Truth or Dare Page 16

  “Are you sure we didn’t talk first?” Sophie said breathlessly. She tried to keep her body from shaking but to no avail. He smiled at her nervousness.

  “You might have said something like the fact that you think I am ridiculously handsome and you want me to take your clothes off.” Ashton’s tone was dangerously playful. He was enjoying himself. She could see it in his eyes.

  Sophie’s eyes widened. “I said that?” She gasped.

  “Yes.” He leaned in and grazed his lips across her cheek.

  “What did you say?” Sophie’s heartbeat was wild in her chest.

  “I said…okay.” She could feel his smile against her neck.

  “You just said okay? That’s it?” Sophie narrowed her eyes and pulled back to see his face.

  He shrugged innocently. “Then I said…goodbye dress, as I did this.” Ashton let her slip out of his grasp without realizing he still had hold of her night dress, pulling it up over her head.

  “Ashton?” Sophie inhaled sharply, covering her body the best she could with only her arms. Her lacy bra and panties left little to the imagination.

  “You said you wanted a play by play.” He tossed her dress to the side when she tried to grab for it.

  “I do,” Sophie relented. “Is this really what happened?”

  “Yes,” he said, looking down at her shamelessly, his eyes taking in her every curve. She let her arms fall to her sides, liking the way his eyes took her in.

  “Are you going to tell me that I confessed all my feelings for you and threw myself at you?” Sophie narrowed her eyes at him, searching his expression for the truth she was looking for.

  “Yes, exactly. I thought you said you didn’t remember.” Ashton tilted her chin up toward him, leaning in close. “This is the part where you kissed me.”

  Sophie took a deep breath and raised herself up on her toes, her fingers grabbing hold of the material of his shirt and pulling him down as her intended kiss ripened her lips.

  “Oh…before you kissed me you said you wanted me. You should probably say that now if you want this to be a true representation.” His lips curled up deviously.

  “This isn’t exactly what I had in mind. I thought it wouldn’t be so…me being so…” Sophie tried to pull away but Ashton grabbed her by the arms, pulling her in closer.

  “Ask me what I said then.”

  “What?”

  “Ask me what I said after you said that you wanted me so bad you can’t stand it?” he said, this time his eyes were serious as he looked into hers.

  “I really said that?” Ashton only nodded. The intensity in his eyes was making her insides tighten. “What did you say then?” she whispered, not breaking their eye contact.

  “I said…I wanted you more.” Sophie gasped at his confession. It was unexpected and she hadn’t realized how much she wanted to hear those words until he said them. He closed his lips around hers, impatiently exploring her mouth. Sophie melted into him, pulling herself up to deepen their kiss. He pulled her up like she weighed nothing at all, pressing her body against his. Sophie wanted to memorize everything about him. How his hair felt as she ran her fingers through it, how his strong shoulders tensed with her touch. How it felt like she was the only girl in the world when he kissed her.

  Sophie hadn’t even realized that Ashton had moved them to the bed, she was so lost in the way his lips pleased hers. He sat down on the bed with her straddling his lap. A giggle erupted from Sophie as they tried to situate themselves.

  “I like that sound,” Ashton confessed as he grabbed her hand and kissed each knuckle. “You put a song on when we got to the bed.” He nodded toward her iPod sitting on her nightstand.

  Sophie felt a scowl form upon her brow. “What did I put on?”

  “I’ll show you.” Ashton reached over and grabbed the iPod. Turning it on, he scrolled through the playlist.

  A smile spread across her face as she noticed his lips moving as he shuffled through the music.

  “What?” He looked up at her. He was handsome with his entrancing blue eyes and hair that was all disheveled from Sophie running her fingers through it. He looked so sexy that she leaned in and kissed his lips gently, slowly. “Mmm…you taste so good,” He confessed. Her insides tightened in response to his words.

  “This is it.” He pushed play and “Don’t Cha” by the Pussycat Dolls began playing.

  “This is what I put on?” Sophie raised her eyebrow in disbelief.

  “Yep.” He grinned.

  “What did I do then?”

  “You danced.” He leaned back on his elbows and nodded toward the floor behind her.

  “What? I danced?” she asked with serious doubt.

  “Yes, I’m serious. You danced your sexy little heart out.”

  Sophie took a deep breath and stood up. She shook her head for a moment. “Fine…don’t laugh at me.” She narrowed her eyes accusingly.

  “I wouldn’t dare.” He raised his hands slightly off the bed.

  Sophie moved slowly at first, trying to get past her nerves. She closed her eyes and felt the music call to her body. She smiled to herself as she fell into a groove. “Like this?” she asked, opening her eyes.

  He stared back at her with dark eyes, nodding to her question. Her confidence found her as she got into the music. Turning around, she moved her hips to the music. “What did I do next?” she asked as she danced along sensually.

  “You took off your bra.” His breathing was deep as he continued to watch her with utter amazement.

  Sophie reached up and watched his eyes follow her hands to unclasp her bra. “Like this?” she asked, slipping the straps off her shoulders.

  “Yeah.” His voice cracked sexily.

  She turned around and let the material slide down her stomach before she threw it at Ashton playfully. A smile broke his serious expression, sitting up like he was being pulled toward her.

  “Now what?”

  He nodded toward her panties. His eyes thirstily drank in her flesh like it was intoxicating.

  She slid her hands over her breasts and continued down her stomach before sliding her fingers under the lacy fabric, pulling them down her legs. He leaned toward her as he lost the battle to keep his distance. She turned around and shook her behind playfully in front of him.

  “Did I do this?” she asked with a sly smile upon her lips.

  “Fuck,” Ashton growled, standing up.

  “Hold on.” Sophie backed up. “So I was completely naked and you had all your clothes on?”

  He looked down at himself and then reached up to pull his shirt over his head. “No…” Sophie stopped him. “Let me.” He relaxed his shoulders and let his hands fall to his sides.

  Sophie stepped forward and grabbed the hem of his shirt and slowly pulled it up to expose his hard stomach. “I want to touch you, Sophie.” He breathed roughly, like he was in pain. His hands clenched in tight fists at his sides.

  “Be patient.” She pulled his shirt up and kissed a trail of soft, delicate kisses along his chest. He leaned down so she could reach as she pulled the fabric up over his arms. He was so much taller than her. She bit her lip as she studied him.

  “I don’t think I can wait anymore…I’ve been waiting for a long time.” His voice was so deep it pulled at her; she recognized the need in his voice, matching the intensity of her own.

  “One night is not a long time,” she teased.

  Ashton watched as Sophie undid his belt. He took over the task, sliding his pants down, then kicked them off. Sophie needed to see all of him, the last piece of the puzzle that created his perfection. She pulled his boxers down to meet the same fate as his pants, freeing him of the restraint. He was magnificent, the perfect representation of a male body. Her need made her insides turn liquid. He pulled her body against him, kissing her feverishly, like a man that had been denied too long and was now driven by pure wild need.

  Lying her down on the bed, he leaned over her, kissing her cheek and continuing
down her neck. Nerves suddenly uncoiled through her, making her stiffen under him. “What’s wrong?” He looked up at her through heavy lids as his body pressed her legs apart.

  Sophie placed her hand on his shoulder. He didn’t take his eyes off hers, searching for an answer to her question. “Did it hurt?” she asked in a small voice.

  “What?” Confusion clouded over his expression. “What do you mean? Holy shit, Sophie.” He retracted quickly and sat on the bed beside her. He looked over at her with desperate eyes. “Are you a virgin?”

  “Ummm…yes. I mean I was until last night…so technically not anymore.” Sophie tried to smile but it felt too awkward on her face. “I was upset that I didn’t remember my first time…that’s why I wanted to do this.”

  “How are you still a fucking virgin?” Ashton squeezed his eyes tight.

  “There was never anyone I wanted to be with until now…and I’m not a virgin anymore, remember?” Sophie leaned up, running her hand over his shoulders.

  He pulled away from her touch. Standing up, he grabbed his underwear and pulled them on.

  “I don’t understand,” Sophie asked with confusion.

  “I can’t take that from you, I didn’t know. Shit. Sophie…I wouldn’t have done this shit if I knew. We didn’t have sex last night. You asked me to come in…we kissed, but you were too drunk so we didn’t do anything. You asked me to stay, so I did. You took off your clothes and I fucking didn’t complain. I just wanted to be with you.” He grabbed his pants off the floor and pulled them back on. “I keep pulling this same fucking shit because I don’t know how to stop. I can’t think straight when it comes to you.”

  Sophie was too stunned to say anything. She grabbed the blanket from her bed and covered herself. After Ashton pulled his shirt down over his head he looked at her, waiting for her to say something but words failed her.

  “I’m sorry. Don’t you have anything to say at all? Yell at me at least.” He stood there silently waiting for her to say something but she couldn’t. She had no words. “Fuck!” he cursed angrily before storming out of her apartment.

  Sophie fell back on her bed. She felt like everything had been taken away, but at the same time she had received a wonderful gift. Torn in two different directions, she didn’t know how to react. She was relieved to find out she didn’t have sex for the first time and not remember it, the devastation of what she thought she’d lost didn’t really hit her until she realized how overwhelmed with relief she was to find out it wasn’t true. She also realized as she lay on her bed watching the birds flutter overhead, when Ashton had walked out the door he took her happiness with him.

  Sophie slowly crawled off her bed and pulled on her robe before she retrieved the picture she had taken from Margaret’s house. Walking over to her easel, she set the picture down and grabbed a canvas from the stack on the floor. Painting always cleared her head and right now she could barely think. She focused on capturing what the picture so beautifully displayed. She wanted to capture their song.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Sophie awoke the next day plagued with exhaustion from her sleepless night. She spent most of the night hours sitting in front of her painting, watching her brush slowly creating the exact likeness. She was terrified to close her eyes and dream of Ashton. She was fragile and couldn’t risk letting herself fall to pieces. She stayed in the shower until the water wrinkled her fingers, completely saturating her with hot water, but still it wouldn’t wash away the ache.

  She couldn’t decide if she was mad at his deception when all she could think about was finishing what they started. The only thing she could figure was that she needed time. She needed space. She needed to think, and when she was with him it was impossible. She was driven by instinct when she was close to Ashton. Everything about him drew her in, his smell, his body, and the way his perfect lips called to her. Why did things that were bad for her have to be so tempting? It was like she was set up for failure.

  Sophie’s hands shook when she knocked on Margaret’s door that morning. She was relieved when Margaret answered the door because she wasn’t prepared to see Ashton. “Good morning. I can tell you’re feeling better.” Sophie smiled, relieved when her tension fell away.

  “I am actually feeling very well this morning. Let’s get some tea, shall we? I am in need of some caffeine.” Margaret said brightly.

  Sophie followed Margaret into the living room where Charlotte was placing a tray of tea on the coffee table. “Good morning, Sophie,” Charlotte welcomed brightly. “How are your mother’s wedding plans going?”

  “Very well. We finalized the cake choice. All the bridesmaid dresses are ready and my dress fit perfectly, no adjustments needed. I’m actually making my mother’s dress. I need to get started on that and I have to plan my mother’s bachelorette tea.”

  “I didn’t know you could make a dress.” Margaret eyes lit up.

  Sophie shrugged her shoulders. “I made what I am wearing. I’ve made lots of dresses but this will be the first time I make one that elaborate.”

  “Amazing. A girl of endless talents,” Margaret raved.

  “I wouldn’t go that far.” Sophie shook her head.

  “Tell me about this bachelorette tea for your mother.” Margaret sat down on the sofa and motioned for Sophie to get comfortable.

  Margaret was always so interested in what Sophie had to say that it made her comfortable opening up. Sophie wondered if this was what it would have been like growing up with a grandmother. Being with Margaret reminded her of the time she spent with Mrs. Martin. She had made such a big impact on Sophie’s life and would always have a place in her heart. Sophie felt lucky to have known two strong, loving grandmotherly figures since her actual grandmother turned her mother and her away long ago. She didn’t understand how someone who was supposed to love you could send you away in your time of need. Looking at the kind-hearted woman sitting across from her she couldn’t imagine Margaret turning away her own child. Her love seemed unconditional and true, the way love is supposed to be for your children.

  Sophie found herself talking about her mother having her at a young age and not knowing her own grandmother or any of her family members. Margaret never judged or let the smile fall from her face. Sophie loved how gracious and understanding she was. In turn, Margaret shared with her.

  “When I was little I used to imagine having a grandmother just like you,” Sophie confessed.

  “I’m glad you came into our lives, Sophie. I’m grateful that I got to meet such a beautiful soul. Your mother must be so proud.”

  “She always made sure I was well taken care of, even when we had no money. I always felt like I was her favorite thing in the whole world.” Sophie said thoughtfully. “She’s a wonderful mother.”

  “I think we need to work together to make your mother the most wonderful bachelorette ever.” Margaret said warmly.

  “I can’t ask you to do that, Margaret. I appreciate it, but…”

  “I insist. I love parties and I have just the location in mind,” Margaret said enthusiastically.

  “But—” Sophie tried to argue.

  Margaret cut her off again. “Please humor an old woman. I want to do this.”

  “Thank you, Margaret.” Sophie smiled. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Of course, dear.”

  “What is Ashton like? I know this seems silly but I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot and sometimes I wonder if I really even know him.”

  “Ahhh…” She said knowingly. “My Ashton has always been special and close to my heart. He is very strong minded.” Margaret chuckled. “Very intelligent. When there was something he wanted he went after it. He is strong and beautiful with a very hard shell but inside…” Margaret reached over and placed her hand on Sophie’s knee. “Inside he has a lover’s heart just like his grandfather. That man loved with a fierceness that scared me, but it was magical, so very wonderful. I see my husband’s heart in that boy. He is the light in th
is old woman’s life.” Margaret sat back in her chair, reliving memories that surfaced.

  “He sounds like he was a wonderful man, your husband.” Her heart was swelling with sadness for Margaret’s loss of such a great love.

  “He was,” Margaret said thoughtfully. “It was the greatest gift, being loved by him.”

  “It sounds beautiful.” Sophie could only imagine the kind of love that still had such a strong hold long after the person was gone.

  “If you will excuse me for a moment.” Margaret moved to stand up but stumbled, grabbing for the arm of the sofa.

  “Margaret?” Sophie helped Margaret regain her footing. “Are you feeling all right?”

  “Yes, dear…just a little dizzy. I will be fine.” She patted Sophie’s arm. “I’m just going to go and rest these old bones. Could you cancel my lunch with Mrs. Lockhart?”

  “Sure. Do you need me to get anything for you?” Sophie was concerned. Suddenly all of the times she questioned Margaret’s health all piled on top of her and she couldn’t help but worry that there was more to it than what Margaret was telling her.

  “No, thank you.” Margaret assured before she left the room.

  Sophie walked into the kitchen and made herself a cup of tea. Out of curiosity, she looked up the contact information for Margaret’s doctor. She wanted to pacify her uneasiness about Margaret’s health. Sophie searched through webpages looking for information on Dr. Reynolds—what she found caused her stomach to twist in dread. Dr. Reynolds was a renowned oncologist. Sophie stared at the screen, trying to find fault in her findings. Everything she uncovered only justified her fears. The doctor’s current office location was the address Sophie had dropped Margaret off to the other day for her appointment. Her fingers shook as she quickly closed her computer when she heard footsteps coming down toward the kitchen.