Hanging by a Moment (From this Moment Book 1) (9 page)

I cannot bear this any longer, turning my face to meet his. Reading the expression on my face, his lips find mine in an urgent heated all consuming kiss. I turn myself around to face him and his hands crush me against his heated body. His tongue invades my mouth urgently dancing with mine seductively as he kisses me deep and hard. I give him everything I have.

My hands are eager to touch him. They travel down the hard ridges of his tummy - hidden by this should-be-illegal-to-cover-up-such-a-sexy-body sweater - coming to rest inches from his belt. Through his sweater I feel the wetness from his body. His lips leave mine and travel down my neck sucking and licking as he moves lower, to the pulse point at the base of my neck.

My body is scorching and my mind is mentally picturing us naked, wrapped up in each other. That painful throb is back between my legs and my panties are damp.
Oh God I want him!
Right here, right now.

And just like that he pulls away from me. Releasing not only his lips but his hands too, leaving me cold.
And now what?

I look up at him with confused eyes.

“What are you doing to me?” He clenches his eyes shut as he tries to steady his breath. I see the turmoil in his eyes as they slowly open.  “I want you so fucking bad right now it hurts.”

“So why did you stop?” The words spill out of my mouth. Oh God! I sound so desperate. My subconscious reminds that I am desperate... it has been a while.

He shakes his head. His fingers trail gently over my cheek. “Because this is not the way it should be.”

His response hurts me in a way I can’t understand. Just what kind of sick game is he playing with me? He wants me but then he is looking all confused like he is not sure he wants me. He probably does not. Tears sting the back of my eyes and I need to put some distance between us. I need to get away from him. I turn to walk away but he grabs my shoulders, stopping me.

His face is close to me and I feel his hot breath on my cheeks. “That did not come out right. What I meant was... I want you so bad I was seconds away from dragging you into the toilet and fucking you hard against the door.”
Yes, yes, finally yes!

He tucks a lock of my hair behind my ear. “But you deserve better, princess.” His hand rakes through his dark hair leaving it more ruffled.

I am speechless as I register what he has just said.
He wants me.
He feels the same way and I’m drooling. “Well, thank you for being a gentleman.” I whisper.

“Trust me I’m no gentleman.” He states flatly.

Oh, that’s where you are wrong, Mr Greyson.
You definitely came across as a white knight saving a damsel in distress, I think to myself. Opening my mouth, I say the first thing that comes into my mind. “I need a drink.”
Hello?!

He tugs my hand, threading his fingers through mine, dragging me behind him as he makes his way to the bar.

He orders me a bottle of water.
Huh!

I roll my eyes. “I want a glass of wine.” I complain.

He frowns at me. “I think you had enough to drink tonight.” He replies flatly and I already know I’m not going to win this argument.

I shrink in humiliation, my face flush, he is right. I’ve had more alcohol tonight than I normally do. And whose fault is that? “Thank you,
daddy
.” I mock at him as I take a sip of the ice cold water.

We make our way back to our table. Sitting down, he takes my hand in his, lacing our fingers together. “How about we have dinner tomorrow just the two of us?”

Instant heart failure.
Did Luke Greyson just ask me out on a date?
I didn’t see that one coming.
Am I dreaming?
If so, please do not let me wake up now. Why would he want to have dinner with me? My subconscious is in seventh heaven and is threatening me with her wooden spatula if I decline.

He cocks his eyebrow. “Do you need a few hours to think about it? He asks me with humour in his voice.

Shit! I’m making an ass of myself. I blush under his glare. “Okay.” I whisper.

I’m rewarded with a super sexy boyish grin. Raising my hand to his lips, he kisses the back of my palm. The rest of the gang makes their way to the table and we decide to call it a night.

Chapter Eight

Brit scampers into our room just as I return from my shower. I smile as I comb my long wet hair in front of the mirror. “Long night?” I grin at her.

Judging by the faint shadow under her eyes and her now crumpled coral dress from the night before, she smiles at me shaking her head. “You have no idea how
looong
.” She laughs at her own joke.

After a second she walks over to me turning me around. “Or perhaps you do! Don’t think I didn’t see you and Luke heat each other up on the dance floor. Spill, Emma Rose Horton
.
” She shrieks.

I shrug. “Nothing wrong with some harmless flirting.”

She playfully shoves me as she snorts. “
Harm-fucking-less!
You guys almost caused Trav and me to combust on the dance floor.”

I poke her arm as I laugh. “You and Trav combust easily enough whenever you are near each other.”

“So when are you seeing him again?”

“Dinner tonight. Just the two of us.” My eyes wide with excitement.

And we both squeal with laughter.

****

The butterflies in my tummy are doing somersaults as I open the door taking in the most beautiful sight ever. I’m sure my tongue is hanging out my mouth like a thirsty dog. In front of me is every girl’s fantasy... all rolled up into one gorgeous package.

Luke is leaning against the door frame clutching a huge bouquet of white calla lilies, smiling his super sexy grin at me. I take my time letting my eyes gobble him up as I admire the view before me.

He has on a white dress shirt that is undone at the collar – giving me a sneak peak of that sexy body underneath - tucked into dark gray pants.
Mmm.
Suddenly my heart is beating very very fast. He is looking spectacular as ever and I would rather have him for dinner instead.

I blush as he returns the favour by letting his sky blue eyes lazily slide down my body before returning them to my face.

He steps inside the small room, moving closer so he is standing a few inches from me filling my lungs with his minty fresh cologne. Lowering his head of tousled inky black hair, he gives me a sweet unhurried kiss on my lips.

“Hi.” He grins as he greets me, handing me the bouquet of lilies.

“Hi.” I smile back at him. Taking the flowers from him, I place them gently on my desk before grabbing my white clutch bag ready for the dinner reservations he has arranged at a restaurant that normally has a waiting list for at least two months. I guess it helps if your last name is Greyson.

“You look beautiful, princess.” His blue eyes twinkle as he looks me over appreciatively once again. I’m so glad I bought the new white cocktail dress on my last trip to Manhattan.

He laces his warm fingers through mine and walks me out to the parking lot.

The restaurant is elegant and situated on the dock overlooking the Hudson River. The man seated behind the grand piano is playing a classical piece that I remember hearing Brit’s dad listening to during my many visits to her home. The music and the rich decor create a classic and warm ambience, making it the perfect back drop for a romantic date.

I wonder how many other dates Luke wined and dined here. I am sure Miss Jameson must have been a regular. Maybe this was her favourite place and he only brought me here to remember the good times they once shared. My subconscious is in a boxing ring with Miss Jameson and lands a thundering punch at her, knocking her out cold.

The waiter guides to us a secluded table at the back of the massive room and Luke waits for me to slide onto the plush rich tan leather seat before sliding in behind me.

A shiver of excitement travels up my spine jolting every cell in my body alive when his leg brushes my bare thigh. I bite my bottom lip to keep from moaning out loud. The effect he is having on me is driving me crazy. Glancing at him, I see a mischievous grin at the corner of those luscious lips. He knows what he is doing and enjoying every bit of tormenting me.

He waits for the waiter to leave after writing down our order. When he speaks his voice is all velvety smooth. “So tell me about yourself.” He asks me as we wait for our drinks to arrive.

Where is that drink?
I roll the edges of the crisp white tablecloth between my thumb and forefinger. Licking my suddenly dry lips I contemplate my response. “What would you like to know?” I reply, keeping my voice as calm as possible.

“Do you have any siblings?”

“Are we going to play twenty questions?” I can’t stop my lips from forming a smile.

“It will be an interesting way to get to know you better.” He grins.

“Okay. I’m an only child. What about you?” I really do not know much about the Greysons, except that they own a global empire consisting of hotels and spas. There was never any reason for me to be interested in them... until recently.
Until a certain Mr Luke Greyson happened to come into my life.

The waiter arrives with our drinks – two glasses of white wine.

“I have an older brother and younger sister. Oliver has his own construction company and Chloe is studying to be a fashion consultant. Are your parents still in Manhattan?”

My subconscious faints. I take a big sip of my chilled wine. This time Brit is not here to rescue me so I have to answer his question. I’m always nervous when asked this question. Taking a breath to compose myself, I carefully select my words.

“My parents are currently in Sydney. Dad is a producer with the
Discovery Channel
and mom is his assistant.” Half truth anyway.
They actually dumped me here in Midland Falls before running off to tour the globe.
Now that would have been the whole truth.

His eyebrows rise. “Didn’t you want to go to Australia with them?”

No it is more like they didn’t want me with them.

“Um... no. Not really. Home is where Brit is.” The words are out before I can stop them, realising my mistake too late. I hope he does not read something there. I chomp on my lower lip as I wait for him to say something.

He frowns at me. “I was brought up to believe that home is where the family is.” A troubled look crosses his handsome face. “What gives? You have a messed up relationship with your parents?”

More like fucked up,
I think to myself and mentally laugh.

I am nervous and start to babble. “My dad’s job involves a lot of travel hence I spent a lot of time with Brit.” I quickly add. “Here at school then college. Travelling like they do, they decided it was best to ship me off to boarding school. What about your folks?” I change the topic putting the focus on him.

Luke is silent as the waiter arrives with our two plates of appetizing looking food. He answers my question as soon as the waiter leaves our table.

“My folks... well they were always around.” His eyes look a little far away for a split second. “Maybe a little too much.” He winks at me. He has no idea how much I envy him having parents who were always around. “Are you enjoying your meal?”

“This is absolutely delicious.” I dip a piece of my perfectly seared salmon in the rich lemon butter sauce. “Want to try some?” I hold the fork in front of him.

He leans forward to take the fork between his lips. My knees go weak when his pink tongue licks the little dribble of buttery sauce from his bottom lip.
I can lick your lip clean.
I lick my own lips in response.

“You right. It is delicious. But it is definitely not my favourite item at this table. And certainly not the most delicious.” He pins his eyes on me. They are darker than their normal shade of blue.

Help! I blush furiously.

He smiles.

“Do you miss your folks?” He asks as he cuts a piece of steak.

“Not really.” I answer. And it is an honest answer because I really don’t miss them. I have been on my own for a very long time... since I was in diapers.

“Why?”

“I’m used to being alone.” And I regret the words as soon as they come out.

He puts his fork down and turns to look at me, his eyes burning with curiosity. “Why were you left alone?”

Something about the way he looks at me warms me up inside, melting all the ice around my heart. I don’t know what it is but I feel like I can tell him. Without him judging me.

“They shipped me off to boarding school so they could travel the globe. And not have to be burdened with a child in tow.” I shake my head at the even tone of my voice remembering how hard it was for me to admit that when I was in boarding school. I used to hide away and cry a lot when I was a child, wishing my dad had a regular job like that of my friends.

His eyes look sad as his fingers stroke down the side of my cheek sending ripples of current throughout my body. “Well at least you didn’t have parents nagging you every day.”

Something I am grateful for. “Yes, my cloud had its silver lining.”

His hand clenches on the table. “After my parents divorced they were in my face all the time.”

His words surprise me. I had no idea his parents were divorced.  But then again I never had any reason to read the tabloid articles on the Greyson family.

“I had no idea your parents were divorced.”

He nods. “It destroyed my family.” I cover his hand, stroking him. “But my folks have always maintained a good front. They were high school sweethearts and continued to be best friends even after the divorce. Not pretending to have an amicable relationship for us kids... or the media. You are lucky you had all that time to yourself. If only we had that...“ His voice trails off. His blue eyes look preoccupied as he studies the thread count on the white table cloth.

“If only you had what?” I ask him.

His thigh tenses next to me. He flips our hands and laces his fingers through mine.

He exhales loudly.  “When my parents divorced there was way more attention on my brother and me.”

“What about your sister?”

His hand tightens over mine. His jaw is stiff. “She got lucky. The curse only affects the Greyson men.”

I’m not sure what he means so I press on for further details. “What curse?”

His eyes are cold and distant when he looks at me and he is quiet for a few seconds. “Are you a Yankee’s supporter?”

I notice he changes the topic. I don’t want to prod. He clearly does not want to talk about his parent’s divorce. I have a few friends whose parents are divorced so I know it is not easy. I very well know the feeling of coming from an unsettled home.

“Hell yeah!”
I tell him cheerfully. I see his jaw visibly relax. And I have Luke back to his usual self.

“Great. I’ll take you sometime. My family has box tickets.” He raises our clenched hands and drops a delicate kiss on my knuckles.
Oh my!

I wonder how many times Miss Jameson joined him in that box. Now I have to just stop and ask myself why I’m thinking about her. Just in time my subconscious swats her away.

“Okay.” I say in response.

Before he can ask me another question the waiter arrives to collect our empty plates.

One thing I know for sure is that I understand why there is a waiting list for this place. That reminds me to ask him how he managed to get us a reservation at such short notice.

“So how did you get us a reservation here? I know there is a waiting list.”

He shrugs. “I know people.” He smiles his heart stopping grin.

Of course!
I have no doubt about that.

Luke asks the waiter to bring us the dessert menu.

Miss Jameson recovers from her knocked out state to rear her ugly head up at me. I am unable to get her out of my head because I am curious to know what happened with them.

So I think carefully, picking my words wisely before dropping my bombshell. “So how many broken hearts did you leave behind at NYU?”

He looks at me calmly before answering. “None. I was not seeing anyone before I came out here.”

Now I know that is a lie because the magazine article did state that they broke up recently. Why would he lie? I don’t let him off the hook that easily. “But you must have had a girlfriend... maybe before that.”

His eyes look distant like as if he’s gone someplace far away. “Let us not go there.”

Whoa!
She must have hurt him really bad. This is worse than I imagined. But I can very well understand why he is reluctant to talk about her. I of all people can understand this.

And just when I think I’m lucky he did not question me about Ethan, his next question stumps me. I guess I asked for it.

“Are you over your ex?” He looks at me intently, his blue eyes burning into mine.

I take in a deep breath. I know Travis has definitely filled him in on every last gruesome detail of my relationship with Ethan.

“Yes.” I state with as much confidence as I can muster. And that is the truth. I don’t even know when it happened but I know it had something to do with a gorgeous blue eyed God. Who just so happens to be sitting next to me sharing air. I got over Ethan after he walked out on our two year relationship. What hurt me most was that he never tried to fight for us. I guess my pride was hurt more anything. But my pride picked herself off the floor and got back into her cherry red Louboutins the minute her eyes landed on a pair of sexy sky blue eyes.