Shauna’s mouth dropped open to rage at him for the insult. The clear message was that he didn’t give a toss whether she was buck-naked or fully dressed, but then she shut up. What was the point? This was a start, that was all. The rest? She could work on it.

‘Turn the light off,’ he said, yawning.

Shauna turned it off, stumbled over the bags in the darkness, cursed. She groped her way to the bed, took off her shoes, lay down, and tried to sleep.

14

14

Sometime during the night, Shauna awoke to feel Josh’s arm around her and his hand cupping her breast through her clothes. She lay perfectly still, not wanting to break the spell. So much for his pretended indifference. She knew there had always been a spark between them, and this proved it.

But then, she thought again. Men weren’t fussy. Hand it to them and they’d lap it up, her mum had always told her that and she was right, drunken old cow that she was. Then she felt Josh’s big hand fiddling with the buttons on her blouse, pushing aside the thin material; he’d reached her bra.

He’s half-asleep. He don’t even know it’s me, she thought. Maybe I should stop him.

But then . . . she’d dreamed of this, fantasized about it so much. She wanted it.

Yes, she’d mucked about with the Cleaver brothers, tried her best to make Josh jealous, but she had never been even faintly interested in them, not really. Compared to Josh, they were nothing; he was the prize. And now . . . here he was. She had him.

Slowly she reached around, popped the bra open, then felt a shiver of lust as his hand quickly fastened over one naked tit, hardening her nipple in an instant. Helplessly she ground her hips back against his, felt the hardness there, wished he’d do it to her, right now. Do it, she thought. Please do it.

She heard him give a moan, felt his breathing quicken against her neck, then his hand left her breast and he was working the button on her jeans loose, tugging down the zip, pulling them off her.

His hand was sliding inside her pants now, touching her where she was most sensitive, feeling her readiness. She gasped as his hand moved away, wanted to say something, to protest, to say, Don’t stop, please don’t stop, but he was pulling her pants down, over her thighs, her knees, her ankles, and she was naked down there, and she was panting too now, her blood aflame with desire.