To her surprise, she opened the door to an empty room. Farrah invited Janice to the pre-birthday celebration, but Janice declined, saying she had work to do. She’d expected to find Janice on her laptop, but her roommate was nowhere in sight.
Farrah wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or insulted. It was possible Janice lied about having work to get out of attending her birthday, which sucked. At the same time…
“Looks like we have your room to ourselves. A birthday present from the universe, perhaps?” Blake placed her presents on her desk and winked. Even in a simple white shirt and jeans, he caused her heart to flutter.
“If it is…” Farrah added her haul to the pile and walked over to Blake. She hooked her fingers through his belt loops. “Far be it from me to refuse.”
Their lips met in a long, deep kiss that drove every other thought out of her mind. She parted her lips and he swept his tongue inside, increasing the heat until she smoldered with need.
Blake lifted her up. Farrah expected him to carry them to her bed. Instead, he slammed her against the wall, eliciting a gasp of surprise and anticipation from her. He kept one hand on her waist while he used the other to unclasp her dress and bra. His movements were jerky, almost desperate as he eased the material down her body.
Her nipples hardened in the cool air. Blake brushed an open palm over them and she shuddered, an all-too-familiar ache blossoming between her legs. He played with her breasts for a while longer, tugging and twisting so expertly he might as well be in her head. Farrah had always assumed this level of sexual connection and expertise was unrealistic, concocted by romance movies and novels to give the female population hope, when in fact a majority of guys were like the ones Farrah encountered in the past—quick, clumsy, awkward.
Not Blake. He knew exactly what to do, when to do it. By the time he lowered his head to suck on her sensitized nubs, Farrah was ready to fall apart. Her body was a live wire of sensations, crackling and scorching hot. Every nerve ending was sensitive to the touch.
Blake slipped a finger between her slick folds and found that spot, and she did fall apart. Farrah exploded with pleasure so intense she saw stars. It went on and on, and just as she came down from the high, Blake tossed her on the bed. She heard the rustle of a condom being unwrapped. A second later, he was inside her, filling her to bursting.
Farrah clutched his shoulders and cried out. The heat surged until the flames consumed her once more. She arced up, pressing her chest against Blake’s. His hand slipped down between their bodies. His fingertips brushed her clit as he pounded into her, taking her higher and higher to a place where she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. The sensations ran wild through her system, so intense and all-encompassing she nearly wept. Farrah craved release yet never wanted this to end. All she could do was ride the wave of pleasure until her body detonated, and her cries of ecstasy mingled with Blake’s as they crashed back to earth together.
After twenty years, she’d found the guy who could take her to heaven and back.
Farrah collapsed on the bed and tried to catch her breath. “Best. Birthday. Present. Ever,” she wheezed.
Blake chuckled. He rolled onto his side and smoothed her hair from her face. “Better than the markers?”
“It’s close. I really like the markers.” Farrah ran her hand up and down his arm. Kris’d been right. They weren’t making it to 808. She had zero desire to get dressed and sweat her ass off in a crowded club. She’d much rather stay here with Blake in their own little world. “But I like you more.”
She expected him to reply with a smartass remark. When he didn’t, she looked up to find him gazing at her with such love it hurt her heart. Not because of the love, but because of what hid behind it—a sadness that reawakened her earlier sense of foreboding.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong.” Blake played with the ends of her hair. “How does twenty feel?”
“It’s fine, and don’t change the subject. Something’s wrong. I can feel it.” Farrah propped herself up on her elbow so that they were at eye level. “Is it your dad?”
“No. I’m stressed about the bar, is all. There’s so much left to do.”
He’d said that the last time she brought up his strange behavior. She believed him then. She wasn’t sure she believed him now.
“Let’s talk about something else. I don’t want to be a downer on your birthday.”
“You can talk to me about anything anytime. You know that.”
There it was—that melancholy that shouldn’t have been there. “Have I told you how much I love you?”
Farrah smiled even as her heart clenched with unease. “You might have mentioned it once or twice, but I wouldn’t mind hearing it again.”
“Well, I do. I love you so, so much.” Blake cupped her cheek. She detected a slight shake in his hand. “Never forget that.”
“I won’t.” She leaned in for a kiss.
“Farrah.” The fierceness in his voice startled her. “I mean it. No matter what happens, never forget how much I love you.” Blake’s eyes darkened with emotion. “I am totally, completely, one hundred percent in love with you. I always will be.”
A lump formed in Farrah’s throat. “I know,” she said softly. “I’m totally, completely, one hundred percent in love with you too.” She examined his face, searching for answers to a question she didn’t know. “Are you sure everything’s ok? Besides the stress over the bar.”
Blake laced his fingers through hers with his free hand and squeezed like he was holding on for dear life. “We don’t have a lot of time left.”
No, they didn’t. They had eight weeks.
Eight weeks, fifty-four days, and one thousand ninety-six hours before they had to reenter reality.
But they didn’t have to do it now.
“We have plenty.” Farrah returned his squeeze. “We have tonight.”
Blake and Farrah kissed again, a deep, searching, passionate kiss that gave her everything her romantic side wanted.
Farrah lost herself in the embrace, letting it sweep aside her worries and the little voice inside telling her that this kiss, loving and tender though it may be, was also the type of kiss you gave someone right before you said goodbye.
Chapter Thirty
Two weeks later
Blake signaled for his check. The End Zone was his refuge these days. No one in FEA knew about this place, which meant he could wallow in self-pity in peace.
The bartender brought the bill. It wasn’t Mina, who left Shanghai months ago. She sent him a short text before she left, and that was that.
Honestly, their short-lived fling seemed like it happened a lifetime ago.
Blake tossed back the rest of his whiskey and scribbled his signature. On the wall, the clock ticked toward six. The group had six-thirty dinner reservations at some hot new restaurant Olivia picked out. Farrah texted him the invite. He didn’t reply.
“See you tomorrow,” the bartender said.
Blake nodded. He shouldered his way through the happy hour crowd and stepped outside. Spring had arrived in Shanghai, and the city burst with color and sunshine. Given Blake’s mood, it may as well be gray and storming.