3 BOOK BUNDLE "Her Last Love Affair", "Her Last Love Affair: Breathing Without You" AND "Her Last Love Affair: The Final Journey" (3 page)

First Encounter

T
he hotel restaurant was quiet and atmospheric. A
string quartet in the corner of the room played a selection of waltzes. The
lighting was dim, but three tealight candles in the center of each table,
illuminated the faces of the diners.

During the course of getting dressed, she’d managed to calm
her nerves considerably. However, when she arrived at the hotel and found an
incredibly handsome looking man carrying a single red rose, the butterflies in
her stomach began flapping again in earnest.

Carl was even better looking than she remembered. His
shoulders were broader; his chin, which had always been smooth, was covered in
light stubble; and his hair, which had always been slightly too long and
slightly too unmanageable, was short and neatly styled with just a touch of
gel. Meanwhile, the faded T-shirts and ripped jeans, which had been his staple
dress at college, had been replaced by a dapper charcoal suit and deep red
dress shirt.

Throughout the dinner, Allie had slowly relaxed, thanks
largely to the third glass of red wine she was sipping on by the time desert
was brought to the table.

“So,” Carl mused, digging a fork into the chocolate torte in
front of him. “I was really glad to hear from you, but…err…why did I hear from
you?” He chuckled, causing two small dimples to dent his cheeks.

Allie felt her own face flush, as her brain supplied her
with a very vivid image of what she’d contacted him for. She couldn’t bring
herself to glance up into his piercing blue eyes, as she dismissed the question
with a shrug. “Who knows what makes us do things,” she replied.

“Very true,” he acknowledged, leaning forwards with the fork
stretched towards Allie’s mouth.

The unspoken offer was greeted with a smile, before she
parted her lips and allowed him to slip the morsel of rich, luxurious chocolate
into her mouth.

“You know,” he said, his eyes watching the subtle changes in
her features, as she savored the mouthful. “I still think about you a lot.”

“Mmm,” Allie hummed, her eyelids flickering closed, as the
gooey sweetness melted on her tongue and trickled down her throat.

Carl’s fascination grew more intense, as he continued to
speak. “I sometimes think about what could have been,” he murmured, as he
slowly began to withdraw the silverware from her grasp.

This time Allie’s moan was one of frustration rather than
pleasure.

“Good?” he laughed.

Catching his eye, Allie saw something burning in them that
she felt sure was mirrored in her own. “Very,” she nodded, somewhat
breathlessly.

“I said,” he emphasized, returning the fork to the plate. “I
still think about what could have been if you’d stuck around at that party,
maybe had come back to my place.”

“Me too,” Allie admitted, her eyes drifting down to the sure
and steady movements of his large, strong fingers as they delicately sliced
another chunk of the desert.

“Yeah?” he smiled, glancing up at her.

“Yeah,” she confirmed, fixing him with an unashamed grin of
her own. Moving of its own volition, she found her right foot stretching
forwards slightly, until it came into contact with his calf. The table was
small, making the intimate gesture easy. She regarded Carl’s face closely,
assessing his reaction to the presence of her foot.

He said nothing, but his smile was briefly interrupted by a
twitch of his lips, only to be replaced by a broader grin.

Satisfied, Allie quickly slipped her foot back and easily
slid the four inch heel from it. “In fact,” she told him huskily, reaching
forwards once more and rubbing the inside of his knee with her stockinged toes.
“That’s why I got in touch.”

“Really?” he asked, humor quickly drifting from his face as
Allie’s foot moved ever higher.

She was glad to find his legs widely parted and did not
hesitate in following his right leg all the way up the thigh. “Yes,” she
whispered, as her toes met the warmth of his crotch and she felt the
unmistakable jerk of interest.

“And…err,” he croaked, before clearing his throat. “What do
you think we ought to do about that?” The question was asked with a hint of
desperation and Allie knew there could be no way to misinterpret the dilation
of his eyes or the swelling at his groin. She had him now. The work was done
and, Rosalind was right, it hadn’t been difficult at all.

“We could go upstairs,” she suggested, seductively brushing
the ball of her foot over the ever-increasing bulge pushed against the fly of
his pants. The effect she was so obviously having on him, caused sparks of
electricity to shoot through her own body. Heat flushed every inch of her skin
and restlessness teased at the juncture of her thighs.

“Upstairs?” he echoed, higher brain function quickly leaving
him as blood flooded in the opposite direction.

“I booked a room,” she told him with just a hint of faux
innocence. “Just in case,” she added. Not waiting for him to reply, Allie
quickly removed her foot, slipped it back into the shoe and thrust her hand
across the table. She grasped his right wrist and began to lift herself from
the chair.

His hand being gently tugged, Carl released the fork he
still clutched, causing it to clatter loudly back onto the plate. Following her
lead, he rose from the seat. Wincing at the discomfort in his pants, he
silently thanked whoever decided to keep the restaurant so dark.

Turning her back to him, Allie confidently strode from the
room, keeping Carl’s hand firmly gripped in her own. She gracefully made her
way out of the restaurant, swaying her hips just a little more than was
necessary and guessing that his eyes would be focused in that general
direction.

She was right. Carl’s gaze was fixed on the curve of Allie’s
ass. It was pert and snuggly sheathed in the little black dress she wore.
Entranced by the soft movements of those tight muscles, he barely realized that
they were no longer in the dim confines of the restaurant, but the brightly lit
lobby. As Allie came to a slow halt by the elevator doors, he tossed a glance
around him and took a step forward.

She didn’t need to ask why he’d nestled himself against her
butt. The erection that prodded at the base of her spine was no doubt
noticeable. Nevertheless, he delicately wrapped his free arm around her middle
and dipped his head to press his lips to her cheek.

“You smell good,” he whispered into her ear, taking another
breath of the delicate hint of fruity sweetness and vanilla that lingered on
her skin.

“So do you,” she repaid the compliment, noting that the
smell of him hadn’t altered much over the years. Sandalwood and something
vaguely citrus smelling, which she guessed was from his shower gel. Her attempt
to inhale more of him was interrupted by the ping of the elevator and the soft
whirr as the doors opened.

The pair waited, Carl still tightly pressed against Allie’s
back, as a middle aged couple exited the car. Then, wrapping her own arm over
the one he held around her abdomen, Allie shuffled forwards.

When the doors closed without admitting anyone else, Allie
finally released her hold of Carl. She whipped around quickly and, placing her
hands on his chest, propelled him back against one of the mirrored walls.

Carl expelled a surprised lungful of air. “You’ve changed,”
he noted, smiling down at her, as she stared up at him like she was a starving
woman and he was a plate of the chocolate torte they’d shared downstairs.

“Is that bad?” she asked, pressing her hips against his and
reveling in the warmth of his groin against her mound.

“No, no, no,” he quickly assured her, his hands snapping up
to her hips and stilling their seductive circular motion. “No,” he repeated.
“It’s not a bad thing. It’s a very good thing.”

“Good,” she acknowledged with a brief nod, before suddenly
closing the short space between their mouths. She’d kissed Carl before, albeit
once and briefly, but she remembered the sensation of those strong, insistent
lips. Even though she’d been the one to make the move, he had preempted her and
returned her kiss with enthusiasm.

A deep, guttural groan of approval rumbled from deep within
Carl’s chest, as Allie slipped her tongue between his lips. His own joyfully
entwined with hers, playing a sexy game of tag within the tight confines of
their joined mouths. Meanwhile, his fingers slid from her hips and down to her
butt. Gripping both mounds of flesh, he pulled Allie towards him, increasing
the already firm pressure between their bodies. As she began to trace the roof
of his mouth with her chocolaty tongue, it was no longer enough. It was nowhere
near enough. He needed to be closer.

Feeling the restless shudders of Carl’s hips, Allie
whimpered. Things were moving fast, much faster than she’d expected, but his
need was matched or perhaps even exceeded by her own.

Both so caught up in the intensity of the kiss, neither
noticed the elevator come to a halt, nor the doors opening. However, they were
interrupted by the overly noisy clearing of a man’s throat.

Carl instantly drew his face away from Allie’s and his eyes
darted to the open door. She was a little slower to respond, but eventually
they were both staring at a forty-something gentleman in a tuxedo. 

With his hand casually placed on the elevators frame,
keeping the doors open, the stranger grinned at Carl, before turning his focus
to Allie and quirking his eyebrows suggestively. “You’re floor?” he asked,
sniggering as he stood aside to clear a path for the couple.

Allie sank her embarrassed face into Carl’s shoulder, before
giggling. “Come on,” she urged, placing both of her hands over the fingers that
continued to grip her bottom. Peeling him away from her, she tugged Carl out of
the elevator.

He stayed close to her, trying once again to conceal the
pronounced evidence of his arousal. He too broke into laughter, as they snuck
past the stranger, deliberately avoiding his eyes, as if he were the principal.

Allie broke into a light jog in the hallway, wobbling
slightly on heels that were certainly not made for the activity. Fortunately,
they only had to pass four doors before she found the one she was looking for.
“Here we are,” she announced, removing the card key from its secure place in
her bra.

“You know,” Carl mused, watching her swipe the card and push
open the door. “A more suspicious man might think you’d planned this whole
thing.”

“Is that a problem?” she asked, tossing the question over
her shoulder, as she entered the room.

Following her, Carl shook his head. “Not at all,” he
replied, his eyes darkening with renewed lust. Once across the threshold, he
quickly wrapped his foot around the door and kicked it shut. Pausing
momentarily, he appraised Allie, allowing his gaze to slowly take in every inch
of her body. Lazily, he slipped his hands into his pockets, and leaned against
the closed door.

Allie was surprised by the sudden lack of frenzy in his
actions. However, she savored the way he enthusiastically devoured her with his
eyes. Eventually, however, the heat of his stare became too much. Demurely, she
tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and peered sheepishly down at the
floor.

“Get over here,” he urged with a jerk of his head.

“Why don’t you come here?” she quietly suggested in
response.

Carl tipped his head to the side, as though he were
considering the counteroffer. “Is that what you want?” he asked.

It was the turn of Allie’s eyes to take a leisurely trip
down his body. Slowly, her gaze wandered over the dark hair that had become
slightly ruffled in the elevator, the playful glint in his eye and cute dimples
in his cheeks. Moving down, she lingered on his chest, imagining what lay beneath
that expanse of deep red cotton. Further still, she admired his slim hips and
finally the way his manhood strained at the fabric of his pants. “Oh, yeah,”
she mumbled, remembering vaguely that there had been a question asked of her.

Carl didn’t need to be told twice, lunging forward; he
crossed the short distance between them. Instantly, he wrapped both arms around
Allie and his mouth claimed hers hungrily.

Caught off guard by the abrupt change in his mood, Allie
almost toppled backwards, but his strong hands held her upright. She was
brought back to her senses as he sucked her bottom lip between his teeth and
nibbled lightly on the soft skin.

Hearing her plaintive mewling sent Carl beyond the point of
control. Keeping a firm grasp of Allie, he turned her around and, continuing to
suck passionately on her lower lip, pushed her towards the door.

Allie’s back met the hard wood with a soft bump and she
instinctively parted her feet slightly.

Carl’s body moved as though hers was calling to him,
slipping his right leg between hers and pressing his thick, muscular thigh
against her mound. Gasping, he tipped his head back. “You are so sexy,” he
quickly panted, his hands sliding down her legs and gripping the hem of her
dress. “You have no idea how many times I’ve thought about this,” he added,
roughly yanking the black fabric upwards. As it got to her hips, and his
fingers brushed nothing but naked flesh, he glanced down. There he found only a
thin strip of hair covering her outer sex. “So sexy,” he repeated, seeming to
talk to himself more than her.

Allie barely heard him, but there was no opportunity to
dwell on it, as his hands continued their mission frantically bunching her
dress at her waist. Her own fingers were trembling uselessly, but made an
effort to grab for his leather belt. She hadn’t even managed to free the loose
end from the loop of his pants, before his own hands took over.

He gently removed her fingers from his way and, as he began
to quickly release the belt and unbutton his fly, Allie grasped his strong
shoulders. When he moved to kiss her again, she shifted her head to the side,
desperately trying to watch as he freed himself from his pants. When his
fingers began to emerge from the parted fabric at his groin, she sucked in an
excited breath.