11. Rhys
My head ison the verge of exploding.
I grit my back teeth, a surge of silent rage coursing through my veins. Hearing her bastard ex’s name fall from her perfect lips is like a poison-tipped dagger to the throat.
He isn’t worthy of her past, much less her present.
“Truth be told, he never truly loved me. At least not in the way a man should love the woman he’s close to spending the rest of his life with.” Each word Sadie speaks only heightens my disbelief and fury. “Just as I never fully loved him the way a woman should her future husband. But none of that made his betrayal hurt any less.”
It’s rotten, I realise, but her confession pleases the possessive monster living inside me. Immensely. To know my sweet Sadie never loved the plonker, that her broken heart was never his to hold, is music to my ears.
She was always meant to be mine.
Even long before we met.
“We’d just been together so long that when he proposed, being high school sweethearts and all, I stupidly thought saying yes was the right decision. I cared about him, don’t get me wrong, I just wasn’t in love with him, if that makes sense. I t-think…”
She hesitates, blowing out a small breath.
“I think we were just used to being with one another. Looking back, I’m sure his family pressured him into proposing.” Her small jaw clenches. “Well, not Cornelia. That witch never liked me. In her eyes, I wasn’t good enough for her precious grandson.”
It’s more information I file away for later.
The primal urge to hunt down the wanker and make him pay for every ounce of pain he’s caused Sadie, directly and indirectly, is nearly overwhelming. Wholly blinding. But I push it down, forcing its way into the blackness and focus on the woman in my arms.
She needs comfort, not my anger.
“You deserve so much more than being with someone out of habit and obligation, love. You deserve nothing less than to be cherished, adored, and loved with every fibre of someone’s being.”
I mean every word.
With my entire soul.
Her eyes still shimmer with tears, the wobble of her chin only adding to her pained expression, making the figurative knife in my side twist, cutting bone and flesh.
“I know that now.” Her reply appeases the pain streaking through my chest. But only marginally. “It’s just hard to believe sometimes, you know?”
I brush my thumb across her cheekbone. “Believe it. Because you are worthy of all that and more. And if I have to be the one to show you that, to prove it to you, I’m ready.”
“Thank you.” She leans into my touch, a soft smile playing on her lips. “For being here, for listening, for... well, everything.”
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
We stand like this for a moment, wrapped in each other’s arms, everything outside of the capsule we share falling away. But then, slowly, I guide Sadie to the bench, where the chilled champagne and fruit await.
As we sit, her now bright eyes widen, taking in the breathtaking view of London sprawled out before us. The River Thames winds through the city, the iconic Tower Bridge, and the gleaming skyscrapers of the financial district visible in the distance. The sun casts a golden glow over the city, the normal dreariness nowhere to be found, making it look like something out of a fairy tale.
I hope she finds it all magical.
If not, I’ll find a way to make it so.
“It’s even more beautiful than I imagined.” Her face lights up with wonder, putting to bed any doubt I had. “Mamaw would have loved this.”
“Beautiful, yes.” I can’t tear my gaze away from her. “But it pales in comparison to you.”
A pretty blush stains her cheeks, and she ducks her head, her wide, excited smile turning shy, the tears that filled her eyes a minute before no longer visible.
“Flatterer.”
Bollocks.
“It’s not flattery if it’s the truth.” I reach for the special edition bottle of champagne, popping the cork with a practised twist of my wrist. The bubbles fizz over the rim as I pour the golden liquid into two crystal flutes.
“To new beginnings,” I say, handing her a glass.
She takes it, her fingers brushing against mine, sending a jolt up my arm. “To new beginnings,” she echoes, softly clinking her glass against mine as though she fears she’ll break it.
We sip the champagne, the crisp, effervescent flavour dancing on my tongue. But it’s the way her bloody lips wrap around the rim of the glass that has me transfixed, my hungry mind conjuring filthy images of those same lips wrapped around my hardening cock.
Fuck.
I shift in my seat, trying to subtly adjust myself as my trousers grow uncomfortably tight, the bloody zipper feeling as though it may burst, giving her one hell of a show.
“You know...” She sets her glass down and reaches for a chocolate-covered strawberry, leaving me bewitched, fully transfixed by each of her movements. “I’ve always wanted to do this. To see London from up high, to feel like I’m on top of the world.”
“And how does it feel?” I ask, my voice low and rougher than sandpaper, the question one I plan to ask the first time I plunge my cock deep inside her as well.
She takes a bite of the strawberry, her eyes fluttering closed as a little moan of pleasure escapes her, testing my restraint.
“Incredible. Like anything is possible.”
I lean in, my lips brushing the shell of her ear, her tantalising perfume making my head grow light. It’s a new feeling for me—being awestruck and enamoured. “Anything is possible. Especially when you’re with me.”
She shivers, her breath hitching. “Rhys...”
Unable to help myself, I trail my knuckles down her neck, feeling her pulse jump beneath my touch. “I want to make all your dreams come true, Sadie. I want to worship you, to pleasure you, to make you come undone in every goddamn way imaginable.”
“Please...” The rise and fall of her chest quickens, her nipples straining against the thin fabric of her dress. “I need you.”
Thank fuck.
There’s no hesitation on my part.
I lift her from her seat, depositing her on my lap, her legs straddling mine. And like a man starved, I capture her lips in a kiss that’s as blinding as it is searing, my tongue delving past her parted lips and deep into her mouth, tangling with hers.
Tasting of chocolate and champagne, a heady combination that goes straight to my head and aching cock, kissing her becomes an addiction, a drug I need more than life itself.
Moaning into the kiss, her hands fist in my hair. Hungry to taste every inch of her, I trail my lips down her throat, nipping and sucking at her pulse point until she’s writhing against me.
I tear myself away, breaking the kiss.
She gasps, her breathy whimpers filling the air.
“Bloody hell, Sadie.” Needing to feel her, to touch what’s mine, my hand slides up her thigh, pushing beneath the hem of her dress. “You have no idea what you do to me. How badly I want to strip you bare and bury myself inside of you so deeply that you won’t be able to walk out of here.”
“Then do it.” She rocks her hips, searching for my fingers, clearly needing them exactly where I intend to put them. “Take me, Rhys. Make me yours.”
I groan, my fingers grazing the damp lace of her knickers. “You’re so wet for me, aren’t you, love? Dripping and ready for every last inch of my throbbing cock.”
“Oh God, yes.” Eyes sliding closed, she drops her head back, every modicum of control she harnesses further eroding with each passing second. “Please, Rhys. I need you inside me.”
I push the lace aside, growling at the feel of her soaked pussy against my fingers. “Fuck, you’re perfect. So wet and ready for me.”
I slide one finger inside her, then two, marvelling at the way her walls clench around me as my thumb circles her clit, mercilessly drawing pleasure from her that’s mine to take. She cries out, her hips fervently rocking against my hand, desperate for more.
“That’s it...” My thumb moves faster, memorising each movement she makes as she bucks her hips. “Be my good girl and ride my fingers. Take what you need. What your sweet little body craves.”
Doing as she’s told, her body undulates against mine, lost to the pleasure—a mere fraction of what I intend to give her. Her breathy moans act as music to my ears.
With each plunge of my fingers and move of her hips, she races closer to the brink, her tight walls fluttering around my soaked fingers, her clit pulsing beneath my thumb.
“Faster, Sadie,” I command, my voice rough with need as I clench my jaw, my neck cording from the strain. “Fuck my hand faster, love, so I can feel you come, shattering—”
She screams, her pleasured cry echoing through the capsule as her body shudders, wave after wave of ecstasy crashing over her in one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever witnessed.
Determined to wring every ounce of pleasure from her that her body has to give, I work her through it, my fingers never stopping their relentless assault, until she’s lying boneless and sated in my arms, her chest pressed to mine, panting for much-needed breath.
“Rhys,” she breathes, her face tucked into the crook of my neck. “That was...”
“Just the beginning,” I finish for her, running my non-soaked hand up and down her back, lightly trailing my fingers along her spine. “I plan on spending the rest of the weekend making you come over and over again until you forget your own name, along with any plans you have to leave come Monday.”
She shivers in my arms and sits up, putting unwanted space between us, her eyes dazed and glassy. “Rhys, I—”
Our slow-moving capsule reaches the bottom, the moment shattered.
I curse under my breath, ready to douse the entire ride in petrol then set it ablaze until nothing is left but ash and plume, when Sadie scrambles to her feet, standing on shaky legs, her flushed cheeks once more the prettiest shade of pink.
I’m trembling with the force of my restraint as I stand, every fibre of my bloody being screaming at me to pull her back into my arms, to finish what we started.
But I hold steady, knowing there’s still time.
I have other plans for today, plans that involve worshipping her properly until she’s screaming in ecstasy as she comes on my cock, unable to stop herself from readily accepting the invitation my heart’s already made.
Stay with me, Sadie...
After cleaning up with a handful of serviettes, I close the small space she’s created between us, the compulsion to touch her insurmountable. Palming her face, I bend down and take her lips in a kiss that’s the opposite of the desperation-driven one we shared before.
This one is slow and sweet.
But just as fucking intoxicating.
And just as hard to break.
“Come with me,” I murmur, tearing myself away and turning, leaving her dazed. She remains silent as I gently pull her to my side and rest my hand on her back, guiding her out of the capsule toward the cars where Mark stands waiting, his eyes scanning the area. “I have another surprise for you.”
She looks up, smiling softly.
“Lead the way.”
When we reach the car, a comfortable silence stretching between us, I help her in, ensuring she’s buckled and safe, one primary thought consumes me, repeating in my mind.
By the time this weekend is over, I’m going to steal Sadie’s heart, making it impossible for her to walk away. My soul has found its mate; I’ll be damned if I let her go now.
Her leaving is simply no longer an option.