17. Daisy
DAISY
The next morning, I woke up smiling at the ceiling. Glancing to my right, I sighed. Anthony was next to me in all his naked glory. Damn, the man looked as if he was posing in his sleep: one hand under his head, the other on the mattress, legs wide apart. Yum.
I couldn’t stop smiling. My God. Is this really happening?
Yes, yes, it was. The super-sexy man lying next to me was a testament to that.
Since Anthony wasn’t an early riser, I grabbed my dress and panties before slipping out of the room. In the hallways, I turned the panties inside out before sliding them on, followed by the dress, then tiptoed down the staircase.
The dark wood was splendid, but it creaked with every step. I went to the bathroom downstairs, refreshing myself at the sink.
What to do now? I was tempted to go back upstairs and find delicious ways to wake Anthony up. But the man had more than deserved his sleep, so instead, I decided to head outside.
Since it was eight in the morning, it was a little chilly but still very pleasant. I walked straight to the pool. This property was hands down the most luxurious residence I’d ever been in. I loved how quiet it was too .
I sat down at the edge of the pool, dunking my feet in the water. Oh my God! It was heated. This was luxury at its best, and I loved it. I wasn’t worried anymore about having an office romance and how it could backfire. Hell no. This was exactly what I wanted to do.
“Hello there.” Anthony’s voice came from behind me.
I startled so bad that I tilted forward dangerously. My ass nearly slid off the edge of the pool—but then a strong arm came around my waist, settling me.
“Careful there. Wouldn’t want you to fall in,” he said into my ear. “Actually, you know what? You should fall into the pool. What was I thinking, stopping you? I could have saved you.”
“Aha! Saving me from getting my dress drenched?”
“I have a solution for that. You can take it off.”
I grinned. “I’ll keep that in mind for later.”
He let go of my waist and sat next to me, dunking his feet into the water too. He was wearing shorts and a T-shirt.
“Morning,” he whispered.
“You’re up early.”
“True. Don’t know what woke me.”
“Hopefully not me. I tried to be super quiet… even though I had so many ideas about how to wake you.”
He tilted closer. “Such as?”
I licked my lips, putting a hand on his chest.
“All this,” I said, running my hand down over his abs, “was on display.” Pulling back a bit, I glanced at his shorts. “That was on display too. Looked mighty delicious. It was all so tempting, but I was a good girl. I tried very hard to be a good girl.”
“Next time don’t. Be as bad as you want, Daisy.”
Next time? He was talking as if this was going to be a regular thing. And I didn’t mind at all.
“What do you want to do today?” he asked.
“No clue. What do you usually do on weekends? Surprise me. You’re quite good at it. ”
Anthony grinned. His entire face changed, as if he couldn’t possibly hold back his joy any longer.
“Depends. Some weekends I go fishing with my grandfathers. Actually, that would be a great idea.”
I wrinkled my nose. “You want us to go fishing?”
“No, but my grandfathers have a fantastic boat docked on the bayou. They aren’t fishing this weekend. We can use it.”
“I haven’t been on the bayou.”
“It would be my pleasure to show you around.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
“Around the bayou… or around your cock?” I challenged. I was in such a good mood.
Anthony exploded with laughter, throwing his head back. I covered my mouth with my hand. “I’m usually not so shameless in the morning, but I think you’re rubbing off on me,” I informed him.
“That’s definitely on the table, but I can actually show you around the bayou. We should get going, though, because it’s a two-hour drive to the boat.”
“Sounds great. I’m in.”
He smiled at me. “You surprise me more every day, do you know that?”
“How come?”
“Because you’re more like me than I thought. Spontaneous, up for fun, easygoing.”
“Yep. That’s me to a T.”
“Is my dress appropriate?” I asked once we were in the car.
Anthony glanced at me, tilting his head. “Absolutely not, but who cares? It’s just going to be you and me on the boat.” With a wink, he added, “You might not have the dress on the whole time.”
“Your mind is definitely in the gutter today, isn’t it? ”
He cleared his throat, reaching for my hand. The second I placed my palm on his, we clasped our fingers. “It’s been there ever since the first time we met.”
I swallowed hard. “You always go from zero to a hundred, huh?”
“Always.”
We drove into the city, bought breakfast and coffee to go, and ate on the away while I asked him all sorts of questions about the bayou. I imagined it like a narrower version of the Mississippi River.
It turned out I was wrong. It was smaller, of course, but it also had a completely different feel. The smell of swamp hit me the second we stepped out of the car.
Anthony narrowed his eyes at me. “Should’ve bought you a hat and some sunscreen.”
“Same goes for you.”
“I don’t burn easily.”
“How do you know I do?”
“I don’t. I just want to take precautions.
” He touched my cheek with the back of his fingers as he pinned me against the car.
I liked that he was protective, even with something as simple as the sun.
“But the boat’s got enough shade.” He kissed one corner of my mouth, then the other one as I melted beneath his touch.
“And I’ll make sure to keep you there so you don’t get burned. ”
I shivered despite the fact that it was significantly hotter out here than in the city.
“Fuck,” he whispered.
“What?”
He sucked in a breath. “Nothing. I’ve been very good at not kissing you until now. Thought we might never leave the house if I did.”
I didn’t say anything because I felt the same way.
“I’m starting to think that holding back will always be an issue. ”
How on earth were we going to manage things at the office? But I didn’t want to bring that up right now. I felt so immensely happy just being here with Anthony, and I didn’t want to sour the mood.
“Come on, let’s get on the boat.”
I’d imagined a decent-sized boat with some shade, but this was huge.
“This is amazing,” I gushed. “Much more than the kind of fishing boat I was picturing. And you have a license to drive it?”
“Of course.”
I raised my brows. “I’m impressed!”
It had two levels. The captain’s cabin was on the upper deck. The lower one was a bona fide apartment, with two bunk beds, a living room, and a small kitchen.
“Your grandfathers spend a lot of time here, huh?”
He nodded. “They boat two, sometimes three times a week.”
“And they won’t mind that we’re using it?”
Anthony curved an arm around my waist from behind before whirling me around to face him. “Daisy, just trust me to take care of everything. All you need to do today is relax and enjoy.”
I licked my lips, smiling. “I can definitely do that. Relax and ogle you to my heart’s content. Yeah, those are the only things on my to-do list for today.”
I had a hunch it was going to be on my to-do list for the upcoming week too.
He grinned. “Fantastic. Then I’ll get us moving.”
“Can I come up with you to the captain’s cabin?”
“I was going to suggest exactly that.”
He took my hand, and we headed into the cabin.
I had no idea Anthony could get even sexier, but watching him grab that steering wheel was doing things to me. I could even imagine him wearing a captain’s uniform—not that I’d ever seen one except in movies.
“What are you thinking about? ”
Oops. He’d noticed me watching. I decided to be completely honest.
“Just imagining you in a captain’s uniform. Your hotness score would be right here.” I held my hand as far as possible above my head. “Then again, maybe it’s for the best that you don’t have one. I already have trouble not jumping your bones as it is, but a man in uniform…”
He growled and let go of the steering wheel, coming over to me and pushing me against the window. “No man in uniform, Daisy.”
“What?” I asked, confused.
“I can’t stand hearing you talk about other men.” He sounded intense but surprised at the same time, almost like he couldn’t believe his own words.
Hmmm, was this sexy man showing a tinge of jealousy?
“I was just messing around,” I teased. “I didn’t?—”
Then his mouth was on mine. The kiss was possessive, and holy shit, I enjoyed it more than ever. He pressed his lips to mine hard . His tongue was exploring me in such a dirty manner that I instantly got aroused.
Pulling back, he rested his forehead in the crook of my neck. I felt his hot breath on my clavicle. I obviously wasn’t the only one turned on.
He straightened up, and I figured he was preparing to jump me again, but instead he took a step back.
“The things you do to me, Daisy.”
I could say the same thing.
He grabbed the steering wheel again, and I decided not to distract him any longer. I was content ogling him in silence.
“Do your grandmothers ever come out here?” I asked.
“No. They haven’t been out on the bayou in decades. Mom isn’t a fan either. Dad sometimes comes here.”
“I like it. It’s so relaxing and quiet.”
Anthony flashed a half smile. “That’s because I know the good spots. Pays to chaperone the grandfathers. I learn all their secrets.”
I started to laugh. “You talk as if they need adult supervision all the time.”
“I think they have too much time on their hands, honestly. And they come up with dangerous ideas, like fishing next to gators.”
I stilled. “There are alligators here?”
“Of course. You didn’t know that?”
“I always thought it was a running joke—especially because companies offer alligator boat tours.” My eyes widened. “Oh my God. That’s no joke, is it?”
He shook his head with a chuckle. “No. If you want to see any, just say the word. Thanks to the grandfathers, I know exactly where they like to hang out.”
“No, no, no! I’ll be happy if I don’t see a gator on our entire trip.”
Suddenly, the vast expanse of water didn’t seem so cozy anymore.