Obsession

“I managed for long enough without you, Landon, I think I can cope if we never do it again.”

I run my hand along the exposed skin at the top of her dress, across her neck and into the hair at the back of her head. I give it a gentle tug and move myself towards her.

“Are you sure about that?”

She enjoys it for a moment, backing her body into mine so much I have to shift to the side to accommodate her, before she lifts herself up and away from me.

“I’m sure, thanks.”

“You’re lying.”

Tilly shakes her head while beaming a bit smile down at me. It’s the same movement a young girl would make if caught eating chocolate secretly.

“Not lying.”

I know she’s lying. I know she’s playing a game. I know what she really wants is for me to pick her up, take her to the double bed and show her exactly what she’s trying to pretend she’s happy to miss out on. Well, fine. I’m not going to play the game she wants me to play. If she wants to miss out all of those things because she can’t admit to wanting me, so be it.

“We’re not going to be alone forever.”

Tilly shrugs her shoulders. “Then I guess if it’s important, we’ll have to make time. You know in your busy schedule.”

“Then maybe it’s not so important.”

“I guess we’ll see.”

“Will we?”

“You tell me.”

“I’m not the only one risking something.”

“And I thought you just wanted to get laid.”

“It’s a good start.”

“It might be a perfect end too. You know, before you get too attached.”

“What would I do then?”

“You might learn something about priorities.”

“I told you, I’m not the bad boy that everyone makes out.”

“What are you then? A good guy with a big dick?”

“Your words, not mine.”

I know she’s trying to pretend she’s not thinking about it, trying to stop her eyes from going there.

“Whatever. You don’t deserve me anyway. I’m far too good for you.”

“Is that right?”

I watch her move about the living room gracefully, each carefully placed footstep an act of contrived perfection.

“I’m much prettier than the girls you normally end up with. I’m obviously more intelligent. I’m much more stable too.”

“You’re unavailable.”

“Your words, not mine.”

Tilly has created a distance between us, as though the weight of the conversation we appear to be having needs a large space to expand into.

“I thought a moment ago you didn’t want me.”

Tilly smiles.

“I don’t.”

“So?”

“Hypothetically speaking.”

“If you did?”

“If I did.”

“You’re unavailable.”

“And you don’t date.”

“See? We are completely incompatible. Even if you could admit that you want me.”

“I’ve known you for four days.”

“Do you always sleep with people after such a short amount of time?”

“I’m not like you, Landon.”

“No, of course, you wait to get to know someone first.”

“I wait to get to know their name at least.”

“How long have you known that you wanted to date me?”

Tilly takes a moment to compose herself before she answers. I think she’s struggling not to laugh.

“That would never work.”

“Because I’m your stepbrother?”

“Because you’re an asshole.”

“That hurts my feelings.”

“I think you’re big enough to get over it.”

“You sound like you know me better than you think.”

She’s doing that lip biting thing again that drives me crazy.

“It’s just so obvious, it’s kind of hard to miss.”

“I don’t hear too many people complaining about it.”

“That surprises me, considering how many people are aware of it.”

“You make me sound like I’m in a different bed every day of the week.”

“I read the papers.”

“I told you, the papers lie.”

“So you’re a one woman man now?”

“I just take every day as it comes.”

Tilly has her hands out to the side like a dancer about to perform a pirouette, while instead she places one foot carefully in front of the other, and begins to close the distance between us again.

“How can you ever plan anything if you’re looking at the future so closely?”

Bang, the perfect moment to look up and lock eyes with me.

“Because I trust myself to make the right decision.”

“Landon Maddox making the right decision? When has that ever happened before?”

She’s close enough to touch, and I desperately want to reach around her waist and pull her down into my lap. I don’t even need to look at it to know I’m hard. She’s teasing me and it’s working. For a brief moment, I think she’s actually going to fall forwards into me, before she spins to face the other way and begins retracing her steps.

“There’s a first time for everything.”

“What would the papers say about that?”

“They might print something you’d enjoy reading for once.”

“I enjoy reading it all.”

“See? I knew you were my biggest fan.”

At the far wall she spins again to face me. I think she’s going to begin to walk towards me again, but she doesn’t, she leans against the wall instead, one leg bent and her foot propped up against it, her palms flat out to cushion her ass.

“Know thy enemy.”

“Why is it that you hate me again? Or is it just that you can’t admit to liking me and you actually hate that about yourself?”

She takes a moment to gaze languidly out of the window and in that moment I wonder if she’s as turned on as I am. There is a buzz of sexual tension in this room so thick I’d have trouble cutting through it with a chainsaw.

“I don’t know you well enough to answer that.”

“Do you know yourself well enough to know which question needs answering?”

That gets me a smile. If I was playing this game, which I’m not by the way, th

at would be the smile that would usually make me go over. I let the moment hang. I let her know she’s not going to get what she wants. Yeah, I don’t get what I want right now, but when I do, she’s going to be all over me.

“Sure, I know what I want.”

“Then I guess you just need to get to know me better.”

“In three days?”

“Don’t forget about family gatherings.”

“Of course. The ones that you are never able to make it to.”

“That might be different now.”

“I wouldn’t count on it.”

“Then you really don’t know me.”

“I know you like to play, and I know you don’t like to lose. You might be backing the wrong horse.”

“Maybe I’m backing the right horse, but the game is rigged.”

Tilly pushes herself playfully off the wall, before allowing herself to bounce back onto it.

“Then we have to change the game.”

“That’s easier said than done.”

“Depends how much you want to win.”

Again she bounces herself off the wall before allowing herself to fall back onto it.

“Or how much you like to play.”

“What’s the point in playing if you don’t do it to win?”

“Maybe I’m risk averse.”

“Then I guess you are backing the wrong horse.”

“How am I ever going to know?”

“Maybe you won’t until the game is over.”

“I still get to play it though, right?”

“As long as you play to win.”

“And what if I play to win, but I end up losing?”

“Then you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”

“I’m not used to losing.”

“Then you’ll know exactly what to do to win.”

Now she begins her slow walk towards me. One step at a time, her eyes holding mine, her movement confident and sexy. I find myself hypnotized to watch her, frozen here in a state of arousal, ready for her to fold herself into me. She stops, two steps in front of me and leans forward so she’s at my eye line. She’s close enough to kiss, and I have to fight against the urge not to do it. I need to hold on, just that little bit longer, no matter what my dick is saying.

“Because I don’t like losing either.”

“Then I guess we’d make a good team.”

Close enough to pull her into me. Close enough to run my tongue over her lower lip and bite it where she likes it to be bitten. Close enough to fuck her if she let me.