CHAPTER TWELVE
DAMIAN WOKE THE next morning feeling as though he’d been transported to Eden. Rolling over, he reached for Lainey but found an empty mattress. Rubbing the heel of his hand into his eyes, he sat up. Clinking sounds came from the kitchenette, and he got up and pulled on a pair of pants.
“Rise and shine,” Lainey sang as he walked into the main area of the suite, the chime in her voice making him smile.
He raked a hand through his hair. It’d been a while since he’d felt this exhausted in the morning. Sleep deprived in the best way possible, but still...what he needed was a nice strong cup of—
“Coffee?” Lainey appeared in front of him, holding out a steaming mug.
“You’re an angel.” He reached for the cup.
It was an apt description, considering how she looked right now. Endless legs extended out from the bottom of a soft white T-shirt—his T-shirt—which barely covered her. Her breasts were unrestrained beneath the fabric, nipples peaked and tantalising.
He frowned. “You’re still here.”
“Did you expect me to bail?” She dropped down onto the coffee table in front of him, one long leg draped over the other.
He’d hoped in the light of day she’d be easier to resist, that without the tight dress and heels he might stand a chance. But no...this was a hell of a lot worse.
Karma was a cruel and enticing bitch.
“I wasn’t sure you’d want to stay.”
She cocked her head. “Do you want me to go?”
Ah, this old dance. It was one he avoided with most women by getting the fuck out of Dodge before it was necessary to communicate. But that wasn’t how he wanted to handle things with her.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You look sleepy.” She grinned when he rolled his eyes. “Drink up.”
He shook his head and sipped his coffee. “Same old bossy Lainey.”
“I have a proposition for you.” She kicked her feet up onto the couch next to him so that all he could see was miles of peaches-and-cream skin. “I’m going to stay here, and if by the time midnight comes around tomorrow you don’t want to sleep with me again, I’ll go and I won’t ever mention it again.”
“Is this some kind of messed-up Cinderella sex thing?” He watched her over the rim of his cup.
She poked her tongue out at him. “More like Beauty and the Beast.”
“Charming.”
“So we’re on?” She put her hands on his shoulders and leaned forward so the ends of her hair tickled his bare chest and stomach. “No offence, but my money’s on me.”
Her lips hovered close to his, her knees nudging his thighs apart. His blood fizzed and raced as though she’d hooked him up to an electrical outlet. Each breath was an effort, desire crushing him from the inside out. Holy hell, if the girl could do that from mere proximity...
She winked and released him. “I’m having a shower—feel free to join me.”
Then she sashayed off as though it was her place, not his. Hair swung behind her like a band of scarlet silk, brushing the hem of the T-shirt. Her arrogance should have grated on him, but he found it oddly charming and comforting. She made no attempt to adjust herself to him, no attempt at false niceties or trying to please him. Since his stint on television, he’d noticed how people acted differently around him, and it pissed him off to no end.
The sound of the shower snagged his attention. It was tempting to join her...oh, so tempting. But he had to get his head straight and figure out just how long he was going to play her game before one of them got burned.
* * *
Water poured over Lainey, warm and soothing. Last night she’d seen another side of Damian. It had been every bit as perfect as she’d hoped for—hot sex, no head games. He’d wrapped her up in his arms and held her all night.
Unease settled in her stomach. She was already trying to convince him to give her another night—another hit. She was an addict, craving her next fix, chasing satiation that would never come. She turned her face against the spray and chuckled. She must be crazy after all. Who else would chase a man so hard knowing it wouldn’t go anywhere?
The door to the bathroom hadn’t budged an inch. Hmm, so he wasn’t taking the bait. She rinsed the conditioner from her hair and turned off the water. Fluffy white towels hung from the gleaming silver rack—one of the perks of living in a hotel. Her brows crinkled. Why was he living here? He’d sold a perfectly good apartment to live in a hotel that probably cost as much per night as she earned from a month of hairdressing.
It was definitely something Corinna would usually have told her. The fact she hadn’t meant this wasn’t simply a change of scenery for him.
She gave her body a quick wipe-down and then wandered, stark naked, into his bedroom contemplating what to wear. Her dress from last night had barely been appropriate for an evening on the town let alone for the bright sunshine of the morning after...but it wasn’t like she had much choice.
She tugged on the stretchy dress and riffled through Damian’s wardrobe, plucking out a clean white shirt. She slipped it on, rolled up the sleeves and located the emergency ballet flats in her handbag. There she also found her touch-up makeup palette. It wasn’t perfect, but at least she wouldn’t look like something the cat had dragged in.
“Going through my clothes again?”
Lainey whipped around. “Thought I’d make an effort to look respectable. So, what are the plans for today?”
He folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t think we should be playing games like this.”
He was probably right. The little bundle of doubts was already growing, the voice in her head warning her that she was going to be flying to London with tears in her eyes. But if the end was nigh, then she’d go out all guns blazing. What was the point of small regret? Might as well go hard.
“We made a deal, so I’m staying. You can ship me off at midnight if you want. But until then...you’re stuck with me.”
“I don’t remember agreeing to that.” He closed the distance between them in two long-legged strides. “Besides, you’re too young for me—”
“Too young? I’m almost twenty-five.”
“You should go for someone your own age...”
“Ugh.” She rolled her eyes and flipped her hair over one shoulder, fully aware of just how much that action supported his argument. “You’re not that old, Damian, but you sure do act like you’re a hundred sometimes.”
“See?”
“No, I don’t see. Like I said, I’m sticking around all day, so you can stay here and argue with me—which would be pointless, because I’ll outlast you—or you can take me for a coffee. A real one.”
“What if I told you straight up I don’t want to sleep with you again?” He pulled her closer, staring down at her in what might have been an attempt to intimidate. Instead it made her body burn, need gnawing at her insides.
“I’d call bullshit.”
A smile twitched on his mouth. “Fine. Coffee it is. It’s probably safer to have you out there than in here.”
She grinned. “You’d like to think that, wouldn’t you?”
* * *
The day was already hot. Sunshine filtered through the trees lining the café strip, sending dancing speckles of light across their table. They’d found a quiet spot on the courtyard of a café, private enough for them to talk. Because Lainey had questions.
Swiping at her croissant, she tore off one end and stuffed it into her mouth. “So what’s the deal with the hotel room?”
He sighed. “It’s a long story.”
“We’ve got all day.”
He stared at his coffee cup for a moment before looking up with a blank expression. “I couldn’t stand to be in the apartment any longer.”
Lainey had known Jenny well enough to know she and Damian were completely and utterly wrong for each other, though she’d never said it to his face. They’d gotten married at twenty-four—a conservative ceremony without passion—and cracks started showing less than a year in. Jenny had been overbearing. Her family was even worse. Then one day the marriage ended suddenly and Damian had never spoken of his ex-wife again.
Not even to explain why the marriage broke down. To this day it was a mystery.
“Why?” Lainey asked. “What changed?”
“Nothing, that’s exactly the point. I thought I’d have gotten my shit together, moved on...something.”
“But you have moved on.” She sipped her coffee, shielding her eyes from the sun with her hand. “You’re like a completely different person now. Well, like how you used to be before.”
He shook his head. “I’m not.”
“Yes, you are. You were so uptight when you were with her. You were tense all the time. It was like you were always trying to force something when she was around, like you were trying to be something else.” She sighed. “You weren’t yourself.”
Damian quirked a brow. “Really?”
“Yes.” She swatted him across the table. “And don’t look at me like that. I can say insightful shit from time to time.”
“‘Insightful shit’?”
He was mocking her, the bastard. “I know what I’m talking about.” She crossed her arms, self-conscious for the first time.
She could be stark naked in front of him, in the throes of orgasm, and be confident. In control. But the second it came down to the personal stuff—she couldn’t have felt more exposed.
“No need to get defensive. I’m quite partial to insightful shit.” His eyes swept over her, skimming the neckline of last night’s dress and her bare skin exposed between the open lapels of his shirt. Was he remembering the way he felt when she lowered the zipper? When she’d bared herself to him?
She leaned forward. “Why do you think you haven’t changed?”
“This is a bit heavy for breakfast conversation, don’t you think?” He raked a hand through his dark hair and the front sprang forward rebelliously.
“We might be eating breakfast, but it’s hardly early. Besides, I get the impression it would be heavy conversation for you no matter what time it was.”
“I prefer to keep things light. Sue me.”
He attempted a look of nonchalance, but his gaze flicked over her. Hot and intense. Sunlight streamed down over their table, shifting so that the trees around them no longer provided protection. Lainey slipped the white shirt off and bundled it on top of her handbag. The sunshine felt good on her bare arms.
“I could tempt you to get heavy.” She smirked. “I convinced you to sleep with me, after all.”
Damian’s Adam’s apple bobbed and his gaze narrowed, two flintlike eyes challenging her. “Once.”
“Twice,” she corrected.
“The first time doesn’t count.”
“Then I’ll do it again.” She shrugged. “You’re just buying time now.”
“I’m not buying anything.”
“Yet.” She jabbed a finger in his direction. “I’ve got all day.”
“You’re going to need all weekend at the rate you’re eating that croissant.” He nodded to the barely touched pastry sitting in front of her.
“Would you prefer it if I stuffed the whole thing in my mouth at once?” She sucked on her lower lip, stifling a smile. “That’s not very ladylike, is it?”
Damian’s serious expression broke, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and he laughed, low and throaty. She needed to see him laugh more often.
“Since when are you ladylike?”
“Good point.” She grinned.
Her phone vibrated against the glass table, Corinna’s picture flashing up on the screen. Lainey’s smile faded; she didn’t want to talk to her best friend right now. Guilt twinged low in her gut.
Ugh, why did they have to be related? Or rather, why couldn’t she only want the physical with Damian? Why did she need more than their memory-obliterating night in bed? There was nothing wrong with some serious, scream-the-roof-off fucking. She knew that. Dirty, impolite sex was her favourite kind.
But with him...it was always going to be more.
“What’s with the expression?” he asked. “You look like you’re plotting a murder.”
Lainey wrinkled her nose. “Plotting a murder, huh? How would you know what that looks like?”
“I picked you up from that freak’s house one time, remember? I’m pretty sure if I’d walked past a mirror my face would have looked exactly like that.”
“Which freak?” She rolled her eyes. “There have been so many.”
“Why do you always have to date idiots?” He drained the last of his coffee and tilted his face up to the sun. “Aren’t there any normal guys left in Australia for you to choose from?”
“Despite what you might think, I don’t always get my pick of the litter.” She rolled her shoulders back, stretching her arms in front of her. “Besides, you rejected me.”
He pressed his lips into a flat line.
Yeah, and it has nothing to do with Corinna or Jenny. It’s because you’re not forever material. You’re not good enough for him.
She would ban all doubts until the weekend was over. She would get Damian back into bed and she would forget about the fact that she was leaving everything she knew in under two weeks, all because she couldn’t have the man she wanted with all her heart.