Drink Me

75. THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

As he opened the office door, Riley heard a noise coming from the end of the dark corridor. His head automatically shot in that direction and in the dim light, he made out the shape of a woman busy locking a big wooden door.

Caroline.

After a split second's thought, Riley left the room and stepped a few feet away from the studio in the party's direction and plastered a smirk on his face as he waited for Caroline to turn around and notice him.

With one shoulder against the wall, his legs crossed at the ankles and one hand casually in his pocket, he looked relaxed and laid back, but in his chest, his heart was throbbing.

"Riley, what are you doing here?" Caroline asked, instinctively glancing at the office door that was still ajar; just how the man had found it.

"I was looking for you," Riley replied with confidence and a bit of charm.

Breathe.

"Did you need anything in particular?" Caroline queried, strolling in front of him.

"I was hoping to get you alone," he beguilingly said, to justify his presence there.

Caroline stifled a pleased smile and tilted her head to the side. "And why on earth would you want to be alone with me?"

Think fast.

"I was just wondering if you had any ideas for the afterparty..." he said, his voice velvety.

Please, say no.

But if she did, he would have thought about the consequences later. His priority now was to pass on the information burning in his chest.

Caroline smiled mischievously and bit her lower lip before saying, "I could show you a preview now..." and with that, she took Riley's hand and led him into the studio, closing the door behind her.

Back to square one.

Riley cleared his throat as his eyes travelled over the woman and his brain struggled to find any excuses to get out of that room.

"I don't think it's appropriate, Mrs Perry, this house is full of people," he tried, still keeping his tone playful.

But Caroline took a step closer. "It's my house. I can be as inappropriate as I want." And her arms circled Riley's neck as she placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"What would your guests think if they knew?" Riley asked when Caroline pulled back.

Caroline grinned and her eyes darted between his eyes and lips."That I've got incredibly good taste," she said as her fingers invitingly tickled the side of his neck.

Riley was getting frustrated. He was hoping to be far away from that office by then, possibly planning their next move with Alice but making Caroline suspicious with his contradicting attitude was a dangerous move. The woman was too clever.

"Who's the tease now?" he whispered, forcing a smirk.

Pulling his head closer Caroline breathed in his ear, "Oh, I'm not here to tease you." And the timbre of her words sent chills down Riley's spine.

Then her mouth connected with his again; her lips were soft and welcoming as they quickly parted to let Riley in and he could taste the champagne on her tongue. Caroline's hand moved to his hair, pushing their heads even closer while her other one explored the muscles of his back through his clothes; then she broke the kiss and tugged Riley's jacket off his shoulders, urging him to take it off completely. That's when Riley knew she had no intention of stopping.

"Carol, it's dangerous," he tried in one last attempt at appealing at her good sense, but Caroline looked up at him, her eyes fiery with passion and something Riley couldn't read exactly.

"Do you want me, Riley?"

For a split second, he thought of telling the truth.

No, I don't. I fucking hate you.

"So bad," he lied instead and without thinking again, he crushed his mouth on hers and pulled her close against his body. Caroline's hands wasted no time in undoing his belt and she was quickly inside his trousers, stroking him with determination.

Riley closed his eyes shut. He hated that.

He hated her.

He hated that her touch was making him hard.

He thought about Alice.

He tried to imagine the woman's hands on his body, her tongue on his lips, but Caroline's scent was intoxicating in all the wrong ways.

Caroline let go of him briefly and reached across the desk, where she opened a small metal box, producing a condom as a satisfied grin appeared on her face, leaving Riley to conceal his disappointment with a smirk.

Here goes my excuse.

Taking the foil wrapper from her hands, he walked her against the wall, determined to be over with it as soon as possible. He unrolled the condom on his erection and secured one of Caroline's legs around his waist, then slowly slid inside her, instinctively holding his breath for the briefest moment.

Then Caroline's mouth was on his neck, licking his skin rendered tender by her gentle bites, and Riley automatically started to move, slowly, afraid of losing control again. But Caroline's hips were following his every movement, making his thrusts deeper every time, and Riley unwillingly picked up his pace.

He wondered if that's how Alice felt when she slept with Aidan; if she too felt conflicted between the physical pleasure and the self-hate for letting it happen.

But he doubted it, and he hated it.

He pushed harder, closing his eyes to blackout the woman in front of him; Caroline's moans in his ear made him want to cover her mouth with his hand, but he refused to be rough with her again. He kept moving, hitting even harder as he wrapped Caroline's other leg around his waist, allowing for an even deeper thrust, hoping that if he couldn't come to an end, Caroline would as soon as possible.

And that seemed to do the trick. Her hand pulled him closer as she cried almost painfully against his mouth.

"Are you OK?" Riley asked, alarmed by her noise.

"Yeah, I love it," Caroline said, smiling as she panted, so Riley buried his face in her neck as his movements resumed quicker and harder.

"Oh, my God, it feels so good," she cried out and Riley covered her loud words with his lips, kissing her as passionately as he could bring himself to, to smother the noise.

"What the fuck is going on here?"