Fated

  Fated

  New Zealand Bound Series, Volume 2

  Sarah Doren

  Published by Sarah Doren, 2015.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  FATED

  First edition. October 22, 2015.

  Copyright © 2015 Sarah Doren.

  ISBN: 978-1519994929

  Written by Sarah Doren.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter One

  “Wiremu,” I said.

  “Tina,” he responded.

  I turned around in his arms, our eyes meeting. I could feel the attraction between us—like a strong, sizzling current. His beautiful hazel eyes were cloudy with heat. The loud ruckus of the party disappeared into the background, dying down as my fingers tingled around his bulging biceps. There was something magical about the way he was staring at me with that slight smile playing around his lips.

  “Get a room, you two!” a voice called, breaking the trance.

  I blinked through the haziness and stepped back a little. Still dazed from the sudden attraction, I pasted on a smile and breathed through my nose. That was a close call.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, still smiling.

  Wiremu shrugged. “I was invited. What are you doing here?”

  “Chelsea invited me. And since I didn’t have anything to do, I thought I would come.”

  “Is that so?” he asked.

  I nodded. We fell into silence, neither one of us talking as people milled around us. In an effort to break the awkwardness, I had just turned to go look for the rest of my friends, when he said my name.

  I turned back around, saying, “Yes?”

  He looked uncomfortable for a second, as he said, “Do you wanna...?”

  I frowned up at him. “Want what?”

  “Come hang out at my place?” he suggested, looking uncomfortable still.

  I smiled. Was that what he wanted, because I would sure leave this party any day of the week if it meant hanging out at Wiremu’s place.

  “Sure,” I said, setting down my drink. “How much have you had to drink? Can you drive?”

  He nodded, appearing sober as ever. “Yeah, I’m fine to drive. I didn’t have a single drop. Can’t risk it.”

  We stepped outside and I immediately felt the coolness of the air, its invisible arms wrapping themselves around me, seeping into my bones as I tugged at the hem of my clothing in vain. I didn’t want to catch a cold, especially not in the last month of summer before autumn was even here. I just couldn’t risk it.

  “You cold?” Wiremu asked, staring down at me with a frown on his beautiful face.

  I tried to shake my head but the sound of my teeth clattering beat me to it, revealing just how cold and frozen I was.

  “Here,” he said, taking off his jacket. I stared at him in disbelief as he placed it over my shoulders. His body heat was still trapped inside the jacket. I looked back at him with a pang of guilt, as I watched him rub his palms together.

  “You sure I can have your jacket?” I asked.

  “Fine,” he said, as he cupped his hands together and placed them over his mouth, warming them up with his breath.

  He guided us toward the empty parking lot and unlocked the door. I wasn’t sure why I was going with this guy, let alone planning on jumping into his car. We were practically strangers, and yet I was planning on going over to his place. I pushed the thought aside, not wanting to dwell on it too much. Because the last thing I wanted to do, was to chicken out and get the hell out of there, so I could call my host dad for a ride.

  Which was never going to happen. Not tonight, at least.

  “Hop in.” Wiremu said, cutting into my thoughts.

  I flashed him a smile and hopped in, closing the door behind me as he fumbled with the car’s heater. Once we were both warm, he put the car into reverse and started driving onto the main road. I nibbled down on my lips, not knowing what to say. This might be the only time I would get to spend time with him, and I didn’t want to mess it up with my blabbering.

  Yes, I do tend to blabber at times when I’m nervous.

  With my fingers curled tightly around my purse, I said, “So...”

  He sent a brief glance my way, and I swore I saw his lips curl up in amusement. Wiremu was usually quiet and never seemed to pay much attention to his surroundings. Moreover, there was something mysterious and dark about him that I couldn’t help feel attracted to.

  “So what?” he uttered.

  I no longer knew what I had meant to say after ‘so,’ and it looked like I had just dug myself into another hole. Good job, Tina.

  “What do you, uh, do for fun around here?” I said, blurting out the first thing that came to my mind.

  He laughed, which took me by surprise, since he never laughed much around me. Not for the few days I had been around him, anyway. His deep laughter made his chest vibrate, and made it absolutely impossible not to smile. He looked younger than his age when he laughed or smiled.

  “How old are you?” I asked. Then I remembered Chelsea telling me not to ask people their—but that rule just applied with older people, right?

  “I’m twenty-five,” he answered.

  Huh. A year older than me. Not bad.

  “How old are you?” Wiremu asked.

  “I’m twenty-four,” I said.

  He nodded in return, looking thoughtful as if he was analyzing my answer. “Is there a reason why you came here? And chose this particular country?”

  “Yeah, there is, actually. I’ve always wanted to come see New Zealand for myself. Some of my friends have been here and came back and told me about all these wonderful places. Then I saw this posting about being an exchange student overseas, and I grabbed the opportunity.”

  “How are you liking it here so far?” he asked.

  I nodded. “Yeah. People are great here.”

  “Well, that’s good to hear.”

  We fell into another silence—which we seemed to do often. I basked in the quiet and stared out the window, collecting my thoughts. This had been the longest conversation I had had with him, and...it was pretty nice.

  The silence dragged on. He seemed to live far from the university, because we had passed many traffic lights and he didn’t seem to be stopping at any houses.

  “Do you rent somewhere?” I asked a minute later.

  He shook his head. “Nah, I don’t.”

  A flicker of surprise showed in my face as I turned to him, studying his gorgeous facial features. His cheekbones were defined and angular. His hazel eyes focused ahead of him, his beautiful and pouty lips pursed in concentration.

  “I thought most students from here either live with their parents, if they’re local, rent a house, or live on campus. Where do you live then?”

  “I live in an apartment. My apartment actually.”

  My mouth gaped open in astonishment. He had his own apartment? As far as I was concerned, not many people in their early twenties had their own houses or apartments.

  “Did your parents buy it or something?” I asked.

  He nodded. “It was a graduation present for me when I went off to college. I’ve been staying there ever since I moved into Auckland.”

  “Where are you from?”

  “I’m from up north. Whangarei to be exact,” he said.

  “Is that far away from campus?” I asked.

  He shot me an apologetic glance. “Yeah, sorry. I forgot to tell you that it’s outside of the city. Hope you don’t mind.”

/>   “Not at all,” I said.

  The car finally stopped and we were able to get out. I closed the door behind me with a slam, the force echoing throughout the deserted parking lot. I started nibbling at my fingernails, afraid that someone would call the police, because I was making too much noise after ten o’ clock at night.

  “You okay?” Wiremu, asked, breaking into my reverie.

  I nodded and followed him into the large building. The area was deserted, and aside from us there wasn’t a living soul in sight. We pushed our way through the double doors, and the first thing I noticed was the grand and sophisticated decor inside the building. I looked around, mesmerized. I couldn’t stop admiring the expensive furniture. People must be quite rich to stay in these luxurious apartments, and apparently this happened to be Wiremu’s place as well.

  I shot him a curious glance. His face darkened by the dim shadows that fell across his handsome features, hiding any sense of emotion as we began to walk up the stairs. His profession still remained a mystery to me—just as he remained a mystery to me. I had never met someone so quiet and private about themselves. And it intrigued me to no end. I bit down on my full bottom lip, stopping myself from asking personal questions he didn’t wish to answer.

  “So, uh, are we there yet?” I asked, as we started up a new set of stairs.

  For the last couple of minutes, Wiremu had been silent throughout the whole process, not bothering to start up a conversation. I was realizing that he wasn’t the chatty type, but I had thought that coming with him here to his apartment might at least get him to open up a little. At this point, I would have welcomed a conversation about anything, really, just as it was not his usual silence.

  “We’re getting there. Sorry for the long walk. I like living out here and is quite peaceful. I prefer silence over chaos.”

  I figured that, I thought, but didn’t say a word.

  Instead, I settled for a ‘me too’, as we finally reached his room. He produced a key out of his jeans pocket and opened the door, ushering me in with a flourish of his hand. I looked around immediately and took in the neat bedroom. His bed was made and he had a small well-stocked fridge in the corner near his bed, right beside his bedside table. I smiled at the sight of his room and flopped down on his mattress. It sprang back up, soft and comfortable under my butt, as I heard him chuckle.

  “I’m guessing you like my bed?” he teased.

  The mere mention of the word ‘bed’ started the liquid pooling between my legs. My thighs clenched immediately. My heart fluttered, as he walked over to his mini-fridge to retrieve something. I couldn’t stop ogling his ass with the denim fabric stretched taut around his firm globes. My mouth watered when I caught sight of his torso. The hem of his shirt rode up, revealing a strip of body hair that disappeared down into his boxers.

  “Soft drink?” he offered, as he extended one hand and handed me a can.

  “Thanks,” I said and flipped the tab open. I took a sip, grateful for the cold liquid as it cooled my flushed cheeks.

  “Did you want to listen to music? Watch TV?”

  “Music would be nice.” I said, nodding in agreement. “The music back there was terrible. I don’t know whether it was reggae or hip-hop. An odd combination.”

  “Tell me about it,” he mumbled, fumbling with his stereo. I waited patiently as he got his iPod going. The soft melody of Beyoncé’s voice boomed against the thick walls. I was starting to enjoy the silence between us, and even though the attraction between us was still there, I couldn’t help but simply enjoy his company, though neither of us did much of talking.

  “What do you listen to?” he asked, flopping down beside me with a beer in his hand.

  I pondered the question. “Hmm. I listen to lot of artists, really. I don’t have one favorite band or singer, or a must-go-to playlist when a mood strikes me. Actually, I’m not terribly picky about what I listen to—as long as it sounds good and I can jam along with it.”

  He grinned. His full set of white teeth glinted in the fluorescent lights above us. “I wouldn’t have pegged you as the jamming type. You like Eminem?”

  “Hell, yeah!” I exclaimed. “I mean, who doesn’t, right?”

  Chapter Two

  I was seeing a part of Wiremu Tone I doubted many people had ever seen before. For the last couple of hours, we went through his favorite and not-so-favorite playlists and jammed along with them all. We ended up sitting on the floor, cross-legged, humming along with The Eagle’s Hotel California. Wiremu was jamming along with every tune, making me laugh every now and then as we got comfortable with each other. It felt good, spending time with a guy who wasn’t only trying to get in my pants, and it was especially nice, when he slung his bulging biceps around my waist, pulling me closer with a gentle tug.

  I laid my head on his shoulder, rocking gently along with him as his finger stroked my side. My skin tingled from the touch. My breath faltered when he pressed a soft kiss into my forehead, taking us both by surprise. We broke it off quickly. I stayed on the floor while he scrambled to his feet, our eyes averted as my heart pounded. Swooned and lifted even.

  I was such a mess. I tucked a piece of blonde hair behind my ear, as he cleared his throat. The gentle trance, the music had placed us in, broke, drifting away slowly. I didn’t want the night to end, not yet anyway. Not when I was finally making progress, seeing this part of Wiremu, I had never caught a glimpse of before. A twinge of disappointment settled in the pit of my belly as he walked over to his window and checked something outside. The simple gesture made me feel unwanted in his presence, as if it was an indication for me to go.

  I got up from the floor and brushed invisible debris from my skirt. Trying to look unhurried, I made a move to leave. I was near the doorway when he called out my name, making me turned around and face him.

  “Where are you going?” he asked with a quizzical look in his face.

  “Uh, home?” I said, sounding quite unsure.

  He smiled suddenly. The corners of his lips turned up, brightening his handsome face, as he pushed back from the window. With his arms at his sides, he came toward me, our eyes never breaking eye contact.

  “Why don’t you stay for a bit?” he asked. His voice had gone low, husky and it sent a shiver down my spine.

  “S-sure,” I stammered.

  “Do you want to listen to music again?” he asked, as his breath fanned over my cheeks. “I can put on another CD if you want.”

  “I’d like that.” I said, nodding.

  I waited for him to move away and do just that. But he didn’t. His male perfume lingered in my nostrils. His closeness did something to my head. I couldn’t think clearly when he placed his hands on my shoulders, his fingers kneading them. My body drooped in compliance, relaxing as my green eyes met a pair of hazel ones. I was drowning in his scent and in his eyes, and his proximity was driving me insane.

  “You’ve got the most gorgeous eyes,” he mumbled under his breath.

  Still unable to look away, I said, “Thank you. You’ve got the most amazing eyes, too, you know.”

  He grinned. “You think so?”

  I nodded in confirmation. “And you’re hot, as well.” I blurted out.

  A laugh rumbled out of him, making my cheeks flushed, as I blinked through the haziness of desire. I couldn’t seem to think properly in his presence. Let alone string a few sentences together.

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.”

  He was still chuckling as he said, “Well, I’m glad you think I’m attractive. It’s always good to hear that from somebody’s point of view.”

  I pushed at his chest playfully. “I said you’re hot, not attractive.”

  “Same shit, babe.”

  My stupid heart swooned at hearing him use a nickname for me. My fingers tingled as my hand laid flat on his massive chest. His heartbeat thumped softly against my palm, making it intensely aware of his humanity. A warm-blooded man who was looking down at me with soft eyes, and I see
med to be falling for his charms as well.

  I don’t know which one of us leaned forward, he or I, but once our lips met, it no longer mattered. His mouth was soft and yielding against mine. I closed my eyes. My eyelashes fluttered like a butterfly a few times, before I leaned closer to him. His expensive cologne doing something to my head, playing havoc within me as though wanting me to be the next victim.

  I couldn’t believe I was making out with a guy I’d just met a couple of days ago. A guy who had seemed intimidating and grumpy as an old man when I’d first laid my eyes on him. I pressed myself closer, deeper into his arms as they wrapped around my waist. Our bodies met with a soft thump, our lips moved in complete synchronization. Wiremu combed his fingers through my blonde hair, tilting my head to the side for better access.

  His tongue slipped out and coaxed me into opening. The tip ran over the seam, cajoling me to open up. I moaned softly in his arms. My own hands found its way up around the nape of his neck, pulling him down deeper to prolong the kiss.

  “Wiremu,” I breathed.

  “You taste so good, baby.” He growled against my lips.

  Soft mewling sounds erupted from the deep of my throat. My fingernails dug deep into his skin, pulling him closer. My feet moved backward, our mouthes still attached, and our tongues dueling and lashing at one another. My purse landed on the floor, and Wiremu’s jacket followed suit. Passion sizzled, and ignited between us, making it impossibly hard not to act upon the attraction.

  I felt my back hit the wall. My blonde hair swept away from my neck, and I felt the soft sucking of his mouth on my skin. I groaned gently as my head hit the thick barrier. My body tingled and lit up with fire as his hands roamed all over my body, feeding that spark of desire as I felt him open me up, his thighs settling in between mine.

  Our lips grazed once again. While his fingers slid up and cupped my breasts, his lips and tongue attacked my upper orifice.

  “You are so damn beautiful,” he said against my lips.

  “Wiremu,” I repeated in a sigh.