Free Faithful by Louise Bay Page A

scent of his enveloping me.
    My numbness made way for the beginnings of my arousal. The feeling was unmistakable, but I tried to ignore it. It seemed so inappropriate. But it wasn’t anymore, was it? There was no longer any reason for me to deny what I felt for Daniel. I was free to give in to it, to give in to him.
    I placed my hand just above his knee. The hand stroking my shoulder paused for a second and then continued its rhythm. I moved my hand up his thigh and up to his waist and his powerful chest and he exhaled. His hand continued its rhythm and he pulled me closer. I trailed my fingers down his chest, tracing the hard outline of his muscular chest down to the waist of his trousers and I ran my hands across the top of the waistband. I could see his desire for me increase as his trousers became more taut, and I was suddenly desperate to uncover him.
    Charlie might not want me, but I was in the arms of a man who did . He’d told me so. Emboldened, I brought my hand to his face and turned my head so our foreheads were touching. He closed his eyes and sighed but made no move to kiss me. His hand moved down, circling the dip in my lower back. My nipples strained against the confines of my bra and my breath came in shallow bursts.
    I was aware of the slickness between my legs. I was ready for him so quickly ; he had such an unrelenting impact on me. I wanted to him to feel it, feel the effect he had on me. I brought his hand from around my back between us and placed it over my breast, rubbing it over my hardened nipple and he buried his head in my neck.
    “You feel so good , Leah. You are such a sexy girl. You get me hard just looking at me.”
    I reached my hand down to his hardness. “It feels so good that I do that to you.” I never felt comfortable saying what I was feeling during intimate moments , but now it was like I didn’t have a choice. I wanted him and I wanted him to know it.
    “Are you wet for me , baby?” he growled. The coarseness of his words combined with the sweetness of him calling me baby sent a jolt of desire through me and, unable to contain myself, I moaned and pushed myself against his mouth, delving into him with my tongue. He returned my enthusiasm as we devoured each other, pushing harder and deeper, exploring every part of each other’s mouths. His slight stubble from the day grazed my chin over and over, like he was marking his territory. It felt so masculine, so virile, so him . My clit was throbbing. I was desperate for his touch to relieve the ache. Without breaking our kiss I drew myself up and straddled him.
    He cried out , “Oh god, Leah, I want you so much.” He grasped my buttocks and pulled me into him as I reached behind his head and tangled my fingers into the inky smoothness of his hair. I reached down to his zipper, and, my hands shaking with anticipation, I fumbled to find the opening.
    Sharply he brought his arms around, clasped my shoulders, and pushed me away. “No, Leah, no. Not here. Not like this.” He moved me off him and stood up.
    I was left stunned as he stalked over to his desk.
    Facing away from me he shouted, “Fuck!” in a deep, angry voice. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” He kicked the desk, sending papers flying onto the floor as he thrust his hands through his hair.
    Then my tears started falling. I wasn’t sure if it was the shock of finding out that Charlie had cheated with Fran or the humiliation of being rejected by the beautiful man I had just thrown myself at, but the floodgates opened and saltwater was streaming down my face.
    “Fuck, I am such an a sshole. What the fuck is the matter with me!” Daniel howled at the moon but he had stopped kicking the furniture.
    I stood up, desperate to get out of that room, to be away from my embarrassment. Why did I assume he still wanted me when I couldn’t keep a man interested even a few weeks into our engagement? I forced myself to halt my tears and gathered up my jacket and handbag, then looked around to