“Oh my God,” Alex said, clearly getting all the response he needed, “you like her, don’t you? Okay, now you have to tell me all about it. Quick, before we’re interrupted.”
Attempting to shuffle his thoughts into some kind of order, Oliver took a sip of his drink, then placed it carefully back on the bar. Took a deep breath. Then told Alex everything—with the exception of the sexy stuff. He didn’t want him to think he was some kind of pervert. Adele’s best friend knowing he liked her was one thing, but divulging the really private stuff…it just wasn’t going to happen.
When Oliver had finished speaking, he drank some more of his drink, watching over the rim of the glass as Alex’s curious expression grew thoughtful for a while, then eventually turned excitable. “Okay,” he said enthusiastically, “I have an idea.” Glancing over at the kitchen doors, he continued, “It’s really bloody simple, actually. You have to try again. Let Adele know that you bottled it back in the sauna and that you meant every word. That you like her, would like to get to know her better and all that jazz. Then ask her out on a date.”
“A date?” Oliver panicked. They were so formal, so much pressure. If he went out with Adele on a date, he had no doubt his nerves would get the better of him again and he’d fuck up royally.
“Yes. Well that’s what normal people do when they’d like to spend time with someone, to find out whether they’d like to be with them romantically. I presume you’re after a romantic relationship, not just sex? Because if you’re just after a shag, then you can fuck right off. Adele’s not like that and I won’t see her hurt.”
“No, no! God, no. I like her on more than just a physical level. I don’t know her all that well but she seems fun, kind, confident. She takes a lot of shit from people and she doesn’t give it back, doesn’t call people out. She’s got an absolutely incredible amount of restraint. And…I dunno. I’m just drawn to her and I’d like to find out if there could be something between us.”
Alex grinned. “Well then. You know what you have to do.”
“I do?”
“Oh, for God’s sake. You’re useless. Are you trying to tell me a good-looking fella like you doesn’t know how to handle women?”
Oliver wriggled in his bar seat. “I-I…no. I mean, I’m not a virgin or anything and I have had a couple of relationships but I’ve never been the one to start them. I’ve always ended up with women that really knew what they wanted and went after it. So when that thing was me, I ended up with a girlfriend. Hence the fuck-up in the sauna. I haven’t got a bloody clue what I’m doing!”
Alex laughed. “So you’ve never asked a woman out, is that what you’re saying? You don’t know how to make the first move? You’ll have to, you know, if you want to be with Adele. She comes across as confident, and to an extent she is, but when it comes to men she’s as useless as you are with women.” He paused, his finger on his lip, as if deep in thought. “Okay, what are your thoughts on writing her a letter? To apologize, to start with? Give her your number, ask if she’d like to meet for coffee. A casual thing. Then when you’re back in her good graces, ask her out on a proper date.”
“You make it sound so easy. What if she says no?”
“It is easy. Well the letter-writing part, anyway. Here,” he grabbed a pen and notepad and slapped them down in front of Oliver, “get on with it. And as for her saying no, well if you don’t ask, you’ll never know, will you? I have a feeling she’ll say yes, though. It sounds like you get on quite well, and the way she acted when I called you over told me something was amiss. I reckon she just didn’t know what to say. She doesn’t get asked out much, as so many people just can’t see beyond her weight and they have absolutely no idea what they’re missing out on.”
Oliver nodded thoughtfully. “Okay, that all makes sense. So what you’re saying is we’re both rubbish at chatting up the opposite sex and that if I don’t make the first move, she won’t either?”
“Pretty much.”
“Well, fuck that. I’m not missing out on my opportunity with a great gal. The blokes ‘round here must have a screw loose if they’re passing her by because of her figure. So she’s not a size ten, so fucking what? I think she looks great as she is. Fantastic, actually. And you know why? Because she’s happy. Happy and healthy and bubbly. What could be more attractive than that?”
“I like you already. Now get scribbling. In fact, if you hurry up and write something before your food comes out, that and your drink are on the house. Just don’t tell Adele, okay? I’ll leave you alone for a minute.”
Alex grabbed a second notebook and pen and started checking the bottles hanging from the optics, the crisps, peanuts and other snacks attached to cardboard holders. Presumably he was working out what he needed to order in. Pulling his gaze away, Oliver forced it onto the blank page in front of him. Pretending to be fascinated by what Alex was up to wasn’t going to help him to ask Adele out now, was it?
As it happened, Alex encouraging him, both in general and to hurry up, helped immensely. Because he didn’t have lots of time to think about what to write, he just jotted down the first things that came into his mind. When he read the thing back, he decided it had been for the best, because the words were truthful and to the point.
Adele, I’m sorry. I’m totally crap with women and I chickened out when I was telling you how I felt. I meant what I said, though—I do really like you and if you’re interested I’d like to see if there’s anything between us. If not, no worries, but I’m currently going on the premise of ‘nothing ventured, nothing gained’.
Maybe we could start with a coffee sometime? My treat.
Oliver x
He stuck with just signing his name and a single kiss, in an attempt to strike a balance between soppy fool and disinterested party. He hoped like hell he’d gotten it right. He added his phone number at the bottom, then tore the page from the book and waved it at Alex.
“Take it, quick, before I chicken out again. But promise me, promise me, that you won’t give it to her until I’ve gone. At least then if she turns me down she won’t be doing it to my face.”
“Okay,” Alex snatched the note from Oliver and tucked it into his shirt pocket. “You have my word. God knows, I want to see Adele happy, and I hope you’re the man for the job. But if she thinks you’re not, then I agree it’s best you’re not here when she reads what you’ve written. I may not be a particularly masculine man but I don’t want you blubbing all over my bar. Or my shoulder, for that matter.”
Oliver sighed. “Alex, I just meant I didn’t want to be embarrassed. I don’t do crying. I am somewhat masculine, I believe. I think the last time I cried was when I was about nine and my pet rabbit died.”
“Fair enough. Now talk about something else.”
“W-what, why?”
“Because there are some customers coming and I reckon your food will be here any minute now.”
“Okay. And hey, thanks, mate. Even if it doesn’t work out at least you gave me a nudge in the right direction to give it a try. I appreciate it.”
“No worries.”
* * * * *
An hour and a half later, Oliver pulled onto his drive, still burning with embarrassment. Sure enough, the mechanic had turned up in his tow truck and Oliver had gone out into the car park to let him know what had happened. Less than a minute later the guy had diagnosed the problem. He’d only gone and run out petrol! Shamed beyond belief, Oliver had asked the bloke to tow him to the nearest filling station. That way, it had looked quite serious to Adele and Alex, and he’d still been able to get some fuel. He’d given them a cheerful wave as he hopped into the cab of the tow truck.
He couldn’t believe he’d been such an idiot. Never in all the years he’d been driving had he run out of fuel. He’d definitely be keeping that secret to himself.
Still, he thought as he unlocked his front door, it hadn’t been a total disaster. He’d gotten a free drink and a bloody delicious meal out of it and he was hopefully tak
ing steps in the right direction to get his love life on track.
If Adele said yes, it would definitely have been worth the embarrassment and inconvenience.
Chapter Five
Adele waited until she got home to read the letter. She knew that somehow Alex had been involved in its creation but she couldn’t stand him hovering around while she read it. Despite the fact she’d tell him what it said at some point, probably even let him read it, she just wanted to be by herself while she read it for the first time. To digest what it said, to work out how she felt about it.
By the time she’d taken in every last word, her eyebrows had almost disappeared into her hairline. She didn’t quite know what she’d been expecting but it certainly hadn’t been that. After Oliver had dashed out of the sauna, she’d really thought she’d seen the last of him. Not literally, of course, unless he quit his job or she found a new leisure center, but she didn’t think he would still show an interest in her. Much less want to try again. And as for him being crap with women—she could hardly believe it. A guy like him should have them lining up to date him.
Adele grinned. Thinking about it, he did kind of have them lining up—the three witches were clearly very interested in him. Yet he’d chosen her. Even after their crazy misunderstanding he still wanted her. Wow.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained is absolutely right, she decided. Then, picking up her phone, she entered and stored Oliver’s number before tapping out a text.
Hi Oliver,
Coffee would be great. When are you free?
Adele x
She had tapped in a second kiss, but had then deleted it. Shaking her head, she wondered when she’d gotten so hung up on how many kisses to put in a bloody text message. He’d put one, so she’d wanted to put the same amount to avoid seeming overly keen. It was ridiculous and she knew it. After all, if neither of them were that keen on each other, why were they bothering?
She pressed send, then put her phone down on the table before heading into the bathroom for a shower. That way she couldn’t sit obsessively staring at the device, willing it to beep into life with a response from Oliver.
God, they hadn’t even been out yet and already she was finding the whole dating thing stressful and worrisome. But she knew she had to go through it if she ever wanted to be in a relationship again, so she came to the conclusion that it was worth it. Oliver was worth it.
Pulling the shower curtain around her, she shifted under the warm spray and shivered with pleasure. Grabbed the bottle so she could shampoo all those cooking smells from her hair. Washed, rinsed. Repeated the same process on her body with shower gel. Only her body gave her pause. She looked down, frowned. It was the same old view. Breasts that could only be described as huge, with a voluminous tummy beneath. She couldn’t even see her feet unless she leaned forward.
She sighed. Over the years she really had gotten used to the stares, but it had been so long since she’d been with anyone other than her right hand and trusty vibrators—she had several—that she tried to remember how men reacted when they saw her naked body. Despite its obsession with skinny girls, fashion had taken huge steps forward in catering for plus-sized women, so she no longer had to wear shapeless clothes. Instead she wore well-fitting, flattering attire, and undergarments that sucked her tummy in. The clothes boosted her confidence no end, made her feel attractive, womanly, desirable. But when those nice clothes came off…then what? Certainly no one had ever reacted badly, as no amount of great outfits could hide her voluptuousness, so she figured that perhaps everything would be okay if things between her and Oliver came to that. She damn well hoped they would.
After a beat a thought came to her. A thought so blindingly obvious that she had to resist the temptation to slap her forehead.
Oliver had seen her naked. Well, almost. For ages now she’d been appearing in front of him in just a swimsuit. A swimsuit that covered her from lower throat to upper thighs but did absolutely nothing to hide the lumps and bumps in between. And far from being turned off by it, it seemed he still liked her. Even more than the mean girls—and they had tiny bodies barely covered by even tinier bikinis!
Well, she decided, if Oliver had seen her in her cossie and still wanted her, then who was she to complain or put up a fight? Gorgeous Oliver Shaw, toned, delicious and apparently shy around women. She could hardly believe it, and she made up her mind that when they were a little more comfortable around one another, she would find out exactly what had happened to make him so unsure of himself around the opposite sex.
For now, though, she’d celebrate the fact that they were going out for coffee. Hopefully soon.
Her mind wandered to thoughts of him in the sauna, before he’d blurted out that he liked her then run off. It had been the first time she’d seen him topless and the image was forever etched into her mind. Or maybe just until she had even more explicit mental pictures to pull up. For the time being, it was perfect.
Even in the dim light, she’d been able to see the broad, defined shoulders, the wide chest with its smattering of dark, curly hairs, which thinned to a line and then traveled down the middle of the perfect bumps of his abs before disappearing into the waistband of his shorts…
Fixing the perfect image in her mind, she inserted herself into it, made it real. Closing her eyes, she let her imagination—and her fingers—run wild.
She kneeled down in front of him, her knees sinking into soft carpet. Glanced up at his face, returned the smile upon it. Then shifted her attention back toward what was quite literally in front of her. Tucking the tips of her fingers into the waistband of his shorts, she dragged them down, slowly, carefully, grinning as she felt them catch against his stiff cock. She pulled the material outward to accommodate him and saliva pooled in her mouth as his shaft sprung out, hard, ready and smelling delicious. Musky yet clean, and oh so very masculine. She wanted to pounce on him right away, sink her mouth onto his stiffness, feel him jerk beneath her, hear him moan. But she didn’t. She teased him first instead. Teased him with flicks of her tongue, barely touching his sensitive skin. His cock bobbed in front of her, twitched as he reacted to her actions.
Then when she could hold back no longer she circled her right hand around the very base of his shaft, the wiry curls of his pubes brushing against her skin, and closed her lips around the head. She put her other hand on his firm ass, digging her fingers in ever so slightly. Oliver groaned, reached down and tangled his fingers in her hair, tugging it a little. She hummed in response and the vibrations she made wrenched another feral sound from her lover.
Her pussy grew wetter, juices making the insides of her thighs damp and sticky. It seemed the more aroused Oliver got, the hornier she became. And he hadn’t even touched her yet—well, none of her erogenous zones, anyway. As the thought passed through her head, though, she realized she was wrong. When it came to him, every millimeter of her was an erogenous zone, and as he gripped her brunette locks more tightly, the tiny beads of pain that exploded across her scalp quickly morphed into pleasure. Extreme, delicious pleasure.
She sunk her mouth farther onto his cock, relishing the heat, the feeling of soft skin over rock-hard flesh. A string of unintelligible sounds issued from Oliver’s beautiful lips. Somehow she knew he was urging her on. Sucking in a deep breath through her nostrils, she paused for a second, then let it out. Repeating the process, she then removed her hand from the base of his cock, placing it on his other buttock, and inched her lips forward, slowly edging his meaty head past her gag reflex until he was fully enveloped in her mouth and throat. The sounds he made grew more animalistic, the hold on her hair tighter as he abandoned sense, abandoned everything that was not directly related to his dick.
Swallowing around him, a bolt of arousal and an extreme sense of triumph flashed through her as he yowled and jerked his hips toward her in abbreviated, rapid movements before calling her name and seemingly turning to stone before his cock twitched, spurted its release deep into her throat. She shifted
back slightly, gulping down everything he had to offer her. Then when he’d calmed down some, she licked and sucked at his shaft until it was clean. Only then did she pop him out of her mouth and sit back on her haunches, carefully pulling her hair from his grasp.
Looking up, she was gratified to see that she’d turned him inside out. He stood rocking gently back and forth, his eyes wide, cheeks red and his arms limp at his sides, as though he were bereft of energy. He gave her a goofy smile, then rallied enough to reach out and help her up, pulling her into his arms. She went willingly, eagerly, and responded immediately when he pressed his lips to hers, opening her mouth to admit his questing tongue. He didn’t seem to care that she’d just swallowed his cum.
He pulled back and she let out a little mewl of disappointment, which turned into a happy purr when he said, “You’re beautiful.”
Their lips clashed again, and he possessed her mouth enthusiastically and with immense skill, kissing her until she was dizzy with lust. Her pussy was swollen, her clit throbbed. She wanted nothing more than to have Oliver inside her, fucking her for all he was worth until they both came.
She pulled away and said just that, grinning when he steered her quickly, excitedly, toward a sumptuous-looking bed and shoved her gently down onto its mattress. It gave under her weight, and before she had chance to scramble backward to lay her head on the pillows, Oliver was upon her, capturing her lips with his, kissing her until her toes curled and the duvet was in danger of a serious soaking.
“Please,” she whispered, grabbing his head and guiding it down her body, “make me come.”
The first touch of his mouth to her sex was like Heaven incarnate, his tongue making short work of the juices that coated her, only to cause her to produce more. Slipping two fingers inside her, he licked, nibbled and sucked at her clit and labia as his other hand stroked her breasts and belly.