Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Gina
Hunter Waverly knows how to get under my skin.
From the moment I stepped out of the house in the frighteningly scant dress to my last bite of cheesecake, the evening has made me aware of every glance and comment that has come my way from this beautifully complex man.
The evening has been fraught with tension.
He knows exactly what to do to drive me crazy.
There were tantalizing touches, lingering looks, and cheeky hand kisses, and the rising warmth that settled in me during the appetizers only increased by the time we got to dessert.
His friends—though I wouldn’t actually call them friends—were polite and inquisitive, but thankfully didn’t have too many questions for us.
Turns out, they were really just business acquaintances of his grandfather and were welcoming Hunter to town.
Which I thought was weird because, as far as I knew, he’d already been in town for a couple of months.
“Are you ready to leave?” he asks me, leaning over to whisper in my ear as he settles up the bill with his American Express black card.
I wonder what his limit is. Though I bet he doesn’t have a limit.
Unlike me, with my five-thousand-dollar limit.
I’m not even sure I would want a higher limit.
I could get myself into trouble with too much money, but boy, would it be fun. I nod my response and say nothing.
He pulls back slightly, his blue eyes searching my face, and he gives me a wicked smile. “Are you ready to get the party started?”
“I don’t know what that means,” I say, narrowing my eyes. “Are we going to a nightclub?”
“No, honey, unless you consider the cabin a nightclub.” He throws his head back and laughs.
“You think I’m going to go back with you to the cabin?” I mean, I want to, but I’m not telling him that. I will not be that woman who is so eager she’s begging for it. If he wants me, he can be the one to beg.
“I don’t know. Would you like to?”
“What do you think?” I say, licking my lips nervously and turning away.
I hope he doesn’t study my face too closely because the fact of the matter is, I wouldn’t mind going back to his cabin and having some fun, but I don’t want to further complicate a situation that is far more complex than it should be.
There are so many things going through my mind.
I don’t need to sleep with Hunter and complicate things even further.
“Well, it was good seeing you, Hunter,” Jackson says as he stands up with his wife. “Nice meeting you, Gina. Hope to see you again.”
“It was nice meeting you both, as well. Thank you.”
”The wife is ready to get home and check on the kids,” Jackson says. “I’ll join you for a nightcap next time?”
“No worries. Next time,” Hunter says, standing up and shaking his hand. “Good to meet you.”
“I guess we’ll be on our way, as well. Thank you very much for dinner,” Sam Prince says. “Really appreciated it, and good to get to know you, Hunter. Tell Preston I said hi.”
“Will do. Have a good evening.” We watch as they all leave the restaurant, and then Hunter turns to me. “So, what’s next?”
“What do you mean, what’s next? I’m not going back with you to your cabin to have wild, passionate sex, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I don’t think the words wild, passionate sex have come out of my mouth once,” he says, his eyes laughing at me. “But if that’s what’s going through your mind, I wouldn’t want to disappoint you, girlfriend of mine.”
“Number one, I’m not your girlfriend, and number two, I don’t want wild, passionate sex with you.”
“Okay, then what if it’s just passionate sex?”
“I don’t want passionate sex with you, either.”
“Okay, what if it’s just wild sex?”
“What’s the difference between wild and passionate?” I say, glaring at him.
“I don’t know. Maybe we can find out.” He laughs as I jump up.
“Let’s go home.”
“Will do,” he says, grabbing my hand and winking at me.
“Or as Amethyst would say, tonight we shall go, tonight we shall woo, tonight was fun, let us get it on. Come with me, my dear Gina, don’t be a wiener, let’s do it right, ‘cause tonight is the night.” He grins at me, and I can’t stop myself from laughing so hard that my stomach hurts and my eyes feel wet.
“That was so bad.” I giggle at him as we step outside. “Also, I just wanted to say that I am glad you’re in a better mood now,” I say as we make our way out of the restaurant.
He turns to me, his face stilling slightly. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”
“I don’t know. When you were quizzing me about Patrick, who obviously means nothing to me, you seemed a little annoyed.”
“I don’t know if he obviously means nothing to you. The fact that he was at the house is concerning to me, and if you have nothing to do with him, it should concern you, as well.”
“It is concerning to me,” I say, my voice rising, and then take a deep breath. “You know what? I’m not going to let you get on my nerves, Hunter.”
“Good,” he says, grabbing my hand and pulling me into him. “I’d hate to get on your nerves.”
“What are you doing?” I fall into him, and he holds me steady, his arms wrapping around me like he’s used to holding me and protecting me.
The feeling is so natural and feels so right that it almost makes me want to cry for what it would be like to really date this man.
To really know love and be in a good relationship.
It would be more valuable than an American Express black card.
“What do you mean, what am I doing? Gina, until we get home, to the public eye, you’re still my girlfriend,” he says softly. “And that’s why I’m going to do this.”
“Do what?” I ask, and before I know what’s happening, he’s pulled me into his body, and he’s grabbing my face.
Suddenly, his lips are on mine, kissing me passionately.
As his hands run down the side of my body, I melt into him, unable to resist his charms. I reach up and touch the side of his face, my hands falling to his shoulders and squeezing.
I feel his hardness pressed against my stomach, and I groan.
I’ve dreamed about this moment, but never expected it to feel so guttural and intense.
“Fuck,” he grunts against my lips, a word I also wanted to use, but I feel too shy to be that vocal.
He does something to me that turns me on so badly.
His hands casually stroke the sides of my arm and then brush against my breasts as he brings me closer to him.
His mouth moves to the side of my neck and I feel his tongue licking my skin as his arm reaches around and squeezes my ass.
I moan as he thrusts forward and I feel his cock, hard against me.
“You are so fucking sexy, I can’t get enough of you.
” His eyes look wild as they gaze at me.
And then he kisses me again, soft and then more passionately.
His tongue slides into my mouth and I suck on it as if it were his cock.
He growls from his throat and we’re both panting in hot desire as he grabs my face and runs his fingers through my hair.
When he finally pulls away, he leaves me panting and almost begging for more. I’m not above begging, but I don’t even know if I have the wits to speak right now as my body feels like it is on fire.
“So, time to get home,” he says, and I reach up and wipe my lipstick off his lips. “Thanks.” There’s a glint in his eyes that makes me want to kiss him again.
“I have an idea,” he says as we get to the car. I swallow hard as I look into his eyes. I see the same unbridled passion I feel reflected in his gaze.
“No,” I say before he can get any further.
“You haven’t even heard what the idea is.” He laughs as he drives off. I sit back in the soft leather seat and shake my head vehemently.
“I already know I’m probably not going to like it.”
“Just like you didn’t like that kiss?” His lips twist up at the sides as he reaches over to run a finger down my cheek.
“It was an okay kiss,” I lie. My lips are still tingling, and I can feel every nerve ending on high alert. It should be a crime how badly I want this man.
“Just okay?” He shakes his head as he glances over at me. “Really?”
“I mean, yeah. I’d give it a five out of ten.”
“You would give that kiss a five out of ten?”
“Yeah. I mean, it was nothing special.”
“You’re telling me you’ve had better kisses.”
“I don’t want to hurt your feelings, Hunter, seeing as it seems to mean so much to you. So why don’t I bump it up to a six; make you feel better?” He laughs, shakes his head, and turns on the radio. An old song from the eighties plays, and he sings along.
“Do you want to hear something funny?” I say as I listen to Boy George singing “Karma Chameleon.”
“No, what’s funny? Don’t tell me you’re going to give my kiss a three now.”
“No. It’s about this song. When I was younger, and I used to listen to it, I always thought he was singing comma camelia. I know. I’m like a lyric disaster.”
“I’m not exactly the king of lyrics.” He bites down on his lower lip and looks over at me. “You’re not going to say it?”
“What?” I say, pretending I don’t know what he’s talking about.
“You’re not going to say I’m not the king of kissing either.”
“Now, would I be that mean?”
“I think you would be, Gina,” he says. “I really think you would.” He turns the music down slightly, and we sit there in companionable silence as he continues to drive. “I just want you to know that tonight went really well, and thank you.”