Page 2 of Pillow Talk (Rally Romance #1)

‘ H otdogs are not really supper,’ Sen said, before shoving almost half of one into his mouth.

‘Do you want me to kick you out?’

Sen held up his hands. ‘Sorry, hotdogs are fine dining.’

Shona laughed. ‘I take it you never had hotdogs for supper as a kid.’

Sen shook his head. ‘Have you met my mother? Malini Aiyer make hotdogs for supper?’

Shona didn’t answer. Malini Aiyer was exactly the reason why Sen would always be a fling. His mother was high society and it was only natural for Shona to assume that she probably expected the same from her son and his prospective partner.

Sen interrupted her thoughts. ‘What about you? Because I know your mom can cook. I think you just feed me hotdogs and cheeseburgers because I’m too easy.’ Shona laughed again. ‘I know you’re easy,’ she teased.

Sen playfully punched her shoulder. ‘Not this again. You propositioned me and I obliged.’

Shona punched him back. ‘That’s not how I remember it.’

Sen stood up and held out his hand. ‘Then let me refresh your memory.’

She stood too, and took in his features.

Sen towered over her. He’d had a growth spurt when they were about 11 and since then she’d always had to look up into his face.

Often, she stood on tiptoe to kiss him. Sen had always been the ‘hot guy’ in Rally.

He was the real-life version of Prince Charming from the fairy tales: clean cut, symmetrical face, beautiful eyes and a short, preppy haircut.

But what made heads turn was his confidence.

When he entered a room, his presence was felt without a single word being spoken.

His mischievous smile captivated women of all ages. He even walked with purpose.

Shona took his hand and followed him to her bedroom.

She flicked the light switch and ignored the pile of freshly washed laundry on a chair in the corner.

She’d get to it tomorrow. Just like she would get to organising her dressing table where most of her makeup lay scattered after she’d used it that morning.

Her room appeared cluttered because she hadn’t had time to put things away in their right places.

She was just too busy. But she still made her bed every morning.

Thankfully. With Sen popping over every night, she had to give him a good impression of her and, for now, the queen-sized bed covered in a soft coral duvet, the matching curtains, and clean wooden floors suggested that she was winning at life.

She turned back to Sen. He smiled and reached for her to start undressing her, but Shona was quicker. Sen raised an eyebrow as she took off her clothes and flung them onto the chair.

‘What?’

She smiled at the hint of surprise on his face.

‘Can you please get naked now ?’

Sen did as he was told but before he could pull her into his arms, she pushed him onto the bed.

‘What’s the hurry?’

She ignored his question and lay down next to him.

A lopsided smile tugged at his lips as he slipped an arm around her waist and pulled her in close, his movements slow, deliberate, as if he had all the time in the world.

She shivered when his lips touched her shoulders.

Soft, lingering kisses marked a trail from there to her hips.

She closed her eyes and let herself sink into the warmth of his caress.

His lips left her body for a few seconds, fanning her desire, her need for his touch.

She was just about to object when he pressed his lips to her thigh, brushing kisses along her skin with maddening patience.

Shona propped herself up on her elbows, glaring down at him. ‘We’ve already had foreplay. Can we skip to the main event please ?’

Sen paused, lips still grazing her skin. ‘When? I don’t think the hotdogs were foreplay,’ he murmured against her, grinning.

She groaned. ‘Sen, I want you now .’

‘So impatient,’ he chuckled, tilting his head to look up at her.

‘Let’s do this please,’ she urged.

Sen laughed, low and warm. ‘If I skip the foreplay, you won’t complain?’

Shona threw up her hands. ‘Complain to who? There isn’t exactly a complaints department for this!’

Sen sat up. ‘It could ruin my street cred,’ he teased.

‘Sen, I can guarantee you no one is talking about this out there. Your street cred is safe. Now are you going to do me or what?’

Sen grinned and lay down next to her.

She groaned again.

But before she could say another word, he pulled her onto him so she straddled his hips. She gasped as he cupped the back of her head, guiding her face to his.

‘Kiss me. You’re in charge,’ he whispered.

She kissed him slowly at first, then urgently, hungrily, until she was so lost in it that he slid into her with effortless ease.

They both froze, breath catching in their throats. She sat up slightly, her hands on his chest, watching him.

‘Don’t move. I just want to take in this moment,’ he said.

She nodded.

In that moment, Shona understood why he wanted to savour it.

Because when they were like this, everything made sense.

Even sneaking away from Anni and Sam’s wedding reception to a hotel room felt right.

Just like it felt right when they had lunchtime quickies.

Just like eating hotdogs in her living room felt right. And that terrified her.

She needed to break the spell fast so she began to move.

Slowly at first, just enough to feel him respond beneath her, his hands resting on her hips. She rolled her hips in rhythm, steady and tantalising, watching the way his jaw tightened and his eyes fluttered closed.

‘Shona,’ he breathed.

She leaned forward, bracing her hands on his chest, her hair falling like a curtain around her face. Her pace quickened, her breath coming in soft, shallow gasps. He met her movement now, hips rising to match hers, their bodies locked in a rhythm that made them forget everything else.

She moaned, the sound muffled against his neck, where she’d pressed her lips to stifle the volume.

Sen’s hands gripped her tighter now. His body tensed beneath her.

‘So good,’ she whispered, forehead pressed to his.

‘The best,’ he said hoarsely.

And together they unravelled. Her cry mingled with his groan, leaving them trembling and breathless.

She collapsed onto him, both of them slick with sweat, hearts pounding in sync.

‘I think I’ve just earned my street cred,’ Shona said quietly.

Sen looked at his watch. 2am. He had to be in court at 9o’clock and he really didn’t want to leave Shona’s warm bed, or more specifically her arms. But their rules were clear: no staying over, for both of them.

He dragged himself out of bed and began to dress.

Shona was still asleep when he left her bedroom.

He stopped at the dining room table. How did Shona get any work done, he wondered, as he surveyed the chaos.

He picked up her notebook and leafed through it.

He knew nothing about wedding veils, but Shona was obviously brilliant because her business was soaring.

He couldn’t understand why she didn’t take it to the next level. Why was she still working in her father’s shop? He couldn’t ask her because their relationship was not about getting to know each other better. Maybe that was what was bothering him; he wanted to know adult Shona better.

By the time he reached his apartment, he was groggy and moody. It happened whenever he got back from being with Shona. He felt as if he was missing something. He knew that ‘something’ was her, but he wasn’t ready to explore that feeling.

Three o’clock. Although he was sleepy he made no attempt to get into bed.

Instead, he had a quick shower and started the coffee machine.

While the coffee was brewing, he sat on a high stool at the centre island and scrolled through his phone.

He knew exactly what he was looking for, having developed this habit a couple of weeks ago.

He found Shona’s business page and lazily scrolled through it.

Her last post had 50000 likes and several comments asking for her contact details.

The coffee was ready. He poured himself a mug and sat in front of the TV. With Shona on his mind, he forgot about his coffee on the table in front of him and drifted off to sleep.

Shona emptied the contents of her closet onto her floor.

For someone who worked with clothing, she was pathetic when it came to storing hers.

Most items were shoved in at the bottom of the closet.

She fished out an orange tee and dark denim jeans.

This was ridiculous. The town’s social committee had decided that everyone should wear orange to demonstrate their support for something Shona knew nothing about.

Ordinarily, she would have ignored it but her mother, who believed she was the Queen of the Women in Business forum, had ordered her to show up in something orange.

After getting dressed, she shoved the discarded items back into her closet and searched for her shoes.

She usually wore comfortable sneakers to work but today she’d planned to wear her new flat, gold sandals.

If only she could find them. She searched ‘the chair’ where she dumped everything that didn’t have a place.

They weren’t there. Under the bed. Not there.

She looked at her watch. She had 20minutes to get to the store.

It was two blocks away from her apartment.

She gave up looking, pulled on her sneakers and pushed two thin, silver bangles over her right hand as she left her bedroom.

She surveyed her dining room. I’ll deal with it later, she told herself as she raced out the door.

Her parents were strict about work ethics and arriving late would be frowned upon, or more like her mother would nag about it all day long. That’s if her mother was even there.

She was rounding the corner when a car slowed down next to her. She jumped back, startled.

‘Sen! What are you doing here?’

He’d opened the passenger window and was leaning out.