Chapter 4
LANCE
There is a world of difference between Alina and me.
Age. Size. The paths we chose for life. She appreciates small businesses, like this coffee shop she talks of, and that makes the reason she dislikes me clear.
My family business grew by feeding off those small places, closing them so they would become something bigger. Better. More lucrative.
And I understand she might dislike it. She’s young, and she doesn’t know the business side of it. And that doesn’t change a thing.
I still can’t take my eyes off her. And I still can’t stop thinking of her. Of how soft her skin felt beneath my fingers and the smell of her when I stood so close to her body. She’s sweet and bright, and I want to see more. I want to learn everything there is to know about her.
This is new to me. Being obsessed, unable to think of anything else. The small moments I managed with her were brief insights into her passionate personality, and I can’t help but hope I had more time.
Alina sits in a lounging chair under a tree, the soft breeze ruffling her hair.
A long, flowy dress covers her body, and she has a computer on her lap.
Sitting at the beach with a computer. Color me intrigued.
I narrow my eyes at her from my spot in the kitchen, but it’s impossible to see what she’s doing.
Genevieve is swimming, as expected, and though I would love to sit down with my daughter and ask her everything about Alina, I know that would come out as creepy.
A forty-five-year-old man asking about her twenty-one-year-old friend? Sound the alarm.
This is so fucking wrong. It’s also unstoppable.
I need to cool off. Stepping out of the house, I tug my shirt off and leave it over a chair before running to the ocean.
The cool water licks at my shins, and I dive headfirst into a wave.
Genevieve comes up to make small talk with me, then she swims off.
We both know she likes the ocean better than she likes me.
A small part of my brain hopes Alina comes in, even when I would get the hardest erection upon seeing her tits wet with the salty water.
I swim for some ten minutes, then come up to check on her.
Alina’s not in her chair any longer. I stretch my neck, but she’s nowhere on the beach, neither in the ocean.
Genevieve swims by herself, and as I narrow my eyes to search for her friend, I see a silhouette crossing the kitchen window.
She’s in the house. My heart skips a beat, seeing a chance to get close to her.
I leave the sea and grab a towel to dry myself off. Good thing I bought these towels specifically for being extra-large. It takes me no time at all to get ready to enter the house.
Alina sits on the kitchen island, computer in front of her, a glass of water in her right hand. She shoots her gaze up at me when I enter, and her cheeks go pink, then red as she gives me a once-over.
My chest fills with pride. Does she like what she sees? I stand there for a moment too long, then clear my throat and go for a glass of water, too. I press my hips to the counter to hide the erection bulging my trunks. The fabric won’t conceal enough of it.
“Why aren’t you in the water?” I ask, offhandedly, casually, without looking at her.
“I think I enjoy looking more,” she says, her voice sultry. A shiver of desire races down my spine at what she means. Alina clears her throat. “I mean, the ocean. I enjoy looking at it more than diving.”
Does she know how faint my restraints are? “You’re not looking either,” I say, half-turning to her. Hopefully still hiding my erection.
She half-turns, too, as if on instinct, but she keeps her head low. “I just needed a second.”
“For what?” I ask. She says nothing, her shoulders bunching in. I have to give her space. Shit, I’m coming in too hot. I chug the water and take a couple of deep breaths, leaving the counter to sit next to her. “Are you studying? In the middle of your vacation?”
Her lips tug to one side, but she still doesn’t meet my eyes. “It’s a side project. Nothing important.”
“Tell me about it.”
Her gaze shoots up to mine. An eyebrow arches in doubt. “You’re interested?”
“Of course.” Because anything she does interests me. “What is it about?”
She chews on the inside of her cheek for a moment, then turns to her computer. “I enjoy testing company’s websites. You know, how safe they are. I try to break into them, test their weakness, then I get in contact with them and let them know how they can improve their security.”
My brows must shoot to my hairline. “You kidding me.”
“No.” She chuckles. “Very nerdy, isn’t it?”
“Very useful. Brilliant, even.” I gape at her for a moment. Shit, this woman is brilliant. Beautiful, bright, and so freaking smart. “Do mine.”
She gives me a small smile. “You sure? You might find out something you don’t like.”
“I’m still interested.” And she does. In five minutes flat, she’s past our security and inside the system. She shows me how she could take the site and the database for ransom, how many hackers do that, and how she could delete the entirety of our backups. “Holy shit.”
She chuckles. “I told you you could see something you didn’t like. We always think we’re safe, but we’re never safe enough. Not from the people with the right knowledge.”
“So, if someone wanted to destroy my company?”
“They could, with a few clicks.” And she shrugs. “Don’t worry. I won’t. I just do this to show people how open they are to attacks. God, there are so many people that still use their standard passwords. One, two, three, four. Things of the sort.”
“So, you are a hacker.”
She laughs. “Technically, I would say so. I have the knowledge.”
Alina just got ten times more impressive. My cock twitches in my trunks and swells into hardness again. Fuck, I’m having a hard-on for her brains. She gapes back at me with that soft smile, cocking her head, wondering why I’m not saying anything else.
I’m fighting myself. Struggling with my restraints.
And I will not win.
Reaching out a hand, I rope my fingers through her hair and tug her closer. She lets me, wonder crossing her face, and I pull her so my lips brush hers. Alina breathes out in surprise, and her hands come up, flattening on my naked chest. I expect her to shove me off, to scream.
She doesn’t.
Her eyelids flutter shut, and she parts her lips.
I close the distance between us and kiss her.
Her lips are plume-soft, and I slide mine over hers, testing, teasing.
She presses against me, kissing me harder.
Alina releases her breath, and her hand tentatively climbs my neck to curl around the nape.
She parts her lips. With my tongue, I tease at the seam until her tongue meets mine, and pleasure shoots straight to my cock.
Her sweetness explodes in my taste buds, her scent filling my lungs.
I drink her in, exploring every nook and cranny of her small mouth.
Her tongue moves in time with mine, and this feels so familiar.
So easy. Like we were meant to be doing this.
Alina’s hands are coals, burning into my skin.
I hold her closer, as close as the position allows me.
Her soft body melts into mine, and she moans softly against the kiss. God, if she knew how much I want her.
I break the kiss to let her breathe. She smiles at me, and that makes my heart thunder. I study her features up close, committing the sight of her to memory, the bright eyes, the flustered cheeks, her hair in a mess, twisted in my hand.
“You’re so beautiful,” I murmur against her abused lips.
Her smile widens. “And I haven’t even had Marie’s coffee today.” She chuckles.
I brush a thumb down her jaw, tilting her chin up. “You don’t have to worry about Marie’s Café.” I looked it up, of course. Anything concerning her, I looked it up. “You’ll have the mall in its place, and there will be other coffee shops in there.”
And that was the wrong thing to say. Shock crosses her eyes, and she pulls back, shoving me away this time. A crease appears between her brows as she slips down the stool.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, reaching out to touch her.
She dodges my hands. The sight is a knife to my chest. “Nothing. I mean.” She laughs, tucking a strand of hair behind an ear.
“Gen could see us. She wouldn’t like it.
You’re so much older than I am. What would she think?
” Another embarrassed laugh and she closes her laptop before walking out of the kitchen and onto the beach.
I gape at her back as she ditches the dress and dives into the sea.
She meets up with Gen and the two strike up a conversation.
And then there’s me, sitting here, staring. Shit. What have I done?