Page 37 of Save You (Maxton Hall #2)

James steps up behind me, so close that the hairs on my arms stand on end.

But it’s still not enough. I lean back and into him.

Hesitantly, he raises an arm and wraps it around me.

He presses me to him while I let my head sink back.

The moment is so lovely, so intimate, that I have to shut my eyes for a moment.

I listen to his breathing, and the quiet music filling the conservatory. Suddenly, I have an idea.

“Can I take a photo?” I ask quietly.

I feel him nod as his hair tickles my cheek. I hold up my phone and switch to the selfie camera.

“Smile,” I order James.

The two of us smile into the camera, him with his arms around my body, behind us, the tree bedecked with lanterns in this magical place.

This photo is going to replace the one I nicked off Instagram and secretly saved on my laptop, I decide.

But the thought fades as James nuzzles his face into me.

He takes a deep breath and presses his lips into the crook of my neck.

My breath catches, while a hefty tingle runs through my body.

I put my hand on his and hold it tight while the desperate longing to be even closer to him floods over me.

I lean back, almost grind into him, until I hear him inhale sharply.

Suddenly, James isn’t moving a muscle. My own breath is way too fast. As I squeeze his hand a moment, we no longer need words. James swings me round, and the next second, our lips automatically find each other.

James wraps both arms around me and holds me tight.

My hands are on his chest and I let them stray down until they’re touching his stomach, which makes him groan.

It sounds as desperate as I feel. At this moment, it’s as though there’s no boundary between us any longer.

We are just us. Just like before, and yet changed.

Everything feels more meaningful. Feeling James’s lips on mine is just as exciting as during our first kiss, yet I know him now.

I know the movement he makes with his tongue, the feeling of his teeth on my bottom lip.

When his hand reaches for my bum and he pulls me closer, I can feel his erection against my hip.

My knees are weak. I press against him until he almost stumbles back, kiss him harder, let myself be guided entirely by my feelings and the hot burning deep inside me.

But suddenly, he snatches his lips away from me. I was so carried away that now I’m dizzy. James breathes hard as he presses his brow against mine. His hand moves from my bum, up to the back of my head, which he strokes gently.

“We have to stop.”

It takes me a moment to work out what he just said. “Why?” I whisper.

He just shakes his head.

“Mr. Beaufort?” I suddenly hear the waiter’s voice.

James grunts, not letting me go.

“I just came to tell you that your driver is here,” the waiter continues, clearly embarrassed.

James lets go of me, and our hands find each other without any conscious decision of mine. We leave the restaurant hand in hand, like it’s the most ordinary thing in the world, both red-cheeked, mumbling goodbye to the poor waiter, who can’t meet our eyes.

Outside, I’m hit by a wall of cold air. Percy is standing by the car, holding the door for us. I thank him and get in, James close behind me. I sit in the same place as on the way here. James drops into the seat beside me.

His eyes are dark and his lips are as red and swollen as mine. I can still feel the slight throb in my bottom lip—and elsewhere too. I’m electric, my whole body charged. I can hardly sit still for the urge to pick up where we just left off.

The streetlights of Pemwick pass us by and Percy heads out into the country lanes. The screen is up, and I glance to see if the little red light on the intercom is flashing.

It’s not.

I turn to face James, who followed my gaze. His lips are slightly parted and his chest is rising and falling rapidly. There’s no mistaking that he was as caught up in that kiss as I was.

“James,” I whisper.

He holds his breath.

I move like I’m on autopilot. The attraction emanating from James is so all-encompassing that it’s impossible to sit here for twenty minutes without doing something.

Surprise flickers in his eyes as I scoot closer.

“Kiss me, James,” I whisper.

He just shakes his head, but in the same breath, he takes my face in his hands and presses his lips firmly to mine.

We sigh simultaneously, and the sounds mingle and buzz in my body.

The world around me fades. There’s only James and me—no past, no future.

Just us and the nighttime lights flickering past.

“I missed you,” I whisper.

He makes an almost despairing sound and kisses me more deeply.

I’m not prepared for what he does to me. I didn’t think it could feel like this. However often James and I are together—it just gets stronger. The yearning inside me grows with every kiss, an unquenchable longing for him and to be close to him, and I don’t think that will ever disappear.

I dig my fingers into his hair and pull him closer to me. This is all going too fast, and I can’t help myself. James’s firm body is pressed against mine and I need him. In this second, I need him like I’ve never needed anybody.

I’m about to say those words when James pulls away slightly. He looks mistily at me and strokes my cheek with one hand, then lets his mouth move down my throat.

“I missed you too,” he whispers to my neck. He sucks on the skin and my breath catches. “Any time I saw you at school, I wanted to do this.”

I sigh and shut my eyes. “Next time, please do. I give you permission,” I gasp.

He barks out a raw laugh. “Good to know.”

Slowly, James works his way down, but I want to feel his mouth on mine again, so I pull him up and hold him there. His tongue plays around mine, and my other hand is exploring his body. All these clothes are in the way, regardless of how amazing he looks in that suit. I undo his top shirt button.

“Ruby,” he interrupts quietly.

I keep on. At the third button, James grabs my wrist and holds it tight. I look up and into his dark eyes. James stares at me, breathing hard.

I can see him gulp. “Normally, I’d let you undress me anytime. Seriously. Anywhere, for all I care. But…” He breaks off and looks around the car. Then he looks back at me. “I really wanted our next time to be something special. And if we don’t stop now, I…I don’t know if…”

I feel the heat shoot into my cheeks. He’s right. “I wasn’t thinking.”

My face is still burning as I slowly start to rebutton his shirt. But even once I’ve done them all up, I can’t look him in the face.

“Ruby,” James whispers suddenly.

I pretend to straighten his collar, which is perfectly neat already. “Mm?”

“Ruby,” he repeats. “Please look at me.”

I breathe in and look up again. The first thing I see is that James’s face is as flushed as mine feels. The second is the look in his eyes. It’s so tender. “I’m not ready…I mean, we should take things slow.”

“Because we have time,” I croak.

“All the time in the world,” James confirms.

I nod, my breathing ragged. Then I lean back with a sigh and shut my eyes. For a few seconds, we’re silent.

After a while, James takes my hand. “Thank you for saying yes. To the date, I mean,” he whispers.

I squeeze his hand. “It was a lovely date.”

“I thought so.”

There’s something in his tone that makes me look up at him again. His eyes are glimmering dangerously and his smile is so hot that for a moment, I feel disarmed.

Just two weeks ago, I’d never have thought it possible that he’d look at me like that again, let alone that I’d have another moment like this with him.

There’s so much more I still want to say to him—but I can’t.

It’s too soon. The wounds are too recently healed.

James seems serious, but I’m still afraid that he’ll reject me again.

I try to imagine him in a few years. Grown up, more mature.

More confident in his decisions, without the unpredictability I’ve gotten to know in the last six months.

What kind of a person would it make me if I only let him have a place in my life again at that point?

Am I even certain that we’ll still be there for each other by then?

But—who am I kidding here? There’ll only ever be James for me. I could never love anyone else the way I love him—in this all-powerful, devouring, passionate way.

“What are you thinking?” he whispers suddenly, stroking my skin with his fingers.

That I’m in love with you.

That you’re the only man for me.

That that scares me.

“I was thinking that in future, we need to talk more. About our problems. So that nothing else…bad happens,” I answer hesitantly.

James looks hard at me. There’s a determination in his eyes that I’ve never seen before. “We can do this, Ruby.”

I gulp hard. “Are you sure?”

He nods curtly. Just the once. “Yes, I am.”

Relief washes over me. Hearing James with the certainty to say that quiets my doubts.

For a while, we sit side by side, studying our linked fingers. Then James leans back and grins at me.

“Best date in the world,” he murmurs, lifting our hands so that he can kiss my fingers.

I nod. “I thought so.”

Suddenly, his eyes light up. “Come round tomorrow evening,” he says. “To see Lydia and me. I know she’d love to see you too.”

I hesitate.

“Your dad…”

“Dad’s in London all weekend. We can order sushi.”

At this moment, James seems so excited yet so jittery that I instantly absorb all his nerves. I’ve only been to his house twice, and I only have sad memories of those occasions. I’m ready to replace them with new—nicer—ones.

“OK, great. Tomorrow evening. I’ll bring Ben and Jerry’s.”

“Perfect. Percy will pick you up.” Suddenly, James frowns. “Speaking of Percy…” He leans forward. “Shouldn’t we have gotten to Gormsey by now, Percy?”

For a moment, there’s just the quiet crackle. Then…

“I thought you might need a little…privacy, sir.”

Eyes wide, I look at James. He seems as surprised as me. Then I burst out laughing.

James joins in, burying his face back in my throat.