Chapter Eight
Anna
I lay half-exhausted on my stomach. Ethan was in the bathroom, disposing of the second condom of the evening. Jesus. I’d never wanted a man physically in the way I wanted him. Of course I’d desired men before, but not like this. I wanted to give him everything.
“You are wearing a very sexy look, Miss Anna,” he said as he came from the bathroom. I opened my eyes.
“I’m sure I look thoroughly disheveled.”
“You do. You wear it well. I like that I caused it.”
I grinned.
“Let’s get you some dinner.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“You have to eat. Do you want to stay in and order room service?”
“You want to go out?” I turned and sat up on my elbows.
“You wanna go out?” he asked.
“I asked you first.”
He sighed.
“I don’t mind. You choose,” I said.
“I don’t want to share you with anyone tonight.”
My stomach flipped over once, then twice, and I grinned. “Well, my body is yours, so I guess we’re staying in.”
After finally negotiating with Ethan that I was allowed to wear a robe while we ate, room service knocked at the door and I quickly went to the bathroom to try and stem the tide of mascara that was trying to escape from my eyelashes down my face. He was right, I did look disheveled. I took a hairbrush from my bag and tried to improve the situation.
“Anna,” he called.
I splashed some water on my face and then wandered into the living space. Wow. He’d turned the lights down and there were just a few candles flickering on the dining table. The lights of the city illuminated our feast. There was music playing. I bet he’d wooed a few women in this suite like this. I sighed, but couldn’t help but grin at him as I took my place kitty corner to him so we were both facing the view of the park.
Ethan had ordered for us both, so it was a surprise when he unveiled risotto and poured some crisp cool white wine into our glasses. He sat back and looked at me and patted my legs, and then lifted them up so they were resting on his lap, being soothed by his hands.
“A girl could get used to this.” Shit, I hadn’t meant to say that aloud.
He grinned at me.
“Sorry. I just meant that I feel very spoiled, and it’s lovely. Thank you.”
He nodded. “You deserve it. You did bring me a great gift this evening.”
“You seemed to have fun with it,” I replied, trying to be nonchalant.
“I did. You as well, I hope.”
“Always. You …” I shook my head.
“What?” he asked.
“It’s just you seem to know exactly what my body needs and wants. No one has, ever… Not like you.” I wished I could have sewn up my mouth right then. Shut up, Anna.
He smiled at me and then focused on his plate, stroking my legs in his lap as he ate his risotto. I stirred mine.
“I’m supposed to go to the Hamptons this weekend with Andrew and Mandy.”
And there it was: his excuse to get out of Dodge. I’d said too much. Fuck, Anna. No complications, remember?
“Cool.” I continued to stare at my food.
“Will you come with me?” he asked, and my stomach twisted and spun.
I looked at him sideways to see if maybe I’d heard him wrong.
“We could get out of the city and spend the weekend together before you go back to London.”
I wanted to say yes. I really wanted to say yes, but I could feel myself opening up to him. I could feel my guard coming down, and he was peering across the threshold, about to step inside. In normal circumstances between two normal people, that might have been a good thing, but we were supposed to be just having fun. I was getting over someone else. He wasn’t meant to be the guy that got to know me, that took me away for weekends, that gave me more orgasms in the past three days than I’d ever had in my life. He was meant to be uncomplicated fun. This felt like it was verging on complicated.
“Jesus, I can see the cogs in your brain working at a million miles an hour. What are you thinking? No bullshit.”
“I’m thinking I don’t know you.”
“I’ll tell you anything you want to know, but you’ll have to tell me some stuff first.”
I pursed my lips at him. “Go on,” I said.
“First, you tell me your name.”
I nodded. “And?”
“And then second, you come to the Hamptons this weekend.”
“Anything else?”
“You tell me about what or who you’re escaping.”
“What do you mean?”
“The guy. The guy before New York.”
I started to remove my legs from his lap, but he dropped his fork to his plate and held them where they were.
“I’m not sure I want to know you that badly,” I said under my breath.
“The construction thing is bullshit, I have an older sister, I work too hard, I’ve slept with too many women and mushrooms are my favorite food.”
“So now, you have to tell me,” he said.
“My name?” I asked staring at my plate. I took a deep breath. “Anna. No bullshit.”
“But I chose your name.” He sounded confused. I stayed silent, playing with my risotto. “I chose your real name?” I could tell he was looking at me, but I couldn’t bring myself to look up.
“Like you knew me before you met me,” I said so quietly I almost couldn’t hear myself.
“I think I did,” he said.
Ethan
I was thrown off balance by Anna’s revelation. It felt like it meant something—something big—and that made me feel fucking uncomfortable. It was new territory for me. I didn’t do meaning or anything big. I stared at my plate. Fuck.
“Tell me about the guy.” I wanted to know, and I needed the distraction from my own thoughts.
“Tell you what?”
“What happened that made you need to get away. To have these rules.”
“You know what we need?” She jumped up from the table and dived into her bag. She retrieved an iPod.
She wasn’t going to be pushed.
“An ’80s dance-off.”
I couldn’t help but grin at her. “I would say that that’s exactly what we don’t need.”
She bent over the iPod station until music blared. She spun around, her eyes bright in expectation. “Come on, dance with me.” Her hands flew up in the air and she started to jump up and down. “I love this one.”
It was Duran Duran, I was pretty sure. I did not love it, but I enjoyed watching her love it, even though she was dancing like a complete lunatic.
I stood and folded my arms as I watched her, determined that I wouldn’t join in. She came over and grabbed at my robe. I laughed at her as she dragged me a few feet toward the music. “I’m not dancing to this shit.”
“Dancing is the best distraction there is,” she said as she spun around and continued to jump and move in front of me. After a few minutes the music faded and the beginning of another song, a better song, drifted between us. It was Chaka Khan’s classic, Ain’t Nobody. Her laughter faded and she turned and started to walk toward the music. “What about some Blondie?”
My arms unfolded and stopped her and I turned her around and pulled her toward me.
“Dance with me,” I said pulling her arms up around my neck, then sliding mine around her waist and moving to the music. The beat was sensual and yearning. I’d forgotten how much I liked this song and I liked dancing to it with her. I’d not danced with a woman since high school. I didn’t often listen to music anymore, but listening to this I wondered why. The music matched my mood completely and the voice was telling me everything I wished Anna would say to me. Jesus. I was fucked.
Her head rested on my chest and I pressed my lips to her hair. We stayed like that until the song drifted out and something I didn’t recognize replaced it.
“Ethan,” she whispered against my chest and I squeezed her tighter to me. “Take me to bed.”
* * *
“So this weekend, we’ll leave Friday lunchtime,” I said as I emerged from the bathroom after disposing of another condom.
“I haven’t said I’ll come with you.”
“But you said your body was mine.”
“I lied.”
“You did not.” I dived back into bed and dragged her back toward me, wrapping my arms around her waist.
“I tell you I’m a liar and you don’t believe me?”
“Nope.”
“You’re crazy.”
“I’m not. I just know you.” She couldn’t hide anything from me. I knew that now. “Do you want me to pick you up from Armitage’s apartment?”
“I have to speak to Leah. I came to New York to spend time with her, and anyway, I’m not so sure that it’s a good idea if I come with you.”
I didn’t say anything. I wanted her to want to come with me. I didn’t want to have to convince her. She wriggled around in my arms to face me.
“Do you know what I mean?” she asked.
I laughed. “No. Why don’t you just cut the bullshit and say what you mean.”
She kicked me and I wrapped my legs around hers so she couldn’t do it again.
“I just mean that, you know, this … the hot sex we’re having … Our week of fun, I’m not sure how it translates to a weekend away in the Hamptons and meeting your friends and not having hot sex because we’re down the hall from these people I’ve never met.”
I pushed her back around so her back was against me again. “Oh, now we’re getting to it. I’m not worth the effort if you’re not going to get your rocks off,” I said. She giggled and I maneuvered my hardening dick against the crease in her perfect ass.
“Like you could handle it. You’re ready to go again, Sex God.”
“I’m always ready around you. And anyway, it’s not a problem because we’re staying at my sister’s, and Andrew and Mandy will be at their place. We can still fuck like rabbits.”
She pushed back on my dick, increasing the friction. I reached down to her pussy. Her breathing quickened as my fingers found her clit.
“And don’t you think it sounds a bit—Oh god, yes.”
“Sounds a bit what, beautiful?” I stilled my hand and she quickly placed her hand over mine and started moving my fingers.
“Don’t stop,” she breathed. Fuck, this woman was insatiable. “Sounds a bit … oh God … against the rules.”
“Game’s changed, baby.” I hooked her leg up and back over mine and grabbed a condom, tearing it open with my fingers and mouth, trying not to waste another second, and I sank into her. It felt like home. It felt like the first time. I was going to come in about ten seconds if I didn’t concentrate. I slowed my pace and nibbled along her shoulder, my fingers circling and pushing. The sounds she made told me she was close. I realized I knew this about her and it made me want her more.
“Look at me. I want to see your face,” I said.
She turned her shoulders and her eyes met mine. They were full of lust and confusion and questions.
“Feel this?” I asked as I drove into her. She nodded. “No one else can make you feel like this, can they, Anna?” Her hand came to my shoulder and she shook her head. “Tell me.”
“No one makes me feel like you do.” And as she said it she clenched around me and her breath held. She was there and I couldn’t hold back for a second longer. I increased my pace, pushing myself closer to her, closer to my climax, and then exploded into her.