The Partnership (Callaghan Green Series Book 10) Read online

  “Oh yes. Definitely yes.”

  I was hoping there would be a lot of yeses. From both of us.

  Seph insisted on meeting me at mine. This made it the third night in a row he’d been at my house; yesterday he’d been round to fix the mural on the wall in Rose’s bedroom.

  I was child-free, sister-free – Liv was visiting friends in Manchester for the weekend – and I felt like I had five and a half years ago: young, excited and full of hope.

  The walk of shame out of the meeting room had been easy, as most of Callaghan Green had left work with it being a Friday and gone for the customary drinks. No one had really noticed me to see the mussed-up hair I knew I had, or the fact that my lips were swollen. When I caught myself in the mirror I saw someone who looked like they’d just been thoroughly fucked, and even though we hadn’t actually gotten round to that bit yet, I felt slightly smug.

  I should’ve questioned myself, berated myself for being foolish, had words with myself about being manhandled by someone who was technically my boss with just a door between us and the rest of the office; but I was no fool and I wasn’t stupid. Anyone who knew we were in there together would’ve assumed we were discussing whatever had caused David Hartford to leave suddenly. And I trusted Seph. I knew he didn’t have a fiancée tucked away somewhere and I knew him well enough to know he wasn’t going to shaft me over. He was a risk I could take.

  We were going to a restaurant where I’d eaten a few times with Olivia and Rose, a cute family run Italian place that served amazing wine and even better pasta. It was small and intimate; we wouldn’t feel that anyone was trying to listen in, and the heat and steam made it feel authentic rather than some high end place where you were paying for your face to be seen.

  Seph turned up with a bunch of wildflowers that were hand tied, one single rose in the midst of them. His shirt was white linen, standing out against his dark blue jeans and his usual leather jacket. When he saw me, his eyes danced and his smile made everything melt again.

  I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt this way, excited without being nervous, desperate to see someone I’d only been with hours before. It felt like a long time ago, certainly not with Rose’s father. Looking back, he’d been more of a convenience fuck. Attractive, intelligent and – so I believed – available. The element of secrecy had been a turn on too, and he’d made me feel grown up, to be having a clandestine office affair. Clearly I’d been a child not to realise what his motivations actually were.

  Right now, my thoughts weren’t on my ex; the man in front of me demanded all my attention.

  “You look gorgeous. I can’t wait to take your clothes off.” His voice was husky.

  The line was cheesy. Dirty. Intended to partially make me laugh but make the rest of his intentions known.

  “Thank you and we’ll have to see whether you earn that privilege.” I took the flowers, debated leaving him standing at the door while I put them in water, because letting him enter felt a bit like telling a vampire to come in.

  Manners won out.

  “I hope you like where we’re going.”

  He waited in the hallway while I hollered from the kitchen.

  “They serve food. What’s not to like?”

  I put the flowers in the sink, grabbed my bag and picked up my keys, not wanting to bother my landlord on a Friday night if I locked myself out, which was entirely possible. It wasn’t that I was scatty or disorganised, I was just busy, and remembering the more complicated things sometimes meant the straightforward aspects – like keys – were forgotten.

  “Do you really eat anything?” I’d seen what he put away in a day, and it was a lot. I knew he worked out a lot at the gym, but still, he was constantly hungry.

  He tipped his head to one side and considered it while I put on my shoes.

  “I don’t eat weird things. You know, like kangaroo or snails. But pretty much anything else. I’m not fussy. Unless…” He deliberately looked me up and down, his eyes once again fixing onto my breasts.

  I was pretty sure he had a thing for them. And I knew exactly what he was referring to, as did my lady parts.

  “Don’t, Joseph.” It was the same tone I used as a warning for Rose when she was about to do something that she knew was disastrous.

  He smirked.

  “You said you were hungry.” And my will power was weak. I didn’t feel that what we’d started in the meeting room was anywhere near finished and my lady parts certainly agreed. I needed Seph to leave my house as I doubted we’d be going anywhere.

  It had been a very long time since I’d had sex and now there was the possibility of it, it was all parts of me could think about.

  “I am hungry. Just not necessarily for food.” He licked his lips.

  The practical mother in me screamed loud enough to suppress the whispered moans from my libido.

  “Out now. We have a reservation. And I need sustenance.” Which was true, because if this evening ended like I thought it would do, I was going to need carbs. Energy. And a vat of coffee for the morning when my darling daughter got back and I was running on very little sleep.

  Of course, it might not end that way.

  Seph chuckled, that deep, dirty noise I’d heard him make a handful of times when he’d wanted me to know what he was thinking about, or so I thought.

  “I’m going to do as I’m told when you use that voice.” His wiggled his eyebrows and my lady parts pulsed again. They weren’t happy about having food first.

  I double checked I had everything I needed, glanced at my phone to see a text message from Addy’s mum saying that the girls were camped out in the living room, both dressed as Elsa from Frozen and chockful of sugar. At some point, I’d need to return the favour, but right now I was just eternally grateful that the centre of my universe was safe and happy and had a lovely friend.

  The door shut closed behind me and I looked up to see Seph offering me his hand. “I take it where we’re going is in walking distance?” He glanced down to my heels. “I still don’t understand why you’d wear those.”

  “We’re about ten minutes away and I started practicing wearing my mum’s heels when I was about five. I can even run in them.” I was wearing heels with a tight, short faux leather skirt, slightly snug sweater that made my boobs look amazing and my hair was down and curled. It made me feel good and I was pretty sure the two orgasms I had before had given me an extra glow.

  He looked again at my heels, his eyes travelling upwards.

  “Do you look at every woman like that?” I knew damn well he didn’t. At work, even with the new trainee who was giving him the eye continually, he was only professional, except in those moments when we were alone and not focused on work.

  “Of course. I want to feast on every female I see.” There was a glare. “Idiot. Course I don’t. I don’t think I’ve noticed anyone else since you turned up on that first Monday.”

  I wanted to believe him, but I wasn’t sure if I could. “Pretty words, Seph.”

  “They’re more than just that. I’ve never even kissed someone in our offices before, let alone done what we did this afternoon.”

  I paused walking, and he stopped about half a second later, my hand pulling him back.

  “That’s good to know. I didn’t think you would. I know you’re…” I searched for the right words.

  “Trying to shred my reputation as a player? Yeah. I am.” He was more serious than I’d ever seen him before. “The goal was to stay single, work hard and make my family forget how I’ve cocked up in the past.”

  I bit my lip, not having a clue what to say.

  “I don’t think you’re going to make me look like I’m cocking up again, Georgie.”

  “Good. I don’t intend to let you cock up, Joseph.”

  We carried on walking to the restaurant, Seph asking me about Rose this evening and I showed him a photo that came through of her dressed as Elsa. He asked about her, how much she weighed when she was born and how she
compared to Claire’s daughters and Teddy, Jackson’s son; what her first word was, and found out other things just through listening to me talk about the most important thing in my life.

  When we got to the restaurant I realised it had taken ten minutes to find out more about Rose than what her father knew.

  “I love this place,” he said as we entered the building, the smell of garlic and food making me feel pleasantly hungry.

  “I should’ve known you’ve been here before.”

  “I only live a couple of streets away, so this is sometimes a regular place when I can’t be bothered cooking, When Cassie and I…” He stopped talking.

  Giovanni, the owner and permanent front of house staff, came over, recognising me and took us straight to our table. He’d already opened a bottle of the usual red wine that I always ordered. Maybe I was becoming predictable.

  Seph had a glass too, the first time I’d seen him drink wine, then looked at me seriously as soon as Giovanni left us, promising to be back to take our order soon.

  “I shouldn’t have brought up Cassie.”

  “Why not? She was a big part of your life.”

  He nodded. “She was. But she isn’t anymore. Hasn’t been for nearly three years.” He sipped his wine. “Maybe two. It probably took me a year to get over her.”

  “What was she like?” I didn’t know why I was asking. It was the equivalent of picking at a scab.

  He shrugged. “When we first met she was fun and lively. We broke up every other month, and I don’t think either of us were ever properly faithful, not while we were at uni together. When we both finished our LPCs we tried being serious.” He took another mouthful of wine.

  “It didn’t work?”

  He shrugged. “I wanted it to. Callum – the brother you haven’t met – was great at being single, but I didn’t like it, and I had it in my head that me and Cassie were meant to be. I didn’t cheat, but I was pretty sure that she was. Not with anyone serious, but at law balls and nights out when I wasn’t there, I was sure she would hook up with other men. If I asked her about it, we’d end up having an argument and breaking up anyway.”

  “That doesn’t sound healthy.”

  “It wasn’t. My focus at work was shit and then I started doing what she was doing to get revenge and it all became a bit pathetic. Then we decided we’d give it one proper go and it was going well – she was going to move in with me – and I found out she’d been seeing someone behind my back. It ended – I don’t know who did it and then a couple of weeks later she told me she’d been pregnant, and she’d had a termination.” He studied the bottle of wine.

  “Shit Seph, that’s harsh.” Because it was.

  He nodded. “She wanted to get back together about a week after we split, but if I had I knew my family would disown me. They interfere a lot because they’re opinionated, but they never told me what to do. If I had’ve gotten back with her – they were worried about me, I guess.”

  I topped up my wine and his. Unsurprisingly, it was going down quickly. “Did you suspect she was pregnant?”

  “She wasn’t. She made it up to make me feel bad. If she had been pregnant, it would’ve been her choice and I would’ve supported her. She knew that. But she took the one thing she knew would hurt me and used that.” He shook his head. “So you know my sordid past – whatever Claire and Payton haven’t told you anyway.”

  I ran my foot up and down his leg under the table and touched his hand with mine. “It’s an experience you’ll learn from. If I see her again, I’ll scratch her eyes out for you.”

  He laughed, his face brightening again. “I didn’t realise you were so bloodthirsty.”

  I laughed, a little sardonically. “I can hold my own.”

  The meal passed almost too quickly, but not quickly enough. We stopped drinking after one bottle of wine and didn’t stop for dessert, causing Giovanni to give me a very knowing look. After Seph had paid – completely ignoring me when I tried to insist it was my turn – we headed straight out of the restaurant, not even having a conversation about stopping at a bar for a drink.

  My hand was held tightly in his, and I had a feeling that if he thought he could get away picking me up, throwing me over his shoulder and running us home, he would. However, there was no way my skirt was long enough for him to do that without me flashing half of London my underwear, something I knew Seph would be aware of as he’d checked me out enough, and I got the feeling he definitely didn’t like to share.

  “Do you want to come in for coffee?” I dug around in my bag for my keys.

  He smiled, that dirty, dirty smile that did things to my insides that should be illegal.

  “Coffee?”

  I felt his hand land on my hip as I fiddled with the keys, his fingers digging into the top part of my ass.

  “I’ve been wanting to touch you all night.” He whispered the words into my ear, causing me to lose my ability to get the key into the lock. “I wanted to know what you had on under this skirt.”

  His hand slipped lower, onto the part of my thigh that was exposed below the hem of my skirt.

  “No one can see if they walk past. Can I find out, Georgia? Can I put my hand up and touch you?” The vibration of his words made my centre clench.

  I nodded, unable to do anything with the key, frozen with anticipation.

  His hand slipped under my skirt, his palm pressing against my arse cheek, then he shifted his fingers to my centre, where the silk of the back of my thong was the only barrier. He pulled at it, grazing his finger down and under to where I knew I was wet, my pussy throbbing.

  The tip of his finger played at my entrance then flicked my clit, a light, barely there touch. Then he withdrew his hand, leaving me cold and wanting.

  “Open the door, Georgie, else I’m going to fuck you against it.”

  I had no idea how my legs didn’t give way, or how I managed to get that key to fit. The door opened and we almost fell through into the hall, Seph’s mouth on mine, the door slamming behind us, then our hands became busy with tearing off clothes.

  It was fast and needy, both of us desperate to have each other’s skin exposed. I dropped to my knees to undo his belt and his fly, hearing him groan when I pressed my mouth to the hard outline of his cock before I pulled his pants away, taking his boxer briefs with them.

  He was long and thick and my mouth watered at the idea of having him inside me. I kissed the top of his erection, tasting the drop of pre-cum that had formed there and his fingers threaded through my hair, controlling how much I could take into my mouth. I’d already figured he liked to have control, and I was pretty happy with that. I cupped his balls, feeling the weight of him, hearing his sharp intake of air.

  “Georgie, I fucking love what you’re doing but I need those tits out. We need to spend some time together. Come back up here.” He tugged at my hair, encouraging me away from sucking his cock, guiding my mouth to his while he fumbled with my bra strap. He stepped back as he pushed the straps down my arms, his eyes widening as my breasts were exposed, the cups dropping away.

  I’d always had big breasts since the day I’d started developing. It seemed I woke up one morning and they were there. Small back, big cup size, with nipples I hated as a teenager but realised after a couple of boyfriends that they were manna for a man. Even after breastfeeding for a few months they were perky, with just a few silver lines from the stretchmarks caused by pregnancy. Seph was the first man to see these marks, and I suddenly felt self-conscious, hoping to god they didn’t put him off.

  He ran his hands over them, brushing his thumbs over my nipples, fascinated by how they hardened even more under his touch. He pinched them, causing a brief sting and making me gasp and then he dropped lower this time, putting his mouth on one nipple and sucking gently, then doing the same with the other.

  The fast pace from earlier had dropped. The desperation had faded, us somehow knowing we had all night.

  “You’re like every wet dream come true.�
�� He lowered his hand and cupped my sex. My thong was soaked, the white lace see-through with the dampness. He kissed my stomach, his lips touching exactly where a stretch mark was. “Everything about you is just so fucking gorgeous. Tell me you want me as much.”

  His brown eyes looked up at me, tender and filled with a maelstrom of emotions – desire, lust, hope and that insecurity which I’d seen bubble just below his confident surface.

  “I want you. In bed. Then we don’t have to move anywhere after.”

  He stood up, picking me up with him, my legs wrapping around his waist, and he carried me upstairs to my bedroom.

  I’d left a lamp on, anticipating that we might end up here, and I hadn’t wanted everything to be illuminated with the ceiling light, not yet.

  He placed me down on my back on the centre of my bed, crawling on all fours over me.

  “You said you weren’t on the Pill. Do you have condoms in here? Mine are in my jacket.”

  Which was conveniently discarded on the hallway floor.

  “Top drawer. New packet.’

  “That makes me happy.” He reached over, giving me the space to run my hands over him again, feeling his abs and pecs, cupping his balls and giving his cock a squeeze that made him groan.

  I watched him kneel up, roll on the condom, his gaze diving between my eyes and my tits.

  “I want these to bounce when I fuck you. It was all I could think about before, in the meeting room. How they’d move when I was inside you.”

  He manoeuvred himself over me, spreading my legs further with his thighs so he’d fit in between them, his cock lining up with my entrance.

  I was so tightly wound up and desperate, I was pretty sure I was going to come as soon as he was in me. My tits ached and my centre was throbbing. A mewl came from me that I barely recognised and my hands clutched at him desperately, needing him to fill me.

  Seph didn’t need the encouragement. He entered me slowly, watching my face intently, and I felt that sweet pinch of pain as my body expanded to fit him. I glanced down between us to see where we joined, the sight of his cock starting to fuck me making my nipples harden to diamond levels and everything tightened, the foreplay and dirty talk making my orgasm imminent.