Capital Sins (9 page)

He blew a
smoke ring into the air and she followed it with her eyes. Connie took another
sip of the champagne but, at that angle, it dribbled down her chin. She sat up,
laughing. Philip lazily moved an arm and wiped her throat with his finger.
Lying back, she dragged on her cigarette, and the only sounds to be heard were
the music playing and their relaxed breathing. He shifted his position to get
more comfortable and laid his left arm lightly across her breasts. She let it
remain there.

'Why do all
modem homes only have central heating?' she remarked casualty after a while.
'Wouldn't a hot, roaring log fire look lovely as well; give one something to
look at as well as feel?'

'You're a
romantic,' Philip answered, his fingers beginning to stroke her throat
absent-mindedly.

'I know,
and I'm not ashamed of being one.' She paused, then, 'Philip?'

'
Mmm
?'

'Talk to
me.'

'Here we
go,' he drawled. 'OK, what about?'

'You?'

'My pleasure.
What would you like to know?'

She
shrugged her shoulder under his moving band. 'Well, for starters, have you ever
been in love?'

Philip chuckled.
'Often.'

'No, seriously.'

'I'm not
joking.'

'A few,' he
admitted.

'Ever liked
one enough to... marry?' she asked hesitantly.

'
Mmm
.'
A
non-committal answer.

She moved
suddenly and pinched him. 'You have to reply truthfully!'

He yelped
and caught her hands. 'Christ!
Your nails!'
Philip
looked into her eyes, frowning slightly. 'Why the nosey questions, baby? Can't
you simply take things as they come?'

'I've got a
friend who does, but that doesn't satisfy me, Philip.' She decided to be frank.
'Do you believe it's possible to know someone for a very short time, yet know
that they're the right person for you?'

'Is that
how you think and feel about me?' he said, his tone teasing.

'Yes. How
do you feel about me?' Connie asked bluntly.

He grinned
suddenly. 'Let me have a feel, and I'll tell you.'

She poked
her tongue out. 'Honestly, Philip, don't you like me better than all the other
girls you've known?' She tried not to feel jealous.

He rubbed
his jaw reflectively. 'You're not slow about coming forwards, are you? Jesus,
dames,' he said feelingly.

'I know
what I like and what I want, so why shouldn't I get what I want?'

'That's
precisely how I think, Connie
... '

She dodged
his hands and went on as if he hadn't spoken.

'I'm a girl
who makes up her mind very quickly, and I just know that you and I are right
for each other, and you must feel the same! You're exactly the sort of man I've
always wanted to marry
... '

Her meaning
suddenly penetrated. 'Marriage?' he echoed. 'Jesus, is this a proposal?' He sat
up quickly dislodging her from his chest. Connie rolled
over,
propped herself up on her elbows, and looked up at him through a sheet of hair
that had fallen over her eyes.

'How long
must it take to fall in love?' she countered. 'We already know we have much in
common, that we're physically as well as mentally attracted to each other, and
are both free. I think I'm in love with you, and if you say you feel the same
about me, well.
what's
to go wrong? Why should we hang
around and let time pass?'

He spread
his hands in a gesture of appeal. 'But you couldn't love me, it isn't
possible,' he said practically. 'Hell, I know your sort, any suitable guy would
do.' He softened his voice when he saw her lips tremble. 'This is only the
second time we've met, Connie.' he said reasonably.

She placed
her palms on the carpet and pulled herself up. Her body was a long bow on the
ground as she stared at him, willing him to believe her.

'I don't
want just any man, Philip, I want you!'

He became
aware of how close she was, that all that beauty was within his reach if he so
desired it, and he did, at any cost. His eyes lowered of their own accord to
her thrusting breasts against the thin material and his expression became full
of lust, greed.

'I don't
know about marriage,' he said thickly, 'but I do know that there's other things
on my mind.'

Connie
would have spoken, but he cut in, his manner instantly coaxing and persuasive.

'How can I
be as sure as you,
know
what I feel, until you've let
me kiss you?' He drew her into his arms as he spoke and her eyes were absorbed
on his face. 'Marriage isn't something that people rush into unless they know
they're suited, in more ways than one.' His eyelids dropped and his gaze roamed
over her slim, supple body.

'Philip,
I...
' She
shifted uneasily but his hands pinned her
down. Swiftly, he rolled so that he was practically on top of her.

'Connie, I
could very easily fall for you in a big way, but you mustn't expect me, or any
man, to give up his freedom without tasting the goods first, to check if they're
acceptable, you dig? Yes, of course you do.'

She stared
up at him while the words came to him easier.

'Why do you
suppose so many couples have trial marriages before they actually take that
irrevocable step?' he added. 'They do it to make sure that they're sexually
compatible, right? You know as well as
I
how important
sex is in a relationship, and doesn't it make sense? Believe me when I say that
I'm more than halfway there to loving you, but there's just that little way to
go, and you've got to help me make up my mind. Now, what do you say?'

Connie had
to admit that he sounded right. Isn't that what happened in all the novels she
had ever read? In all the films she had seen? Wasn't that life, and as such, to
be accepted?

'Then kiss
me, Philip,' she whispered in assent.

Immediately,
his face lowered and his lips, which were hot and wet, and tasted of champagne,
sought hers in a kiss that was fierce and demanding. Connie closed her eyes and
was equally responsive, but after a moment, she moved under him.

'
Whassa
matter?'
His speech was becoming slurred and
his eyes were glazed as he pulled back to gaze at her.

'My... my
dress,' she managed to say; his weight was crushing the breath out of her and
she knew her gown would be getting wrinkled.

'You want
to take it off?'

'No, it's
just that
... '

'Here, I'll
help you.'

It wasn't
what she had intended at all, but nervously, she allowed him to unzip the dress
and it slipped down off her shoulders. He pulled it down past her hips, until
she was standing in a pool of shimmering blue. Connie stepped out from it and
stood before him in her bra and pants. She could feel herself trembling
although outwardly she appeared in control of her emotions. She stared back at
him remotely.

'Jesus,' he
said hoarsely, and with feeling, as he appraised her curvaceous body. 'You're
slender, but very well stacked. It's all there.' Philip gave a long, low
whistle.

She felt
young and vulnerable, standing half-naked before him, and hoped that she didn't
seem to him like a naive little girl when she wanted to impress him so much.
Philip gripped her by her upper arms.

'C'mon,
baby, it'll be all right,' he muttered, sensing her shyness.

'I don't
think
... '

'You
wanna
play, eh?
S'all
right with me.'

He laughed
suddenly, and picked her up in his arms as if she weighed no more than a
feather. She wriggled in his arms but it only served to excite him further.

'You like
to wrestle, do you? Well, so do
I
. We both know who
the victor will be, but isn't it delicious finding out?'

He carried
her easily into a large bedroom where he dropped her to her feet. His eyes
didn't leave her trembling figure as he took off his jacket and flung it on to
a chair. He loosened his tie and didn't even stop to unknot it in his haste,
but flung it still knotted after the jacket. He wasn't wearing a vest and she
stared, transfixed, at his chest. The skin was pale, and although hairless,
Philip wasn't
unmuscular
, and she noticed the muscles
on his arms bulge as he bent to remove his trousers and shorts. She watched,
fascinated, while her pulse raced and a minute drop of perspiration slipped
down her forehead. She hoped he would take off his socks, he looked silly with
only them on, but he couldn't wait and Philip suddenly lunged at her.

His arms
went around her back, and she thought he was hugging her, and felt it was a
rather sweet, affectionate gesture under such heated conditions, so put her
arms around him to cuddle him back. She lifted her face and their mouths met.
Then he stepped away, taking her bra with him. Connie gave a tiny shriek and
crossed her arms frantically over her breasts, trying to hide them.

'What about
our bargain?' he said gently. 'You said you thought you loved me,' Philip
reminded her.

'Yes, I ...
I know.'

'Isn't it
the most natural and normal thing for two people who love each other to see
each other properly without feeling ashamed?'

He remained
standing before her and made no attempt to touch her, not wanting to scare her
off at this stage of the seduction.

'I suppose
so,' she answered slowly.

He folded
his arms, very much in charge of the situation.

'I
certainly don't want to make you do anything you don't want to do,' he went on,
adopting a sensible attitude. 'Don't you want to be loved? Don't you want me to
love you, Connie?'

He couldn't
have phrased it better. She was taken aback at the question. He had put the
ball fairly and squarely in her court, and now she could see it was up to her
to make up her mind. It was her decision, Philip wasn't forcing her, and it
wasn't as if she were a virgin. Connie reckoned it was generous of him to be so
considerate, and warmed towards him, as he'd calculated.

'Of course,
Philip,' she whispered, dropping her arms and her defence.

'Then come
here,' he commanded.

She moved
forwards and didn't resist when his lips lowered to her rigid nipples. He
kissed her gently, and she felt herself relaxing. He slid his hands under her
armpits and, raising her off the ground, carried her to the bed, where she
dropped and fell backwards,
her
legs dangling over the
side. Bending, Philip's lips travelled over her flat, soft stomach as his hands
slowly slid her pants down her legs. She raised her bottom to help and didn't
look to see where he tossed them, for his mouth and tongue were working along
her body again, making her flesh quiver. Connie gripped his head and pulled up
his face to hers. When their lips met in a devouring kiss, she was as excited
as he.

'Beautiful,
beautiful,' he murmured, as his hands roamed heavily over the velvet skin. His
teeth tugged at her nipples and Connie gasped.

'Not so
rough,' she muttered, 'be gentle with me. Ah... that's good ... do it again ...
yes, there
... '

'Christ!
I'm coming ... put your legs around my back. Move, will you!' he moaned, the
gentleness gone from his voice. 'Hell, I can't get it in!'

'What a
shame! It must be real tough!'

The voice,
coming so unexpectedly from the doorway, startled them both. Connie screamed as
Philip rolled off her quickly, and she tried to cover her nakedness when she
saw a woman standing there, glaring at them.

Connie
reached out to Philip but he had bounded off the bed.

'It's your
mother!' she said breathlessly.

The woman's
face turned a deep purple. 'Mother, be damned, you little slut! I'm his wife!'

Philip was
tugging on his shorts. 'I wasn't expecting you back tonight,' he blurted out,
his face bleak.

'It's nice
to know you still have some consideration left for me,' his wife barked
angrily.

Connie
stared in horror. Surely this raddled, over made-up old woman couldn't be
Philip's wife! No, it was impossible, ludicrous! And yet, a glance at his
downcast face confirmed her fears. But she must be almost sixty! Mrs Dual
sneered at Connie who stared back speechlessly, unable to move a muscle.

'Get your
cunt off my bed!' the woman hissed
venemously
. 'Get
out!'

'I swear I
didn't know,' Connie managed to retort, but nevertheless swung her legs around
and jumped nimbly off the bed and began hunting feverishly for her underwear.