CHAPTER 16 #2
He forced his gaze away from her mouth and sat on the edge of his chaise lounge.
The moment he turned his back and felt her hands between his shoulder blades, he regretted asking her to apply the sunscreen.
Her touch was anything but clinical as she methodically smoothed her palms over his skin, using just the type of passes that stimulated nerves that shouldn’t be activated on a public beach.
He leaned sideways to grab a towel and toss it over his lap, catching a glimpse of her smirk when he glanced at her over his shoulder.
She raised a delicate brow. “Something wrong?”
Ian grunted. “Keep going, Penny. Trust me, you don’t want me to burn.”
But he was already burning. Again, he cursed the idiotic hotel check-in schedules that made guests wait hours before they got the room.
Because right now, he wanted nothing more than to get a room.
It had been too long since he’d had her, and he was anticipating quite the reunion in this island paradise, where people relaxed, let their inhibitions go, and the very atmosphere seemed to lull them into a languid sexual haze.
She settled behind him, and he swallowed back a tortured groan.
The bottle made a sucking noise, and he thought he heard her breath quicken as her slick hands glided around his middle to caress his abdomen and upward toward his pecs.
She pressed her breasts to his back and caught his nipples between her fingers.
Ian flinched. Vixen. She knew darned well what she was doing. That was one of the trigger points she’d discovered that first night.
“You’re playing with fire,” he warned.
He thought he heard a little chuckle.
“It’s hard enough to have to look at you in that micro bikini,” he grumbled.
Her burst of laughter was melodic, warming his insides.
She kneaded his shoulders. “This is not a micro bikini!”
“On you it is.”
“Is that a problem?”
“I’ll show you the problem.” He turned, grabbed her, and hauled her into his lap, earning a startled squeal. God, but she felt good. She smelled of coconut, her sun-warmed legs felt smooth across his, and Ian nuzzled her neck just below her earlobe, inhaling deeply.
“There is a rental place just beyond those blue umbrellas.” He touched the tip of his tongue to the shell of her ear, and he grinned as she sucked in a quick breath and squirmed right on his rigid shaft.
He gritted his teeth. He let his hands span her waist, then glide over her rounded hips before regretfully moving away. “See if you can get us a couple of Jet Skis so I can expend some of this pent-up energy before I lose my mind.”
Unable to stop himself, he swooped in to press a chaste kiss on her lips. Her response was anything but chaste. She swiped her tongue over his lower lip, biting gently.
“How long did they say?” she murmured against his mouth.
He knew what she was asking. “The room won’t be ready for at least two hours.”
“Ugh.”
“Go, Penny. Unless you want me to get up and give the entire beach a show.”
Her gaze dipped to the towel tenting in his lap, and a sly smile curved those lips.
With an over-the-shoulder grin, she jumped up, and Ian watched her walk off, her fabulous behind shifting with every step in those little neon-green bikini bottoms. The woman didn’t even have to try to be provocative. She just was.
When Claire disappeared behind the blue umbrellas, his gaze drifted across the turquoise water to the puffy white clouds on the horizon.
It was good to be back in the Caribbean.
His family went to the Cayman Islands often, but work had prevented him from attending the get-togethers, and his last visit had been over three years ago.
Not being at the office every day felt strange, but it also felt pretty damn good. He’d been working remotely since he’d left Fargo. The junior attorney he was training was taking direction well, and everything was running smoothly at the office.
Still, he needed to have a hand in everything.
Ian went about checking and answering his email, then finalized some documents.
His brother Adam had warned him that relaxing wouldn’t be easy.
He’d been right again, damn it. Adam’s ears must have been burning because not thirty seconds later, a text from him appeared.
Adam: How’s it going?
Ian: Good
Adam: You need anything?
Ian snorted. Another time, he would have responded with something snarky and crude.
Ian: Yeah, patience.
Adam: Stay the course. It’s worth it.
Ian: Say hi to Eve for me.
Adam: Will do. Don’t worry about work. All good at the office.
Ian: Thanks, man. Later.
Adam: Yup.
Claire reappeared, wearing a blue life vest with another in her hand, which she offered him.
“They only had one.”
“One?”
She pointed to two guys ten feet away, who laughed and bantered as they pushed a black-and-yellow Sea-Doo to swirling knee-deep water.
Ian took the vest. “I see. Well, then, we’ll make do.”
Claire groaned. “I never pegged you as a terrible pun guy.”
He shrugged and gave her a lopsided grin. “Spend more time with me. I’ll keep the surprises coming.”
She tipped her head, scrutinizing him from head to toe. “Make it worthwhile, and I just might do that.”
Well. Whatever had her in this flirty mood, he’d take it.
Ian adjusted his Ray-Bans, slipped the life jacket over his head, and tightened the straps. “Ready?”
She nodded, her green eyes bright with excitement. He took her hand, and together they made their way to the men who stood by the bobbing watercraft. He’d been on Jet Skis since he was a kid but let the rental guys go through their spiel in case Claire needed the brief instruction.
“Have fun,” one of them finally said with a friendly grin, winking at Claire, who waited with evident excitement.
Thanking the two men, Ian accepted the key, attached it to his wrist, straddled the Jet Ski, and squinted up at Claire. “Hop on.”
She settled behind him, and he tried to ignore the way her thighs gripped his hips and backside. Good thing they had the padded vests between them.
He pushed the power button and listened for the double chirp. The engine rumbled, the Sea-Doo glided forward, and a smile spread over Ian’s face.
Renting a Jet Ski and taking off into the waves had always been his thing to do by himself.
No one was ever allowed to accompany him on these jaunts, ever.
If they wanted to ride, they had to do it away from where he went.
This was his time to disconnect and clear his mind, with only sea, sky, and maybe a boat or two around him.
Today, he wanted nothing more than to take Claire with him, and for the life of him, he didn’t understand why.
Then again, he never could make any sense of his feelings and behavior when he was around her.
For now, he decided, he would shelve the analysis and just enjoy this weekend, which was starting out pretty damned good.
He picked up speed, and she molded herself to his back, her arms encircling his waist as sea spray whipped his face and the scent of salt air filled his nostrils.
“Faster!” she yelled above the roar of the motor.
Ian chuckled. Ah, yes. The woman rode a Harley. Of course, she’d want it fast. The thought of her wanting it fast sent a new rush through him.
“Hold on, Penny!”
She gripped his waist tighter. He gunned the accelerator, launching the Sea-Doo to skip and bump over the foaming deep-blue water. Claire’s peal of laughter echoed above the roar of the engine, reverberating through Ian’s entire body.
·
Claire
“Still no room?”
Claire emerged from the water, her feet sinking into the hot sand as she strode toward Ian, who lounged under an umbrella, frowning at something on his phone.
“No. They keep sending me updates, saying it will be another half hour.”
Claire shook her head. It was already 4:00 p.m.
After returning the Jet Skis, Ian found a quaint little place up the beach where they lunched on fresh conch salad made tableside.
It was so good that they repeated the order.
Throughout the meal, he’d proved good company, entertaining her with hilarious stories about his family and listening with genuine interest when she talked.
His good mood was contagious, and Claire was quickly realizing something she had sensed about Ian since day one: it was easy to be with him.
Even the silences felt comfortable, and she didn’t have to try too hard or pretend to be someone she wasn’t.
He seemed to like her exactly as she was, and this was something she’d never experienced with any man.
She took the towel he offered, bending and flipping her hair over her shoulder to dry it. She felt his gaze on her and looked up to see that mouth of his curved in a sexy smile.
“How was the water?” He had declined a swim, saying he needed to make some calls.
“Great!”
His aviators hid his beautiful eyes, making his jaw look even more chiseled, and she couldn’t decide which look was hotter, Ian with sunglasses or without. His chest and abs glistened from a fresh application of Coppertone. Her fingertips itched to touch all that rippled muscle.
She finished toweling off and slipped her white gauze coverup over her head. “I’m done lying in the sun, I think.”
He nodded, surging to his feet, swiping up his towel and slinging it over his shoulder. “What do you say we go sit at the bar and have a drink?”
“Sure.”
“That poolside one looked good. Ever had Switcha?” At her puzzled frown, he clarified, “It’s the national drink of the Bahamas. Nonalcoholic.”
“Can’t say I have.” She tipped her head and gave him a coy smile. “But I’m trisexual.”
He laughed as he took her hand. To her surprise, he brought it to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles.
“Next time we go on a Jet Ski, it will be one with a speed control override module and a performance impeller.”
She draped her towel around her neck. “And where would we find such an animal?”
He grinned. “My sister has one. It really is a beast.” He glanced toward the hotel. “When are the others arriving?”