Sushi for Beginners - Marian Keyes [211]
Oh no.
‘Well, it’s kind of hard for me to show you,’ she said quickly, ‘because the man is supposed to lead.’
‘Try anyway,’ he urged.
‘But…’
‘Just a rough idea,’ he grinned.
‘We don’t have the right music.’
‘What do we need? Cuban stuff?’
‘Yeeeesss,’ she said slowly, realizing her error. She’d thought there wasn’t a hope he’d have such obscure music, but she was forgetting that he was a man.
She was going to have to go through with this.
‘OK, never mind the music. The stuff on the stereo will do. Right, we both stand up.’
Immediately he got to his feet and she felt threatened by his height looming over her.
‘And we face each other.’
They turned to each other. Except they were about ten feet apart.
‘Perhaps slightly further in,’ Ashling suggested.
He took a step, then she did. Eventually she arrived at his front, reluctant to get too close. But she was near enough to smell him.
‘You put your arm around me. If you want,’ she added hastily.
He slid his arm along the small of her back and, briefly, she hovered her hand above his shoulder, then with a small surrender lowered it. She could feel the heat of him through his shirt.
‘And this hand?’ He demonstrated his free one.
‘You hold mine.’
‘Right.’ He was so matter-of-fact that when his big, dry hand grasped hers, she decided to relax. She was showing him how to dance, it was perfectly acceptable that they touch each other.
‘When my leg goes back, yours follows it, right?’
‘Show me.’
‘OK.’ She slid her leg out behind her and his leg came forward in tandem.
‘Now the other way,’ Ashling said. ‘You move your leg back and I follow it. And again.’
They practised it several times, increasing in speed and grace, until mid-move Jack stopped and Ashling kept going and suddenly she found herself pressing her thigh hard against his. She jerked to a halt, but didn’t pull away. They were perfectly still, frozen in the dance. Eye-level with his chin, she thought vaguely, he needs to shave. It was important to think normal things at a time like this. Because in other corners of her consciousness, other thoughts were going on.
‘Ashling, would you please look at me?’ Jack’s voice against her hair was anguished.
I can’t.
Then suddenly she could. She turned her face upwards, his sloe-black eyes blazed down and their mouths met in a hard kiss. Many months of waiting went into it. The low-down opening sensation yielded in Ashling: normally it burgeoned gradually, but this time it arrived with an abrupt thrust of desire.
His hands on her face, they kissed until they hurt each other. Hungry and desperate, they couldn’t get enough of each other.
‘Sorry,’ Jack whispered.
‘’s OK,’ she murmured back.
Gradually the kisses calmed, becoming dreamier and gentle until his lips were like feathers as they sucked against her tender mouth. The music was still on the stereo and they seemed to be circling slowly.
The sea looked in and thought, Slow-dancing in his front-room, well I’ve seen it all now.
Ashling slid her hands under Jack’s shirt and up along the delicious newness of his back. Their bodies were pressed up against each other, his palms on her bottom were pulling her even closer and she felt syrupy, floaty, blissful. She had no idea how long they spent like that. It could have been ten minutes or two hours, but suddenly Ashling had taken off Jack’s shirt. Well, it only involved opening one button.
‘You hussy,’ he said. ‘I’ll see you a shirt and I’ll raise you a pair of boots.’
‘OK.’ Her heart was banging in her chest. ‘What exactly does that mean? I take off my boots?’
‘And your shirt. I can see you’re not a poker player, I’ll have to teach you the rules. Off with your shirt.’ Already he was helping her out of it. ‘Now you say, I’ll raise you a pair of jeans.’
‘I’ll raise you a pair of jeans.’ She swallowed with nerves and excitement, as slowly Jack popped the buttons on his fly. Her hands trembling, she waited a tantalizing