The Lost One (Lost Series Book 1) (14 page)

“What the HELL!” she squeals at me, looking between us. “Is this a joke or something?”
Her eyes narrow toward Corban wondering if he is serious. Like I said - mother hen crazy.

Corban
is still laughing at our reactions; it’s a wonderful sound, one I could listen to every day. He pulls me into him and I can’t fight it. I lean into him and my heart soars with delight. He wants me here with him. I know I’ve been all over the place with my feelings. I’m sure it’s me giving him severe whiplash not the other way around. I think it’s time to stop fighting and let things fall into their rightful places, and if that’s with him, then who am I to argue with that.

“No, no joke,” he says, smirking at us. “I don’t make it common knowledge with other employees that she is my sister; only Helen knows. I don’t want peop
le to think I have favourites.”

“Does she know about…us?” I query. Flick is awa
iting the answer as much as me.

“Yes, my little
Rachy and I don’t keep secrets. So, yes, she knows all about us.” He looks down at me, desire in his eyes. I don’t think he’ll be holding anything back now. I could dance around in excitement for what now can happen. Oh, the possibilities! I’m floating on cloud nine.

“And what is the go with your hair?” I yell. Stepping away from him, I run my hand through his now short hair. He follows running his own hand through it, gi
ving me one of his sexy grins.

“
Ahh…yeah, I thought I should probably look more professional. I liked the long hair, but it was annoying. I don’t know how girls do it; it’s so hard to maintain.” He roars with laughter nudging me. “Do you girls want a drink? I see Rach and the guys have already helped themselves to the open bar.” He nods toward them on the couches drinking and chatting.

“I’ll get my own,” Flick says, walking away. She stops, turning back to us. “No more silly business, C-man, or I will hate on you. I’m good at that.” She points directly at him. He nods, saluting her like she’s the boss. She accepts his nonverbal reply and walks away, leaving us alone.
Just Us!
I don’t think I could be more excited and nervous at the same time.

Corban
turns toward me so we’re facing each other. He surprises me by engulfing me in his arms. His cologne, surrounding my senses, sets every nerve on edge. I wrap my arms around his waist, resting my head against his chest. I close my eyes, taking in the moment; a little afraid he’s just going to shut the door on us again.

I’m still hesitant, but everything within me screams for him. He is a drug I need. I want to be near him, to hold him, and him to hold me and never let me go. I want him to be that one person I can turn
to, no matter what and can trust.

I pull away, my senses screaming at me, not wanting to lose contact. Looking into his amazingly clear blue eyes, I can tell he is very happy. There is a new look to
him, a peaceful and happy one.

“I th
ought we couldn’t be anything?”

He sighs, pulling me back into him, and whispers into my ear through my hair, “I’m sorry I was such an ass about the whole thing. You make me feel things no other woman has.”

“How do I know you won’t do what you did last time with the whole work ethic thing?” I question. His grip tightens on me slightly and releases.

“I promise you right now that ship has sailed and I’m willing to give this a chance. How do I know you won’t lash out at me again like the other night?” he asks gently, trying not to make a big thing about it.

“I’ve never done that before. I’m not sure what came over me. I’m sorry about that.” I hang my head low, looking down at the floor. His hands release me as one comes up cupping my cheek, his other hand reaching behind the back of my neck, pulling me up to meet his lips. They graze against mine, my insides swirling with excitement and anticipation.

“It’s okay,” he breathes against my lips. I taste his breath and immediately want more. I reach up around his neck and pull him to me hungrily, our tongues savouring each other’s. It’s the most powerful thing I have ever felt. He makes me feel complete, but can I give him my whole heart? Can I trust him with the meaningful things of my heart or is he go
ing to hurt me again?

I pull away quickly,
remembering I forgot something.

“Happy birthday.”
I smile at him, giving him one more light, sensual kiss.

“Having you here with me is the best present; I don’t care
about anyone else but you.”

“So how did Rachel find out?” I query as he leads me to a
couch to get more comfortable.

Cuddling up to each other, he places one of his arms around my shoulders and the other resting on my inner thigh, igniting my senses as though a fire has
been lit underneath his touch.

“She noticed how we were at work and how you became angry after our little evaluation the other day. So she asked me and I told her.” He smiles as if remembering the conversation. “She actually chewed me out a
bout not telling her.”

I laugh. “Yeah, that sounds like her. I love her.” He rubs my thigh, sending go
ose bumps over my entire body.

My body reacts to him in ways I never knew it could. Everything about him sings to me as if I’m a bird and he is whistling
my tune.

“Yeah, she is great, very d
ifferent from my other sister.”

“So, did you know I was going to be here tonight?” I rest my hand over his; lightly rubbing it just to remind myself this isn’t a dream. I want t
o pinch myself to double check.

“That would be no.
Rach kept that secret very well. When she rang me to let her in, she just said it was her and Axel—” he lifts my chin, our eyes meeting “—I was disappointed when she said that. Then she shows up and throws you into my arms, literally, and I couldn’t be happier about it.” He leans in, kissing me.

I could never get tired of kissing him. He can own every kiss from me. Opening my eyes, I see a mischievous look in his eyes. He stands abruptly, pulling me off the chair. I have no idea what’s going through his head, or whe
re we’re going for that matter.

He gently pulled me along behind him. I’m trying really har
d not to fall on my face here.

“Umm…do you mind slowing down? I’m
gonna fall A over T soon,” I yell at him.

He stops and smirks at me. What has gotten into him? I give him a look
of “what are you laughing at?”

“Sorry, babe, I just remembered you tripping up those stairs. You took my breath away then, and you take it now, standing here looking as beautiful as you did that night.” Pulling me to him, h
e kisses me passionately.

“I can’t contain myself around you,” he breathes between our zealous kisses. “I need more of you.” I moan at the thought of more from hi
m, but also want to freak out.

He pulls away, taking my hand, and leads me down that same hallway from the night we first met and shared our first wonderful kiss, which my lips never forgot. Every nerve is standing at attention, my s
tomach swims with anticipation.

We reach a door, which I assume is his office. I take in the large oak desk, similar to the one at work, a bookshelf with files on it, and two couches. He probably sleeps on those throug
h the weekend while he is here.

He leads me to one of the couches and pulls me onto his lap. I’m wearing a short, navy blue, sleeveless dress and it’s a struggle to remain ladylike; I don’t really want to
be flashing myself everywhere.

My skin tingles where he places his kisses long my neck. I feel the ache, the want and need within me, craving his touch in every way possible. This isn’t me usually, but another part of me is taking over. Leaning my head back, he ravishes my neck down to my cleavage. My hands r
un through his now short hair.

His hands caress my body, and a moan escapes my lips just before his connect with mine again. We take in every kiss, every touch. The sexual tension is building between
us, do I want this right now? In a club for my first time?

I feel his warm fingers glide up my leg under the hem of my dress, causing me to completely forget what I was thinking about. Our kissing intensifies; the outside world becomes a blur. I
rise a little, facing him straight on, straddling him. He pulls me in closer, our bodies moulding together as one.

“I think we should slow down,” I breathe bet
ween our heated kisses.
“Mmm…”

I pull away before I let my feelings take over and we do something I might regret later. I’ve never been with anyone sexually before. I would love for
Corban to be my first, but not here, not now.
“I can’t do this here, I’m sorry.” Feeling rather embarrassed, I climb off his lap and sit beside him.
He straightens himself up, turning toward me. His face reads understanding and compassion. He leans in, giving me another of his magical kisses making my head spin. He’s trying to soothe me, as if my feelings give off an aura only he can see.

“It’s all right, babe. I know this isn’t the most romantic place. Our time will come when it’s right for us.” He tucks the loose strands of hair from around my face behind my ear. It feels like his eyes are boring into my soul, reading my every thoug
ht.

“Sorry, this is all new to me. I’ve never even had a relationship before.” My mouth has started running on its own; I need to stop now
to avoid further embarrassment.

“It’s okay, really. I understand. Let’s take it one step at a time.” He smiles, which instantly warms my body right to my soul. I’m amazed he
has this kind of a hold on me.

We fix ourselves up, and as we’re about to leave, he pulls me into him, his strong arms wrapping me in his calmness. I think I could easily fall in love with him, wait…what? Did I just say love? Whoa there, let’s not get ahead of ourselves! One
more quick kiss and we leave, heading back out to his party to enjoy the night with friends and especially him.

Wait till I get Rachel on her own. I’m not mad at her, but glad she did what she did. I’m still in shock they are brother and sister! Hopefully, this goes somewhere. Now that I have him in my life, I don’t ever want to let him go, but if he ever does anything to hurt me or sends alarm bells ringing, I won’t be sticking a
round.

My eyes don’t want to open and my head is pounding.
Ugh, what happened last night?
I don’t usually drink like I did. I guess I felt safe with the group, and knowing Corban was there keeping an eye on me helped me relax a little.

All I remember is tequila shots, Midori illusions, and dancing…
oh, so much dancing
. I especially remember the make out moment with Corban. My stomach twists just thinking about it. Every touch he places on my skin awakens new feelings within me.

I can’t recall most of my conversations after that moment with
Corban. Flick kept the shots coming, resulting in my uneasy stomach this morning. I wonder how she’s feeling this morning.

Come to think of it, how did I get home last night? I
squint my eyes open a little; sunshine beams through the crack in the curtains. I don’t want to get up. Good thing it’s Sunday and have no plans for today, except sleeping through this hangover. It’s my first in a long time. I’ll message Corban and Flick later to find out the embarrassing details of last night.

I close my eyes again and my thoughts turn to
Corban. How can he steal my heart and soul in a short time? I really want him to know about Abby, but I’m not sure if now is the right time. We have just met, but I am so drawn to him. My stupid heart and head are giving me mixed signals, driving me crazy. My heart wants to cave in and give him all of me, and then my head is always sending me reminders to be cautious.

I guess it’s the fear of what happened to Abby might happen to me. I think it’s time I let that fear go and give in to my heart. A loud crash comes from the kitchen, causing me to
sit bolt upright, my heart racing. Completely forgetting my headache, my emotions turn straight to fear.
Who is in my house?

I inch out of bed slowly. Noticing I’m in my underwear and a t-shirt, I quickly grab a pair of pants. While getting dressed, I hear the sound of laughter coming from the same room as the crash.
What the heck is going on?

Opening my door, I see strewn blankets all over my lounge room. I wish I could remember last night. I hear laughter, which I recognise as Flick. I relax a little knowing it’s her. With my blackout memory from last night, I wasn’t sure who I brought home
with me or even how I got here.

I walk past the mess into an overly crowded kitchen, well, crowded for this time of morning. Flick and Liam are mucking around and laughing. Rachel is sitting on the kitchen bench with Axel standing between her legs with his back to her, her
arms wrapped around his neck.

The smell of whatever is cooking makes my stomach churn. I sit at the table and take a few deep breaths
to try stop myself throwing up.