Chapter 22 #2
Bethan has her head buried in her kindle, and she’s turned in her seat, leaning all her weight onto Cai, her legs curled up underneath her.
Seeing them like this stirs a little jealousy in me.
I want it, but nobody can know about me and Rhys until we’re sure it’s a real thing and when I’m positive a relationship with him won’t affect me getting a permanent contract with Cai.
And I have more at stake than only letting everyone down.
Telling Felicity I failed again, finally admitting to my dads that I’m unemployed would be nothing compared to moving back to London.
‘I was doing a headcount.’ I ignore the way Cai eyes me, trying to delve deep into my brain. Bethan must have been talking to him, sharing her conspiracies. Or maybe I’m squirming a little too hard in my seat.
‘Well, then it’s important you know where he is. I don’t want you to miss him or think we’d left him behind.’
‘You’re all adults. If you’re not on the bus at the time I told you, then you stay here. If we leave Rhys behind, then so be it.’
‘Would you desert me here in Manchester?’
‘If you were late, yes.’
‘So brutal. You’ve been taking lessons from Gethin.’
I beam at him. ‘Only the best.’ I let out a fake yawn. ‘I’m going to go and take a nap. I struggled to sleep with my wrist hurting.’
‘Uhuh. Sure. A nap. If that’s what the kids are calling it these days.’
He definitely has an inkling about me and Rhys and considering he’s not warning me away from him, I can only take it as he’s on our side. Brilliant. I slide out of my seat and shoulder my bag. The bus lurches into action, and I almost lose my footing.
Once I’m sure I won’t stumble, I make my way up the spiral staircase to the sleeping area, trying not to overthink why Rhys is hiding in the bedroom instead of working from a booth. Perhaps it was intentional. Maybe he’s creating a little privacy for us.
A risky plan, but I’m one hundred percent on board.
We’ve spent the past hour texting each other, our conversation carrying on while I counted everyone onto the coach and handed the house keys to the owner.
The spicy talk stopped quickly – which is great as it makes it a deal harder to do my job when I’m turned on – and instead, we chatted about the most mundane things: what we might get up to in Glasgow, our to-do lists, the weather.
I got a glimpse of him while he returned his copy of the keys, but then he hurried off with Bryn to sort the hire car out.
I make a short stop at my bunk, grabbing my book and water bottle before closing the curtains around the bed.
After checking nobody is watching, I take the final steps to the door at the back of the bus.
A gold star hangs on it, glittering with Cai’s name.
It was a joke present, apparently. Service station tat.
One of the crew bought it for him, and it hangs as a badge of honour now.
Nobody answers when I rap on the door. I push it and it gives straight away. I slip through, then shut it tight behind me.
Rhys lounges on the queen-sized bed, his laptop resting on his stomach.
The mattress occupies most of the space, with a small leather sofa crammed in next to it.
A door at the foot of the bed leads to the tiniest en-suite.
The whole room isn’t bigger than a shoebox, but it gives Cai the privacy he deserves.
Cartoons flash silently over the small TV next to the door, but Rhys isn’t watching them. He pulls an AirPod out of his ear and grins. ‘Hey, you.’
‘Hey, yourself. Cai said you were working.’
He moves his laptop to the side, removes the other AirPod and extends an arm out for me. ‘And you thought you’d come up here to check on me?’
‘To see you.’ I flip the lock on the door, then sit on the edge of the bed. I turn to face him, but don’t immediately take his offered embrace. ‘What about your work?’
‘I finished reading through Alina’s report on the lost fan. Still need to write up what happened last night, but it can wait. Gotta speak to a fuck ton of people first and I only managed to catch Alina this morning.’
‘And?’
‘It’s not a problem.’ He stretches his arm out further. ‘Luce? Come here? Please?’
I kick off my shoes and knee shuffle to him. As soon as I reach him, he pulls me into his side, folding one arm under me. I rest my head in the crook of his neck, breathing in his familiar scent.
‘I closed the curtain over my bunk. People will think I’m sleeping,’ I tell him.
‘Even though you don’t nap?’
‘I do nap. Occasionally. Mostly when certain men keep me awake past my bedtime.’
‘Oh, it was already way past your bedtime before you got home from the hospital. That wasn’t anything to do with me.’
He kisses the top of my head, and I close my eyes.
‘I was hoping you’d come and find me. Figured cuddling here would be more comfortable than being squished into a tiny bunk together.’
‘Yeah, my backside wouldn’t fit in a bunk with you in there, too.’
‘Exactly. I fucking love your butt, and wanted enough space to enjoy it properly.’
To prove his point, he slides a hand down my spine and into my jeans to caress my skin in long strokes. Yeah, this is lovely. He already knows the best ways to touch me, the exact pressure to apply to make my eyelids grow heavy. I bet he’d be good at massage.
‘I’m going to fall asleep if you keep on.’
‘Well, I don’t want you asleep, do I?’ He steers his fingers out of my bottoms and picks up my injured wrist. ‘How you feeling?’
‘Sore.’
He coos and presses gentle kisses to the tips of my fingers. ‘Poor baby. I’ll kiss them better all the way to Glasgow.’
‘I’d prefer you kiss me elsewhere.’ I won’t allow him to get away with all those promises of more only to treat me like a doll. Despite the fear I might have forgotten what to do with him, I’m not scared enough to not want it.
He laughs and abandons soothing my fingers to cup my cheek, pulling me into him. I press my lips to his. I caress the bruise he got defending me. He doesn’t wince. Guess my kisses are medicinal too.
‘You taste fucking amazing,’ he whispers against my lips before diving in to devour me more.
The coach lurches, yanking us away from each other. We use the moment to pull in a breath, both of us gasping for it. He pushes a tendril of hair out of my face. ‘I don’t want to hurt you.’
‘You won’t.’
‘But your wrist…’
‘Rhys. I’m fine. Seriously. You and your sister are a pair of mother hens. Cai too.’
I don’t want him worrying about me. Not now. He can coddle me later. And I will tolerate it from him. It’s kind of his job.
But now? I want him in the moment, enjoying this as much as I’m enjoying him. I want him on top of me, inside me, all over me, and I’m going to be brave and get what I damn want.
I drop my lips to his neck, kissing the spots that drew such delightful noises from him. His moans are softer this time, more aware of where we are, who might be listening, but his body sinks further into the duvet. Good.
He slides his hands down my body, squeezing at my sides before turning us over, putting me onto my back. We sink into the mattress. The movement forces me to tear my lips from his skin, but it’s worth it for the sight of him grinning at me.
‘Much better.’ He slides the scrunchie out of my hair and cards his fingers through my waves. ‘You’re fucking gorgeous.’
He dips his head to kiss me. The hand not playing with the ends of my hair sneaks under the bottom of my t-shirt. ‘Can I?’
‘Yes. Please. Yes.’
He traces his fingers over my soft stomach, drawing along the lines of my stretch marks. His tongue licks into my mouth, matching the pace of his hands.
The need to have more of him pressed against me grows.
I wrap my arms around him, lifting my hips to meet his as his hand moves higher under my top, brushing the underwire of my bra.
His fingers find my nipple through the lace and tugs.
His touch burns, scorches me, yet goosebumps travel from my breast to the rest of my body. The hairs on my arm stand to attention.
‘That’s good.’ I throw my head back, the groan I release way too loud for the confines of the coach.
‘Shhh.’ He places a firm kiss over my lips. ‘Make too much noise and I won’t let you come.’
‘You’re cruel.’
‘Or you don’t like being told what to do.’ The smirk he gives me is wicked. He nibbles my bottom lip, along my jaw, all the way to my ear. ‘But I heard that’s not the case. I heard, you love being told what to do.’
‘I—’
I regret it as soon as I open my mouth. He punishes me by removing all contact, pushing up on his arms and knees to hover above me. His grey joggers do nothing to hide how hard he is for me already.
‘Can’t believe you proved my point. I told you to be quiet. Do what I say, and I promise I’ll make it worth your while.’
‘And what if I don’t?’ I challenge, even as I clench my thighs together, desperate to tell him to give me more. I reach out for his hip to pull him to me, but he pins my arm to my side.
‘I’ll send you out into the coach in a state. Force you to sit next to Gethin when you’re dripping for me. You trust me, don’t you?’
‘Yes.’ Endlessly. Completely without doubt.
He drags a finger from my neck, onto my collarbone then down my chest over my top.
He stops at my breast and tugs at the nipple peeking through the material.
Fuck. He does it again, and I swallow my moans.
If he stops touching me I might die. I want his fingers lower, between my legs, or I’m going to go insane.
I’ll stay mute until I get his permission to scream the house down. Or the coach.
‘Good girl.’
My hips roll in search of more, but it’s not until I’m fisting the duvet that he drifts his finger lower. He hooks it under the waistband of my jeans and I raise up to meet him.
‘What’s the magic word?’ His lips find my neck, trailing butterfly kisses along it and my eyes slide shut.
‘Please.’