Page 18 of Only Ever Yours

Chapter Seventeen

Jase

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

She thinks I don’t want her.

I had to lie for Finn’s sake. Everything Hollis and I had done that evening had been the culmination of years of sexual tension between us.

We had always flirted, but tonight, we went past the line of friendly banter.

This time, I had run through a list of Premier League Golden Boot winners.

Anything to stop the raging erection in my jeans before Finn came back into the room.

Finn walked into the living room, two glasses of amber liquid in his hands.

“Jesus, are you trying to kill me off completely?” I lifted the glass as he handed it to me. There had to be at least a quadruple whisky in there.

He sank into the armchair, head bowed. “Ella looked fucking amazing tonight.”

I hadn’t noticed. Then again, I’d only really had eyes for Hollis and the burgundy corset top she’d chosen to wear, which made her tits look even more magnificent than usual. I’d been moments away from getting to touch them, but they’d have to live in my imagination a little longer.

Jesus, am I sixteen again?

“You having second thoughts about splitting up?”

Finn took a slug of his alcohol. “I thought it wasn’t working out between us. Seeing her tonight, all over some kid, really made it hit home. I should have made more of an effort to salvage our relationship.”

“It’s not too late. If you really want her, you need to fight for her.”

Such hollow words when I’d just cold-shouldered Hollis as if nothing had happened between us tonight.

He glanced over at me, head to one side, one eye closed. “Since when did you become such a relationship guru? Are you thinking of giving it a go with Felicity?”

I snorted. “Yeah, I don’t think so, mate.” I swigged my own drink, wincing at the burn. Hollis was the only woman I wanted, and now that we’d crossed a line, we had to work out what happened next. If anything, given the way I’d just ignored her.

“Then who? Did you hook up with someone tonight?”

The crushing pain in my chest as I fought to tell my best friend the truth increased as I ground out the lie. “As if. I was with you and the guys all night until I left.”

“Probably just as well. Liam threw up outside while we were waiting for a taxi. At least, he did it before we got in the car. I don’t think any of us had the money to pay for interior cleaning.” Finn laughed, then swigged his drink again. “Do you think I should talk to Ella?”

“That’s your decision, mate.” I was hardly in a position to advise Finn on the right thing to do after what had happened with Hollis.

He leaned back in the armchair, resting his head. “ Maybe I should ask Hollis and find out what she knows before I go ahead and make a total dick of myself.”

“Sounds like a good idea.”

Finn nodded vigorously. “I’ll talk to her in the morning.”

I needed to talk to her, as well. To tell her this evening wasn’t a drunken mistake.

That I had wanted to kiss her, had wanted to take things further.

Her brother’s untimely arrival had scuppered any chance of anything more.

And I felt I needed to tell her sooner rather than later before things got awkward between us.

Like right now.

“I’m going to head up,” I said, watching as Finn’s head drooped to his chest, the gentle snoring increasing in volume.

I got up, went over to my friend, and took the glass from his hand.

The last thing I wanted was for him to spill his drink and think he’d wet himself.

Taking both glasses into the kitchen, I rinsed them out, then downed a pint of water.

I was pretty sure I’d have a headache in the morning, not just from the amount I’d drunk.

Trudging up the stairs, I hesitated outside of Hollis’s room.

Maybe I could make it all right between us tonight before she got the wrong idea.

Gently, I knocked and waited. Perhaps she was already asleep and hadn’t heard me.

Or she knew it was me and was deliberately ignoring me.

I sighed and turned towards my own door.

“Jase?”

I did a one-eighty to see Hollis standing in the doorway, and I grinned. She wore the forest green Hollister T-shirt, which barely grazed the top of her thighs and clung to her tits. “Nice T-shirt.”

The corner of her mouth curled up, and I knew it had been a deliberate choice. Maybe we are on the same page. She sucked in her lips, then let her tongue trail over her bottom one as it slowly popped back out.

Fuck, does she know what the action does to me?

“Did you want me?” she asked.

Oh, Hollis. If only you knew just how much.

Placing one foot in front of the other, I walked back towards her door, my heart beating harder with each step.

Her eyes were smudged with mascara and looked a little glassy as if she’d been crying.

Did I do that to her? I let out a hard breath and nodded, suddenly incapable of speech.

Hollis reached out and grasped my wrist, pulling me in before quietly closing the door behind us.

We stood there, neither of us saying a word. I raked my gaze down her body, lingering over her tits and her legs before finally moving back up to her mouth.

“Fuck,” I hissed.

“Is that a statement or a request?” Her hands went to her hips, the movement pushing her tits out even more.

“Both?” Running a hand over my chin, I took the sensible option instead. “Can we talk?”

“We probably should.”

“Look, Hollis, about what happened tonight. It was—” I began.

She held up a hand, her shoulders sagging, the smile falling from her face. “I know, I get it. It was a mistake. We’d both had a few drinks. We were at a joint stag and hen party. The emotions of the moment got to us. And it shouldn’t happen again.”

My jaw dropped. “Are you fucking serious right now?”

“Isn’t that what you were about to tell me? When we were downstairs, you couldn’t get rid of me quickly enough.”

“What was I meant to do? Finn had turned up. I could hardly say, ‘Oh, hang on, mate. Can you wait a minute while I nail your sister on the living room couch?’”

She giggled, then glared at me. “You wanted to do what?”

“If your brother hadn’t come home when he did, what did you think was going to happen between us? A cup of tea and an episode of Friends ?” I thought back to the night we’d spent at the hotel in the motorway services, where that had happened.

“Well, I kind of hoped it might go further, but I wasn’t sure you thought the same.”

“Since you’ve been back, it’s been hard to distance myself, and the more time we spend together, the more I…” I broke off. Just spit it out, Jase. Tell her how you feel. Taking a deep breath, I went on. “The more I want more. And I think you do, too.”

Hollis swallowed, her face serious again before nodding slowly. “Are you sure about this?”

I growled, closing the distance between us until our bodies were almost touching.

Hollis shivered, her blue-green eyes boring into me.

I reached out and placed one hand around the back of her neck, pulling her flush to me, my other hand snaking around her waist, holding her in place against me.

My lips crashed into hers in a bruising kiss, one that made me want to possess every inch of her.

She writhed against me, pressing her tits into my chest as my hand slipped from her waist to the curve of her arse.

My nails dug into the creamy skin of her butt cheek, and she moaned into my mouth, the sound having a direct connection to my dick.

Moving inwards, I slid my knuckles underneath her T-shirt and over her clit, feeling how damp her knickers were.

A groan escaped my lips. As much as I wanted to take this further, we had to be careful.

With a sigh, I withdrew my hand and took a step away.

“Why did you stop?” Hollis rasped, disappointment radiating from her eyes.

“Because if I don’t stop now, I won’t be able to.

And I don’t want our first time to be rushed.

I want to take my time with you.” I traced a finger down the side of her face, rubbing my thumb over her bottom lip.

“I want to enjoy every single moment. Not to mention that the thought of your brother finding us together like this scares the absolute shit out of me.”

My last comment raised a smile. “Yeah, I get that.”

I gripped the top of her arms. “I want this. I want you .”

“Me, too.” Hollis frowned. “Although how we make it happen is another matter.”

“I guess we’ll have to sneak around a little.” The thought of it being forbidden made it even more exciting. “Right now, we should both go to bed. Alone.” I leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Hollis grasped the lapels of my shirt, getting up on her tiptoes and kissing me full on the lips. “Until we can do it again.”

“Looking forward to it already. Sweet dreams, Princess.” With great effort, I dragged myself away and left the room as quietly as I could.

As I got to my door, the bathroom door opened, and Finn stumbled out. “Thought you’d gone to bed ages ago. How come you’re still dressed?” He yawned, dragging a hand through his hair and breathing whisky fumes all over me.

“Fell asleep on the bed,” I improvised. “Woke up with a mouth like sandpaper and needed some water. I thought I heard you in the bathroom and waited until you were finished.”

“Right.” Finn nodded, seeming to believe me, and went towards his room. “See you in the morning, mate.”

Blowing out a breath and realising Hollis and I had got away with it, at least for now, I headed to bed, wondering how the hell we were going to make this work.