Daniel: Dump the boy. Meet me in the glasshouse in five, we need to talk.

  When I look up, Daniel is no longer with his friends. My stomach sinks, what have I done?

  “Sorry, my friend just messaged me, they need me for a moment,” I tell Josh.

  “All good, stay in touch, yeah?” he says hopefully.

  “Sure.” Giving him a small wave, I make my way back through the party and out to the glasshouse on the other side of the garden.

  When I make it to the gorgeous glass structure that’s been turned from something for plants into a secret hideaway, he isn’t there. I look around the room, but I don’t see him, it’s dark except for the light glowing in from the party. I stare down at my phone to see what the time is, and the next thing I know, a hand wraps around my mouth and muffles my scream as a hard body presses against me.

  “You’re driving me crazy, Rosie.” Daniel’s warm breath brushes against my ear. “Watching you chatting with that boy, moments after I was inside you. Laughing and smiling at him. I saw the way he looked at you with fucking hungry eyes, devouring every inch of your fucking body as if you could be his.” My heart thunders against my chest as panic and something akin to heat pools between my legs. “You’re mine, Rosie. I thought I made that fucking clear in the garden, did I not? I’m not sharing you. Do you understand? This pussy …” he says as a hand snakes around, slides up my slit, and disappears between my thighs. “Open up those fucking legs, I need you to understand.” I shuffle my feet apart, and his fingers find me wet and wanting and slide inside easily. “Fuck, Rose, you’re drenched. Is this turning you on, me restraining you like this?” I nod as his fingers pump inside me, the sound of my slickness echoing in the room, and it is the hottest thing I’ve ever heard. “I’m guessing I didn’t make myself clear earlier …” His thumb finds my clit, making my knees want to buckle. “… I want you, Rosie. Only you,” he growls, “I’m not sharing you with another. Do you hear me?” he commands. I nod and mumble against his hand. “Good girl, because I’m not through with you, Rosie Hunt, not by a long shot. You understand what I’m saying?” I swallow hard, hearing his demanding words, no one has ever spoken to me like that. “You want to be my little fuck toy, Rose? Where you spend your nights on your knees or sitting on my face?”

  My eyes close as his fingers continue to thrust inside me, the tension tightening in my stomach. How is this man able to bring me to orgasm again? Never, not even with my own toy have I been able to come so much.

  “I can’t get enough of you. I’m obsessed, Rose.” I think I am becoming that way, too, especially if it means orgasm after orgasm. Then his hand falls from inside me and the sound of his zipper bounces around us, but I’m lost in the darkness, lost in the warmth of his breath against my skin, against the hand over my lips. Every fiber of my body is on high alert, sparking with desire, ready to be ignited at any moment. No, when Daniel commands it, I’m on the edge and only he can take me over. He then pushes my legs apart and I’m so lost in every minute detail that I’m shocked by his sudden thrust into me, filling, stretching. His bare velvety skin against my inner walls has me moaning. “Such a good girl, take me, all of me, and only me,” he commands as he continues to thrust. His hand tightens around my mouth, and it feels so wrong, yet so fucking hot. Fingers dig into my hip as he takes what he wants, what he demands as if I am his to do with as he pleases. Yes. As if something inside of me breaks free from its cage, a wave of power slides over me, that a man like Daniel is losing his mind over someone like me. That I have the power to bring a man like Daniel DuPont to his knees. That if I say to him, I want him to get on his knees and eat me, he would, gladly. I’ve never felt so confident regarding sex before. And the next thing I know, I am meeting him thrust for thrust. “There she is, my Rose is blooming right before my eyes. I knew it was inside of you, secretly hidden away. Take it, all of it, use me, I’m yours.” He moans as I take what I want which is him. My hand slides between my thighs as I start playing with myself. We lose ourselves in the rhythm until we are nothing but white-hot intense pleasure exploding against one another. I swear I see stars, unicorns, Thor, everything as he pushes me over the edge. Nothing but the sound of our panting breaths is around us. Daniel lets his hand over my mouth slide to my hip as he holds himself in me. His teeth sink into my shoulder and the pain sends tiny shock waves over my skin, making us both groan again. “I meant what I said, Rosie, I won’t share, and that means giving your details to another man,” he declares as his lips kiss up my neck. “I think we need to talk,” he says, and it feels like a bucket of ice water has been thrown over the flames, as he pulls himself from me, but before I have a chance to shriek about what I can feel sliding down my thigh, he picks me up, lays me on the sofa, and his face is between my thighs.

  “Daniel,” I squeal as I feel his tongue sliding up my thigh, then between my cheeks and through my folds. He places his hand on my stomach and ignores me as he continues to clean me up. How the hell is this man turning me on, again, making my back arch as he sucks on my oversensitive clit. “Fuck,” I moan as my fingers find his hair and tangle in them. He continues until he has me wiggling underneath him again until he pushes me over the edge.

  He removes himself from between my legs with a satisfied grin, he wipes his mouth against his tuxedo jacket and positions himself on the sofa as if he didn’t just devour me. “Let’s talk,” he says. Sitting up and pulling myself together, I shake my head trying to get my bearings again. “I’m going to be honest now, Rosie. I won’t shy away from that truth anymore. We’ve been messing around for months now, and I want to continue to fuck you. Every single night. At the end of a long day, I want to come home and see your face and slide my cock into your mouth or put my lips on your cunt and then take you up to my bath and let the bubbles engulf us. I want you to pad around my home wearing one of my shirts. I like you falling asleep on the sofa during the football in my arms. I also want you to be my plus one for events. I want to bring you to couple’s dinner every week with my friends, and I want us to go on double dates with Emily and Louis. I want you in my world not as a secret but as my partner.”

  Oh.

  “I want us to have a label, I want to be your boyfriend,” he declares.

  Well damn.

  “You don’t have to answer me tonight, but I want you to think about if you would be okay building a future with me.” This wasn’t at all what I thought he was going to ask. I’m shocked. “You have given me hope that my heart isn’t dead, Rosie,” he says, reaching out and cupping my face. He doesn’t know that there isn’t any hope for us because I’m leaving. “I won’t push for an answer, but I’ll wait for however long you need.” My heart is doing somersaults in my chest, no one has ever declared their feelings for me like this before, and honestly, I want to say fuck it but … I can’t because, in the end, we are just going to break up because I am moving halfway across the world. Daniel then gives me a wide smile. “Now you, Rose, have well and truly fucked me. Never in my life have I had so much sex at a friend’s birthday party.” He grins. “Come on, let’s pretend I haven’t fucked you sideways all night.”

  35

  DANIEL

  Okay.

  I went off script earlier in the night asking Rosie to be my girlfriend. I’ve had enough of us hiding what is happening between us. I want the world to know she’s mine. I want what my friends have. I didn’t think I would ever be ready for that … until her.

  I spent the rest of the night sitting with the boys, watching our girls dance and have fun. Knowing my friends have accepted her so willingly makes my earlier declaration the right thing. Having Rosie by my side at family dinners, birthdays, and holidays feels right. Images of us hosting dinner parties in my home or entertaining on the weekends down at the cottage. Flashes of a life I never thought I would want but now it is all I can think about.

  “Saw Rosie and that young guy swapping details.” Alistair smirks taking a sip of his drink.

  “And?”

  “Then you stormed off and I didn’t see you for a bit, and come to think about it, I didn’t see Rosie, either.” He chuckles.

  “What’s your point?”

  “No, point just an observation,” he turns looking at me, “you know it’s okay to say, I like her.”

  “I love her.” The words are out before I get a chance to register what I’ve said.

  Shit.

  Those words even surprised me.

  “Fuck, so that’s how it’s been. How long have the two of you been hooking up?”

  “Months.”

  “You’ve kept that a secret.”

  “She doesn’t want anyone to know, especially Ivy,” I confess to him.

  “She’s her boss, you’re her friend, it’s understandable,” Alistair adds.

  “I don’t want to hide anymore, Ali, I … I want what you all have,” I confess.

  Alistair slaps me on the shoulder, consoling me. “Pretty sure you remember what happened between Eloise and me. She ran to the other side of the world.”

  “Yeah, but look at you both now.”

  “True, but it was hard to get ourselves there. The same with Jasper and Lauren, she disappeared with Eloise on him. Look at Alex and Ivy, they had to work through her ex attacking her. Add in the mess that Nate and Camryn went through, and Olivia and Axel, she ran out on her wedding to be with him. What I’m saying is, things may appear smooth now, but it took a lot to get here.”

  “Is that your way of telling me to have patience?”

  “Pretty much. You don’t want to push Rosie if she’s not ready. Are you willing to wait till she feels comfortable?”

  “Of course, no one makes me feel the way I do like she does.”

  Alistair shakes his head and smiles. “Welcome to the club, man, you are so far gone over her. Just be patient. The girls love Rosie, and she fits in well with the group, so know that when it’s the right time, everything is going to work out.”

  “You think?”

  “Yeah, I do. But remember, just because you are at that stage doesn’t mean she is, or maybe she is, but she’s scared to take that leap and you’re going to have to wait until she’s ready.”

  “Thanks, man.”

  “Anytime, you know I’m here if you need to chat.”

  Now I’m lying here staring at the roof, hoping and praying that Rosie tiptoes across the house and into my bedroom. It’s been an hour since everyone went to bed. Maybe I should go to her? What did Alistair say? Be patient. Let her come to you when she is ready. He’s right. This has to be her choice, and I’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t come over tonight, but I’ll understand, it’s not like we haven’t spent the entire night screwing each other. Images of what we did earlier filter through my mind and have my dick standing to attention. Easy, it might be a lonely night.

  At some point in the middle of the night I’ve fallen asleep, Rosie has snuck in and jumped into my bed, and I’ve curled myself around her. My chest tightens, knowing that she chose me and that’s why she is here. My hand slides down her body. It feels like she’s wearing a satin slip, and my skin is met by fabric until I move down over her ass and realize she is not wearing underwear, and the fabric stops.

  She was ready for me.

  Fuck.

  My dick hardens against her peachy ass. I’m the luckiest man in the world. Rosie is all soft and pliant as I lift her leg and place it over mine, the tiny murmurs as she drifts happily between being asleep and awake are music to my ears. She’s already wet for me, as if her body knew I’d be needing her again soon. My dick slides easily inside her, making her gasp as I fill her.

  “Daniel,” she moans as she arches against me.

  “I need you.” My hands cup her breasts, my fingers plucking her nipples.

  “Hhmm.” She moans as I continue to slide between her folds.

  “I can’t get enough of you.” I breathe against her neck.

  “Me either.” She moans as I angle my hips and give her what she wants.

  When her moaning becomes too loud, my hand finds her mouth. “No screaming, you don’t want to wake the house.” Her cunt constricts around me, and I find myself not being able to hold back as she milks every last drop out of me as I try and hold back my own screams. “Fuck, I love you,” I say, nuzzling into her neck. “I needed that.”

  “Me too.” She sighs.

  “Go back to sleep. We can have another round in the shower before you disappear in the morning.” She nods, and we both fall soundly to sleep.

  When I wake up, Rosie is gone, and a heavy weight sinks in my chest knowing she snuck out in the early hours this morning or maybe she got hungry from all the sex we had, and she’s downstairs having breakfast. That thought has me jumping out of bed and heading into the shower before heading downstairs. It doesn’t look like anyone is up yet except Alex.

  “Morning,” he says, greeting me with a cup of coffee in his hand. “There’s bacon, eggs, and other shit if you want.” Pointing to the buffet. I open the silver trays and start to add my food onto the plate. “You’re not normally up this early?” he asks.

  “Just stuff on my mind.”

  He nods. “Are you worried that the house won’t be finished in time for your party?”

  I shake my head. “No, I have faith in Rosie, she’s being doing a great job.”

  “Ivy likes her, all the girls like her, they all seemed to be having fun together,” Alex states, sipping his coffee while scrolling his phone. “You know the girls seem to think something is going on between the two of you,” he says.

  I still.

  I can’t betray Rosie’s trust because Alex is engaged to Ivy, and I know he tells her everything. At least I know if Alistair tells Eloise, nothing directly will happen to Rosie.

  “I like Rosie, a lot. She’s fun, smart, beautiful …”

  Alex’s eyes narrow on me. “You have a crush on her.”

  He has no idea. “Yes,” I answer honestly.

  “Wow, wasn’t expecting you to own up to it.”

  “I haven’t said anything because I didn’t want you guys to try to play matchmaker. Ivy has already warned me off her once,” I say, shoving some eggs into my mouth.

  “That’s when she thought it was just a hook up not that you like her …”

  “Look, Rosie is devoted to her career. I know that she also looks up to Ivy.”

  “Ivy wouldn’t care if you two dated, she’d be all for it, she loves Rosie. But, oh …” Alex’s face drops as if he said something he shouldn’t have.

  “Oh, what?”

  “Nothing,” he says quickly.

  “No there’s something,” I push.

  “Morning,” Ivy groans, “my head hurts. Why did you let me drink so much?” she says to Alex.

  “You told me it was your birthday, and you could do what you wanted.” Alex chuckles.

  “Hungover me wishes she could have punched drunk me for saying that.” She pouts as she picks up a bit of bacon and starts chewing on it. “Did you have fun last night?” she asks me.

  “You always know how to throw parties.”

  Ivy nods as she takes a seat beside Alex and snuggles into him. He kisses her head, and she hums happily, biting the bit of bacon.

  “I’m looking forward to seeing the cottage. I bet Rosie did an amazing job. She’s so talented. I love her.”

  I do too, I want to say.

  “I’m happy with what she’s done.”

  “Good, I was worried about the two of you working together. You can be charming,” she says, pointing her half-eaten bit of bacon at me.

  “I can keep my hands to myself.” I huff.

  Ivy’s brows pull together. “I know you can. Rosie is young, she has plans and I guess I was worried that you might derail them.” Oh. I’m not sure how to respond to that. “I’ve noticed the way your face lights up when you see her.” She has? “You seem to get on well and I’ve heard from the other girls in the office that you pop in quite regularly to have lunch with Rosie.”

  “She’s a busy woman, it’s the only time we can meet to discuss the cottage,” I argue.

  “I know.”

  “But you’re still asking me not to pursue anything?” I question her.

  Ivy stills. “Do you want to pursue something?”

  “Maybe,” I tell her honestly.

  Her brows raise high upon hearing my answer. “And you think Rosie wants that, too?”

  How do I answer that without giving away what we are? “I don’t know.”

  “I’ve never seen you not confident about a woman before,” Alex adds.

  “Because he likes her,” Ivy says, staring at me in amazement.

  “I think I might,” I confess.

  “Fuck,” Alex curses, running his hand through his hair.

  “Don’t be weird, guys, especially not you,” I say, pointing at Ivy.

  She holds up her hands and shakes her head.

  Then Lauren walks into the kitchen. “Do any of you know how to fix a car? Rosie’s seems to have died.”

  36

  ROSIE

  “Leaving so soon?” Lauren asks as she sees me packing my car.

  Shit. I was hoping to disappear in the early morning light back to London before anyone woke up. I crawled into bed with Daniel last night after spending hours running over all the pros and cons of the situation, and when the pros outweighed the cons, I went to his room, and true to his word, his door was unlocked, and he was passed out. I contemplated going back to my room but then he would have thought I didn’t want him, and I do, so very much. I didn’t even want sex. We had so much of it earlier in the night, but what I truly wanted was to be in his arms. I slinked over and got into the bed, he mumbled a bit, then sighed and said my name in his sleep as he pulled me in closer to him. As soon as he wrapped his arms around me, I fell asleep, the anxiety that had riddled me for the past couple of hours disappeared. Then he woke me up sliding himself into me, it was hot, so hot, and I was warm and relaxed and turned on. Then he said those three little words, I love you, and everything changed. He can’t love me. Panic raced over my body, and I sat there until he fell asleep again then jumped up and ran back to my room where I showered and packed. And now I’ve spent the last hour trying to get this stupid car to work. When I tried to call the rental company, they weren’t open.

 

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