Chapter 11
Eleven
XANDER
Fifteen years ago
She’s a terrorist. A goddamn tempting nightmare.
Putting the thought of her bikini top coming undone while I’m rubbing this sunscreen into gorgeous, freckled skin into my head.
Do the freckles on her chest continue down to her tits?
A depraved thought on my account, but I’ve wondered about it for months.
Even her joke about our parents didn’t get my mind out of the gutter.
As soon as I’m sure every inch of her skin is covered, I jump right into the pool, letting myself sink to the bottom. The cool water serves as just what I need to shock my body back into normalcy. My dick was half hard just from my fucking imagination alone.
I release the air from my lungs in a slow exhale.
The bubbles race up to the surface while I remain at the bottom of the water.
I see the distorted image of Jade standing at the edge of the pool with her hands on her hips.
Only when my lungs burn with the need for oxygen do I push off the bottom of the pool to surface.
“Thank you.” Tiny flyaways dance around her face as the tropical breeze blows through the palm trees.
“For?”
“My back. And finally coming up from the bottom of the pool.”
“Awww, were you worried about me?” I flash her a grin.
“Generally would worry when someone jumps in the pool and doesn’t resurface after a few seconds,” she says dryly.
“I’m all good.” I do a little spin. “See? Just wanted to do some breath work.”
She lowers herself to the edge of the pool and dips her feet in. “The water feels so good compared to the air.” She cups some water and dribbles it over her legs, repeating the gesture on both her arms and then her chest.
I let my eyes linger on the droplets as they travel down the valley between her breasts.
Is it possible to be jealous of water? Because I am.
I’d give anything to run my tongue along the path the drops create.
She’s braced her palms on the ground behind her and dropped her head back, so I look my fill at her body while I have the chance.
My eyes land on a freckle I’ve never noticed before. It sits right below the crease where her thigh meets her hip. If she was mine, I’d kiss it every morning and every night.
She moves, and I somehow manage to drag my eyes and thoughts away from that tempting little freckle before she catches me staring. Her body slides gracefully into the water beside me.
“The water feels amazing. It’s like the perfect temperature.”
“I know.” I gesture to the tanning deck at the shallow end of the pool. “If you want, I can track down the umbrellas for the tanning ledge and drag one of the lounge chairs over there for you.”
“Really?” Her eye lashes are clumped together from the water, somehow making the green of her eyes even more vibrant. “I’m good for now, but I’ll definitely take you up on that offer later.”
I follow her as she swims to the infinity edge of the pool and looks out over the crashing waves of the ocean. “Do you surf down here?”
“Sometimes. The current down here can be really intense.” I point at where the waves crash onto shore. “See how they’re breaking on the beach? It doesn’t make for the best surfing. There are a few beaches along the west coast that are great, though.”
“How rude of Stephen to buy a house on a bad surf spot,” she jokes.
“Right?” I laugh.
“Is that why you didn’t bring a board?”
“No.” I gesture to the side of the house. “There’s a small shed with my surf gear on the side of the house.”
“Tell me you’re not thinking of going surfing today?” Dad’s voice comes from behind us. “I see at least three rip currents out there.”
I turn to look at him. “I was just telling Jade about it, not planning on going out today.”
“Good.”
Suzette comes out in a modest two-piece bathing suit and sarong with an oversized sun hat. “Jade, did you put sunscreen on?”
“Of course I did. I’m not looking to become a lobster the first day out here.”
“Good.”
Dad disappears around the corner of the house and brings out the umbrella I was telling Jade about earlier. I get out to help him with chairs. Once we finish, the butler Dad’s hired for the times we’re down here comes out to bring us all frozen cocktails.
I walk across the pool to Jade with a pina colada in one hand and a strawberry daiquiri in the other. “Which do you want?”
She grabs the daiquiri. “Thank you.” She takes a sip and her eyes widen. “That’s strong.”
“Yeah, he always makes them like that.”
“One might be my limit.” She takes another sip. “I’ll have to switch to virgins after this.”
“I can have him make you a different one if you want?”
“Oh no, this is delicious. I just wasn’t expecting the rum to hit so hard.”
I give her a smile and look back out to the beach.
The sun is beginning to lower in the sky, and with the few clouds lingering around, I know it’ll end up being a beautiful sunset.
Out of all my dad’s houses, this is one of my favorites.
The Park City house in Utah is also great, but this one beats it by its access to the beach.
Walking right out the door to the sand will always win in my opinion.
After dinner, I find Dad in his office. He’s using the couple hours while Suzette and Jade do some shopping to sneak a little work in. I know he promised Suzette that he wouldn’t work on vacation, but I’ve heard that before, and it never sticks.
Instead of bothering him I go back to my room to my guitar and go outside to sit by the fire pit and play.
I mess around with a new melody that’s been banging around in my mind the past couple of weeks.
My notebook is filled with music that I’ve written, both partially and just small sections.
The sky goes from a deep purple to completely dark as I lose myself to the music.
The sound of light footsteps on the tile draws my attention, and I pause my playing to look over and see Jade approaching.
She’s pulled on a hoodie to ward off the light chill of the night air, but her long legs are still on display from the little shorts she always wears.
Her hair is piled on top of her head in a messy bun.
The moonlight highlights the freckles over the bridge of her nose, made more prominent from her lack of makeup and sun exposure from earlier.
This is my favorite version of Jade.
“Sorry,” she pauses mid-step, “I didn’t mean to make you stop.”
“It’s okay.” I gesture to the empty chairs with the neck of my guitar. “Have a seat.”
“You don’t mind me watching you play?”
My lips lift in amusement. “Not at all. I thrive on having an audience.”
She smiles in return. “Does one person count as an audience?”
“You definitely count, Freckles.”
She scrunches her nose in cutest fucking way possible. “Freckles?”
“Yeah.” I strum a few chords. “I think it suits you.”
“Will you keep playing?” she asks quietly. “I love listening to you.”
I nod, fighting back the urge to smile again. Knowing she enjoys listening to me fills me with a profound sense of pride. It’s different than playing for my dad or a teacher at school. I thrive under her attention.
Her eyes roam from my face down to my hands and stay there, transfixed by the way they move over the fretboard and across the strings.
At one point she folds her legs onto the chair and rests her chin on her knees.
Her eyes close, but I know she’s not falling asleep, she’s feeling the music.
I watch transfixed as her red painted toes tap in time with the song.
Dad and Suzette come out to tell us goodnight, but we don’t move from where we are. I play until my fingers cramp. She yawns and stretches out her legs.
“Thanks for the impromptu concert.”
“Anytime.” I turn off the gas for the fire pit.
“Don’t you get tired playing that long?”
“Sometimes.” I stretch out my fingers. “I could have kept going now, but my fingers are cramping.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She reaches for my free hand and pulls it up in front of her.
“What are you doing?” I’m not opposed to her touching me or anything, but I am confused. She’s not the openly affectionate type.
“Massaging your hand.” Her eyes lift to mine.
I almost moan as she presses her thumb firmly along my palm, tracing the pad of my own thumb.
She focuses intently on what she’s doing, which gives me the opportunity to take in the details of her face up close.
Twenty-seven freckles dot the bridge of her nose and scatter over her cheeks.
The silvery light of the moon highlights the flecks of amber in her irises.
Just over the top left of her cupid’s bow lips is a tiny freckle.
My chest aches with the thought of just bending down and pressing my lips to hers.
I can’t help wondering what she’d do if I did.
Would she part her soft, pink lips for me?
Or would I have to coax her into it? Or would she slap me?
Regardless of how she’d respond, I feel like it would be worth it.
Just one tiny taste to satisfy my craving and curiosity.
The world stops when she looks up from my hand and meets my eyes. I swear it feels like a movie, the perfect time to shoot my shot. But then she drops my hand and takes a step back. The empty space between us brings me right back to reality. I can’t kiss my stepsister.
That was a crazy thought.
Obviously.
As we each go to our respective rooms, I let her use the bathroom first. It’s torture when I hear the shower turn on.
Mental images of her naked with suds running down her body enter my mind unbidden.
I try to ignore my hardening dick, but as much as I fight my thoughts, they just come back even harder.
I throw my arm over my eyes as I reach inside my shorts and under my boxers to grip myself.
The first pull is beautifully torturous.
Knowing how good she was at massaging my hand makes it so much easier to imagine my hand is actually hers.
I increase the intensity and bite down on my lip to keep from moaning as pressure builds in my stomach.
Mental images of Jade in her bikini fill my mind as precum leaks from my tip.
I picture myself slipping her top to the side and covering her nipple with my mouth. Would she moan? Whimper?
Blinding pleasure erupts from my balls, crashing through my body in waves as cum shoots from my dick. I stroke myself through it, prolonging every second of the feeling I can. The shower shuts off while I lay in bed, panting from the strongest orgasm I’ve ever had.