14. Lara

Chapter 1 4

Lara

“ I t’s been a pleasure, as always, Lara,” Mr Darcy drawls, reappearing through the arched doorway. My name has never held such sex appeal until now. Before I can gather myself and respond, he’s out the front door. Fixation sets in, and I’m unable?to tear my eyes away from his retreating figure. He takes a few more steps down the path and stops alongside the motorcycle.?

Sensing my eyes on him, he turns. Our eyes lock from afar, and I swear the faintest of smiles drags at the corner of his mouth. Without breaking eye contact, he reaches down and collects the helmet from its compartment. Ever so slowly, he lifts it above his head and lowers it over his face. I can’t see his eyes anymore, but my god, I can feel them. The air feels stifling, and I abruptly turn from the window.?

Did I really get all hot and bothered watching a man put on a helmet? Fuck, I need to get laid. Or go another round of whatever happened in the back room. Or both.

I’m also still trying to process the fact he rides a motorcycle, as if he wasn’t hot enough already. Obscene images of those veined hands gripping the throttle flood my mind, causing an irrational rush of envy at the way it would be handled.

With Mr Darcy gone, I have a moment of reprieve. What the fuck just happened? I’m struggling to reconcile the person I know myself to be with the person who was willingly eaten out in her workplace by a man whose name is a mystery. I do not do things like this. I’m a rule follower who sees most men as nothing but disappointing. What was I thinking?

What’s even more shocking is that I loved every single second of it. I’ve never been so close to the edge at the hands of a man before, and I’ll be damned if I don’t want to repeat it immediately. Not only that, but I’m now more intrigued than ever to know more about this man. It’s a given that he’s incredibly attractive, but I’m dying to see more of who he is on the inside. Our interactions are unlike any I’ve had with men previously. He challenges me, and I challenge him in return; he matches my sarcasm to a T; he looks at me as though he can’t quite believe his eyes—I look at him and wonder why me?

After work, I arrived home with my mind still reeling. Do I look like I had a beautiful man’s head between my legs mere hours ago? Am I going to be outed the second I walk through the front door? Is my arousal still evident??

The smell of freshly baked cookies wafts over me as I enter the open living space. Mia pops up from behind the bench. Looking every bit the modern-day housewife, she dons a frilly white apron and matching oven mitts.?

“I made cookies!” she beams, greeting me.

“They smell divine.” I attempt to mirror her smile as I make my way to one of the wooden stools at the bench.

Mia sets the tray down in front of me, meeting my eyes with a quirk of her head. “Lara, are you quite alright? Your face looks funny.”

Taking a seat, I let out a short laugh, caught off guard by her statement. She knows, she must know. She’s looking at me like she’s aware of what went down, or more accurately, who went down.

My thoughts stray to that talented tongue as I cross my legs, my insides clenching on their own accord. I rub a hand over my face, willing away intrusive thoughts of Mr Darcy. Another laugh escapes, and I have no doubt I appear unhinged right now.

“Harper!” she bellows, gripping the doorway to the hall and leaning her entire body in the direction of the balcony. “Help me! Lara’s acting awfully peculiar.”

The sound of hurried footsteps on the carpet announces Harper’s arrival before her head pops around the doorway. She regards me for a moment, tilting her head to the side the same way Mia did.

“Mmm,” is the only sound she makes as her eyes rake over me. “Something is certainly amiss.”

Mia rounds the bench to join Harper in the doorway. They’re looking at me the way Emma Thompson’s character in Love Actually looked at her child when she announced she’d be playing the first lobster in the nativity play; utterly perplexed.

“What in the bloody hell happened at work today?” Mia crosses her arms over her chest.

Glancing between the two of them, I realise I have no idea where the fuck to start. I’m silent for a moment, staring at my friends without really seeing them. My thoughts are in complete disarray. How do I word this correctly?

“He ate me out.”

It seems I don’t bother with correctness, deciding instead to blurt it out like the answer to a quiz show question.?

A high-pitched noise comes from Mia, sounding a similar frequency to a train whistle. My eyes dart to her first, and I stifle a laugh.

The oven mitts have fallen to the floor as she stands there wide-eyed. Her jaw hangs open, and the image of a laughing clown carnival game flashes in front of me. For someone with so much energy, it’s almost frightening to see her so still.

Gaze sliding from Mia to Harper, I find a completely different reaction.?

She’s sporting the biggest grin I think I’ve ever seen on her face. The way she’s able to appear perfectly poised at all times is an incredible skill. Especially now, leaned against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest.

“Lara, honey, please give us some context before she” — Harper glances at Mia, who’s yet to move a muscle — “makes up her own nightmare-worthy story.”?

Still uncertain where to begin, I take a deep breath.?

“He, as in Mr Darcy, was on his knees with his painfully beautiful face between my thighs approximately one hour and thirty-seven minutes ago. But who’s counting?”

The sound of my voice brings Mia back to Earth. Her previously still body is now jumping up and down on the spot, hands clapping, and mouth warped into a smile so wide it would rival the Cheshire Cat. Tiny oh my god’ s are being thrown out at an alarming speed.

“How? Why? Was it good? Is it happening again?” The questions leave Mia’s mouth like rapid fire. “We need details, Lara.”

“Perhaps if you took a breath, she’d have a chance to get a word in,” Harper replies, rolling her eyes and grinning at me.

“Ah, you’re right, I’m sorry, Lars. This is quite the revelation.” Mia raises her arms above her head before pulling her hands down in front of her face, taking in a deep breath as they come to a stop in front of her stomach.?

Amusement flickers in Harper’s eyes, her gaze flitting between Mia and me.

‘How’ is a hard one, as is ‘why’ if I’m honest.

“Honestly, I’m not really sure how or why it happened. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it’s the truth. It kind of just happened, you know? It wasn’t good, it was breathtaking —literally.” Heat rises in my cheeks.

The girls are quiet, still beaming at me.?

“As for whether it’s happening again, I highly doubt it.”

“What!” Mia raises her arms in front of her, palms toward me in a stop-like motion. “Why?”

Before I can come up with a reason, Harper chimes in. “Darling girl, we can feel the sexual deprivation oozing from your pores. It’s about time you did something about it.”?

“Harper’s right, honey. Please fuck him, like as soon as possible. We need to live vicariously through you.”

I can’t control the burst of laughter that erupts in response; these two are something else. They aren’t wrong, though; I haven’t been out with even one guy since moving. Work keeps me reasonably busy, and when I’m not working, I’m exploring or hanging out with the girls.

Dating hasn’t been high on my priority list, and I’m completely fine with that. Who needs a boyfriend when you have friends as great as mine? Casual sex, though, could be beneficial. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a particular itch Mr Darcy could scratch.?

Sort of like the way his stubble scratched the inside of my thighs.

Focus, Lara.?

“The both of you are also single; why are we living through me?”

“Last I checked, neither of us had a suited man falling to his knees for us.”

My lips twitch at Harper’s response. Mia brings a hand up to stifle her giggle. It feels like a fever dream when you put it like that, but it’s one I want to experience again and again. The man almost had me eating out the palm of his hand and certainly had me moaning. My cheeks heat at the memory. The only thing that could’ve possibly made it better would be having a name—a real name—to moan.