Chapter 36
36
We pretty much all stumble out of the taxis in a chaotic, laughing heap. We’ve all had way, way too much to drink tonight. I know we said we’d see who the last group standing was but I don’t think any of us are going to be standing for much longer.
‘We should keep this party going inside!’ Nita declares, her voice bright and full of wild energy as she stumbles slightly into Lou. Thankfully Lou catches her, rather than falling down with her.
‘I’ll get the music on!’ Harry suggests, already halfway to the door, fumbling in his pocket for something.
‘I’ll get more booze from the kitchen,’ Owen adds.
Willow leans against one of the pillars next to the door, looking pale.
‘Ugh, I feel so sick. I think I’m going to lie down,’ she tells us. She tries to move but she falls back against the wall.
‘I’ll help you,’ Nolan says immediately, ever the gentleman. ‘Come on, be careful. I won’t let you fall.’
The rest of us filter into the villa, but before I can follow, I feel a hand curl gently around mine, pulling me back.
The warmth of Travis’s touch freezes me in place. He’s not even holding me that hard, it’s like there’s a magnet that keeps us together. He holds my hand lightly, his thumb brushing over my knuckles.
‘Are you okay?’ I ask, keeping my voice soft and quiet.
He exhales deeply, his shoulders rising and falling.
‘Yeah, I’m fine. I think I just need a minute to cool down,’ he tells me.
I know exactly what he means. The night’s been loud and manic and messy. My brain is as tired as my body.
‘I could do with a break from the noise, too,’ I tell him. I glance towards the villa, where music is already thumping faintly through the walls. ‘Fancy a walk?’
‘Sounds good,’ he says with a smile.
I squeeze his hand before letting it go, feeling oddly reluctant to lose contact.
‘Let’s go to the secret garden,’ I suggest. ‘No one will disturb us there.’
The noise from the villa fades behind us as we step into the garden, its winding pathways lit by scattered lanterns that cast a warm, golden glow. The air is rich with the scent of flowers and earth. Breathing it in just makes you feel so much better – like the air is cleaner here, somehow.
The hedges are tall and thick, curving around us like walls, giving us our own private space.
Travis walks beside me, hands shoved into his pockets, his body relaxed but he’s just so tall and broad in a way that distracts me.
We’re quiet while we walk, and I don’t mind it. There’s something about being with Travis that makes silence feel easy. Nothing could ruin this moment – except me of course, as I trip on something (or maybe nothing) and stumble forwards.
‘I’ve got you,’ Travis says, his arms around me in an instant, steadying me, putting me back on my feet.
His hands land on my arms, warm and steady, as I rest my hands on his body. My face feels like it’s on fire as I look up at him, my heart pounding for all the wrong (and, to be honest, the right) reasons.
‘Your reflexes are better than mine,’ I tell him. ‘Thank you.’
‘That’s okay,’ he tells me. ‘I’ve got you.’
We part again but Travis doesn’t let go of my hand as we continue walking. His thumb brushes over my skin absent-mindedly, and I wonder if he knows what he’s doing to me – how my breath keeps stalling, how my imagination runs away with me every time he looks at me.
We reach the small clearing – I’m sure we can call it our clearing now – where we sat a few days ago, the grass soft beneath our feet. The spotlights don’t do much here, under the canopy of the trees, making everything shadowy and kind of sexy.
The quiet wraps around us again, and for a minute, it feels like we’re the only two people in the world. And then I start laughing, like the tipsy idiot that I am.
‘What’s funny?’ Travis asks, turning to me with that easy grin of his.
‘I was just thinking about the last time we were here,’ I say. ‘When I was trying to smell your hair, and we ended up sort of wrestling.’
He laughs too, shaking his head.
‘That wasn’t wrestling. You barely put up a fight,’ he teases.
I gasp dramatically, clutching my chest.
‘Excuse me? I had you pinned. Actually pinned to the floor,’ I point out.
‘Erm, no,’ he corrects me. ‘I had you pinned.’
I narrow my eyes.
‘I don’t remember that happening.’
Except I do. I remember everything. How it felt being that close to him, how his weight pressed down on me just enough to make me feel all kinds of things.
He tilts his head, his gaze locking onto mine.
‘Then let me refresh your memory,’ he says, barely warning me.
Before I can argue he leans forward, hooking an arm around me and lowering me to the ground so gently it steals the breath from my lungs.
He’s careful. Deliberate. One of his arms holds me up, while his other pins me lightly, his weight balanced just enough to keep me trapped without overwhelming me.
I gaze up at him, suddenly so aware of every little thing. How close he is, how warm his body feels even through his shirt, how his blue eyes look so much darker now, out here.
‘See?’ he whispers, his voice much lower now. ‘Pinned.’
My chest rises and falls in uneven breaths as I stare up at him, my free hand resting lightly on his shoulders, while the other is still held in place above my head. My heart is hammering so hard I swear I can hear it. I think he can hear it too.
My God, I wish I had the guts to kiss him, or that he would just kiss me, put me out of my misery. I part my lips slightly, hoping, and praying, that he takes the hint.
His eyes flick to my mouth, and I see it. The moment he decides.
He leans in ever so slowly, his gaze never leaving mine, giving me every chance to stop him, but there’s no chance of that happening. His lips brush against mine softly at first, just enough to send shivers down my spine, but when I wriggle with delight beneath him, he turns up the heat.
His hand moves to cup my face, his thumb stroking gently over my cheek as he kisses me, the slow and steadiness making way for something more passionate, more frantic. It’s like when you’re running late, so you pick up the pace. This is long, long overdue. We don’t want to waste another minute.
I melt beneath him, letting the world fall away. The chaos of the villa, the sound of the wind in the trees, the tipsy feeling – it’s all gone. There’s only him.
There’s only two things you can do in a situation like this. You can de-escalate – which, let’s face it, I probably should, because I don’t see how this won’t end in tears, and I did promise my friends I wouldn’t sleep with the enemy – or just give yourself to the moment, jump in, feet first, and give it everything you’ve got. I just need to give Travis a sign, to show him where I want this to go.
I’m sure I could be more subtle about it, but I’m acting purely based on what I want, and what I want is him, so I reach down and fumble with the button on his trousers. I just about get it undone before Travis takes charge, hitching my dress up around my waist in one swift and impressive movement, before leaning forward again to kiss my neck.
There’s no turning back now, I can’t put the brakes on – more importantly, I don’t want to. Forget what’s wrong or right, this just feels right.
I just hope the garden keeps its secrets, but we’ll worry about that tomorrow.