Just Good Friends (17 page)

“Been making a study, have you?”

“Pretty obvious. So why is that?”

He shrugged. “Reckon my physique is what I have to offer.
What the public wants to see. So it’s what the sponsors are willing to pay
for.”

“Doesn’t that bother you?”

“Nah. Been that way a long time. We all have our talents.
I’m lucky mine’s something that’s made me popular, helped me earn a crust as
well.”

She frowned. “That’s not your talent. Those are your looks.
And all the training you’ve done, which hasn’t hurt at all. If you weren’t so
good at rugby, you’d be a male model or something. Just another handsome guy on
a billboard. And nobody would know who you were.”

“I don’t like the modeling much, tell you the truth,” he
admitted. “Always pushing at me, tweaking things. Fixing my hair. No Maori man
likes people up in his space like that. Makes me jumpy.”

She raised her eyebrows. “I thought you liked people being
up in your space. Isn’t that what we’ve been talking about?”

“When they’re invited. And you’re definitely invited.” He
looked across at her, saw her looking back at him. Felt the certainty growing. “I
want you up in my space. But most of all, I want to be in your space.”

He got up, came around to the other side of the table. Stood
looking down at her for a minute. Then reached for her, lifted her out of her
seat. “Come up here.”

His strong hands went under her, pulled her off her feet.
Her legs wrapped around him as he pulled her closer. It was as good as he’d
imagined, holding her tightly against him that way. Better. He lowered his
mouth to hers, took it in a kiss. Felt her mouth opening under his, kissing him
back, her hands going around his shoulders, pulling herself into him with an
urgency and heat that had him burning.

Her hands went to his hair, wrapped themselves in it as she
pulled his mouth to hers. They kissed like that for long minutes, lips and
tongues chasing, exploring. Like it was the first time. Like that was all there
was.

“Koti,” she breathed, pulling back at last. “Your game. It
must be on.”

He laughed a bit unevenly. “You must be joking.” He walked
her, still wrapped around him, into the lounge. Laid her down on one of the
black leather couches and came down over her. Put a hand on the side of her
face and kissed her again, loving the way she looked underneath him.

“Told myself I was going to take my time,” he told her, pulling
back at last and coming up on one elbow. He ran his hand down her sweater, over
her breast, her waist, down her leg in the brown tights. Down all of her, then
back up again, slowly, looking into her eyes. “If I ever got this chance. I
promised you I’d tease you all night. It’s going to be so hard to wait. But I’m
going to do it.”

She reached for him, her hands finding the hem of his sweater
and shirt, diving underneath them, up his sides. Ran them greedily over the
smooth skin covering hard muscle there. “Not necessary,” she assured him
breathlessly. “I need to see you. I need to touch you. And to feel you inside
me. I need that most of all. I don’t think I can wait much longer.”

He smiled slowly, lifted her own sweater delicately,
uncovering a bare inch of skin. Ran his thumb lightly over that inch, then just
a little bit upward, stroking her skin under the wool. Watched her shift under
him, saw her eyes darken, her tongue come out to lick her lips. “That’s the way
it’s going to be, though. Slow. Till you burn. Till you scream.”

“Oh, God,” she moaned. “I’m already burning.”

He came down over her again. Kissed her beautiful mouth once
more, pulled her small tongue into his own mouth. Moved to her throat,
stretched out so invitingly beneath him.

“You make me feel like a vampire,” he whispered. “Want to
bite you.”

She moaned as he suited the action to the words. He kissed
her, bit her, licked her there. She pushed herself against him, squirming as
his mouth found each sensitive area. Her hands moved under his shirt, grabbing
him now, running down his sides and back up again. Over his back.

“Take this off,” she gasped, pulling at his clothes.

“No.” He pulled her hands down, pinned them with one of his
own above her head. “Not yet. You’re going to be naked for a long, long time tonight
before I take anything off.”

He liked her this way, he decided. He’d keep hold of her for
a bit longer. Until he was done playing with her. Or until he had her boneless
under him, all the way to the point where she’d stopped thinking. Where she
didn’t want to move anymore.

“I like this jersey,” he told her, his free hand pulling it
up a bit farther. “And I like what’s under it. I like that so much. You have
the most beautiful skin. First time I saw you, I wanted to touch it. Been wanting
to do it every day since.” He watched his hand moving slowly over that smooth
surface, up her body, around her side, saw her eyes drift slowly closed as he
reached her breast.

“Open your eyes, Kate. I want you to see me. Watch me do
this.”

Reluctantly, she forced them open. He inched the sweater up
farther, pulled it above her breasts. Looked down at her, her hands still
stretched overhead, her eyes staring into his own.

“Very nice,” he told her. “So pretty. I think you were
planning to show this to me tonight.” He ran a hand under the edge of the delicate
bronze-colored lace. Moved it over her, watched her gasp as his thumb found the
hardening nipple. He trapped it between his fingers, heard the gasp turn to a
moan, and smiled.

“You like that, do you? Good to know. I’ll do it some more.”
He played with her then, more long minutes going by as he listened to her,
watched her responding to him. At last, he flicked the fastening between her
breasts, peeled the bra away. Lifted her upper body to pull it off her,
together with the orange sweater.

“I liked that,” he told her as he settled her back down
again. “But I think I like it even better now that I’ve taken it off. Because
it’s time for me to kiss you here. And that’s another thing I’ve been wanting
to do for a long time.”

He moved down the couch, kissed her mouth again, her throat,
nibbled at the sensitive spots under her ears, over her collarbones. His hand
moved to cover her breast again, tease the nipple, until his mouth moved down
to join it.

Kate arched as his mouth finally found her nipple. Jerked against
him and cried out as he bit down gently. “Too slow,” she moaned. “Please, Koti.
Please. I need you. I’m dying.”

“You’ve made me wait this long. Your turn to wait now. Till
I say it’s time. You don’t get to choose tonight. It’s all for me.”

She should feel threatened, she knew. He was controlling her
with his words, his mouth, his talented hands. But somehow, it didn’t feel that
way. She knew if she objected, he’d let her go. She didn’t want him to let her
go, though. She was melting, dissolving. All she wanted was for him to go on.

She lost track of time as he stayed there. She wasn’t even
trying to touch him anymore. She didn’t think she could move anyway. Her world had
narrowed to the sensations he produced as his hands and mouth continued to work.
When he finally reached for the zipper of her skirt, she moaned with relief,
moved to help him.

“No,” he told her, pushing her hands out of the way. “I’ll
undress you. My job now.” He dropped her skirt into the pile of clothes on the
floor, looked down at her dressed only in her tights.  

“That’s a good look on you,” he decided. “Should make you
walk around a bit, show it to me. I’m betting, though, that your panties match
the bra. And if that’s true, I need to see them.”

Slowly, he peeled down the tights. His hands moved down her
thighs, down her calves along with the brown microfiber, stroking all the way.
When the tights had joined the rest of her clothes, he moved his hands back to
her thighs.

“You’re so beautiful. So smooth and strong.” He ran his
thumbs up her inner thighs, moving her legs gently apart. “I’ve been watching
what those legs can do all these weeks. But what I want most is something that
hasn’t happened yet. Seeing them, feeling them wrapped around me, while I come
inside you.”

She shivered, pushed up into his hands. “Do that, then.
Please, Koti. Do it now. I’ll do whatever you want. But don’t make me wait any
more.”

He smiled. “You’re going to have to wait a bit more for that,
though. Because we’re just getting to the good part, aren’t we? Be a shame to
hurry now.” He kept his thumbs stroking, stroking, over her inner thighs.
Closer and closer as he watched her. Mouth open, panting now. Eyes closing
again.

“Open your eyes, Kate,” he told her. “I want you watching
me.”

She dragged them open as his hands settled over her at last,
that thumb still moving. She cried out at the sensation, as strong now as an
electric shock.

“Very nice,” he said approvingly. “Very wet. And beautiful
little panties.” He moved his hand again to watch her respond. She shifted
under him again, moaned, lifted her hips toward him.

“You’re noisy,” he told her. “That’s good. It’s going to be
too easy to make you scream, though. I’m going to have to slow down, make this
last.”

“Please,” she begged. “Please. I need more. Touch me.
Please, Koti.” She moved against his hand, urging him.

He wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold out. He was
excited almost past bearing. Once he had her panties off, he wasn’t going to be
able to wait. He’d have to delay that as long as possible, he decided. Because
he needed to watch her come first. Noisily. Messily. Out of control with
wanting it. With wanting him.

He reached under the lace. Before he did anything else, he
had to feel her. Feel where he was going to go, later. He sighed as his fingers
slid inside her. Oh, that was good. Warm and wet and tight. It was going to
feel so good in there. As good as he’d ever imagined. She was going to be all
his tonight. Any way he wanted her.

They didn’t hear the ringing at first. Wrapped up in sensation,
drowning in each other’s eyes, they could hear nothing but the blood pounding
in their heads, her cries as he touched her so slowly. But the musical tinkle
gradually intruded on their consciousness as it rang four times, five. Stopped,
then started again.

“Don’t answer it,” he groaned.

“I have to.” She struggled to sit up. “Almost the only
person it could be is Hannah. She’s alone. I have to.”

He swore. Got up and went to the entry hall, found her
purse, brought it back to her. She sat up, pushed the hair out of her eyes.
Scrabbled through the bag until she found the phone, then brought it out and
glanced at it.

“Hannah,” she told him. Took a deep breath and answered. “Hi.
Everything OK? Watching the game?”

“Kate.” She stiffened in alarm at the strain in Hannah’s
voice. “I’m so glad you answered. Can you come over? I’ve been having these
contractions. I thought they were just Braxton-Hicks, the practice ones, but
now I’m not sure. Could you come?”

“Oh. Oh my gosh. Of course I can. It’ll take me a while to
get there, though. Shouldn’t you call your midwife?”

“I already did. I’m waiting for her to call back now. But
I’d like somebody here. Just in case.”

“I’m starting right now, and I’ll be there as fast as I can.
Call me while I’m on the way and tell me what’s happening, all right? And
Hannah. If you get worried,
at all,
call the ambulance, all right?”

“I don’t think it’ll happen that fast, even if it is
happening,” Hannah said. “But please, do come be with me.”

“On my way,” Kate promised. “Call me back once you hear from
the midwife.”

She hung up, reached for her clothes from the floor, began
to pull on her tights. “Hannah thinks she might be having the baby. I need to
go right now.”

“I’ll drive you,” Koti said immediately. “If you need to
take her to hospital, or even to talk to her on the way over there, that’ll be
better. That way you can look after her.”

He got up, grabbed his mobile off the table and shoved it
into a pocket that suddenly had room again. Found both their jackets and tossed
hers across. “Soon as you’re ready.”

“Sorry about that,” Kate said as Koti piloted the car
quickly but carefully onto the motorway and toward the Harbour Bridge into the
City. “Not quite the ending you’d envisioned.”

“They say babies have the worst timing,” he agreed. “I’d say
this takes the biscuit, though. Never mind. We have time. This is what’s
important now.”

When Kate’s cell phone rang again, she snatched at it. “What’s
happening?” she asked Hannah abruptly.

“The midwife just called me back. She wants me to come into
the hospital and get checked.”

“Have you called Drew?” Kate pressed. “Or somebody on the
team?”

“I’m going to do that now,” Hannah said. “I wasn’t sure it
was anything. And I hate to worry him when he’s so far away. But if I’m going
to the hospital, I need to call him, I think.”

“You sure do,” Kate said firmly. “It’s his worry too. He
needs to know as soon as he can.” She saw Koti nod in agreement. “Hang up and
call.”

“Another contraction,” Hannah said in a strained voice. “Get
here soon.”

Kate heard the line go dead. She set the phone down, looked
at Koti. “Are you up for going to the hospital? I have a feeling there’s going
to be a baby tonight.”

“Course I am. It’s going to take Drew some time to get back
here, though,” he frowned. “No late-night flights from Christchurch. How about
you? You ready to be a birth coach?”

Kate swallowed. “I guess I have no choice, do I? If that’s
what Hannah needs.”

“Isn’t it early, though?” Koti asked. “Do you know how far
gone she is?”

“A few weeks early, for sure. I’m not sure how bad that is.
But I
am
sure that’s what she’s worrying about right now.”