Oceans Apart 2 Read online

  “Do you want me to go?” Tristan asked gently. His British accent and deep voice sent shivers through my body and down my spine.

  “No! No, the last thing I want is for you to leave me here alone.” I exhaled, shaking my head. “I’m sorry, It’s just that —” My home, my sanctuary no longer felt safe. Although Brad had left the key he used to get into my house, I was still worried that he might have another one. “No, just…just give me a minute to think. I’m a little overwhelmed right now.”

  He nodded and folded his tall muscular body into a seat beside me. He put his hand out and wiggled his fingers, gesturing me to hold his hand. His grip was tight and sure, and I felt a little safer knowing he was here. But it didn’t completely solve my problem of Brad possibly finding his way into my house again.

  I looked up and could see Tristan’s pulse beating in the veins in his neck. He must have been surprised to get here and have to deal with all this. “Are you okay? I’m sure you didn’t travel halfway across the world to defend my honor. What are you doing here and why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

  “I wanted it to be a surprise.”

  “Yeah, well you’re the one who got a surprise.” I laughed out loud. I was totally ecstatic he was here.

  “Well, I’d defend your honor anytime, anywhere.” He smiled, his blue eyes sparkling now. “Are you going to be all right?”

  “I’ll be fine, now that you’re here. I just don’t know what I should do about Brad. I didn’t know he’d gone psycho on me. What if he has another key?”

  “Stay at the hotel with me.”

  “As wonderful as that sounds, I’d love to, but I can’t leave Kari here alone with a psycho on the loose. I’ll call a locksmith tomorrow and have him change the locks.” I got a cold chill and shivered as I thought back to the events that had taken place tonight. I’d never been so afraid in all my life. I’d have to remember to find the cameras Brad had planted in my room.

  “You were right about Brad. I should have listened to you and called the police. He could have hurt me tonight and I think he wanted to before you got here. You know what’s sick? He was practically getting off on it! That’s so gross.” The memory of Brad’s hard cock rubbing against me as he pinned me against the counter made me cringe and I quickly pushed the thought away.

  “If you want, I could change the locks—”

  “Gin! Ginny, I’ve been calling you. Where are you?” Kari’s voice rang out, startling me and stopping Tristan in mid sentence. I jumped out of my chair and ran towards the door just as she came rushing into the kitchen. “Oh my God, what the hell happened here? Are you okay?”

  “It was Brad in the van and he— he—” I couldn’t hold back my tears and her arms wrapped tightly around me as my emotions poured out. She seemed to feel my fear because she gripped me tighter, stroking my hair as I cried on her shoulder; afraid that I’d somehow slip away from her.

  Kari stepped back and looked at me. “Did that psycho-asshole hurt you? I’ll fucking kill him. Where is he now? Did he leave?” She looked me up and down as if to make sure I was all in one piece. “Is that jerk gone?” The concern in her eyes abated slightly when she caught sight of Tristan.

  “Holy shit! What the hell are you doing here?” Kari’s voice turned sharp and I knew I’d better say something fast before she said something snarky or totally uncalled for. I didn’t want her blaming Tristan for anything and sometimes my friend didn’t have a filter.

  “Kari, you remember Tristan? He came back to surprise me.” My answer made her pause and I could practically see the hamster wheel turning in her head. “Thank God he did because Brad had me in the freakin’ corner and…” I stopped for a second, trying to gather my strength to finish. “Tristan got here just in time to save me! Kari, you should have seen him! Brad started the fight like some Billy bad ass and Tristan protected me, and he—he— punched Brad in the nose and ran him off! Girl, it was so cool. Knight in shining armor stuff!”

  I was so relieved when Kari refrained from going bat-shit crazy on Tristan. It was around the same time that I felt his big, warm hand curl around my waist and run up my back. I shivered when he rested his arm across my shoulders in a semi hug.

  He squeezed my shoulder and said, “Hello Kari. Good to see you again.”

  My heart just about dropped as he continued, “I wanted my visit to be a surprise for Ginny, for both of you. Armstrong secured a contract here in LA and when I found out I was coming out here again, I knew I had to see her.” He teased my shoulder with his fingertips, and my heart, that should have calmed down by now, started to palpitate again as he explained, “I should’ve given you girls the heads up. I really wanted it to be a surprise but I guess I was the one who got surprised.” He smiled. That smile. “And truthfully… I missed her.”

  Tristan’s confession made me pause for a second. I looked up at him, my heart was working overtime and I’m sure he could feel it when he touched me. “Tristan…” I was unsure of what to say, but Kari interrupted our quiet little moment. “Gin, are you sure you’re okay? That asshole is gone? For good?”

  Before I could answer her, she grabbed my arm and broke me away from Tristan, “We’ll be right back,” she told him. Then she pulled me down the hall and into the bathroom. “Let’s get you freshened up a bit.” Freshening up consisted of her giving me the pep talk of all pep talks, complete with digs about finally ‘getting some’ with Tristan in real life.

  After a few minutes of Kari’s motherly advice, I wanted to get back to Tristan. “Okay, Care Bear, I’m okay. Let me go. I don’t want him to be out there alone. What if that asshole comes back?”

  “Uh, Gin? Did you see the muscles on that guy? Tristan can take care of Brad in his sleep. Hell, he could probably take care of two or three Brads all at the same time.”

  “Shhh…yes, I saw them.” I whispered. “That’s why I want to get out there and see some more of them. Now, let me go, Kari!” I walked out of the bathroom and back down the hall to find Tristan standing in the middle of the living room, a bewildered look on his face.

  “Are you okay, Gin?”

  “I’m good, except for the incessant pounding of my heart.” I smiled, not knowing what I felt at that moment.

  “Have you eaten yet? Would you like some dinner? Something quiet and not as exciting as…” he smirked and waved his hand in a sweeping motion across the messy room, “…this?”

  “Uhm, sure. Give me a sec to grab my purse and some lipstick.”

  Before I even realized it, we were in Tristan’s rental car on the way to a late dinner. His hand rested gently on my leg and fed warmth into my body. We didn’t talk while he drove; somehow, we both realized that we needed some time to decompress and think about everything that had happened that evening. I directed him to a small diner known for having amazing all-American food — diabetes and heart attacks included, and we were glad to see that despite its excellent reputation, it wasn’t too crowded.

  I couldn’t tell how Tristan felt about what had happened earlier with Brad and I worried that maybe all the drama was too much for him. We hadn’t even talked about where our relationship was going. I mean, were we even in a relationship? I know we were naughty over the internet, but does that mean we’re exclusive? I don’t even know if he see other women while he’s in the UK. I’d hoped my thoughts of us having a real one with him weren’t completely one-sided, but if they were, why did he come all this way to surprise me? Surely, a transatlantic booty call was going a bit far.

  “So…” I started. My voice faded out after I realized I had absolutely no idea what to say. My thoughts were just a swirling mass of confusion mixed with excitement and maybe even a little lust. Okay, a lot of lust. And honestly, I didn’t want to come across as too needy. “You said something about winning a new contract out here?”

  “Yeah, we’re expanding and the company won a bid here.” He smiled and added, “So, I’m back for a week.” His smile was contagious and I proba
bly had a cheesy one on myself.

  “You’re here for a week? That’s great!”

  “Yes, I am. We have to go over details and essentially seal the deal.” Tristan seemed way more relaxed than I was as he talked about his family business. I couldn’t follow everything he said, but I was content to just sit and bask in his presence as he told me about his busy schedule for the next week. I couldn’t stop myself staring at the gorgeous face that had occupied my dreams for months.

  “So, it seems like you’ll be incredibly busy while you’re here. I hope I get to spend some time with you…maybe show you around the city a little more.” Not wanting him to feel pressured, I added, “But I’ll totally understand if you don’t have time to hang out.” I didn’t want to sound too clingy or desperate, though truthfully, I just wanted to jump across the table and kiss his luscious lips and I hoped he felt the same.

  He held my hand across the table as I gazed into his eyes and imagined what it would feel like to have his strong hands caressing every inch of my body. The same man-hands that held me while Brad was being a dick, the same hands that stroked his fat cock while I watched him on Skype, the same hands I wanted wrapped around my ass while he pounded into me. He patted my hand, startling me back from my visions of sugarplums and I sat there, probably looking like an idiot with a big sheepish grin on my face.

  “You all right?”

  My cheeks got instantly hot as I realized I’d zoned out.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” I smiled and nodded my head. “I’m just so surprised you’re even here.”

  “Well, don’t you worry babe, I’ll make sure I have time for you.” Tristan’s assurance made my heart blossom with warm fuzzies. The last bit of tension finally drained out of me and I could relax. I know it wasn’t a declaration of love or long-term intent, but it made me feel better knowing that he wanted to spend more time with me. Maybe my feelings weren’t one-sided after all.

  Everything after that was a blur of great conversation and increasing sexual tension. We sat on opposite sides of the booth, our legs entwined and I reveled in the heat I could feel coming from him. We stayed long enough to have dinner and share a dessert before heading back to my place. I didn’t really want to leave the comfort of Tristan’s car, though I knew he must’ve been tired from his trip.

  However, he didn’t seem to be in a rush to leave, so we sat quietly, both locked in our own thoughts.

  “I had an amazing time with you tonight, Tristan. I…” I hesitated, wondering whether to reveal my true feelings or not. “I missed you. Talking online is great, but it’s even better talking with you face to face, you know?”

  Tristan smiled at me, which made my heart skip a beat. He raised his hand, the back of his fingers caressed the skin of my cheek. It was as if a live wire had touched me and I felt electricity spread from that point until my whole body was alive with the buzz of his touch. The sexual tension that had been present all evening was almost intoxicating in its intensity.

  “Ginny,” His gravelly voice made my body shiver with pleasure. The hand that had been caressing my cheek shifted, running slowly up and down the sensitive skin of my neck. My eyes closed as I melted into his touch. I felt him move and heard the rustle of his clothing before his soft warm lips connected with mine.

  I’d been waiting hours, months, even years for a kiss like this… heady and all consuming. I felt one hand wrap itself into the loose curls on the back of my head while the other rested softly on my heated cheek. My hands clutched the front of his shirt as if they didn’t want him to ever move away. I whimpered softly when his tongue slid slowly between my open lips, his mouth running hungrily over my own. I tried to give back as much as Tristan was giving, sucking on his tongue, excited at the groans echoing between us.

  It was probably only a few minutes, yet it seemed like hours before we pulled away from each other. My eyes felt heavy and hooded as I tried to open them, the world coming into focus with bright colors despite the time of day. Looking at Tristan, he seemed calmer and more collected than I did, though his breathing was heavy. I licked my lips and watched him as his eyes followed the tip of my tongue, before reconnecting with my own gaze.

  “So…I’ll see you tomorrow?” I asked, unable to keep the spark of hope out of my voice. He gave me another of his sexy smiles before picking up my hand and giving the back of it a sensuous kiss.

  “I’ll definitely work as hard as I can to make sure I see you every day I’m here.”

  As I got out of the car, his answer made me tingle and I found myself practically floating up the walkway and into my house.

  Kari was waiting up for me, sitting on our couch watching some reality TV show. When she heard me come in, she quickly turned around; smiling at what must’ve been a beaming expression on my face.

  “Well? How was it? How long’s he staying?”

  “Oh, Kari, he’s such a gentleman.” I swooned. “His voice, his accent, he’s just — just perfect!”

  “Girl, slow down. Don’t go falling head over heels just yet. He’s still a man,” she snarked. “He may be Mr. Perfect, but he lives a gazillion miles away and you really don’t know how he is in real life.”

  “Don’t go busting my bubble so soon, Missy!” I teased. Usually, I was the levelheaded one, but not this time. “Let me savor this night, just for a little while, before you throw logic and common sense at me. He’s so dreamy.”

  “Okay, but don’t make me have to tell you ‘I told you so’. And if he hurts you, he’ll have hell to pay.”

  We stayed awake a little longer discussing my date with Tristan. Kari wanted all the deets about him and everything we talked about. She wanted to know if I was planning to see him again, what we ate, did he say anything sexy and naughty like we did online. I answered that with a “None-ya business.” She was full of questions and when she was finally satisfied with my answers, I got up to go to bed. As I lay there that night, I noticed the loneliness I usually felt from sleeping alone had vanished.

  Chapter 3 — Tristan

  It had been two days since Ginny and the beautiful kiss we shared and I felt terrible as I hadn’t been able to see her since then. With the jet lag and meetings that lasted into the wee hours of the morning, there was no way I could have made it over there before she had to get ready for work. She was funny, silly in a good way and to tease me, she’d sent me a picture of herself in her favorite red and black polka dotted bra and knickers. She was top totty all right.

  And that kiss… her lips were so soft and moist, her breath warm and sweet. I couldn’t get her out of my mind. I thought about the softness of her skin and how it flushed so easily with desire. I longed to see just how far that flush would go, to put my hands and lips on those curves and trace the color down into her hidden depths. The small whimpers and gasps she’d given me that night would sound even better if accompanied by my name on her lips.

  “Sir?” The sound of someone else’s voice tore me from my fantasy and I turned my attention back to the people in the room who were looking at me, waiting for some kind of response. I tried to think back and see if I knew what was going on and realized to my utter horror that I’d missed everything, which was so unlike me.

  “I apologize, I was…” I caught my father’s cold glare and I knew I’d hear about this embarrassing lack of concentration later on, “…distracted for a moment…must be the jet lag.” I motioned for the waiter to bring me another cup of tea and continued, “Would you please repeat what you said? I’m all ears now.”

  Even though thoughts of Ginny had begun to take center stage, I still had to do my job and until now, I prided myself on my professionalism. With all the grief my father gave me about not settling for a cushy office job within the company, I needed to excel at being in the field. I had to. And dreaming of Ginny in her polka dotted lingerie was excelling in my opinion, just not in a project meeting at some boring hotel. I had to get my head back in the game. If I fucked up this contract after Dad had worke
d so long and hard to secure it, I’d never hear the end of it.

  Over the next few hours, I kept my focus firmly on the task at hand. In fact, other than a few errant thoughts about what she could be doing and whether that Brad arsehole took my advice and stayed the hell away from her, I didn’t spend too much time thinking about her at all. At least, I didn’t think I did… but then again, if I’m thinking about how I’m not thinking of her then…

  “Bloody hell, get it together, Tristan,” I growled to myself. I didn’t have the faintest idea how I got so hung up on Ginny, but I was. I mean, she was an amazing person and beautiful, but I wasn’t someone to just jump into something without thinking. That unfaithful bitch Vanessa cured me of that. But Ginny was different. She treated me like a regular bloke even though she knew of my family’s wealth. She also had direction and desire to succeed on her own, which few of the women who ran in my parents’ circle had. Most of them were just looking to settle down with someone who was already wealthy so they could one-up the neighbors and live the lifestyle of ‘ladies who lunch’, coffee mornings and afternoon tea on the lawn; they didn’t have any goals or aspirations.

  She was also gorgeous in that girl-next-door kind of way, which was refreshing in a sea of bleach blonde plastics. Even though we hadn’t had real sex yet… I found myself wanting to know more. And I needed to slow down. It wasn’t as if I lived right around the corner.

  Checking my email, my heart skipped a beat when I saw I’d received a reply from her. I double clicked on it and just the excitement she put in the greeting brought a smile to my face.

  ‘Morning Tristan!

  Hope you got some sleep. I don’t know how you do it… going to sleep late, waking up early and dealing with jet lag. You must have amazing stamina! Kari and I want to invite you over tonight for dinner and a movie as a thank you for dealing with the crazy stalker-ex. Well actually, Kari wants to say thanks and I just want to see you again.