Survival (Twisted Book 1) (15 page)

“Thomas!” I shrieked when he sat me on something cold.

“Ssh,” he covered my mouth with his hand, then his lips and pulled back.

I looked around me. I was on the bonnet of Nina’s car.

“Thomas.”

He squeezed my legs, his thumbs stroking so close to where I ached for him.

“She’ll never know. It was this or lying you on the lawn,” his thumb reached the sweet heat between my legs. My body convulsed, begging for more. “Besides – you’ll never be able to get in this car again without thinking of me fucking you in it.”

“In it?”

He nodded, dropped his hands and walked round to the passenger side of the car. I followed as he opened the door and climbed in.

“How did you know it would be open?”

“Lucky guess.”

My eyes widened when he tapped his lap and I almost combusted on the spot when he undid his trousers and tugged them down. No underwear.
An engorged cock straining under its weight. And then his voice; low, hoarse, seductive.

“You’re not the only one who wants it anywhere, anytime, anyhow. Come here.”

I hitched up my dress, climbed over him, setting my knees either side of his legs and lowered myself onto him. A loud cry escaped us both as Thomas impaled me and every glorious inch lead me closer to home.

I could tell him everything, right? I could let him in and not worry that he’d be disgusted by my very existence and cast me out onto the streets like an unwanted dog after Christmas, couldn’t I? I wasn’t so sure, but what choice did I have?

New Year’s Day, 2010.

Thomas was still asleep when I woke up and I laid and watched him for a while. He was
my everything. I found him at a time when I had nothing and I would forever be grateful for that. He’d had a great life and far more experience than me; blame the age, or whatever, but it was me he wanted. He had a career, a good one borne of real hard work. He had a degree in journalism and another in business management. He had worked his ass off as a journalist for Martin so he earned the right to take over. He had travelled, to Europe, to the Middle East and America. He had sampled the cultures in countries on every continent and he had done it all before turning forty. But it was me, boring, broken Skye with no degree, no heritage, no family and nothing to bring to the table that he wanted. It was me who he chose to share his life with. He was all I had and I didn’t need anything else.

I watched him stir as he woke up and caressed his cheek until he opened his eyes and they focussed on me. Last night was amazing. We fucked in Nina’s car and then got a cab home and made love in our queen-sized bed.

But we hadn’t talked about what happened and I owed him answers. I knew everything about him and it was time to give something back.

“Morning,” he smiled and kissed my lips.

“Do you still want to talk?”

I was terrified. If I told him, I risked losing him. If I didn’t, I would lose him. I was at the crossroads again, but neither direction looked good. I had to expose myself, let my guard down and become vulnerable to his rejection.

My instinct was to distract us with sex, as I watched him guzzle his water from the glass next to the bed, but I had to control myself regardless of how much I wanted him and  how desperately I wanted to avoid this conversation.

“Skye,
it’s okay to keep things to yourself. Some things. Not things that affected you like last night.”

“I don’t want to keep things from you. I'm afraid. I was poor, hungry and alone. Years ago, I wouldn’t have deserved everything you have given me.”

“You’re not alone anymore. And I would have loved you then. I don’t love you because you’re not poor and can eat more than me.”

I laughed. I
could
eat more than him. I could eat a double cheeseburger and fries until my belly doubled in size and still have room for dessert.

“The worst part, after losing Oliver,
was trusting someone again. Curtis had been through as much as me and I thought we were there for each other. He was there the night Oliver died. He stayed with me in the hospital and never left. We spent every day together until he sent me away. I guess I should have seen it. We were both too broken to fix each other.”

“What happened?”

“He kept Oliver’s money and gave it to me the night my mother stole everything. He told me to go and live. I thought he was coming with me, but that was never his plan. I travelled a bit, but I was lonely and I missed him. When I came back to find him, he was gone. He just disappeared. I tried to look for him but I never saw him again. Until last night.”

“He was at the party?”

I nodded, “Maybe he wasn’t really there. Maybe I was looking at a ghost.”

“Did you love him?” I shrugged. “Come on, we’ve talked about Sarah.”

Sarah. His crazy ex. When they broke up – her decision – she covered the front of his house with eggs and flour, defaced his football trophies with a butter knife and stole his graduation caps.

“I thought I did. He was Oliver’s closest friend and he became my only friend. I don’t know what would have happened if he didn’t leave, but in a twist of fate, I found you. I wouldn’t change that for anything.”

“Do you want to try and find him? I have people that can try and track him down.”

“You’d do that?”

He nodded and met my eyes with honest sincerity in his, “Without a second thought.”

“Thank you, but no,” I said as I locked our fingers together. “If I did see him last night, he knows how to find me. I’m not chasing a ghost. I just want to focus on our life together. I'm not that girl anymore.”

“I’m sorry he hurt you.”

“Me too…but it gave me you. That’s worth every bit of pain I’ve ever felt.”

“In that case,” he threw the duvet back, exposing our naked bodies. “You can make breakfast.”

He was a caveman, my caveman, and my God did he look good standing at the barbecue.

August, 2010.

“He’s definitely the best looking so far,” Penelope nudged me and reached for her glass of Margarita a la Thomas. He was a bartender when he was at university and liked to spoil us girls with his skills.

“You’ve been saying that for years.”

“Because it’s true.”

The four of us - Penelope, Jenifer, Amanda and I were lounging in the garden. Thomas, Chaz and Joel were at the barbecue arguing over how long it took to cook a steak rare.

“Listen.
My barbecue, my rules. If you don’t like it, host your own.”

He picked up his beer and looked at me as he brought the bottle to his lips.

God, he was delicious. He had marinated the jerk chicken overnight and the smell filled the garden. My mouth watered, but it wasn’t the chicken that had me salivating; I wanted to devour the chef. His body was an intoxicating statue of god-like proportion, only made sexier by what was beneath the muscle. He was everything I wanted; there wasn’t anything I didn’t love about the man standing over the barbecue.

Jenifer whistled and all three turned around and shook their derrieres. We erupted into fits of laughter and the boys resumed their argument, this time over whether burger buns should be buttered.

“This is the life, huh?” Amanda said draining the last of her cocktail and shaking her glass at Thomas for another.

We all hummed in agreement and raised our faces to the sun.

“Now all you need is a little thing in a nappy running around clutching a blankie.”

Time to change the subject.
I dropped my voice so only the girls could hear.

“I want to plan a party for Thomas. It’s his birthday next month and I want to do something special.”

They all sat up and crowded around me. The shrieks of excitement told me they’d forgotten about baby talk, thank God.

Balloons, check. Banners, check. Mini sausage rolls, check…shock to the system, check.

September 24
th
, 2010.

Turns out, I was good at being sneaky. I was good at conspiring. The girls and I had spent the last month planning Thomas’ party and Nina gave me the Friday off work to get everything ready. I could have booked a venue, but I planned to have a party at home, where Thomas could relax and celebrate with his family and friends. Penelope and I decorated the house with as many fairy lights as we could without it looking tacky. Jenifer collected the bouquets of black and gold helium balloons and Thomas’ gift. Amanda, at 5’10 and taller than the rest of us, hung the banner I’d had printed above the entrance to the living room.

I put the CD in the sound system and turned it on so Thomas’ favourite music played in every room downstairs. Together, the four of us moved the furniture to open up the lounge and I sat Oliver’s picture on the mantelpiece. He would be at the party too.

I left the others to put the finishing touches to downstairs while I headed upstairs to change. Thomas called as I pulled my dress from the wardrobe.

“Hello, Birthday Boy.”

“Remind me to stay away from the office on my next birthday.”

“That bad, huh?”

I smiled to myself. I had asked his PA, Trisha, to leave all his correspondence until the last minute to keep him in the office late.

“I’m the only one here.”

“Oh, are you?” I heard the edge in his voice and responded willingly. “What are you doing?”

“Scrolling through some files.
I should be reading them, but I’d rather be at home with you.”

“You can pretend,” I sat on the edge of the bed. “Imagine I’m there, sitting on your desk and leaning in. I’m so close you can smell my perfume. Imagine I sit forward and stroke your leg. My hand is moving higher.”

I heard him shift in his chair and his breathing became uneven.

“Mmm,” he groaned. “Tell me more…I’m getting hard for you.”

“I know. I can feel it.” I could. The tense, erotic energy travelled through the phone and I squeezed my thighs together. “Undo your trousers.”

I heard the unbuckling of his belt and the harsh sound of his zip.

“Take hold of yourself and imagine it’s me…stroke slowly like I would. Run your thumb over the tip. Catch the pre-cum that oozes out and know I want to taste it, to spread it down your shaft with my tongue.”

He sighed and groaned, and his chair creaked as I imagined him tensing his legs as the pleasure took over.

“So good. The way you squeeze my dick makes me crazy.”

“Good. Squeeze harder, pump faster. My other hand is moving between my legs. I'm so wet for you.
So hot.”

I parted my lips and circled my clit with the tip of my finger. I almost couldn’t speak through the ecstasy that quickly built. Thomas grunted through the phone, his breathing ragged as he worked himself. I moaned and dipped a finger inside me, spreading the wetness over my swollen nub.

“I’m close, Thomas. My pussy is squeezing my finger like my hand is squeezing your cock. I want to tighten around you while you fuck me on your desk…Tell me you’re close.”

“I’m close, Skye. Spread your legs, show me how wet you are.”

“Thomas,” I breathed.

“Skye,” He groaned.

“Come for me. Come all over me. Show me how much I turn you on, how much you want me.”

He let out a guttural hiss and I imagined the look on his face as he parted his lips and closed his eyes, racing to release. His whole body would tense as his cock swelled and his balls tightened. We let out a synchronised cry and he growled through the phone as he let himself go.

“Fuck,” his voice was shaky as his body shuddered.

I fell into my own climax clenching around my finger as my thumb stroked my clit and I closed my legs around my hand as they
spasmed.

“You’ve covered my hand. Both of them,” I panted. “Taste my release when I slip my finger into your mouth and I’ll taste yours.” I sucked my finger loudly, tasting myself to show him I meant business.

“You’re incredible.”

“Hurry home, Baby.”

“I’m leaving now.”

I heard his paperwork rustling as he hung up the phone and I smiled in sated yet greedy triumph. I dressed for the party, satisfied that I had given us both an appetite for later.

When I was ready, I headed downstairs. As soon as my feet reached the ground floor, the headlights from Thomas’ car shone through the frosted glass of the front door. Only the lamp by the door was on and everyone silently gathered in the foyer to wait for him. The butterflies began their dance when I heard his key in the lock and he swung the door open. I grinned when I saw he was wearing a different suit to the one he left the house in…and I would never forget the look on his face as he dropped his briefcase to the floor and looked up as we all yelled, “Surprise!”

It was a beautiful expression. In that moment, he realised he was surrounded by people who loved him. His family were there, enveloping him in the
unconditional love he’d had his whole life. Everyone from the office was there; he was a good boss and he knew it, but I knew he was still shocked to see them. Joel and Chaz, his lifelong friends, were there too.