Good Sensations (14 page)

The doorman opens the door and we walk outside into the chilly night air to catch a cab. Mallory’s hand is safely tucked in mine. I hope I’m not hurting her, but I feel like if I loosen it, she’ll somehow slip away, as if she’s just a figment of my imagination.

When the cab pulls to the curb, I reach forward and open the door. She crosses in front of me with a smile and wink, looking breathtakingly beautiful. I follow quickly, slipping inside the warm cab of the car, and she asks, “Where are we going?”

“I don’t know. I just didn’t want to be in there anymore. I want you all to myself.”

“Where to?” The cabbie shouts from the front, eyeing us up in the rearview mirror.

Whispering to Mallory, I say, “We’re all dressed up. I should take you somewhere nice.”

“I don’t want to go anywhere fancy. I just want to be with you,” she says, sliding across the ripped, cheap vinyl seat. I should’ve called for the car.

I lean forward and give our destination, “Fifth and 34
th
please.”

“You got it.” The cab pulls into traffic as I reach over grabbing Mallory’s seatbelt and buckling her in before attaching my own. This driver is crazy.

She squeezes my hand when the cab takes a sharp corner, holding onto the door with the other. “Whoa!”

“Hang tight.”

“No joke.” She glances out the window then back to me with her smile back where it should be. “I’m glad it’s just the two of us. I spent the day with Sunny and Kate and we had a good time getting ready for the gala together, but all I wanted to do was see you.”

“I didn’t even ask if you wanted to stay—”

“I didn’t.”

“Even though you haven’t seen Sunny in months?”

“We had today and she’ll be home for Christmas. We’ll spend time together then. This weekend is about us, babe.”

The taxi comes to an abrupt halt and shockingly we make it to our destination in one piece. After I pay the fare, I join Mallory on the sidewalk. She signals over her shoulder with a big smile on her face. “The Empire State Building?”

Taking possession of her hand again, I shrug. “I heard there’s a great view at night.”

“Are you romancing me, Evan Ashford?”

I open the door for her and as she walks past, I slap her ass. “You could say that?”

She stops, and with a telling grin says, “You know, despite what you may think, I’m actually not an easy lay.”

I can’t stop the laugh. Trust me, I try. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone how fast you jumped my bones.”

“Jumped your bones? I did not jump your bones. You have clearly forgotten how the events of our first date went down.”

“Well,” I say, rubbing my chin. “It wasn’t really a date from what I recall and you still ended up in my bed… under me one time…” I close my eyes remembering how fucking sexy she was that day. “… on top of me another. Oh, and I can’t forget how hot your ass looks from behind. I clearly remember three different times.”

“I thought it was two.”

“I haven’t even mentioned the pool action, so definitely three… at least, and I wore you out, Miss I’m-Not-An-Easy-La—Ouch!” I rub my arm where she knuckles me, then laugh. “You’re feisty, Miss Wray.”

“It’s one of the reasons you fell in love with me.”

“It’s one of the
many
reasons I fell in love with you. Being easy was a bonus.”

She jerks me to a stop in the middle of the lobby. “Oh my God, Evan, you make me sound like a slut.”

Wrapping my arms around her neck, I pull her close, and whisper, “Do you regret being with me that first day?”

“No, none of it.”

“You’re not a slut.” I kiss her on the nose. “You’re not easy. We both knew there was something more between us, something different. We did what we wanted and what felt right, and it doesn’t matter now anyway. Here we are thousands of miles away from where we started—”

“Starting a new life.”

“Our new beginning starts today.”

With a heavy sigh, she says, “Oh no.” Her smile falls away. “I let you have sex with me right when we first met. I
am
a total whore.”

“Only for me, baby.”

She rolls her eyes. “You’ve turned me into a very bad girl, Mr. Ashford.”

“I like bad girls. Now c’mon and let’s do all this romantic stuff so I can take you home and fuck you properly.”

Laughing, she rolls her eyes again. “You’re terrible.”

“You love it.”

“I love you, so yeah, I guess I do love it.”

“Are you cold?” I ask, looking down at her bare legs as we walk around the observation deck.

Mallory wraps her arms around herself as if I’ve reminded her that it’s winter. “No, my coat is keeping me warm.”

“Sorry again about your hose.”

She pats me on the chest. The lights from atop the building reflect in her eyes, making them sparkle. “It was worth the sacrifice. Now stop worrying about me. I’m good. I’m actually better than good. I’m great.”

We enjoy the walk around the deck, stopping briefly on each side to enjoy the view. Our earlier declarations seem more real now that it’s just the two of us, the reality that she said yes sinking in. Maybe it’s just the holiday spirit creeping in. Standing behind her, I wrap my arms around her waist, and rest my chin on her shoulder. Her right hand comes up, her fingers sliding into my hair, holding me close.

She whispers, “I love you.”

I nuzzle my nose behind her ear and plant a small kiss near her hairline. Peace quells the New York nerves that I live with day in and day out. It’s freezing, but being with her comforts my soul and when I close my eyes, we’re in paradise again. The warm sun shines on us, the sound of the ocean crashes before us, and sand is gritty under my feet. I sigh, momentarily losing myself.

“Come back to me,” she says, a hint of concern lacing her words.

“I never left you.”

She turns in my arms and looks me in the eyes. I can feel her chest rise and drop with each breath. Lifting up on her toes, she kisses me. My eyes close and my embrace tightens around her, never wanting to let her go again.

When we part, she tucks her head under my chin and we snuggle, quietly looking out at the city.

“You’re the best surprise I’ve ever had,” I say, cupping her face while trying to protect her from the wind.

“I can’t believe you didn’t know, that Zach didn’t tell you. You looked really stunned when I walked into your office, but you pulled yourself together quickly.” She laughs lightly and so do I.

I take her hands in mine and rub them trying to warm her. “You were like an angel or apparition. I didn’t want to wake up if I was dreaming. I still feel that way.”

“I’m really here,” she says, looking up at me under long lashes.

“Yes, you are and we need to make the most of every minute. It’s too cold out here. Let’s go eat.”

Twenty minutes later, we walk into the restaurant I always told myself I would bring her if she was here. “
Une table pour deux s’il-vous-plaît, de préférence privée
,
” I say, holding Mallory’s hand. I swing her around in front of me as we follow the maitre d’ to the table. We’re seated in the corner of the cozy French restaurant I discovered a few months ago. I come here when I need a change of scenery. It’s authentic in detail and food.

I reach across the table for her hand as our waiter arrives with a small baguette and asks, “Que voulez-vous boire?”

“Champagne.
La meilleure
. Nous celebrons. Cette belle femme a accepte d’etre ma femme.”

“Ah, les felicitations sont de l’ordre.”

“Merci.”

Mallory leans forward, lowering her voice and says, “You speaking French does very unexpected things to me. Why have you been hiding this talent from me?”

“I thought I’d mentioned I spoke other languages.”

“You did, but hearing you say you speak French and hearing you speak French is two very different things.” She whispers, “You’ve got me all bothered and I only understood the word champagne.”

“Then watch out when we get back to my place because I’m going to teach you the real language of love.”

Her cheeks flush as she readjusts in her chair. She’s subtle, but I catch it.

“What do you think?” I ask, raising my arms out.

Mallory slowly turns, taking in my apartment then says, “I think your money’s showing, Ashford.”

“My parents own it—”

“Your parents bought you and Kate this fancy apartment in a fancy building in an even fancier part of town?”

“They live next door.”

Her eyes go wide and she points at the door. “Like across the hall next door?”

“Yep.”

“So your family owns both apartments on this floor?”

“Yep.”

“Enough with the yeps,” she jokes, walking to the window and looking out, seeming to need time to think this through. “Nice view.” She turns abruptly. “We should talk about where you want to live once you graduate.” She crosses her arms and I can tell she’s starting to stress. Her tapping foot might be giving that away as well.

I walk to her, unfurl her arms, and hold her hands between us. “Wherever you are. That’s where I want to be.”

“But where do
you
want to live, Evan? I want to know. I can’t be your aspiration in life. I know you have dreams and goals and I don’t want to hold you back from achieving all that. You’re smart and sexy and you spoke French tonight and asked me to marry you and I’m worried that I can’t fulfill all your dreams, so I need you to—”

“Shhh!” I say, putting a finger to her mouth. “We have time, baby.”

“I just don’t—”

“You know my current goals. As for where to live, I don’t honestly know. You may land a job somewhere and that’s where we’ll go. I may end up somewhere and I know you’ll come with me.”

“I realize the sacrifice you’re making by coming to Colorado, so I need you to know that I’ll follow you anywhere after that.”

“It’s not a sacrifice. I was bumming around Hawaii. I’m coming to college to accomplish something. Colorado’s a great school. It’s not a sacrifice.”

I take her jacket from her shoulders, slip mine off, and toss them over the back of a chair. Giving her the grand tour, I lead her by the hand. “This apartment may look big , especially by New York standards, but it’s only a quarter of the size of my parents.”

“I can’t believe your parents live across the hall. Why did I not know this?”

“Discussing my parents is not really a priority when we talk.” I end the tour in my bedroom just as planned. After she explores the room, we end up on opposite sides of the bed, looking at each other, and I ask, “So what do you feel like doing?”

“You mentioned something earlier about teaching me about the language of love.” She lifts an eyebrow, challenging me, and I harden instantly.

I kick my shoes off and get on the bed. On my knees, I cover the distance that divides us and grab her by the hips, pulling her down onto the mattress beneath me. “I’m fluent in that language and more than happy to teach you everything I know, baby.”

I’ve never been a contortionist, but with my head thrown back, hanging off the edge of the bed, my back arched up, and my legs draped over his shoulders, I’m starting to feel like one along with every deep, hard thrust.

Evan sets my legs down on the bed and stands, offering me a hand up. “Let’s move to the couch.”

As soon as my feet touch the ground, I scurry to the couch, standing next to it. His hands take my hips as his lips steal a kiss. I’m spun around and Evan’s fingers drag lightly down my spine. He’s in me, the sound of us together filling the quiet apartment making me thankful that Kate is spending the weekend with Murphy at a hotel.

His hand is in my hair as his other squeezes my hip tightly. “Mallory. Mallory. Mallory,” he chants over and over again. I can tell by his erratic movements that he’s close. I tilt up just as he takes hold of both my hips, taking all of me.

Fingers apply pressure, kneading my ass. He moves his hand between my legs, teasing me, taunting the most wanton part of my body. I quickly succumb and constrict around him sending him into his own orgasm.

The weight of his body drops down onto my back as his hands caress my waist, rubbing soft circles up my sides. He places three soft kisses on my back as we both try to regulate our breathing.