” He sighs as he pushes open the heavy door to his building. Narrow stairs lead upwards and he picks a couple of letters from the tiled floor. ”Mine's at the top.”
”How many flats are here?”
”Four. Mine isn't exactly penthouse; but at least, I have my own place and don't need to share.”
”Apart from with your cat.”
”Apart from my cat.”
The black cat runs toward me when we walk through the door and rubs against my legs. ”Oh! She's beautiful.”
”He. Yes.” Shaun picks up his cat and I stroke his head.
”What's he called?”
”Ravenclaw.”
I laugh. ”Clever. I take it you're a Harry Potter fan.”
Shaun smiles. ”A little.”
The lounge room and kitchen are one room in Shaun's open plan flat, a sofa and TV at one end and a ma.s.sive bookshelf dominating the wall opposite. A doorway leads to a bedroom, one I won't be visiting tonight. ”Wine?”
”Sure. I'll have another gla.s.s of white.”
We shared a bottle at the restaurant and the light-headedness is pleasant, better than how my last night out drinking ended.
”Take a seat.” Shaun gestures at the sofa and wanders to the kitchen. Two gla.s.ses clink onto the kitchen counter and Shaun pours us wine.
From my spot amongst the cus.h.i.+ons on his sofa, I take in my surroundings. Fine art prints cover the walls and the place is neat and clean; a far cry from the places most of my male friends share.
My kind of night, my kind of guy.
WILL.
A girl sits on my lap, tongue and mouth all over my face and neck, but I hardly react. Nate brought us to a party way too big for the size of the house; and fed up of being crushed, I moved to the wall outside. One chick with long brown hair has decided she's my girl for tonight and half-interested, I let her close.
The reason for my distraction walks past and my chest tightens. Fleur. Just my b.l.o.o.d.y luck that she's coming to the party too. She's with the guy from the other day; I guess they're an item then. Fleur doesn't notice me in the dusk and they don't stop.
Another girl nearby groans as she watches him pa.s.s. ”Mr. Sleaze has his next victim.” She points with her bottle at Fleur's guy.
”What do you mean victim?”
”You know. Like you and your brother. A girl for the night.”
Her friend nudges her. ”Yeah, but we know the score if we spend the night with a Campbell.”
I stop listening. Fleur isn't the type of girl for one-night hook ups. Is she?
”The dude has a few girls then?”
”Oh yeah, never the same one twice.”
A bit like me. Guess I'm being a hypocrite by judging.
”Surprised it's her though. That's Flora, isn't it?” asks one of the girl.
”Fleur,” I say.
”I wonder if she knows about his reputation?”
”Obviously not.” They giggle again. ”I guess she's about to find out.”
Never before has this happened, but my muscles stiffen and my head pounds with disgust at somebody using a girl. Hypocrite. Total f.u.c.king hypocrite. But this is Fleur. My Fleur. I blink. I mean, could be my Fleur. The chick on my lap? She knows the score. Fleur's walking into some clever douche's trap.
Would she screw him? I have no idea and push away the images. What if she doesn't know what he's like and he pushes her into something?
I'm not moving from this spot until Fleur comes back out of his place, I need to know if she's okay.
I just b.l.o.o.d.y hope it isn't 6 a.m. when she does.
FLEUR.
Intelligent conversation with a charming guy is something I've craved. Shaun is exactly what I expected and relaxing with him is easy. He's funny; and as time pa.s.ses, his random touches of my hands and arm progress to stroking hair from my face and lingering fingers on my cheek. His warm thigh rests against mine; the subtle scent and heat from his closeness maintain the constant b.u.t.terfly sensation swirling around my body and filling my chest. All I want is to kiss him before the evening ends.
He's telling me a story but I'm not listening, captivated by the intense green of his eyes and debating whether I could make the first move. The signals are there and clear.
Shaun pauses in his story. ”I'm boring you, aren't I? You're glazing over.”
”No, not at all.”
As Shaun s.h.i.+fts closer, the atmosphere in the room s.h.i.+fts too. He touches my lips with soft fingers. ”Is it wrong I want to kiss you?”
My pulse rate hikes. ”I was wondering the same thing.”
In response, Shaun's mouth touches mine, and he doesn't hold back. I'm drawn into a sudden, hard kiss, where he holds my head and I can't move. I part my mouth and his tongue invades, capturing mine. The desire building all evening explodes into arousal as an aching heat begins. Man, this guy can kiss.