Authors: Donna Gallagher
“I need to be inside you now,” he said, his voice sounding so desperate.
Rookie slowly slid her underwear from her. Still dazed from what his talented fingers had nearly done for her, the summit she had nearly reached, she submitted, unsure of the emotions that rode her. Not sure if the tears that she felt building were from frustration or happiness.
Rookie crouched over her, his silver eyes—the ones that made her heart skip and her breath catch—gleaming with some emotion she did not understand. A hunger, a fierceness that was almost enough to frighten her but also thrill her. This was Rookie, and she loved him—had loved him for almost three years, from the time she’d first seen him at the age of fifteen. So she lay still as he spread her thighs and adjusted himself. Pippa couldn’t see between them, but she could feel the hardness against her. Felt herself parting, allowing him entry. It was a strange sensation as her virginal muscles fought his entry. She tried to relax, inhaled a big breath to calm her fear. She wanted him to see her as a woman—
his
woman…
Pippa awoke with a start, her body saturated in sweat, her chest heaving, her pussy wet, throbbing with need. Her frequent dreams of Rook Harris took many turns—some where he rejected her, the way he had when she was seventeen. Other dreams were fantasies where he made love to her tenderly, bringing her to orgasm in crashing waves of pure bliss, drawing out every ounce of passion as he whispered sweet nothings in her ear, manipulating her body to evoke such pleasure in her it was almost unbearable.
Then there were the dreams that left her wanting, when something would disturb her sleep and awaken her too early.
Of course, it would be this kind of fantasy tonight.
Pippa cried into her pillow, refusing to sate her own needs—the needs of her unsatisfied body—as she might have done in the past, believing that she deserved this kind of torment for what she had become. Her torrent of tears finally ebbed enough that emotional exhaustion claimed her.
Chapter Ten
Pippa was nervous as she and Cassie arrived at JT and Mandy’s Cabarita home. Cabarita was a lovely inner-western suburb of Sydney, situated along the Parramatta River, a waterway that fed into Sydney Harbour. The old federation-style home, typical of the area, was large and spacious, perfect for entertaining. The backyard was shaded by enormous gum trees and landscaped with many native Australian plants—kangaroo paw, red waratah and grevillea. Lavender shrubs and yellow wattle scented the air, as well as the pretty white sweet-smelling flowers of the flourishing frangipani trees.
Pippa couldn’t believe how much JT’s children had grown. When she had left Sydney nearly five years ago for university, Elaina had been a shy three-year-old and Mandy had still been expecting their second child. Now Elaina was a smiling, confident seven-year-old with curly black hair and big, brown, owlish eyes. JT’s son, Jay, was a little tank just like his father, and was happily kicking a footy around the yard.
Mandy and Caitlin looked different as well—both women were absolutely radiant. Married life obviously agreed with them, Pippa concluded. She was amazed at the radical changes in Mandy’s appearance. When they had first met, Mandy had been a little scary-looking, dressed in all black, a bit like a goth. It was hard to believe this was the same woman, now wearing a pretty yellow sundress, her long, curly hair adorned with frangipanis.
Caitlin, who had always been a natural beauty, was still stunning, but now quite rounded. Pippa guessed that the beautiful redhead was probably at least seven months pregnant. And as they came rushing up to hug her, her nerves disappeared. Pippa was quite overwhelmed by the genuine warmth of the welcome she received, but finally remembered to introduce Cassie to the women.
“Mandy, Caitlin, I hope you don’t mind but I bought a friend along. I was a bit nervous and Cassie is good backup.” She laughed. It wasn’t long before the women were all chuckling and reminiscing, regaling an enthralled Cassie with stories about the old days.
Caitlin also filled Pippa in on the latest gossip. Pippa found out that Caitlin and Brodie already had a son.
“Luke Patrick is two, and just between you and me, Pip, be glad he is inside taking a nap. He is quite the handful. And as you can probably imagine, Brodie spoils him rotten.”
Pippa loved the melodic sound of Caitlin James’ voice. No wonder she had made a living singing.
“What a load of rubbish, Cate,” Mandy said with a laugh. “Don’t you believe a word of it, Pippa—Luke is an angel compared to Jay. If Jay isn’t destroying something, then he is thinking about ways to destroy something. My boy is just like his daddy, steamrolling over everything in his path!”
Pippa was having fun catching up with Mandy and Caitlin. She and Cassie had fit in easily and all four women were clearly enjoying each other’s company and their conversation. Pippa was pleased to have some familiar female company around the Jets club to help settle her in.
Distracted, she nearly jumped out of her skin when a large hand fell on her shoulder and a very deep, husky, but unfamiliar voice said her name.
“Pipsqueak, what the hell did you do to your hair?” the male voice growled.
“Riley Walters, you watch your mouth. That is no proper way to greet Pippa. You might be big, but not too big for me to clip around the ear, especially if Brodie or JT are around to give me backup,” Caitlin lovingly chastised her now very grown-up brother.
Pippa nearly fell out of her chair as she gazed up—then up some more—at the giant of a man who had once been her gangly-limbed, red-headed young friend.
“Riley Walters! What happened to you? Did you take illegal growth hormones, or is just being around Brodie and JT enough to make you become enormous too?” Pippa said as she jumped up and threw her arms around Riley’s neck.
Riley took advantage of the situation by picking Pippa up and swinging her around a few times before setting her back down to her feet gently.
“So, it’s Pippa now, is it?” he said with a broad grin. “Yeah, you don’t look much like a pipsqueak any more… You look mighty fine actually, if you don’t mind me saying. And by the way, who is this gorgeous babe with you?” Riley added cheekily, and he took Cassie’s hand, bringing it to his mouth to give it a quick kiss.
“Oh, my God, Riley, you have definitely changed.” Pippa chuckled. “This is my best friend, Cassandra Davies. Cassie, this is Riley—remember the little kid I used to talk to you about?”
“Ouch, that hurt, Pipsqueak!” Riley turned his smile in Cassie’s direction as he spoke. “Nice to meet you, best friend Cassandra. And I would just like to point out that nothing is little about me anymore!”
“Riley!” Mandy and Caitlin both chanted in unison, trying to curb any future risqué comments from the very forward young man.
“I’m honoured to meet you, Riley. Pippa has spoken of you often. And yes, I can see that you are all grown up, big and strong.” Cassie seemed to be enjoying the conversation immensely.
Riley was indeed all grown up—in fact, he was gorgeous. Pippa guessed him to be about a hundred and ninety centimetres tall. His swimming had helped produce a set of incredibly wide shoulders and a broad chest that tapered down to what appeared to be a flat stomach and slim waist. His legs seemed to go on forever, and while not as thick with muscle as a rugby player’s, they certainly looked fine in the tight-fitting jeans he was wearing. She couldn’t see his butt, but guessed it would be fine as well! But what really gave Riley his sex appeal were his eyes and that sinful curve of his mouth.
Pippa could not believe she could even think such a thing. Riley was only eighteen, but he oozed sex appeal, possibly generated by his confidence, but also helped by those big, emerald-coloured eyes—they made Pippa melt, and it seemed to Pippa that they had the same effect on Cassie. To top it off, his lips just seemed to beg to be kissed—they were quite full, and the sort of lips a woman could really nibble on. Riley’s strong jaw was covered in just a hint of ginger stubble. He wore his hair cropped very close to his scalp and it made him look all the more masculine.
Pippa was very impressed with how her friend had grown into such a hunk.
“Well, Riley, I bet you’re just breaking hearts all over the place,” she said teasingly.
“Of course he is, princess. I taught him everything he knows.”
The sound of Rook’s voice caught Pippa off guard. She hadn’t seen Rook arrive or realised he had been watching her reunion. She now felt uncomfortable, wondering if he had noticed her appraisal of Riley’s grown-up look, watched as she’d ogled her old friend.
“Rook, my man! How are you going, buddy?” Riley grabbed Rook in a big bear hug, obviously excited to see the man who had once been an idol to him.
“But what’s with the
princess
tag? Don’t you remember Pipsqueak? Hey, the two of us almost stalked you back in the day.” He laughed good-naturedly, not realising the awkwardness of the situation.
Pippa heard Mandy and Caitlin groan at Riley’s tactless remark as she turned bright red.
Rook ignored Riley’s comments and turned his attention to a now speechless and suddenly uncomfortable-looking Cassie.
“Well, hello there. I don’t believe we have met—or have we? I’m Mitch Harris, but everyone calls me Rook. What’s your name?”
Riley, not understanding the game Rook was playing, jumped in to introduce Cassie. “Hey, Rook, meet Cassandra Davies, Pipsqueak’s best friend.”
“Cassandra, you say?” Rook drawled as he also favoured her friend’s hand with a kiss. “What a lovely name.”
Pippa could see the look of embarrassment on Cassie’s face—her features were flushed, her eyes downcast, averted from Rook’s piercing stare. Luckily, for all concerned, Brodie arrived at that moment and hijacked the conversation before it could get any more uncomfortable.
“Glad to see everyone is finally here,” Brodie said as he gave his wife, Caitlin, a quick kiss on the lips. “Hey, Cassandra, nice to meet you. Any friend of Phillipa’s is always welcome—after all, Pippa is just like a daughter to me and JT.”
Pippa couldn’t help but catch the icy look that suddenly flickered in Rook’s eyes. He muttered something under his breath that she couldn’t quite catch.
Brodie had come seeking help to set up the tables so everyone could sit and eat. So as Rook and Riley went off with Brodie, Pippa collapsed back into her chair, any happiness she had felt totally sucked from her body by Rook’s cold behaviour.
“I should go in and check on Luke. I’m sorry, Pippa—Riley might look all grown up, but he’s still a bit immature when it comes to knowing what not to say,” an apologetic Caitlin said as she struggled to get her pregnant form out of her chair. “He just wouldn’t get that you might be embarrassed over the memory of your teenage crush.”
Mandy also left to oversee the food preparations, refusing any offers of assistance from Pippa and Cassie, ordering them to just sit back and enjoy the hospitality as she hurried away.
“Well, that was awkward.” Cassie sighed when she and Pippa were alone again. “I think it’s safe to say that Rook is still a bit pissed at you, Pip. But boy, that Riley’s one hot dish…mmm… Shame he’s so young, though—I could just eat him right up,
especially those incredibly yummy lips of his,” Cassie mused, and made ‘nom-nom-nom’ sound effects to accompany her observations.
Pippa couldn’t speak, so just nodded her head dismally at her friend’s accurate descriptions of both Riley and Rook. Her heart was shattered, and she felt dirty. The night that she’d so often fantasised about had quickly turned into a memory that would torment her forever.
Chapter Eleven
Rook made it through the rest of the gathering, but only just. With a conscious effort he managed to stop looking at Pippa, stop searching for her at every moment, stop seeing red when she spoke to any of his younger teammates. He had almost turned around and left again, when the first thing he’d seen was Pippa in the arms of another man. It had taken a moment for him to realise that it had just been Riley holding her.
But the relief had been short-lived when Rook realised that Pippa was practically undressing Riley, those beautiful blue eyes of hers roving up and down young Riley’s body. It had made Rook feel sick to his stomach.
He had not been able to stop himself from going over to the group. He had been like a moth to a flame. Making that stupid comment and putting the real Cassandra on the spot had been juvenile, but Brodie’s ‘daughter’ comment had just about done him in. Was he always going to be reminded that Phillipa Rodgers was too good for him?
Or so people thought. But he knew the truth. The fact was, Pippa was the type of woman to lie and have sex just to get even with someone. Not to mention that she had quite publicly checked out a younger man. She was also the type of woman who could break your heart—Rook could attest to that firsthand. She was a danger to men everywhere.
He was just biding his time until he could leave without drawing too much attention. So after spending some time playing with Luke and Jay—the little blokes falling all over him as they all rolled around on the lawn, tumbling and fighting over the footy—Rook made his excuses to leave, explaining that he was expecting a big night at his club, and needed to set up. Rook noticed the real Cassie choked on her drink as he made a comment about his club, Jetstream.
Riley had been murmuring, all afternoon, about how much he wanted to go to Jetstream
—
much to Caitlin’s disapproval. She thought her brother too young to go to clubs and gave Rook an imploring look, trying to gain his support, he guessed. But Rook found he was unable to dissuade the young man from making his arrangements to meet up at the club later that night, no matter what his overprotective sister might believe. Not that Rook could blame the woman—Caitlin had been looking after Riley for a very long time.
Rook was seriously not happy, though, when he stumbled onto the conversation Riley was having with Pippa and Cassie.