Chapter Ten
ANNIE HAD NO idea what to expect. Theo had politely turned down her invitation, and she’d been smarting ever since, though she’d done her best to hide that for the rest of their lunch.
The spirit of closeness was broken, though.
They’d stuck to small talk, inconsequential and bland, and Annie had come home alone. Frustrated and alone.
So much for her little black dress working some kind of magic.
She’d done a workout in Theo’s gym, gone for a swim, contemplated cooking something special for dinner but decided that was pointless when she’d probably end up eating alone, again.
At some time around five, her father’s housekeeper had texted to remind her that Elliot’s birthday party was the following weekend.
Annie might have been offended by the insinuation that she could forget, except it had actually completely slipped her mind, in the hubbub of her marriage.
She’d texted back that she’d be there, but when the housekeeper had asked about Theo, she’d immediately written back in the negative.
Theo hated her father—no way would she bring him to a birthday party in his honour. There was no need to poke that particular bear.
She was just contemplating another swim, when she heard the front door open, and every single cell in her body began to reverberate with anticipation. She moved on autopilot towards the lobby, so she saw the moment Theo stepped through the door, his eyes immediately landing on her.
Annie’s lips were parted with surprise, her eyes widened, because after his rejection that afternoon, she’d presumed he’d stick to his usual routine of working until almost midnight.
‘Does the offer still stand?’ he asked, cutting out any need for small talk, any pretense that they both didn’t know why he’d come home.
Her mouth went dry but she nodded quickly, then swallowed. ‘Take me to bed, Theo. Please.’
His lips curled in something like genuine amusement and her heart slammed into her ribs. ‘Princess, you are going to be begging me at the top of your lungs in a few minutes.’
‘We’ll see,’ she replied impishly, so Theo surprised her by laughing, and stalked the rest of the way between them, before scooping Annie up in his arms and carrying her towards their bedroom, shouldering in the door then placing her on her feet.
‘I’m disappointed you’re not still wearing that goddamn dress,’ he muttered.
She bit into her lip. ‘I have to say, disappointment is not the response I was aiming for.’
He grinned. ‘Wrong choice of word. I should have said, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about how hot you looked in that thing.’
Pleasure spun through her. ‘I can put it on again.’
‘No. Don’t do that.’ His eyes were hooded when they met hers. ‘I’m much more interested in what was under the dress, anyway.’
‘Ah.’ She smiled knowingly. ‘Well, I think you’ll find the same thing is under this as that.’
‘I’d better make sure,’ he said.
‘Probably a good idea.’
His hands caught the hem of her T-shirt, but as he lifted it, he paused, a frown shifting his lips. ‘Annie, remember what I said, after last time?’
Sex is just sex. She nodded. She’d remember forever.
‘Good.’ He kissed her forehead, so her heart went all mushy even when she tried to shield it as quickly as she could. ‘I don’t want there to be any miscommunication.’
‘There won’t be,’ she assured him. She’d gotten the message loud and clear, and it was one she agreed with.
He pushed the shirt the rest of the way, over her body, his hands tracing its progress, roaming her breasts, her back, curving over her arse, as he lifted her and held her body to his.
She couldn’t simply stand there and be undressed, though.
She also wanted to touch and feel, to know the perfection of his nearness.
She pushed at the buttons of his shirt then slid it off his body, before leaning forward and kissing his shoulder.
His skin was warm and smooth; she ran her lips over him, flicking his nipples with her tongue, before letting her hands find his belt and unfastening it.
He made a guttural noise from deep in his throat and an ancient, feminine pride trilled in her veins as he stepped out of his trousers and boxers so he was completely naked.
She glanced down, her cheeks flushing at this now familiar sight of him—those early morning swims on the island had indelibly imprinted his form into her mind’s eye.
‘I don’t know what to do,’ she admitted softly, yet without fear. She trusted Theo, she realised. At least in this way. She knew he wouldn’t judge her inexperience, that he’d help awaken this side of her.
‘You must have some idea of what you’d like,’ he said, as his hands roamed her body, touching, flicking, teasing, before he pushed at her shorts, so they ran down her legs, and she too was naked. She shivered then, simply because it was so intimate, so laced with promise.
‘Show me?’ she invited, her eyes hooked to his, so she saw the way his irises darkened and his lips parted on a hiss of breath.
‘Yes, Annie,’ he agreed. ‘I’ll show you,’ and then he kissed her, his lips meshing with hers, their tongues duelling, as he lifted her easily and wrapped her legs around his waist, just as he had in the ocean.
She rolled her hips, silently inviting him to take her again—how she’d loved that feeling—but Theo wasn’t to be commanded.
This was his show; he was as in control here as in the boardroom.
He moved to the bed, placing her in the middle of it.
‘Lie down.’ He stared at her, dragging his eyes over her body with a possessive heat that made her feel as though she was burning up.
‘Good girl,’ he murmured, when she lay on her back, and his praise made her skin lift with goosebumps.
‘Now, let’s try something,’ he said, bringing his weight over her, so his nakedness was tantalisingly close.
‘What?’ she asked, lifting her hips again so that he shook his head and tsked.
‘I want you to be completely silent,’ he said, his grin showing his skepticism. ‘Not a sound.’
‘I thought you wanted to hear me scream your name?’
‘That will come later,’ he said, and she shivered in anticipation. ‘Are you ready?’
She nodded, already submitting to his request for silence.
His eyes held a challenge, but then, his lips were on her collarbone, before dragging lower, to her breasts, his tongue flicking and rolling her nipples so that she arched her back and bit into her lip so hard she almost drew blood. A curse filled her mind, but she held it back—just.
‘Good,’ he murmured his approval against her stomach, as he dragged his mouth lower, until he was beneath her belly button.
She pushed up onto her elbows, her jaw dropping when his hands gripped her thighs and spread them wide, so her most intimate self was revealed to his hungry gaze.
‘So beautiful,’ he said, his eyes slipping to hers almost accusingly, before his head dipped down and his tongue was running over her.
She let out a heavy breath—not a noise, exactly, yet it was a sound of utter churning pleasure, and her fingers gripped his hair, simply because without holding on, she thought she might tumble all the way over the edge of the earth.
‘Not a sound,’ he reminded her, glancing up at her, before his mouth began to move again, sucking, tasting, discovering which buttons he could push, before moving one of his hands there so he could press two fingers inside of her.
‘So wet,’ he murmured. ‘Do you want me?’ he asked, as she pulsed around him.
She nodded, without speaking.
‘How much?’
She glared at him, as the world began to shake, and pleasure was a radiant force.
‘Say it,’ he invited. ‘I want to hear you now.’
‘God, please,’ she groaned, tilting her head back with relief. ‘Don’t stop. I want—I need—I need everything.’
‘Yes,’ he agreed. ‘And I’m going to give it to you.’ And he did. First, with his fingers, which sent her over the edge, so that she was trembling all over, before he brought his body over hers, his head level with hers, and his knee nudged her legs wide again, so he could press his cock to her sex.
‘Ready?’ he asked, stroking her head gently so that her heart trembled for a different reason. She nodded, dragging her nails down his back and digging them into his buttocks.
As he drove into her, he kissed the flesh just beneath her earlobe, and the sensations were almost too much to bear.
He moved as though he’d been given the key to understanding exactly what she needed.
Every time he shifted, he brushed new nerve endings, so she was almost exploding with the power of her pleasure, coming apart at every seam she possessed.
‘Theo, Theo,’ she said, over and over, forgetting that she’d once been determined never to give him that, never to show him how much she wanted him. ‘Please,’ she cried into the bedroom, not even caring that she’d probably see a look of triumph in his face, that he’d revel in her weakness.
When he dragged his mouth to her breast and took a nipple into his mouth, sucking on it until she saw stars, Annie was gripped by a fierce orgasm, her whole body writhing from the force of her pleasure.
‘You are so beautiful,’ he muttered and then pulled out of her, moving to stand at the edge of the bed, staring down at her, so for a second, she feared history was repeating itself, and he wasn’t going to experience his own pleasure.
And she wanted him to. She wanted to know that he’d been as driven wild as she had been.
But then, he crooked a finger, indicating for her to stand up.
Heart in her throat, she did so, going toe to toe with him.
His hands on her hips were strong, commanding, as he turned her over, to face the bed, then pushed at her shoulders, guiding her so she was bent at the hips, her elbows braced on the bed.