My thoughts turned into nothing as Callum pressed me against the side of the car.
“You will be fine. We’ll be fine. Take my lead and have fun. There’s nothing to be nervous of. I won’t pull any tricks, Stella. You can trust me that I will always try to be honest with you.”
I knew that and I appreciated that he was trying to soothe my nerves. “You’re a good man, I know. No need to show me twice.”
Callum smirked, making me ogle his darkly angelic beauty. “I’m not all good. I’m sure you know the usual bits I get myself into, but with you, I’ll give it a shot.”
Was I really swooning? Bugger.
“Oh, by the way, I thought we might need this.” Callum pulled something out of his pocket. A ring. “I wasn’t sure what you liked, but I had noticed that you weren’t a fan of diamonds, so I got you an emerald instead. I noticed that your mother had a sapphire one, so I thought this was the closest thing I could get you.”
My head simply nodded, speechless at his thoughtfulness.
The drive to his family home was a mere five-minute drive from where he had pulled over. If I thought I was nervous before, I had been wrong. Because the moment his mother appeared in the foyer to greet us, I was thoroughly inspected before she gave me air kisses.
How the hell am I to survive a week here if I was being scrutinized like a specimen already?
~S~
Okay, maybe I overreacted a bit. His mother, Bernice, wasn’t as terrifying as I thought at first. She actually had an odd sense of humor; it was off beat to say the least. I found it endearing that she would even try. Doris, his grandmother, was simply over the moon that Callum had actually found a woman to settle down with. Callum was minimal on the touchy feely side, however he was attentive and didn’t leave my side once.
Our first night together… let’s just say that he and I both got drunk and immediately passed out the moment we saw the bed. I wasn’t sure if it was intentional or not, although at this point, I didn’t want to sit and ponder on the subject.
My nerves were already strung out as it was.
Now, it was our second night together and I was working when I heard him enter. I didn’t even look up as we both said hi to each other. I suppose we had gotten comfortable rather quickly.
“Are you up for a dip in the Jacuzzi?” Callum yelled out somewhere in the room.
Was I? I was working to put together a Fashion Show for Lucia’s mother’s annual charity event. It was in three months time and there was still a lot of work to be done.
But…
Though it was our second night, he hadn’t said anything about my ‘problem’ and I suppose a quick dip in the hot tub would help. I really needed to convince him; not in a sexual way, but more on the argument side of things. After all, how hard was it for a man to just shove his darn thing in and get it over with really? I wanted my damn chastity gone. It seemed like it was the culprit for my unlucky strike in the boyfriend department.
Sliding off the chaise lounge, I strolled towards the closet. “I could possibly join you for a bit.” My upbeat confidence took a nosedive when I saw him walk out of the bathroom donning navy Armani swimwear. Bugger.
“Lovely. Do you prefer indoors or outdoors?” Callum asked, confusing me even more.
I bit my lip, trying not to blush from his question. He probably was thinking about the tub, but I sure as hell wasn’t. “Outdoors.”
“What do you fancy? Champagne? Wine? Or are we hitting hard liquor tonight?”
“Hard liquor and champagne, please.” Moving to the dark side, my mind butted in.
If he was surprised at my choice of alcohol, the man didn’t even blink twice. Instead, he smiled at me wickedly. “Sounds like my kind of night.”
Something better happen tonight or I was going to die of wonderment and frustration.
It didn’t take me long to change into my black two-piece swimsuit. Walking outside, I grinned at him while he was lounging in the jacuzzi, both hands stretched out while his head tilted back, stargazing.
“It’s a beautiful, warm night,” I commented as I dipped my toe in the pool of water.
When I cocked my head to the side, Callum had his tongue curled on his bottom lip, slightly biting it as his eyes lingered over my body.
Yeah, think of sex, why don’t you? I needed this over and done with, I wickedly mused.
My eyes caught the bottle of champagne and vodka, amongst the others. I went to get both before I finally let myself sink into the water.
“Feel like sharing a shot with me?” I was smiling when I offered the shot to him, however when I saw his face, my confidence immediately declined.
He looked menacing.
Volatile.
Predatory.
“What should we toast?” he asked, sounding like a man out for seduction. “Here’s to us, Stella.” Callum lifted his glass, toasting mine. “May the next coming days fill you with an extraordinary experience.” He took care to make emphasis on that word.
Oh yeah, this man was onto something. Hopefully, he was onto me; on top, preferably.
After two more chilled shots, I was on fire. Well, technically my body was wired… the need to be touched was getting acute as the seconds ticked by.
“Cal…” I licked my lips, thirsty for him. “I’m waiting,” I whispered, heady and intoxicated as much from the alcohol as from the images of our naked bodies touching.
Callum looked like he was debating, but finally managed to give me an answer after a full minute of silence. “We ought to take this slowly.”
That was a good start. “How slow is slow, Callum?”
He shrugged, brushing his hair to the side. He was the epitome of sexy, disheveled hotness. “Couple more days?”
That was going to take forever! “You’re not serious? What’s the delay? I could pretty well do it myself! Just pull your boxers down and I’ll do the bloody deed.”
I wasn’t bluffing, either, because I was at the tipping point.
Callum gave me a scathing glare. “All right. I’m a tad reluctant; petrified even. I’ve never had a virgin before. As I stated to you last, these things are alien to me.”
He was… scared? Hell. “Well, f**k.”
“Oh, don’t be daft! I will do it,” Callum grunted, sipping his drink awhile. “I just need to get used to the idea. We might need to practice or something.”
Any ideas, I was open to try. “Okay… like how?” I wondered out loud, dragging the damn question out until the rogue playboy got his wits about himself.