Seven Days: The Complete Story (29 page)

“Nicholas?”

“Hmm?”

“We’re never
going to be normal are we? Like a
real
couple.”

“Depends on
your definition of normal. I’m willing to re-define my normal if it
means I can have you.”

“But we can
never go out in public. We don’t live in some hick country where
polygamy is as acceptable as marrying your cousin. Most of the
people we know would be appalled if I turned up to a function with
both of you on my arm.”

“I’d like to
think they’d be jealous.”

Despite
myself, I laugh a little. “You sound like Joel.”

“Been sharing
a house with him too long. He’s starting to rub off on me.”

I reach up on
tiptoes, and with my arms about his neck I kiss his throat. His
pulse is racing beneath my lips. “Do you really want me to stay?
I’ll find somewhere else if that’s what you want.”

“I never want
you to leave. Ever. I don’t care what people think. All I care
about is us — you, me and wonder boy.”

It’s nice to
know but when push comes to shove I wonder if Nicholas will really
feel that way.

The next
Saturday is Joel’s birthday. He’s turning the big three-oh so to
celebrate and because he’s declared he won’t have a dinner without
me — which is uber sweet— we’re having a party at home. People from
the office are coming which will give me an excuse for ‘attending’.
I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again. I’ve missed my daily
chats with Jill and, though I get updates from the boys about their
projects, it will be nice to talk about gardens and plants again
with others who get it. The boys’ other friends will be at the
party too, though Joel assures me Mason’s brother and his fiancé
won’t be attending. After the last evening I spent in their company
— the one that led to me breaking up with Mason, I’m super fine
with that. I’m even fine with there being other girls as long as
everyone keeps it social. I don’t know how I’ll respond if they
start fawning over my men. Not when I can’t stake my own claim
because everyone is meant to believe I’m simply another guest.

Early in the
day, I go shopping for a new dress to wear to the party. I want to
look stunning — even if nobody but the boys and me can know the
reason why. In the past, at times like this, I would’ve raided
Emily’s wardrobe but that won’t be happening again any time ever,
so armed with my debit card, I scour the racks for ages, finally
settling on a navy blue mini shift with a white collar and a circle
cut-out in the back. It’s satiny and long-sleeved and hangs from my
body like I’m a coat hanger. It makes me look even more like a
schoolgirl than I currently do, but I plan to team it with a pair
of high-heeled ankle boots and a few chunky bracelets, so I should
end up just far enough on the side of sexy to remind my boys
exactly whom they’re sleeping with tonight.

In case they
have any other ideas.

Which I know
they don’t but I’m erring on the side of caution.

After paying
for my purchases, I spend the next hour getting my nails manicured
and painted bold red, something I’ve never done before. Then I go
to the hairdresser and ask her to tame my auburn locks into a long
straight sheath. It takes literally forever but the result is worth
it. Tonight, I am not me. I am sexy, siren Sadie — sophisticated
girl-about-town who is about to land
the
most awesome job
ever. I will be insanely interesting to all I meet, witty and a
whole heap of fun.

Okay. Maybe
I’ll settle for unforgettable or slightly quirky.

When I get
back to the house, the boys are doing housework. I stop for a
minute taking in this spectacle because, for the life of me, the
sight of Joel wielding a vacuum cleaner is something I never
expected to see. I find it hard enough to imagine him being capable
of laundry. Nicholas has a squeegee and a bucket of soapy water.
He’s cleaning the large panes of glass that constitute the living
room windows then scraping them dry. As he reaches to the top of
the glass the muscles in his sides flex and geez, I’m so turned on.
I don’t know why.

Joel looks up
from the vacuum. A low whistle escapes his lips. “Whoa! Who are you
and what have you done with our girlfriend?”

“I had my hair
straightened.”

Um, like
duh.

“You look hot,
baby.”

“You look like
you should be the one in the frilly apron. Domesticity suits you,”
I joke, as I sashay past Joel with my shopping hooked over my arm.
I’ve become quite the tease of late. Living with these two has made
a side of me emerge I never knew existed.

Joel swipes a
cushion from the sofa and tosses it at my bum. “Watch it, Ariel.
It’s not too late to bend you over the kitchen bench. The guests
don’t arrive for another two hours.” He chases me about the room
attempting to suck my skirt into the vacuum cleaner.

“Good.” I
squeal, poking my tongue out before making a mad dash for my
bedroom. “You’ll need all the time you can get to make yourself
presentable… old man!”

As I slam the
door shut and collapse, panting, on the bed I hear the drone of the
cleaner slowing and the sound of voices. I sit up. I know the guys
are talking about me. I know exactly what is going through their
dirty little minds. They’re trying to decide if we actually do have
enough time to engage in a little illicit tomfoolery before we have
to hit the shower. My vote is always yes but then I’m a fool for
them. They could ask me to skydive naked and I’d probably do it if
it meant I’d get sex at the other end. That’s another thing that’s
changed. I’ll do almost anything these days.

Not
everything
mind, but I’m way more flexible than scaredy-cat
Sadie used to be.

I’m unpacking
my shopping when the handle to my room jiggles and clicks. The door
swings open and Joel appears. He’s looking very serious. He’s got
his arms folded in mock annoyance and his eyebrows are lowered in a
deep and sexy frown. “You have a pretty smart mouth, Ariel.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. You
can’t call me old and expect to get away with it.”

“So what ya
gonna do about it?”

“I’m going to
spank you.”

I continue
hanging the clothes I’ve just purchased. “You wish.”

“I do
wish.”

“You’ll have
to catch me first and an old guy like you? I don’t think you’ve got
a hope.”

With that Joel
dives across the bed and pins me down. The clothes fall to the
carpet, hangers askew. He moves himself on top of me, pinning my
hands to my sides. His lips devour my neck. They nibble at my
shoulder. His ribs press into my breasts.

“Stop it!
You’ll muss my hair. It took hours to get it this straight.” I
shake my head and my hair fans out around my body. I can see Joel’s
aroused by this. He loves my hair. His hands must be itching to get
into it but he knows he can’t because he’ll have to let me go to do
that.

He stills. His
eyes have glazed over and his voice is octaves deeper, gravelly
almost. It makes me shiver in anticipation. “You won’t have bed
hair… if that’s your worry. Interested?”

Um, does Daisy
Duke wear teeny-weeny shorts? Hello?

“Where’s
Nicholas?”

“Waiting in
the kitchen.” He gets off me and yanks me to standing. He slaps my
bottom. I can see he wants to play rough.

“Will there be
dessert after? If I’m a good girl?” I giggle, slipping my hand down
the rear of his pants. I run my tongue over my lips, wetting them,
sucking my lower lip into my mouth. Joel’s eyes scrutinise every
move.

“You’re the
dessert, Ariel. Nick and I are gonna cover you with cream.”

“Don’t be
disgusting.”

“I was talking
about real cream, you naughty minx. The other sort might come later
if you play your cards right.”

“And why the
sudden urge to smother me in dairy products?”

His mouth is
against my ear. “So we can suck you dry.”

A tingle races
through my body and finds a home between my legs. My belly begins
to clench at the thought. Geez, I hate that he can make me overheat
with only words.

Joel leads me
to the kitchen. I follow behind making a show of not wanting to but
we know this is a game. He’s got me boiling. My heart is leaping in
my chest. The blood is thumping in my ears and my breathing has
escalated. I can’t stop smiling because I love this game. I love it
and Joel knows I do.

When we reach
the island bench, Nicholas is waiting. He has a can of whipped
cream in his hand. “About time,” he says. “I’m starving.”

“You could
just have a sandwich,” I say, keeping my voice even, playing the
game to the hilt. “There’s plenty of cold chicken in the
fridge.”

“I could, but
the sweets on offer are way more enticing than the main
course.”

Joel hoists me
onto the bench, lifting my skirt and spreading my legs. His hands
go to my knickers and he rubs a finger over me. God. I’m wet
already. Bugger the cream. I want them inside me now. I want to
feel Nicholas’ length as he thrusts into me. He likes to take me
hard. I want Joel’s mouth all over me when I cry out.

“Lift your
bum,” Joel says quietly. I do and he slides my underwear away,
tossing it aside. “Now undo your blouse. Slowly.”

“Your wish is
my command.” I stare right into his big dark eyes, the lids heavy
with lust and begin a measured, deliberate strip.

I mean, you
think I was gonna say no? Nicholas is shaking the can of cream like
he’s making love to it. I know exactly where he’s planning to
squirt it. And it’s not on that left over apple pie in the
fridge.

*****

By the time
the guests are due to arrive a couple of hours later, the three of
us are showered and changed, no trace of the carnal foreplay to the
evening remaining, either in the kitchen or on our bodies. I stand
in front of the mirror in my bedroom feeling uncertain and biting
my lip. I’m hoping the outfit I’ve chosen will be suitable for when
I meet Joel’s friends. Not that they’ll know who I am but I have
this need for them to like me, to be accepted as something other
than a kid. Because I’m not a kid any more. The last month has
proved that for sure. Before I met Nicholas and Joel I would never
have done the things I find so commonplace now. Geez, I’d never
even been on a plane. Okay, so I still haven’t but I’m hoping to
rectify that soon. If all goes well.

I straighten
the hem of my dress and apply one last smack of lipstick. I’ve
given myself thick dark wings of eyeliner tonight and a deep red
lip to match my newly polished nails. I think I look sophisticated,
like a model, especially with my hair straightened and hanging down
my back. Well, I hope I do. I want the boys to be proud of me. I
want their friends to say how hot I am and wouldn’t they be lucky
to be with me. I want to outshine the bevy of gorgeous girls I know
are about to storm our front door in the hope of snagging one or
both of my men for the night. I glance in the mirror again and
smile before heading for the living room. Those other girls have
got fat chance.

At the kitchen
bench — the scene of our sexual demise — I find the boys chatting,
a cold beer in each of their hands. Stopping for a second, I take
in the handsome physiques of the two men I now call mine and expel
a dreamy sigh. They are beautiful, so beautiful in every way. And
they literally complete me like I never would have thought
possible. It’s funny, but when the girls I went to Uni with spoke
about how they felt about their boyfriends I used to think they
were mostly exaggerating. I never believed such desire for another
person could exist, that it would be so strong you’d forget to eat
or where the time went. I never dreamed I could spend hours laying
and doing absolutely nothing but gazing into a man’s eyes. And if
such emotions did exist I certainly never believed they’d be
something I’d experience. But now I know what those girls meant. I
only have to look at the boys and I want sex. I have this constant
ache that can only be relieved by a touch or smile, a need to
constantly be in their close proximity. I want to be with them, and
in them, and on them. I want them in me.

All.

The.

Time.

I have it bad.
Like really bad.

“There you
are.” Nicholas hands me a glass of bubbles. His fingers linger on
mine and I know he’s thinking about what we did an hour ago. I eye
him closely. Somehow he’s managed to coordinate his shirt to my
dress even though he had no idea what I’d be wearing. The midnight
blue colour makes his eyes pop and teamed with dark denim jeans, a
smattering of whisker across his jaw and his dark hair, he looks
sexy and brooding. And mine. All mine. God, I want to gobble every
inch of him.

“You look
cute, Ariel,” Joel says, giving me the once over.

“Beautiful,
really beautiful,” Nicholas adds.

I grin at them
and hold out the hem of my dress for their approval. “You
like?”

“I never knew
you had legs like that, they go on forever.” Joel reaches across
and slides his hand up my dress, cupping my bottom through the thin
fabric of my knickers.

“Now, now
tiger,” I chastise, taking his hand and holding it away from me.
“We have guests arriving any minute.” I hope I sound as confident
as I look ‘cause right about now, I think I’m going to spew. I’m so
freaking nervous about meeting Nicholas and Joel’s social
group.

“Let’s ring
them and tell them not to come. Let’s go to bed. That dress is
giving me ideas of a new game we can play. Fuck the guests.”

“I was hoping
if I wore this dress it would deter you from fucking the guests.” I
smirk.

“Always with
the smart mouth.”

Darting out of
Joel’s way, I move to the other side of the counter just as the
doorbell rings. Thank God. Saved by the bell. Literally.