Six Naughty Nights: Love in Reverse, Book 2 (18 page)

Charlie took his thumb out of his mouth. “Because Daddy kissed it.” The thumb went back in.

Toby said nothing, resting his lips on the top of Charlie’s curls. This was his son. And his son didn’t think he was an idiot. Charlie thought he was a superhero. He’d never felt so humble or so proud.

“Hey.”

He turned to see Esther smiling up at him. “Hey,” he said. “You want to take him?”

“No, no. He looks quite comfortable there.” She stroked Charlie’s hair. “You all right, baby?”

Charlie nodded, but didn’t raise his head. His eyelids drooped.

“We’ll get going soon,” Toby promised. “Past your naptime, eh fella?” He kissed Charlie’s forehead, then looked across at Esther. She had a strange look on her face. “What?”

“Nothing.” She glanced back at the others and dropped her gaze to her feet.

He studied her, puzzled. “Are you enjoying yourself? You getting on okay with the others?”

“They’re great. I don’t like how they put you down, though.”

He shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. They’re usually right.”

“No they’re not,” she replied hotly, “and you shouldn’t let them get away with it. I know they’re fond of you, but that doesn’t give them the right to treat you as if you’re an idiot.”

“I am an idiot.”

“Not all the time.” Her lips curved.

Warmth spread through him at the way she felt the need to defend him. Nobody had ever stood up for him before, not even his mother. Martha usually joined in when his father and brothers teased him—he’d grown to accept that he always bore the brunt of the family jokes. It was refreshing to have someone on his side for once.

“Thanks for last night,” she said.

“You’re very welcome.” He smiled at the flush that appeared on her cheeks.

She looked out to sea. “I guess you can help Faith with her research now.”

“Yeah.” He knew Faith was itching to quiz him on the Naughty Nights game.

“I suppose you have to give the game back,” she added.

“I should, yes.”
 

She moistened her lips with her tongue. “Unless…”

He stared at her. Was she suggesting what he thought she was suggesting? “Unless…”

She sighed. “Oh, I’m not going to tiptoe around this. I’m here for a week. We’re both single. I haven’t had…” She glanced at Charlie. “The ‘S’ word for a very long time. And you’re very good at it.” Her eyes twinkled. “Want to do it again?”

He burst out laughing. “You like to say what you’re thinking, don’t you?”

“I don’t see the point in being subtle.”

“Clearly.” This was probably a very bad idea. But he didn’t care if it meant getting her into bed. “I’d very much like to do it again.”

“There are some conditions, though,” she said solemnly. “It’s purely physical.”

“Oh, absolutely.”

“I mean it, Toby. We both have to understand that. I don’t want to get tangled up in something that won’t end well when I still live at the opposite end of the country.”

“I understand.” And he did. She didn’t want anything more. He was surprised at the twinge of disappointment deep inside him. But he said nothing. If she only wanted sex, he’d take it. He just wanted to be with her.

She bit her lip. “Is it a bad idea? I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s just… You look so gorgeous, holding Charlie.”

He’d been thinking the same thing—her dark hair, for once released from its clip, lifted in the late evening breeze, and she looked curvaceous and tempting in the bright orange sundress.

His lips curved. Keeping a tight hold on Charlie, who’d fallen asleep, he slid a hand into her hair and pulled her closer for a kiss.

When he finally released her, he said, “I don’t see what’s wrong in indulging in a bit of hot sex for a week. We find each other attractive—what’s wrong with that? We’re both grown-ups. I think we know the score.” He ran his hands down her back. “Anyway, I’m willing if you are.”

Her gaze rested on his lips. “Okay. So it’s just hot sex then.”

“Just hot sex.” He hardened at the thought.

“When shall we pick another scenario?”

“Actually my parents have asked if they can have Charlie for the afternoon tomorrow. We can have a few hours to ourselves.”

“Sounds good.”

He glanced across at the table. The others were pretending not to look, but he knew they’d seen him kiss Esther. He sighed. “Come on. Let’s finish up our drink and we can get going.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Esther walked back to the table. Toby sat carefully, making sure he didn’t disturb his son. Excitement bubbled inside her at the thought of having sex with him again. She hadn’t been able to help herself. Standing there, his son cradled in his arms, his curly hair moving in the breeze, he’d looked so gorgeous that she’d not been able to resist the desire flooding through her.

“You okay?” Eve said to Toby. “I’m sorry, I hope I didn’t upset you.”

“Nah.” He finished off his Coke. “You were right, anyhow. I
was
thinking about sex.”

“No surprises there,” Dan said. “You were awake.”

Esther was unable to suppress a giggle, and Toby gave her a mock glare as everyone else laughed. “Don’t you start. You’re supposed to be on my side.”

“I am,” she said. “I’m being polite and laughing at the groom-to-be’s jokes.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He grinned. She could tell from the intensity of his eyes that he was thinking about their next Naughty Night.

Flustered, she turned her attention to Dan. “Are you looking forward to the big day?”

“I’m terrified,” he said.

“He’s not joking,” Eve added. “I might have to sedate him to get him down the aisle.”

Toby smiled. “We’ll make sure he’s there.”

“Yeah,” Rusty said. “I’ve got a taser somewhere—I knew it would come in handy some day.”

Dan glared as they all laughed. “Sure, have a joke at my expense.”

“What are you worried about?” Esther was curious.

“Yeah,” Eve said. “Have you gone off me?”

In answer, he reached out and took a strand of her long blonde hair between his fingers. He wrapped it around his hand slowly until she had to move closer to avoid losing half her scalp.

“Ow,” she said, but her eyes lit up as she looked at her fiancé.

“Never,” he murmured and captured her lips in a long, slow kiss.

Faith rolled her eyes and changed the subject, but Esther found it difficult to look away from their embrace. Obviously, Dan was nervous about the big day, but he was clearly devoted to his fiancée. He kissed around to Eve’s ear before whispering something to her that made her giggle. It was strange to think Eve had slept with Toby. She glanced at him, wondering whether he was also watching them and if there would be envy on his face, but his gaze was fixed on his son, who was now curled up on his lap sound asleep.
 

He brushed a strand of hair from Charlie’s face, and she caught her breath at the obvious affection on his features. He loved the boy—that much was clear. The thought that Charlie now had a father to look out for him thrilled her and made her nervous at the same time. What would happen when she flew back to Christchurch? Charlie was going to be asking a hundred questions: Where’s Daddy? Why’s he not coming home with us? When will I see him again? Most of which she wouldn’t know the answer to.
 

It was great that the two of them seem to have connected so well. But had she just made things harder for herself?

The following day, Martha and Graham Wilkinson arrived at Faith and Rusty’s house to pick Charlie up at eleven thirty.

“Hello, young man.” Martha swept Charlie up in her arms and gave him a big kiss. “How do you fancy coming to the beach with me and Grandpa today?”

Charlie looked across at his mum. Esther smiled. “Maybe Grandpa will help you build a sandcastle.”

“A huge one,” Graham said. “As tall as you.”

Charlie’s eyes lit up. “With flags?”

Martha kissed him again. “Of course with flags. Can’t have a sandcastle without flags. And a moat so deep you can swim in it.”

Esther laughed and handed Graham Charlie’s bag, complete with sippy cup, Bear, and the hundred other things a two-year-old boy couldn’t do without for the day. “You have a friend for life now.”

“I hope so.” Martha smiled, her eyes meeting Esther’s over the top of Charlie’s head. They were warm, but there was also a hint of caution in them. Esther was pretty sure she knew what Martha was thinking. She wanted to get to know her grandson, but she was afraid of loving him too much because she knew Esther was going to take him away, and she wasn’t sure whether she’d see him again.
 

Esther dropped her gaze as Graham shouldered the bag and headed for the door. At some point, she and Toby were going to have to sit down and talk properly about the future and how this was going to work. But not yet, she thought. They had a whole week to sort things out. Today, the weather was hot and sultry, and Toby was coming over to take her out and then hopefully they’d have some really raunchy sex. She wasn’t going to think about the future today.

She kissed Charlie goodbye, and he went with his grandparents happily enough with the promise of an ice cream and a paddle in the sea. When they’d left, she closed the door and wandered through the house to her room. Rusty was teaching at the high school and Faith had left early to go to the nearest big town, Whangarei, for a meeting with the editors of the magazine she wrote for, so Esther had the house to herself.

In the bedroom, she opened the sliding doors to allow the breeze from the garden to blow into the room and closed her eyes when the humid warmth flowed over her. It was the end of February and in Christchurch the leaves would already be turning, but here autumn seemed a long way away. In fact her whole world seemed a long way away. This was like a time out of time, as if she’d suspended reality for seven days. She’d seen the news on the TV, watched the rescue teams working to find the missing people in the crumbling city, and she’d been relieved not to be in the heart of it all.

And now she had a date. Her heart lifting, she turned and opened the wardrobe to reveal her meagre rack of clothing. The insurance company would pay out once they’d assessed the damage done to her apartment, but for the moment she was limited to what she’d allowed herself to buy with Toby’s credit card in Christchurch and the couple of items she’d purchased since she got access to her bank account again.

She lifted out a thin sundress. It was just a cheap cotton slip really, with a halter neck, the hem reaching to a few inches above the knee, but the light green colour matched her eyes, and it would be cool and easy to wear on this late-summer day. She took off her jeans and T-shirt and pulled the dress on, not bothering with a bra, then smoothed it down her body. Soon Toby’s hands would be doing the same thing. Her heart pounded at the thought.

She’d dreamed about him the night before and had woken breathless and aching with need. It had been a long morning. Walking back into the living room, she checked her watch. How long before he arrived? He’d said he’d come around for her at midday, and it was eleven forty-five.

She paced the room for ten minutes, applied lipgloss, thought about changing, decided not to, wiped off the lipgloss, put another shade on, and frankly by the time the knock came at the door at five past twelve, it made her jump out of her skin.

She opened the door, heart pounding when she saw it was him. “Hey.”

“Hiya.” He leaned against the doorpost. “Wow, you look good.”

“Thank you. So do you.” It was the truth—he wore a pair of cream chinos and a short-sleeved checked shirt, and he looked all scrubbed and clean. She backed away and let him in, staring in surprise as he produced a small bunch of flowers from behind his back.

“I’m sorry I’m a little late,” he said. “I stopped to get these. I wasn’t sure whether to. I walked in and out of the shop about five times.”

She smiled and took them from him. “They’re lovely, thank you.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I know this isn’t a date as such. I just wanted to get you something, to say…” He thought about it. “I dunno. Thanks, I guess.”

Her smile spread. He was so sweet. And he looked so gorgeous she wanted to eat him up.

Giving the flowers one last sniff, she placed them on the breakfast bar. Then, leaning against the bar, she pulled him toward her. “Hey, you.”

His lips curved, and he took his hands out of his pockets and slid them around her waist. “Hey.”

She moved her hands up his shirt and leaned closer to nuzzle his neck. “You smell amazing.”

He shivered but joked, “I can honestly say that’s the first time any girl’s ever said that to me before.”

“I can’t believe that.” She touched her tongue to where his pulse beat beneath his warm skin. “You smell of aftershave and summer and hot man.”

“Yeuch.”

“It’s not yeuch, as you pointed out to me recently. It’s heavenly.” There was something wrong with her. Someone must have slipped her a lust potion, because all she could think about was kissing him, tasting him, having him inside her.