‘Sean?’
‘Aye?’
‘Shut it and take your shirt off.’
Without another word, the shirt was off.
‘And…um, now choose a t-shirt to put on.’ Cherry did her best to haul her eyes away from the beautiful specimen taunting her. From the body she dreamed every night of touching.
‘You alright, Paradise? Your voice went all wobbly there.’
Lucky you don’t have access to my heart rate. ‘I’m fine. I’ll look away now and give you some privacy.’
‘Why? You just saw everything. Again.’
‘Okay, fine.’ She fanned her face. ‘Is it hot in here or…?’
‘No, it’s called chemistry. Anyway…’ Sean swung the shirt he’d removed round his hand. ‘How do I find out which shade of blue suits me best?’
He was such a flirt whilst pretending not to be. She took the shirt from him and cast it onto the couch.
‘You put on your first blue t-shirt.’ Cherry selected one off the chair and handed in to him, electricity zipping through her as their hands brushed. ‘This one is a basic navy.’
In a few stolen moments while he pulled the t-shirt over his face, she allowed her feral side to run rampant at the sight of his many tattoos, his underarm hair, of the way the upward stretch of his arms pulled his abs taut, the sculpted V that led down to his waistband where...
Eyes. Eyes. Eyes on his face, Cherry.
‘Okay! Let’s see.’ She stepped towards him, even though a step back would afford her a better view.
Sean said nothing. Simply met her gaze. Stood still for once, letting her do her job. But his gaze never left hers, watching her watching him.
Energy thundered between them.
Up close, she drank him in. His skin was flawless. There were a few freckles around his nose and expected lines from a life spent outdoors and laughing a lot, but nothing could diminish the brightness of those eyes. And the generosity of the mouth. A mouth that kissed like it meant it.
Cherry flicked her tongue onto her cupid’s bow.
Sean dipped to this movement, then back up as if to challenge her.‘What do you think?’
She slunk her tongue behind her top teeth. Nodded slowly. ‘It suits you. Brightens your skin and makes your eyes more green. But I need to see the others.’
The air between them was heavier now, weighing down their desire to speak. Words cost energy. In silence, Sean pulled the t-shirt off. Cherry looked down to the floor, but the size of his feet reminded her of the size of other parts of him.
As Sean leaned down for the next t-shirt, her eyesdarted to his neck, the hair shaved close, skin tanned. She remembered how strong and warm it had felt to the touch when she’d kissed him, when they’d danced in the ballroom at the wedding, when she’d gripped onto him in the elevator and in the cooperage. It could be hers again if she said the word. He could be hers.
To have and to hold.
The next shirt was a deep petrol blue.
She went to him and brushed the fabric of the garment over his hips as if to flatten it. Sean stiffened.
‘Relax, Seany.’
The sound he made could only be described as a dismissive grunt. A dismissal at being told to relax in circumstances that promoted anything but relaxation.
Back to his face. To the strong jaw, the complexion. Looking at him now, it was like going back to New York, staring into each other’s eyes for three minutes. Waiting to fall in love.
Some people waited a lifetime.
