Chapter 16
Sutton
You would’ve thought I had a disease.
Jagger kept his distance all afternoon. Though I was absolutely certain the same wasn’t true of his gaze.
Even with his dark sunglasses on, I could feel his eyes on me every time I went anywhere near him.
I might’ve made sure of it, shamelessly stripping down to my bikini and sunning myself while everyone else still wore their cover-ups.
It was less than an hour ride to Block Island. The captain slowed the boat as we entered the five-mile-per-hour zone that led to the marina.
“Which beach are we going to?” I asked Mom. She’d been here before, but it was my first time.
“Mansion Beach. It’s only about a ten-minute walk from where we’ll dock. But I’d like to stop on Water Street and do a little shopping first.”
Patrice lifted her sunglasses and smiled. “Did someone say shopping?”
Edmund chuckled. “I can give you kids directions if you don’t want to shop. We can meet you at the beach when the ladies are done. There aren’t that many stores, so we shouldn’t be more than an hour.”
“That sounds good to me,” Colette said.
“Me too.” Chloe shrugged. They both turned to me, waiting for an answer.
I had to spend time with Brendan and Colette because it was my mother’s birthday.
But if Mom wasn’t going to be with them for an hour, neither was I.
I pulled my cover-up out of my beach bag and shook my head.
“I’m going to go check out these cliffs I read about while I was on the train this morning. Mohegan Bluffs?”
“Oh, they’re beautiful,” Mom said. “But we’re on the north side of the island, and the bluffs are on the south side. It’s probably at least a five-mile walk, right, honey?”
Edmund nodded. “Well over an hour, I’d say. Each way.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Oh.”
“There’s a scooter rental shop right on Water Street, though,” Edmund said. “Have you ever driven a scooter?”
I shook my head. “No, but it can’t be that hard to learn.”
Brendan scoffed. “You crashed the electric bike when we were up in Maine a few years ago and refused to get back on. And that thing doesn’t go half as fast as a scooter.”
Colette frowned. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who wanted to pretend I’d never dated her husband.
Jagger’s jaw flexed. “I’m sure she’ll be fine. I can give you a lesson before you go.”
“But, honey…” Mom shook her head. “You really shouldn’t rent one of those things by yourself. You have no experience riding a motor bike, and you also get lost pretty easily.”
I nibbled my lip, looking at Jagger. “I actually don’t have much of a sense of direction. Any chance I can talk you into going with me?”
He shrugged. “Sure.”
Internally, I did a mental fist pump, while outside I did my best to look blasé.
Once the boat pulled into a slip, everyone grabbed their beach bags and piled off.
The beach was in the opposite direction of the shops, and I was happy to be rid of Brendan and Colette for a while.
Mom and Edmund and their friends went into a nautical-themed store, and then it was finally just Jagger and me.
He pointed to the right. “The scooter rental place is this way.”
“Thank you for coming with us today.”
“Your mom is great. Edmund is a lot more relaxed when she’s around.”
“Is that why you came? For my mom?”
Jagger looked over at me. “Did you really crash an eBike?”
“Just twice.”
“Then how about we rent one scooter, and I’ll drive.”
Hmmm… Let me see—picking rocks out of my knees after I crash, or wrapping my arms around this gorgeous man and getting to feel the abs I’ve been salivating over all day?
I nodded.
We arrived at the rental place, and I zoned in on a powder pink scooter. “Oooh. Can we get the pink one?”
His lip twitched. “Whatever you want.”
Fifteen minutes later, we both strapped on our helmets. Jagger straddled the pink scooter and released the kickstand before starting it. He pointed to the back. “Hop on.”
I climbed onto the back, excited but also a little nervous. “How fast does this thing go?”
“About ninety.”
My eyes bulged. “You’re joking, right?”
Jagger looked back with a grin. “Yes. I don’t know how fast it can go, but the speed limit on the island is twenty-five. I used to drive a motorcycle, so you can relax. You’re safe with me.”
My mind immediately conjured up a picture of Jagger on a Harley, rather than this petal pink scooter, and let me tell you, he looked really freaking hot. “Did you wear leather pants, by chance?”
“No, why?”
“No reason.”
He shook his head. “You ready to go?”
I nodded. “Any instructions for me back here?”
He pointed down. “Keep your feet on those pegs. There’s an exhaust pipe in the back that can get really hot, and you don’t want to burn your calf. Other than that, just wrap your arms around my waist and hold on.”
Jagger’s sculpted abs were hard against my hands. I was dying to run my fingers up and down, feeling the peaks and valleys, but I managed to control myself. It had been way too long since I’d touched a man. But even if it hadn’t been, I knew I still would’ve had the urge to touch this one all over.
We drove down a few side roads, and when we came to the corner that intersected with the main road, Jagger slowed to a stop. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m great.”
“All right. The ride is mostly on that road, so we’re going to go a little faster now.”
“Okay!”
I clenched my jaw and hung on for dear life for the first minute or two.
But as I got used to the ride, I relaxed and started to enjoy the wind blowing in my face and my hair whipping around.
It felt amazing—so exhilarating and freeing.
I had the impulse to lift my hands into the air like I was on a roller coaster, but there was no way in hell I was giving up a minute of holding on to Jagger’s abs.
Sadly, less than ten minutes after we started, we pulled into a parking lot and parked.
Jagger took off his helmet and shook his hair out. “What did you think?”
“I loved it! Do you still have that motorcycle?”
He chuckled and held a hand out to help me off the scooter. Between the intimacy of having my arms wrapped around him and now taking his hand, I felt closer to him. I could almost pretend we were on a date.
“Do you want to just see the beach from up here or go down?” he asked. “It’s a lot of stairs and a bit of a climb to get to the bottom. The stairs only take you to an overlook. You have to navigate rocks to get to the beach itself. But there’s a rope to hold on to.”
“Can we do both?”
He smiled. “I got the feeling you weren’t exactly in a rush to get back anyway.”
“You can say that again.”
Jagger and I walked to the railing and took in the scenery from the top. “It’s beautiful.”
We were both quiet while we took in the panoramic view of the coastline.
The cliffs rose sharply from the blue Atlantic, and the sound of waves crashing against the shore lulled me to relax.
At least I thought we were both looking at the view.
But when I turned, I found Jagger watching me and not the breathtaking ocean.
“What?” I smoothed my hair. “Am I a mess from the wind?”
He shook his head.
“Then what were you thinking just now?”
Jagger looked away. “Nothing.”
There was definitely something going through his mind, but I wasn’t going to push. Not when he’d salvaged what could’ve been a disaster of a day for me.
“Are you always this protective of people?” I asked.
Two lines formed between his brows. “What do you mean?”
“You only agreed to come today once you heard Brendan and Colette were coming. And then when Brendan chastised me about wanting to rent a scooter, you made sure I could rent one, safely.”
Jagger’s eyes dropped to my lips and lingered before meeting my eyes again.
A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth.
“I think you’re giving me too much credit.
My intentions weren’t as pure as you make them out to be.
” He put a hand on my back and guided me to start walking.
“Come on. It’s going to take a while to climb back up after we see the beach. ”
The descent to the bottom was a hundred-and-forty-one steps—I counted. But it was well worth the effort. After a pause, Jagger and I climbed the rest of the way down and walked along the beach to a quiet pile of rocks, where we sat. I looked around at the clay cliffs in awe.
“It’s gorgeous. It reminds me of La Jolla Beach in California.”
“I’ve never been,” Jagger said. “I actually haven’t been here in years, either.” He was quiet for a moment. “I think that scooter might be the first thing I’ve driven in a couple of years, too.”
“Really? You mean the first time you’ve driven something with two wheels?”
He shook his head. “I can’t remember the last time I drove a car.”
I hadn’t given it much thought, probably because his house had multiple garages, but there hadn’t been a car in his driveway when we pulled up. “How did you get out to Montauk? Did you take the train?”
He shook his head. “Sam drove. I didn’t want to waste the hours in the car not working.”
“I’m glad you came today then. It’s too beautiful not to visit more frequently.”
Jagger nodded, still looking at me. “You’re right. It is.”