Secret Rulebook of Cheating

Rule #23: Keep it Physical

The door banged shut as Jason followed me in our hotel room and kicked it with his foot.

“Nice cover back there, playboy,” I commented as I dropped my beach bag on the dresser. “Needing the bed for a random hook-up - they wouldn’t doubt it for a second.” Gah, just saying that made my stomach churn. Why did I start this conversation? Oh yeah, because the idea that he might actually do something like that still hadn’t left my mind in peace.

Before I knew it, his arms found their way around my waist and my back slammed into his chest. I felt his breath on my ear as he spoke into it, soft but determined, “Did it bother you?”

Yes, dammit! He saw right through me. “No,” I lied.

His hands slid up and down my stomach, causing a hundred little thingies flitting on the inside. No, those were not butterflies! That was just the tingling effect his touch had on me.

“You sure? You wouldn’t mind if I did this” – he kissed the sweet spot under my ear – “to someone else tonight?”

I barely sustained my moan. “I, uh…” The soft part of my ear ended up between his teeth. Speaking right now took effort! “I can’t stop you,” I managed not nearly as steadily as I had intended.

He planted more kisses down my neck. “And if you could?”

What was he saying? I didn’t have that kind of power. Even if I did, I couldn’t exercise it. I couldn’t admit that I hated the idea of him doing the things I wanted him to do to me to some other girl. That would mean I cared. And caring wasn’t a part of the arrangement.

“Why would I?” I heard myself saying.

His hands stopped moving. I could feel his whole body go rigid. “I’ll wait outside while you’re in the shower,” he informed, flat, and let go of me. He moved to the balcony door without turning to look at me.

Um, okay, what just happened? One minute he was hot and teasing, the next he just left me here? Not that I would have let things go any further - we were at the hotel and I intended to stick to my rules – but that wasn’t a normal Jason reaction. He was supposed to bug me until I gave in, not drop it. And since when did he willingly give me space to shower and dress?

My legs had taken me to the bathroom somehow and I got out of my clothes and jumped in the jet of water. It washed away the salt but not the chaos in my head.

Damn him, why was he like that? Was he mad now because I said I wouldn’t stop him? As if it made any difference to him. Why would he even care?

Why would I care if he was mad or not? I shouldn’t. I couldn’t. I didn’t. This was all just pent-up irritation. Being near him all day without being able to touch him when he did all but stay put – this was the result. Sexual frustration. Nothing else. It was physical. Just something my body needed. And once the need was satisfied, it was going to pass. That was like a rule of nature.

I wrapped a towel around my body, securing it tightly under my armpit and went outside. Water dripped from my hair, leaving a wet trail behind me. I found Jason sitting on the swing, still in his swim shorts. His shirt was open, exposing the tantalizing pattern of his abs. He didn’t look mad. His eyes flew to me the moment I stepped on the balcony. They were the darker shade of blue - the one I knew meant he appreciated the view of me in nothing but a towel.

“You should probably get dressed if you want me to keep my distance,” he uttered, deliberately keeping his eyes on mine and not lower. “I’ve been trying to behave all day. I can’t promise I can do it for much longer.”

Against his warning, I stepped closer to the swing. I had a point to prove and was determined to do it right now.

“Who says I want you to?” I sat on his lap, straddling him, and placed a short kiss on his lips. God, I’d been wanting to do that all day!

He didn’t object. He fixed his hands on my lower back almost immediately. His eyes were soft on mine when I pulled back. Soft and fogged. “You’re driving me crazy,” he hushed.

I smiled both on the inside and out. “Good.”

I leaned in to kiss him again but he spoke, “What about your hotel sex rule? I didn’t win your guessing game. You didn’t revoke it.”

I moved my palms up his chest and shoulders to the back of his neck and laced my fingers through his hair. “Well, technically, we’re outside.”

It was as if I’d said ‘you’re life depends on this’. He didn’t wait a second before he pulled me in to him, crashing his lips into mine and doing that magic of his, he called kissing. Not a moment later, my towel dropped to the floor. His eyes scanned my naked body, devouring the view. I didn’t give him much time, connecting our mouths and chests again. He didn’t seem to mind, though. I let my fingers travel down his body as I moved my lips to his neck. He had asked for it so for once, I complied – I sunk my teeth in his skin lightly, teasingly. A sweet tortured groan escaped his mouth and his fingertips dug deeper in my back. This was driving him crazy, I could tell. So I went on and drove him crazier. Until he entangled a hand in my hair and pulled me back. I could not only feel his need to have me underneath my body, but I could also see it in the murkier colour of his eyes. He tried to take matters in his hands, but I didn’t let him. I pushed his back against the swing roughly and continued this at my pace and desire.

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Jason opened his eyes to look at me after the last of a series of soft kisses he was planting on my lips. I laid my forehead on his, both of our lungs starting to get back in their right rhythm.

“That was…”

Too darn amazing! “I know,” I didn’t let him say it. No need to get all mushy. “Let’s get ready. We shouldn’t give the others any more reasons to be suspicious.”

I climbed off of him, picked up the towel and wrapped it back around my body as I headed to the bathroom for another quick shower, silently cursing on the way. It should have worked. The satisfy-the-need-to-kill-the-desire rule should have worked! Judging by my unwillingness to unhinge myself from him and my still accelerated pulse, it hadn’t.

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A/N: Hey, guys! Sorry for pausing here but some things came up and I don't have the time to work on the book right now. I will finish it though, I promise - as soon as I manage to make time for it. Thanks for sticking around!

Xo,

Summer

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