12. Skylarking
Chapter 12
Skylarking
Haley
T he touch of stubble on his square jaw is softer than I imagined. And a twitch of his neck muscle catches my attention.
Am I really going to do this?
Dante said he thinks Sam has a thing for me. But I felt it too. Last night, sitting on the bench, neither one of us was talking about the yacht. I thought after he’d told me how old he was and we laughed together, the feelings would pass. But they haven’t. I’ve always dated guys my age. Actually, Steven was younger than me at twenty-five. Which might explain why he has my dog and I have a smashed heart.
This has got to be the dumbest thing I’ve ever done in my life. I reach for Sam’s cheek. My thumb runs along his lower jaw.
Who am I? But I can’t stop myself. I don’t know what I expected. I’ve never touched someone like this. My heart is racing, and I can’t catch my breath. He’s still. Too still, like he’s trying to figure out what to do about this. Then he places his hand over mine. His eyes are wide.
“I’m your boss, Haley.” His tone is low and rumbles through me.
“I know. I’m the one initiating this. I read the handbook.” Actually, I lost a lot of sleep reading and rereading it in the handbook.
“I’m ten years older than you.”
“I don’t see a problem with that.” I push up onto my tippy toes.
“And you’re sure you know what you’re doing?”
“I always know what I’m doing. And I quote, Section eight, paragraph 2: ‘a crew member of lesser rank may establish a relationship with a high-ranking officer as long as it’s approved by the captain.’ End quote. So is it approved?”
His head lowers, and his lips hover near my ear. “I’m quite sure you have no idea what you’re getting yourself into, Miss Haley Brewster.”
His hand grabs the back of my head; his fingers thread through my hair. And when his mouth hits mine, my world explodes. It’s not butterflies, no—I’m not nervous at all to have his arm around me. It’s right. My feet don’t move.
A guy like Sam doesn’t come around often, not in yachting, where all the men are looking for someone to keep their bed warm. I want to do so much more than kiss this man. Our bodies are flush against each other, and my bare feet are alongside his. I find the edge of his crew shirt and inch my hand up. Touching his firm abs makes me wild, and as I scrape my fingers along their ridges, he groans my name.
I’ve never wanted a man as much as I want Sam. I widen my stance, bringing our bodies even closer. His cock hits me at my core. I’m the one who presses into him. When I do, he pulls my leg up, and I jump onto him. But I don’t stay there for long. He turns, lowering me to the bed. Sam stands between my knees. I know what I want. He’s unsure he’s doing the right thing.
“You are so beautiful.” His fingers trail down my body. Shock waves pulse through me. He lifts my shirt an inch, showing my stomach. I push that from my thoughts. He drops to his knees. He’s kissing my belly, his fingers teasing at my waistband. I lift my hips, and he eases my shorts off. He tugs them down.
I’m frozen in time. His smile takes my breath away. His hands grasp either side of my thighs, and his head nudges my legs wider. We lock eyes for a moment, and then his tongue swirls around my clit as he grasps my hips, pulling me closer to the edge of the bed, closer to his mouth. I whimper. At least, I hope it’s a whimper.
He lifts his head. “Shh, Haley. We can’t have anyone hearing you. Don’t make me get out a gag.”
His mouth is back and driving me crazy. The tension has my back lifting off the mattress. I’ve only had a few guys go down on me before, but never like this, never without me asking and never with such... Shit, he pushes a finger into me. It’s tight. It’s been a while since I’ve had sex. But nothing will ever compare to this. Sam’s in complete control, and each of his movements is perfectly timed. It’s making thinking hard.
The world falls away. It’s only him and me. He adds another finger, the rhythm timed with his tongue to send me even nearer to the edge. I’m so close. My back arches, and I grind into his face. I’m so wet, so close. He adds another finger. I’m going to explode. And when he sucks hard on my clit, he reaches up his hand and covers my mouth. Sam’s holding me down, his head on my hips, and my body doesn’t know what to do. I try not to scream my release into his hand, but I can’t help it. I can’t be quiet—it’s too good. Convulsions wrack my body, one after the other.
Only when I’m still does he let go of my mouth. Limp and relaxed, I close my eyes. I let myself not think for a whole two seconds before I worry about what I’ve done. What we’ve done.
I reach for the captain. But I know the reality of it is we can’t snuggle. Heck, we might never do anything again—not until the season is over or maybe not ever. This is going to be the longest two months of my entire life.
I close my eyes for a moment and Sam’s disappeared. Water runs in the bathroom. A minute later, he’s back with a warm cloth. I move to take it, but he shakes his head. He holds my hand while he cleans me. I let my head drop to the bed. The reality of what I’ve started is sinking in. He’s found my shorts and pulls them on.
I’m enough of myself now to pull them up the rest of the way. Glancing at him, I expect to see my layer of worry or regret, but he’s all smiles. He shakes his head.
“We’re going to need a plan,” I say.
“We’re both adults.” His fingers trail up my leg.
I bite my lip. “But during the actual season, this could be complicated.”
“You are the most amazing woman.”
I kiss him, tasting myself on his lips. I want nothing more than to go down on him, but... “I’ve been here too long.”
He nods. “Anders won’t say anything, but you’re right. We both have to get back to work. Our reprieve from Rocky and his family is short-lived.”
I stand, and his fingers run through my hair. “I meant it when I said you are one of the most intoxicating women I’ve ever met. We?—”
“—have a job to do. And forming a new relationship during a season when we both are going to have so much work... It’s going to be impossible.”
He pulls me to his chest and presses a kiss on the top of my head. “You’re something else. I’m going to Thailand after the season is over, before we reposition the yacht. A month—you should come with me.”
I take in his smell, the firmness of his chest. He sends a fire of longing through me. Just last week, I told myself I couldn’t have a relationship, not until I got myself under control, learned to love my body and where I am in my life. Being a stewardess wasn’t my plan. Or Sam. He’s not a landlubber. And jumping into a month-long trip? “I’ll think about it.”
His laugh resonates through him. “I’m glad one of us is mature enough. All right, Haley. We better get back to work. I hear your boss is a real ass.”
He pinches my chin and tilts his mouth to mine. His grip is strong. And while I’m the one who started this, whatever it is, Sam is clearly the one in charge. I kind of love it and hate it at the same time. The kiss is blistering, and there is no doubt my lips will be swollen. He’s claiming me.
Sam pulls back first. He holds my shoulders. “Think about Thailand.”
I turn to leave. I’m dizzy. My world is rocking more than a boat during rough waters. I glance in the mirror by his door and smooth my hair.
“Haley?”
I glance back at Sam. He’s tucking the comforter tight. “You might need this.” He scoops up my radio from the floor and tosses it at me.
I catch it. “Thanks.”
“And—”
I know what he’s going to say. “I won’t tell anyone. You don’t have to worry.”
“Actually, section eight, paragraph three, I was going to say. It’s up to you if you want to tell people. Just let me know if you do. So I’m not blindsided. But you’re right, we both have jobs to do. We should slow this—whatever it is—down.”
“Yes, sir.” But I say sir with a sexy twist.
“Fuck, Haley.”
I wiggle my eyebrows and get out of there. My nipples are hard, and I’m getting wet just looking at him. And I have a hell of a lot to do.
I leave Sam, the captain, without glancing back at Anders on the bridge. I don’t want to know if he heard me. How could he not? I’ve never come so hard in my life. Actually, all of my other orgasms no longer count. They were meager scraps of what sex should be.
“Shayla, Shayla, Haley,” I say into the radio. “What’s your location?”
“I’m having a margarita on the pool deck.” No way would she drink on charter. While we aren’t underway, we still have a guest on board.
I laugh.
“I was taking a little nap, but I’m getting up now,” she says a second later. “I’ll be in the crew mess.”
“Copy, I’ll meet you there.”
I step down onto the second landing, and Zane is coming up. We meet in the same spot where we collided two days ago.
“We’ve got to stop running into each other like this.”
I smile at his cheesy line. He’s cute, and his tousled hair is sexy in a don’t-care way. “Wow, you’re in a good mood.”
“What?”
“I’ve just never seen you smile like that. I’m glad. You’re doing such an amazing job with the ship. You and Shayla. The third is . . . well, you need to meet her, and judge for yourself.”
“She’s here. I’m going to go wake Sleeping Beauty up now.”
“Sleeping Beauty?” Easton has come out of his room. He’s got a shirt on now, covering up his Olympian body. Which is good because he’d be a total distraction for Shayla. And we don’t need two distracted stews.
“Hey, thanks for your help.” Zane pats Easton on the back.
“No worries, man. Cardio and strength at the same time is a bonus. And we got the boxes off before the wildebeest arrives.” Easton holds running shoes in his hand. “I’m going to go for a run now. But let me know if you need anything else.” He winks at me and strolls to the gangplank off the rear deck.
I turn to Zane after Easton is out of earshot. “You guys are done?”
“Yeah, in fact, I’m just coming back from taking the last load of boxes to the dock. The harbor master is donating them to a charity shop that supports the local hospital.”
“Well, that’s cool. I’m going to go find Shayla. Thanks for your help.”
“We’re all a team. Especially this season, with the owner’s new wife being such a jealous weirdo.”
“Thanks Zane, I really appreciate it.”
He takes off, and I just stop for a minute. Have I ended up not on the other side of the world but in an alternate universe where most of the men are not only good-looking but reasonable? This didn’t happen in the Caribbean, did it?
I take the spiral steps slowly down to the crew mess. No, I distinctly remember a bosun from two seasons ago telling me if he wanted to be a dishwasher, he would have applied to be a low-ass stew. There’s something in the water here.
I round the corner. And Shayla stands above Brianna with a knife in her hand.
“What’s going on?” I scream.