ASingleKnightNook (3 page)

Both men chuckled. The pop star threaded his fingers into Sharon’s hair and directed her face to his stomach. “Want to join us?” he asked Casey, gazing at her with lidded eyes.

“Oh, good idea,” Sharon purred against his six-pack. “Strip off, Casey and come sit on Bobby’s face. He’ll make you come with his—”

Casey spun on her heel and hurried away, her cheeks on fire. Okay, she’d been wrong when she’d thought the night couldn’t get any more surreal. Now what did she do?

Chewing on her bottom lip, she studied the goings on around her. Things were getting wilder. People were making out all over the place. Couples were dirty dancing, there were threesomes and, good Lord, foursomes taking place on almost every sofa. Lines of white powder were disappearing up peoples’ noses. Alcohol was being licked from naked bellies and breasts. She swallowed. Obviously this was how rich people partied.

What did she do?

A moan from the room behind her, followed by a man’s grunt and another moan, told her exactly what Sharon was doing. And it wasn’t excusing herself so she could drive Casey back home. Argh!

Catch a taxi to Central Station and then grab a train home.

Casey’s stomach clenched. Not exactly the best plan, but the only one available to her at the moment, it seemed. If it weren’t for the fact she’d removed a cyst from Mrs. Osborn’s poodle that morning, she’d book into a hotel room. But she’d promised the sweet elderly lady she could come in at six to see how her beloved dog was going, and Casey wouldn’t let her client down.

Which meant taxi and then train.

“Yay,” she muttered, turning away from the particularly open display of sexual gratification taking place against the wall before her. “Travelling on a train all alone in the middle of a Saturday night. This will be fun.”

“I tell you what else is fun,” a deep voice with a smooth British accent murmured on her right. “Head butting a rugby coach.”

Casey’s throat slammed shut. Her pussy fluttered. Her heart quickened. Turning her head, she gazed into dark eyes she could only describe as mischievous.

Sir Addison Lancaster smiled at her, his lips twitching, his face so close to hers she could feel the warmth of his breath tickling her lips.

Her lips instantly remembered how incredible his lips felt against them and promptly told her body in no uncertain terms how much they’d like to feel them there again.

Now.

Pronto.

What was the delay?

Lancaster drew closer. “But nowhere near as fun as kissing you,” he murmured. “Do you mind if I do it again?”

Chapter Three

She was driving him crazy. He didn’t know why. Maybe it was the way she looked—like a natural beauty with playful innocence in her blue eyes. Maybe it was the quick-witted way her mind worked. Or the way she kissed him with utterly unforgiving and totally ferocious desire. Perhaps it was the way she’d slipped away from him after he’d dealt with the moronic rugby coach. Whatever it was, Addison had spent the last twenty minutes tracking her down, determined to pick up where they’d left off.

There wasn’t a hope in sodding hell he was finished making love to her mouth. Or touching her. Or feeling her touch him.

Or—

“Actually, I think I do.”

He blinked, her refusal jarring him out of his rising ardor. “Sorry? What did you say?”

She gave him a pointed look and crossed her arms under her breasts. Addison wondered if she realized just how enticing the action made her cleavage. Cleavage, he had to admit, that was already very enticing to begin with.

A wave of tight heat rolled through his groin as he remembered how wonderful her breast had felt beneath his palm. Fuck, he wanted to feel it there again. Preferably without clothes separating her flesh from his.

His cock throbbed at the notion. He drew a slow breath.

“Hey, up here.”

He jerked his stare up from her breasts, an unfamiliar warmth creeping over his cheeks. His pulse thumped fast in his throat. Wow, when was the last time he’d felt guilty when caught admiring a woman’s body?

Never. This was all very…new. Ruby was doing something to him.

Blue eyes regarded him. He wanted to believe he saw humour in their depths but he wasn’t sure. He gave her a rakish grin. “Sorry. But in my defense, they are incredible. And I haven’t been able to stop thinking how amazing they felt when I—”

She pressed her fingers to his mouth. “Okay, okay. Enough with the flattery. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a taxi to catch.”

Addison’s gut clenched at her words. Taxi? She was leaving. Alone?

“Surely you’re not going to deny this gallant knight a favour?” he asked. “I went into battle for you. I sustained an injury.” He touched his fingers to his forehead and affected a dramatic grimace. “It still hurts. Perhaps you could kiss it better?”

Despite the exasperated frown pulling at her eyebrows, her eyes danced with mirth. “Does this whole charming knight thing usually work for you?”

He gave her another grin, this one less rakish and more self-deprecating. “Actually, this is the first time I’ve tried it. I’ve been in the wilds of Madagascar ever since I was whacked about with the sword by Her Royal Highness and I’m still working out the kinks in my suit of shining armour.”

Ruby narrowed her eyes. “I don’t really know how to respond to that.” She studied him for a moment, opened her mouth, closed it, shook her head, raised a finger, shook her head again and let out a sigh. “I’m sure I’m going to regret this given you’re using me as a guinea pig and every fibre in my being tells me to run away from you as quickly as possible, but what were you doing in the wilds of Madagascar?”

“I was there for work.”

Naughtiness flittered across her face. Addison’s cock responded in kind with an interested spasm. “Of course you were.”

He chuckled. “I work all over the world. I’m a wildlife cinematographer, in case you didn’t know.”

“Hence staring down hungry tigers.”

“Hence staring down hungry tigers.”

Her lips twitched. “And the bears? That wanted to eat you?”

He shook his head. “Oh no, the bears that wanted to eat me were in London. Seriously, you haven’t experienced wildlife until you’ve been to a party at Sir Richard’s home. Makes this one look tame in comparison.”

Ruby laughed and then turned her head and covered her lips with her fingers. Addison watched the move, puzzled. She really was trying to fight her responses to him. Why?

“And on that note,” she said, a soft chuckle in her voice. “I am leaving. Enjoy your evening, sir knight.”

“Sir Addison, actually,” he said before she could turn away. “But I’m totally okay with you calling me Addison. Or Sir Oh My God You’re Incredible. I’ll answer to both. The sir isn’t compulsory on that last one, by the way.”

She laughed again. And, as before, stifled the response with a turn of her head and her fingers.

Unable to stop himself, Addison reached for those fingers and removed them from her lips. “Why do you do that? Stop yourself from laughing?”

She studied him for a moment before letting out a soft sigh. “Because you are Sir Addison, aka Sir Oh My God You’re Incredible, and I’m just an Australian vet who spends most of her days sticking rectal thermometers up the butts of animals. One kiss is all the fantasy I can allow myself.”

The words, and the resigned disappointment he heard in them, stroked Addison’s senses. As did the fact she hadn’t yet tried to remove her fingers from his. “One kiss is never enough,” he murmured, drawing his head closer to hers. “And a fantasy denied is a fantasy only half lived.”

“Persistent and a charmer.” She repeated her earlier opinion of him a second before she ducked his kiss and slipped away from him.

He straightened, watching her skip backward, her lips curling. “Don’t forget brilliant scrambled-egg maker.”

She laughed, this time letting the rich sound leave her without hindrance. Addison’s cock throbbed. His chest tightened. Lord, he could truly get used to hearing that sound every day.

“I’m more a poached-egg girl,” she said with a grin.

He started walking after her, his body thrumming with an elemental desire. One he wasn’t going to ignore. One that had little to do with sex and everything to do with…her. All of her. “Oh, but you haven’t had my scrambled eggs. What I can do with a whisk…it’s almost as impressive as what I can do with my hands.”

Once again, she laughed. “You are a shocking flirt, sir knight.”

He grinned. “And yet you’re still facing me, even as you walk backwards. Can’t stop looking at me, can you? Imagining what I’d look like naked?”

She rolled her eyes, dimple flashing at him.

He bit back a victorious yes, the sight of her obvious joy filling him with his own.

“Aren’t you poms all white and pasty?” she asked, teasing jest in her voice.

“How ’bout I show you?” He reached for the top button on his shirt.

A pink blush flooded her cheeks and she turned. “Good night, sir knight,” she threw over her shoulder. “Have fun storming the castle.”

Addison laughed and ran after her, only slowing as he drew level beside her. “One more kiss? Please? Just one?”

She shook her head, flicking him a sideways grin. “Oh, no. Far too dangerous.”

“Dangerous?”

She nodded. “Dangerous. If I kissed you again, I’d forget you spend your nights partying with ravenous bears and your days facing down hungry tigers.”

“What if I told you I’m totally okay with that?”

Her eyebrows rose. “You, Sir Oh My God You’re Incredible would not be okay with that. And neither should you be. You’re a knight. You should embrace that.” She flipped him another grin. “I would suggest practicing your flirting technique though. Maybe less focus on the scrambled eggs.”

“And more on the…”

Her dimple flashed once more. “The Scrabble skills.”

Addison laughed and then frowned as the realization they’d walked out of the house hit him. “You really are going?”

She nodded. “I am. I’ve got to get up early tomorrow and my ride…” Her cheeks flushed with pink again. “Well, my ride is…busy.”

An image of all the debauchery happening inside the house filled Addison’s head. Which one of the partygoers was Ruby’s ride? A man? A lick of jealousy stole through him, followed by a wave of excitement. If her
ride
was too silly to let her leave alone, that meant…

“Let me take you home,” he offered.

With a chuckle, she shook her head. “No.”

“Oh, come on.” He took her fingers in his hand and tugged on them until she turned to face him. The warm summer breeze chose that moment to play with her hair, lifting it from her forehead in a wispy tousle. Once again, Addison felt his body respond. His body and his soul. “If you don’t want to kiss me again by the time I pull up outside your home,” he said, hiding the sudden intensity he felt in a roguish smile, “I’ll sod off and you’ll never have to deal with me again. How’s that sound?”

Ruby studied him, the hint of her dimple in her cheek. “Enticing, I will admit, but I think before you get too excited, I should tell you I live in Newcastle.”

Addison blinked. “Newcastle upon Tyne? In Blighty?”

Humoured joy danced in her eyes. “No, you wally. Newcastle in Australia. Two hours north up the coast.”

“Ahh, two hours north,” he echoed.

She nodded. “Two hours north.”

“Well,” he said, stroking the backs of her fingers with his thumbs, “it’s a good bloody thing I hired a really nice car, isn’t it?”

She burst out laughing, her smile wide and wonderful. “Do you really feel like driving me up the freeway for over two hours? Just on the off chance you can flirt another kiss from me?”

A heavy pressure wrapped Addison’s chest. His throat grew tight. He didn’t see the need to tell her he was meant to be in Newcastle right at this very moment at his cousin’s bachelor party. It had no bearing whatsoever on his decision to drive her there. The only thing motivating him right now was the desire to spend more time with her. “I do.”

The smile on her lips slowly faded. She studied him, her eyebrows knitting. “Really? You want to kiss me again that badly?”

Addison drew his face closer to hers. “I do.”

She caught her bottom lip with her teeth. Searched his eyes with an intense gaze. Finally, after what felt like a thousand pounding heartbeats later, she asked, “How nice is this nice car you hired?”

He kept his elation in check. Just. “Depends,” he said. “Are you a fan of Aston Martins?”

“Depends,” she shot back. “Are we talking James Bond Aston Martins? The sports car thingy.”

Addison grinned. “We are.”

Ruby chuckled. “Then lead me to it, Sir Overcompensating For Something.”

He laughed, his elation too great to suppress. “Oh, my fair lady, I truly hope you let me prove those words wrong.”

A faint pink kissed her cheeks. “Give me a moment,” she said, the words almost husky. “I need to let my ride know I’m going.”

Apprehension licked through Addison. He stiffened. What if she didn’t come back? He really wanted her to come back. And it wasn’t just for the potential kiss at the end of the two-hour drive. It was because he enjoyed talking with her. A lot. More than he expected when he’d first fallen in lust with her lips back on the Suck and Blow line. “Would you like me to come with you?”