Fleeting Moments (15 page)

My hands move before my mind registers what’s happening, sliding down my body and slipping between my legs. I’ve never been so turned on over the thought of a man in my entire life, not even with Gerard. Heath does something to me; he ignites a fire in my soul that I can’t seem to extinguish. It just burns brighter and hotter until eventually, I’m going to explode with wanting.

My fingers graze over my clit, and I whimper. Swollen and aching, my body is already on board for whatever I have to offer it. I turn, pressing my back to the shower wall and spreading my legs a little farther, massaging softly at first, and then increasing in pressure as images of Heath and I at my house flitter through my mind. God. He was incredible in bed. Incredible with his mouth. Incredible with his hands.

Dammit.

I want him again. I fucking need him.

“God fucking dammit.”

I jerk, and my hand drops from between my legs as a little gasp leaves my lips. Heath is standing at the door, boxers straining with his erection as he looks at me, the lusty glance he held earlier now filled with pure, raw need. My cheeks burn and I stammer, “I, ah . . .”

“I know exactly what you were doing,” he says, his voice so low and thick it’s hard to make out each word. “Fuck. It’s taking everything for me not to come in there, throw your leg around my waist, and slam you against that wall until we’re both coming.”

I shiver.

“You want it, too. Don’t you, baby?”

I lick my bottom lip. “I wasn’t touching myself for nothing.”

He growls. “Tell me to get out. Tell me I can’t have you again.”

My clit throbs, the desperation travelling deep into my belly. “You can’t have me again,” I say even though I want to throw myself out of the shower and into his arms.

“You’re a liar.”

“I know,” I say, running my hands boldly down my body. “I know I am.”

“I’m walking away now, because I made a promise to do this right,” he rasps, his eyes dropping to my pussy before he turns and clearly forces himself out of the room.

My stomach dips with disappointment, yet my heart explodes with awe that he would be so respectful. A small smile plays around my lips as an idea comes to mind. If he’s so adamant on not having me, I’ll have to make him suffer.

Just a little.

~*~*~*~

I
t takes more than a little courage to do what I do next.

I finish my shower, and pull on my panties and one of Heath’s shirts, which covers my bottom and goes halfway down my thighs. Still, I know it’s sexy, and a massive risk. I can’t help it—something about him makes me want to play dirty, or even more—
be
dirty. I’ve never been that girl. I’ve always been the clean, little make-love-sweetly kind of woman. But with him, I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make him ache for me.

I take a deep, shaky breath and walk out of the room and into the main living area. All the men are sitting around a table talking, so I saunter past and into the kitchen. It doesn’t escape my notice that the talking stops. Smothering my sly little grin, I reach up to a taller cupboard and take down a stack of plates. I know the lower part of my bottom is showing, and when I turn around with the plates in my hand, I know I’ve gotten the reaction I wanted.

I just didn’t expect it out of all of them.

They’re all staring at me with a mixture of tight jaws or sly smiles.

Heath looks pissed. And horny. Mostly pissed.

I smile sweetly. “I’m making breakfast. It’s the least I can do.”

I turn around and open the fridge, sidling over and leaning down to inspect the contents. A hiss can be heard in the silence, and my grin gets bigger as I gather some ham, eggs, mushrooms, and cheese. I feel his presence behind me long before I hear his rumbling voice as he leans his body over mine, letting his breath tickle my ear. “You’re givin’ every man in here a hard-on. Unless you want me to lower those pretty panties and fuck you right here, right now, then I suggest you go and put some jeans on.”

I straighten and turn, but he has me pinned with one hand right next to my head, resting against the fridge so I can’t get out. “Yes, sir,” I breathe, staring at his lips.

“Stop fuckin’ looking at me like that. You’re asking me to have control but you’re playing with fire.”

“I’m not asking you to have control,” I say slipping away. “But I appreciate that you do. Doesn’t mean I don’t get to make it difficult.”

He grabs me around the waist, pulling me so my back slams against his chest. His mouth finds my ear, and he gently nips it before saying in a husky voice, “Careful.”

“Consider it revenge for all those times you let me look crazy,” I say, spinning in his arms and leaning up, pressing a kiss to his lower lip.

He growls.

I grin.

Today is going to be a good day.

I
glance at my phone and frown when I see Heather’s name flashing across the screen. God, I thought we were over this. I’m so tired of her interfering in something that, quite frankly, is none of her business. I notice a few notifications on my screen that alert me to the fact that she’s been calling me for a while. With a sigh, I excuse myself from the men I’ve just served breakfast to and stand a few feet away, answering the phone.

“Yes, Heather?”

“Finally. I’ve been trying to call you for hours.”

My heart quickens. “Is everything okay with Gerard?”

Heath’s eyes flash to mine.

“They are now, but they won’t be when I tell him about you and your lover!”

I blink. “Pardon me?”

“This has all been a story, hasn’t it? This whole ‘other man’ business. You made it look like you were crazy so you could hide the fact that you were having an affair.”

The woman has lost her ever-loving mind.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Don’t play stupid with me,” she screams. “He gave you everything and you cheated on him!”

“I didn’t cheat on him,” I screech. I’ve had enough of this woman. “Not once.”

“Liar! I saw you last night leaving your parents’ house with him. A man. Then it made sense—it all came together. You used an imaginary man that you knew didn’t exist to push Gerard away and make it look like you were crazy, leaving you free to pursue your secret lover. What a clever, clever way of getting out of your marriage clean.”

She can’t be serious. “You’ve lost your mind.”

“So you’re telling me you’re not seeing someone? That I imagined you practically skipping out of that house with a man on your arm?”

I glance at Heath. I can’t tell her about him. I think for a few seconds. “No, I was with a man. He’s a friend.”

“You’re such a liar!”

“I’m not lying, Heather. He’s a friend that I met in, the, ah, support group I’ve been going to. I’m not having an affair; I was always faithful to Gerard.”

“That baby probably wasn’t even his. I always wondered how you magically got pregnant suddenly after so long trying.”

My blood boils. “Who the hell do you think you are? You shut your mouth. That baby was his. I was never, ever unfaithful.”

“I beg to differ. I’m going to prove it, and when I do, you’re going down. He’s going to get that house, the car—everything. Do you hear me? Everything.”

I’m trembling now. “What the hell have I ever done to make you hate me so much?”

“You were never good enough for him.”

“Go and fuck yourself, Heather. Search away; you’ll find nothing on me because I didn’t do a thing wrong.”

“You’re going to pay for this, mark my words.”

“Don’t you threaten me,” I hiss.

“It’s not a threat; it’s a promise. You’re going to lose everything when I’m finished.” Then she hangs up.

Without thought, I launch my phone across the room, letting out a frustrated scream. It lands against the wall with a thump.

“Hey.” Heath’s hands curl around my upper arms, and slowly he spins me around. “What’s going on?”

“She saw us leaving my parents’ house and thinks I was having an affair, and is going to try and take that through the justice system.”

“Who is she?”

“His sister. She hates me. She thinks I made up the story about you helping me as a subtle way to get out of my marriage to be with my lover. My god, she’s delusional.” My entire body shakes.

“Hey, look at me,” Heath orders.

I look up at him.

“She’s got nothing because you did nothing. Let her act like a crazy person if it makes her feel better.”

I stare at my hands. “I don’t want him to get hurt. Regardless of everything, I don’t want to see him suffer. I need to go and talk to him, without her.”

Heath’s jaw tics, but he nods. “If that’s what you need to do.”

“I do,” I say, reaching up and cupping his jaw. “I’ll call you later.”

His eyes close for a second, and he mutters, “I’ve never been the jealous type, but fuck, I hate you seeing him.”

My heart flutters. “You’re jealous?”

“Don’t smile at me,” he growls.

I smile big. Then I reach up on my tiptoes and kiss him. “Oh, I need a ride.”

He grunts, but lets me go and reluctantly gets his keys.

“Later, guys.” I wave as we rush out the front door.

Heath is jealous.

Why does that feel so good?

~*~*~*~

I
arrive at Heather’s half an hour later, after stopping home and getting some fresh clothes on and collecting my car from my parent’s house. I exhale in relief when I see her car isn’t there; I just hope wherever she is, he isn’t with her. I need to talk to him alone, and if I have to demand that before proceeding further with the settlement, I will. I reach the front door and knock, sucking back any nerves and putting on a confident face.

The door opens a few minutes later, and Gerard appears, his hair messy, shirtless, and for a moment my heart aches. It aches because we didn’t go where I thought we’d go; it aches because part of me doesn’t want it to anymore; and it aches because he’s a good person, and I hate that it ever had to come to this. Our eyes meet, and I can see he’s tired. That hurts me. He doesn’t deserve to be struggling over this. Heather isn’t helping him, and I hope he comes to realize that soon.

“Are you seeing someone else?” he says, his voice icy yet exhausted.

Okay, I see he’s spoken to Heather already.

“Can we talk?” I sigh. “Please Gerard. This is getting out of control and I’m tired of it. We need to have a conversation without that woman around.”

“That
woman
is my sister, and she cares about me.”

“Yeah,” I growl. “Well believe it or not, so do I. We can either do this civilly or I’m going to put a hold on the proceedings until we can sit down and discuss it. It’s up to you.”

He studies me for a moment, then with a clenched jaw, he sighs. “I’ll get changed. Have you had breakfast?”

“No.”

“We’ll go out. Heather is busy this morning.”

Thank god.
“I’ll wait out here.”

Ten minutes later, he steps out in a fresh pullover and a pair of jeans. Once, I’d thought his elegant, casual look was all I wanted, but now I’ve seen the rugged side to a male, I’m not so sure. We awkwardly get into my car, and I drive down to a café a few blocks down. We find a seat and for a few moments, we both just sit, looking at anything but each other.

“Are you seeing someone else?”

I don’t want to lie to him, but at the same time, there’s only so much information I can give.

“I have spent time with a man, yes,” I say, telling the truth.

“Before we split?”

I shake my head, a little sadly. He should know me better than that. “No, Gerard. Not before we split. Whatever Heather told you was a lie. I wouldn’t do that, and you know it.”

He runs a hand through his hair. “I don’t know what I believe anymore.”

“Well, you can believe that because it’s the truth. I was never unfaithful.”

“That seems hard to believe when you moved on so quickly.”

I take a calming breath as I try to find a way to explain this without lying . . . too much. “He’s a friend.”

“Then why did Heather see you leaving your parents’ house with him last night, holding hands?”

“We are just friends; I don’t need to give you more of an explanation.”

“I beg to differ,” he snaps.

I close my eyes for a second. “Come on, Gerard. We’re better than this. Can’t we just . . . try? You loved me once. I loved you. We got along. Why can’t we just attempt to do this properly?”

“You loved me so much you moved on in a matter of weeks.”

I say nothing, because he’s right, and I have to accept that one.

“I don’t want this to be messy,” I say, changing the subject.

“I didn’t either, but I want a full investigation before anything proceeds. Infidelity will change everything.”

He can’t be serious. “I didn’t cheat on you,” I try to say it calmly, but my voice comes out clipped.

“How come you suddenly got pregnant?”

Oh my god. No. Not that.
Anything but that.

“I don’t know how you expect me to explain that. It was lucky, but it was yours.”

“We tried to for so long, with not even a glimpse of a baby, then suddenly you’re pregnant.”

Stay calm.

Stay calm.

“That baby was yours,” I bite out.

“And this mystery man that just happened to break up our marriage?”

Oh my god. “No, Gerard, we broke up our marriage. Me because I hung onto something that wasn’t”—I swallow, hating that I have to say it—“real. And you because you didn’t believe in me, and you didn’t stick by me. It had nothing to do with some underlying plan to get away from you to run off with my lover!”

“So you’re admitting you have a lover.”

Sweet Jesus. She’s corrupted him.

“You know what?” I hiss, standing up. “This is the last time I try and do this the right way. If you wish to sit and listen to your sister fill your head with lies, then you go ahead and investigate me. I’ve done nothing wrong, and I won’t be punished for being stuck in the wrong place at the wrong time and living the worst moments of my life while you worked!” I’m screaming by the end of it.

Calm down.

Breathe.