Authors: Angela Verdenius
As they pulled into Sam’s
driveway, Alan said, “Hey, Sam?”
“Yeah?” Sam looked over at
Carly’s house to see Ed kneeling by his Harley, but no sight of her.
“Is everything all right?”
“Sure, why?” Sam looked at his
friend.
Unusual for him, Alan was
serious. “Because you’re a little odd.”
“Well, thanks. And still you’re
my friend.”
“Not that kind of odd, though when
it comes to chicks…” Alan shook his head. “Anyway, apart from that. I mean,
you’re a little off today.”
“Well, we did just work a sweat up
at the gym.”
“Don’t make me taser you. You
won’t like it if I taser you.”
About to give another smart
comment to avoid the subject, Sam saw Carly’s blue Honda roll into the
driveway. She got out, and man, she was wearing that uniform and those black
Mary Janes. He could just about feel his eyes glaze over.
“Well, shit,” Alan said.
Startled, Sam glanced at him to
see his friend staring at him.
“Get out,” Alan ordered. “Right
now.”
“What-”
“Now, damn it. Hurry!”
Bewildered, Sam opened the door
and got out. Alan was out like a shot, slamming his door shut and tearing up
the steps onto the veranda. “Come on, come on! Hurry up!”
Clutching his gym bag in one hand,
Sam jogged up the steps. “What’s wrong? You got the shits or something? At
least hold on until you get to the toilet.”
“Just unlock the bloody door!”
No sooner had the door swung open
than Alan was through it, but instead of shooting off down the hallway to the
toilet, he diverted into the lounge room.
Concerned, Sam dropped the gym bag
on the floor and hurried into the lounge. “Are you all right, Alan? What’s
wrong?”
His friend was standing at the
window, the curtain pulled back a little as he peered through it. “Carly,
huh?”
“What?” Standing in the middle of
the lounge, Sam pushed his glasses up his nose.
“She’s the one that has you in knots
today.” Alan glanced back at him. “Don’t deny it.”
“Well, I-”
“Please, Sam. I’m a cop. I
observe things.”
“No, things just fall into your
lap. You’re one of the luckiest bastards on the planet. Your partner is The
Incredible Hulk, so nobody tries to beat you up.”
“Funny, that’s also Soph’s
nickname for Mike. Anyhow…” Alan looked back through the curtain. “Yeah, I
can see why you’re in knots. She’s not a bad lookin’ chick.”
Despite himself, curious to see
what she was doing, Sam walked to the other side of the window and peeked
through the curtains.
There she was, Carly Miller,
talking to Ed while he tinkered on his motorbike. She stretched leisurely and
he nearly swallowed his tongue when that magnificent bosom was thrust out as
she arched back.
Generous bosom and big hips, and a
sweetly indented waist. That thick, glossy black hair was up in a bun, and on
her feet…
“I don’t know what came over me,”
he blurted out.
Jerking the curtain to the side, Alan
stared at him. “Holy shit. You had
sex
with her!”
“I think it was the Mary Janes.”
“Mary Janes? What the hell are
they?”
“Cute shoes. Girl shoes. Oh, and
a bouncy ponytail. Oh God! I’m a pervert.”
“What?”
“I’m turned on by a pair of Mary
Janes, a ponytail, and a uniform!”
Alan glanced back out of the
window. “Look there.”
Sam looked.
“Not at Carly,” Alan admonished.
Looking at her was something he
felt he could do all day.
“See those school girls?”’ Alan pointed
to the left.
Sam followed the direction to see
some school girls walking down the road. “Yes.”
“How do you feel?”
“How am I supposed to feel?”
“Are you turned on by them?”
Sam recoiled in disgust. “No!”
“They’re wearing uniforms, have
ponytails, and one is wearing Mary Janes.”
“Jesus, they’re only about
fifteen!”
“There,” said Alan in satisfaction,
“you’re not a pervert.”
“But the Mary Janes…” Sam trailed
off and stared him for several seconds. “Oh.”
“Yeah.”
“Maybe it’s the person wearing
them?”
“I think you need to start
drinking.”
“Why?
“Then you’d have an excuse for
being such a bone-head.”
“Thanks, Alan, your support is
always greatly appreciated.”
“Hey, that’s what friends are
for.” Alan dropped the curtain. “So now what?”
“What ‘what’?”
“Please tell me you didn’t just
say that.”
Sam sighed. “I don’t know, all
right? It all kind of happened suddenly.”
“You’re a planner, Sam. You’re
always in control. You always think twice.”
“I don’t know what came over me.
One minute she’s apologising for kissing me and the next-”
“Wait a minute. She apologised
for kissing you? When did she kiss you?”
“At the poker game.”
“Poker game?”
“Last night I went to her house and
played poker.”
Alan’s eyebrows rose.
“High stakes. I won eight hundred
matchsticks.” At his blank look, Sam said, “Never mind. Anyway, Ed bet a kiss
from Carly as part of my winnings, and I just got a peck, and she came over
today to apologise and it sort of got out of control.”
“That’s a lot of ‘ands’.”
“It was a lot of action.”
Alan’s eyes gleamed. “Do tell.”
“You just want fodder for Soph’s
books.”
“Hey, I please her whenever I
can.” Alan leaned against the wall. “So what happened? You had sex and then
she ran?”
“How did you know?”
“You are
shitting
me!”
Alan’s mouth fell open. “Carly ran out on you?”
“Yeah.” Sam cleared his throat.
“Debbie came over and-”
“Carly ran out on
you
?”
“Yeah, when Debbie came over she
was calling out and-”
“
Carly
left you?”
“Yes! She ran and-”
“Wait, wait.” Dropping onto the
sofa, Alan had a look of delighted awe on his face. “Let me get this
straight. You, Sam the Hottie, the man who has all these beautiful and
not-so-beautiful women scheming to get him, had a woman actually run out on
you?”
Sam rolled his eyes.
“After sex.”
Sam sighed. Alan was deriving a
lot of pleasure from this, it was more than obvious.
“Sex-pot, tongue-lickin’, Sam the
Stud Muffin, had a woman run – actually run – from him?”
“Yes, Alan, Carly took off.
Happy?”
“Wow.” Alan grinned slowly. “No
wonder you’re in knots.”
“It’s not because she ran off,”
Sam retorted a little sharply, dropping down into the armchair and folding his
arms across his chest. “It’s because she…”
“Yeah?”
“She…”
Alan leaned forward expectantly.
“Yeah?”
“I don’t know.”
Alan slapped his forehead. “It’s
like talking to SJ after he got de-nutted by the vet. He had that same dazed
expression when he went to lick them and found them gone.”
“Look, it happened suddenly. It
wasn’t planned. It-”
Alan’s gaze sharpened. “You wore
protection, right? You remembered to put on a condom?”
“Geez, what are you, my father?”
“Sam! Holy cow, how can you be so
irresponsible?”
“I got a condom on, okay?” Sam
flung one hand in the air. “And this from the biggest chick chaser in
history.”
“And that’s why I know what I’m
talking about. Anyway, now that that is out of the way, down to business.” Alan
cocked one ankle across the opposite knee. “Now what?”
Pulling off his glasses, Sam
rubbed his eyes tiredly. “I’m going to have a shower.”
“Are you serious?”
“Hell, yes.”
“But we need to discuss your next
action.”
Sam cast him a wary glance. “No,
we don’t.”
“Sure we do. Now, what have you
got planned?”
“Nothing! Nothing is planned, and
that’s the whole problem.”
“Why is it a problem? Spontaneity
is fun.” Alan grinned. “Ask Soph.”
Sam sighed. “I appreciate your
concern, Alan, I really do, but I’m gonna have to think about this alone.”
Alan sobered. “I can listen.”
“Yeah, I know. But I need to sort
myself out.”
“Are you sure you know what you’re
doing? This is uncharted territory for you. You’re normally the runner, not
the chaser.”
“Who says I’m chasing?”
Alan studied him for several
seconds before a small smile played around his lips. Standing up, he crossed
the space between them, slapped Sam on the shoulder in passing and made his way
to the door. “You keep telling yourself that, Sam.” Laughing, he walked out.
As soon as he heard the front door
shut, Sam got up and started towards the hallway. He hadn’t gotten far before
he turned around and went back to the window, calling himself all kinds of an
idiot as he pulled the curtain back a little and peeked out.
Carly wasn’t in the driveway
anymore, but a thin woman was talking to Ed while Crusher snuffled at her
booted feet. Ed shook his head and spoke seriously to her, and the woman
nodded. They both turned and walked into the house, Crusher dancing around
their feet.
Dropping the curtain, Sam shook
his head and turned to see SJ sitting in the doorway.
“You know that horror flick I was
going to get? I’m going to get it.” Walking out into the hallway, he
scratched his head. “Shit.”
SJ past him on his way to the
kitchen.
“I don’t suppose you know where
the car keys are?” Sam asked him. “Just as a matter of interest.”
He could swear SJ was shaking his head
as he disappeared into the kitchen.
He knew the feeling.
“Hey, Carly,” Ed called.
“In here,” she answered.
“I’m going out for awhile.”
“You’re a big boy now, sweetie,
you don’t need my permission.” Smiling, Carly looked up from where she sat reading
a magazine at the kitchen table, only to start in surprise when she saw the
woman behind her young Uncle. “Charlie?”
“Hi.” Charlie gave a little wave,
her smile uncertain but friendly. “Can I steal Ed for a little while?”
“Sure.” A quick look at Ed’s face
showed the smile in his eyes.
“I’ll just have a quick wash and
change my clothes.” He strode past Charlie. “Make yourself at home.”
Walking into the kitchen, she sat
down and placed her leather handbag on the floor beside the chair. “I hope you
don’t mind me just turning up like this.”
“Not at all. Would you like a
drink while you’re waiting?” Carly gestured to the glass of cold water she had
on the table.
“No, thanks.” Charlie glanced
around. “Nice place.”
“We like it.”
Carly watched her as Charlie
folded her arms on the table and took a deep breath. Knowing she wanted to
talk, she waited her out. It was an old trick of Carly’s father, to wait in
silence until the person grew uncomfortable enough that they’d blurt out every
sin just for something to say.
It worked this time, too.
Charlie looked up at her. “So I
picked up my bike at Ed’s shop.”
Encouragingly, Carly nodded.
“We had a little chat.” Charlie
rubbed her finger on a thin gouge in the old, wooden table. “I know a bit
about what happened.”
“A bit.”
“Most of it, actually.” Charlie
glanced up at her. When Carly only nodded again, she said bluntly, “Ed’s ex was
a real bitch, wasn’t she?”
“Yeah, she was.”
“Telling him at their engagement
party that she was leaving him was a shitty thing to do.”
Carly nodded, waiting to hear what
else Ed had told Charlie. “Very shitty.”
“He’s a little shook up over it
still.”
“Not shook up. Hurt. Mostly
embarrassed and ashamed he didn’t see it coming.”
“She’d planned it for awhile.”
“Yes.”
Charlie studied her. “He told me
everything.”
Carly nodded.
“How Mia took all the money from
his home stash, sold the engagement ring, and ran up a huge debt on his credit
card.”
So, Ed had opened up about
everything. “Yes.”
Charlie looked down at her hands
before glancing back up at Carly. “Do you think he’s over her?”
“He’s over her, but not what she
did. It hurt. He nearly lost everything.”
“So he won’t find it that easy to
trust again.”
“I’d take things slowly with Ed.
He comes across as happy and easy, but he’s a lot more careful than he used to
be.”
“I understand.” Charlie nodded.
Carly leaned forward. “Charlie?”
“Yes?”
“I think you might be a nice
girl. I hope so. Because if you hurt Ed like his rotten ex did, I’ll kick
your arse from here to Christmas.”
Charlie gaped at her. “What?”
“Ed’s my uncle. He’s a great
guy. I love him, and if you hurt him, I’ll come looking for you.”
“I didn’t hurt him that night,
Carly, I swear. His ex came in and started talking to him, they started to
argue and I thought it best if I go. I didn’t know what was happening.”
“I know. Ed told me. I’m talking
about you now.”
Ed chose that moment to appear in
the kitchen doorway, a clean t-shirt on under a leather vest. “Hey, Charlie,
you ready?”
“Sure.” Slowly, her gaze fixed on
Carly, she stood.
Carly smiled and relaxed back in
the chair. “Have fun, you two.”
Ed ushered Charlie out of the
kitchen.
Carly had just started flicking
through the magazine in front of her again when Charlie appeared in the
doorway.
“Forgot my bag.” Crossing to the
table, Charlie retrieved her bag. Straightening, she looked gravely at Carly.
“I won’t hurt Ed. You have my word on it.”
Carly nodded.
Charlie smiled widely. “I like
you. You’re honest and to the point.” Turning, she left the room.
Picking up the magazine, Carly
looked to where Crusher sat on the floor looking at her expectantly. “What?”
His tongue lolled out, his little
bug eyes looking towards the pantry and back at her.
Knowing exactly what he was after,
Carly retrieved the treat jar from the pantry and opening it, took out a rawhide
strip and tossed it him. Crusher leaped into the air and caught it mid-toss, whirling
around in delight before trotting to his basket in the corner and curling up to
indulge in some lip-smacking enjoyment.
Carly wished she could relax as
easily. Every time she didn’t keep tight control of her thoughts, all she
could see was Sam above her, feel his thickness and girth inside her, his hard
muscles and smooth, hot skin against her body.
A deliciously decadent shiver went
through her. She certainly wasn’t going to lie, it had been the most
mind-blowing, erotic, amazing thing to have happened to her. To think that Sam
Willow, hot, surfy-handsome, gorgeous-bodied Sam had actually felt desire for
her.
She wasn’t like the other women
who came knocking on his door. Every single one was out to seduce him, but all
she’d expected was friendship. It had turned into so much more, at least for
one very hot encounter that just the memory had her squirming a little in her
seat.
But it was
one
encounter.
Did he regret it? Did he wish he hadn’t done it? Probably. May be he was
over there right now, wondering what he’d seen in the fat little sheila living
across the road.
Scowling, she strode from the
room. Demeaning herself was something she tried to never do, didn’t think
about much, in fact. She knew who she was, a worthwhile person. She wasn’t
perfect, but then no one was, regardless of what they thought. She’d accepted
herself a long time ago, knew she wasn’t the kind of woman accepted by today’s
standards, that many men didn’t spare her a second glance, and normally she was
okay with it, had made up her mind just to be herself and stop worrying. So
why doubt it now?
Because Jonathon had given her
confidence a beating.
Because next to Sam, she
felt…well, damn, he was prettier than she! He had this perfect body, and this
perfect face, and the women he dated were perfect and…
And she’d had sex with Sam Willow
on his hall floor.
And he’d wanted it, had initiated
it. That had to mean something, right? It wasn’t as if a man like Sam just
screwed every woman in sight for the experience. No, she might not know him
like an old friend, but her gut instinct, which had stood her in good stead
over her life, told her that Sam was a nice bloke, a decent bloke. He wouldn’t
have used her as an experiment, a quick shag to amuse himself.
He wasn’t an arsehole like
Jonathon. Now there was a prime example of ignoring her gut instinct and
ending up a mess because of it. But that was over. Or should have been, if he
hadn’t decided to get on her back about something of which she had not a clue.
Whether she liked it or not, she had to phone him and find out what the hell
she was searching for.
And Sam? Standing in her bedroom,
she sighed. Friendship after sex was awkward. Could she ignore it and just
wave to him? Well, shit, did she actually have a choice? The best thing, she
decided, studying a box still sitting beside the bed, was to simply keep going
on the way she was, keep working, keep living, and see what he intended to do.
She sure as hell didn’t know the
next step, or even if there was a next step, or, come to think about it, if she
wanted another step. She’d just come out of one disastrous relationship, she
certainly didn’t want to step into another one without knowing exactly what she
was getting into first.
Besides, Sam was dating other
women, hell, she didn’t even know if he had a girlfriend.
Oh God!
Carly could
actually feel the blood drain from her face. What if Sam did have a
girlfriend? And he’d cheated on his girlfriend – with her! Oh bloody
hell!
Carly bit her lip.
No, no, no. Sam wasn’t like that,
he wouldn’t cheat. But in the heat of the moment could he have gotten carried
away? No, he couldn’t. No, it wasn’t possible, he wasn’t that kind of a bloke
–was he? Especially with someone like her. She wasn’t blind, she knew she
wasn’t a seductive siren. Nowhere near it.
Or was she allowing her attraction
to Sam sway her?
Running one hand agitatedly
through her hair, she took a deep breath. “Okay,” she said aloud. “Calm
down. One step at a time. It happened and that can’t be changed. You don’t
know if he has a girlfriend. Probably does, because he’s so hot. But it
wasn’t deliberate.” Rubbing one eye with the heel of her hand, she sighed. “Carly,
just keep your head down. No one knows but you and Sam. Say nothing, do
nothing.”
Trotting into the room, Crusher
looked up at her.
“You’ve got a stress-free life,”
she told him. “Be grateful, rug rat.”
Pushing the troubling thoughts to
the back of her mind, she crossed to the box and looked at it.
What the hell was she looking
for? Damn it. There was no putting it off any longer. Picking up the phone
by the bed, she dialled Jonathon’s number, hating the fact that she still knew
it by heart.
“Hello?” he answered.
“It’s Carly.”
“You found it?”
“Found what? Jonathon, I have no idea
what I’m looking for.”
“You are so dumb.”
“And you are such an arsehole.
Now either tell me or get lost, because I’m not playing this game.”
“This isn’t a game,” he said
angrily. “This is as far from a game as it gets.”
“Then tell me what I’m looking for.”
“A padded envelope.”
“An envelope?”
“A
padded
envelope, you
stupid bitch!”
Carly hung up the phone.
“He is such a dick.” Carly patted
Crusher, who wagged his tiny tail. “Oh look, the phone’s ringing. Who could
it be?” Picking up the receiver, she said, “Yes?”
“Don’t ever hang up on me again!”
“News for you, Jonathon. We’re
not together anymore, so I’ll hang up on you anytime I want. Now, last time,
because I’m sick of this. What am I looking for?”
“A padded envelope!” he yelled,
followed hurriedly by, “Don’t hang up!”
Carly rolled her eyes.
Jonathon spoke in a lower, but
much tighter, tone. “A white padded envelope. Small. It’s sealed and nothing
is written on it. The front is blank. Just bring it to me.”
“News flash, Jonathon. I don’t do
deliveries, especially to you.”
“Fine,” he ground out. “I’ll
collect it.”
“I’ll post it.”
“Don’t you dare put it in the
post!”
“I’m not delivering it, and you’re
not coming to my home.”
“I know where you live. I’ll
collect it. You can even keep me outside and not invite me in.”
“Trust me, inviting you in is not
on my list.” Carly frowned. “Whatever. I’ll give you a ring when I find it
and we’ll meet somewhere.”
“Fine. Whatever. I’ll even give
you a couple of more days. Just find the bloody thing.” He hung up.
“Jerk.” Dropping the receiver down
onto the holder, Carly rubbed her chin. “A padded envelope. I don’t remember
seeing a padded envelope anywhere.”
She spent the next hour searching
through the house but when she came up with nothing, she started to wonder if
it had gotten accidentally mixed up with Ed’s gear. Knowing she had to wait
until Ed returned to ask him to have a look, she sighed. She really wanted to break
this last link to Jonathon.
Looked like it wasn’t going to
happen soon.
Switching on the light, she
decided to cook some dinner and wait for Ed.
~*~
The dawn was welcome. Or not,
depending on how she wanted to look at it.
Sitting on the side of the bed,
she stared tiredly at the floor. Some of her inner muscles ached, not to
mention a slight pull on the inside of her thighs. No doubt from the wild
session with Sam the previous day.
That hot session that tormented
her in her dreams. All night. All bloody night. Several times she woke with
a different kind of ache in her loins, one of emptiness and longing.
Desire. It was freakin’ desire. If
she wore panties to bed, she’d have had to change them, no doubt about it.
God, she had it bad. This had
never happened before, not that she had a lot of experience. Jonathon had been
her first, and then only twice. The first time hadn’t been a good experience
and had left her wanting, but she’d put it down to being a virgin. Jonathon
had certainly seemed pleased. The second time hadn’t been that good, either,
again leaving her feeling needy. It had been fast, over in less than a minute.
Jonathon had grunted, pushed, spent himself and flopped over, going straight to
sleep after tossing his condom in the bin beside the bed.
Ewww
.
That had done it for her. The
third and fourth time he’d tried to initiate sex, she’d brushed him off. He
hadn’t been happy, but then, neither had she, so she didn’t see why she had to
please him only all the time.
Damn it, she had needs, and she
knew enough from her frank talk with Lisa to know that Jonathon wasn’t a
considerate lover. More like a selfish one.
As Lisa had informed her, “it’s
not always bells, whistles and fireworks, sweetie, but you should never be left
unsatisfied.” Huggie, apparently, didn’t always ring that bell, but when Lisa
gave a bawdy wink, it was apparent that he somehow made up for it.
Sam had done more than ring
Carly’s bell. He’d resonated it like Big Ben.