Chapter 19

Nineteen

“ T his is insane!” Ethan shouted, dodging another kid pointing a super-sized water soaker at him, only to be splattered in the chest with a magenta water bomb from Tam.

“Yeah, isn’t it great?” She flung her arms overhead and twirled, doing a defiant jig in front of him, taunting him now that he’d used up his colour supplies.

He advanced towards her, pointing at the remaining bags in her hand. “Give me some of that.”

“No.” She stood on tiptoes, jiggling the bags in front of him. “Not my fault your aim is lousy.”

“That does it.” He grabbed her around the waist and she squealed, her laughter firing him as much as having her wriggling and warm and vibrant in his arms. “Tam, I’m warning you—”

“You’re in no position to warn me. I’m the one holding the ammunition.”

To reinforce the point she swung one of the bags at his back where it exploded, drenching him further.

“What colour was that?”

“Red, to match your face for letting a girl beat you at this.”

“You’re in so much trouble.” He hoisted her over his shoulder, growling when she emptied the last few bags on his back then proceeded to pummel him with her fists.

“Put me down.”

He patted her butt in response. “Nope, sorry, I can’t do that. This is Holi, remember? Anything goes.”

“I take it back.”

“Too late.”

She stiffened as he slid a hand up her calf, her thigh, all in the name of getting a better grip. His excuse, he was sticking to it.

“Are you copping a feel?”

“No, I don’t want to drop you and ruin your outfit.”

“But it’s already ruined—”

“Gotcha.”

She pummelled harder and he laughed louder as he jogged the last few metres to her hut. When they reached the front door, he deliberately slid her down nice and slow, her body rubbing against his.

This was pure and utter madness.

So much for taking things slow.

Every moment he spent in Tam’s company he found it harder to resist her, harder not to say caution be damned and sweep her into his arms and make slow, passionate love to her all night long.

Thoughts of her consumed him every waking moment and most sleeping ones too and now, with her standing less than a foot away, her tie-dyed kaftan plastered to her curvy body, he knew he couldn’t hold out much longer.

He wanted to do the right thing and give her time to adjust to their new relationship, but his knight in shining armour routine had taken a serious beating since he’d arrived on her doorstep earlier that week and she’d welcomed him with open arms.

“So?”

“So…” his gaze dipped, from her orange, green, and blue spattered face and her purple matted hair, to her technicolour kaftan.

Despite the mess, she’d never looked so beautiful, and he clenched his hands to stop from grabbing her and never letting go.

“Time to clean up.” She grinned. “Though some of us need more cleaning than others.” She pointed to his irredeemable T-shirt. “Not only can some of us not throw, we’re not too good at dodging too.”

He laughed and made a grab for her, and they tumbled through the doorway, drenched to the skin. “You look like a preschooler’s finger-painting.”

“You look worse.”

They stared at each other and laughed again, as Tamara clutched her side. “I’m sore.”

“From taking my direct hits full on?”

“More like from dodging your average throws.”

He pointed to her powder-spattered kaftan. “Then how do you explain all that colour?”

She shrugged, put a thumb up to her nose, and waggled her fingers. “Other people.”

He advanced towards her. “Are you saying my aim is lousy yet again?”

She smiled. “Oh yeah. Though you might’ve landed a few lucky shots. Beginners luck.”

“Beginner, huh?” He continued to advance, his mouth twitching, his eyes filled with devilry and she backed up, stumbling into the bathroom. “Are you going to admit I’m good?”

Ethan halted less than two feet in front of Tamara, close enough to feel his radiant heat, not close enough according to her body straining towards him.

Loving their sparring, she tilted her chin up and tossed her bedraggled hair over a shoulder. “Never.”

“Never’s a long time, sweetheart.” His hand shot out and captured her wrist. He tugged her closer and she laughed when their bodies made a strange, squelching sound as they came into contact. “Ready to concede?”

“Nope.” She shook her head, spraying them with the finest purple droplets, like sparkling amethysts raining from a jewelled sky.

“I might have to make you.” Ethan’s eyes glittered with pure devilry as he brushed his mouth across hers in a slow, masterful kiss that had her clinging to his wet T-shirt. “Concede?”

Her tongue darted out to moisten her lips, still tingling from his kiss. “I think I need more convincing.”

He growled, swept her up in his arms, and deposited her on the hand basin, the hard, cold enamel barely registering as he swooped in for another kiss, a fiery, passionate explosion of melding mouths that heated her from the inside out and would’ve dried her clothes if they’d continued.

But she stopped, uncurled her fingers from where they clung to his T-shirt, all too aware of where this would lead.

“What’s wrong?”

How could she articulate half of what she was feeling?

Blinding anticipation of being touched by a man after so long?

Good old-fashioned lust that licked along her veins and made her throb with need?

Crippling uncertainty that she wouldn’t live up to his expectations?

Or the mind-numbing fear that once she took this irreversible step, there’d be no going back.

Sex with Ethan would cement what she’d known the last few days.

She’d fallen for him.

Enough to take a chance on love again, enough to want it all, with him.

“Tam?” He tipped up her chin, leaving her no option but to stare into his concerned gaze.

“I’m scared.”

He cupped her cheek, drawing comforting circles in the small of her back with his other hand. “I’d never do anything to hurt you. You know that, right?”

“I know, but—”

“But?”

“What if—” this doesn’t work, this ruins everything, this makes me fall in love with you even more and you don’t feel half as much for me as I feel for you?

“What if you stop second guessing this and let me love you?”

She knew he meant it as a physical expression of love, but hearing him say the word out loud banished the last of her lingering doubts.

She’d spent every moment of her marriage carefully weighing and assessing; trying to say the right thing, do the right thing, wear the right thing. And she’d been miserable.

Now, she had a second chance, a real shot at happiness, and she’d be a fool to let it slip through her fingers.

Her hands slid up his chest to caress his neck, cradling his face as she wrapped her legs around him. “What if I show you how much I want this?”

His face creased into a wicked smile, the heartrendingly familiar sexy smile that never failed to set her pulse racing.

“Sounds like a plan.” He sent a pointed glance at their clothes. “But we’re filthy.”

Shocked at her own bravado, she met his gaze head on.

“Let’s take a shower then.”

As they stepped into the tiny shower stall, peeled their clothes off, and steam rose around them, Tam knew without a doubt this man had become her destiny.