NFH 02 Perfection (17 page)

"Weren't you there to have sex with a
stranger," she said accusingly.

"That's not the point, Zoe," he
gritted out.

"How is it fair that you can go have
sex, but I can't?" she demanded, crossing her arms beneath her
ample breasts and unintentionally shoving them up until he swore,
prayed, that they'd pop out of her blouse.

"It's just the way it is," he said
tightly, pressing the gas pedal harder in an attempt to get her
home and out of his hair before she drove him crazy.

"I don't see how it is. I want sex. I
miss sex and used to love it. I've decided that I shouldn't have to
worry until I'm ready to have a relationship, which probably won't
be for another year or two before I have sex again. So, I decided
that I should be allowed to enjoy being single and have sex with
whomever I want, whenever I want," she informed him in a tone she
probably thought would make him think twice about arguing with her.
"Now," she said with a slight roll of her hand back towards the
direction of the bar, "take me back there so I can have
sex."

"Not happening."

"But I want sex!" she whined. "Really
good, hot, sweaty sex!"

"Uh huh," he said, ignoring her
adorable little pout. "You're really not interested in a
relationship right now?" he asked, allowing his mind to go
somewhere that he knew was dangerous.

Out of the corner of his eye he looked
her over, wondering if he could actually go through with this. When
his eyes fell on her large breasts he knew damn well that he
could.

"Nope," she said, making the word pop.
"That's too much work right now. I want to focus on getting my life
together and be in a better position if my life ever crumbles
around me again. I want to be able to take care of myself. I also
want to live a little. Something I haven't really done," she said
wistfully.

"You're serious?" he asked, even
though at the moment he didn't doubt her for a second.

"Yes."

"You only want sex, nothing more,
right?" he stressed.

She rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"Didn't I just say that?"

"Good," he said, not bothering to hide
his shit eating grin.

"What's so good about that?" she
asked, sounding confused.

"Because this will work out for me,"
he said, giving himself another pat on the back for coming up with
another excellent plan. If she went along with what he had in mind,
and why wouldn't she? he was a Bradford after all, he could work
her out of his system and keep her safe. So, really he was doing
her a favor by offering to do this.

He sighed heavily, sometimes he was
just too damn giving.

"What will work out for you?" Zoe
asked, sounding groggy.

He reached over and took her much
smaller hand into his and held it, running his thumb over the back
of her hand.

"You and I are going to have
sex."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Now?" Zoe asked, sounding so damn
hopeful that he couldn't help but laugh.

"No, not now, my eager little drunk.
When you're sober and you agree to my game plan." And only then. He
wasn't stupid enough to completely trust Zoe to make this agreement
until she knew what she was getting into and what he wasn't willing
to give her.

Chapter
15

Oh god........

She was dying. There was no other
explanation for the way she felt. Her head was pounding, her mouth
felt like something had crawled inside and died and she felt sick
to her stomach.

Hoping that today was Sunday and
really having no other choice but to lay there even if it wasn't,
she closed her eyes and prayed for death or unconsciousness and not
really caring at the moment about which wish was
granted.

Sometime later she woke up feeling
slightly better. Her stomach wasn't as bad and her headache had
dulled a bit. She turned her head and stared numbly at her dark
windows, wondering if it was morning or night. One look at her
alarm clock let her know that it was seven p.m. Sunday
night.

Well, she thought, carefully getting
out of bed, at least she hadn't missed work. She stumbled over to
her bathroom and flicked on the light and winced when it nearly
blinded her. Why was everything so bright, she wondered as she
relieved herself.

A few minutes later when she was more
oriented and coordinated she turned on the shower, thankful that it
was at full blast and loaded her toothbrush up with toothpaste and
began the job of getting rid of the taste of old gym socks. After
she brushed her teeth once more she gargled with mouthwash for an
extra two minutes. She climbed into the shower and groaned as hot
water poured over her and made her feel more alive.

What the hell happened last
night?

She really couldn't remember much, but
she knew that would change. The few times she'd gotten drunk in her
life she had the misfortune of remembering everything that happened
the next day, a rather nasty side effect of having a photographic
memory.

A rather frightening thought occurred
to her. What if she'd had sex? Did she make him wear a condom? Did
she enjoy it? After a minute she relaxed. No, she definitely didn't
have sex since she didn't feel tender between her legs, but that
didn't mean she hadn't done something equally as stupid.

If she didn't push it she'd remember
sooner rather than later. She knew the key was just to relax and
let it come to her.

"You feeling better?" Trevor suddenly
asked, making Zoe wince. Damn hangover making everything sound
sharp and loud.

"Yes, I think so," she said loud
enough to be heard over the sound of running water and through the
wall. She wondered if Trevor had been a witness to anything stupid
she may have done.

"That's good," he said absently. "I
took care of Toby today."

"Oh, thank you," she said loudly,
feeling horrible that she'd neglected the poor baby.

"Zoe?"

"Yes?"

"Do you remember anything about last
night?" he asked, sounding a little more than simply
curious.

"Not yet, but I will," she said,
swallowing nervously. "Did I do something monumentally
stupid?"

"You mean besides going to a bar to
have sex with a complete stranger and getting drunk?" he asked,
dryly.

She sighed with relief. If getting
drunk was the only stupid thing she'd done last night then she'd
count herself lucky. Then she cringed when his words sank
in.

He knew.

"I'm guessing I was pretty chatty last
night," she said, trying to sound casual about the whole thing and
praying she'd been able to keep her mouth shut about some of the
more embarrassing details.

"No. Not really unless you count
letting everyone in the bar know how badly you wanted to have sex
last night."

"Damn it," she groaned. "Next time
I'll have to make sure to pass on the liquid courage."

"There won't be a next time," Trevor
said firmly, making her frown.

"That's not really your decision," she
said tightly. She'd been bullied enough over the last three years.
She wasn't about to let Trevor think he could boss her around,
well, and not pay her for it that is.

"You and I came to an agreement last
night so I think it's safe to say that it's very much my business,"
Trevor said, making her more than a little nervous.

What had her drunken big mouth gotten
her into now?

"Um, and what agreement is that?" she
asked, trying to sound cool and collected when on the inside she
was freaking out and hoping that whatever he was about to tell her
was insignificant like promising not to drink, which at the moment
she was completely on board with.

He ignored her question and asked one
of his own. "Is there any hot water left?"

"Plenty," she said, knowing there was
at least ten minutes of hot water left. The water pressure might
suck, but at least the hot water tank was huge.

"Good," he said, sounding really
close. "Pass the soap would you?"

She was about to roll her eyes at his
lame "shower neighbor" joke when she realized two things. He just
said that in her ear and there was something hard and thick
brushing up against the middle of her back.

Swallowing hard and praying that this
was some kind of alcohol induced hallucination, she slowly looked
over her shoulder and may have screamed.

**********

"Are you done yet?" Trevor asked as if
stepping into the shower naked with her and sporting the largest
erection she'd ever seen in her life was perfectly normal and maybe
in his world it was, but right now she was still gasping for air
and holding a hand over her chest, trying to make her heart stop
pounding erratically in her chest.

"What the hell are you doing in here?"
she demanded once she didn't have to fight to breathe.

"I own the house," he explained as if
she were slow as he reached around her and snagged the soap out of
the soap holder. He held the soap up to his nose and smelled,
frowning. "Strawberries and cream?"

"Yes," she answered automatically as
she did her best not to let her eyes drift over the most amazing
body she'd ever seen and failing miserably. When she somehow
managed to pull her gaze away from the rather impressive appendage
that seemed to be reaching out to her she gave herself a mental
shake and forced herself to focus.

"I meant what are you doing in my
bathroom?" she demanded, only remembering now that she was naked
too late and only because she caught him running his eyes over her
naked body and licking his lips hungrily, which was pretty
flattering and hot, but something she needed to really ignore if
she expected answers anytime soon.

"Why wouldn't I be in here?" he asked
as he washed his body. "You and I have an agreement."

"To save water by sharing showers?"
she asked, confused and wondering just how much she'd drank last
night.

He chuckled as he stepped forward,
giving her no choice but to step backward or have that monster
between his legs whack her in the stomach. She turned slightly so
he couldn't get a good look at her body as she watched him rinse
off.

"You know what agreement," he said,
leaning down and pressing a quick kiss to her mouth that left her
confused and really turned on. It had been five years after all and
Trevor was one of the hottest men she'd ever seen. Any woman would
be turned on to find herself naked in a shower with a man she'd
never thought would look at her twice never mind look as though he
was ready to pounce.

"Please refresh my memory," she said,
wondering what kind of agreement would include joint showers and
kissing.

Grinning, Trevor leaned down and
brushed his mouth against hers, once, twice and once more, making
her stand on her tiptoes to follow his mouth as it moved
away.

"I meant about the agreement," she
said, sounding breathless even to her own ears. Such a simple kiss
and she was ready to jump him. Five years was way too long to go
without sex.

"Well," he said, dipping his head
under the showerhead. "You and I decided that we should have an
exclusive mutually beneficial sexual relationship without the
relationship."

She worried her bottom lip between her
teeth as she sorted through his words. "Do you mean friends with
benefits?"

He sighed heavily. "My definition was
better, but yes. You and I agreed to have all the benefits without
the relationship."

Zoe opened her mouth to tell him that
he must be joking when everything from the night before came
crashing into her mind. Every embarrassing moment and word had her
inwardly wincing and wishing she could bury herself in a
hole.

That is until something else occurred
to her.

"Damn it! That bartender played me!"
she gasped, remembering that the bartender kept the drinks coming
until she forgot to ask for her change. "I must have tipped him
close to fifty bucks," she grumbled unhappily. Damn it. That was
her spending money for the month.

"That would explain why he loaded the
drinks with alcohol," Trevor said, reaching past her to shut the
water off, which was probably a good idea since the water had
started to cool.

"Fine," she mumbled, feeling like an
idiot. She didn't usually part with her money so freely. Thankfully
she had plenty of money coming in where fifty dollars shouldn't
make that much of a difference, but it did. She had plans for her
money and she was doing her damndest to stay on a
budget.

"Why do I have a feeling that you're
no longer thinking about our little arrangement," Trevor muttered
unhappily as he wrapped a towel around his hips.

"Stupid bartender," she mumbled, not
even caring that she was pouting.

Trevor chuckled softly as he helped
wrap a towel around her. Zoe barely paid attention as she forced
her mind past the loss of the fifty dollars onto the rest of the
night, trying not to cringe when she remembered the things she'd
said to Trevor. Well, at least she didn't have to worry about
explaining why she wanted sex or wonder why Trevor would think
she'd be open to a purely sexual relationship, because she
was.