Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
L ove.
Shit.
I just told Duke I loved him.
My heart raced, and I couldn’t stop replaying it, obsessing over the words. I’d probably said that phrase to him a thousand times through the years, but we weren’t having sex for all those years. Now there was a whole extra layer to our relationship and… I meant it. I loved him.
He didn’t react, maybe it didn’t even register with him, maybe it did, and he didn’t feel the same and I stuck my foot in my mouth.
I tried not to panic as I watched him jog around the front of the helicopter through the enormous windows, too traumatized by my stupid mouth to appreciate the view.
Just sex.
This thing between us was supposed to be friends having sex for one month .
One month—now just one day.
I blinked back the tears, trying to escape and betray me. I set the deadline. I had no right to be upset by it now. He had a life to go back to, a woman waiting for him. I shook my head to clear the image of them at the ball. We had tonight. It would be good enough. It had to be.
“You ready?” Duke asked over the headset, interrupting my spiraling thoughts. I hadn’t even noticed when he climbed into his side.
Determined to enjoy today and what may be my only chance to see the world from a ‘bird,’ as Duke called it, I pulled my mask on tight enough that even I wouldn’t be able to tell what lay underneath.
“Yes.”
My belly swooped low when we lifted off the ground, laughter bubbling out of me at the sensation. Soon enough, the sight of Savannah from the air stole my attention and all thoughts of the clock ticking down to our end were put to bed.
“Look, my house!” I pointed in the distance as a view of the park near it came into view. “I didn’t realize just how big your office building was. Jeez. Compensating much?”
Duke laughed loud and long.
“You know I’m not.” He did a loop above it so I could see it from every angle. The white facade sparkled in the sun, showing off for me.
“Do I? For all I know, you’re small. It’s not like I’ve been up close and personal with many dicks.”
Duke’s low growl came over the headset loud and clear, making me giggle. “You better not be.”
A little thrill ran through me at the possessive edge of his voice and I had to remind myself, again, that he wasn’t mine to keep .
Stupid heart.
“So, where exactly are we going?” I asked, desperate for a change in topic. “You just said to be ready for the beach.”
“A small private island not far from here. There aren’t any structures on it, so we should have the place to ourselves.”
That surprised me. Islands weren’t exactly plentiful off the Georgia coast.
“How can an island close enough to take a helicopter to be empty? Surely someone owns it.”
“Probably, but it’s empty and not on any maps.” He shrugged like this was an everyday occurrence and not at all alarming.
“Right. So, let me get this straight. We are going to a secret, private island that no one knows about. Are you planning on seducing me or murdering me?”
Duke laughed.
“No. I don’t plan on murdering you.”
“That’s what a murderer would say.” I turned back to the window. The ocean filled my view, blue water sparkling before us.
“Good point, but then Frankie would probably hunt me down.”
I scoffed. “You could take her.”
“Just so I’m following you. Are you hoping I take down your friend after I murder you?” Once we were over the ocean, he brought us down enough to see the details of the boats and oil rigs off the coast.
“Good point. She’d slaughter you. Guess you aren’t murdering me today. Seduction it is.”
He didn’t reply to that and instead pointed out dolphins that had crested the surface, putting on a show for a nearby tour boat.
I gasped. I’d never seen dolphins in real life.
We weren’t close to them, but there they were, right in front of my eyes, being magical.
I followed them, turning in my seat to keep them in view for as long as I could.
“Do you think we could see whales like that?”
“Probably not. I think it’s the wrong time of year, but we can keep a lookout. We’re almost there.”
We hadn’t been in the air nearly as long as I thought we should have been, and I wondered again how an entire island went unnoticed this close to shore.
Then I saw it and understood.
When he said we were going to an island, I pictured something… bigger. A small strip of green and tan stretched in front of us, slashing through the blue of the ocean as if it demanded space in this world, no matter how small.
“This is it? No wonder no one has built anything out here. There’s no room.”
“It’s a little bigger than it looks from up here. Someone could definitely put a little vacation home on here.”
I eyed it skeptically.
“If you insist. Is there even anywhere to land?”
“Of course.” He looked offended that I would even ask. “Have a little more faith in me.”
As we approached, I realized he was right. How high up had we been? It was still just a small strip of land, but one side had a field behind the tree line. Duke flew the helicopter to the field and landed us smoothly on the grass.
I took off my headset and seatbelt, excited to explore, but Duke put his hand on my arm and pointed to the blades spinning above us.
“Just wait a minute for me to shut it down and then for the blades to stop,” he said when I put my headset back on.
He deftly flipped various switches and slowly the blades came to a stop, plunging us into an eerie stillness that buzzed along my skin as I adjusted.
Duke came around to my door and helped me out.
“I’ve got some supplies for us. Just hold on while I get them.”
He passed my bag to me and then grabbed two more packs from the storage behind the back seats.
I wore sandals, completely inappropriate footwear for a hike through a tropical island, but Duke helped me over the roots and rocks, never letting me fall. My walls and insecurities melted away under his attention. He had my heart, even if this ended today, and he never wanted more.
We were in a dense copse of trees, and I plastered myself to Duke’s back to avoid anything icky touching me. When we pushed through the tree line, white sand and blue ocean welcomed us, rewarding us for the effort it took to get here.
“Oh, wow.” I came around to stand next to Duke and stare at the beauty that unfolded before us.
“I knew you would like it.” He wrapped his arm around me to pull me close. I snuggled into his embrace, basking in the warm weight of him against me.
“Arrogant prick.” We shook with his laughter. The water lapped at the sand, beckoning us in, and I shed everything but my suit before running to greet the cool water. “Coming?” I asked, turning back to him as the wave crashed against my calves.
Duke muttered something that sounded like “trying not to” before setting down his own load, stripping off all his clothing, and jogging toward me.
“I feel overdressed,” I said when he reached me. I’d worn the skimpiest bikini I had. It took time to remember where I shoved it after purchasing it on a whim and a dream of a time when I could wear it for someone special .
“You mean perfectly dressed?” He fingered the scalloped edge of the top, tracing it down the deep plunge, grazing the inside edge of my breast as he went. Shivers rocked through me at the light touch.
The cream lace bikini had a nude lining that perfectly matched my skin tone, giving the illusion that I wore nothing but scraps of lace.
My body heated at the compliments and attention, but I tried to rein it in. If we started now, I wouldn’t get in the water at all.
“Did you put sunblock on?” Duke asked in a low, raspy voice rocked through me.
His hands grazed my skin in long, silky motions, tempting me to lie. I could bare myself to him and let him massage every inch of me until all I knew was pleasure and his name.
His dark, hooded eyes watched me as he continued to play with the edge of my bikini. Water gently lapped at our feet, and nothing but the two of us existed.
“Catch me.” I said, my voice breathy and strained. I turned and ran into the ocean, the sun at my back, and a breeze rustling my hair.
I turned to track Duke and found him staring at me, cock hard, his eyes intense as they followed my every move.
When the water reached my knees, I dove in and flipped around so he could watch me emerge from the water. I hoped I looked like a swimsuit model and not an uncoordinated penguin.
When I came up, flipping my hair, he had disappeared. I turned everywhere, trying to get a glimpse of him. My heart rate picked up and my brain shifted gears, preparing to be hunted by him.
Before Duke, I never would have imagined that sex could include this. I never quite believed the books I read with chase scenes, thinking that primal play firmly belonged in the Nice to Think About but Not Real category.
As I scanned the water, looking for Duke, I wondered if other things I read about and dismissed were pleasurable as well.
I think I needed to reevaluate my list. Maybe exhibitionism would be thrilling and not embarrassing.
I thought about Duke sliding his hand up my skirt while we ate dinner at a restaurant.
He would find me wet for him, and I’d have to take a bit of food just to muffle the moan of him sliding his finger along my pussy.
I had been caught in my fantasy and jumped when something brushed along my leg. I turned on the spot, looking for his shadow under the waves. He couldn’t possibly hold his breath this long.
Despite the relatively clear water, I didn’t see him anywhere. What the hell? How could he just disappear?
I waded closer to shore, keeping an eye on the tree line. Maybe he hid behind a tree, trying to lure me out of the water.
I still hadn’t found him by the time I reached shore, barely far enough in that the waves still brushed my feet. Just as worry replaced excitement, an arm came around my waist, gentle and familiar.
“Caught you,” he whispered in my ear, taking it into his mouth to nibble.