He clamps his lips tightly in thought.
‘I like it,’ he says.
I release my held breath. ‘I thought you might.’
‘And this hook-up... it could be with anyone of my choosing?’ he asks.
‘In theory, yes.’ I have to play this just right. ‘But I would have to approve, of course, to make sure they’re definitely on the same page as you.’
‘Of course.’ He shifts closer. ‘And that page... what’s on it?’
His eyes have darkened, almost black against the contrasting white. I fight to keep my focus.
‘Well, firstly, they’d have to understand that this hook-up is just that – a hook-up.’ My voice is raspy. ‘A quick little detour from your wider mission to find a steady girlfriend.’
He moves in closer. ‘And what else?’
‘They’d have to get what you’re doing, maybe be on their own journey that could also do with a little diversion...’ I continue.
‘And they should be documenting their journey.’ He pretends to think hard. ‘Maybe through... I don’t know... a series of well-written, super-witty articles.’
I can feel his breath on my face, warm and inches away. The proximity is dizzying, but I know exactly what I want to bring the spinning to a stop.
I lean in. ‘They’d also have to be five foot seven, have dark, curly hair, and be someone you’d possibly consider a friend.’
‘Sounds hard to find.’ He chuckles deeply.
‘Near impossible,’ I say. ‘But she’s got to exist somewhere.’
He brings his hand to my face, stroking two fingers from my ear, down my jaw and circling them around my lips, setting my skin alight on their way.
‘And if I find her, I only get one night?’ he asks.
I nod, speechless, trying to gather the saliva to speak and not just stare back at him like a lovesick fool.
‘One night,’ I say, the words shaky. ‘Thisnight.’
It’s all that he needs. I see his smile for a fraction of a second before his lips envelop mine.
I fear I have severely underplayed how much I’ve longed to kiss Noah again. Brussels wasn’t enough. Our post-proposal kissin Hungary wasn’t remotely enough. Even now, as he grips on to me like he has something to lose, I know it still won’t be enough. He pulls me tighter, engulfs me in his arms as our tongues desperately try to satiate each other. I bite his lip in all my hunger and relish in the sound that escapes him. I want more of that. I want more of him.
I scratch my nails up his back and tug demandingly at the inside of his T-shirt. He chuckles into my mouth before reluctantly creating enough space between us for me to tug the top over his head. He pauses to look over what we’ve started, taking in my flushed complexion, my swollen lips, my dislodged bonnet and the mess of our sheets. He reaches for my shoulders, pinning me onto my back as he looms smugly above me. I watch the way his arms tense, muscles rippling every time that he laughs, and worry for my psyche after this night is over.
He brings his lips to my neck, sucking hard until I moan, before dipping his head under our thin cover. My insides rattle in suspense as I feel his breath, hot and warm, skating down my body. He presses a kiss to my ankle before starting to work a trail up my leg. The kisses grow more intense as he reaches my inner thigh, suckling on a piece of skin so hard that it sends shivers down my spine. His tongue peeks from his lips, tracing soothing patterns around the area that he just sought to demolish, before inching higher and higher, stopping at nothing until it comes to the hem of my underwear.
I buck my hips, guiding him closer, but he shifts away, pinning my hip down with one single hand.
‘Someone’s impatient,’ he says, his voice husky.
I try to move them again, just to spite him, and hopefully tempt him too. He chuckles at the effort, before hooking one finger under the hem of my waistband. He grins deviously before dropping the material from his hand.
‘If this amendment is only for one night, then I’m going to make it last as long as I possibly can,’ he says, before shuffling back up the bed.
His lips grace mine again, whisper-soft at first before plunging into something deeper.
‘Noah, please,’ I beg into his mouth.
I try to grab his hand and bring it back to that hem, but he stays firm, pulling it from my grip and giving me a light tap on the wrist.
