Janey gagged a little as my forearm pressed harder. It was OK though, she was well used to that. I kept on tightening as Jai’s lazy smile spread. He looked me over with those hooded eyes of his, as if he was imagining all the ways he could do just that.
“You’re staying at my place,” he said again.
“No, I’m not. Rob’s or yours, and I choose Rob’s.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Ooh, trying a little trial cohabitation?” Janey asked, yanking herself free of my grip. “Let me load you up. I got the new Hitachi cordless. Revolutionary. Literally rocked my world. No cords, no position out of reach—”
“I am not talking to either of you anymore,” I said, and went for the stairs.
“Flavoured lube? Condoms? I’ve got extra large if you need it.”
“Stop talking, Janey, or I’ll drive you to the city myself!” I shouted over my stomps as I made my way up the stairs. The noise didn’t drown out Jai’s laugh though. Dark, sexy, and sounding like honey tastes when it's dripped on your tongue, it chased me all the way up, the man himself following behind.
“I don’t need your help,” I said. “I can pack a bag all by myself.”
I yanked open drawers, tossing clothes from them onto the bed, granny panties and all.
“That right?” I listened to the sound of his boot heels on the wooden floor, but I refused to turn around. “Well, I guess I’ll just wait here then.”
My head whipped around when I heard the familiar creak of my bedframe to see something I’d fantasised so many times. Jai lay on top of the covers, hands behind his head, the bottom hem of his shirt rucking up to reveal the most toned stomach I’d seen outside of a showing of Magic Mike. My clothes fell through limp fingers as I saw that tiny wedge of muscular flesh. I’d seen him shirtless plenty of times when we were younger, even touched him that one time, but it felt like a million years had gone by. That Jai was as wiry as a whip, made strong by countless hours of rugby and running with the pack, but this? My eyes jerked up, unable to look away from those sleepy looking eyes. This body was honed, muscle built up by long hard days of work. This was a man.
“I was waiting for you to notice.”
“Did I say that out loud again?” I asked.
“Nope, but I can smell your scent. The only thing keeping me on this bed is the hiding Rob would give me if I tore off your clothes rather than help you get them into a bag.”
I watched his lips move, unable to process what was being said. I’d spent so many hours in class looking over at him without making it obvious, catching stolen glimpses of the side of his face or the lean muscles in his forearm as he wrote down his notes. I would have stepped over my own grandmother to hear him say anything like what he was right now.
“Yeah?” I replied. I know, Ms Erudite 2020 here.
“Yeah. But at my place, you’re sleeping in my bed. With me,” he added when he saw me respond. “We don’t have to do anything else, but you’ll be in my arms tonight, Shannon Bruce. I don’t give a shit who I have to fight to get that, even you.”
Right. Well. I picked up the dropped T-shirt to the sound of his chuckle, dropping it into my bag, shoving handful after handful of clothes into it. When I got to my undies drawer, I stared him down as I held a clump of granny panties up while letting them fall into the bag in a messy grey pile. I had some very nice pieces at the back of my drawer, thank you very much, saved for a special occasion. This well and truly fit the bill, but I wasn’t dragging them out. As if this wasn’t insanely intimate as it was. But damn if he didn’t look at me like I was packing the finest of French knickers. He had that slight smile men do when they are very much enjoying something, so much so the reaction is muted due to their focus. And that was enough to make teenage me do cartwheels inside, while adult me tried reeeally hard to keep my cool.
I looked around the room, searching for more stuff I might need, despite the fact that I