Chapter 18

"Come inside, I'm just about to jump in the shower," Sascha commanded, hanging up the call before I could respond.

I stared down at my phone in disbelief. She was supposed to be ready. That was the deal we made last night before I bailed on her at Uni Bar.

After failing to calm myself down and then walking out of the bathroom to see the girls who'd laughed when their friend spilled their drink on me flirting with Justin, I said a few quick goodbyes and left. It was cowardly, but I didn't have the courage to deal with what happened between us at the time; I was in way over my head.

I wasn't sure I had the courage now either, but it seemed I didn't have a choice.

I looked through my car window at Justin's terrace house. I was currently parked across the road waiting for Sascha, who spent the night with Dale. Apparently, Saturday mornings at this house were becoming a regular thing. At least I wasn't waking up in someone else's bed today.

A thought wandered through my mind. If I'd given in, or if we weren't interrupted, would I have woken up in this house? Did I want to wake up here?

I shook my head, trying to rid my mind of the procrastination. I had to face him. Maybe he wouldn't say anything. Maybe it was just a heat of the moment thing and he'd forgotten all about our almost kiss. Maybe he was still sleeping, and I wouldn't have to see him at all. Yes, that was likely. It was only 8am on a Saturday morning.

Taking a deep breath, I got out of the car, locked it, and crossed the road to the small, paved garden. I walked with feigned confidence up the short pathway and didn't hesitate when I knocked on the door.

It was only a short wait before someone opened the door. Darcy smiled when she saw me, but it seemed strained. She held her phone to her ear and was listening to whoever was on the other end.

Darcy waved me in and pointed towards the living room. I followed her direction and caught part of her conversation as she closed the door. "Em, please don't be like that."

Her tone was intriguing, but I didn't get a chance to hear anything else. As I stepped into the living room, I froze. Justin was there, and not only was he awake, but he was hanging upside down on the couch with a guitar in his hands.

He smiled when he saw me. "Morning."

"What are you doing?" I giggled, stepping further into the room. My nerves seemed to vanish when I saw him. Maybe it was the peculiar position I found him in.

Justin sat upright and placed the guitar on an armchair. "Just practising for Darcy's gig." He had to mean the gig that was the same night as the wedding.

"You play the guitar, too?" I asked in surprise. Drums and guitar? "Let me guess, you can sing as well."

He shrugged and gave a sheepish grin. "I also play the tambourine."

"Impressive," I laughed. And it really was. Of course he could play multiple instruments and sing. I shouldn't have expected anything less.

We lulled into an awkward silence, and I waited for the inevitable. Maybe I should start. Things would be on my terms, then. But what was I supposed to say?

Justin beat me to it. "Do you have time for a coffee?" he asked, standing up.

I released a heavy breath in relief. I had a few more moments to figure it out. "If Sass only just got in the shower, then sure," I smiled.

"Great," he said and walked to the kitchen. I followed and sat down on one of the stools at the counter.

I'd seen Justin make coffee before, but it was still mesmerising. Well, maybe he was just mesmerising, and his coffee-making skills were a bonus. He looked good in the morning, with his plaid pyjama pants and plain white shirt. He usually wore darker colours, and he always looked good in them, but there was something about the white that made him look... different.

To distract myself from ogling too much, I asked about his music. "So, seeing as you play all these instruments and apparently can sing, have you ever thought about making it a career?" For someone so talented, he seemed so humble. He was so focused on his business degree and working for his father's company, I had to wonder about his priorities.

"When I was younger, I thought about it," he admitted, opening the fridge to retrieve the milk. "Is full-cream okay?" he asked, holding up the bottle. "We don't have light or skim."

I nodded. "That's fine. So, you're not interested in doing the Dale-Darcy thing and making something out of it? You seem to have the talent."

He shrugged again; his humble side still prominent. "Plenty of people can play instruments and sing, but I'm happy just doing it casually. For fun."

We stopped talking for a moment as he frothed the milk. When it was finished, he poured it into the mugs and handed me one. He quickly wiped down the machine and then led the way back to the living room where he sat down on the couch, leaving a space for me.

I took the seat next to him without hesitation, crossing one leg over the other. I was wearing my uniform and my pencil skirt, while made of stretchy material, was still somewhat restrictive. We sat in silence for a while, sipping our coffee. It was nice; he did a good job making it. My mug was half empty by the time I said something.

I'm not sure what made me ask. Maybe it was our proximity, or the way his chest faced me as he sat with his arm across the back of the couch, one leg curled in front of him, the other hanging off the edge. It was right in front of my face, peeking out from the V-neck of his shirt. I'd wanted to know for a while, and I felt strangely confident for some reason.

"What's your tattoo?" I asked, avoiding looking down at where it hid by placing my mug on the coffee table.

When I turned back, he was watching me, the corner of his lips twitching upwards.

"It's my mum," he said softly.

I must have looked confused because he started pulling at the edge of the neckline, trying to show a little more of his tattoo. When that didn't work, he grabbed the hem and pulled it up to his shoulder.

That showed me more of the tattoo, plus other things. I swallowed discreetly, keeping my eyes focused on the ink, trying to avoid staring at the other wonders of his body, like the soft lines of his abs and the enticing curves of his chest. It was a lovely, and completely unexpected floral pattern, done beautifully in black and white, fading in all the right places.

Apparently, only showing part of his tattoo wasn't enough. When he struggled to pull the hem up high enough to show the ink disappearing beneath the fabric at his shoulder, he reached behind his back with one hand and tugged the shirt off in one swift move.

Now he was half naked, and completely ogle-worthy, and I had a really hard time keeping a giddy smile from surfacing.

And then, because I was feeling unusually confident, or perhaps because I'd gone completely mental and wasn't thinking straight, I reached up to trace the beautiful petals.

Justin shivered beneath my fingertips, and I pulled back, looking up at him in shock. "Sorry," I apologised, completely mortified. I couldn't believe I did that.

Sensing my panic, he gave me a genuine smile, but that just made it worse. "It's fine."

Was it, though? Because I didn't feel fine.

After a short bout of awkward silence, he continued. "It's not what you expected, right?"

I shook my head, not sure what I was expecting. "It's a surprise," I admitted, looking up from the tattoo. "But it makes sense."

"Yeah?"

I nodded. "I think I remember your mum's name. It was Lilian, wasn't it?"

Justin seemed thoughtful, and a little sad. "It was."

I reached up to trace some of the leaves on his chest, up to the edge of his collarbone and to his shoulder. He shivered again, as if he wasn't expecting my touch, but I didn't pull away this time, even though I could feel my heart rate going crazy. I was touching Justin's naked chest!

"Hence the bouquet of lilies."

He glanced down at his tattoo, an air of fondness in his tone. "She liked lilies, white ones, and it's sort of like writing her name without actually writing it."

Losing a parent so young wasn't easy. I could empathise, sort of. We experienced different types of loss, but pain was pain, and the absence hurts.

My hand found its way to his knee in comfort. I looked up at him, hoping my words were enough. "I think it's beautiful."

He looked me over with those gorgeous blue eyes, like he was searching for something, his expression unreadable. Then he reached up to tuck some hair behind my ear, which was pointless seeing as it was pinned back off my face perfectly. The tingles I felt where our skin met were also kind of perfect.

It was difficult to keep eye contact with him. His eyes were so intense, I felt the need to look away, but I didn't. I couldn't.

His hand moved to rest against my jaw when he spoke softly. "You know, I've been wanting to do something for a while now, but..." he trailed off, like he was changing his mind.

Part of me knew Justin shouldn't finish that sentence, but the other part was sort of desperate to hear him say it.

"But we seem to get interrupted every time I try," he continued, a little worry seeping into his tone as he brushed a thumb gently over my cheek.

I sucked in an unsteady breath. He was talking about last night on the dance floor, with the grinding and the tension, and the almost kiss before we were covered in alcohol. There was also the time beside the harbour. We'd come close before a random intruded on the moment, and I think I wanted it then, too. Sort of like I wanted it last night, and how I wanted it now.

I'd walked in today expecting to talk to him about our almost kiss, but this wasn't going as planned. This was a stupid idea, being this close. There were so many consequences on the line here. I really shouldn't give in, but Emily's words from last night found their way to the forefront of my mind.

There's only one way to find out.

Find out what, exactly, I didn't know.

Justin was closer now, leaning in, eyes searching for my reaction. It was like he was waiting for something. I looked down just as his tongue darted out to lick his lips. The sight of such a simple, yet insanely sensual, act was enough.

I glanced back into his tentative eyes. "So stop hesitating," I whispered. And then I pressed my lips to his.

I'd imagined kissing Justin many times, but in all those torturous daydreams, I never predicted how soft his lips would be.

Surprised for only a moment, Justin smiled against my lips before kissing me back. His warm hand moved from my jaw to the back of my neck, pulling me closer as he deepened the kiss. He tasted like coffee and sweetness, and something I'd never experienced before.

In the back of my mind I knew we shouldn't be doing this, but now that the ship had sailed, I was onboard. My hands splayed across his bare chest before finding their way to the nape of his neck and into his short, ruffled hair. He smiled again, briefly breaking our rhythm as his hands moved down to my waist.

He squeezed gently and lifted me without effort, pulling me into his lap. My tight skirt rode up as I moved to straddle him, the fabric straining as my knees rested on either side of him.

Justin's eyes glistened as they looked me over, resting briefly on his hands as they brushed the top of my bare thighs and found their way back to my waist. His mouth met mine again with an eagerness that I matched. In this position, I was closer to him than ever.

I gasped into his mouth when his hips jerked, and I felt his excitement beneath me.

"Sorry," he mumbled between kisses, brazen and not slowing down.

Instinctively, I ground against him, pressing my hips firmly against his.

Justin's moan sent a new type of thrill through me as his lips broke away from mine, mouth moving to my jaw, leaving a trail of hot kisses down my neck.

"That was cheeky," he whispered, tone low and laced with something that made me feel even bolder.

So, I did it again.

Hi there!

Thanks so much for reading. I hope this chapter was okay. It's been a while since I've written anything along these lines, but I enjoyed it. Your feedback is encouraged and always welcomed, so please let me know what you think.

Ellie is feeling a little braver than usual, and she and Justin are getting closer. I feel excited and nervous for the upcoming chapters.

Hoping you are well,

Kate