You are very sexy when you laugh, Chloe.I reach out and brush her fingers again, almost desperate to touch her as I pass her a bowl of popcorn. She takes a few buttery kernels and smiles. I have no idea how to play this. For now, just being next to her is good. It’s more than good.
‘More wine?’ I ask everyone. They all nod.
‘Might you need a hand?’ Chloe asks.
‘Always,’ I say casually.
I see Jess raise her eyebrows at Zara and I fear we’re not being completely subtle. But I put out my hands to help Chloe get off the bean bag and pull her up so she’s close to me. She smiles and we head into the kitchen, keeping our distance. As soon as we’re out of sight, I back her on to a kitchen counter and lift her up on to it, pushing against her slowly, almost desperate to be close to her.
‘Too much?’ I whisper breathily.
Her face barely touches mine, her eyes crinkle with a smile. ‘Not at all. Hi.’
‘Hi.’
She kisses me gently, gliding her tongue along my bottom lip. My hands reach for the curve of her thighs. ‘This could get really, really messy,’ she murmurs. ‘We’re supposed to be getting wine.’
‘Yes,’ I say, kissing her cheek where it meets her jawline. ‘I’ll say I went down to the cellar.’
‘There’s a cellar here?’ she asks, moaning.
‘No, there isn’t,’ I reply, grinning, and she laughs. I put a hand to her cheek and look into her eyes for a moment. There is something about Chloe that takes me out of myself. Maybe it started with coming out here to Ibiza, being somewhere else, but she’s woken something inside me: hunger, excitement. I feel alive, connected,living loudly. I think back to Uncle Lorenzo’s letter when he left me this place. I kiss her again, slowly.‘Tonight, do you want to come to my cottage?’ I ask her, slightly nervous in case she thinks I’m crossing a line.
‘I guess if you came to my room the others may hear?’ she says.
‘They may hearyou. I’m pretty certain of it,’ I tell her. I have to admit, I surprise myself with that line but I adore her reaction, the way she bites her lip and her mouth curls into a smile. She reaches down and straight into my shorts, wrapping her hand around the length of my cock. My body tenses, I rise to the tips of my toes and lean forward into her.
‘I won’t be able to deliver wine with a great big raging hard-on,’ I say as she moves her hand up and down. ‘Keep doing that.’
Chloe runs her tongue on the underside of my neck and I place an arm on the counter to control myself.
‘I’d like to contest the fact that I’ll be making all the noise,’ she says, a cheeky glint to her eye. She reaches down, her fingers brushing my balls and I laugh. ‘He’s ticklish?’
‘I’m just…’ She moves her hand up and down again. ‘Thinking of nut milk…’
And with that she bursts into giggles, the sexual tension diluted but replaced by something much better.
‘WHERE’S OUR WINE?’ a drunken voice calls from the garden.
‘I’ll see you in the cottage later,’ she whispers. ‘If the invite still stands.’
‘It will be standing,’ I say.
Chloe laughs, topping up a bowl with more popcorn, looking over her shoulder at me when suddenly we hear a phone ringing.
‘PHONE IN THE CINEMA! THROW THEM OUT!’ I hear Zara joke from the garden. It’s definitely not mine but I see Chloe jump a little, realising it’s hers.
‘Oh shit, I’m so sorry! I’m terrible!’ Chloe runs into the garden to retrieve her phone from the dining table but as shedoes, her face freezes. I walk over to her, putting a hand to her shoulder to make sure she’s OK. I glance over and see that the caller is Julian.The awful boss. ‘I’m so sorry I have to take this. It won’t take long,’ she says. She scurries past me and makes her way to the light of the kitchen. ‘Wait, Julian…Hold up…Hello to you too. It’s nearly nine here in Spain? Why are you shouting at me?’
Her voice travels and I glance over to where the film is playing to see Jess turning to find out what’s happening. I watch Chloe pace the tiles furiously, not even looking at me.
‘I am on holiday. If I’m on holiday, I shouldn’t be doing anything. I deserve this break,’ she says into her phone.
The worst thing is how much her tone has changed in just a few minutes. I pretend to busy myself in the kitchen so I’m nearby but not being too intrusive.
‘Well, I can’t get to any of that over the next week. I’m sorry you lost that tender…How is it my fault that the deadline was yesterday?’
Secretly, I like how she’s standing up for herself, but there’s a shudder in her voice that I can’t quite stand.
