Exquisite Betrayal (24 page)

“
Yeah, and thank you for
that.”

***

The weekend flies by until the point when
Ryland Thomas is leaving. I hate it, yet it’s the way things are.
It’s late on Sunday and he has a three and a half hour drive.

“
Be careful and call me as soon as you
get home. I’m serious. I’ll worry about you. And call me every
thirty minutes. In fact, we can stay on the phone the entire trip
if you want.”

“
Fallon, we can’t do that. Besides,
you have things to do. Don’t be such a ninny. I’ll be fine. Now go
on about your night. I’ll give you a ring on the way and when I get
home.”

I hug him so hard. I just hate for him to
leave.

“
I think I like this,” he says then
walks out of the door and is gone. I feel empty without
him.

He calls me when he’s halfway home and then
when he gets there. I’m relieved he’s arrived safely so now I can
go to sleep. I hug the pillow to my face that he used and smell the
lingering scent of him. It soothes me and I fall soundly
asleep.

***

The weeks are buzzing by, and before I even
realize it, spring is busting loose. Flowers are blooming, and I
have to admit, I love the west coast. Being a born and bred South
Carolinian, I never thought I’d find myself anchored anywhere else,
but the beauty of California has me hooked. I’ve been to Ryland
Thomas’s several times and love it there, too. There’s something to
be said for this state of such diverse climates.

Romance Today Con is three weeks away. Since
Critics Abound is hosting the huge hospitality event for some of
the top authors, and R.T. Sinclair is one of them, I’m trying to
wrangle a ticket for Ryland Thomas. Critics Abound is selective in
whom they give their tickets to because they want to make this
event one of the most sought after ones at the convention.

Kristie and I meet for lunch one day so we
can lay out our plans for the event at the upcoming convention.

“
Thanks for taking time out of your
busy schedule, Fallon.”

“
Hey, no worries. You’re the boss,” I
joke.

Her face turns serious. “Yeah, no kidding.
Sometimes I don’t like that role so much. Like now. I’d rather be
getting ready to go to Atlanta as a participant.”

“
Kristie, this is going to be great.
Our party will turn out just fine.”

“
I wanted you to know that Ruth will
be there, and she’s got you targeted. She’s starting to focus on
that spotlight thing again. The other thing is that she has her eye
on you because your reviews shine. You’ve gotten her attention in a
big way.”

“
Really?” I ask. I’m pretty shocked
because, as close as Kristie and I work, she’s never mentioned this
before. “Why haven’t you said anything?”

“
Fallon, Ruth is not the best person
to have notice you. Do you follow me?”

This statement puzzles me. “Give it to me
straight, Kristie.”

“
It’s just that, when she notices you,
she ends up dumping a lot of stuff on you that you don’t need. I’ll
try to manage that, but sometimes it’s out of my
control.”

“
Is this what you wanted to see me
about today?”

Kristie looks surprised. “Oh, no. We need to
make sure we have everything lined up right for the hospitality
party. So, let’s go over everything.”

We finish our lunch, however I have this
nagging feeling that Kristie is leaving something out regarding
Ruth. We spend a lot of time together at the office, so I think
she’ll eventually tell me. At least I hope she will.

***

I’m headed to Lake Tahoe this weekend and I
can’t wait to get there. It’s my birthday on Saturday, and Ryland
Thomas says he has a big surprise planned for me. I’m excited to
see what it is. I’m hoping it will be… well, you know, but I’ll
have to wait and see. Kristie has given me Friday off, so I’ll be
leaving on Thursday for a nice, long weekend.

On Wednesday, Kristie and a couple of her
friends that I’ve become fairly close to—Kelly and Brandy—take me
out to dinner to celebrate. We go to this Vietnamese restaurant
I’ve been dying to try in the Embarcadero. The food is
mouthwatering, and I’m in heaven.

After we eat, Kristie pulls out a small gift
bag and hands it to me, saying, “Happy birthday,” with a wink.

“
You weren’t supposed to get me
anything.”

When the table erupts in giggles, I know
something’s up. I open the bag and my face fires up with heat.
“Holy hell.” I immediately close the bag.

“
Come on, Fallon. Show us what you
got,” Brandy begs.

“
No! Y’all are bad!” Then I peek in
the bag again and laugh.

Brandy grabs the bag from me and pulls out a
lacy pair of black panties… well, I can’t even call them that.
They’re too skimpy to even qualify as a thong because they are
crotchless. Plus, there’s a see thru black cami to match except the
part that’s supposed to cover your boobs is missing. That’s not
all. There’s also a vibrator with all sorts of weird attachments.
I’m not even sure what they’re all for.

“
Y’all are crazy!”

“
You can wear those on your drive over
to Tahoe,” Kristie winks.

“
This is an inappropriate conversation
to be having with my boss,” I say then I start laughing as I think
about my boobs poking out of the cami that’s not really
there.

They all bust out laughing, too. Kristie
adds, “You’ll be thanking me one day.”

***

I hit the road right after work and pull
into Ryland Thomas’s driveway at ten thirty. He’s opening my door
for me as I turn off the car.

“
I’ve missed you,” he says as I’m
pulled into his arms. His mouth is on mine as he leans against the
car. What is it about that mouth of his that I can’t get enough of?
His lips suck on mine and then his tongue joins in the play. They
tangle together as they taste each other.

“
Your mouth should be
illegal.”

“
Yours should be classified as
hazardous, dangerous girl.”

We nuzzle each other before he steps away
from the car and pulls me inside, just like that.

“
Where are we going?”

“
I want to get you naked in the hot
tub. I have this urgent desire to see you as such.”

“
As such?”

“
I’ve been writing a lot.”

“
Hmm. I can tell. You’re not gonna
spring any fancy sayings on me, are you?”

“
Maybe.”

We’re at the hot tub by now where he slides
my hair to the side and bends down to kiss my neck. I shiver.
“Cold?”

“
No.”

He lifts my shirt and it’s gone. My bra
follows. Then his tongue is pure heat as it glides down my neck and
lands on my shoulder where he begins to nibble. And lick. And graze
my heated skin with his teeth.

I shiver again. Then sigh.

Now he’s moving lower, reaching my pearled
nipple. He takes it gently between his teeth and teases it with his
tongue. I arch my back and move closer to him. His fingers find the
other one, so it doesn’t feel deprived. I latch onto his head and
moan again.

My body is screaming for him, but it’s so
much more than that. My heart wants him, too. Somewhere between
Christmas and our weekends together, I’ve fallen in complete and
absolute love with Ryland Thomas Sinclair. How do I know this?
That’s easy; it’s right in front of me. His touch sends me to the
moon. The sight of him brings me unimaginable joy. When I hear his
voice, my body hums. Everything in me responds when I inhale his
scent. The taste of him when we kiss is beyond anything I’ve ever
known. Most of all, he’s seeped into my heart, wedging himself
within it, and I don’t ever want him to leave. If he does, there
will be a space so huge that I’ll never be whole, never be myself
again; I know that Fallon will cease to exist.

I stop breathing when this thought takes
over my mind and he senses the change in me.

“
Everything okay there, dangerous
girl?”

“
Ryland Thomas.” My voice is husky and
filled with all sorts of emotion.

He stands and cups my face. “What is it,
love?” Concern has claimed his voice.

“
I
—
I’m in love with you.” I swallow, not knowing
what his reaction will be. I don’t have to wait long at all because
he almost immediately rewards me with the most dazzling
smile.

“
Damn time you figured it out. I’ve
been in love with you pretty much since the beginning. Ever since I
realized I’d been such a damn wanker. I love you, Fallon McKinley.
I’ve loved you from a distance and now I can finally love you
properly, like I was meant to love you from the start.”

I’m suddenly encased in his warmth as his
mouth is on mine. Our clothes are torn away by frantic hands while
we rush at each other with desperation, as though we’ve been
seeking this for centuries, even though I know that’s such a silly
thought. He picks me up and he’s carrying me inside now.

“
No hot tub?”

“
Not on your life. I’m going to make
love to you, in every way imaginable, starting in my bed. I want to
see your face, love, as I slide into you. And I don’t want the dark
sky to hide any of you. You’re all mine tonight, and I intend to
watch every bit of you.”

Whoa. My heart just broke the sound barrier
and I’m not sure I’ll ever catch my breath again. We enter his room
and my body glides down his as he sets me on my feet. Then he
pushes me backwards until the backs of my knees hit the bed and I’m
forced to sit down.

He crouches between my legs, takes my hands
and says, “I never believed in love at first sight, but I fell for
you that day you charged into me at the airport. You were so
fucking hot, with your sweet arse in the air. And then, when you
stood up, I couldn’t tear my eyes off your lovely nipple. I dreamed
about it that night… thought about what it would taste like.

“
The morning you woke up in my bed in
Vegas—Christ, you looked like an angel in the shower with me.
Fallon, you’ve unbalanced me, forced me to see things in a
different light and I couldn’t love you more for it.” Then his lips
are on mine, and my world is the one tipping over now.

The urgency we felt outside has melted away,
and in its place is a relaxed sort of curiosity. It’s almost as if
we’re getting to know each other, discovering each other for the
very first time. Yes, my body has responded to him before, but
Ryland Thomas is now doing things to me—and not just physical
things—that are making me feel more alive than I’ve ever felt in my
life. He’s taken my heart and made it his. I know I’ll never be the
same Fallon as I was before.

His mouth moves over my body with a
reverence I’ve never noticed before. It’s so sweet and fiery that I
can’t sit still. Hands clench my thighs as he spreads them wide and
then his mouth is on me and I can’t help crying out his name again.
I want this… I love this, but I want
him.
I’ve wanted him for so damn
long.

I try to push him away and he lifts his
head. “You don’t like this?”

“
Yes, but it’s
you
I want. I need
you,
Ryland Thomas. I need your body inside of
mine. It’s been too long.”

“
Slow, Fallon. We need to take it
slow, or it’ll be over before we know it.”

“
I don’t care. We can do it again. And
again. Just… I… please…” I’m begging him. I’ve never ached for
anything so badly.

“
Move up then.”

I don’t waste any time. He’s over me,
resting on his elbows, my legs spread, heels resting on his hips.
However, he doesn’t move. His eyes—those startling eyes—are filled
with love and they draw me into their depths. My breath locks in my
throat because it’s like I’m looking into his soul and every
emotion he’s ever felt for me is spilling out of those emerald
orbs.

My hands slip into his hair and I say, “When
you look at me like that, I can see what you feel. It’s a
connection.”

As soon as those words leave my mouth, he
plunges into me and then stays still, however our eyes never leave
each other’s. “Yeah, Fallon. That’s what it is. We’re connected.
And will be forever.” Then he slides in and out, easing the ache
that has plagued me for months.

I’m so taken with everything, so blown away
by this experience of love, that I can’t tear my eyes off him for
anything. An earthquake could crack his house in two and I doubt it
would even register with me. His mouth is on mine and he’s laced
the fingers of one of our hands together.

My climax is building. He can tell; he can
always tell. He whispers against my lips. I love it when he does
that. “Let it go, Fallon. I want to feel your love all over
me.”

And that’s all it takes. Those words have my
muscles tightening on the length of him, over and over. His mouth
captures mine as I hug him fiercely to me; I don’t want to ever let
him go. Now I understand why he wanted to wait; why it was so
important. There is a difference between lust and love. And what a
grand difference it is.

“
I love you, Ryland
Thomas.”

He brushes the hair off my damp forehead and
places a soft kiss on it. “God, you’re so fucking sweet. The way
you feel on me, inside, when you come; so tight and bloody
extraordinary.” His eyes are on mine again, and there’s that
connection once more.