Drifting Deception

Chapter Twenty-Three

SYDNEY

We walked into the engagement party, hand in hand, to find Francesca and Matt jumping into the rooftop pool.

"I love getting married," Francesca cheered as she rose to the surface. "Francesca van der Burg sounds so hot."

Matthias blushed as he swam to his lover and scooped her up.

"You better do that down the aisle once you've kissed the bride," Lily cheered.

"It would be rude not to," Matthias laughed.

Francesca swirled her hands in the water as she gazed at the stars. "I want to come back here to get married. I love this country."

Matthias kissed his fiancée on the cheek. "Then we're getting married in Greece."

"Woohooo," she cheered. "We're getting married in Greece!"

I envied those two so much. It seemed like everything came easy, and I wondered what spell they had cast on them to ensure good luck always flew their way.

The lovers disappeared a few minutes later because "they were sleepy", and we all knew what that was a codeword for. But in all honesty, I was grateful. I needed a rest, and my feet were aching from the heels.

"Goodnight," I said to the group as I headed for the staircase. Theo looked unimpressed as Henry followed me out.

"He's moody," I said, trying to spark a reaction out of Henry. I hoped the acknowledgement of my brother's attitude would urge Henry to tell me about their chat. If he was simply acting in front of Theo, I didn't know why he wouldn't talk.

"Your brother has been moody ever since we started dating," Henry said as we entered our bedroom. He began lifting off his shirt, and I had to turn away to distract myself.

"He's been extra angry today, though," I said as I walked to my side of the bed and began taking off my heels.

Henry walked over to me and gently lifted my calf, his fingers brushing against the tensed muscle. He placed my heel against the centre of his chest and started unwinding the straps. I wished he didn't know how to undo my heels so easily, as he'd probably done it numerous times to seduce the women he took home. The video of him in the club reappeared in my mind, and I couldn't push it away.

"You're frowning," he said.

I gave him a smile to hide my agitation. "No, I'm not."

Henry shook his head as he gently slipped off my shoe and picked up my other foot. I tensed, despite us being like this for the past two minutes. His fingertips gently brushed the edge of my ankle, and my leg jumped.

"Sorry," he whispered, his grin all parts playful and no parts serious.

I shook my head as I smiled back at him. His expression was contagious.

He stood with Lily's shoes and placed them in my suitcase. "You looked nice in that dress tonight...and in the shoes, of course." He wandered to my side of the bed and sat down, the bed sinking underneath him.

"Thank you," I whispered. We were sitting awfully close, and I couldn't help but think about the way he kissed that girl. We'd shared a kiss, and it had been passionate. But it had to be tame because we were on show. I wanted to know what he was capable of.

His thigh brushed against mine to get my attention, and I didn't even realise I was daydreaming. I was still in the red dress, and while I had been nice and cool all evening, I was starting to sweat.

"You know, you're good at this," I said.

Henry looked confused, but his smile remained. "Good at being a boyfriend?"

"Well, yes. But I mean you're good at keeping up the act." I took a deep breath, debating whether or not I should just come out with the truth. It was going to bother me all night if we didn't discuss it. In the end, I settled for honesty. "I heard what you said to Theo," I said quietly.

Henry's eyes widened. "In the study?"

I nodded, and he looked slightly alarmed.

"You don't have to look so afraid," I laughed. "I know it was all said to shut Theo up."

Henry scoffed as he looked at the floor, his right leg bouncing up and down. I watched as his thumbs gently moved against the nails of his index fingers. I had clearly struck a cord that he didn't want to hear. Or maybe I had brought up something he didn't want to think about anymore. If the words meant nothing to him, why would he bring up what was said? 

"You're doing really well," I said in an attempt to reassure him. I was worried I had embarrassed him now. 

He looked at me again, but he didn't say a word. His eyes, however, had an endearment that I hadn't seen before. 

"I'm being serious," I defended. "I've never seen someone commit to an act so well—"

"God, you're so clueless," Henry said, interrupting me as he placed his hands on my face. Without warning, he pulled my lips to his.

My eyes widened to express my shock. There was no other expression to describe this feeling other than that. The collision of our lips sent shockwaves down every crevasse of my body, but it didn't stop me from giving in without hesitation.

I closed my eyes to sink into his touch, just like the last time he had kissed me. His hands were warm on my cheeks, a whisper against my bare, exposed skin.

There was a deep passion in the way his lips studied mine, pressing harder and harder with each second like he was afraid it would be over before it had even started. I opened my mouth to let in his tongue. His response was a moan in my mouth which made the hairs on my neck stand on end.

Henry smiled against my lips, and I did the same. We sat in the golden glow of the bedroom, the lamp on the table standing calm and quiet; my mind and body were the opposite, however.

Any memories of the video I watched this evening faded as I became enraptured and high. High on his touch. High on him.

Within seconds, we were lying on our bed. Our bed. Kissing like we had displayed this level of affection every day. But this was spontaneous, a combustion of desire that had clearly been building up from both sides for a while.

We broke apart momentarily, but that was so we could stare into each other's eyes and reassure the other that this was where we needed to be.

This was exactly what we needed to be doing at this moment.

Henry smiled, before whispering, "Is this okay?" I nodded, grazing my fingers along my swollen lips. This was more than okay. This was something I had been craving for a while. I just couldn't believe it was manifesting into reality.

Henry was the one to return the kiss. He pressed hard, as if he wasn't close enough and he wanted more. I kissed him back, entangling my hands in his soft curls.

There was no hiding how turned on I was, or how hard he was against me. But as much as I wanted to strip off all my clothes and have him fuck me hard on this queen-sized bed, I also didn't want to stop this moment. This moment of pure vulnerability, where all of our attention was dedicated to his lips on mine and mine on his.

We kissed for what felt like hours, sinking into each other's touch. There wasn't an urgency for our hands to explore or our mouths to travel elsewhere, but rather we wanted to seek solace in each other. We weren't fulfilling a physical need, but more a mutual longing for intimacy.

I sighed against his mouth, and he captured it in a smile. My lips were aching, and my chin had turned red from his stubble, but I didn't care. I'd do it all again if it meant I had him by my side.

We lost track of time in our kiss, and I only realised we had drifted off to sleep when I woke to the soft light of the morning.