~CAMILLE'S POV~
~FLASHBACK CONTINUES~
After concluding my conversation with Lester, we both walk over to where Niklaus is seated.
"Would you like a drink too?" Lester offers me the bottle of wine.
"No, thanks, I don't have much of a tolerance for alcohol."
Lester nods before turning to Niklaus. "You good now?"
Niklaus nods. "Yeah, couldn't be better." He turns to me with a smile. "Would you like to go for a swim?"
I blink in surprise. Why is he suddenly smiling at me?
"Uh, no," I reply in a soft voice.
He stands up. "Why not? Let's swim together."
"Uh..." I scratch the back of my neck. "I'm not really much of a..." I don't even get a chance to finish my sentence before Niklaus pulls me out of the chair and takes me down to the pool with him.
I scream in terror, using every ounce of strength I have to wrestle free from him and escape the water.
"Try to relax, Cam, it's just water," Niklaus says, his chuckles audible. This insensitive jerk. I'm terrified of water due to a traumatic experience, and here he is, laughing and watching me struggle?
My gaze fixates on the water, seeming endless and ominous. What if what happened to me before happens again The dread of reliving that past experience weakens my legs, causing my hands to slip from his body, and my body gradually submerges into the water.
"Fucking hell, Nils! Get her out of the water!" Lester's voice pierces through, filled with urgency. It's only then that Niklaus swiftly grabs me, and everything goes black.
As I slowly open my eyes, I take in my surroundings and realize I'm in Niklaus's room. I manage to sit up in bed, propping myself against the headboard, and begin to replay the events at the pool. Oh no, this is exactly what I was trying to prevent. I scan the room, wincing when the bright daylight streams through the window. It's already daybreak? What time is it? Just then, the door opens, and I see Niklaus walk in. I sigh and avert my gaze from him.
He takes a seat on the bed beside me and attempts to make eye contact, but I continue to evade his gaze.
"I, uh, I didn't realize you were that afraid of the water..." he starts to say, and I turn to him, curious to hear his explanation. I know it's not entirely his fault, given that he had no way of knowing the extent of my fear, but he could have respected my wishes not to swim.
"So, um, my bad," he says, running a hand through his hair, looking at me with uncertainty.
"You're supposed to say you're sorry," I frown at him.
"That's what I just said, right?" he responds, a touch confused.
I stare at him without uttering a word, and he quickly nods. "I am sorry, okay. I wouldn't want you dying on me," he adds with a casual shrug.
Oh, this asshole.
I shake my head before reluctantly nodding. "Right, whatever."
He tilts his head to look at me, his expression earnest. "Are you still angry?"
I remain silent.
"Did I say something wrong?"
I roll my eyes. "You never say anything right."
"I never say anything right? But that's not true; I say a lot of things right."
"Things like what?" I arch an eyebrow at him.
He grins mischievously and moves closer, lowering his voice near my ear. "I did say you're very sexy, didn't I?"
I purse my lips to hide my smile and playfully push his head away, not too forcefully. "Don't try to sweet-talk your way out."
He shrugs again. "I'm not trying to do that. It's not my fault I can't help it. You're too beautiful to handle."
I cover my face with my hand, concealing my flushed cheeks. "Please stop, Niklaus."
He begins to climb onto the bed, and I hastily lower my hand to observe his mischievous actions.
"What are you up to?" I ask, my tone cautious.
"Me? Nothing. Just want to be more comfortable in the bed," he says, putting on an innocent facade.
"I'm not buying that." Just as I attempt to shift away from the bed, he swiftly grabs my waist and pulls me beneath him, so he's now hovering over me.
"And where do you think you're going?" he grins, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
"Let go of me, what are you doing?" I place my hands on his chest and try to push him away, but he remains firmly in place. He starts to move his lips closer to mine, but I quickly turn my head.
"I have to go home. I need to get ready for work," I say, still avoiding his gaze.
"The driver will drop you off. You don't have to worry about that."
"That's not what I'm saying. I'm telling you to let me go."
"And why should I?" he asks, a puzzled expression on his face. "I want to hold you. I like holding you."
Oh my goodness, what's his deal?
"You like holding me?"
He nods, a soft smile playing on his lips. "Yeah, your waist is so petite, my arms fit perfectly around it."
I lick my lips and sigh, "let me go."
"If I let you go, you are going to disappear on me again." he frowns at me.
I turn to him, "Of course I am. We were not even supposed to meet again, let alone having sex again, it happened accidentally."
"Are you trying to say that you were moaning while I was thrusting into you, accidentally?"
Oh goodness.
I cover his mouth with my hand. "Shut up."
He chuckles into my palms before gently removing my hand. "I've never had sex with the same woman twice, Cam."
I roll my eyes. "You've mentioned that before."
"I want to emphasize it this time because it seems like you're not quite getting it," he says with a smirk. "Not only did I have sex with you for the second time, I also cannot get enough. I want to have sex with you again."
My eyes grow wide, "What?"
He shrugs, "You like having sex with me and I like having sex with you. We actually have something in common you see. The first time we had sex, you told me you needed a distraction and I am sure that sex did it for you. Don't you think it's going to be a win-win?"
I blink rapidly, not yet understanding what he's trying to say. "What exactly are you getting at, Niklaus?"
"I just said that I would like to have sex with you again. You said you needed a distraction and a perfect distraction I can be. I am proposing that you are free to use me."
Is he proposing a friends with benefit thing?
"I do enjoy having sex with you..." I start to say hoping I'm not going to regret what's going to come out of my mouth. "And I did say I needed a distraction from what's been going on with me but it's still not clear what you are proposing. You want us to keep having sex and what would that make us?"
"Do you want a relationship?" he asks me with a serious expression, and the thought of it almost makes me sick. A relationship? After what Max did? Nah, not happening.
"Of course not," I answer him, my disgust evident on my face.
He smiles. "Then that's settled. You don't want a relationship, and neither do I. You enjoy having sex with me, and so do I."
"So, you're suggesting a friends with benefits thing?"
He shakes his head. "Nah, that's too common. How about... sex friends?"
I burst into laughter and playfully hit his chest. "Sex what? Where the hell did you get that from?"
He grins. "I was born creative, you see."
Creative my foot.
"Sex friends sex friends..." I chant the words still not believing that I am even considering this. Truth be told, I am not really stable for any relationship right now and it feels so good whenever I have sex with him. "So you are saying that we just keep having sex and that's it?"
He nods. "Yeah, there's no big deal in that. It's fine if you don't want to, I'm not forcing you into anything, you know."
I pause for a moment, absorbing his words, before letting out a sigh. "It doesn't always end well, Niklaus."
"Why do you think that?"
"It's not just what I think, it's a fact. Someone almost always ends up getting hurt in the end."
"No one's going to get hurt because we're on the same page here."
"I've read in books where one party ends up falling in love with the other, and when the feeling isn't reciprocated, that's when the hurt comes."
"So, are you saying you're going to fall in love with me?"
I stare at him, then burst into laughter. "You certainly have a lot of confidence that you won't be the one to fall, don't you?"
He smiles. "I don't do feelings, Cam. It won't be like those books you read where the guy changes his ways because of love. I'm... I'm very complicated, and just being sex partners with me would be best for your mental health."
I look at him for a moment, then clear my throat. "Who said I'm going to fall for you? That's never going to happen. I don't have the energy left in me to fix anyone."
He smiles. "Great, then we have nothing to worry about."
I take a deep breath. "Fine, I'm game but I will set the rules."
He grins, "Sweet. Lets hear it." he shrugs.
Oh goodness, I can't believe I'm actually doing this.
"First, we must establish clear boundaries. What I mean is, we should both understand what we're getting into and always communicate our likes and dislikes to avoid crossing any lines. In public, we can't be intimate. Also, we have to keep our emotions in check. No strings attached, just sex. If one of us starts developing feelings, then it's over. Also, we need to respect each other's space and privacy. No prying into personal matters. Under no circumstances should jealousy come into play if one of us is involved with someone else. And lastly, if one of us decides to end it, then it's over."
He looks at me for a moment before nodding. "Great, I'm good with that. Can I add something?"
I nod. "Sure."
"You forgot the no commitment part. We're both allowed to have other sex partners and shouldn't mind that."
I pause for a moment. "That's fine, but we have to ensure we're always safe and clean."
"I'm always clean," he says quickly, and I shake my head, a hint of amusement in my eyes. "We also must not forget why we started this, no expectation of boring sweet relationship things and all that. We don't text, we sext."
It takes me a moment to understand what he meant by 'sext' and I chuckle. "Well alright, that's cool."
"So we are doing this then?"
I nod, "Yes."
"So how many times in a week are we having sex and we should discuss time as well, we both have our lives to live." I inquire.
"Yeah, that's correct. How about five times?"
My eyes widen in shock. "Are you planning to exhaust me with sex?"
He looks at me, puzzled. "What, that's too much?"
"Of course, it's excessive. The most I can handle is two."
His expression shifts from confusion to disappointment. "Just two?"
"Yes, just two. And remember, we're also being intimate with other people, right?"
He takes a moment to process this. "But I like you better." he whines like a child.
I blink at him, then take a deep breath. "You don't like me. You just prefer having sex with me."
He rolls his eyes. "It's the same thing. Please..." He pulls me closer to his chest. "Make it four, please?"
"No."
"Please, Cam, hmm?"
"I won't do four, I could end up having cramped legs and broken waist."
He buries his head in my neck. "Please, how about three then?"
I pull his head gently, moving his neck away from my ear. "Why are you acting like a baby?"
He gives me a puppy-eyed look. "Is it working?"
I chuckle and shake my head, "No!!"
"Should I be a naughty boy then?" he teases, biting his lower lip and then grinning at me. He moves his lips close to my ear, but I quickly move my head away and playfully push his chest.
"Stop it! Fine!" I say in mock exasperation. "Fine, three days then."
He smiles cheekily. "And what about the time? What works for you?"
"Well, I am usually done with work by evening, so how about 8pm? Is that good for you?"
He nods, "Yeah that's fine."
I nod as well, "Alright, it's settled then. Now, will you let me go to work?"
He grins and before I know it, he reaches down and takes my lips in his. I move my hands around his neck and pulls him closer while he slides his tongue in my mouth sliding his hand down to my butt but before he can grab it, I push him away.
"I'm running late," I say hurriedly, scrambling out of the bed.
He chuckles. "We'll sext about which days would work."
I nod, a smirk playing on my lips. "Yeah, right."
XOXO