Page 73 of Lime Tree Hill

“Sometimes. I know you’ve had heaps going on, but…well, there’s a lot to be said for living in the moment.” He traced his index finger down her nose, over her cupid’s bow, and stopped at her lips, swollen under his touch.

“I didn’t think you’d want to…” Tayla said.

“What? Have sex with you?”

She nodded.

“Seriously? Why wouldn’t I? I blame that practice kiss. I felt drawn to you before that if I’m honest, but until I’ve kissed someone, I never know if the chemistry is really there or just an illusion. Those flutters in your belly, everything tightening with an anticipation you can’t ignore.”

Tayla shot him a sly grin. “So that happens to guys as well?”

“Sure. But maybe we’re cockier about it. Well, I was back in the day. I like to think I have more self-control of late.”

She glanced down at the bulge in his jeans, before flicking her lashes his way.

Mitch threw back his head and laughed. They kissed again, her hands in his hair gently tugging against his scalp. Slow, sensual kisses that built in intensity until he had to pull the pin. It had been months since he’d slept with anyone. When they made their deal, he’d told himself he could handle celibacy, but now he questioned where that fanciful notion had come from.

Pulling back, Mitch broke the kiss, his expression a mixture of amusement and affliction. He reached over her and opened the door. “Let’s go get our feet wet before we head back.”

With their shoes left strewn across the cab floor, they walkedalong the shore in silence. Reassuring her with his touch, Mitch pulled Tayla toward the water, his headlamp lighting the way. As they reached the swash, she stopped and hitched up her dress to above her knees. “It’s freezing.”

His back to the water, he stood and cocked his head. “You look puzzled. What are you thinking about?”

Shivering, Tayla stepped back until her feet were firmly planted on dry sand. “You. And anticipation.”

In contrast to their drive to Petrie Bay, they talked freely on the way home. After the intensity of their make-out session, the distraction gave Tayla time to relax. To breathe. Mitch didn’t seem breathless. Not one bit. She struggled to understand how he could be so casual when her insides were screaming to speed things up.

Once he’d parked in the garage, Mitch reached over and rubbed the back of her neck, the sexual tension at his touch instant. “We should say goodnight here,” he said. “If we don’t, there’s no way I’ll be able to hold back.”

She leaned across the seat and kissed him. “Goodnight.”

He pulled her closer, his hand stroking her hair. “Sleep well. You know where I am if you need me.”

They climbed the stairs without words or connection. But when they stepped inside, he pressed her against the wall and kissed her breathless, his knee forceful between her legs.

“I thought you said?—”

Mitch held up his hands and stepped away. “Life’s heaps more fun when you buck your own rules. And I want you to remember one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Attraction is mysterious. It doesn’t always make sense, so relax, nothing’s under control.” Mitch inclined his head toward his office. “I have to check my emails. I’ll see you in the morning.”

She watched him walk across the living room, her lips tingling with want and her thighs clenched. “Okay. Goodnight,” she said. But he’d already shut the office door.

Back in her room, Tayla sat on the bed with her head in her hands. Should she shower, eat chocolate, or jump online to order a vibrator? A discreet cylinder, one that hung from a neck chain.

Anticipation.

She’d wanted to take things slowly. But since they’d kissed with much more passionthan their practice or the chaste ‘kiss the bride’ attempt—the pace felt more like torture.

On hearing the shower running in his en suite, Tayla’s imagination shifted to a naked Mitch—one hand braced against the wall as he calmed his frustration with an eager fist, steaming hot water, and a series of murmured f-bombs.

In bed, she read for a while but found herself unable to concentrate as she willed Mitch to open her door. But as she snuggled under the covers, anticipation in her every thought, her sense of inadequacy deepened. Romance novels and movies aside, Tayla knew little about sex. Apart from a couple of times when Hayden had slipped his hand between her jean-clad thighs, no one had ever touched her in that way. What if she didn’t please him? Would he show his disinterest or persevere?

And what if Mitch didn’t please her?

For the next few days, Mitch crept into her bed in the early hours of the morning, but even though the lessons kept coming, there was never any suggestion of full-on sex. That feeling of him, half-naked and warm at her back as he cuddled her awake, was the best part of her day. And every morning, when he held her in his arms, she ached for him to slip inside of her, longed to feel his hands cup her breasts, his lips soft on her nape.

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