Eden Winthrop sat trembling in her chair, the weight of his penetrating gaze a constant sensation upon her person. Doing everything she could to avoid looking at him directly, she tried to pay attention to the conversation happening around her, joining in when everyone else around the table began to laugh.
She had no idea what was just said, but she remembered reading somewhere that laughter sometimes helped to relieve stress, so she went for it. This turned out to be a mistake, because her date for the night, Tad, turned to her with a mock scowl upon his handsome, bearded face.
"Oh, so you think that's funny Eden? Good to know you have my back."
Eden felt alarmed. She had no idea that the joke had been directed at Tad and now felt like a total fool in front of everyone. She began to blush, looking down at her plate of mostly untouched food, thankful her skin was dark enough to hide it.
She was out with some co-workers and some of their friends. Tad had invited her out for the evening. She had felt lucky because he was sought after by a lot of the women at the office, but for some reason he had chosen her. Of course, she felt giddy with excitement. Tad Reynolds was the best looking brother she had come across in a while, with his smooth, cinnamon colored skin and goatee that fit his face perfectly. Not to mention he had a nice set of lips that were perfectly plump.
The night had been going pretty well. Everyone seemed to be getting along great and there was no shortage of laughter as the group ate and conversed about anything they fancied to. Eden had been enjoying herself immensely before he had arrived. He had come with Jenny, a co-worker, and everyone had greeted them with great enthusiasm.
Jenny was the female version of Tad at the office and everyone loved her. She was an outgoing, beautiful blonde bombshell that was as tall as an Amazonian. The kicker was that she was genuinely nice so no one could actually hate her. Eden was always in awe of Jenny. She just couldn't understand how someone could look so perfect all of the time.
As Jenny greeted everyone with hugs and jokes, Eden's attention was drawn to the figure standing behind Jenny. She had been taking a sip of water, but choked in the middle of swallowing. The most handsome man she had ever seen in real life stood there, his hands in his jean pockets as he smiled and laughed with some of her co-workers.
He had long, thick black hair that was pulled back from his face in a man bun. His facial features were strong and bold, with a square jaw covered by 5'oclock shadow and a set of full pink lips. When he smiled, his straight white teeth stood out in stark contrast to his swarthy skin and black beard.
As she coughed and Tad pounded her back asking if she was okay, she nodded absently, unable to tear her eyes from mystery man's face. As if he could sense her gaze, he looked away from the person he was talking with and stared directly at her, their gazes connecting and locking as the smile slowly left his face while his nostrils flared slightly.
Her body began trembling as she stared into his eyes, which were a light color she couldn't discern from the distance that was between them. It was if the noise and people faded into nothing as their gazes held, neither blinking nor moving to break eye contact. Eden felt her heart pounding in her chest as her breathing once again increased, this time from some emotion she couldn't discern.
"Eden! Tad! It's so good to see you guys!"
Eden jolted, breaking the eye lock to look over at Jenny, who had seemed to appear from nowhere. She could've sworn she had just been beside mystery man. Shaking her head to focus, Eden smiled warmly and stood to greet Jenny, who pulled her into a hug. Eden felt like a little kid, her head only reached to Jenny's generous chest.
Pulling back from the hug, Eden was once again shocked to see mystery man now standing behind Jenny and greeting Tad, though he only looked at him long enough to shake his hand before he turned his gaze onto her. Eden gulped. Up close, he was even more beautiful. His eyes were a mixture of blue and gray with some green flecks thrown in. He was taller than Jenny, which meant she was face to abdomen with the tall giant.
"Eden, let me introduce you to my cousin Carter Marron. Carter, this is Eden Winthrop."
As Jenny introduced them, time once again seemed to slow down as Eden felt like everything was in slow motion. Their gazes once again meshed and Eden felt like she was moving underwater as she reached her hand out to shake his outstretched one.
As their hands touched, Eden felt an inexplicable warmth start from her hand, then shoot up her arm, across her chest causing her nipples to pucker, down her stomach and straight to between her legs, causing a slight throb to begin.
Eden gasped out loud, startled by her body's unbelievable response. Carter's plump lips pulled up in a knowing smirk and he gave her a slow wink, making her pussy clench in reaction.
"Nice to meet you, Eden."
His deep, smooth voice seemed to roll across every nerve ending in her body, causing her to shudder just from the decadent feel of it caressing her ears.
"Ni..Nice to meet you as well, Carter." Eden managed to mutter out; her voice containing a huskier quality to it than usual.
"Ehm! Well, now that introductions are over, why don't we all have a seat."
Eden broke away from Carter's gaze and looked over at Tad in confusion, following his pointed gaze at her and Carter's hands. They were still holding onto each other. Startled, Eden pulled her hand from Carter's, who seemed reluctant to let her go.
Feeling embarrassed and wondering how long they had been standing like that, Eden laughed awkwardly to break the tension and took her seat. Jenny and Carter made their way over to the other side of the table to the empty chairs across from them; Carter took the one directly across from hers.
Throughout the rest of the night, Eden's and Carter's gazes would meet and lock and she would forget herself for a minute until Tad would break in and ask her a question. She had to keep reminding herself she was on a date with someone else and so she began trying to avoid Carter's gaze, which didn't help because she could feel it like a physical caress over her skin.
All of it made her nervous. She had never had a physical reaction like that before to anybody. Shit, she had never even known it was possible. And yet, here she was, practically sweating and lusting after a guy she just met. Eden shook her head wryly, thinking to herself that she knew she would go crazy one day, holding off on sex until she found the "right" one.
She had never thought waiting until marriage was feasible, since she liked the feeling of orgasm too much. She had just wanted to find the guy who made her feel as though he would be able to take her like she wanted to be taken. Unfortunately, here she was, 26 and still a virgin, holding out for a guy that didn't seem to exist.
Eden broke out of her thoughts as everyone began gathering their things, deciding to end the dinner and head home. It was a Friday and since there was no work tomorrow, everyone wanted to do their own thing. Gathering up her coat and gloves, Eden made her goodbyes to her colleagues alongside Tad.
As the last few trickled out, Jenny and Carter approached them.
"Hey guys, it's still a bit early so Carter and I were just going to head to his place for some drinks and dessert. You guys care to join us?"
Jenny asked with her usual upbeat, open enthusiasm. She didn't know what it was about the lady, but every suggestion she made sounded like the best idea. It obviously worked on Tad, who immediately agreed. Eden felt like she couldn't really disagree since Tad was her ride, so she did as well, smiling nervously while looking at the floor.
Following Jenny and Carter in Tad's car, they made small talk. Eden liked Tad. He was very straightforward and had very formed opinions on an array of topics. She liked that he was able to hold up a conversation and make her feel comfortable. They had a few things in common, such as their taste in music and movies. They chatted about these as they pulled up a long driveway behind Jenny and Carter.
They instantly became silent at the sight before them.
"Holy shit." Tad muttered out in awe, gazing through the windshield in disbelief.
Eden had to agree. They were parked in front of one of the biggest houses she had ever seen up close and personal. Judging from how long they had been driving, she estimated they were about thirty minutes outside of town. The mansion, because there really was no other word for it, was surrounded by forest on all sides.
It had one of those entrances she'd only seen on television, with a huge staircase leading up to huge white beams that supported the open porch. The moon was full and bright tonight, highlighting the magnificence of the house and darkening even more the parts that were in shadow.
"This dude is totally loaded." Tad shook his head, getting out of the car.
Eden followed suit, immediately shivering in the crisp night air. Meeting Tad in front of the car, she wrapped her arm around his for warmth as they walked to where Jenny and Carter waited for them at the bottom of the stairs. As they approached, she could see Carter staring at the arm that wrapped around Tad's. His face was hard as granite; his nostrils flared and a muscle ticked in his jaw.
Without thinking, she quickly pulled her arm from Tad's and tucked her hands into her coat pockets. His eyes had seemed to glow in the moonlight, giving them an unnatural sheen, making his severe expression almost menacing. Tad didn't seem to notice and greeted the cousins enthusiastically, already demanding Carter to tell him what he did for a living and asking for a hook up.
As Jenny laughed boisterously and Carter's body became less tense and his expression eased, Eden felt relief wash over her as Jenny grabbed onto Tad's arm and turned, walking him up the steps while she explained that the mansion was a family estate. The relief she had felt quickly turned into anxiety as she realized she was left alone to be escorted by Carter.
Finally gathering her courage, she looked him in the face and quickly wished she hadn't. He was staring at her; the intensity was almost too much to bear. She felt her heartbeat quicken and balled her hands into fists in her pockets; her nails biting into her palms as she fought not to tremble. She didn't know what it was about him that put her on edge so much.
"Eden."
