Chapter 24
Sex on the Beach
? Somewhere Only We Know - Keane
Ruby
Hand in hand, we make our way through the grove down a narrow path that stretches beyond the campsite. The tree line gives way to open air, and the crunchy leaves beneath my feet turn into a sandy shore as Liam leads me onto a private beach behind his property.
I look out over the vast expanse of Oak Ridge Lake with the sun setting behind the small mountain range beyond the horizon.
The area we’re in now is completely surrounded by trees, creating a beach alcove about the size of a baseball diamond.
Soothing, gentle waves lap at the shore, creating a perfect soundtrack for the evening as a sense of calm settles over me.
Liam’s arms wrap casually around my shoulders, resting just under my collarbone.
I place my hands over his forearms and lean back into his chest. A girl could get used to this.
The sense of comfort and safety Liam provides is unlike anything I’ve ever felt.
His calm is the perfect juxtaposition to my chaos. We just… fit.
“Another one of your sanctuaries?” I ask.
His lips ghost over my ear. “Now that you’re here with me? Yeah, I guess you could say that.”
I glance over my shoulder, and my lips inadvertently meet his.
I smile against his mouth. “Smooth. I bet you say that to all the girls.”
“Other girls?” He presses into me. “You’re the only one who’s ever meant a damn thing to me, Ruby Hayes.”
The scary thing is, I actually believe him. Liam doesn’t open his heart to just anyone. Holding it, even for a little while, is a privilege.
I turn and wrap my arms around his neck. His hands skate along my ribs and settle at the small of my back.
“How cold do you think the water is?” I ask.
He pulls me tighter and grins. “No skinny dipping this time.”
I slip my hands into the hair at the base of his neck and let my desire flow through me. “Do you have something else in mind?”
“Why do you assume everyone has an ulterior motive?”
“Because they usually do,” I say matter-of-factly. “Everybody wants something from me.”
“I just want you, baby. Just you and me watching the sunset on this beach is more than enough for me.” He threads his fingers through mine and tugs me further down the shore. When we get to a more secluded spot, he drapes his flannel on the sand and pulls me down between his spread thighs.
We sit in comfortable silence as the sun sinks below the horizon, casting us in shadows as time passes in a contented haze.
Being with Liam is easy—no pressure or expectation.
I feel more relaxed than I have in a long time, and that’s due in large part to the man who holds me like I’m something to be treasured.
I close my eyes and let out a long breath. He sweeps my hair to one side and peppers my neck with kisses. “What are you thinking about?” he murmurs.
“Nothing. I’m just… happy.”
His rough palm slides around my neck. He uses his thumb to tilt my head back and takes my mouth in a languid kiss. It’s barely a taste, not nearly enough. We have a million kisses to make up for.
“Could be happier,” I whisper against his lips.
“Yeah? Maybe I can help with that.”
His other hand slips under my T-shirt and across my ribs. My stomach flutters at the light brush of his fingertips against the underside of my breast.
“Fuck. We shouldn’t do this here. Somebody could catch us.” His voice is gruff and full of need.
“It’s dark. They won’t see anything.”
“Baby…”
I lift my skirt and reposition myself so I’m straddling his lap. His cock is already hard against my inner thigh. “Take me, Liam. I’m aching for you.”
“Fuck. You’re killing me, Goldie.”
I reach between us and find the button of his jeans, popping them open. He leans back on his hands, giving me enough room to tug them down his thighs, leaving him in just a pair of boxer briefs.
Liam’s fingers slide under the slit in my dress and gently glide up my inner thigh, while I free his hard length from its confines.
He tugs my panties to the side, and I shiver at the first brush of his fingers against my clit. He smirks. “You’re already soaked for me.”
Nobody touches me the way Liam does—delicately, reverently. For a large man, he can be surprisingly soft.
He kisses me, his tongue flicking against mine in a perfect rhythm. I moan into his mouth as my body tingles. Two of his fingers slip inside my pussy while his thumb finds my piercing, and I gasp at the sensation.
“I love the sounds you make when I’m touching you, my perfect little whore.”
The sheer dominance and possession in his voice is like a drug.
I should hate being degraded, but fuck if it doesn’t make my chest flutter with excitement.
I’m sick of platitudes, sick of being called everybody’s darling so they can keep me in their good graces.
I’ll take being Liam’s perfect little whore over fake niceties any day.
He brings his mouth to my taut nipple through the thin fabric of my dress.
I throw my head back in pleasure as he sucks it between his lips, all the while continuing to work me feverishly with his expert hands.
His fingers twist and scissor inside me, playing my body like an instrument, and it’s a masterclass in pleasure.
My hips rock against him of their own accord, and he grins against my neck. “Come for me, baby. Soak my hand.”
A few more precise strokes bring me right up to the cliff’s edge.
“Oh fuck… I’m gonna…”
He captures my mouth and swallows my sounds in the stillness of our sanctuary as I plunge headlong into bliss. My body convulses in his arms, and he strokes me slowly now, bringing me down from the high as delicately as we started.
He kisses my collarbone. “Now say thank you, baby.”
“Thank you, baby,” I murmur breathlessly.
He chuckles, and the sound reverberates through him and into me. “God, you’re so fucking perfect, you know that?”
“Shut up and fuck me, Liam.”
He grips my neck with his rough palm and brings his face less than an inch from mine. “It’s cute that you think you’re in control this time.”
“It sure looks like I am,” I say teasingly.
I wrap my hand around his rigid length and give a few hard strokes before positioning him at my entrance. His eyes flutter closed in pure ecstasy as I sink onto his length, inch by perfect inch, until I’m fully seated and gasping at the fullness.
I swivel my hips back and forth in a rocking motion, savoring the delicious stretch of his thick cock.
Liam’s hand around my throat tightens a fraction, and he captures my mouth, his tongue coaxing me to open for him.
My body complies, and he releases a satisfied groan as his tongue glides against mine.
“You feel too good. I’m not gonna last,” he says gruffly.
The breeze coming off the lake sends a shiver up my spine, and Liam moves swiftly, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me against his chest. His warmth envelopes me and I slow my movements, wanting to prolong this perfect moment.
His hand tangles in my hair and he tugs until I’m looking up at him. “This body was made for sin, and it’s a goddamn shame I can't strip you naked right now.”
My chest squeezes at his reverent words.
I’ve never felt more desired. My body has always been a non-issue with sexual partners in the past—neither worshipped nor criticized.
With Liam, I feel whole. He wants me not in spite of my body, but because it belongs to me, and he accepts me without condition or pretext.
I roll my hips against his lap, and he groans against my neck. “I’m close, Goldie.”
“Come inside me, Liam.”
His hand slides beneath my dress and finds my clit again, applying the perfect amount of added pressure.
My thighs are aching so bad I can barely move, so Liam takes over, fucking up into me from below as he grips my ass and holds me there.
I wrap my arms around his neck, clinging to him while my entire body trembles.
I come on a cry as another wave crashes against the shore.
Liam follows me over the edge, filling me with his release.
His arms wrap around me in a tight embrace, and we both still, breaths ragged and hearts beating wildly in time with one another. I close my eyes and rest my cheek on his head, letting the quiet moment seep into my bones.
He’s still inside me, but it feels too good, too right—like he’s a part of me and I don’t ever want to let him go.
Eventually, I muster enough energy to move off his lap, shifting so we’re in the same position we started in with Liam at my back, holding me like I’m the most precious thing in the world to him.
How do I return to my lonely life in Nashville? How do I sit in my sprawling penthouse apartment, looking out at the skyline, wishing he were there with me? Longing for his touch? How do I say goodbye when the time comes, and not regret it for the rest of my life?
The truth is simple: I can’t.
He’s turned my world upside down, and I’ll never be the same again, but I can’t ask him for the same in return. He has Aiden and a whole life in Oak Ridge. A life I might not fit into for much longer. The sobering thought leaves me with a dull ache in my chest.
Whatever happens next, I know I can’t waste another moment like this while we have them. I close my eyes and let him hold all of my pieces together, knowing that when the time comes to let go, I may never be whole again. Someday, Liam Murphy is going to break my heart, and I’m helpless to stop him.