Hong Kong Heat Page 16

  With that motivational speech in mind, Debra took herself into the shower and by the time she emerged pink skinned and squeaky clean, she was in a much better mood. As she emerged from the hotel into the heat, she took a deep breath and smelled the mixture of cooking, seawater and hot air that spelled the tropics to her.

  A few feet away, the river ran past the hotel, with tour boats and ferries crisscrossing past her. Debra turned toward the harbor to reacquaint herself with the Merlion, the half mermaid, half lion statue that was the symbol of Singapore. It was several years since she’d visited and the skyline was considerably changed. It had been one of the places she’d not visited on her year away. Some cities had to be missed out and Singapore was one of them. However, it seemed she found herself here after all. Watching children laughing and running round the statue and its tiny ‘baby’, Debra was so glad she’d managed a visit, even if it was for all the wrong reasons. She’d enjoy her stay, head back to Hong Kong in time for her flight to the UK and reflect on her holiday romance. Then she’d decide what the next phase of her life would be.

  First, though, she’d take a wander up the quayside toward a coffee shop she remembered and sit and watch the world go by.

  The shops and the office buildings were a mixture of old and new and Debra took her time as she remembered an old traditional restaurant then saw a new skyscraper a few streets away. Sandwiched in between a bar and a shuttered shop front, a narrow staircase led toward ‘massages’ and she remembered her husband’s amusement at the names of some of the businesses. She stood still for a moment, closed her eyes and let the essence of Singapore sink into her. If Hong Kong was her favorite city in the world, Singapore came a close second.

  The sound of a cycle bell made her move in a hurry. A man pushing a handcart hurried past her, ringing the bell furiously. He smiled and nodded and Debra grinned back. Innovation was definitely the key.

  Not far ahead, the river curved in an elegant arc with a wide bridge over it. Debra crossed halfway over the bridge and turned to look back down the river in the direction she had walked from. From here you got a whole new perspective of all the new buildings that dotted along the harbor and the coast.

  Over on Sentosa Island, buildings seemed to have sprung up like a rash and Debra stared. One logo on a building either on the island or nearby looked awfully familiar. It was too far away to see clearly, but she’d bet her hard sought after happy mood it said Channing.

  Damn, blast and bugger. I will not let it bother me. She turned her back and resolutely walked toward her destination. She wouldn’t think about the fact it would be in her vision when she retraced her steps. A good cup of coffee and a snack and she could ignore it.

  To her surprise, she did exactly that. A few hours later, as she sat by the infinity pool on the third floor of the hotel and looked out over the river, Debra acknowledged that leaving and putting space between her and Braam had been the right thing to do. Maybe one day she’d email him via the hotel and say… She chortled inwardly. Say what? Hi, remember me? I’m the woman you screwed when your wife was pregnant. Or maybe ‘one of the women…’

  No more of that. Debra took out the what’s-on leaflet she’d picked up from her room and scanned the pages. Maybe she’d get the cable car over to Sentosa Island from Mount Faber and do the whole tourist and man-made beach experience for a day. And if she saw a Channing hotel, she would ignore it.

  With her mind made up, Debra went for a lazy swim. The pool area was empty except for a couple who sat at the other end of the water, each reading a book, sipping wine and nibbling on a plate of snacks.

  By the time she’d hung over the infinity pool edge and watched the ferries stopping down below, Debra was ready for something to eat herself. She got out, wrapped herself in her robe, stretched out on her sun lounger and read the poolside menu.

  As if he was a mind reader, a waiter appeared and within ten minutes she was eating samosas and sipping her own glass of wine. She opened her eReader and pulled up a thriller about St Andrews she’d begun to read on the plane from Hong Kong.

  As the afternoon wore on, clouds that grew steadily thicker obscured the sun. A breeze teased the bushes that were dotted around the area and the pool boy immediately started to close and secure the sun umbrellas.

  “Storm coming in,” he said. “Won’t last long, but I reckon it’ll be heavy. You’ll be glad you’re back at the hotel.”

  Debra took the hint and gathered up her things. Even before she’d reached the door to go inside, he’d lifted the mattress and stored it under cover. By the time she reached her room, the rain was rattling the windows of the executive floor lounge and the quayside was a sea of colorful umbrellas. Several had already been blown inside out.

  Debra shivered, even though she wasn’t cold, and opened her door.

  She’d been lucky with her room, which had a balcony overlooking the river and enough of a roof to allow her to open the doors and look out at the wet and windswept scene without getting wet or windswept. She made a cup of tea and drank it as the clouds scudded past.

  Half an hour later she admitted defeat and stretched out on the bed. Last night’s lack of sleep had caught up with her. There was time for a nap before cocktails in the lounge.

  To be on the safe side, she set her alarm and closed her eyes.

  * * * *

  The soft stroke up and down her arm made Debra purr with pleasure. She wriggled and he laughed softly before he blew gently in her ear, nipped the lobe with his teeth and kissed the soft skin of her nape.

  Debra moaned. That erotic nip and suck made her pussy damp and her inner muscles contract.

  “Braam?”

  He moved his head so she could see the wicked gleam in his blue eyes. “Oh, and tell me who else do you think I’d let touch you like this?” He traced a vein up her arm. “And like this?” His head moved to her midriff and he sucked the tiny indent of her belly button. It tickled and Debra squirmed and giggled. The sound echoed around her head.

  “You like that?” His breath teased her skin. “How about this?” He took hold of one hard nipple and rolled it between his fingers.

  “Oh yes.” She pushed into his hand. His fingers tightened then moved away. The loss of the erotic touch made her whimper.

  “Impatient are we? I like that.” He bent his head and licked her clit. It was as well his hand was flat on her belly, or Debra would have arched up enough to make a tunnel for a freight train to pass through.

  “Now let me see. Oh my, wet for me, ready for me, come for me?” His words reverberated across her pussy, before he licked her sensitive skin once more.

  The tingles and stings of pleasure skittered over her skin and into her soul. Her body was on fire as Braam moved across the bed until he lay between her legs. The hairs on his arms tickled her and his scent teased her. She drank it all in and let him fill her senses.

  All the while, he played with her nipples as well as keeping up a steady lick and nip to her clit and the opening of her channel. When his tongue inched inside her, Debra bit her lips to hold back her climax. She was oh so wet and wanted to fall over the edge into sensations. However, she wanted Braam with her, in her, so they flew together. Debra dug her heels into the mattress and tried to lift her hips.

  Braam wasn’t cooperative. Instead the pressure of his lips on her pussy and clit increased and the flick and tease inside her became faster.

  He pinched her nipples hard and for a brief second lifted his head.

  “This is all for you, love. Come for me now.”

  The next swipe of his tongue was all she needed. Debra shook with the intensity of emotions that rolled through her like lava. A rainbow of sparks and stars danced behind her eyelids and her skin stung almost to the point of pain as her climax rippled and bounced over her into her and the world stopped. Nothing mattered except his touch and her reaction.

  Debra cried. Tears of happiness that Braam was with her. Tears of sorrow that he hadn’t come at the sa
me time as her. Soon, she thought as she slowly came back to reality. It’ll be his turn to come, my turn to take him there. Braam moved away and with an inward smirk she rolled after him.

  “My turn now. My turn to make you moan and groan and scream as you come for me.” She reached out and felt something soft and cool.

  Linen, not flesh. He was wearing too many clothes. Then she had a thought. Not seconds before he’d been naked. His flesh had caressed her as he’d made her come. Something was wrong here.

  A loud buzz shot into her brain like a bullet.

  The bump as she hit the floor, tangled in a sheet, woke her up with a jolt. Debra blinked. Where was she? No Braam and no familiar room. However, her body was damp, her pussy throbbed and her thighs were coated with her arousal.

  Damn and blast. Had it all been a dream? As she woke up properly and remembered where she was and why, Debra switched off the alarm and could have cried.

  * * * *

  “Mum, when are you going to snap out of whatever snit you’re in and looking like you’re expecting a Glasgow kiss instead of a sticky grandson one?” Lena MacLeod, Debra’s married daughter, wiped the kitchen table down and pointed to the chair beside it. “Sit and spill the beans. Who’s got you like this?”

  “A what? Who’d want to head thump me? No one’s going to give me a Glasgow kiss, love.” Debra pulled out a wet wipe and rubbed it over the chubby toddler who sat in his high chair next to her. “Just all jelly baby, ice cream gooey ones, eh, Markus?” Debra kissed the boy who waved his hands.

  “G’ma. I love G’ma.”

  “Of course you do.” Debra lifted him out and onto her lap. “So, my sweet, what are we going to do today?”

  Lena took her son from his grandmother and sat next to Debra. “We, as in Markus and I, are going to stare, nag and bully you, until you ‘fess up. Seriously, Ma, you’re scaring me. This is not my mum I’m here with. This is a hollow cardboard cut-out.”

  “I can’t be hollow if I’m a cardboard cut-out,” Debra said. “They’re one-dimensional.”

  “Well to be honest, Mum, so are you at the moment. You’re doing the bare necessity with no emotion and bugger all involvement as far as I can see. You get back here looking like you’ve spent the last year in a cave with no light, no food and no interest in anything. You tell me you’re fine, but I know for a fact you’re not sleeping. You’re hardly eating enough to keep a snail alive and all you’re doing is going through the motions of everyday life. Are you ill? Are you dying and don’t know how to tell me? Hell, Mum, help me out here. I’m worried sick.”

  The tone, combined with the worried look on Lena’s face, impinged on Debra’s conscience. Lena had the screwed-up faced, tired-eyed expression of someone who had little sleep for all the wrong reasons. Debra bit the edge of her lip. Tiny, nasty pin pricks of scruples weighed heavily on her mind. Had she genuinely been that bad? Probably. Lena was correct and she needed to snap out of it. Put up or shut up, move on or sort it. If she knew what was the proper thing to do it would be helpful. The trouble was, she didn’t, or she wasn’t prepared to admit it.

  “You know, Mum, you always used to tell me a trouble shared is a trouble halved and goodness knows I’ve unburdened on you often enough. That’s what families do. Moan, cry, listen, offer advice unwanted or not and be there for each other. I’m feeling left out. As if you don’t trust me enough to confide in me.”

  “Oh, Lena.” Debra stared at her daughter and burst into tears.

  Once she had started, she couldn’t stop. Tears were said to be cathartic and these definitely were. Lena pushed a box of tissues across the table toward her and let her cry.

  Eventually Debra shuddered and took a deep breath.

  “Grief, I needed that.”

  “I guessed. Look let me put Markus down for his nap and then we’ll go into the garden and you can talk. If you want to?” Lena stood up with a sleepy Markus snuggled over her shoulder, his thumb in his mouth. She had a wary expression on her face. It prickled Debra’s conscience. She had put it on her daughter’s face and it wasn’t acceptable.

  “I want to.” She rolled her shoulders to release the tension and could have cried all over again at the relief that showed on Lena’s face. “You put my boy down for a sleep, and sod it, I’m opening a bottle of wine.” She was sure she’d need the Dutch courage.

  Although, as she walked into the bright sunshine that they had so rarely in this part of Scotland, with a bottle of Sancerre, two glasses and a wine cooler, Debra reckoned she’d better not drink too much. Over the past week or so, her diet had mainly consisted of eating a few mouthfuls of whatever was put in front of her and once Lena was busy elsewhere, pushing the rest around her plate or offering it to the dog under the table. With that in mind, and also owing to a distinct and unexpected rumble from her tummy, Debra went back indoors to load a tray with crisps and nibbles.

  When Lena joined her, she’d set up a low table and added the food, drink and box of tissues to the top.

  “Blimey, Mum, have you got a worm or something?” Lena stared at the array. “There’s more food on here than you’ve eaten since you got back.”

  Debra sniggered and poured two glasses of wine. Maybe she had gone over the top. “Well I have a feeling I’m going to need something to soak up the wine and I’m going to need the wine, a full glass or more.”

  “Fair enough. So shoot, I’m all ears.”

  “I met a man,” Debra said slowly. She had to do her best to be clear, concise and not make either her or Braam look tacky. Not yet.

  “Ah,” Lena said, her voice laden with satisfaction. “I told Ronnie that’s what it was.” Ronnie was her husband, at present serving abroad with Her Majesty’s Armed Forces. “Isn’t it always? I remember what I was like when Ron and I were trying to get together. So what went wrong? Was he too forward, not forward enough? Too old, too young, not able to get it up? Tell Aunty Lena.”

  Debra snickered half-heartedly. “Aunty Lena, you’re nosy.”

  Lena sat back in her seat. “Well, there is that as well. With Ronnie away I need to get my kicks and dose of sex chat somehow.”

  “Kicks?”

  “Oh yeah. I read a hot book today. BDSM in Scotland. It was… Well, let’s say, I wish Ron had been about. Not that I’m into it, but by God I loved reading it. Talk about a turn-on. But now I’ve read it so it’s up to you to give me my next dose. I’ve got new batteries in my vibrator all ready and waiting.”

  “Lena.” Debra didn’t know whether to laugh or hide her red face. “This is me, your mother who still doesn’t think her little girl does anything ‘like that’.” She mimed quote marks.

  Lena giggled. “Then where did Markus and Tristan come from?”

  “The stork brought them of course. Put them under a gooseberry bush for you to find.”

  They both burst out laughing.

  “Okay, well, here goes. I met this man in Hong Kong. He’s younger than me and…”

  “How much younger?” Lena butted in. “Are we talking young enough to be my kid brother sort of young? That would be weird, but hey, if he’s who you want, I’ll try to look at him and not imagine him in a pram or having his nappy changed when I was still at school.”

  “It’s not that bad. He’s maybe eleven or twelve years younger than I am.”

  “Is that all,” Lena let her breath out in a whistle. “That doesn’t even make you much of a cougar. Okay, so, you’ve met a guy. You fancy him?”

  “Oh, yes.” Debra let herself think about Braam—pre the pregnancy moment Braam—then quashed the way her pussy muscles responded to her thought. “I fancied him.” Although fancy is too mild a word. I need to add…the pants off him, or lust like never before.

  “Does he fancy you?” Lena didn’t mention the past tense.

  “I thought he did.”

  “Okay. Now you’re worrying me. Did?”

  Debra put down her wine glass, ate an olive and schooled her thoughts. “Sheesh, do you
know? This is so weird. Me telling you about my love life. Or lust life. Or lack of it.”

  “Mum, tell me and I’ll gross out over it later,” Lena said. “So you fancied the pants off each other and I’m guessing you did something about it?”

  Oh yeah. “Lots of something.”

  “Okay, Mum, we don’t need all the nitty-gritty. I might be grown up, but you’re still my mum and it wouldn’t make me go all gooey in a nice way. So what went wrong? What happened?”

  Debra blinked away the ready tears that gathered in her eyes. “His pregnant wife happened.”

  Lena dropped her glass. Luckily it bounced in the grass. Neither of them noticed it.

  “I don’t believe you. You’re too savvy to fall for a cheating scumbag.”

  Thank goodness for supportive daughters.

  Debra shrugged. “I thought so, but I was wrong. Hell, Lena, he was so special,” she said morosely. “Or he could have been,” she added honestly. “I guess it was all too much too fast for me and on his side all too bloody convenient.”

  “So what happened? Go on, now dish the dirt and clean up the sex.” Lena picked up her glass, refilled it and sat back and took a sip of wine. “It’s like the agony aunt column in the trashy mags. Or, you know, one of those TV shows. Douchebags of the world get outed. I still think you’ve got it wrong, though.”

  “Lena, honey. When a woman throws her arms around a guy and says ‘we’re pregnant’ it sort of shouts ‘oh ho parents to be’, now, doesn’t it? You know waves a sign saying ‘beware—cheating, lying scumbag’.” Debra glared at the food on the table as if it was all its fault. She rummaged through the sticks of celery, chose one, crunched the end of it and waved the rest in the air to make her point. “What I can’t understand is how he thought he’d get away with it. For fuck’s sake, he works for the hotel and everyone knows him. I was a guest in the hotel and although we didn’t go at it like rabbits in the foyer, we didn’t exactly skulk behind bushes and use the fire stairs so as not to meet anyone.” She blushed. Okay it wasn’t the foyer exactly, but Debra went hot and cold when she remembered what they’d gotten up to in the pool.