Carol Marinelli - The Chatsfield Short Romances 6-10

‘Yes. And I’m sorry I did that to you.’

His honesty and the sincerity of his apology floored her and it must have shown because he laughed. ‘You weren’t expecting me to confess my part in it?’

No she wasn’t.

‘I admit that I initially invited you out as part of a dare,’ he began slowly, ‘I was… I was messed up at the time but I promise you that I had nothing to do with the proposal or the video. In fact I had my father take it down from the internet as soon as he could.’

Chloe wrapped her arms around her waist. ‘So your friends improvised. Big deal. I’m over it. I’m over you. I’m over your pity .’

‘What pity?’

Chloe really didn’t want to have this conversation but she only had herself to blame because she’d started it. She’d come here on some stupid mission for revenge that she should have known she didn’t have the wherewithal to pull off. ‘The pity I saw in your eyes the moment I threw my arms around your neck and said yes, I’ll marry you.’ She gave a self-deprecating laugh that rang hollowly in the quiet room.

‘That wasn’t pity you saw in my eyes’ Liam said quietly. ‘That was regret over my actions.’

She made a noise in the back of her throat. ‘God, I must be the village idiot. How could I have ever thought…’ She checked herself and shook her head, her hair falling around her face in soft waves. ‘Please forget you even know me and we’ll call this the end of it.’

‘Dammit, Chloe, I do not pity you.’

‘Sure.’

‘I’m serious about seeing you again. In fact I want you to come with me to the premiere of Time Could Wait tomorrow night.’

‘Your movie?’

‘Yes.’

‘The one that will be lined with about a gazillion women all screaming your name and throwing knickers at you.’

‘They don’t tend to do that anymore. And some will be screaming Bethany Lord’s name, but yes. That one.’

Chloe wanted to she realised. Really badly. Which was a very good reason why she shouldn’t. ‘No.’

‘Give me one good reason why not?’

Liam had widened his stance as if he was going into battle and Chloe wished for one brief moment that all that hard male perfection could really be hers. ‘Give me one good reason why I should?’ she countered.

‘I want to see you again and tomorrow I’m busy all day in radio interviews and then I have to fly to Paris for the next leg of the junket.’

She shook her head. ‘And what if someone recognises me from that awful prank?’

‘Then I’ll tell them what a stupid jock I was.’

‘And damage your pristine reputation?’

‘I don’t care about my reputation.’

Chloe knew her scepticism must have shown because Liam ran his hand through his hair in frustration. ‘I don’t. I learned a long time ago that if you valued the opinion of others above your own then you would be unhappy and make everyone else around you miserable as well. Sometimes you have to seize the moment.’

Chloe felt her throat tighten up at the thought. ‘See now I sort of did that once and it didn’t work out so well for me.’

Embarrassed and upset she turned to go and felt Liam’s fingers fix onto her waist from behind, preventing her from leaving.

‘Don’t leave like this, Chloe.’

She stilled. ‘You have a party to attend to.’

‘No, I don’t. I only have you to attend to.’

***

Liam felt Chloe go utterly still and his gaze dropped to where his hands circled her waist. His thumbs were pressed against the pearl like bumps of her lower spine, his fingers spread out over her warm, soft belly. Chloe’s body trembled beneath his hold and it was all Liam could do not to haul her back against him and show her just how much he desired her. But this had to be her decision, not his.

‘Stay.’

His breath stirred the tendrils of hair at the nape of her neck and he couldn’t stop his need to press his mouth to her bare shoulder and bite down gently. She gasped and jerked against him and his hands tightened on her waist to hold her steady.

‘Liam.’

His name was a decadent whisper on her lips and her hips vibrated beneath his touch. God, he wanted her right now. He’d give up almost anything and everything to have her. ‘You know I got a ninety five in English senior year because I remember almost every syllable that came out of your pretty mouth,’ he murmured, laving the space he had bitten with his tongue and breathing in her heady, musky scent.

She turned within the circle of his arms and he let his hands slide around her as she did. Her hands rose to his shoulders and when he saw the naked flame of desire darkening her irises he felt a thrill of victory flood through him. ‘You did?’

Liam gave a husky laugh at her guileless expression. ‘Yes, I did.’ His hands smoothed over her back and he stepped closer to her. ‘I want you Chloe. I want to kiss you and lick you all over and then I want to make you come until you can’t even remember your own name.’

‘I…’ her throat bobbed as she swallowed and he pressed his lips to the pulse point throbbing just beneath her delicate skin. She moaned and gripped his shoulders more firmly and he stroked his lips up her throat and sealed his mouth to hers in a kiss that didn’t even pretend to be tentative.

Immediately her tongue wrapped around his at the same time as her hands forked into his hair, the movement flattening her firm breasts to his chest.

Liam growled low in his throat like a wild animal that had been kept locked in a cage for too long. His mind had already forged past the idea of foreplay and had him opening her legs so he could plunge inside her.

‘Liam.’ She writhed against him as if the same desperate need that was driving him was driving her as well.

Muscles bunched he lifted her, carried her to the bed and laid her down. Her long hair spread out on the cream bedspread like a red flame and Liam came down over the top of her. He balanced his weight on his elbows and their eyes locked together. For a minute he felt slightly unsteady. ‘Are you sure about this, Chloe?’

Her smile was steady and clear and beautiful. ‘Yes. I don’t care about the past or the future just… touch me, Liam. Please. And don’t stop.’

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