“I love that fucking shirt.” His eyes darkened and roamed freely over my white shirt that showed a classy amount of cleavage.
“I love that suit,” I admitted, the words tumbling out before I could stop myself.
Like an unexpected flash of lightening, Josh grabbed my hand and we started moving down the hall, away from the elevators, at a quick pace.
“What are you doing?” I gasped and tried to pull my hand away, but my fight only encouraged him to hold on tighter. “People will see.”
His eyes, full of amusement, flashed to mine. “Stop making a fuss, and people won’t pay attention. And what I’m doing is having a taste of you before you up and disappear again.”
“Joshua, there are rules,” I hissed, trying desperately to ignore the shot of heat that fired through me.
“Fuck the rules, Ash. Anyway, there was one point I did not agree to.”
The instant he opened the door to the storage room, I knew I was in for the best kind of trouble. It would seem that my desires, needs, and now wants, were delivered to him with a big red bow and an open invitation to play whenever he wanted. That should have pissed me off, but all it did was excite me.
The click of the door and the turn of the lock sent my body of into overdrive. I was trembling with delight and anticipation. All hope of telling him that this wasn’t going to happen disappeared when I got lost in his eyes. His expression was clear and obvious. He had something on his mind, and that something was me. I could try to fight him, but I could never deny him.
My back pressed against the door, and his eager hands ran the length of my body until they found my hair. I gravitated toward him, and we became one when the heat of his body consumed mine. A million goosebumps covered my skin, though my body was soaring to epic heat. The tip of my tongue traced my bottom lip as his eyes held mine with fierce contemplation. My silent invitation of what I wanted was all he needed.
When his lips slammed into mine, he stole my breath and ability to think. My arms circled his waist as his hands fell to my ass and pulled me closer. I groaned against his mouth, as he ground his body hotly into mine. Our tongues entwined in the desperation brought on by three days of separation, and we craved the offer of ownership that swirled around us. Kissing Josh was like tasting cotton candy. It ignited your senses, it blasted you to an incredible high, and one taste forged a craving you’d never be able to fully satisfy. I was screwed.
In a swift move, Josh wrapped my ponytail around his hand and my head was pulled back. I gasped as a sharp pain shot through me, but it complimented the pleasure igniting my body so perfectly. My breathing was a shuddering mess of shallow and needy gasps as I tried to regain control. But losing control had never felt so right. There was a battle within me, as my body screamed at me for more, while my subconscious shook her head in disapproval.
“It would be an absolute fucking joy to have your mouth every day.” His forehead fell to mine and his soft pants hit my lips like a teasing summer breeze. “And it’s going to be an absolute pleasure working for it.”
“I’m not one of your girls who will drop her panties whenever you look at her, Josh. You know me. I’m not that girl. You and I both know emotions will get involved. You know I wear my heart on my fucking sleeve. I’m that girl, Josh. That’s reality.”
He pulled his face away from mine and took a step back. I fixed up my shirt, straightened my skirt, and redid my ponytail, all while under his constant gaze.
“A couple of things, Ashlyn.” Shit, he used my full name. No Ashy and no Ash. “I don’t want you to drop your panties for me. I want you to make me work for it, because you are worth every last bit of effort I have. I hope to Christ there are emotions involved between us, because I want you to feel everything thing that’s beautiful about being wanted. The fact that you wear your heart on your sleeve makes you the strongest person I know. You are the happily-ever-after girl, and you should be fucking proud of that. I don’t give a shit about what reality you thought you knew, this is a new reality. Hold on tight, Ashy. This is just the beginning.”
Thank you for the flowers. Very sneaky of you, coming in and putting them on the counter. I might need to change my locks. ;-)
I read Ashlyn’s text message for the fifth time, trying desperately to comprehend what I was actually reading. I hadn’t seen her since our tryst in the storage closet at the office, and I certainly didn’t sneak into her place and leave her flowers.
Dread filled my now highly-tense body, as I stood from the couch and placed my laptop on the coffee table. Scenarios hit me from all angles, but there was one that immediately haunted me. Ky and Eden had gone down the coast for a few days, so it wasn’t them, and the three of us were the only ones that had keys to Ashlyn’s place. One name continued to stab my thoughts, digging in deeper until I was drowning in anger.
Lachlan fucking Johnson.
I needed to get to her, it was as simple as that. Whether I locked my apartment or not was the least of my concern, as I rushed down the hall toward her apartment. Thank fuck for living on the same floor.
“Ashy, where are you?” I announced, after barging into her place and finding an empty living room. Where the fuck was she? I walked through the living room and halted as my eyes locked onto the offending flowers that were sitting on the kitchen bench. Roses? Ashlyn hated roses.
“What are you doing here? It’s not even three P.M.”
I turned at the sound of her voice behind me. She walked straight to me, wearing black sweat pants and a fitted pink tee, with her hair hanging freely over her shoulders. The smile that greeted me was pure happiness, and I would have absolutely loved it if I knew it was for the right reasons.
“I worked from home today.”
Raising her hands and resting them on my chest, her big green eyes shimmered with thankfulness and glee as she gazed longingly at me. She truly thought it was me. How was I meant to tell her my assumption was that her mother fucker of an ex had come into her apartment without her knowing? That it wasn’t me who brought her the flowers that made her radiate with happiness?
“Thank you again. The flowers are beautiful.” She rose on her tiptoes and edged closer, her lips heading for mine.
“Wait,” I whispered, knowing I couldn’t kiss her under false pretenses.
She froze and lowered herself down as rejection flashed across her face. All happiness disappeared, and she stepped away like I was poison. The distance she put between us was immediate, as she crossed the living room toward the kitchen. This was so fucked up. She didn’t need this, she didn’t deserve this bullshit.
“Josh,” she said softly as she stood by the offending flowers. She turned back to look at me as the color fled her face. “Why did you send me roses? You know I don’t like roses.”
The look of unease on my face seemed to be the only answer she needed. Slowly, she began shaking her head as the stark reality of who brought the flowers collided head first with the fantasy that I had given them to her.
“You know I don’t like roses,” she repeated in a barely-there voice. The sparkle I saw when I first walked in had faded into a pit of emptiness. In a flash, I moved to the kitchen and grabbed both of her hands. The only thought I had was getting her as far away as possible from the flowers and all that they represented. We crossed the apartment, her eyes shimmering with hurt, until we hit the couch.
“Tell me what happened. When did you find the flowers?” I asked as we both took a seat.
Ashlyn pulled her knees to her chest as she sat on one end, as far away as possible from me. She twisted a piece of her long blonde hair around her finger and nibbled on her bottom lip. A million emotions appeared on her face, and it was obvious this was tormenting her, like the pieces of the puzzle were slowly joining to form the bigger picture.