CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
ALEXIS
Have you ever had that feeling that everyone is watching you?
I glance around the kitchen table for the fiftieth time this morning. Dad’s reading the paper, Mum’s talking to Gram and Bing is eyeing me curiously.
I swallow and concentrate back on my breakfast. Of course, it would be Bing.
‘‘Tesco then, Mum.’’ Mum stands and helps Grammy up.
‘‘Of course, dear. I just need to take my heartburn tablets.’’ She shuffles across the kitchen to the cupboard.
‘‘Si, are you coming or is the paper attached to your face?’’ Mum asks him.
‘‘It’s attached to my face, darling. I’ll have to give this a miss,’’ Dad replies without missing a beat.
‘‘He’s not even reading the business section,’’ Bing mumbles.
‘‘Samuel,’’
‘‘He’s reading the gossip section,’’ he carries on. ‘‘John Terry cheated again.’’
‘‘Simon, up!’’ Mum orders, snatching the paper. She glances at it. ‘‘What a no good bastard.’’
‘‘I sold him a house once. He bought you that diamond necklace,’’ Dad huffs.
‘‘Then he may have it back.’’ Mum dumps the paper in the bin and Dad rolls his eyes, waving goodbye as he follows Mum and Gram out.
The door shuts.
‘‘Something is wrong with you,’’ Bing states, leaning his chair back and rocking.
‘‘Why would there be anything wrong with me?’’ I blink.
‘‘You’re quiet. No snarky remarks, sarcastic smirks or anything. He rubs his chin. ‘‘Something...’’
‘‘I have no idea what you’re on about,’’ I say nonchalantly and put my bowl in the sink.
‘‘Knock knock.’’ Alec opens the front door. ‘‘Your Gram said to just come in.’’
‘‘Morning,’’ Bing says, flicking his phone up.
‘‘Good morning, beautiful.’’ Alec kisses me and I flush.
‘‘Oh-ho!’’ Bing cackles. ‘‘You finally loosened up!’’
‘‘Fuck off,’’ I mumble and clean up the dishes, hiding my face behind my hair.
‘‘Aw, my baby sister is all grown up.’’
‘‘Bing,’’ I groan, resting my forehead against the sink.
‘‘Going, I’m going.’’ He backs out of the room.
Alec puts a hand on my back and I straighten up.
‘‘Good morning,’’ I mutter.
‘‘Still embarrassed?’’ He pushes my hair from my face and tucks it behind my ear.
‘‘When my brother finds out, yes.’’
‘‘Don’t be embarrassed. It’s only me now,’’ he whispers in my ear. ‘‘And I know every part of you.’’
I blush again and step away. ‘‘Okay. I’m going to get dressed.’’ I run my hand through my hair.
Alec leans back on the counter and folds his arms, smirking. ‘‘Don’t get dressed on my account, Princess.’’
I exhale sharply and turn, nodding my head. ‘‘I’ll be back in a minute.’’
I run from the kitchen and up the stairs to my room. I shut the door and shake my head. Damn guy turns me to mush with one look. I slap my cheeks and pull a dress from the closet.
Knock.
‘‘What?’’ I yell through the door. It opens a crack and I turn.
Alec slips in and smiles at me. He moves over to my bed and lies back without a word. I raise my eyebrows.
‘‘Can I help you?’’
‘‘No.’’ He grins. ‘‘Well, you could...’’
‘‘What do you want?’’ I try to hide my smile.
‘‘Okay,’’ he clears his throat. ‘‘I thought I’d come and talk to you. After all, it’s nothing I haven’t seen before.’’
He puts his arms behind his head making his biceps tense. His top rides up slightly and I can see his muscle peeking out. Okay, Mr. Hotstuff. Two of us can play at this game.
‘‘Okay.’’ I shrug and drape my dress over the chair. I step out of my pyjama bottoms, kicking them into the laundry basket and pull the top over my head. I hook my thumbs into my pants and pull them down, kicking them into the basket the same way I did with the shorts.
I hear Alec inhale loudly as I bend over to reach for some underwear. Floorboards creak as I clip my bra together and settle it in place. Warm hands settle on my waist as I straighten from putting on my pants.
Alec’s hand slides up and across my stomach, cupping my breast. He peppers kisses along my bare shoulder, holding me against him. I freeze and take a deep breath.
‘‘So beautiful,’’ he murmurs against my skin.
‘‘Alec,’’ I breathe out... ‘‘My br-’’
He spins me and my lips meet his. He pulls my hips into his and I hold onto his arms. His kiss is hard and hot, his tongue slipping in and caressing mine, demanding it reciprocate. It does. I’m powerless to stop my reaction to him.
We walk sideways across my room and drop back onto the bed slowly. His hand runs up my side, massaging my skin softly with his fingers. I fist his hair and hook my legs around his waist.
‘‘Are you sore?’’ he asks as he nibbles my earlobe.
I shake my head. ‘‘No, I’m okay.’’
‘‘Good.’’ He grazes his teeth down my neck and I clamp my teeth together. Holy shit.
A loud bang reminds me we’re not alone.
‘‘I hope no one is taking advantage of my sister,’’ Bing calls and whistles as he walks past.
Alec drops his forehead onto my shoulder and breathes deeply for a minute. ‘‘Okay. I’m good.’’
I giggle silently and kiss his cheek, aching everywhere he touched me. I wriggle out from under him and stand up, grabbing my dress and slipping it over my head.
‘‘I need a cold shower or something,’’ he mutters, rubbing his forehead. I half-smile at him and cross the room towards him. He looks up at me from where he’s sat on the edge of the bed and I rub my thumb across his cheek.
The words... They’re stuck in my throat.
Again.
Alec smiles and takes my hand, standing up and hugging me to him. ‘‘One day,’’ he says softly. ‘‘One day, Princess, when you’re ready, you’ll say it. But I know, okay? I know.’’
I nod against his chest and he strokes my hair. I tilt my head up and kiss him softly.
‘‘Don’t do that,’’ he laughs. ‘‘Or we’ll never leave this room.’’
‘‘Gotcha.’’ I step back and wink. I grab my bag and walk to the door. I look over my shoulder. ‘‘Are you coming?’’
Alec looks up from my ass. ‘‘Yep. I think I am.’’
I roll my eyes and make my way downstairs. One track mind.
~
‘‘Left a bit.’’
‘‘You think?’’
‘‘Yep. Definitely left.’’ Jen nods once. I look in the mirror over my shoulder.
‘‘Okay. Lets do it.’’ I hold the paper to my skin and walk into the room.
The guy traces it onto my skin and I meet Jen’s eyes. She grins manically at me and I breathe deeply when the machine starts up. I hold in my flinch at the first touch of the needle, but I’m surprised when it doesn’t really hurt. It’s more of a stingy tickle.
Half an hour later, I’m out of there.
‘‘I can’t believe you actually did it.’’ Jen shakes her head. ‘‘I thought your ass would sprint ten towns away when the machine started up.’’
‘‘I’m not a wimp,’’ I laugh and nudge her with my elbow. ‘‘It didn’t even hurt that much.’’
‘‘Like a prickly vibrator, right?’’
I snort. ‘‘A prickly vibrator?’’
‘‘Yeah. All buzzy but with a little pain.’’ Jen shrugs.
‘‘Should I be alarmed you’re referring getting a tattoo to a prickly vibrator?’’ I look at her sideways and we step onto the bus.
‘‘No.’’ She hands over our tickets. ‘‘This is me.’’
‘‘You make a very good point there,’’ I laugh and sit down.
‘‘Well, yeah.’’
My phone pings at me and I take it out of my pocket.
Are you on your way back yet? Xx
Just got on the bus, I reply. Why, are you missing me? Xx
Always. Xx
I smile slightly and put my phone away.
‘‘He’s like a dog on heat,’’ Jen laughs.
‘‘A dog on heat?’’ I cover my mouth but my eyes give me away.
‘‘Yep. Has it once and then wham, that’s it, he needs it every day. If it gets too much, just remind him he has a right hand.’’
I close my eyes and laugh into my hand. ‘‘A right hand?’’ I choke out.
‘‘Well yeah.’’ I look over at Jen and she makes the motion with her hand. ‘‘He’s capable of it, I’m sure.’’
I take a couple of quick breaths and fan my face. ‘‘Oh, Jen.’’
‘‘What?’’ She blinks at me and shrugs. ‘‘I’m just sayin’.’’
She glances at me and smiles. She laughs, starting me off. We spend the next ten minutes of the bus journey laughing.
‘‘Does Alec know you were getting a tattoo?’’ Jen looks at me suspiciously.
‘‘No,’’ I half-smile. ‘‘I told him I was going to buy some new underwear.’’
She grins. ‘‘And what did he say?’’
‘‘He swallowed a few times, stuttered, then told me to have fun.’’
‘‘Oh dear.’’ She pushes the stop button and we climb off outside Cara’s. Cara waves through the window and we push the door of the empty shop open.
‘‘Have fun, girls?’’ she asks, putting a strawberry ice cream and a chocolate one in front of us. ‘‘My treat.’’
‘‘No,’’ Jen protests. ‘‘And yes, we did.’’
‘‘I insist,’’ Cara winks at me. ‘‘Good. Did you... buy anything nice?’’ She grins suggestively at me.
‘‘I can’t believe you just asked that question,’’ I hear Carl say. ‘‘It’s wrong on any number of levels.’’
‘‘Well, did you?’’ Alec runs his hands down my arms.
‘‘Maybe.’’ Me and Jen grin at each other.
‘‘I don’t see any bags,’’ Carl states, scratching his head. ‘‘Doesn’t shopping with you two usually involve an unhealthy amount of carrier bags?’’
‘‘Meh.’’ Jen shrugs and perches on one of the tall stools at the counter. ‘‘Sometimes. Sometimes we can spend a lot and not have a whole lot to show for it.’’ Her eyes twinkle.
Alec turns to Carl. ‘‘Is it just me, mate, or are we missing something?’’
Cara clears her throat and grins. ‘‘Frog in my throat.’’
‘‘Something that even Muv is in on.’’ Carl shakes his head. ‘‘We should just leave the fairy princesses to their ice cream and go to the pub.’’
‘‘Fairy princesses? Do I look like something out of the fucking Nutcracker?’’ Jen turns on the stool and raises her eyebrows at him. I purse my lips and smile.
‘‘No, no, baby,’’ Carl soothes. ‘‘I just meant you’re... er... magical.’’
I laugh out loud and slap my hand over my mouth. ‘‘Sorry. But magical?’’ My eyebrows shoot up to under my hairline.
‘‘Yeah, really?’’ Alec leans on the counter. ‘‘Explain yourself outta that one, boyo.’’
‘‘Fine,’’ Carl turns back to Jen and tilts her face up to his. ‘‘You’re magical because your beauty enchants me, and you’ve cast a spell over me so strong I can’t possibly break away from it.’’
Jen looks at him, not saying anything. I see a muscle in her jaw twitch. I bite my tongue.
‘‘You know, Carl,’’ she says, touching his cheek. ‘‘You’ve said some crazy things to me in two years, but in all my life have I never heard anything remotely like that. I have to say, baby, that is by far the worst line in the history of the world.’’
Alec throws his head back, laughing and I hide my face in my hands.
Carl leans forward and whispers something in her ear and for the first time, I see Jen blush. She coughs and shoves him off her.
‘‘Damn boy,’’ she mutters. Carl smiles smugly and wraps his arms around her waist.
‘‘If you wanna talk dirty to your girl, Carl Joseph, you do it away from your mother.’’ Cara scolds him and flicks the back of his head with a dishcloth.
His mouth opens and closes a few times. ‘‘Fine, then we’ll take it outside.’’ He grabs Jen’s hand and pulls her from the stool. She squeals and waves as he drags her outside.
‘‘That’s them entertained for the afternoon.’’ Alec chuckles and puts his mouth by my ear. ‘‘I can think-’’
‘‘Same for you, Alec Johnson,’’ Cara says without turning from her cleaning. ‘‘Outside.’’
Alec pauses for a moment then shrugs. ‘‘If Carl needs me, I’ll be at home. Busy.’’
I smack his arm and he laughs.
‘‘Gotcha.’’ Cara waves over her shoulder and I look between them then shake my head. Apparently, sex is an open subject in this café. Whatever.
‘‘What are we doing?’’ I ask Alec when we’re outside.
He threads his fingers through mine and kisses my knuckles, his eyes already darkening as he looks at me. ‘‘We’re going to entertain ourselves. I want to see what you bought.’’
I swallow and nod. ‘‘I’m not sure if you’ll like it.’’
‘‘If it’s on you,’’ he says confidently, ‘‘then I’m sure I’ll like it. Unless you’ve got a tattoo.’’
My heart misses a beat. ‘‘Why?’’
‘‘Because I’m likely to find it sexy as fuck and you won’t be leaving my bedroom for a long, long time.’’ He winks at me and tugs me along the road. I smirk to myself.
There’s my afternoon accounted for.
~
Alec’s room is a midnight blue, from the carpet to the walls to his bedspread. It suits him. It’s dark, dangerous, and a place you could easily lose yourself in. I look around and notice the pictures of us pinned to the wall.
I run my finger down one of them, of us when we had the ice cream on our faces.
‘‘I love this picture,’’ I say. ‘‘It’s my favourite.’’
‘‘And mine.’’ He smiles at me over his shoulder and pushes his door closed.
‘‘Won’t your mum be home soon?’’
He shakes his head. ‘‘She’s spending the day with her friends in Barnstaple, so I’ll see her around lunchtime tomorrow.’’
‘‘Oh.’’ I ignore his flirtatious look and turn back to the pictures. He sweeps hair from the left side of my neck away and wraps his arms around my waist from behind. His lips touch my skin, red hot, branding him to me. I squirm and wriggle in his hold.
‘‘Is that all you ever think about?’’ I tease.
‘‘No....’’ He nips my ear. ‘‘Right now, I’m thinking about what you bought today.’’
‘‘Is that so? Well, you won’t find it by nibbling on my neck.’’ I laugh.
He sighs dramatically and presses one last kiss to my shoulder before letting me go. ‘‘There goes today’s fantasy.’’
I poke his side. ‘‘You’re such a sex pest.’’
‘‘A sex pest?’’ His stormy eyes twinkle from beneath his hair and his lips curl up at each side. ‘‘A sex pest?’’
‘‘Yes.’’ I hold in my giggle. ‘‘One time, and you just want more.’’ I remember Jen’s words. ‘‘You do have a right hand, you know.’’
He laughs. ‘‘But when I have a stupidly sexy girlfriend like you, why would I want to use my right hand? I mean, Princess, come on. You’ve seen yourself in the mirror.’’ He grabs my waist and pulls my hips towards his. ‘‘You’ve seen this body, the curves that fit in my hands perfectly, right?’’
My nails graze his front as I run my hands up his chest. ‘‘Funnily enough I see it every day.’’ I turn my head and whisper into his ear. My hand holds his neck so his ear stays by my lips. ‘‘But what about me, Alec, hm? What do I do when I have you?’’
‘‘You just want my dimples,’’ he breathes in my ear.
‘‘You caught me out.’’ I press my lips against his ear. ‘‘But what about if it’s not the dimples on your face I’m after?’’
‘‘Who are you, and what have you done with my girlfriend?’’ he whispers, running a hand through my hair. My head tilts back and he kisses down the middle of it to my collarbones. He sucks lightly.
‘‘Alec,’’ I say softly. ‘‘You’re insatiable.’’
He chuckles and I right my head as he steps away, kicking off his shoes. ‘‘And you still have to show me what you bought. You’re probably still sore from yesterday so I want to give you a chance to settle before I show you what sex really is. Before I make love to you the way I want to.’’
My breathing hitches and I nod once. ‘‘It might be a good idea if I don’t show you what I bought then...’’
‘‘Why?’’ He looks back up. ‘‘What did you buy, Princess?’’
ALEC
She turns her back to me and slides the shoulder of her top down. She peels away some of a dressing, revealing a heart shaped tattoo with lines through it, dots on the side. She glances over her shoulder and one side of her mouth curls up slightly. I can feel my lids get heavy as they take in the tattoo.
I steps towards her slowly and she breathes in.
“Princess,” I growl, pinching her top with my finger and thumb. “It’s a good idea if you pull that up, because that’s seriously testing my resolve.”
I pat down the dressing and slide the material over her shoulder and my fingertip grazes her skin. She swallows and I can see her pulse racing in her neck.
ALEXIS
My eyes are fixed on his as they become a swirling mass of molten blue and grey, a moment frozen in time.
Alec spins me round and my back pushes against the wall. His lips meet mine, his kiss hot and desperate. His hands slide down my arms, my waist, cupping my hips. I grip his arms, pulling his body against mine as I return the kiss.
Hands slip down to my bare thighs and grip them. He lifts me, my legs wrap around his waist, his hands cup me behind pushing my body against his.
My hands slide down his back and tug his top up and I break the kiss to lift it over his head. My lips claim his again, my fingers wrap themselves in his hair.
My top rises up my stomach and my bare skin touches his for a second igniting red hot need between us.
“Get it off. I want to kiss every last inch of your beautiful skin,” Alec orders in a husky voice. “All of it, Princess. Off. Now.”
I slide it over my head and my skin sticks to his. I can feel every muscle in his body as one of his hands spread across my back sending tingles to hidden places. He pulls me from the wall and drops me on the bed next to us.
His lips leave mine and trace a gentle line down my jaw, leaving the fiery kisses for my neck and collarbone.
I gasp as he slides his hand down my front, his fingertips barely grazing my skin yet still sending electricity to every part of my body, his lips never leaving me.
I move my legs and hook my toes into the waistband of his jeans, pushing them down his legs. Alec steps out of them and looks down at me through heavy eyes. He’s panting slightly and I wanna grab him, grab him, rip off any material separating us and pull him right into me.
“You,” he kisses my neck, “are,” collarbone, “so,” chest, “beautiful,” stomach. I close my eyes.
He slides my skirt and undies off in one smooth motion. I feel his weight on top of me a minute later and I grip his back, pushing my heels into his ass as he moves inside me.
“Alec,” I gasp, need filling me in a sweaty, hot burst.
He kisses me, his tongue tracing gentle circles in my mouth. One arm wraps around my back pushing my hips closer to him, him further into me. I hold his back tighter as we move together and I arch my body.
“Mine,” he whispers heavily in my ear.
“Yours,” I breathe back and mumble out a moan.
“Always.” He nips my earlobe, a direct line to my lower stomach. My muscles clench.
I press my mouth to his neck, my breathing a crazy rhythm that matches the movement of our bodies.
And I know.
I know a part of me will always be his.
“Yours. Always.”