Seven Sexy Sins Read Online Free PDF Page A

hadn’t, as the waiting was stretching her nerves to breaking point. She checked her appearance in the mirror a final time. She wore a plum-coloured short-sleeved fitted blouse with a long, light, black skirt, and underneath she had a set of expensive, black lacy underwear she’d invested in for this very purpose. She’d clipped her long brown hair up loosely, letting tendrils curl around her neck, and had applied the simplest of make-up, just a little eyeliner and mascara, and a slick of lip gloss. She’d shaved her legs, moisturised, put on perfume, eaten a breath mint—in fact done everything she could think of to make herself irresistible.
    Had it worked? She frowned as she looked at her reflection. She would never have described herself as beautiful. She was slightly too tall, her boobs weren’t big enough, her mouth was a little wide, and she had far too many freckles to be anything approaching breathtaking. But she looked as good as she could, and that was the best she could hope for.
    She paced the floor, hoping he wouldn’t be late. At ten minutes to seven, however, there was a knock at the door.
    Heart pounding, she went over and opened it.
    Rusty stood outside, leaning on the doorjamb, dressed in a black, casual short-sleeved shirt hanging loose over jeans, looking so thoroughly edible it made her mouth water. “Hey.” He held up a bottle of wine. “For you.” 
    Her lips twitched as she took it. “Are you trying to get me drunk?” She backed away and let him in.
    He followed her into the room. “Do I need to?”
    “No.” She smiled, a little shyly, and put the bottle on the table.
    He glanced around the room. “Wow, nice place. I was thinking it might be…”
    “Seedy?”
    He grinned. “Maybe a little.”
    “I didn’t want it to be. I wanted it to be…nice.”
    His warm gaze came back to her and fixed on her face before running briefly up and down her. “You look…nice.”
    “Thanks. You too.” Her mouth had gone dry. Where on earth were they going to start?
    He came closer to her and took one of her hands in his. “Are you okay?”
    “Nervous, actually.”
    He squeezed her fingers. “Want to go for a walk along the beach?”
    She felt a wave of relief that he understood how she was feeling, but she hesitated. “I don’t know, should we? What if someone sees us?”
    “We’re friends, love. You wouldn’t normally think twice about being seen with me.”
    “Yes, but tonight… Half the women in New Zealand know what I’m getting up to.”
    “Yes, but they don’t all know what you look like, right? Come on. Just a short walk. I’ll buy you an ice cream.”
    “Okay.”
    They went out and she locked the door, pocketing the key. The motel was right on the seafront, and he took her hand, led her along the row of shops to the ice cream bar and bought them both a cone.
    They crossed over the road onto the beach, walking slowly down to the water as they ate their ice creams, and both slipped off their shoes, letting the cool water wash over their feet. Faith lifted her skirt to make sure it didn’t get wet. She saw him glance at her legs, but he didn’t say anything.
    Was this just too weird? Usually they talked non-stop about all sorts of things, but now they were hardly speaking. She was conscious that he was one of her best friends. But, although she knew him well, she was also intensely aware of him next to her as she had never been before, his bare arm inches away from hers, as if he were magnetic and she were made of iron, inexorably drawn to him.
    They reached a pohutukawa tree that overhung the beach, still heavy with its red Christmassy flowers and, finishing off his ice cream, he ducked under the branches and walked up to the trunk. She followed him, heart pounding as he indicated for her to turn around and face him. Dropping his shoes, he pushed her backward and she moved until her back was against the tree.
    “What’s up?” He spoke gently, his eyes warm as if