“Yes, you can,” he crooned, deep and seductive. “Come for me, sweet Anne.”
Another orgasm crashed through her, and he pumped in and out of her impossibly fast, his rhythm shattering into something wild and chaotic. As she clenched around him again and again, he came with a guttural groan, his body going taut above hers. Then his hips jerked erratically in and out of her until he collapsed on top of her.
He stayed like that for just long enough for her to enjoy the feeling of fullness, his weight like a tight embrace around her limp body. Then he rolled to the side, pulling out of her, and she immediately felt incomplete.
They lay side by side as their breathing returned to normal and the sweat cooled on their bodies. Neither of them said a word. Sanity returned to Anne in a painful rush. Frederick had been suffering when she’d found him by the pool. She’d assumed that he blamed himself for letting Bethany get hurt.
But maybe he was suffering from more than guilt. Maybe his heart was breaking because someone he cared about was hurt. She hadn’t allowed herself to think about it—she hadn’t wanted to—but all her doubts came rushing back to her now. What if Bethany and Frederick cared about each other? What if they had agreed to be together on their moonlight walk?
Anne had wanted to believe she was only risking Bethany’s pride by coming to Frederick tonight—something her cousin wouldn’t even care about once she got over her crush on him. But what if she had truly betrayed her cousin tonight? What ifAnne had become the other woman? The thought sank to her stomach like a boulder.
If Frederick had feelings for Bethany, why had he made love to Anne? Maybe this had been about distracting himself from his grief over Bethany’s accident, and he sought comfort from the nearest willing body. That wasn’t like the Frederick she knew… but he might have changed.
Or maybe he’d been too bereft and exhausted to resist the chemistry that burned between them. Maybeshehad taken advantage of Frederick while he was vulnerable from grief. She couldn’t think straight with her insecurities and uncertainty eating away at her.
Anne sat up and eased her legs off the bed. She heard the bed shift beside her as Frederick rose on one elbow. She pulled on her bra and underwear and tugged on her jeans. The table lamp clicked on as she got dressed, and she heard the rustle of sheets behind her. She buttoned up her shirt with her back to him, but she felt his eyes on her. When she was done, she tucked her hair behind her ears and turned to face him.
“I should get back before Tessa comes looking for me,” she said even though she knew Tessa was probably fast asleep by now.
“Okay.” Frederick sat with only a thin sheet across his lap. Even through her turmoil, she had to stop her eyes from drinking in the sight of him.
Instead, she stared down at her hands, waiting… Waiting for what? What did she hope would happen? When it didn’t seem like he would say anything more, she walked toward the door.
“Anne.” When she spun around with her heart in her throat, Frederick shook his head, his expression unreadable. “Never mind. Good night.”
“Good night,” she automatically replied in a limp, colorless voice.
She let herself out of Frederick’s room and mounted the stairsto her suite. After washing away the scent of sex, she changed into an old T-shirt and climbed in bed next to her sleeping sister. Tessa loved her, but didn’t it evenoccurto her to worry about Anne—to watch out for her? She sighed. That was what Anne did for everyone else. Not the other way around. But a sense of wrongness twisted in her chest.
Tonight was another example of her taking care of others. Frederick needed comfort, and she offered it to him. It was her fault she’d accidentally handed him her heart along with the rest of her body. He told her exactly what tonight meant to him.God help me, I’m going to fuck you until you forget where you end and I start. To hell with the consequences.
She hardened herself against the onslaught of hurt, doubt, and… hope.No, no hope.They’d fucked. They were consenting adults, and she’d chosen to be with him, knowing it would be a onetime deal. Shehadknown, right? Or had she been hoping for more?No.She hadnotbeen hoping for more. Shewouldn’thope for more.
What they did tonight meant nothing, so she would make sure there were no consequences. If it turned out both she and Frederick had betrayed Bethany, then they would keep their mouths shut and live with the guilt until they died. It would be their… mistake, their burden to bear. Bethany would not get hurt over a… meaningless hookup.
As for Frederick, he’d gotten what he’d needed from Anne and would go on with his life, not giving her a second thought. Being dismissed and disregarded wasn’t anything new. She was just Anne after all.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Frederick got out of bed and cleaned himself up and belatedly wondered if Pete and Katie had heard… something. His room was in the back of the house by the pool, and his friends’ room was toward the front, near the entrance. They probably didn’t hear anything. Besides, he and Anne had been surprisingly quiet, holding back their cries and moans.
He realized with a start that he’d swallowed his shouts to save every aspect of the moment inside of him. It was his, and he didn’t want to let even a speck of it go. He should feel pathetic, but he’d been determined to hold on to every moment he had with Anne.
But why had Anne bitten her lip and muffled her sounds of pleasure? She probably didn’t want anyone to hear her and find out what they’d done. Because it wasn’t something she wanted to repeat. His stomach dropped at the thought.
What was wrong with him? Besides, he didn’t know she kept quiet because she didn’t want a repeat. Not for sure, at least. Any sane, respectable person wouldn’t want to broadcast their sex noises to the entire house.Right?
Even as he tried to parse through what had happened tonight, snatches of their lovemaking flashed through his mind. Frederick grew so hard so fast that he became lightheaded, eventhough his heart ached as though someone was trying to rip it out of his chest.
God.What had he done? He had no idea. All he knew was that he wanted to do it again. Frederick grabbed the door handle but froze to the spot. But he couldn’t, right? He forced himself to let go of the handle, unfurling his fingers one by one.
What did Anne think they’d done? She’d looked resigned and tired as she let herself out of his room. He should’ve stopped her, and… what? What could he have done to chase away the sadness enveloping her? He’d had no idea what to say to her as they lay in bed catching their breaths, and he still had no idea.
He shied away from looking closer at what his heart wanted, but his raging hard-on told him exactly what his body wanted. Maybe that was it. This was just a physical attraction.
They’d always had incredible chemistry, and that didn’t change even when she broke his heart a decade ago. It wasn’t something that could be switched off. It was biological. And now that he’d finally let go of his anger, the attraction predictably burst through the surface. He couldn’t blame himself.Have you seen Anne Lee?
In the last ten years, she’d gone from being a beautiful girl to a breathtaking woman. Her breasts felt heavier as they filled his hands, and the soft curve of her stomach gave welcomingly against the insistent press of his cock. She was fucking glorious. He hadn’t been able to get enough of the lush curves of her body. And God, the way she’d caught fire in his arms, so bold and demanding… He’d been desperate to explore every part of her. He was desperate to explore more of her.
