Mr. Insatiable (10 page)

He walked up to the counter, waiting for her to finish serving the elderly gentleman in front of him, and studied her while she took the old man’s order. She gave her full attention to the customer, offering her opinion on the various teas and suggesting particular biscuits she thought he might like before asking him to take a seat.

Only then did she turn her attention to Kit. Her green eyes were cool, her smile brief. “Hey.”

“Hey.” He smiled back. “Can I have a pot of your finest? And half a dozen biccies, any sort.”

She smiled properly then. “Sure. Any tea in particular?”

“You choose for me. I trust you.” He slid some notes across the table.

She pushed it back. “When have I ever asked you to pay? Sit down, I’ll bring it over.”

“Fancy joining me? For five minutes?”

She hesitated, and for a moment he thought she was going to refuse. Then her eyes met his and she softened. “All right. It’s time I had a break.”

He took a seat at the nearest table as she finished the tea for the old guy and served it to him with a couple of soft ginger cookies. Then she made a pot for the two of them, bringing it over on a tray with a plate of assorted biscuits, leaving the counter to one of the women who worked for her.

“Okay,” he said as she took a seat opposite him. “So what’s this one?”

“Rooibos Vitality,” she said, swirling the leaves gently in the pot.

“Eh?”

“It’s sometimes called Red Bush tea, from the Cederberg region of the Western Cape of South Africa. It’s caffeine free and it has a variety of health benefits.” She pushed down the plunger, sealing off the leaves and leaving a beautiful, green-tinged, honey-colored tea in the pot. She poured a cup and pushed it over to him, gesturing to the milk pot. “I know you like milk in it, you heathen.”

He took the pot and poured a generous measure before stirring it. “I’m a bloke. Blokes need the calcium. It makes our bones strong.”

Usually she would have made a gag about how his bone didn’t need much strengthening or some such, but today she gave a small smile and stirred her own tea, keeping her eyes lowered. She was still cross with him. Light frown lines marred her forehead, and her posture seemed tired and defeated. His stomach knotted with disappointment

He’d enjoyed their time together and had thought it would cheer her up. She had to realize she wasn’t at fault, and that once she met the right man she’d have no trouble in bed. But he only seemed to have made things worse, because now she still seemed upset
and
she was annoyed with him.

He sipped the brew. It was slightly sweet and quite pleasant. Before Enya started her business, Kit’s knowledge of tea had been limited to whether he felt like PG Tips or Tetley’s, but since she opened her shop, she’d introduced him to all sorts of herbal and green teas. He still liked a basic brew, but he was always willing to try something different to please her.

Biting into a crunchy chocolate-chip biscuit, he thought about that as she sipped from her cup. He liked pleasing her. His gaze lingered briefly on her mouth, but he wrenched it away. He’d given himself a stern talking to over the past week every time he’d thought about making love to her again–which was pretty much every minute of the day. He had to move on. It had been wonderful, but it was only the one time–they’d both agreed to that, and he couldn’t fixate on it or he’d go mad. He mustn’t think about the way she’d arched her back and dropped back her head, offering him her large white breasts with the beautiful rosy pink nipples just waiting to be sucked…

Fighting the urge to bang his head on the table, he cleared his throat and said, “Are we okay?”

Her gaze lifted to meet his. It was friendly enough, but held a hint of wariness. “Of course.”

All of a sudden, his appetite disappeared, and he put down the biscuit he was about to crunch into, reaching out to take her hand. “Don’t be mad at me, Celt.”

A frown flickered between her eyes. “I’m not mad at you.” She sighed. “I’m mad at myself.”

A wave of sadness washed over him. “Do you regret what we did now, then?”

She smiled then. “No, I don’t regret it. It was...wonderful.”

There was a hint of longing on her face for a moment before she leaned back, playing with her teacup. “I wasn’t in a good place, that was all, what with Andy and everything, and I had such a fantastic time with you that I felt confused and muddled afterward.” She thought for a moment. “You showed me that sex with someone I love and trust is going to be amazing, and that I haven’t got anything to worry about when I meet the right man. And I’m so grateful for that–you can’t comprehend how much. But…it did change our relationship.”

“I know.” He wasn’t stupid–of course, their feelings toward each other had changed after such an intimate and passionate encounter. Never mind that they’d both had too much to drink, they’d known perfectly well what they were doing. All the alcohol had done was loosen Enya’s inhibitions and help her relax, and make him brave enough to suggest what he’d wanted to do for a long time anyway.

But she was obviously still unsure how she felt about what they’d done. “I…I look at you differently now. And although I honestly don’t regret it, a part of me is uneasy at how I…feel about you.” Her cheeks pinkened.

They sat quietly for a moment, sipping their tea, as he processed her words. What did she mean,
how I feel about you
? How did she feel about him, then?

“Do
you
regret it?” she asked eventually.

“No.” He waited for her eyes to meet his, and then he gave her a slow, honest smile. “Of course not. How could I? You were...” He caressed her fondly with his gaze. “Sublime.”

She went completely red then. “Kit...”

“What?” He raised his eyebrows. “Do you want me to sit here and say I’m sorry we had sex? Because I’m not. You were fantastic and I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and I don’t regret making love to you at all.” A hint of a smile appeared on her lips, and he grinned in response. Then he sighed. “But I do regret the fact that it’s made things difficult between us. I suppose it was inevitable. But we were friends before we went to bed together. That must count for something, surely?” He leaned forward and took her hand again. “What we had was good, honey. I don’t want to lose our friendship over it, and I don’t want either of us to wish it hadn’t happened.” He must have looked earnest, because her frown softened, and her fingers curled around his.

“I don’t want to lose you, Kit.”

He smiled. “You won’t. Why would you? I’m your knight in shining armor. I’ll come to your rescue whenever you need me. You only have to shout, you know, and I’ll be there for you.”

Her gaze met his, and for a moment he was lost in the depths of her eyes. They were like green forest pools, dark and deep, her emotions moving behind them like shadows of trees on the surface. She was troubled–you didn’t have to be a psychologist to see that. Once she’d have told him what was bothering her. Or maybe he just thought she’d told him everything. She’d obviously kept her real feelings about her assault repressed, and now he wondered how much he really knew. He found that saddening and strangely stirring, and his heart picked up its pace as he looked into her eyes and saw wariness, curiosity, and desire flickering there.

It was as if in all the years he’d known her, she’d been wearing a mask, acting out a part, but now she’d revealed her true self to him, letting him see behind the costume to the real Enya. Even when they’d made love, he’d half thought of her as Celt, the young girl he’d known for so long, although his body had responded to the fact that she’d grown up. But now, for the first time, he forced himself look at her, from the babyish ringlets that had grown into silky curls, to the childish body that had developed mature curves, to the eyes that reflected her womanly heart–no longer filled with teenage angst and self-obsession, but glowing with adult emotions, complex and thoughtful.

She blinked, and he forced himself back to the present. He withdrew his hand, looked down, and chose another biscuit from the plate, trying not to think about the longing in her eyes.

“Still on for Beijing on Monday?” he asked, dunking the biscuit in his tea, and stopped when he caught her raised eyebrow at his faux pas. “Sorry.”

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Yes, I’m still going. What time does the plane leave again?”

“Seven. Dad’ll pick us up around five, okay?”

“Yep.”

“It’s going to be hot,” he warned her. “You realize that, right?”

Enya sipped her tea. For the first time, mischievousness lit her eyes, as if the cloud of whatever had been bothering her had finally passed.

“I was talking about the weather,” he said wryly.

She chuckled. “I know.”

His lips curved. “Are you going to be trouble?”

She sat back then, giving him a smile. “No, I promise. You’re fun to tease, that’s all. So what’s the average temperature there at this time of year?”

Taking another biscuit—a golden ANZAC this time–he tried not to look as she stretched out her legs. She wore a smart grey miniskirt and opaque black tights. He remembered running his hands up her thighs when her legs were wrapped around his hips as he plunged into her. With a quiet groan, he said, “It’s in the hundreds, but it’ll feel hotter because it’s often seventy to eighty percent humidity.”

“Eek. Light clothing, then.”

“Yeah. And sunscreen and a hat, with your coloring.”

“Okay. And Charlie’ll meet us at the hotel?”

“Yep, the morning after we land. He arrived there a week ago.” Kit had met Charlie Liu at university and they’d soon become firm friends. Charlie had been born in New Zealand, but his parents returned to Beijing regularly to visit family. He spoke Mandarin, Wu, and Cantonese, the three most widely-spoken languages in the People’s Republic of China. He was desperate to introduce Kit to his country, as well as to the contacts he had.

“I’m looking forward to it,” she said. “It should be fun. And I guess you’re excited about the fireworks?”

“I’m always excited about fireworks.” He winked at her. “I know I should have been a terrorist.”

“Yep. You’re never happier than when you’re blowing things up.” She smiled and studied him for a moment. He let her, finishing off his tea, happy that she didn’t seem cross with him anymore. “I’m so glad
Catherine’s Wheel
is doing well,” she said. “You deserve to be a success, after your hard work.”

He shrugged. “It’s hardly hard work, playing with rockets and Roman candles. It’s a dream come true.”

She gave him an admonishing look. “Yeah, you make light of it, but you and Tris have worked damn hard to get where you’ve got to. I do admire you.”

He was unused to her compliments and, feeling decidedly bashful, concentrated on his tea. Maybe it was because usually women assumed he’d never grown up, and badgered him about when he was going to get a ‘real’ job. Beatrix had tolerated his fixation with fireworks when it had started to succeed financially, but he’d known from her occasional comments she was hoping he’d use his business acumen to get a more grown up job. He rarely had anyone praise him for his work, apart from Tristan, and he didn’t count because he was as obsessed as Kit was.

Enya touched his face, and he looked up to see her smiling.

“You’re so sweet sometimes,” she said cryptically. Then she sighed. “I’d better get back to work.” She collected their plates and cups on the tray and then slid a tiny tube of lip salve out of the pocket on her hip. She slid the lid off and twisted it up, and he watched, transfixed, as she smoothed it across her lips, leaving them glossy and red. She pressed her lips together, smoothing the wax, and her gaze met his and she froze. “What?”

He shook his head, lost for words. He had to stop doing this or he was going to drive himself insane, but he couldn’t help it. She was gorgeous and he wanted her more than anything else in the world.

Enya studied him. Then, taking him by surprise, she came closer and leaned forward, hands on the arms of his chair. She winked, and then she kissed him.

Kit sat there spellbound, closing his eyes as her lips pressed softly against his. She held them there for three or four seconds before lifting her head, her sticky lips peeling from his in a movement so sensual that his erection appeared as if by magic.

She met his gaze. “For old times’ sake,” she whispered.

“Thanks,” he said grumpily. “Now I’m going to have to sit here for five minutes before I can get up.”

She burst out laughing and collected their cups and plates, taking them out to the kitchen. As he sat there, finishing off the last biscuit, she bustled about happily, and he realized how much he liked watching her.

How much he enjoyed being with her.

The realization surprised him, but he’d never thought about it before. He’d always enjoyed her company, but it was only now, studying her as she spoke to the next customer with a smile, tilting her head in that lovely way she had that he fully appreciated her loveliness.

And not just her loveliness, but how damn sexy she was.
 

Once isn’t enough
.

It dawned on him slowly. Getting her into bed hadn’t sated the lust that had struck him when he’d kissed her on the balcony. He still wanted her. Her lips beneath his, those full breasts in his hands. He wanted to slide inside her and watch that look of surprised wonderment spread over her face as she came for him. To show her in as many different ways as he could, that with him, she was whole and perfect.