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Hannah reeled off the most recent celebrity names to comment, and Caleb casually nodded along with each one, occasionally murmuring, ‘He’s a good guy,’ or something similar.

‘You should reply to them, it helps to have engagement.’

‘I’ll do it later.’ Caleb shrugged. They were already parking up in the hotel’s underground garage. He turned off the engine and turned his body towards her like he meant business – it sent her libido and her nerves into overdrive. ‘Besides, we’ve got plans for the rest of the day.’

Hannah swallowed the knot in her throat. She should try to play it cool, act like she did this sort of thing all the time. Which she didn’t; Patrick had been her first boyfriend and sexual partner (she really was a late bloomer), and that had ended sourly.

But perhaps that was inevitable? She’d placed too much hope and expectation on her first proper boyfriend. A man, it turned out, she barely knew. At least with Caleb, it would be different; she knew it wouldn’t last and she understood him.

Caleb smiled, leaning forward and brushing another light kiss against her mouth, picking up where they’d left off. Waves of tingling pleasure shivered across her skin, and she knew she’d made the right choice. Who cared about the long term when the short term was so exciting?

She pressed forward to deepen the kiss, but he was already pulling away and getting out of the car.

Be sensible, Hannah, we can’t shag in a hotel car park!

She got out of the car, grabbing her big tote bag from the footwell, and tried to make herself relax by planning the next hour. Certainty was always a comfort. And that’s why you need this! she reprimanded herself lightly.

‘I think I need to shower… I’m still sandy from the beach,’ Hannah said nervously as they entered their hotel suite a few minutes later. They’d travelled up in silence, her clutching her bag to her shoulder with both hands, as if she were afraid he was going to rob her.

Her heart was pounding wildly, and her previous courage was fading quicker than the afternoon heat. She dropped her bag down and was about to leg it to the bathroom when Caleb held her arm gently and turned her to face him.

He stroked the hair away from her face and said gently, ‘There’s no rush to do anything. We can take our time, get used to each other first.’

Her jumping nerves quietened to an occasional skip, and after a deep breath, she nodded.

‘Want me to join you in the shower?’

She choked out a laugh. ‘That’s your idea of taking it slow?’

Caleb grinned with the same boyish smile he would have given her after doing a wheelie on his bike. ‘We can go as fast or as slow as you want.’

A rush of adrenaline and excitement flooded her senses, and she felt as if she were riding that wave again. She took his hand in hers and pulled him towards the bathroom, not allowing herself time to worry.

Once inside, he closed the door and she turned on the shower. The extractor hummed quietly, but a heady steam poured around them, enough to irritate the dried salt and sand on her skin.

When she turned to face Caleb, he stood a foot away from her. Peeling off his t-shirt he tossed it into the corner. The bathroom wasn’t small, but in Caleb’s presence it was. His big shoulders and broad chest filled the space. His hands moved to the button of his denim shorts, and she bit her bottom lip.

What if he finds me boring? Patrick had found her dull, both in the bedroom and out of it. He’d said they weren’t compatible in every way.

What if Caleb felt the same? It would ruin everything.

Caleb cupped her chin, tilting it up. ‘Stop overthinking,’ he said gently, and then kissed her sweetly, pulling her close and wrapping his arms around her.

A cage of warm muscle encircled her. She would have thought the sensation would be frightening, but with Caleb it was comforting, and she sank into his embrace, focusing on how his touch made her feel right now, in this moment, and not on the endless, terrifying possibilities.

Opening her mouth with a gentle pull on her chin, he deepened the kiss and she moaned with desire and relief. Caleb would lead, and she would follow. She didn’t have to worry about pleasing him. All she needed to do was allow herself to relax and leave the rest to him – it was freeing.

The heat of the shower had dampened her t-shirt, and she pulled it off, desperate to feel his smooth skin against hers. His chest was hairless and silky, and he took a step back to undo his shorts and take them off.

She hated that she was comparing his body to Patrick’s, but she had very little else to compare him to and she was curious. A second later she almost wished she hadn’t, as Caleb kicked the last of his clothing to the corner of the room.

Caleb was much bigger than Patrick, and it made her nervous. Some women liked that, but most of the time it had hurt with Patrick, although she suspected that was because she hadn’t been enjoying it. She already felt more aroused from kissing Caleb than she had after hours in bed with Patrick.

Seriously, what had she seen in Patrick? He’d been a joker and a fool, a poor cousin to Caleb. Was that why she’d fallen for him, because he’d reminded her of her teenage crush?

‘You’re getting distracted again,’ Caleb warned with a husky chuckle, his hands gripping the front of her shorts and jerking her towards him in a teased warning. She gasped, thrown back into the moment with Caleb.

‘Sorry.’ Fumbling with the buttons of her waistband, she dropped her shorts and kicked them over to where the rest of their clothing lay, determined not to spoil the present with thoughts of the past.