Chapter 13
VAL
It took me a few minutes to calm down. I was so on edge that the simple brush of my panties against bare skin was torture.
After gathering my wits, I headed to the back of the boat to make myself useful.
Someone had tried to swim and gotten a jellyfish burn.
Carter had everything under control. The crisis was already over, but I could see another one looming on the horizon.
The guy Carter had been eyeing dangerously when I arrived this morning was smiling at April in a flirty way.
Carter was glowering at him from the side.
“Come on, let’s go back to the front of the boat. The world is full of overprotective brothers or uncles,” I mumbled, tugging at Carter’s arm.
“And nieces and sisters who think they don’t need us,” he countered but relented.
When we returned to the front deck, I suddenly became nervous.
To give myself something to do, I sat on my chair, took out the sunscreen from my bag, and began rubbing it into my thighs.
I always liked to spend twenty minutes in the sun without any protection, to soak in vitamin D, but the sun was too strong now.
Carter sat at the edge of my lounge chair. “I’m sorry about the interruption.”
“You don’t have to be sorry.”
“Val, look at me,” he said softly. “Are you regretting what happened in there?”
“No, but I can’t believe I completely forgot we were not alone. I’m just ashamed.”
“Don’t be. It was my fault. I completely forgot about… anyone else on the boat, honestly. I never lose myself this way.”
I was now rubbing sunscreen on my arms and shoulders.
“I’ll rub it on your back,” he offered, but I hesitated. “I’m not going to try anything, Val. Not today. We’re not alone. We learned our lesson.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Well, I certainly did. But I’m not sure about you.”
“Are you doubting me?”
“Yes.” Feeling sassy, I added, “I really do.”
He laughed, looking at me incredulously. “Try me.”
He held out his palm for me to pour cream on it, and after I scrutinized him for a beat, I poured a generous amount, then turned my back to him.
He cheated, of course, and didn’t simply spread it on my back.
Instead, he slipped his fingers under the clasp around my neck, then along the sides of my boobs.
“Think that part will be in the sun?” I teased.
My voice was strained, and I was getting more aroused by the second.
Especially because having his hands on me made it impossible not to think about how those fingers had felt between my legs.
He’d set me on fire with his mouth, but those fingers… they’d been my undoing.
“Can’t be too careful.” After a few seconds, he confessed, “I can’t stop touching you. But that’s exactly what got us in trouble before.”
I turned to face him, afraid that he’d be too tempted to seduce me otherwise. I was turned on as hell again. I knew it, and by the sharp intake of breath when he looked down at my erect nipples, he knew it too.
“You were right.” His voice was a little gruff, as if he was fighting against letting out sexier sounds, like a growl, or a groan.
“About?”
“When I’m around you, I don’t seem to remember we’re not alone. But I will do my best. Want anything more to drink? I can make you a cocktail.”
“Sounds good.”
“Any particular requests?”
“Nah, I’ll drink anything.”
He returned a few minutes later with a Mai Tai. We lay side by side, soaking up the sun.
“Yum… this is delicious. And it’s not easy to make.”
“I worked as a bartender during college.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“I also had a gig as a fitness instructor. Anything to pay the bills. I had a scholarship, but it only covered a fraction of the costs.”
“Wow. Well, this is delicious. It was one of those cocktails I always asked Landon to make.” At his questioning glance, I added, “My parents owned a pub. Landon and I ran it after their car crash.”
“Must have been hard.”
“It was. But you know all about it.”
“It’s a bit easier for me. When the girls came to live with me, I was older than you were, and already had a successful career, so at least that aspect was stable. And my mother spent half her time in LA.”
“Well, Landon and I were running around like crazy, trying to keep the pub and the kids afloat. Sometimes it felt like one little mishap would bring on disaster.”
“But you were still dreaming about your fragrance business, weren’t you?”
“Yes. How did you know?”
“You said your mom gave you the bug, so I assumed you’ve had this dream since you were little.”
“Well, yes, I did. I used to make notes at night—ideas for fragrances, ways to promote it.”
I turned on one side, watching him curiously. I had a direct view of his bicep, and that mouthwatering chest. The cocktail made me feisty. I was imagining myself licking those abs, showing my appreciation for every single muscle. Shit, and I was accusing him of forgetting we’re not alone.
“What finally made you start it?”
I whipped my thoughts back into line. “After Landon and I graduated from a local community college, we sold the pub and got jobs. We were better off financially. I kept working on my business plan on the side, and then one evening, I told Landon I’d like to try, that I’d start small, with a cheap website and production in our garage. He supported me all the way.”
“He sounds like a great guy.”
“He is. I couldn’t have done any of this without him. We worked together at first, and then he went on to start his own business in the software industry. Eventually he sold the company and opened an investment fund. He was in San Jose for a few years, but now he’s back.”
“That makes you happy.”
“Very.” I grinned, tilting my head awkwardly to sip from my glass. “Life’s always better when your twin is around to tease and annoy.”
I wasn’t sure why I was telling him all these things.
Probably because he was truly listening.
With Carter, I could be myself, and I loved it.
I’d felt this on that first morning, when I hadn’t even known his name.
Also, he wasn’t judging me, which was a plus.
Some of our friends at the time had insisted that I was selfish to even think about opening a business with everything going on.
“Your turn,” I said.
“What do you want to know?”
“Confidential information, of course.” I’d said it jokingly, but Carter shifted on one side too, training those blazing eyes on me.
“That wouldn’t be fair, would it? You haven’t shared any secrets.”
“Yes, I did,” I assured him. “I don’t talk this much usually—not with people I’m not related to, anyway. So you can consider everything confidential information.”
Still pinning me with his gaze, he inched closer to the edge of his lounge chair. I was at the edge of my own, so our chests were almost touching. Our hips too. I could feel the heat radiating off his body like a physical force.
“I want to know something you haven’t shared with anyone, ever,” he whispered.
I scooted away, because being that close to him was dangerous. He smelled delicious, and the Mai Tai had been strong. Dangerous combo. Who knew what I might end up telling him?
“You, sir, are very demanding. And you haven’t earned the right to know any real classified info yet.”
“Oh, but I’ll earn it. You know I will.” Amusement danced in his eyes.
I hadn’t moved far enough to be out of his reach, and my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth as he drummed his fingers on top of my thigh as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
It felt as if he was promising me that one day soon we’d finish what we started in the captain’s cabin.
I didn’t need any words. The heat in his eyes and the barely-there restraint in his touch was more than enough.
“Somehow I doubt that,” I teased. His eyes flared, and he pushed himself up on one elbow. His nipple was almost level with my mouth. One lick wouldn’t hurt, right? Wow… my thoughts were out of control. I wasn’t touching my glass again.
I cleared my throat, attempting to sound serious. “Yep. So, tell me about yourself.”
“You’re demanding too.”
“It’s the cocktail’s fault, so basically, your fault, since you made it. But to prove I’m not entirely unfair, I’ve changed my demand from classified information to just… anything about you.”
He gave me a charming smile that did nothing to temper my imagination. I was beginning to think it wasn’t the cocktail’s fault. The man was just irresistible.
He went on to tell me more about his childhood, about his sister Hannah and his nieces.
The more he spoke, the more I realized we had a lot in common.
I was getting to know the real Carter, but I couldn’t help doubting myself.
What if I saw everything through rose-colored glasses?
I tended to do that, to trust too easily, romanticize everything.
I was hanging on to his every word. I’d come here today for a few hours of relaxation and fun (and maybe some flirting), but I was getting more than I’d bargained for.
Late in the afternoon, it was time to bring out April’s cake.
She’d refused to have any candles, explaining that those were for kids.
But apparently no one was too old for a food fight.
I instigated it, of course, though in my defense, it was by accident.
Sort of. Carter had teased me, and in return I smeared his cheek with frosting.
Things escalated quickly. My inner seven-year-old had come out to play.
“I can’t believe you’ve roped me into this,” he exclaimed.
“The soul never gets old. We just forget to be children. Another saying of my dad’s.”
I was surprised at how much fun Carter was having, as if he’d been waiting for an opportunity to unleash his inner kid too. We returned to the shore late in the evening, and I was absolutely not ready for the day to end.
“I’ll walk you to your car,” Carter offered once we were on land. April’s group was a few feet away, waiting for their parents to pick them up.
“No, it’s okay. I parked close.”
Carter studied me, and as I took the first step back, he said, “Val, have dinner with me.”
“Oh!”
“You sound surprised. In case it’s not obvious, I’m crazy attracted to you.”
I smiled. “Well, that part is obvious.” My heart rate picked up, and the frantic beats were making it hard to think straight.
“When are you free next week?”
“No clue, but I’ll check my calendar and let you know.”
“Monday at breakfast?” he pressed, his gaze hard and determined. I nodded. He inched closer, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear. The brush of his fingers on my earlobe felt intimate. I shuddered with my entire body. Carter didn’t miss my reaction, and his lips curled into a seductive smile.
“Have a great evening, Valentina.”