“Who the hell do you think you are?” April hissed as she entered Lachlan’s hotel room. Since leaving the meeting, all she could think about was how David Anderson had been expecting her call. Expecting it. It meant that even though she had turned him down the night before, Lachlan had completely ignored her. But it wasn’t just his arrogance that had her angry; she didn’t like being manipulated and she wasn’t about to let him walk all over her just because he was Lachlan Freaking Kennedy.
“I said no. I said no. And still you went behind my back”—he backed up as she stabbed her finger into his chest—”I’m not some groupie that you can click your fingers at and I’ll bow down to your every whim, Lachlan.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, stunning April for a moment.
“Sorry? Is this some sort of don’t ask permission, ask forgiveness strategy?”
“What?”
“Never mind.” As quickly as it had bubbled over, her anger drained out of her. “Did you ever think that maybe I just don’t want to go to the charity ball?” she asked quietly, staring into his face. He frowned slightly and shook his head.
“I’m sorry.” He lifted his shoulders as if he wasn’t sure how else to apologise. “Is it just that you don’t want to go to the ball, or you don’t want to go with me?”
All of a sudden, it dawned on her that he was only wearing a towel. Desire exploded within her. He looked as good in person as he did on screen. Better even because this was the full 3-D image standing so close that all she had to do was reach out and her hand would connect with that golden sculpted perfection. His hair still dripped with water and a few drops were slowly snaking their way through the light dusting of hair that ran across his flawlessly formed chest and she fought it hard to resist the urge to follow each wet trail with the tips of her fingers.
“Oh god, you need to go put some clothes on,” she breathed. At her words, the corners of his mouth kicked up slowly, seductively, setting her blood on fire. “Please,” she added as an afterthought and spun away so she wouldn’t have to look at him anymore.
Behind her Lachlan chuckled softly and she could hear his footsteps on the carpet as he walked away. She remained glued to her spot. She was aware of him dressing and gathered all her strength to hold her position, refusing to give into the temptation to turn back and watch him.
So focused on not turning around, April flinched when Lachlan placed his hand on her shoulder. “It’s safe,” he said, his voice dripping with amusement.
Turning around she let out a relieved sigh to see him wearing clothes, but still couldn’t shake the image of his bare chest, not when he wore a tight fitting t-shirt that left little to the imagination.
“Uh…” she stammered. For some reason, she couldn’t think of anything to say.
“So have I completely stuffed things up?” The direct question threw her off balance.
“What?”
“Well, we had planned to order room service and hang out but after today…” For a long moment, April just stared at the five o’clock shadow that had begun to show on his jawline. It framed his face beautifully and she thought he would look good if he let his beard grow out a bit.
Lachlan cleared his throat and she realised she hadn’t answered him yet.
“I don’t know about you,” she said, “but I could really go for a steak.”
His face split into a broad grin and her breath caught in her throat. God he had a gorgeous smile!
“Give me half an hour to shower and get out of this horrible outfit and then come up.” From the moment she’d put the skirt and jacket on this morning, she’d been itching to remove it. She didn’t understand how corporate women could wear these stupid suits. Apart from being incredibly constricting, she felt as if she was wearing a uniform and she’d had enough of that at school.
As soon as she entered her suite, she stripped naked, throwing her clothes into a corner of the bedroom, and then hopped into the shower. In less than twenty minutes, she was dressed in black bootleg jeans with a lavender V-neck shirt and was blow-drying her hair when the knock sounded at the door. She quickly brushed her still-damp curls to the side, then raced to answer the door.
“Sorry I’m early,” Lachlan said awkwardly. “I couldn’t wait any longer.”
“No worries,” April said smiling, and she stepped aside to let him pass.
They ordered an early dinner and it arrived smelling wonderful. It amused her when Lachlan tried to have the bill put on his room tab. “Don’t bother,” she said. “Landslide Productions is paying.” She felt no qualm in racking up her hotel bill. After all, she’d saved them the cost of a flight to LA.
Having skipped lunch due to nerves, April was ravenous when they sat down to eat. In the end, they both had ordered steak, hers with mushroom sauce and his with prawn and garlic cream. Conversation over dinner was limited to small talk as they savoured the superbly cooked beef.
“Hmm, that was amazing,” she said despite not being able to finish the chips. His mouth full, Lachlan just nodded and hummed his appreciation. Swallowing, he gestured his head towards the coffee table where a deck of cards sat halfway through a game of solitaire. “Fancy some poker?”
“I’ve never played it before.” Her skill with cards didn’t extend past solitaire and go fish.
“No problem,” he winked cheekily. “I’ll let you win the first few hands.” He stood up and went to gather the cards and bring them back to the table while April stacked their plates and removed them to the sideboard. It didn’t take April long to learn the rules and pretty soon she was winning almost as often as he was.
“So I’m curious,” Lachlan began as they played. “Why Peters Junction? Every book you’ve ever written has become a best seller and you’ve sold millions of copies worldwide, surely you could afford to live anywhere you’d like.”
April didn’t answer straight away. He probably wouldn’t understand anyway. “It’s home,” she said simply. “After my parents died, I moved there with Marie. At the time I was so overwhelmed by everything that was going on that I just had to get away. Marie and I jumped on a bus bound for Adelaide and when we stopped in Peters Junction, I just decided I didn’t want to get back on the bus. We’ve been there ever since.”
“And Marie? Does she like it there?” Beneath the table, she felt his leg press against hers, sending a shockwave radiating up her calf and coming to a halt at the apex of her thighs. Her mouth suddenly dry, she swallowed hard.
“She’s never known any different. She was only six when we got there and she has few memories of before.” He shifted his leg slightly, triggering an encore between her thighs. She tried not to look affected by him but between her shallow breathing and the light perspiration covering her forehead, she was pretty sure he knew exactly the effect he was having on her. She played her hand, laying her cards out on the table in front of her. “Two pair.”
“Flush.” He grinned, laying his own hand down. They lapsed into silence while she dealt the next hand and April felt a wave of awareness wash over her as she looked up to see him staring.
“What?” she asked when she couldn’t stand it anymore.
He shrugged and cleared his throat. “I’m just trying to figure you out.”
“What’s there to figure out?”
“Well,” he began and then cleared his throat again, “you don’t like drawing attention to yourself and you don’t want to be seen with me because I’m famous, but you’re famous too. I guess I’m just intrigued that you can be famous and yet try to hide from that fame.”
“Ah, but I’m not really famous, am I? A.D. Pope has all the fame.”
“Yeah, but don’t you want acknowledgement for your work?” His brow creased as he struggled to understand her perspective.
“No.” God that was the last thing she wanted. “When people buy my books, that’s the only acknowledgement I need.”
“You’re pretty unexpected, you know that?” He grinned, but then his features became serious a
s he scanned her face. “Do you want to see if there’s a movie on TV?”
“Okay.” She was nodding before he’d even finished. Playing poker had been fun, but it would be nothing compared to sitting next to him on the couch. “I’ll make us some coffee.”
Relieved to be away from him for a few moments, April walked over to the coffee machine next to the mini-bar and took the opportunity to steady her breathing. He had her wound so tight she felt like she would unravel at any moment. The strength of her attraction scared her. Although she’d had a couple of short-term relationships in recent years, she’d never felt this strongly about a man before. She wanted him. Her whole body vibrated with wanting him. Yet the idea of being intimate with him caused her stomach to tie itself in knots even as the rest of her nerves danced in anticipation.
You’re only here for a week. As the little voice whispered in her head, her stomach unclenched itself slightly. Why shouldn’t she enjoy herself while she was away? It wasn’t as if Lachlan Kennedy would want a long-term, long-distance relationship with her. No doubt by the time she boarded her flight on Saturday, he’d be making some excuse about not wanting a commitment. She was an adult. If she went into this with her eyes open, she wouldn’t get hurt.
Squashing all her doubts, April carried the drinks over to the coffee table and sat beside him. He reached out to grab his cup, closing the small gap she’d left between them as he did so. “Thanks.” Smiling, he grabbed the remote and began flicking through the channels. She picked up her own cup and took a sip, unsure of what to do next. When Lachlan passed the same channel for the third time, April cleared her throat.
“Uh... I take it there’s nothing you want to watch.”
Blinking rapidly as if coming out of a trance, he flicked the TV off. “There doesn’t appear to be anything on,” he said roughly.
His eyes connected with hers, holding her with an intensity that made her feel weak. Her heart thumped loudly against her chest and she bit her lower lip nervously, the movement caught his eye and slowly he closed the distance between them. She felt her lips part in welcome and her eyes fluttered closed, anticipation driving strong currents of desire through her core.
The kiss was tender, sensual. His pliant lips moulded to hers in a reverential caress. It was every bit as powerful as the kiss that morning, except this time when he pulled away after only the briefest contact she refused to let him go, leaning further into him, demanding more of him until he finally had to push her gently away.
“I’m going to spill my coffee,” he whispered hoarsely. April’s eyes blew wide and she felt the deep flush staining her cheeks. She’d forgotten all about the coffee in her hand. Lachlan took her cup and leaned forward, placing both drinks on the table. Suddenly shy and self-conscious, she couldn’t look him in his eyes. He reached out and caressed her cheek with his hand, coaxing her gaze back to his. Only when their eyes met did he tilt his head toward her, and this time his kiss took her breath away. His lips met hers in strong, sensual strokes that ignited her desire and fuelled a passion she wasn’t aware she possessed.
Responding greedily, she claimed his bottom lip and sucked it between hers, grazing it with her teeth and marking it as her own. She dragged her hands up his chest and wrapped them behind his neck, curling her fingers in his hair, pulling him closer, demanding satisfaction. Lachlan obliged, his firm hands exploring her waist and while his thumbs pressed into the swells of her breasts.
Still she wanted more. She tugged at his t-shirt and he responded immediately by pulling it over his head and then dragging her back against him. Then finally, April got to do what she had been dreaming about doing since the moment they’d met. She ran her fingers across his chest, pressing them into every curve and every dip and stroking his muscular perfection, relishing the feel of him. He groaned against her lips.
“Wow,” he said when they finally broke apart, breathing hard.
She grinned. She couldn’t help it. No one had ever said that about her kissing before. It made her feel powerful, seductive and gave her the courage to run her fingers under her top and lift it over her head. She heard him suck in a breath but she’d run out of bravery and shut her eyes to his response. Then his hands were on her, gliding up her skin, leaving a trail of fire in their wake. He nuzzled her shoulder, planting small, electric kisses against her neck and jaw until at last he returned to claim her mouth. His hands continued to roam over her body, along her waist and up her back until his fingers caught in her bra. He paused there, but she wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened their kiss, silently giving him permission to continue and he expertly unclipped her bra so that it fell away between them.
The rough skin of his thumb brushed her nipple and she moaned, arching her back away and presenting herself to him. With a half growl, half groan he pressed his hands into the curve of her breasts, feeling the weight of them and running his thumbs in slow seductive circles around the firm peaks of her nipples sending shivers rippling through her body and triggering corresponding sensations between her legs. When his mouth replaced his thumb and he bit down gently, she whimpered in need.
Then he was gone. His hands dropped to her waist, pushing her away from him. It took a moment for her to come out of her daze and focus her confused eyes on him.
“I want you,” he said through ragged breaths, his eyes stoking the fire within her. “But if you want me to stop, you have to tell me now.”
“I don’t want you to stop,” she whispered.
“Thank god,” he growled, pulling her against him and kissing her until she forgot about the interruption.