One Night On The Virgin's Terms - Melanie Milburne Page 0,7

in the bedroom at her flat before her dinner date with Louis. Dinner date. Such strange words to be using when it came to her relationship with Louis. Normally they had a quick catch-up over coffee or lunch. Dinner sounded a lot more...intimate. But she wasn’t actually dating him. She was going to convince him to take her virginity, which would entail getting hot and sweaty with him.

A flutter of nerves erupted in her belly like a swarm of bumble bees. Getting naked with him. She smoothed a hand down her stomach. She hadn’t got naked with anyone. She’d come close a couple of times but had freaked out. But any reservations she had would have to be put aside. She had to do this. How else would she gain the experience she needed? She couldn’t face yet another dating disaster where a date wanted to take things to the next level and she bolted out the door like a Victorian prude.

The humiliating shame of her previous dates made her cringe on a daily basis. It had stopped her from venturing further into the dating world out of fear of further embarrassment. She’d had five dates and given up accepting any other invitations. Five dates! How pathetic was that? She didn’t know why she had become so sensually locked down but, ever since she’d hit puberty, the thought of sharing her body with someone had paralysed her with fear.

What if they didn’t like her body? What if she wasn’t the right shape or size? What if she didn’t do or say the right thing and they thought her a freak? What if she fell in love and got rejected like her mother had got rejected by her father?

Every time she went on a date those fears would flap through her brain like a swarm of frenzied bats. What if? What if? What if? It made it impossible to think of anything else but escaping as soon as she could. Not exactly the best way to find the life partner you’d been dreaming of finding since you’d been a little girl.

But her plan to get Louis to help her was a master stroke of genius. He was exactly the right person to help her overcome this hurdle of intimacy avoidance. Then she would be free to search for Mr Right.

One of her flatmates, Millie, peered round Ivy’s bedroom door. ‘Woo-hoo. You look gorgeous. Are you going on a date?’ She waggled her eyebrows meaningfully.

‘Don’t get too excited. It’s not really a date.’ Ivy put her lip-gloss back in her cosmetics bag. ‘I’m going out for dinner with Louis Charpentier.’

Millie came further into the bedroom, eyebrows raised. ‘Your brother’s friend? The four-times-and-counting hot bachelor of the year? For dinner? How is that not a date?’

Ivy adjusted her little black dress over her hips. ‘We’re just...catching up.’

Millie’s gaze ran over Ivy’s outfit and make-up. ‘Mmm, methinks you’ve gone to a lot of trouble for a simple catch-up with a friend. Are you sure nothing’s going on?’

Ivy flicked an imaginary piece of lint off her shoulder. ‘Of course, I’m sure. It’s not a big deal. Louis likes to check up on me now and again now that Ronan’s living in Sydney.’

Millie gave a light laugh. ‘Gosh, I would love someone as hot as Louis Charpentier to check up on me every now and again. What do you two talk about when you get together?’

‘Just...stuff. Movies, books, work—that sort of thing.’ A trickle of fear slithered its way down Ivy’s spine. What had she got herself in to? She was actually going to have sex. With her brother’s best friend. Eek. Ivy felt bad about not being totally truthful with her friend. Why should it matter if she told Millie about her plan? But surely the less people who knew, the better? It was a one-off thing with Louis. No point allowing her friends to think it was anything else.

Millie leaned down and peered into Ivy’s face. ‘Why are you blushing?’

‘I’m not blushing.’ Ivy might as well not have bothered with using blusher, the way her cheeks were feeling.

Millie straightened and folded her arms. ‘Come on. Fess up. What is going on with you and Louis?’

Ivy should know it was virtually impossible to keep a secret from Millie. Her friend was like a sniffer dog for secrets. The trouble was, she wasn’t so good at keeping them. Ivy met her friend’s gaze and released a sigh. ‘He’s helping me with something.’

Millie frowned. ‘What something? Has