Page 31 of Love, Academically

They’d both played this fake girlfriend/boyfriend thing excellently.

After tonight, that would be it. There would be no more lunches, shopping, hanging out, car journeys.

There would be no need. This was the end of their bargain.

She could put that pesky desire in a non-existent basket, cover it with offcuts of fabric and it would eventually fade away to nothing.

Which was exactly the right thing to do.

That bratty little word ‘but’ kept pushing at her brain.

But… she would miss spending time with Rhys. She liked the simpleness of him, the straightforwardness. He said what he meant and did what he said.

It had also been an awfully long time since she’d had sex.

Rhys was attracted to her, wasn’t he? He’d kissed her that second time.

It was the way he always seemed to reach for her, as if he couldn’t stop touching her back, her waist, her hands.

The way his eyes had darkened when he talked to her, the not so subtle glances towards her lips, the way his eyes tripped across her collarbone.

Lila had been around long enough to know the signs.

Perhaps a no-strings-attached roll in the hay (I wonder where that saying came from?) would be the perfect way to end their bargain.

Then they could go back to only seeing each other at work, in passing.

Rhys would be finished with his course soon.

He wouldn’t be holding seminars in her room forever.

The thought of having sex with Rhys Aubrey made her mouth dry. Yes, okay. Good.

A waft of perfume came through the bathroom door and Seren glided in as if she were on rollers. When her eyes met Lila’s in the mirror, she tilted her head and altered her trajectory, rolling to a stop next to her.

“Why, hello. Lila, isn’t it?” Seren’s voice was smooth and honeylike, and she exuded confidence in the way of someone who has never been told ‘no’ in their life.

“Yes,” she said, trying to hide the shake in her voice. She was strangely nervous, being with the ex-girlfriend without Rhys as a buffer. “Hi.”

“Your dress is nice,” Seren said, giving it the once-over.

“Thank you,” Lila said, with a grateful smile. She was going to leave it at that, but she’d had some bubbles and before she knew it, her mouth was open and words were just falling out. “You look like a princess.”

It was true. With her delicate tiara (yes, tiara), matching diamond necklace and white satin dress that skimmed her body, pooling on the floor, she did indeed look like a princess.

A small smile accompanied a slight eyebrow lift, as if Seren was scared to make too many facial moments in case they ruined her Botox or gave her wrinkles.

“I’m going to give you a piece of advice,” she said, turning to the mirror to assess her make up.

Perhaps it would be something trivial like, ‘make sure you have that drycleaned rather than put it in the washing machine’, or ‘you should really wear the Chanel eye shadow’. What she did not want was advice on her fake boyfriend or his family.

“No, no, that’s okay. You don’t have to,” Lila said.

Seren ignored her.

“Please remember that this is Rhys’s world, whether he wants it to be or not. He will end up back with his family. No matter how much he rebels, he will come back or be dragged back. And when he does, will he bring you with him?”

Was that a challenge in Seren’s eyes? It was hard to tell when her face was so blank and motionless. The old Black and White Lila would have bowed her head, curved her shoulders inwards and nodded softly. But she was Technicolour Lila now, with a couple of glasses of champagne in her.

“Is that what you think he’s doing? Rebelling, like a child? He’s a grown man, Seren,” she said. “I don’t know what the future holds for him, for us, but I trust Rhys to make the right decisions for him. The Rhys I know isn’t easily bullied.”

“You don’t know Llewellyn.” Her perfect lips pursed. “I’m not your enemy here, Lila. In fact, I’ve never seen him so happy. I’m glad someone got through to him.” Seren turned back to Lila and offered her a tight smile. “Anyway.”

Then she wafted into a cubicle.

Lila stared at the closed cubicle door for a second or two. That was a healthy reality check Seren had just dropped, and she didn’t have the brain power to think about it right now.

Instead, she grabbed her clutch bag from the side and headed out to meet Rhys, giving her best ‘Seren walk’ a go.

Oh Christ.

He was leaning by the main door, hands tucked into those tight trousers, bow tie loosened, looking just like frigging James Bond. A hot one, not that one in Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Except instead of the trademarked sexy smirk James Bond usually wore, he was frowning in confusion.

“Why are you walking like that? Do your feet hurt?”

“I was trying to walk like Seren,”

“Why?”

“She’s so elegant and perfect.”

“That she may be,” Rhys said, shrugging out of his jacket. “But I prefer someone a bit messier.”

Rhys swung his jacket over her shoulders, tugging at the lapels to make sure it sat straight.

A flash of a frown smudged his eyebrows as he reached to tuck a wayward lock of hair behind her ear.

As his fingers grazed her cheek, her lips parted and a puff of air escaped.

They were close enough that one deep breath would have her against his chest.

“Come on,” he said, his voice a little rough. “Let’s go.”

Rhys intertwined their fingers and led her outside.

The car drive home was… anticipatory. Rhys didn’t let go of her hand, except to change gear, and then took it again, running his thumb over her knuckles, circling the softness of her palm. It was like he couldn’t stand to let her go.

This boded well, because Technicolour Lila had decided that tonight was indeed the night, and she was going to invite him in and get down and dirty with Rhys Aubrey.

“Come in for a moment,” Lila said, as he walked her the five and a half steps to her door. She squeezed his fingers that had conveniently found hers.

Rhys followed her into the front room and she deposited her handbag on the table and reached to unbuckle her shoes.

“Let me,” Rhys said.

He dropped to his knees in front of her and looked up expectantly. That warmth in the bottom of her belly that had been present all night, expanded and heated. Because he was on his knees for her, and her mind was doing all kinds of filthy things.

“Oh, yeah,” Lila hoicked up her skirt rather ungracefully.

Rhys carefully unbuckled one shoe, slipped it off her foot and motioned for her to lift the other.

“Lila,” he said, eyes focused on his task.

“Hmm?” she didn’t trust her words. The tips of his ears were pink.

“You were perfect tonight,” he said, depositing the other shoe by the first and standing in front of her. “Absolutely perfect.”

A soft smile tilted her lips. She reached for his hands, and linked their fingers together. His lips parted and she lifted her face towards his, pulling him gently closer.

“Lila,” he whispered when his mouth was scarcely a breath from hers. “You are so beautiful.”

She thought of all the times when he was going to say how she looked earlier, he couldn’t get his words out.

He thought she was beautiful.

Pushing up on her toes, she kissed him.

It wasn’t soft and chaste like before. No, she pressed her body against his and his arms went around her tightly.

Her hands found their way into his hair and he staggered slightly, pushing her back against the table.

A pile of books toppled somewhere, but she didn’t care.

He opened his mouth and it was wet and hot and she couldn’t get enough.

He hitched her up onto the table, running his hand from her ankle, pushing up the skirt of her dress as he gripped the soft underside of her thigh, the same thigh that had magically wrapped its way around his hip.

She could feel him hard and straining and she ground against him, trying to get some friction where she needed it most. Because she was needy and desperate. The evening had been one of tantalising looks and touches and now she was being thoroughly seduced.

Rhys’s tongue was in her mouth, caressing and taking and her nipples pushed against the fabric of her dress.

She reached for his trousers and undid the button quickly.

Slipping her hand inside, she gripped him outside his boxers and he groaned into her mouth.

She ran her hand up and down his length.

The noise he made in the back of his throat had her smiling against his lips.

She had her fingers under the waistband of his pants when he grasped her wrist, stilling her.

He eased her hand out of his trousers and took a small step back, adjusting his hardness in his pants.

“Are you okay?”

“I, I don’t,” he started, gulping a breath. “I don’t want—”

Holy fuck.

She scrambled her skirt down. She’d read this completely, utterly, devastatingly wrong.

“Oh, right. Yeah,” she said, pushing her hair back from her face with both hands and shuffling off the edge of the table. “Yeah, no, of course.”

She was just saying words now, words that didn’t make any sense.

“I just think—” he started.

“Yep, yes. I get it,” she said, blowing out a hard breath.

She was hot and tingly all over and not in a good way. In the absolutely mortified, ‘wish she could change into a squirrel like Mad Madam Mim in Sword in the Stone and disappear up a tree forever’ kind of way.

“No, not that I don’t—”

“Please Rhys, stop talking,” she said, not meeting his eyes. “You’re making it worse.”

“Lila, can I just—”

“You should probably go.”

Lila walked carefully over to the front door (it would not do to trip now) and held it open.

“Lila,” he tried again. How was he not getting the idea here?

“Goodnight, Rhys,” she said firmly and when he finally, reluctantly made his way outside, she closed the door firmly behind him.