Tainted Love (4 page)

‘I don’t want anything yet. I consider this just a consultation. He smiled and stood up.

So he’s sculpted and nice. Now, he just has to get in his Lamborghini out back, and he’s the whole package.
Abbi helped her mother gather up the invoices. She really needed to get herself together. Or she needed to not be around this man anymore.

‘Ken and I will be gone for a few days on business. We’re opening up a new shop in Lancaster. But Abbi will be managing the shop. If you could just liaison with her on this that would be great.’

Oh my God!
Abbi had completely forgotten that her parents were leaving the following day. That damn new grand opening. So that little plan of just not being around Taylor went out the window.
That’s just great.
Either Ben is going to have the time of his life, or if he isn’t home more, my vibrator is going to need new batteries
. She couldn’t believe how sexual she felt right now.
Ok, horny. I feel horny. Just be honest. Being around this man makes me want to rip his clothes off and get on top of him and let him…oh just let him do whatever he wants.

‘No problem at all. I would be happy to talk with Abbi about what I think.’ He nodded politely at Abbi.

‘That’s sorted then. Please feel free to call any time if you have any questions.’

‘Sounds good. I’m on it.’ He nodded like a soldier accepting his mission.

He’s just so strong and manly
.
And he’s an accountant? He throws that stereotype right out the window.

Taylor shook hands with Celia and Abbi, and showed them to the door. Abbi walked behind her mother, and when she passed by Taylor, he smiled and winked at her.
What? That just happened. That really happened
. She felt like a little schoolgirl again.
He likes me
!

Once outside, Celia and Abbi started walking back towards the shop. ‘Boy, he’s a cutie, isn’t he?’ said her mother.

‘Mum! Really?’ exclaimed Abbi. Oh thank God. She wasn’t delusional. Even her mum had noticed.

‘Oh come on.’ Celia laughed, ‘There’s nothing wrong with noticing.’

‘I’m not having this conversation with you,’ Abbi said. She waited a minute. ‘Drop dead gorgeous.’ And they both burst out laughing together.

Unable to keep thoughts of Taylor out of her mind for more than five minutes at a time, Abbidid the only thing she coul
d–
kept busy. She spent the day going through the backlog of invoices she’d been putting off for the past few weeks. As well as getting instructions from her mother on what needed to be finished and delivered while they were away. Whilst her mum had every confidence in her ability to handle the business by herself for a couple of days, her dad had his doubts.

‘Maybe I should just stay,’ Ken said after they had gone over the details of yet another job. It was a relatively easy restoration of an old nightstand someone had found in a storage unit. Probably worthless, but it still had some ornate style and charm.

‘Ken!’ Celia said. ‘It’s our grand opening. You have to be there.’

‘Dad. Seriously,’ Abbi chimed in. ‘I’ve got this. Worst-case scenario, I’ll tell some people they have to wait a few more days until you get back. Our customers will understand. Besides some of their stuff is decades old. What’s a couple of more days?’

Ken dad considered this. ‘Okay, baby. I just feel bad since we are kind of busy, but I guess that can’t be helped. But I don’t want to keep you from being at home. I know you and Ben don’t have much time together right now as it is.’

‘Dad, it’s a few days. Stop being so dramatic.’ Abbi rolled her eyes. Celia smiled brightly at her daughter.

‘Okay, okay. Two women against one man. At least bring Buddy with you for another male to be around here when you guys decide to gang up on me.’

‘Sorry, he’s neutered, Dad. He won’t be much help I’m afraid.’

They all laughed, and Abbi got up to close the door and call it a day. Tyler had come by and taken the boxes over to Taylor so all they could do is wait to see what he found. She hugged her parent’s goodbye, told them to be safe, and have a great time at the grand opening. Abbi needed to go to Tesco and pick up the ingredients she needed for the curry she was going to cook.
Maybe I’ll try Thai tonight or maybe I’ll get a take-away instead.
After the day she’d had the last thing she wanted was to be slaving over a cooker
.

Actually, picking up some Chinese food on the way home sounds like an excellent idea
.
I can always make the curry tomorrow.

She took out her phone and checked for messages. She had not heard from Ben all day, which was definitely not unusual. He never knew what his schedule was going to be, and Abbi really did understand. She could not imagine having such an important job. She wasn’t sure she would want to even if she had the drive that Ben had. He was already working twelve hours a day almost seven days a week. Yes, he was still training, but how would that change once he was qualified? She could never imagine Ben saying to a loving parent. ‘Um, sorry, yes I know your child is dying, but I must go home and be with my neglected wife?’ and Abbi would never want him to. What had started to concern her of late though was how Ben’s lifestyle was going to affect her life as well. They had never really talked about it. Maybe he hadn’t thought about it either.

She quickly typed a text to Ben and sent it.

Hi, honey. Decided against cooking. Will get Chinese. If you’re busy, don’t worry about it. #4 and #16 will be in the fridge for you, xxoo.

That made her smile. That was one thing about being in a relationship she liked. It was nice knowing someone well enough that you could order for them and get it right.

An hour later, Abbi carried her shopping bags and Chinese food up the five flights of stairs to their little apartment. Someday the lift would be fixed.
And someday I’ll have a Jaguar, too.
Actually, seeing as Ben was going to be a doctor…Okay, yeah, she was probably a lot closer to having a Jaguar than a working lift.

Dropping the bags at the door she started checking her pockets for her keys. ‘Hush, Buddy,’ she said through the door.

The fierce little guard dog had heard her outside the door and was letting the whole building know that he was on the job. She found her keys in the bottom of her bag, just as she heard her phone buzz over Buddy’s frantic barking. Sure that it was Ben, she ignored the phone and hurriedly unlocked the door. Apparently, Buddy had to see to Abbi to believe it was her because her telling him through the door to be quiet was not working. The last thing she needed was old Mrs. Bailey that lived downstairs to start complaining again. When Ben and Abbi had first got Buddy, he was only nine weeks old and he had cried a lot when he was left alone whilst they slept. Mrs. Bailey had cats, of course, and while the smell of kitty litter was a little over powering in the hallway, it was true that her cats did not keep anyone up at night.

‘Hi, Buddy.’ She scooped Buddy into her arms.

He was so excited to see her that it was like he had just about given up hope, and there she was. And, yes, there
it
was. Abbi felt the little squirt of nervous pee hit her shirt and run down her stomach.
Great and thank you.
The vet had told Abbi, Buddy would outgrow this problem. He had said that it was common and as long as Buddy was house trained, it was just uncontrollable nervous pee. Apparently, that explanation was supposed to make it better when he peed on them or on visitors’ shoes. Ben took it much more good-naturedly than Abbi. ‘Oh come on,’ he’d said, ‘Can you imagine being so excited to see someone that you can’t help it and pee on yourself? It’s sweet.’ Okay, that had made Abbi laugh.

She started laughing again thinking about that conversation as she walked down the hall to the kitchen. She set the bags up on the counter, out of Buddy-reach, and then started taking her shirt off as she walked back down the hall to the bedroom.
Imagine being so excited to see someone that you peed on yourself. That would never work for people,
she thought.
That would never be flattering or a great girl talk story. ‘Oh it was amazing. He came to the door and saw me and then he just peed on himself, right there…’

Abbi stripped down, stepped into the shower and was just getting out when she heard her phone buzzed again. She had completely forgotten about it. With one bath towel wrapped around her head and another around her body, she padded back to the kitchen. Buddy was sitting at the door. ‘I know, Buddy. Just hang on a minute.’ She grabbed her phone out of her bag.

Hi! Your mum gave me your number. Hope that’s OK. Just wanted to let you know I have everything I need now to get started. Looking forward to working with you. It must have been fate this morning on the train. Taylor.

Now Abbi almost peed herself. She felt her heart flutter.
It’s a text. A text stupid. It doesn’t mean anything.
Then why did she feel kind of guilty? Maybe because her heart had only fluttered when she realised who it was? Maybe because she had not gone more than two hours all day since running into him, literally, without fantasising about making an XXX-Rated movie with him. Should she reply? She checked the clock. It was 6:30pm. Definitely after business hours. So she should reply in the morning. Or would it be rude not to answer now? Why could she not think straight?

Buddy’s sudden whine of urgency broke her train of thought. ‘Okay, I know, sweetheart. I’m coming.’

She put the phone down, rushed to throw on some clothes and take him out before he exploded. She took her phone outside with her, and walked Buddy to the small park nearby. While she waited by a tree for him to finish sniffing, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and re-read the message, for the fourth time.
Ok. I’m going to do it.
It would be rude not to reply, she decided. Be professional and casual.

‘
Hi. That sounds good. If you have any questions, please let me know
.’ SEND. Okay. There she did it. She read her message. It was fine. If Ben happened to read her phone, there was nothing inappropriate for him to see. Now, if he happened to read her mind that would be something else. Thank God she hadn’t married a psychic. Now she felt guilty again.

Buddy was finished, so they walked back to the steps of their building. Abbi scooped him up, and about the third flight up; her phone buzzed in her pocket. She hesitated. Her heart thumped again.
Reacting like his can’t be right
. She bounded up the last two flights and set Buddy down who ran off to grab his bone. Taking out her phone, she noticed that her hands were trembling. She hit the unlock screen and saw;

Hi, babe - Home in an hour! Yay!!!
Chinese sounds great!!

Swallowing her disappointment like a bitter pill, Abbi felt like the Wicked Witch of the East. Here she was feeling aggrieved the message hadn’t come from a man she barely knew, while Ben was excited to be on his way home to her; his emotionally unfaithful fiancee.
You need to get your act together girlie and quick
. She left her phone in the kitchen, with the intention of forgetting about Taylor and getting ready to blow Ben’s mind.

An hour later, Abbi heard the front door open and Buddy barking.

‘Hey, honey, I’m home,’ Ben called out.

Abbi didn’t answer. She lay still and waited on their bed.

‘Abbi?’ he called again.

She heard his footsteps sprinting along the landing to the closed bedroom door. When the door opened, she heard him gasp, and she smiled to herself. Candles lit the room, and classical music softly played in the background. Only the flickering light of the candles illuminated her naked body splayed out on the bed waiting for him.

‘Well, hello!’ he said and moved towards the bed. He was unbuckling his belt as she grabbed him and pulled him down on top of her.

‘I missed you,’ she whispered as his mouth searched for hers.

Abbi closed her eyes and as hard as she tried, she couldn’t rid the image of Taylor from her mind…

My soul is awoken by the feel of moist lips moving along the base of my neck. Ripples of pleasure course through me as his hand moulds to the firm swell of my breast. His mouth lingers on mine before he breaks the kiss. As I arch my head back into the softness of the pillow, he ducks his head, seizing my nipple in his mouth, pulling and suckling at the pebbled peak as I squirm wantonly beneath his touch.

The feel of his mouth clamped on my breast sends spasms straight to my core.

‘Do you want me?’ Taylor’s voice is nothing more than a seductive whisper.

I don’t answer. Instead, I cup his cheek with my palm. The fresh scent of shampoo emanates from his hair, as I draw his face closer. His lips are firm against mine as I open my mouth, and his tongue sweeps inside without any hesitation. I lock my hands behind his head as our kiss deepens. The heat between us is intense as he spreads my legs open with his own. His tongue moves with urgency now. His kiss is as intoxicating as fine wine. He moves on top of me, and I grip his waist, pulling him tight against me. He is hard and I am ready as his strong, unyielding muscle enters me. Our bodies thrash about on the silk sheets like we are caught up in a full-blown gale. I’m too dizzy and light-headed with desire to care what we look like. My muscles constrict as he thrusts himself in and out of my passage, and I cry out, ‘Harder,’ breathlessly in his ear. One more thrust and I feel my floodgates open as my muscles clamp around him. I grind against him until I find myself gulping for air as bolts of pleasure come in rapid succession. He draws back...

‘
Abbi?’ Ben grinned at her. ‘What the hell’s got into you?’ He rolled off her onto his back, letting out a sigh of contentment.

Startled, Abbi slid naked from the bed. She clamped her mouth shut to imprison the sobs that threatened to break free. ‘Nothing. I’m going to take a quick shower,’ she said in a strangled voice.

‘Hey.’ Ben’s eyes clouded over with concern as he pushed himself up into a sitting position. ‘Is there something wrong?’

She kept her face towards the bedroom door as she brushed away a tear. ‘Not at all. I’m just feeling a bit emotional. I think it’s that time of the month.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes,’ she said as a twinge of guilt settled in her mind
.

‘Is there anything I can do for you?’

As he swung his legs off the bed she turned and raised her hand. In a panicked voice she said, ‘No, no, stay put and rest. I won’t be a minute.’

Fumbling with the door handle she pushed it open and disappeared behind the door, slowly crumpling to the floor. No amount of regret could wash away the tide of shame she felt at that moment in time. She vowed she would never fantasise about Taylor again. The survival of her relationship with Ben depended on it.