Michelle Betham - Extra Time

Michelle Betham

A division of HarperCollins Publishers

www.harpercollins.co.uk

Michelle Betham Michelle Betham I’m an ex-media technician turned rock-music-loving author of hot, sexy romance and chick lit with a kick! My love of books began the second I could read, and some of my happiest memories are of me curled up in bed as a child devouring every Malory Towers and Famous Five book I could get my hands on. As the years progressed I read everything from horror to Harry Potter, Jackie Collins to Jilly Cooper, but I always knew that I wanted to write romance. I love the idea of escapism – of creating a world in which readers can lose themselves, and characters they’ll want to spend time with. And thanks to inspiration from the aforementioned Ms. Collins, I always knew that I wanted to write romance of the more racy variety, and to be able to do that every day is a dream come true for me. After a spell living on the beautiful Canarian island of Tenerife, I’m now back in the UK and settled in County Durham with my wonderful husband and my gorgeous West Highland Terrier, Archie. A proud Geordie girl, I adore the north east of England, but I also love the odd glass of wine, Keanu Reeves, a decent TV drama, Peter Kay… and darts! You can follow me on Twitter @michellebetham, find me on Facebook www.facebook.com/AuthorMichelleBetham or chat to me on my blog http://michellebethamwriter.blogspot.co.uk/.

Dedication This book is dedicated to all those who love The Beautiful Game … especially my husband Ian, who loves it more than most!

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Six

About HarperImpulse

Copyright

About the Publisher

I’m an ex-media technician turned rock-music-loving author of hot, sexy romance and chick lit with a kick! My love of books began the second I could read, and some of my happiest memories are of me curled up in bed as a child devouring every Malory Towers and Famous Five book I could get my hands on. As the years progressed I read everything from horror to Harry Potter, Jackie Collins to Jilly Cooper, but I always knew that I wanted to write romance. I love the idea of escapism – of creating a world in which readers can lose themselves, and characters they’ll want to spend time with. And thanks to inspiration from the aforementioned Ms. Collins, I always knew that I wanted to write romance of the more racy variety, and to be able to do that every day is a dream come true for me.

After a spell living on the beautiful Canarian island of Tenerife, I’m now back in the UK and settled in County Durham with my wonderful husband and my gorgeous West Highland Terrier, Archie. A proud Geordie girl, I adore the north east of England, but I also love the odd glass of wine, Keanu Reeves, a decent TV drama, Peter Kay… and darts!

You can follow me on Twitter @michellebetham, find me on Facebook www.facebook.com/AuthorMichelleBetham or chat to me on my blog http://michellebethamwriter.blogspot.co.uk/.

This book is dedicated to all those who love The Beautiful Game … especially my husband Ian, who loves it more than most!

Jim Allen threw open the white shutters that covered the huge French doors, taking in the view of the cobalt-blue sea in front of him. The palm trees surrounding the small and private oval-shaped pool outside on the terrace swayed slightly in the gentle breeze, the sky cloudless and clear, heralding another beautiful day in paradise.

Shoving his hands in his pockets he turned away from the window, walking back over to the huge king-size bed in the centre of the room. She was still asleep, still oblivious to this new day, but he didn’t want to wake her, not yet. He just wanted to look at her for a few more minutes.

He leaned against the wall, closing his eyes for a second or two before opening them, directing his gaze at her as she lay on her back, one arm slung high above her head. And what he wanted to do more than anything right now was reach out and move the thin sheet that was covering her, just enough so he could see all of her, because he knew she was naked. He knew that, because they’d made love just an hour ago, before he’d had to leave her to go and join the Newcastle Red Star squad for a team breakfast. Even though he’d much rather have stayed there, with her.

He watched as she moaned quietly in her sleep, shifting slightly so the sheet fell down below her perfect breasts and he couldn’t help but react. She had that effect on him; she’d always had that effect on him. He’d loved this woman for over twenty years, yet they’d only been together – properly together, not like the last time – for a matter of months. At the age of forty-nine Jim Allen felt as though his life was only just beginning, and he couldn’t be happier.

She gave another, longer moan, shifting again, becoming more restless, and for him that was enough. He couldn’t watch her any longer without wanting to touch her, and as the sheet moved further down her body, falling just below her hips, low enough to give him a tantalising glimpse of heaven, he could feel himself growing harder.

‘Jesus… what you do to me…’ he groaned, pushing a hand through his slightly greying hair, watching as she drew one leg up, an action which caused the sheet to fall down even further, her nakedness now revealed in all its tanned and beautiful glory. ‘Shit, Amber. I’ve got so much work to do, honey, yet I’m gonna have to fuck you so hard first before I can get any of it done.’

‘Get on with it then,’ she murmured, without opening her eyes, a slight smile on her face.

He couldn’t help smiling, too. ‘You want more, huh?’

She opened her eyes, pushing herself up onto her elbows. ‘I always want more, Jim. I’m never satisfied.’

‘Yeah, tell me about it,’ he laughed.

‘Just get undressed, come on. We haven’t got all day.’

He shrugged off his shirt, letting it fall to the floor as he walked over to the bed. ‘We’ve got a few minutes.’

She looked up at him as he leaned over her, her eyes slowly closing as he kissed her gently. ‘We can do a lot in a few minutes, Mr. Allen.’

‘We sure can, Mrs. Allen,’ he whispered, sitting down on the edge of the bed, pulling the sheet away from her body, letting his fingers trail lazily over her stomach before finally resting on her hip. ‘I love you, Amber. You do know that, don’t you?’

She reached out and gently touched his face, smiling at him. ‘Yeah. I know that. Now.’

‘Everything else is in the past, baby. It’s all in the past.’ Although even as he said the words he knew that could never really be the case. How could everything be in the past when the past was still there? Right there, with them, on this stunning island.