Not For Sharing (Romance with Sizzle) (5 page)

“That’s better
Pru. Now I just hope...”

He paused for a second, cutting
short his words. His respite was misleading when suddenly he launched into her
again. She yelped out with the force of his penetration and then he smiled
knowingly, ready to finish his sentence.

“...you can
take it.”

His
temperament then changed as he buckled under a rush of adrenaline. His
assertive hands ravished her with an insatiable appetite which Pru found most
bewitching and while his thrusts increased in tempo, it forced her behind to
chafe against the rug. She found the feel of the wool a strange contradiction,
enjoyably soft and abrasive at the same time.

 She loved
that he could cause her discomfort when he became bullish. She was almost on
the verge of asking that he eased up slightly but she couldn’t bring herself to
say the words; his force was just too damn sexy. She also couldn’t chance any
more interruptions. During her most engrossed moments, Pru conveniently forgot
that it was these very interruptions that enhanced her enjoyment, only ever
truly appreciating them once her pleasure had been resumed.

“I warned you
that I’d fuck you harder,” he panted into her ear, his tone deep and ominous.
The innocuous threat had exactly the desired effect on Pru and she whimpered
with a heightened arousal.

He pulled up
her hands over her head, clamping them together, leaving his one hand free to
roam over her heaving breasts. He seized and squeezed them with a crude
savageness and his short, heavy breaths buffeted against the side of her neck
and cheeks as he continued his frantic trespass over her body. Then his hand
moved up to skim through her dishevelled hair, scraping at her scalp. She was
shackled down as one hand still tethered her wrists and his other hand tightly
clasped her hair, immobilising her head. She felt taken and defenceless,
impaled to the floor by his length; this was her
nirvana, enslaved by her
red-blooded master.

He eventually
released his grip on her hair and she pulled up her head to nip at his shoulder.
She glanced down and saw the fervid bounce of his buttocks ramming up and down
and it ignited her ardour to a code red. She could sense her impending relief
and she was more than ready to let go.

Her feral
cries resounded throughout the house in a crescendo as deliverance ran through
to her very core. He pushed down hard into her as they came together, slowing
down to a simultaneous rhythm as they reached their final moments and he had
flooded her.

Pru
cherished these moments, the feeling of being closer than close, kindred
spirits. A warm glow radiated throughout her body and she crumpled in
exhaustion, with the comforting weight of Ethan pressed upon her. She adored
every fibre of his body, even the wisp of his breath against her neck. Before
long she drifted dreamily into sleep, cosseted in his embrace.

Present Day

Suddenly I
am jolted back to reality when the stranger brushes the hair away from my neck
and plants butterfly kisses on my nape. At the same time, his fingertips zigzag
lightly down my side. I desperately try to control my breathing in an effort to
convince him that I’m asleep. He reaches around to my front, and his fingers
begin to circle my nipples and cup my breasts. My nipples stiffen immediately
and I feel paralyzed, numb from shock, bewilderment, and I hate to admit,
excitement.

Damn! What
the hell do I do? Scream? Run? Or bask in the attention while it lasts?
It’s
Ethan’s attention I’m really missing. The question is, was he missing me? For
all I know, he could be having it away with his mistress right now.

Why was
the other woman always called ‘mistress’ anyway? It made her sound far more adventurous
than just being the ‘girlfriend’. Well I’d say my current situation was pretty
damn daring…. correction: stupid.

All my insecurities
and doubts culminated yesterday in a dreadful argument. I torment myself by re-running
the events in my head and try to understand what the hell is going on in
Ethan’s.

It was
Saturday afternoon. I had just finished painting my nails and I was attempting
to dry them by waving my hands up and down like a demented baby bird learning
to fly. I had arranged for a taxi to pick me up at 4.30pm to go to my best
friend Suzy’s house, to meet up with the girls. She was serving some snacks and
drinks for us while we watched a movie DVD and then we would head into town
later that evening.

I heard a
car pull up and I peered out the window to see Ethan arriving back home in his
van. Catching sight of Ethan unexpectedly, still made my stomach flip over. He
had been away overnight in Bath working at a new shopping complex. As much as I
missed him, I was in no position to complain because I had always encouraged him
to develop his business and he was now a well-respected builder in the industry
with four labourers working under him.

He paced up
the path, fumbling for his keys as he neared the porch, looking somewhat
pre-occupied. I found his gait compelling to watch, such a distinguished swagger
with purposeful strides. I jumped up from my seat when I heard the key being
turned and ran to the hall-way to greet him.

“Hello
darling,” I beamed.

His pensive
expression was displaced by a look of genuine happiness. I ran both my hands
through his messy waves and at the same time, I browsed his facial features,
absorbing his rugged handsomeness, his chiselled jawline, his aquiline nose;
and what I wouldn’t give to skinny dip in the deep blue of those brooding eyes
.

He puffed
out his cheeks and sighed.

“Hello
Gorgeous. I. am.
so
. thirsty.” He planted a kiss on my cheek after each
word, and I gave him a mellow smile in return.

He broke my
embrace and edged away to the kitchen. My arms dropped to my sides, followed
quickly by my heart. I strained a smile back on my face and followed like a
puppy scampering behind it’s master.

“So how’s
the job going? Are you running to schedule?” I asked.

He turned
his back to open the fridge door and took out a bottle of beer.

“Yeh,
everything was fine. I got done what I needed to.” He concluded his sentence
with a placid wink and then turned away again to pop the cap off with the
bottle-opener on his keys.

I perceived
from his body language that he didn’t want to elaborate any further. I was
becoming anxious and annoyed, annoyed with myself for persisting to ignore ‘the
elephant in the room’ but anxious to discovering the real reason for his
indifference towards me. How do you handle not wanting the answer to a question
that you feel obligated to ask? I put the predicament on hold and carried on as
normal. I leant forward across the worktop. I wanted to remain as genial as
possible; after all he could just be over-tired from his heavy work-load so I
didn’t want to act unreasonable.

“Would you
like a bacon sandwich sweetie?”

“Mmm, please
darlin’, that would be lovely,” he replied between thirsty gulps.

“I’ll wait
and eat at Suzy’s instead. You know what a domestic goddess she is, even her
starters have three courses.”

Ethan cupped
my chin affectionately in his hand and smiled in agreement, leaving an
awkwardness still hanging heavy in the air.

I walked
over to the fridge, unsure of what to say next. I chewed at the inside of my
cheek, deciding that my bitten cuticles had suffered enough from my recent
worries. I decided to bite the bullet and ask him outright. I placed the bacon
under the unlit grill and as I took out the loaf from the breadbin, I opened my
mouth, ready to speak. I hesitated, contemplating how I should start such a
climactic conversation. Ethan seemed to sense my intentions and diffused the
mood by digging deep into his back pocket and presented me with a small velvet
box.

“I saw these
in a boutique and they were begging to be worn by you.”

My mouth was still open as I placed
down the loaf on the side. My eyes widened as I opened the box to see a pair of
vintage rhinestone earrings twinkling in splendour. He knew that I loved
anything and everything in 50’s retro.

I stared up at
Ethan and notice his face had softened and his brow less furrowed.

“Oh Ethe, they’re adorable, just
like you.”

I uttered a little
squeak and then I flung my arms around his neck.

“You know,
these gifts can never replace your kisses, but it’s still lovely that you’re
thinking of me when we’re apart,” I said appreciatively, passing them back to
him to place in my ears. I practically drooled as his hands reached up to graze
my cheek. It almost felt like he was touching me for the very first time.

“You enhance
their sparkle a million times over,” whispered Ethan sweetly and stepped back
as if to inspect me.

I felt more
content than I had done in a very long time and I recognised a new cheer in my
voice. “So, what are your plans for Jonah’s stag-night tonight? Please don’t
hand-cuff him to a lamp-post; that’s just cruel.”

“Are you kidding me, Jonah’s
bringing
the hand-cuffs. He wants us dressed in pilot gear, ‘Top Gun’ style, with the
aviator sunglasses and all. You know, I’ve always been a bit suspicious about Jonah’s
obsession with Tom Cruise and musicals.”

“Meaning what exactly?” I asked,
uncertain if my understanding of his comment was right.

“Put it this
way,” he explained, “I think he’ll try and catch the bouquet at his wedding, and
start a catfight if he doesn’t.”

I laughed at
the possible seed of truth in Ethan’s supposition. I got on famously with Jonah
and I suddenly reviewed our conversations on pop music, fashion and interior
design with a different perspective.

“Oh my God, you could be right.
He’s only known Helga for six months hasn’t he. Are you saying it’s a marriage
of convenience then?”

“Trust me
Pru, he won’t find married life with ‘Helga the Horrible
’
at
all
convenient. Even her old man will be sprinting down the aisle to give her away.”

I smirk as I
gain a whole new respect, and pity, for Jonah.

“Anyway, all I know is that we’re
all meeting at the
Champagne Bar
and then ending up at
Libertines
Strip Club
.

“Hmm,
interesting, so it’ll be a night of naval men gawping at ladies’ navels then,”
I said with speculation.

He smiled at
my incisive observation. “Don’t include me in that…. or Jonah for that matter. I
only have eyes for you. How about I keep the ray-bans on all night and that way
I’ll hardly see anything?”

I giggled and
pushed my hands up his t-shirt and around his waist.

“I like that
idea,” I replied, nodding eagerly.

He smiled
mischievously. “Although, that does mean I’ll have to feel my way around
instead.”

I tightened
my grip, kissed him hard on the mouth and smiled at his boyish cheek. “Nice try
Lieutenant but I’ll have you court-martialled for any bad behaviour.”

I turned
back to light the grill, put it on medium and then sidled back up to Ethan. I
was feeling a little bit randy by the thought of Ethan in pilot attire.

“How about if
tomorrow morning, you put that uniform back on, I climb aboard your jet engine
and you fly me to heaven and back?” I cringed as soon as I heard back my own
double-entendres. Still, it was too late to take them back so I overlooked my embarrassment
and tip-toed my fingers up his t-shirt, gazing up at him from beneath my
lashes.

“Erm, I’m
not sure, I’ve got to get up early tomorrow to drop Bert off at the airport and
then I’m popping to mums to fit a wardrobe. I may be gone for most of the day,”
he replied, taking my hands and holding them down to his side.

I felt my
eyes begin to fill up and I fought against allowing the tears to fall. I pulled
away from him in humiliation and frustration, but with female hormones set on
default, I try to conceal my pain with anger.

“I never see
you anymore Ethe. Our sex-life seems to have been adjourned, and did you know that’s
the second time you’ve turned me down in six months? Yes that’s right, I
haven’t forgotten.” (A girl
never
forgets a rejection) My voice wavered
and I felt the lump in my throat choking me. I raised my voice up a notch. “What
the
fuck
is going on?”

Ethan stood
there shell-shocked at my outburst. I didn’t even give him a right to reply
before I off-load more paranoia onto him.

“Why have
you been acting so cagey for months? One day you want to tear my clothes off,
and then the next day you disappear out the house or you’re asleep by tea-time?”

I knew my
eruption would only bring limited relief to my anguish but right there and then
it felt cathartic; I even quite liked how the word ‘
fuck
’ felt on my
tongue. Ethan remained speechless and devastation bit into his face. I almost
began to empathise with him as I saw his shoulders slump.

He shook his
head, reached out his hands to lie flat on the central worktop and looked me
squarely in the face. His frown was absorbed and serious.
My word, even his
frown was just unbelievably sexy.
I had to mentally divert my attention
back from the seductive tenseness. What was wrong with me? I felt like my
sexual abstinence had turned me into a horny tramp.

“Pru, just
leave it there please, you’re being silly, you know I’m crazy about you,” he
said in a quiet, agitated tone. Then he rubbed the back of his neck, as if stalling
for time.

I knew he
was itching to un-burden himself but my hormones seemed to want to make him
squirm and hurt as much as I did. “You say you’re working late, or your second
cousin twice-removed wants you to check out a new car, or you have to take Jim
to the loo.”