Exclusive Love (British Billionaires Series) (15 page)

‘What about when you screamed at me when I offered to help clean up the broken glass,’ Katy’s voice was on the verge of sobs.

‘I’m not sorry about that, but I’d like to explain.’

Oscar continued.

‘I was furious with you. Completely consumed by how I was appearing in front of my friends. I think what frustrated me was that I couldn’t control you, which is no bad thing. I’m used to pulling the strings. Sometimes I forget I’m not the puppet master. It was a valuable lesson. When you emphasized your desire to talk things through, I thought I’d explode in embarrassment—especially when the glass broke.

‘You, Katy, were just you. Happy to wade in to help. Acknowledge what happened and rectify it. Imogen and Rupert were never going to let you do that, but when you were insistent you started to stand. Forgive me for saying, but you’ve been wobbly on those heels all night. That, thrown into the equation vast quantities of alcohol, emotional upset and your rushing to help, I had a mental picture of you falling or losing your shoes and cutting yourself badly. I wasn’t saying ‘No, don’t help’. It was a ‘No, don’t move you might cut yourself.’

‘I want to say sorry and make up but I don’t know what to apologize for,’ sniffled Katy.

‘You don’t owe me an apology that’s why.’

‘I’m sorry I upset you. I’m sorry if I hurt you. I’m sorry I made you sad. I’m sorry if I embarrassed you in front of your friends. I’m sorry for myself, I made a bad impression.’

‘You didn’t. They think you’re great.’

‘I felt as though you expected me to sit there not complaining. You wanted me applauding your restrained, inhibited, crippled British emotional expression which prevents you from submitting an online form saying you found love on Exclusive Love.com. When it came to my cultural instinct to confront the issue, talk it out, resolve it to move on, it felt like you were unable to respect my country’s customs.

If I’m honest, part of me felt you were putting Rupert and Imogen above me. It was as if their feelings of awkwardness were far more important to you than alleviating my distress. It mirrored your concern that Imogen and Rupert knowing the status of your love life was more relevant than considering how I might feel meeting a friend you’ve known since before I was born.’

‘You know that’s crazy, right? You mean more to me than anyone. More to me than anyone I’ve ever had a relationship with.’

‘Yes, I know that. What was happening was this cultural clash of your behaving formally and internalizing and my upbringing from an open house conducive to sharing and discussing.’

‘Contrary to what you might think, though we’d never admit it, there are times when we Brits are jealous of the ease with which you do confront and tackle issues head-on. As Imogen said, I can’t assume that because we speak the same native tongue that we aren’t actually foreigners. We are going to have to learn, accustom and manage those areas on which we collide. It will take time. They’ll only come out over the course of our relationship.’

‘Wise words Mr. Woodruff.’

‘And what wisdom did Robert impart to you?’

‘He was slick. Straight in as the concerned, protective stranger. Dissing Imogen and Rupert, causing a divide saying they didn’t care to bother checking up on me.’

‘Imogen was first out of the chair.’

Her brown eyes acknowledged she’d heard and believed Oscar.

‘Started describing your behavior as disgraceful and abusive.’

‘I’m not particularly proud of the way I conducted myself.’

‘Then says you aren’t prepared to work on our relationship. You’ll break my heart because you intend to leave the country without me. I’m your favorite waste of time for your New York sojourn. He’s given me his number if I need to confide or talk to someone. Finishes by telling me his home address is on the card and if I ever want to stop dating Daddy-O and have a real man, I’m to drop by his place.’

Katy handed him the card. Oscar scoffed. The contact details were all present and correct, but the card made no allusion to his line of business.

‘Do you think he hands these out to everybody?’ asked Katy as Oscar passed back the card.

‘Probably. I can’t fault his taste in women. Strangely I even respect he has the balls to make a play for you while I’m here, but I’m not impressed with how he’s behaved towards you.’

‘What a sleaze.’

The three words accompanied Katy’s snap of the wrist as she flicked the card overboard and watched the sea suck the credit-card sized white piece of cardboard below.

Chapter Sixteen

The rising sun and beautiful pink and orange pending sunrise, woke Oscar from his sleep. Rubbing his eyes, he was shocked to find himself lying on the beachfront outside the cabin. Becoming alert to the situation, his movements were sharper and distinct. His shifting woke Katy, who was equally surprised at the location they’d chosen to sleep in.

Finding a bottle with her hand, Katy’s eyes stayed shut tight till accustomed to the sun. Smelling the open bottle, she gagged at the stench. Blindly passing it to Oscar, she awaited his analysis.

‘At what point in last night’s proceedings did you and I think it was an advantageous idea to take a final bottle of red wine home to share?’ he asked incredulously.

‘I don’t know but that red, red wine doesn’t make me feel so fine.’

‘That red, red wine went straight to our heads as I recall,’ he agreed. ‘What possessed us to sleep out here? Why go to the effort?’

Oscar’s question was rhetorical. Roused, Katy was able to take in their surroundings.

‘I’m not sure we made it into to the house. The doors are closed and locked. This is the blanket we had brunch on yesterday.’

‘That feels an age ago,’ reminisced Oscar.

‘I’m sure the red wine, warm blanket and twinkling stars were ever so romantic. I guess we must’ve lost the inclination to take ourselves into the house.’

‘Lost the inclination or passed out drunk?’

‘Sadly the latter,’ guessed Katy. ‘I bet we talked for ages, resolved the problems of the world, allayed every insecurity and mapped out a future before we fell asleep.’

‘Can you remember us talking?’

‘No, but I know what we’re like. I feel happy waking up next to you. I’m not getting any unfriendly or ‘be prepared to be dumped by text later’ vibes, so I assume you feel the same. In which case, everything between us is fine. We should carry on forward, side by side, step by step, holding hands.’

‘You are a sentimentalist at heart aren’t you? The  bravado is an act for that tender heart of yours.’

‘Oscar, I’m too hungover to be cross with you. Don’t goad me.’

‘Admit you’re a sentimentalist and I’ll stop.’

‘Fine I may be, very rarely, slightly sentimental,’ she ceded.

‘You know what you always are?’

‘What?’

‘A sexual temptress.’

Oscar climbed on top of her, pinning her to the grass.

‘Sadly, I’m far too weak a man to resist temptation,’ he surrendered.

He kissed her. Tired, hungover, weary from the antics of last night, Katy was surprised to find herself responding hungrily. Kissing on beach at dawn was a luscious start to the week. Oscar wanted far more from her. Despite Katy’s unwavering confidence in their relationship, Oscar knew his pigheadedness and difficulty accepting someone publicly challenging him had put their relationship at risk. He shivered in fear at having recklessly putting it on the line for the sake of pride.

Urged to consummate and celebrate the love he had for this divine creature, he reached to tug her dress up.

‘Oscar, no!’ barked Katy as if disciplining a mutt.

Rolling off her, he stopped in a flash.

‘Not in this dress. It costs a fortune. I’ve only worn I once. However much I love you, I cannot have you tearing it.’

‘Fine,’ he grumbled. ‘Tell me how to get it off then?’

‘Let’s go inside.’

‘No. Let’s stay here,’ he pleaded, drawing her to his chest, wrapping his legs round hers.

Faces together, the unspoken dare to continue was laid down. Tracing his hand along her back, from the stiffening of her spine Oscar located where the zip was. Finely hidden in the seam of the dress, his fingers were adept. Pleasingly, Katy reacted unconsciously when she heard the zip lowering.

Burying his head in her neck, he sucked hard to produce a teenage love-bite.

‘Oscar seriously, the only way to access me is by being completely out of the dress.’

‘Let’s get to work then.’

Sitting cross legged next to her, on her back Katy knew she was unable to escape or prevent the inevitable strip. He tugged the sleeves over her shoulders, easing the dress down effortlessly until it reached her hips. Cursing, he respectfully appreciated no matter how strong the desire to make love was, he couldn’t indulge himself to tear the dress from her as he’d like to have done.

Smugly Katy knew Oscar would have his work cut out removing the dress from under her buttocks to slide it off her legs, unless she assisted.

‘Please?’

His voice was meek. Raising her hips so he could slide the dress off, Katy couldn’t deny what she needed as much as Oscar. Indecently exposed, aware of the potential embarrassment and criminal repercussions, second thoughts pervaded Katy’s mind.

‘I thought you were a reserved British billionaire?’

‘I’m learning to try new things. Become more open with my emotional expression.’

‘You said you were a gentleman, what about my modesty?’

‘Oh, shut up and kiss me, Katy. No more excuses.’

Oscar pulled the blanket over the two of them, Katy thought it was indeed an opportunity to expand her sexual repertoire. The sound and smell of the sea, the twittering of the birds, the sensation of sand and grass under the thick blanket and the unrelenting attentions of Oscar forced her to succumb. Losing herself to his lips and ravenous mouth, she noted Oscar had conveniently chosen to remain fully dressed. It may have saved his blushes, but she craved connecting with his flesh.

Shirt already outside his trousers, Katy made a start firmly drawing her hands up his muscular back. The smooth, taut skin felt as splendid on the way down as it did coming up. Totally at Oscar’s mercy, she was curious and gleeful as he kissed a trail from her lips, to the base of her neck, through her capacious cleavage, over her toned stomach. Squirming in accordance with the southerly direction of his kisses, Katy was obliged to spread her legs to allow him to continue on the same route. Pausing at her trimmed mound, she could hear him inhaling her scent and felt his breath on her pubic triangle.

Welcoming the attention, she mewled as his tongue brushed over her nub. Teasing the bud he flicked, licked, sucked and nibbled. Exerting pressure and rotating his head slightly he performed delicate, intricate maneuvers on her. The rising of her buttocks and widening of her legs signaled her climax. Postponing it slightly, he let his tongue dance round her slippery plump lips. Tormenting her entrance, lapping at her juices she moaned when he forced the tip of his tongue inside. He returned straight away to her sensitive bud, holding it firmly between his teeth as she thrashed sensually in reaction to his oral devotion.

Rock hard, he used Katy’s orgasm recovery, to unzip and release his erection. Gliding it directly into her slit, the tightening of her muscles accepting his shaft compelled him to groan. Taking advantage of missionary position, he individually took each breast in his mouth to bite her nipples till they were hard. Satisfactorily turned on, Katy grooved in motion with his delving hard-on as an active participant.

Recovered, she bashfully made eye contact with Oscar. As his hips dipped and gyrated, he let himself connect with the spirit inside her. The intensity of the slow, tantric shafting had them giddy. Katy laced her legs round his waist for maximum penetration. That she was needy for the entire erection to be in her, mustered a burst of new energy in Oscar. Rushing, his hips jerked in hasty penetration. Unable to contend with his ramming, Katy’s legs bracketed tighter as a vice on his waist to keep up. Shaking, jolted, smothered by Oscar’s body, stretched by his cock, Katy’s hands went under his shirt. Dragging her long nails across his back till they made him cry out in pain, Oscar climaxed.

Exhausted he collapsed on her.

‘You’re squashing me. Get off. You need to get me home today.’

‘That’s not your real concern. The sun is up and the dog walkers will soon be out,’ grinned Oscar.

Shoving him, she made haste for the house in case his prediction proved correct.