Page 60 of The Castle in the Bay

He made to move. He must be crushing her, but she clung onto him.

‘Don’t go,’ she murmured. ‘I like you there.’

‘Are you not squashed?’

‘I like it.’ Her breath landed on his ear, tickling his supersensitive skin.

‘Ok.’ He tightened his grip a little, so they were locked together so rigidly no one could prise them apart.

‘I love this,’ Iona said. ‘It’s so soothing. I bought a weighted blanket when I started investigating ADHD. It calms me before I go to sleep, but you’re much better.’

He smiled and nuzzled her neck. ‘Monty, the human blanket.’ For a moment, he lay quite still. He kept himself thinking though, because if he let go, he might fall asleep, and that would be odd. He was still buried deep inside her, which made this moment even more intimate. Did she do this with everyone she hooked up with? Why should he be special? He was just inexperienced. He’d only been with two people before Sophie and no one since, and despite her claims that he was too vanilla, she never told him what she liked or appreciated him trying anything different. Being a fairly intelligent man, he’d investigated ways he could spice things up, but she’d never seemed open to it. Well, Iona had benefited from his ‘research’ and she certainly hadn’t complained.

When he felt a wave of drowsiness wash over him, he reluctantly pulled out and quickly ridded himself of the condom. Iona might want to go. She only did casual relationships, after all. She’d let him know that on so many occasions that he should be prepared for that eventuality, even if the thought of her going made his insides feel hollow.

‘Are you asleep?’ he asked, returning to her side.

‘No.’ Her voice was quiet. With barely any light in the room and without his glasses on, he couldn’t see her properly, but he sensed she had her eyes closed. He shifted in closer and wrapped her in a hug again. She nestled her head into his chest.

Guess she’s staying then.

He placed a soft kiss on her forehead and closed his eyes.

When Monty woke, Iona was still in his arms. He stroked her hair and kissed her. His body was all set for round two, but she might not want that. And that was fine. She’d definitely woken something in him, but he wasn’t an animal who couldn’t control himself. Her happiness was worth more to him than anything else, and he’d go along with whatever she wanted. Right now, he was happy just to be here with her. It hadn’t been a lie when he’d said he felt honoured to kiss her. Every moment spent with her was an honour. Monty MacNeil had no business being with someone this awesome.

She woke with a moan, her hand smoothing over his stomach, making its way lower. ‘Good morning,’ she said, her fingers sliding further down, curling around him.

His breath hitched.

‘Morning.’ He closed his eyes as she toyed with him. ‘Stop.’ He grabbed her hand and looked down at her. She was smiling up at him, her long dark hair spread wildly across the pillow.

‘You don’t like it?’

‘Oh, I do. I just don’t like to rush.’

She grinned. ‘You’re a thinker.’

‘Maybe.’ He frowned and ran his fingers through his hair. ‘Is that my problem? Is that what makes me vanilla?’

She sat up and raised an eyebrow. ‘What you did last night wasn’t vanilla.’ She shifted a little, and her breasts bounced in a way that caught his eye and made him want to reach out and touch her, but she jumped out of the bed. ‘I need to pee.’ She crossed the room, stopping abruptly at the mirror. ‘Jesus Christ. I also need to wash my hair. I’ve seen better kept bird’s nests.’

She went into the bathroom, and he lay back, staring at the ceiling. He really needed to pee too. And wash. But neither was what he actually wanted to do. The bathroom door clicked open, and Iona emerged. She picked up her Dryrobe and flung it on.Uh-oh.He’d been too slow. Now she was leaving.

‘You… Um…’ What could he say?

‘I’m going to grab some clothes and my shampoo.’ She winked. ‘Then we can take a shower.’

‘We?’

‘You got me into this mess, so you can bloody well help me clean up.’ She left with a little wink and a wave.

Monty blinked and let out a long, slow breath. Ok. He’d never done that before, but this was a week of learning to be more adventurous after all. Tossing back the duvet, he got up and went to the bathroom. His hair was a tousled mess too. He brushed his teeth and stared at his reflection for a moment. Still the same Monty, but he felt different. Stronger maybe, which was weird. Maybe it was a new layer of confidence breaking through. He started the shower and opened the door.

A few moments later, Iona snuck back in, still in her Dryrobe with a bag. She lifted out two golden bottles and handed them to him. He read the name of the argan oil shampoo and conditioner before he became distracted by her taking off the Dryrobe and casting it aside.

‘Ready for fun?’ She grinned and flicked her hair over her shoulders.

‘You want me to wash your hair?’

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