Double Dare (23 page)

The sense of happy resolve in her expression was too good. He didn't want to shatter it or any of her illusions. It wasn't quite as simple as that, but there was a way to make it just as agreeable.

There was no turning back now. If he wanted to keep the company on an even keel and win Abby, he had to see his plan through.

Chapter Ten

"So let me get this straight." Marcy grabbed the bottle, topping up their wine glasses. "You've met this hunk—and he sounds pretty damn sexy, I agree—but then you thought he was following you, but it turned out to be your boss?" She put the bottle down and pulled her khaki tank top and shorts straight as she resumed her cross-legged pose.

Abby frowned. "Well, yes, that doesn't sound quite right, but basically that's it."

"I want to hear more about the hunk in a minute, but Abby—your boss?" Her eyes rounded. "I mean...you poor love. You're going to need the name of a solicitor, aren't you?" She was deadly serious.

"No, don't worry. I'm not going to let it go that far. At the moment he hasn't really stepped out of line. He's hinting like crazy and he's been taking an interest in what I'm doing, above and beyond what would be considered normal, but it wouldn't stand up at an employment tribunal. I'm not going to let it go any further though. I'm out of there."

"No, don't let the bastard push you out of your job." Marcy was starting to look irate.

Abby shook her head and reached out for Marcy's hand, squeezing it. "He isn't. I've had itchy feet for a while. This has just given me that extra push. I've always had this dream about having my own company. I think I'm ready."

Marcy's expression softened and she squeezed Abby's hand back. "Well, that's good news. But if he does anything before you move on, just walk out that door. Promise me."

"I promise."

"Good." She picked up her wine and took a sip. "Now, back to the hunk." She smiled. "I think you'd better start at the beginning. And don't skimp on the details."

"He walked into my life one day and it hasn't been the same since."

Marcy waved her hand. "Describe him. I need an image to work with."

Abby chuckled. "Tall, dark and handsome, cheekbones to die for. Black hair, blue eyes, unusual. He's part Greek."

Marcy lolled back against her cushions, then rolled towards the portable fan that she had stood next to them, flicking the speed up a notch.

Abby shuffled. Her dress was riding up on her thigh. She wasn't dressed right for sprawling on the floor but she didn't care, the wine saw to that. She felt as if they were sitting in a harem. Marcy had a big Persian rug in the middle of her sitting room floor with massive scatter cushions for seating. The heat and the fan gave it that exotic edge—women talking together in the harem, women talking about sex and desire.

"There was an instant connection, it wasn't just an attraction, and it was like we connected on some other plane."

"Oh dear, Abby's in love."

It was so odd hearing it said aloud. "Do you think so?" She knew the answer, but she needed to hear the verification again.

Marcy raised an eyebrow. "Tell me more about the connection, how did you meet?"

"We first saw each other in an elevator, of all places. I wanted him, instantly. He sent my hormones into overdrive. I never wanted a man that bad. There was this other couple in there, fooling around." She smiled as she remembered. "Zac and I looked at each other, at them and back. There was an instantaneous sexy dialogue going on between us, only we weren't actually speaking." She moved, stretching her legs, squeezing her thighs together. Just thinking about being in the elevator with him was turning her on.

"I thought he was a courier, he was delivering papers. When he walked into our offices, I told him I was the receptionist."

Marcy frowned. "You lied?"

She nodded.

"That is so not like you. Why on earth did you lie?"

"I know, and I really wish I hadn't." She shook her head, remembering that her mother had drummed into her to always be honest. She'd told her that a liar needed a good memory to keep up the facade, and that lies built the foundation for other lies. It wasn't as bad as that, but she'd found that backtracking wasn't easy, once you'd done it. "I'll sort it out, but I was so fed up of men being intimidated by my job. I mean...I wouldn't have cared if he was a courier, but I didn't want to take that risk."

"He's not a courier?" Marcy looked thoroughly confused.

Abby laughed. "He was delivering the papers as a favor, and I really don't think he will be intimidated by what I do. I'll tell him as soon as we get together."

"So what does he do?"

"He's in arts management. He runs The Hub."

"Aha, now it all falls into place." Marcy smiled.

"Yes, I owe you for getting those tickets. I saw him that night and he invited me to come back again. When I did, we couldn't keep our hands off each other."

"Go on," Marcy whispered, fascinated.

Abby sipped her wine. "I still feel as if he's a bit of a mystery to me, that I hardly know him. I mean, I like that about him, but it's also beginning to bug me." She laughed at herself.

"You're too keen. Just let it develop in its own time."

She nodded. "He's worth it, I know that. I've been trying to work out what it is about him though."

"You mean apart from the fact that he's gorgeous and sexy and you've fallen in love with him?" Marcy chuckled.

"Yes, apart from that." It was funny. "I mean...it's not as if I haven't had plenty of hot sex before, but this is different. We're a good match in bed, but we don't just connect physically. There's an emotional, mental stimulation, like there's a flow of energy there too. Sexually, he unleashes me, lets me run wild. He brings out the woman in me—the real woman, the lusty, honest woman. He notices that, he seems to adore it. I can let go, truly be me." Saying it aloud was making her craving grow.

Marcy watched as she ran her fingers along the base her throat. "This guy really affects you." She rolled onto her belly and reached out one hand to rest on Abby's thigh. "I can feel the heat coming off you." Her eyes were filled with mischief and interest. She pushed her fingers a little higher, until they disappeared underneath the hem of Abby's fitted dress.

"Yes." She swallowed. She was aroused, undeniably horny because she was able to talk freely about Zac, and Marcy's hand had anchored the sense of crazed longing, her fingers like a magnet drawing her crazy nerve endings into focus. "Marcy..."

"Don't worry," she said reassuringly. "I'm just enjoying what this guy does to you. I love watching other people get off. Can I persuade you to share it with me, just a little?" Her hand was completely under the fabric now, her expression wayward, her fingers moving between Abby's thighs, gently easing them apart.

A tremor ran beneath her skin. "But I...you're my friend, Marcy."

"I'll still respect you in the morning."

Abby gave a crazy laugh, dizzy with wine and desire. "That's not what I meant. I don't want it to come between us."

"What, my hand?" Marcy grinned. She stretched her middle finger out and touched the surface of Abby's panties, her nail scratching infuriatingly at the surface, sending her clit wild.

"Oh..." Abby could barely reply. "You know what I mean."

"It doesn't have to come between us, just keep telling me about him and enjoy it. We'll always be friends, this doesn't mean I want to get engaged or anything." She winked.

Abby laughed. It wasn't as if she'd never touched anther woman. There'd been a girl at university. After a party, they had ended up snogging and wanked each other off. And that nail plucking at her panties was now teasing her into a frenzy. Her clit was throbbing with the need to be touched.

"Tell me more about Zac."

She sighed. She was aching for him, aching to be in his arms again. "This might sound crazy, but I believe that I truly started living when I met him." She closed her arms over her chest, locking the memory of his touch against her body.

"Touch your breasts. I can see you're dying too."

That fingertip on the surface of her underwear was driving her mad. She moaned, rolling her head against the cushion, her eyes closing. She squeezed her breasts through her dress and bra, hard, answering the demands of flesh that ached for contact.

Marcy clambered across the cushions, her eyes shining, her lips parted in a suggestive smile. "I can't resist." She kissed Abby on the mouth.

She was so soft, her lips damp, gentle but sure, her breasts squishing against Abby's own.

"You're so naughty, your underwear is soaked through," she said accusingly, as she pulled back, with laughter in her eyes. She put her hand fully over Abby's mons, cupping it, pushing the heel of her hand against her aching sex. Abby's clit was crushed in the embrace, gloriously crushed and pounding. Her legs fell apart. Marcy's fingers massaged the plump flesh of her mons. She watched, lips parted and eyes riveted, glued to Abby's reactions.

Being watched so closely and handled so cleverly, Abby couldn't hold back. The orgasm was so close and Marcy was doing all the right things. She writhed back on the cushions her hips riding against the willing hand.

"Oh, oh!" Abby jerked, her whole body tuned to that spot, her actions automatic. Pleasure rolled through her, her body shuddering from release.

By the time she'd grounded, Marcy was sipping wine, lazing on her side. "Mm. Yes. He's good for you, I can tell. I like him already."

Abby gave a weak laugh. "You needed physical proof?"

"No, but it was fun seeing you get all worked up over him, then letting rip."

All worked up over him? Well, yes
. She couldn't deny it. Zac could get her stirred up when he was hundreds of miles away. Besides, Marcy was right. He was good for her, in lots of ways. It was less than two weeks since she'd met him, yet her whole being was focused on him and the connection between them. It was feeding her with vitality.

"And you said he's away at the moment?"

"Yes, unfortunately...it's killing me." She laughed, embarrassed at her confession.

Marcy didn't bat an eyelid. "I know that feeling. You're living in love's shadow."

Abby gave a deep sigh. "That's one way of putting it."

"Poor Abby, you have got it bad. So when will he be back?"

"Oh, I'm meeting him in Paris tomorrow, for the weekend."

Marcy looked surprised. "Only twenty four hours to go? I don't know what all the fuss is about."

She gave a raucous laugh and Abby couldn't help joining her. Yes. Her body gave a throb of anticipation.
Only twenty-four hours to go. Bliss
.

* * * *

Abby climbed and climbed but her breath was trapped and she finally gave in and slowed her pace on the cross-trainer. She glanced down at the mileage. It wasn't quite far enough to get her to Paris, she would just have to wait and catch the flight instead.

The early morning trip to the gym was meant to burn off some of her excess excitement, but it didn't seem to be helping. She'd barely slept. She was restless as a cat in heat. She smiled and turned to Caroline, who wrestled half-heartedly with a rowing machine next to her.

"You seem to be thriving since you took control of the Ashburn account," Caroline said. There was a note of admiration in her voice.

"Thanks for saying so." She took her pacing right down to a dawdle, thinking about the sense of achievement she'd been getting from the work she'd been doing. She had thrown herself into it totally with an energy that came from her private life, and she'd thrived.

Was it really time to go it alone? She gave a mental shrug, she was almost ready to dare herself to do it, wasn't that a good enough reason? Of course it was.

"Ed and Penny aren't doing so well," Caroline continued. She pulled wearily on the mock oars then muttered a few words before reaching again. "They seem to get deeper and deeper into the mess. I'm glad I'm not out there with them, it must be hell." She shook her head and paused a moment.

Abby laughed and Caroline looked up at her with curiosity.

"Come on, I'll buy you something decadent for breakfast, let's indulge ourselves." Abby said, and stepped off her cross trainer.