Chapter 6 #3
"We need to go." He pulled back reluctantly, his body screaming in protest. "Now. This is going to get bad."
For once, Lily didn’t argue, quickly retrieving her bikini top, refastening it with fumbling fingers as the rain intensified. By the time they'd climbed out of the lagoon, it was coming down in sheets.
"Stay close!" Alex grabbed her hand, leading her toward the path. "The ground gets slick!"
They ran.
The jungle that had felt magical an hour ago was now a gauntlet of hazards—slippery rocks, sudden mud patches, branches whipping in the growing wind. Lightning strobed through the canopy, followed by thunder that seemed to shake the earth.
Alex kept a tight grip on Lily's hand, hyperaware of her presence behind him. Every few seconds, he glanced back to make sure she was okay, catching glimpses of her face in the lightning flashes—determined, trusting, following his lead without question.
They burst out of the tree line just as the storm reached full fury.
The cabin was fifty yards ahead, barely visible through the curtain of rain. Alex pulled Lily against his side and they ran for it, both of them drenched within seconds.
He yanked open the door and they tumbled inside, slamming it shut against the howling wind.
For a moment, they just stood there, dripping on the wooden floor, breathing hard. The cabin was dim, the storm clouds having swallowed the late afternoon sun, and the rain hammered against the roof like a thousand angry fists.
"Well," Lily panted, pushing soaked hair from her face. "That was—"
Alex kissed her.
He couldn't help it. Couldn't wait another second. He crowded her against the door, his mouth claiming hers with an urgency that surprised even him. They were both cold and wet and shivering, but the heat between them burned through all of it.
She tugged at his shirt, and Alex helped her yank it over his head, tossing it aside with a wet slap. Her hands immediately found his chest, tracing the muscles she'd been eyeing at the lagoon, and he hissed at the contact.
"Been wanting to do this," she admitted, her fingers trailing down his stomach. "Since I saw you on the beach that first morning. Well. After I stopped wanting to murder you."
"The feeling's mutual." He reached for the tie of her bikini top again. "Both parts."
This time, there was no lightning to interrupt.
The fabric fell away, and Alex took a moment to appreciate what he'd only glimpsed at the lagoon. Lily was gorgeous—full breasts, peaked from the cold and arousal, freckles scattered across her chest like a constellation map he wanted to memorize with his tongue.
So he did.
Lily gasped as his mouth found her breast, her back arching off the door. "Oh god—"
He lavished attention on one, then the other, learning what made her gasp versus what made her moan versus what made her dig her nails into his shoulders hard enough to leave marks.
A massive crack of thunder shook the cabin, and Lily flinched violently.
Alex pulled back, suddenly noticing how she'd gone rigid. "Hey. You okay?"
"Fine," she said quickly. Too quickly. "I'm fine."
Lightning lit up the cabin, immediately followed by another boom that rattled the windows. Lily squeezed her eyes shut, a small tremor running through her.
"Lily." Alex cupped her face in his hands, making her look at him. "Are you afraid of storms?"
"No." Another flash, another boom. She winced. "Maybe. A little."
The vulnerability in her voice—this woman who was never anything but confident—cracked something open in Alex's chest.
"Hey." He pressed his forehead to hers, his thumbs stroking her cheekbones. "It's okay. You're safe."
"I know. It's stupid. I'm a grown woman who's traveled the world, and I still can't handle a little thunder."
"It's not stupid." He kissed her softly, gently, a stark contrast to the desperation of moments before. "Everyone's afraid of something."
"What are you afraid of?" she whispered.
You, he thought. What you're making me feel. How much I don't want this to end.
"Lousy timing," he said instead, and was rewarded with a shaky laugh.
"Okay, that's fair." She took a breath, visibly steadying herself. "I'm good. I promise. Don't stop on my account."
"You sure?"
In answer, she grabbed his waistband and pulled him toward the bedroom.
They made it as far as the doorway before Alex had her pressed against the frame, his mouth on her neck, her hands working at the button of his shorts. She shoved them down, and he kicked them aside, leaving him in nothing but wet boxer briefs that did absolutely nothing to hide his arousal.
"Impressive," Lily murmured, her hand tracing his length through the fabric.
Alex's hips jerked. “Jesus—” he hissed through his teeth, every muscle in his body rigid at her touch.
"I want to see you." Her voice was steady now, the fear replaced by something darker, hungrier. "All of you."
He obliged.
Her sharp intake of breath was gratifying. "Yeah. That's... wow."
"Eloquent."
"Shut up, I'm processing."
Then her hand wrapped around him, and Alex stopped being capable of witty banter.
"Fuck," he groaned, his forehead dropping to her shoulder.
Lily stroked him slowly, experimentally, learning his responses the way he'd learned hers. Her thumb swept over the head, spreading the moisture gathering there, and Alex's vision went white at the edges.
"Bed," he managed. "Now. Unless you want this to be over embarrassingly fast."
They tumbled onto the mattress in a tangle of limbs, and suddenly Lily was beneath him, her wild curls fanned across his pillow, her green eyes dark with want.
"Hi," she whispered.
"Hi yourself."
He kissed her deeply, thoroughly, while his hands finally—finally—peeled off her bikini bottoms. She was bare beneath him, and the sensation of skin against skin made them both groan.
"Alex." Her hips lifted, seeking him. "Please."
"Not yet." He kissed down her body, taking his time despite the urgency pounding through his veins. "I want to taste you first."
"Oh god—"
He settled between her thighs, pressing kisses to the sensitive skin there, making her squirm. When he finally put his mouth on her, Lily's back arched completely off the bed.
"Alex—"
She was sweet and salt and utterly addictive. Alex groaned against her, the vibration making her cry out, and he did it again just to hear the sound. His tongue explored her folds, learning what she liked, noting her responses with the same attention he gave his research. He wanted to learn her.
When he found her clit and sucked gently, Lily came apart with a scream that was swallowed by the thunder overhead.
He worked her through it, gentling as she trembled, only pulling back when her hands tugged weakly at his hair.
"Get up here," she demanded, her voice wrecked.
Alex crawled up her body, and she kissed him deeply, moaning at the taste of herself on his lips.
"I need—" She reached between them, positioning him at her entrance. "I need you."
"Are you sure?" He was shaking with the effort of holding back. "We don't have to—"
"Alex." She wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer. “I’m on the pill. Stop thinking and just—"
He pushed inside her.
The feeling was indescribable—tight, wet heat enveloping him as Lily gasped beneath him. Alex had to freeze, breathing hard, fighting for control.
"God," he managed. "You feel—"
"I know." She rolled her hips experimentally, and they both groaned. "Move. Please move."
He did.
Slowly at first, long strokes that let them both savor the sensation. But the urgency built quickly, driven by days of tension and hours of foreplay and the storm still raging outside. Soon Alex was moving faster, harder, Lily meeting him thrust for thrust.
"Yes—" she gasped, her nails raking down his back. "Right there—don't stop—"
The cabin filled with the sounds of their coupling—skin against skin, gasped names, the rhythmic creak of the bed. Thunder rolled overhead, but neither of them noticed anymore.
Alex could feel his release building, coiling hot at the base of his spine. He reached between them, finding her clit, rubbing in tight circles.
"Come with me," he growled against her ear. "Lily—"
She shattered with his name on her lips, her inner walls clamping down on him like a vice. Alex followed her over the edge with a groan, spilling himself inside her in hot pulses that seemed to go on forever.
They lay tangled together as the aftershocks rolled through them, both breathing hard, neither willing to move.
Eventually, Alex found the strength to roll to the side, pulling out with a wince that she echoed. He gathered her against his chest, her head tucked under his chin, their legs intertwined.
"So," Lily said after a long moment, her voice hoarse. "That happened."
Despite everything—despite the magnitude of what they'd just done, despite the complications it would inevitably cause—Alex laughed.
"That's one way to put it."
"I'm a wordsmith." She pressed a kiss to his chest. "It's kind of my thing."
They lay in comfortable silence, the storm still drumming against the roof. Alex traced patterns on her back, memorizing the feel of her, storing up sensory details against the emptiness that would come when she eventually left.
Don't think about that, he told himself. Stay here. Stay present.
"Your clothes are soaked," he said eventually. "I've got a t-shirt you can wear."
"How romantic."
"I'm a giver."
He retrieved the shirt—an old Boston University tee, soft from years of washing—and watched Lily pull it over her head. It swallowed her, falling to mid-thigh, and somehow she looked more appealing in his ratty shirt than she had in any of her designer bikinis.
You're in trouble, Carmichael.
He was beginning to accept that.
They crawled back into bed, settling into a position that felt natural despite this being the first time they'd shared it. Lily curled against his side, her arm draped over his stomach, her breath warm against his chest.
"Hey Alex?"
"Mm?"
"Thanks for not letting me sleep on the porch that first night."
He huffed a laugh. "You're welcome."
"And thanks for..." She gestured vaguely. "All of that. The lagoon. The talking. The..." She gestured again, more specifically.
"The incredibly athletic and satisfying sex?"
"I was going to say 'the nice time,' but sure, that works too."
Alex smiled into the darkness, pulling her closer. Outside, the storm was beginning to fade, the thunder growing more distant, the rain softening to a gentle patter.
"Get some sleep," he murmured.
"Bossy."
"Always."
Her breathing evened out within minutes, her body relaxing completely against his. Alex lay awake a while longer, listening to the rain, feeling the warm weight of her in his arms.
Maybe some journeys aren't about the destination, he'd thought earlier. Maybe they're about finding someone worth the trip.
Looking at Lily—this impossible, infuriating, wonderful woman who had crashed into his life and rearranged everything—Alex knew he'd been right.
She was worth it.
He just hoped he'd be brave enough to tell her so.
Eventually, lulled by the rain and the warmth of her body, Alex slept.