Secrets of a Chalet Girl: HarperImpulse Contemporary Romance Novella Read online

  Perfect.

  Tash was right. This was the best way to leap back into the dating fray – with a sexy stranger in a foreign country. If she screwed up who would know? No strings sex – absolutely no pressure.

  She felt peculiarly light-headed, whether it was from the Kir Royale or the feeling of freedom and anticipation pulsing through her body she wasn’t sure.

  Probably a little of both.

  “Come and sit down,” Zac patted the leather sofa next to him and she approached cautiously, perching on the edge a little further away than he’d patted.

  Zac took some dice from a drawer in a lamp table and selected one.

  “Let’s play Truth, Dare or Forfeit,” he announced. “If you throw a one or a two that means a Truth, three or four mean a Dare and five or six will be a Forfeit – the thrower has to forfeit an item of clothing of the other player’s choice.”

  Flora’s stomach fluttered and her skin prickled to attention. Zac was so impossibly handsome – a strong jaw shadowed with stubble, intense dark-blue eyes and a physique an athlete would be proud of. He looked like he could wrestle a bear without breaking sweat. Hmm, where had that come from?

  If he’d suggested playing naked Twister she would’ve agreed. Now there was a thought…

  She wouldn’t mind telling him to take off his shirt either. As soon as he threw a five or a six it was coming off.

  “Forfeit was never part of the deal,” she protested, not wanting to seem too eager, too easy …

  It’s a bit late for that.

  “My chalet, my rules.” He grinned and raised an eyebrow, sipping at his Kir Royale but never taking his eyes off of her.

  “But you’re wearing a lot more items of clothing than me.”

  His eyes skimmed appreciatively over the lines of her silk dress, lightly hugging her curves. Heat burned her cheeks.

  Damn, he was doing it again, making her blush. Heat spread through her body, desire flaring into life as its flames licked at her, teasing her…

  He pulled his v-neck jumper over his head and threw it to the floor. “There you go.”

  The neckline at the top of his T-shirt revealed tanned flesh and a small amount of chest hair. She really hoped he’d throw a five or a six. She wanted to see what lay beneath that shirt, to lay a hand on his chest and trail it down his body…

  It felt like a need rather than a want.

  “Ladies first,” he grinned, his firm thigh resting, seemingly casually, against her leg where she sat on the sofa. Had he moved or had she? Perhaps this magnetic pull affecting her really was strong enough to move mountains. Or bodies come to that. She was intensely aware of the warmth of his flesh at point of contact. All her attention focused on the point where their bodies met, it was hard to think of anything else.

  He handed her one of the dice.

  She threw it onto the coffee table, only breaking off eye contact with Zac to see what she’d thrown.

  A six. Great. Maybe she could take off her necklace or a shoe?

  “I say you forfeit your knickers.” Zac’s eyes gleamed and Flora’s stomach preformed an undignified back flip. Her fingers trembled as she threaded them together in her lap.

  “Shouldn’t they be last to you know…come off,” she asked.

  “You don’t get to choose,” he replied.

  A thrill ran through her body at his words but still she didn’t want him to know how much he was turning her on.

  Hold back Flora. You have to hold back.

  “Do you need a hand?” He added, mouth twisting with amusement.

  The sod. He’s enjoying my discomfort.

  “No,” she replied, wanting to be the girl who could take this in her stride. She’d come here for sex after all. This was no big deal. She didn’t have to act coyly to hold back from Zac, there were many more ways to withhold herself emotionally and taking control was one of them.

  Yet no one had passed on the boldness memo to her body. Her hands continued to tremble as they inched the hem of her dress up her body. She watched his eyes darken as they took in her hold ups and the bare flash of flesh at the top of her thighs. Hearing Zac’s sudden intake of breath she parted her legs to give him a better view. She felt powerful.

  She felt sexy and could barely breathe as she edged her knickers down and threw them to the floor, pulling the hem of her dress quickly back down as she did, only giving him the briefest of flashes.

  “Your turn,” she said, thrusting the dice at him to move the attention away from her.

  He tore his eyes away from where her knickers lay on the floor and threw a two. Truth.

  “How many women have you slept with, Zac?” she asked.

  “I’ve lost count.” His eyes danced, amused.

  She gulped. They lived in different worlds, that was clear. But did it have to matter? She’d only been with the one man because she’d met Tom when she was seventeen and a virgin. Casual sex on Zac’s scale was something she could only imagine. Would it feel different with him?

  “Does it bother you?” he asked her, reaching over to lightly stroke the fabric of her dress where it covered her thigh, his touch rucked the dress hem up her body, seemingly accidentally.

  Yeah right!

  But she let it stay where it was and squirmed in her seat a little. “No, it should mean you’re good at it by now. If you’ve had all that practice.”

  He threw his head back and laughed.

  “So, will you give me marks out of ten?” he teased, his hand still languorously stroking her thigh in a way that drove her wild, the hem riding higher and higher until the lace of one of her hold-ups could be seen.

  The fire in the hearth flickered, the flames licking the new log. Every muscle tensed, her body on high alert.

  Hurriedly she picked up the dice and threw again.

  “A four?” Zac’s face lit up with a wide, sexy grin. “Now, what shall I get you to do?”

  Flora’s heart beat faster. She could feel the heat burning between her legs where she was growing wet. Her breasts ached to be touched.

  Sexual desire; she’d almost forgotten what it felt like.

  “Let me look at you,” he said simply, removing his hand from her thigh.

  “What do you mean, you are looking at me.” She frowned, thinking it an odd request.

  “I mean I want to look at you.” He lowered his eyes to the hem of her skirt. “Lift up your dress, let me see you.”

  “Oh.” She took a deep breath, her cheeks burning with embarrassment but doing what he asked felt strangely erotic. She pulled her dress up higher, slowly, teasingly, getting into character and emboldened by both the Kir Royale and the sense that none of this was really real.

  Zac placed one hand on each of her ankles, taking her by surprise, lifting both her legs up onto his lap, gently parting them.

  “Oh,” she gasped.

  Her skirt was now up around her waist and she was very, very turned on. She tuned in to the sensation of his fingers on her limbs, guiding her, seducing her. But his fingers travelled no higher than her ankles. He caressed her with his stare instead, and she found she loved the attention. Wanting him to do more drove her crazy but at the same time she found the build up of sexual tension erotic and empowering. The embarrassment faded away leaving pure lust.

  The need for him to touch her swelled inside, powerful and insistent.

  No one had ever stared at her in this way, or made her feel so sexually attractive. She wouldn’t complain if he abandoned the game right now to make love to her.

  The frustration of waiting for him to do something swelled inside her until she thought she’d burst. After a moment that seemed to stretch out forever Zac tore his eyes away and coolly picked up the dice.

  She leant forward again, loosely tugging her dress back down again as she watched him throw.

  “A six, I’ll be having that shirt, mister.” She sat up so she could get a better view, her fingers itching to tear the shirt from him and never mind the
buttons.

  She could feel sexual desire coiling tighter and tighter inside her with every inch of flesh revealed. His chest was firm and the muscles defined. The dark chest hair snaked down into the waistband of his jeans and she couldn’t help letting her eyes trail lower to the obvious bulge of a large erection.

  Good. So she’d made an impression then. It was always good for the ego.

  Tash was right. This is fun and it has been far too long.

  At the thought of the girls back at Chalet Repos she wavered, a part of her missing the familiarity of their nightly routine. The late night chats in the dorm room clasping mugs of hot chocolate were a world away from this. But that was the coward in her speaking. It was time to stop playing it safe.

  And how often did a girl get this kind of offer? She locked eyes with Zac and knew with certainty wild horses couldn’t drag her back to Chalet Repos; she was kidding herself. Perhaps she had to kid herself to feel she could walk away if she wanted to.

  She needed an out, an emergency exit, just in case…

  “Er, whose turn is it?” She blinked.

  “Yours.” He handed her the dice and his fingers brushed hers. A delicious tightening sensation tingled deep in the pit of her stomach.

  “A one. Now what shall I ask you Flora?” He observed her thoughtfully. The only sound in the room came from the crackling fire.

  Her heart beat faster, for some reason Truth felt scarier than Dare or Forfeit.

  “I know, tell me where I have to kiss you to really turn you on.”

  Flora blinked hard. “Um, on my neck maybe.”

  “Maybe? You’re sure that’s the place that will really turn you on? I think we might have to test this to find out if you’re telling the truth.”

  He pulled her across onto his lap and lowered his lips to her neck, caressing her skin with his lips. She moaned, her response out of control, her body automatically taking over as liquid heat pooled between her legs. Control rapidly disappeared as a viable option.

  She could feel his erection beneath her dress and instinctively rubbed herself against him, wanting to push him out of control too.

  Zac exhaled loudly, growing harder beneath her.

  “Well, it works okay but I think I have to kiss you in some other places to test if that’s really the best spot. How else will I know if you’re telling me the truth?”

  His hand slid up her thigh beneath her skirt, taking her by surprise as his fingers touched her clit. She jumped, startled at the touch, then she closed her eyes, giving herself over to the sensation.

  He dipped his fingers inside her and she welcomed his touch. It had been so long…

  “Oh, that’s erm…” She squirmed and adjusted her position so he could get better access.

  “You see if I kissed you just here.” His thumb caressed her clit, sending sparks of pleasure through her body. “Well I think it might turn you on even more. Or we could try up here…”

  With his other hand he stroked the swell of her breasts, lightly teasing her through the fabric covering her now protruding nipples, stiffening to his touch. Flora wanted his hands and tongue everywhere, wanted him to well and truly make love to her until every longing was satisfied.

  The intense arousal felt almost unbearable. She was ready for him and wanted him inside her like, now! She needed him to touch her, explore her and bring her release.

  She ignored the part of her still protesting this was all too fast. It wasn’t making love – this was arousal. Pure lust. They didn’t even know each other. It just felt like they did because the chemistry was so hot.

  Her body might need the release, craving freedom, but her mind hung back, suspending judgement. It was like she was both prisoner and guard. Her sexuality sought freedom from the sentence of repression she’d imposed upon it. She stood, key in lock, trying to find the courage to turn it.

  Fear surged inside her, so tangible it felt physical. The last time she’d made love it’d been…hideous. Tom had been furious with her for some reason, she couldn’t remember why now, forgetting to pick his shirts up from the dry-cleaners perhaps, or not doing the washing up, who knew? In those last few months he’d been permanently angry, using sex to make her submit to him. Using it to remind her of his superior strength.

  Why the heck am I thinking about Tom? He’s not ruining this for me. I have to speed things up.

  The memory of why she’d imposed a man-free zone on her body cast its long shadow over her. She had to claw back some control, to get on with this before she talked herself into wimping out.

  She grabbed the dice and thrust it into Zac’s hand.

  “Your turn again,” she struggled to catch her breath.

  “Okay,” he replied softly, fixing a curious eye on her as he threw the dice into the lap of her hastily pulled down dress.

  It was a two. She thought hard before speaking.

  I need to know more about this man.

  “Who were you supposed to meet tonight? I saw you kept checking your phone. Did you get stood up? Were you lying when you said you didn’t have a girlfriend?”

  “Whoa, hold on. That’s a lot more than one question.” He looked her straight in the eye. “First off I don’t lie, ever. That’s not the kind of guy I am. I promise I’ll always be upfront with you. As to your other question - my best friend Nick was supposed to be meeting me but he stood me up because his wife went into labour. They’re both in the hospital in Martigny with my brand new godson, Tomas, born about an hour ago.”

  It wasn’t what she’d been expecting to hear and it threw her momentarily.

  “Oh, I see.” Had she been wrong-footed? It was only fair she double-checked he wasn’t spoken for, wasn’t it?

  “Does that satisfy your curiosity? Were you hoping a girl had stood me up? Because I have to say I’ve never had it happen yet; have you ever been stood up?”

  “I don’t have to answer you, I’m not the one who threw a two,” she replied haughtily, pulling her legs up underneath her, curling up on the seat beside him.

  No, of course he’d never been stood up. That only ever happened to mere mortals.

  “I believe it’s your throw,” Zac said, retrieving the dice from where they’d fallen to the floor. He placed one hand on her thigh as he handed it to her and her flesh responded eagerly to his touch. She wanted to give in with abandon, really she did but…

  Would she ever be free of Tom’s shadow, darkening everything she did? She’d had enough of it. It was ridiculous, why should he get to spoil sex for her indefinitely? If she let thoughts of him intrude and ruin tonight then he was still winning.

  I can’t let him win.

  She leant against Zac’s warm body to indicate she was still interested, aware she’d been giving him as many mixed signals as a malfunctioning traffic light. Maybe he’d think she was playing hard to get?

  She threw a six.

  “The dress.” Zac raised an eyebrow, clearly expecting some objections. His sexy smile made her stomach flip over.

  She’d show him.

  Sod it!

  Zac was gorgeous and this was happening. She took a deep breath and reached behind her back to the zip but her fingers trembled, fumbling with a fastening that stubbornly refused to yield.

  “Let me.” Zac leant forward, his mouth close to her ear as he reached for the zip, his fingers brushing her skin as he pushed her hair aside. She turned her back to him to make it easier. When he pressed his lips to the nape of her neck she almost leapt off the seat. The kiss was so hot it felt like he’d branded her. She shuddered, the air escaping her lungs with a sudden rush. When she’d said she liked her neck kissed she’d chosen it because it was a safe option, she hadn’t realised it could really feel this sexy.

  Gently, slowly he tugged down the zip and the dress fell away. She expected him to touch her or kiss her again. She wanted him to trail kisses down her spine to the small of her back; she was particularly sensitive there.

  He did nothing. And i
t drove her wild. She needed his touch, her skin craved him.

  She turned to see his eyes, dark with desire as they focused on her with a sensuous intensity, drinking her in. They lowered to her breasts, still covered by a pale pink lacy bra and they stayed there a while, lingering appreciatively.

  The attention was intoxicating, as was knowing that he liked what he saw from the bulge in his jeans.

  It’d been a long time since anyone had looked at her like that. It was amazing how easily her confidence had been eroded. It had been a slow drip, drip into her psyche until one day she’d finally woken up a victim and knew she had to build her own life raft or drown.

  No more, stop thinking about the past.

  Then her eyes locked with Zac’s and she felt so connected to him, so totally and utterly drawn to him that at that moment, rightly or wrongly, she would have trusted him with her life. And right now she trusted he would give her the shag of her life.

  “Your turn mister,” she said, smiling as she tossed him the dice.

  He threw a four.

  Flora considered, her heart beating wildly in her chest. She knew what she needed to ask. She summoned all her courage, aided by the desire fizzing through her veins like effervescent sherbet.

  “Make love to me,” she said.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Zac raised his eyebrows, studying her carefully, probably deciding whether to torture her a little more before giving her any kind of release.

  She knew it wasn’t really making love. It was sex, but she couldn’t bring herself to ask him to shag her and the ‘f’ word felt too brazen, even for a girl dressed only in a pink bra, hold-ups and high-heeled boots.

  “It’s an official Dare, I need you to…make love to me,” she said as boldly as she could, leaning back on the sofa and wondering if she dared go as far as to part her legs in invitation.

  Hmm, maybe not. “Please?”

  That’s right Flora, you may as well beg. You’ve lost your clothes; you may as well shed your self-respect along with them.

  In reply, Zac tugged at the button fly of his jeans, quickly getting rid of the rest of his clothes. Flora watched with interest as he revealed his long muscular thighs. The bulge in his black trunks told her how turned on he was.