Just as I had suggested, later that day, in the evening, we went to a restaurant. Joshua seemed to have good taste in choosing places, and he suggested that we dine at Chiltern Firehouse. We placed our orders and waited for them to be ready. Our seating arrangement at the table was somewhat random. I sat next to Joshua, while Alex, Agatha, and Nathan sat on the opposite side.
"This place is amazing!" Nathan commented in English, clearly showcasing his Brazilian accent. Indeed, the restaurant in the hotel was incredible. Some potted plants and chandeliers with warm yellow lights adorned the place. The furniture reminded me a bit of old-time London royalty.
"So, when did you two start this relationship?" Nathan asked, trying to break the silence.
"It's still relatively new. But we started getting involved after we arrived in London," Joshua replied.
"I know, it's hard not to fall for his charms, isn't it, Alice?" Nathan said with a mischievous smile, teasing me.
Now I could feel my face burning as I heard him say that.
"Now I'm absolutely sure," Joshua said with a cunning smile as he placed his hand on my thigh, causing the burning on my face to intensify.
"Alice and her blue eyes used to captivate half the boys on our street. I remember the day I had to threaten a bunch of boys with a broomstick because they wouldn't leave Alice alone," Joshua chuckled at what Nathan said, finding it amusing.
"We had just entered puberty, Nathan. We didn't know what we were doing," I joined in the moment, also amused.
"Speaking of puberty... I remember when your breasts were like bean sprouts. And now, you're quite well-endowed," Nathan made a playful observation. "You've changed quite a bit since the last time I saw you."
"I guess adulthood has been good to me. But you've changed too, you seem stronger," I commented.
"I've been practicing kung fu. It's not just my English that I've improved on," Nathan said.
"And your photography? Didn't you want to pursue a career as a photographer?" I asked.
"Photography is more of a hobby for me. I don't think it would work as a profession for me," Nathan replied.
"The photos Nathan takes are amazing," I commented to Joshua, who immediately became interested in the subject.
"But my best model was Alice. After she left, I started taking only photos of the sky, plants, well, nature as a whole," Nathan said.
"Alice was your model? How interesting," Joshua commented, impressed, and gave me a smile.
"Yes! And I still have all the photos of her," Nathan said.
"Really? Could you show them to me someday?" Joshua asked.
"Of course not!" I retorted, in protest. My past was dark.
"Why not? I think it's fair for your boyfriend to know more about you. Have you told him that we dated?" Damn it, Nathan!
"You dated?" Joshua's gaze fell on me, intrigued, hearing the opposite of what I had told him.
"But it wasn't anything serious. We were very young," I tried to explain.
"But we still talked about the future. Marriage, kids... It was a good time, at least for me," Nathan said.
I look at Nathan and shake my head. He shouldn't be talking about those things in front of Joshua, there was no need. Besides, we were only thirteen when we dated, and it didn't last long. It was just an experiment between best friends. And I wanted to forget that time, as it involved someone who discarded my friendship the moment they fell in love for real.
"But it's in the past. Especially after our friendship ended," Nathan says.
"I know, I know. So... Let's change the subject? I'd like to get to know Joshua more," I say.
Joshua shrugs, as if he doesn't have much to say about himself, even though he's a source of information about himself, but he makes an effort to respond to Nathan.
And the evening starts to flow, although I felt a bit disappointed coming from Joshua when he discovered the opposite of what I had told him about dating Nathan.
***
After we had dinner and left the restaurant, the whole way back to my apartment was almost complete silence. Alex mumbled along to the songs playing in her headphones, and Agatha occasionally said something, but mostly kept her attention on the dessert that Joshua had bought for her.
I got out of the car as soon as Joshua parked in front of my building. I walked inside with the girls. Agatha and Alex flopped onto the couch as soon as they entered. One of them turned on the TV, putting it on any channel, and I walked to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
"Yes... Okay... I don't know. Probably soon. Okay... Bye, bye," Joshua says on the phone, entering the kitchen. "Just wanted to let you know I'm heading home."
His expression was serious. Had something happened?
"Huh?" I look at the clock on the wall, it's still eight-thirty in the evening. "Don't you want to stay a little longer?"
"I think it's better to let you guys rest."
"Are you sure you want to go?"
Joshua puts his hands in his pockets and shrugs, but before he could give his definitive answer, the doorbell rings. I walk to the door and open it, seeing Gregory.
"Hi..." His gaze wanders over the number of people inside the apartment. "I didn't know you had visitors."
I remember that I forgot to tell him that my sisters had arrived. The day had been so hectic that I didn't have time to meet up with him.
"My sisters arrived from Brazil today. The day was really busy, and I didn't get a chance to talk to you today."
"Oh! No worries! I completely understand. I just came to ask if you'd like to go to the movies with me today, but... I see you're a bit busy. So, I'll just go alone, no problem."
"Do you need company?" An idea suddenly pops into my head. "If I asked you to take the three of them, would you mind? I need some alone time with Joshua." I lower my voice for the last sentence.
Gregory's gaze shifts to Alex, Agatha, and Nathan sitting on the couch.
"Of course not, but... Do they speak English?"
"Nathan can understand and speak. Alex knows a little, but Agatha doesn't understand much. But I really need to have a conversation with Joshua, now. It'll only be for a few hours."
Suddenly, a mischievous smile appears on Gregory's lips.
"You're not thinking of doing what I'm thinking, are you?"
I feel confused, but then I realize what he was suggesting.
"No! Of course not, it's just that... It didn't even cross my mind."
"Mhm." He looks at me mockingly. "I'll take them. And because I'm a good friend, I'll offer you this help." He winks.
"Thank you." I smile and turn towards the sofa.
I encourage the girls and Nathan to go with Gregory. They agree and follow Gregory out of the apartment, leaving me alone with Joshua.
"Looks like they're not tired." I say cunningly as I see them leave.
Joshua raises his eyebrows, letting out a brief chuckle, but he didn't seem as excited.
"Are you okay?" I ask, approaching him.
"Mhm." He says nonchalantly.
But of course, he wasn't.
"Please… Scott. What's bothering you?"
He takes a deep breath and crosses his arms.
"Why didn't you tell me the truth about you and Nathan?"
As I suspected.
"Because I didn't think it was important. Besides... My friendship with Nathan ended years ago, and it didn't make sense to relive a past I wanted to forget."
"But he's here. In your house."
"And that doesn't mean anything! He only came because my mom didn't want my sisters to travel alone. And he also thought it might be a good opportunity to find a job." I move closer to him. "I'm sorry for not telling you. I just didn't think it was important."
"Of course, it was important. Everything that comes from you is important." He almost whispers the final words.
His gaze was turned elsewhere in the apartment, like a child throwing a tantrum.
"You're not going to be upset about this, are you?"
I press my body against his.
"I'm not upset." He retorts, stubbornly.
"No?" I place my hands on his waist and lean up on my toes, trying to reach his lips, teasingly. "Are you sure?"
"Alice..." He murmurs.
Joshua tries to resist, as if he didn't want to kiss me, but after a few seconds of my persistence, he gives in, doing what I expected, initiating a kiss.
I wrap my arms around his neck, insisting on staying on my tiptoes, but seeing the difficulty in maintaining that position for too long, Joshua picks me up and heads towards the sofa. It seemed like our bodies were always drawn to a couch. But ironically, Agatha and Alex had left some things on the sofa, which made Joshua change direction towards my room. I feel my back meet the soft cover of my bed.
I slowly break the kiss, leaving a bite on his lower lip. I allow our faces to stay close. Both of us were panting, our breaths almost becoming one. A spontaneous smile appears on my face. I bite my lower lip, still feeling the pressure of his lips against mine.
"You drive me crazy, Alice," Joshua whispers in a husky and sexy voice.
Hearing him say that made my body shiver. I wanted that man. Here and now. I quickly remember what Gregory had told me. And why not? We were already there. And after the previous night, I only wanted him more.
I left a playful smile show on my face. I pressed my lips together and pushed them to the side, sitting on his lap. His hands slid down to my thighs, squeezing them. I glanced at his mouth. He was watching me intently. A slow and sensual smile was plastered on his face, as if begging for more.
I leaned in to kiss him again, this time with more urgency and intensity. My body was on fire. The more I tried to keep my composure, the more my thoughts focused on that kiss, causing an explosion of sensations, pulsing through every part of my body, like a strong arousal between my legs.
As the kiss subsided, almost out of breath, Joshua changed our positions. Now I found myself under his body. Pressed even closer. My blouse was already halfway up my stomach. My shorts were unbuttoned, and my hands were on Joshua's pants, about to open them.
Our gazes were intense, filled with desire. In a matter of minutes, I was only in my underwear. My hands roamed his chest, pausing repeatedly at the waistband of his pants. His fingers slid smoothly across my belly, stopping at the edge of my panties. His hand pressed against my still-covered intimacy. I felt a kind of shock run through my body as I felt him stimulate my clitoris. I tilted my head back, squeezing my eyes shut and biting my lower lip quickly, trying to contain the moans that possessed me at that incredible sensation. I tilted my hips up, allowing Joshua to remove that piece of underwear.
I let out a grunt as I realized that after that, he didn't continue. I opened my eyes and directed my gaze to his, as if I were asking him bitterly why he had stopped.
A burning smile contaminated him. He propped his arms on each side of the bed, leaning towards me. Smiling lips. Intriguing face. Between my legs.
"I want you..." he whispered.
He got on his knees on the bed, slowly unzipping his pants as he looked intensely into my eyes, as if he wanted to provoke something in me. And little did he know, he had already succeeded from the beginning. Finally, he was free. He was exposed, just as he had come into the world. God...
I couldn't stop looking at him. I couldn't suppress the desire to feel him inside me. What was happening? Would this be the first time I felt a sensation like this?
Joshua took his wallet out of his pants pocket, grabbing a golden packet. Opening the packaging, he quickly positioned the condom on his member, adjusting it carefully.
"Just... Relax," he said and smiled reassuringly. He leaned his arm back on the bed, about to start the penetration. I felt the beginning of his erection at the entrance of my intimacy.
I was nervous, and at the same time, begging for it. I squeezed the bed linens as I felt him penetrate me. The sensation of tearing succumbed within me. It was a mixture of pleasure and burning, making me want more and more. I pleasurefully squeezed the bed sheets, writhing my hips. I breathed heavily, allowing my mouth to stay slightly open.
"Yeah..." he whispered, slightly out of breath. The speed of the penetration remained slow, driving me to delirium.
His hand descended to my thigh, gripping it tightly. His lips met mine again. His tongue invaded my mouth, decreasing the intensity of my moans. I reached my hands to his hair, pulling it gently. My whole body trembled from within. The heat of our bodies pressed together, our breaths becoming one, everything contributed to a completely successful climax.
Joshua let out his last muffled moan against my lips before falling to the side, panting. I tried to control my breathing. My body was trembling severely. I could still feel Joshua inside me. His arm wrapped around my head, snuggling his body to mine. I smiled satisfied and rested on his chest.