3 BOOK BUNDLE "Her Last Love Affair", "Her Last Love Affair: Breathing Without You" AND "Her Last Love Affair: The Final Journey" (9 page)

One Last Night

B
ut one more night, turned into two nights, three,
four and then five. The frequency with which she saw Reece was complicating
matters. Allie had taken to trying to cover her bruises with foundation.
Sometimes it worked well, especially when she was able to wake before him and
apply the make-up to the blue patches of skin. Other times, Reece noticed the
discoloration. However, Allie was satisfied with the fact that he believed her
to have anemia and, as long as he didn’t see any large or particularly bad
contusions, she felt sure he would continue to believe that.

Lying to him was not something that came easily, though.
Truth be told, she hated it. She couldn’t look him in the face whenever he
mentioned the marks on her flesh or the fact he thought she’d lost a little
weight.

And it was all made so much worse by the fact that the more
time she spent with him, the more time she wanted to spend with him. She loved
being in his company, it didn’t matter what they did and it had gone far beyond
just fulfilling a sexual desire. On the third night, they didn’t even have sex.
Instead, cuddled up on her couch, watching an old Cary Grant movie, they’d both
drifted off into peaceful sleep and remained there ’til morning.

She was happy, happier than she had been in a long time.
Ironically, the knowledge of that made her profoundly depressed, because she
was acutely aware of the fact it couldn’t last. She’d found true happiness, a
man she could imagine herself growing old with, and she wasn’t going to get the
chance to grow old at all. Her low moods were yet another cause to lie to
Reece. She’d tell him she had a lot on at work, that she was stressed and just
needed to unwind, which, at first, he had no reason to disbelieve. As time
passed, she knew he’d begin to suspect there was something more to her mood
swings.

Meanwhile, she’d been cancelling or postponing dates with
old flames she’d met online, including Mitch Hatley. He continued to write and
send text messages, while she politely stalled him. Allie was reluctant to give
up the idea of grabbing that particular lost opportunity, but, at the same
time, wondered if she could ever want to sleep with any man except Reece - she
certainly couldn’t imagine it. Her dreams were filled with him and her waking
fantasies refused to drift to any other man, no matter how handsome.

In short, Allie knew that her relationship with Reece, for,
like it or not, that’s certainly what it had become, had to end. She simply
couldn’t continue to lie, and she didn’t want to torture herself with the taste
of a life she would never really get to experience.

But breaking things off was going to be difficult. Like a
crack addict, she lacked all will power around him. He only had to flash a
glimpse of that gorgeous smile or say her name in that deep, baritone voice of
his and she was unable to resist. Nevertheless, she had to find the resolve
from somewhere.

***

“You’ve been quiet,” Reece noted, reaching for the glass of
Shiraz in front of him.

Allie was just pushing the food on her plate around, feeling
far too sick to put anything in her mouth. “I’ve just been thinking,” she
shrugged.

“About?” he prodded.

“Us,” she replied, sucking in a steadying breath, as she
mentally prepared herself for the conversation she’d rehearsed a hundred times.

Reece could see she was nervous and guessed good news was
not on her mind. “Okay,” he nodded, replacing the glass on her small kitchen
table and leaning forwards. “What is it?” he asked.

“Reece,” she sighed, staring at the fingerprints he’d left
on the glass. “I told you, I can’t be in a relationship right now.”

“I know.”

“So, we can’t do this anymore,” she continued, realizing
that he simply didn’t see the problem.

“Why not?” he smiled.

“Ree-”

“Look,” he quickly interrupted, knowing exactly what she
would say if he allowed her to continue. “You said no relationship, we’re not
in a relationship.”

“Do you know how many times we’ve seen each other over the
last several weeks?” she argued, leaning back exhaustedly against the
uncomfortable wooden chair.

“Most nights,” he admitted. “But that doesn’t mean
anything,” he added. “There’s no pressure, Allie,” he urged. “You’re busy,
that’s fine. You don’t want to tell your parents that we’re dating again,
that’s fine, too.”

“Reece,” she muttered, shaking her head.

“It’s completely casual, Allie. If that’s what you want, you
got it.”

Drawing in a shaky breath, Allie tried to remind herself of
what was at stake; why she had to call a halt to things now. “And what do you
want?” she asked, wondering if a different angle would help her cause.

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s forget what I want for a second,” Allie said, meeting
his eyes. “What do you want?”

Placing his palms on the table either side of his plate, he
glanced down thoughtfully. “Honestly,” he mumbled. “I don’t know.” Turning his
eyes back to her, he shrugged one shoulder exaggeratedly. “I’m not promising
you romance and roses, Allie, because I don’t know where this is heading any
more than you do. What I do know is that I like being with you.” He paused
momentarily, before smiling to himself. “I
really
like being with you,
so I’ll take whatever it is you’re offering.”

“I’m not offering anything, Reece,” she responded sadly,
tears welling in her lower lids.

Refusing to answer right away, Reece sat quietly, running
his fingers up and down the stem of the wine glass. “You want me to go?” he
asked.

“I can’t offer you anything,” Allie continued, ignoring the
question. “I should never have let things go as far as they did. I shouldn’t
have agreed to meet you in the first place,” she told him, hot tears beginning
to spill onto her cheeks. “Sooner or later, this has got to end.” Sniffing she
tried to hold back the droplets that trailed zigzag patterns down her cheeks.
“I think it might be better for both of us, if we just end it now.”

Scraping his chair backwards on the tiled floor, Reece shot
to his feet. Allie had half-expected him to just turn around and march out of
the door, but he rounded the table and crouched beside her. Placing one hand on
her leg and the other curled around her chin, he turned her to face him.
“Allie, what’s going on?” he asked.

“Nothing,” she sniffed, trying to remove her face from her
grasp.

Reece refused to let go. “I know you’re lying to me,” he
responded flatly. “Look, whatever it is, you can tell me.”

“I can’t,” she sobbed, the dam breaking and tears flowing
with abandon.

“Yes, you can,” he insisted firmly. “Are you pregnant? Did
you kill someone? Are you on drugs? Is your husband coming home any minute?”

No longer able to form intelligible words, Allie made
abortive attempts to answer. However, to Reece a reply wasn’t necessary at that
moment. Shuffling onto his knees, he placed his arms around her waist and
pulled her towards him. Allie moved without any fight, her arms quickly
clamping around his neck and embracing him furiously, as she continued to sob
into his neck. For several minutes, they clung to one another like that, Reece
gently rocking her and whispering nonsense words of comfort.

Eventually, still weeping heavily, Allie began to press her
lips to Reece’s neck and the top of his collarbone, which was visible in his
T-shirt. As she continued to nibble, and lick at his skin, her sobs softened.

“Allie,” he nudged, rubbing his hand reassuringly over the
small of her back. “It’s okay.”

Her lips moved up the side of his neck, sucking on the thin
layer of flesh. “I need you,” she gasped breathlessly, starting a trail up his
chin.

“Allie,” he breathed, torn between his desire to comfort her
and the need to finish their conversation. “Maybe we should…”

“Please Reece,” she begged her mouth teasing at the corners
of his lips.

His tongue reflexively ran along his bottom lip and tasted
her salty tears. Slowly, he released his tight hold of her waist and lifted his
hands to her face. Cradling her head in both of his large hands, he drew his
thumbs under her eyes, wiping away most of the tears that had spilled there.
“Whatever it is,” he said softly. “We can get through it together.”

Almost imperceptible, Allie shook her head.

“So, this is it?” he asked. The question was spoken quietly
and without accusation.

“I’m so sorry,” she whimpered.

Reece inhaled a jagged breath. “What do you want from me
now? One last fuck?” He was hurt, that much was evident and Allie didn’t blame
him for that. And that had, after all, been the original plan. Except it wasn’t
‘fucking’.

“It was never just sex,” she stated calmly, fresh tears
stinging at the backs of her eyes.

Reece’s fingers slowly slipped from her face. “I’m not so
sure any more,” he shook his head, as he rose to his feet. “I mean, if you
can’t talk to me…If you don’t trust me,” he added. “Then, what the hell has
this all been about?”

Leaping to her feet, Allie grasped his forearm, sensing that
he was about to make a move for the door. “It’s not about trust,” she
countered. “You know I trust you.”

“Then why can’t you tell me?” he yelled in frustration.

“It’s not that simple,” she screamed back.

“Why not?” Reece snapped.

“Because I think I’m falling in love with you,” she
returned, the words flowing before she had time to think about the
consequences, let alone stop them.

Residual anger caused Reece’s chest to rise and fall in
jerky heaves, as he gradually processed her blurted admission. It was said too
quickly to have been a ploy, it was too nonsensical in regard to the things
she’d been saying just moments before to have been a lie. In fact, he could see
the panicked look on her face, which told him she wished she could take the
profession back.

Allie waited anxiously for his response, her heart pounding
violently against her ribcage.

Unhurriedly, he opened his mouth. “Why does that make things
harder?” he asked calmly.

Shaking her head, Allie avoided his eyes. “I can’t explain,”
she said.

For the first time in the few weeks they’d been seeing each
other, Reece began to sense that she did indeed want to tell him whatever it
was she was keeping hidden. Her eyes were pleading him to understand, her face
hopeful that he wouldn’t just call her a ‘bitch’ and walk out of her life. He
wanted to reassure her that his feelings hadn’t changed. And yet, words seemed
cheap, ineffectual.

Giving in to a drive that had compelled him from the very
moment he met her, Reece quickly closed the three steps between them. Wrapping
his arms round her, he covered her mouth with his own, while pushing her
backwards.

Caught completely off guard, Allie stumbled backwards, her
butt meeting the edge of her kitchen table.

As Reece clasped and unclasped his lips wetly over Allie’s,
he reached behind her and blindly swept his hand from left to right. There came
a cacophony of noise as silverware hit the floor, plates and glasses smashed
and the heavy half-full bottle shattered, splashing Reece’s blue jeans with red
wine.

Placing his hands on her hips, he lifted her with ease, onto
the small surface of the table. Placing himself between her legs, Reece gripped
the front of Allie’s casual button-down shirt and ripped it open.

Everything was happening so fast that she couldn’t preempt
his next move. However, Allie shrugged out of the torn shirt, trying
desperately to keep her mouth connected to his.

Reece’s hands traveled to her waist, where he found the top
of her black pants. With deft fingers, he unfastened a small button at the top
of the pants, before pulling down a delicate little zipper. Allie could feel
him tugging at the black fabric of her panties, she lifted one cheek off the
table and then the other, helping him slide the clothing down her legs.

“I want you,” Reece muttered, forced to remove his lips from
Allie’s, while he pulled the clothes down to her ankles. Once there, he
abandoned them in his hurry to unfasten his own pants. The black leather belt
and fly was quickly opened and, with the help of Allie’s hands, the jeans and
his boxers were shoved off his hips. Gravity helped them down his thighs and
his impressive erection sprang free.

“Wait, wait, wait,” Allie gabbled, placing her hands on his
shoulders to prevent him closing the space between them. Her hands trembling
violently, she clumsily grasped his shirt and tugged it over his head.

Realizing what she wanted, Reece took over, sliding the
shirt off with ease and tossing it into the pool of clothes at his feet.
“Okay,” he asked breathlessly.

“Yes,” she panted in reply, spreading her thighs as wide as
she could in welcome.

Reece was desperate to be inside her, but he hesitated. An
annoying part of him, felt compelled to ask whether he was doing the right
thing. Brushing it aside, he realized it probably didn’t matter anyway. After
this, he and Allie may never see each other again. So, he wanted to make sure
he made the most of every second he had left with her.

Wrapping the fingers of his right hand around his shaft, he
shuffled forwards, until the tip was nestled against Allie’s sex. “I’m sorry I
yelled at you,” he breathlessly said, holding himself completely still.

 Allie was blindsided by the apology, and had been staring
down at where their bodies were about to become one. “That’s okay,” she quickly
dismissed.

“No, it’s not okay,” he insisted. “I shouldn’t have lost my
temper.”

“It’s all right,” she repeated. “You have every right to be
angry with me.”

“I’m not so sure,” he said, his hands delicately tracing the
cup of her lacy black bra. “Maybe you’ve been more honest with me than I’ve
been with you.”