Secrets of a Chalet Girl (3 page)

“If you’re worried I’m about to kidnap you, you don’t need to be. Let’s see, I’m a respectable management consultant with a flat in Geneva and a chalet here in Verbier. I love to snowboard. What else? Well, I’m quite fond of après ski and I like sex.”

“Right. Your English is very good but I can definitely hear something else in your accent?” She tried not to react to his mention of sex.

Great, now you sound like you’re making conversation at a church garden party! Not sexy Flora.

“My father’s Swiss,” Zac’s smile tightened. “Hence the Swiss surname. But I was sent to boarding school in England and my mother’s English.”

“Okay.” Flora’s tense muscles relaxed as she nestled against his firm torso. She could feel the hard muscle through his shirt, was aware of her flesh responding to him, her nipples hardening on contact.

I want this. I need this.

“So you’re happy to come back with me now you know my mother’s English?” He teased.

“Sort of, it’s nice to know a little about you.”

“And how about you Umflora? What do I need to know about you?”

“Absolutely nothing.” Flora giggled. It was great being able to finally say what she liked and do what she wanted. This was the first time since leaving Tom she felt really free from him, free from home, free from the old Flora…

“I promise I’ll come up with much more interesting Dares. Because if you don’t want to tell me anything you’ll have to do what I dare you to.”

“And vice versa, you’ll have to do what I dare you too,” she countered, feeling playful and liking the idea of having some power.

“I look forward to it.” Zac leant in closer and planted a soft kiss on her neck. She shivered, certain they both knew Zac was way more experienced than her. What would he say if he knew she’d only ever slept with one man?

I do hope he doesn’t ask me that.

Come to think of it there were all sorts of things she hoped he wouldn’t ask her. It would be so much nicer if he did things to her instead.

“Relax.” Zac stroked her ribs through her dress, sending sparks of desire ricocheting throughout her body. “Let’s go, shall we?”

Like there’d ever been any doubt about whether Flora was going to leave the bar with Zac. She’d been kidding herself that she could walk out of this bar and take the turning back for Chalet Repos at any time but she knew, deep down, there was only one place she was going.

To bed with Zac.

She went with him to the coat rack and once he’d helped her into her coat they stepped out onto the street. The icy mountain air assaulted them immediately. Flora shivered, half with the cold, half with anticipation.

She glanced up at the dark, star-strewn sky. It seemed appropriate; as she walked along the street with Zac’s arm behind her back, steadying her on the icy patches of pavement, it felt like taking a step into the vast unknown.

She was due some adventure
.

Playing Truth or Dare made it easier. After all at least fifty per cent of the time she would be in control. There was quite a lot she wanted to ask Zac about himself. Getting to know him might be a lot of fun.

And then there was the sex…

“Is it far?” she asked.

“It’s just up here, the modern chalet with the large windows.” He pointed to a snow-covered chalet further up the hill ahead. It nestled up above the town centre, facing the magnificent drop down over the Val de Bagnes and the view across to the French Alps. It was a sight that usually took her breath away but tonight she only had headspace for Zac.

At least his chalet wasn’t as flashy or as large as some of its neighbours. It was a relatively new building, a quirky design but built with the same wood as the traditional luxury chalets surrounding it. The front of Zac’s chalet had windows the height of the building facing the mountain view and a couple of balconies to sit out on to enjoy the Swiss sunshine during the day and stars by night.

Nerves hit her as they entered the main cabin. It was cosy with large padded dark leather sofas contrasting with light oak flooring. The splashes of colour in the room came from the books on the shelves that covered an entire wall of the room. The volume of books impressed Flora. It was kind of nice to find another reader. Not that it mattered obviously. This was only going to be a short-term fling so it hardly mattered if they had much to talk about.

Zac walked over to the log basket by the fireplace and tossed another log onto the still smouldering fire. It hissed in protest and then sent flames licking around the new source of fuel, flaring into life. Outside in the darkness, snowflakes began to fall, slowly at first, then growing ever larger until the night sky was thick with snow, giving it an eerily pale glow.

“Drink?” he asked.

“Erm, I probably shouldn’t.”

Shouldn’t drink and probably shouldn’t be here. Oh help, what have I got myself into?

“Can I tempt you with a Kir Royale?”

“Okay,” she folded, mentally swatting the worry-insects away. “You’ve found my weakness.”

A couple of sips wouldn’t do any harm. It might help her to relax. She wouldn’t finish it. On top of the cocktails she’d already had, it could be lethal. Or at the very least, it could lead to her doing or saying something she’d regret.

“I hope to find a lot more weaknesses,” he replied, the corners of his mouth twitching. “It will save me a lot of time if you tell me up front.”

“You’ll have to work a bit harder at interrogation than that,” she said, taking the tall champagne flute filled with rich, dark-pink bubbles. She sipped at it, the fruity blackcurrant bursting onto her taste buds before she swallowed. The warmth spread through her chest like a comforting embrace, relaxing her.

Zac knows what he’s doing. He does this a lot.

Somehow the thought of Zac bringing numerous different women back to his chalet after a day on the slopes didn’t disturb her as much as she’d thought it would. It helped her to feel anonymous. It would be as though she’d never been here. Maybe Zac wouldn’t even remember her. That thought gave her a kind of freedom. It didn’t matter how bad she was in bed if he was going to forget her.

After tonight, apart from the wedding, maybe she wouldn’t have to see Zac again if she didn’t want to?

Perfect.

Tash was right. This was the best way to leap back into the dating fray – with a sexy stranger in a foreign country. If she screwed up who would know? No strings sex – absolutely no pressure.

She felt peculiarly light-headed, whether it was from the Kir Royale or the feeling of freedom and anticipation pulsing through her body she wasn’t sure.

Probably a little of both.

“Come and sit down,” Zac patted the leather sofa next to him and she approached cautiously, perching on the edge a little further away than he’d patted.

Zac took some dice from a drawer in a lamp table and selected one.

“Let’s play Truth, Dare or Forfeit,” he announced. “If you throw a one or a two that means a Truth, three or four mean a Dare and five or six will be a Forfeit – the thrower has to forfeit an item of clothing of the other player’s choice.”

Flora’s stomach fluttered and her skin prickled to attention. Zac was so impossibly handsome – a strong jaw shadowed with stubble, intense dark-blue eyes and a physique an athlete would be proud of. He looked like he could wrestle a bear without breaking sweat. Hmm, where had that come from?

If he’d suggested playing naked Twister she would’ve agreed. Now there was a thought…

She wouldn’t mind telling him to take off his shirt either. As soon as he threw a five or a six it was coming off.

“Forfeit was never part of the deal,” she protested, not wanting to seem too eager, too easy … 

It’s a bit late for that.

“My chalet, my rules.” He grinned and raised an eyebrow, sipping at his Kir Royale but never taking his eyes off of her.

“But you’re wearing a lot more items of clothing than me.”

His eyes skimmed appreciatively over the lines of her silk dress, lightly hugging her curves. Heat burned her cheeks.

Damn, he was doing it again, making her blush. Heat spread through her body, desire flaring into life as its flames licked at her, teasing her…

He pulled his v-neck jumper over his head and threw it to the floor. “There you go.”

The neckline at the top of his T-shirt revealed tanned flesh and a small amount of chest hair. She really hoped he’d throw a five or a six. She wanted to see what lay beneath that shirt, to lay a hand on his chest and trail it down his body…

It felt like a need rather than a want.

“Ladies first,” he grinned, his firm thigh resting, seemingly casually, against her leg where she sat on the sofa. Had he moved or had she? Perhaps this magnetic pull affecting her really was strong enough to move mountains. Or bodies come to that. She was intensely aware of the warmth of his flesh at point of contact. All her attention focused on the point where their bodies met, it was hard to think of anything else.

He handed her one of the dice.

She threw it onto the coffee table, only breaking off eye contact with Zac to see what she’d thrown.

A six. Great. Maybe she could take off her necklace or a shoe?

“I say you forfeit your knickers.” Zac’s eyes gleamed and Flora’s stomach preformed an undignified back flip. Her fingers trembled as she threaded them together in her lap.

“Shouldn’t they be last to you know…come off,” she asked.

“You don’t get to choose,” he replied.

A thrill ran through her body at his words but still she didn’t want him to know how much he was turning her on.

Hold back Flora. You have to hold back.

“Do you need a hand?” He added, mouth twisting with amusement.

The sod. He’s enjoying my discomfort.

“No,” she replied, wanting to be the girl who could take this in her stride. She’d come here for sex after all. This was no big deal. She didn’t have to act coyly to hold back from Zac, there were many more ways to withhold herself emotionally and taking control was one of them.

Yet no one had passed on the boldness memo to her body. Her hands continued to tremble as they inched the hem of her dress up her body. She watched his eyes darken as they took in her hold ups and the bare flash of flesh at the top of her thighs. Hearing Zac’s sudden intake of breath she parted her legs to give him a better view. She felt powerful.

She felt sexy and could barely breathe as she edged her knickers down and threw them to the floor, pulling the hem of her dress quickly back down as she did, only giving him the briefest of flashes.

“Your turn,” she said, thrusting the dice at him to move the attention away from her.

He tore his eyes away from where her knickers lay on the floor and threw a two. Truth.

“How many women have you slept with, Zac?” she asked.

“I’ve lost count.” His eyes danced, amused.

She gulped. They lived in different worlds, that was clear. But did it have to matter? She’d only been with the one man because she’d met Tom when she was seventeen and a virgin. Casual sex on Zac’s scale was something she could only imagine. Would it feel different with him?

“Does it bother you?” he asked her, reaching over to lightly stroke the fabric of her dress where it covered her thigh, his touch rucked the dress hem up her body, seemingly accidentally.

Yeah right!

But she let it stay where it was and squirmed in her seat a little. “No, it should mean you’re good at it by now. If you’ve had all that practice.”

He threw his head back and laughed.

“So, will you give me marks out of ten?” he teased, his hand still languorously stroking her thigh in a way that drove her wild, the hem riding higher and higher until the lace of one of her hold-ups could be seen.

The fire in the hearth flickered, the flames licking the new log. Every muscle tensed, her body on high alert.

Hurriedly she picked up the dice and threw again.

“A four?” Zac’s face lit up with a wide, sexy grin. “Now, what shall I get you to do?”

Flora’s heart beat faster. She could feel the heat burning between her legs where she was growing wet. Her breasts ached to be touched.

Sexual desire; she’d almost forgotten what it felt like.

“Let me look at you,” he said simply, removing his hand from her thigh.

“What do you mean, you are looking at me.” She frowned, thinking it an odd request.

“I mean I want to
look
at you.” He lowered his eyes to the hem of her skirt. “Lift up your dress, let me see you.”

“Oh.” She took a deep breath, her cheeks burning with embarrassment but doing what he asked felt strangely erotic. She pulled her dress up higher, slowly, teasingly, getting into character and emboldened by both the Kir Royale and the sense that none of this was really real.

Zac placed one hand on each of her ankles, taking her by surprise, lifting both her legs up onto his lap, gently parting them.

“Oh,” she gasped.

Her skirt was now up around her waist and she was very, very turned on. She tuned in to the sensation of his fingers on her limbs, guiding her, seducing her. But his fingers travelled no higher than her ankles. He caressed her with his stare instead, and she found she loved the attention. Wanting him to do more drove her crazy but at the same time she found the build up of sexual tension erotic and empowering. The embarrassment faded away leaving pure lust.

The need for him to touch her swelled inside, powerful and insistent.

No one had ever stared at her in this way, or made her feel so sexually attractive. She wouldn’t complain if he abandoned the game right now to make love to her.

The frustration of waiting for him to do something swelled inside her until she thought she’d burst. After a moment that seemed to stretch out forever Zac tore his eyes away and coolly picked up the dice.

She leant forward again, loosely tugging her dress back down again as she watched him throw.

“A six, I’ll be having that shirt, mister.” She sat up so she could get a better view, her fingers itching to tear the shirt from him and never mind the buttons.

She could feel sexual desire coiling tighter and tighter inside her with every inch of flesh revealed. His chest was firm and the muscles defined. The dark chest hair snaked down into the waistband of his jeans and she couldn’t help letting her eyes trail lower to the obvious bulge of a large erection.

Good. So she’d made an impression then. It was always good for the ego.

Tash was right. This is fun and it has been far too long.

At the thought of the girls back at Chalet Repos she wavered, a part of her missing the familiarity of their nightly routine. The late night chats in the dorm room clasping mugs of hot chocolate were a world away from this. But that was the coward in her speaking. It was time to stop playing it safe.

And how often did a girl get this kind of offer? She locked eyes with Zac and knew with certainty wild horses couldn’t drag her back to Chalet Repos; she was kidding herself. Perhaps she
had
to kid herself to feel she could walk away if she wanted to.

She needed an out, an emergency exit, just in case…

“Er, whose turn is it?” She blinked.

“Yours.” He handed her the dice and his fingers brushed hers. A delicious tightening sensation tingled deep in the pit of her stomach.

“A one. Now what shall I ask you Flora?” He observed her thoughtfully. The only sound in the room came from the crackling fire.

Her heart beat faster, for some reason Truth felt scarier than Dare or Forfeit.

“I know, tell me where I have to kiss you to really turn you on.”

Flora blinked hard. “Um, on my neck maybe.”

“Maybe? You’re sure that’s the place that will really turn you on? I think we might have to test this to find out if you’re telling the truth.”

He pulled her across onto his lap and lowered his lips to her neck, caressing her skin with his lips. She moaned, her response out of control, her body automatically taking over as liquid heat pooled between her legs. Control rapidly disappeared as a viable option.

She could feel his erection beneath her dress and instinctively rubbed herself against him, wanting to push him out of control too.