3. Jasper
THREE
JASPER
We sat on the beach, bellies full of the dinner I’d gatecrashed, the light from our next door to each other’s houses illuminating the clear night. It was still warm and pretty early, so a few people walked along the water’s edge.
I leant my hands back on the cool sand and took a deep breath, trying not to think about what my view would be like when I moved home.
“What will you do when you move back, and you don’t live next door to someone who will cook your dinner every night?” Travis nudged his shoulder into mine, his touch sending excitement careering through my veins. It had been happening more and more lately—he touched me in some innocent way, and my body lit up like someone had set fireworks off. I had no idea why or when it started, but I now craved contact with him.
I huffed out a laugh at how messed up my life felt. Travis and work were the only things good about it, and I was giving up this pretty amazing, idyllic life we’d built for what? Something ‘normal’?
“What’s so funny?” Travis turned to look at me.
“Just thinking, I could get a wife to cook my dinner.”
He tutted. “It’s not the 1950s, Jas. Not sure you can get a wife to take care of you anymore.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
“Well, for now, I’ll be your 50’s housewife. Come inside, husband, and let’s watch a movie while I rub your feet.” I pushed myself up to stand, dusting the sand off me as Travis did the same. “I’m not watching The Princess Diaries though,” he announced.
“Spoilsport. It’s a classic.”
We walked back into the house just as the thunder rolled in the distance. “Are we meant to have a storm tonight?” I asked. Travis shook his head in reply.
“I probably should go check the boat. I’m sure I tied it off securely, but I don’t know if it’s storm secure.” He glanced up at the sky. Travis’ boat was his baby and had the brand new, very expensive submersible on the back that he’d not even got to try yet, so he’d panic all night if we didn’t check.
“Come on. I’ve only had one beer. I’ll drive us down there.”
He turned his head to me. “Are you sure? You don’t have to come.”
I quirked my brow. “Yes, I’m sure, and I do. I’m not sending you out in the dark on your own.”
He chuckled. “I’m a big boy.”
“I don’t want to hear you brag about your dick. Get in the car.”
We made our way back through the house while I grabbed the spare keys I kept at his place, and we climbed into my Jeep, making the ten-minute drive to the office.
By the time we arrived, the rain was coming down in sheets, soaking us to the skin the second we stepped outside.
“Shit,” Travis yelled as he wiped the water off his face. The spring line had worked loose from where the waves were knocking the boat against the dock. He pointed to it, and I nodded, following up the gangway and on board.
The rain had pooled on deck, and as I hurried to the back of the boat, I slipped, hitting the floor hard, my knees screaming from the impact when I landed on them. “Fuck,” I cried as lightning forked across the sky.
Travis turned, worry painting his expression as his gaze found me. “You okay?” he asked over the noise of the storm that had seemed to have amplified.
I nodded, and just like Poseidon himself was toying with us, a wave hit the boat, and it slammed against the dock, sending Travis stumbling forward, crashing into me. My nose pressed against his already rain-soaked joggers that clung to his firm body. To stop us both from tumbling over the side into the suddenly choppy ocean, Trav grabbed the rail that ran around the boat and I wrapped my arm around him, anchoring my hand on his hip.
He stumbled again, this time stepping even closer. My nose pressed into his groin, the outline of his cock against my cheek. I should have pulled back instantly, been mortified, but instead, I breathed in, letting out a groan when his scent filled my senses.
Neither of us spoke; neither of us moved. The boat rocked, pushing us back and forth, the tip of my nose now edging his shaft. It thickened slowly, filling, hardening. My hand tightened on his hip while he buried his fingers in my hair, holding me in place gently, yet never making me feel like he was keeping me there.
I had no idea how long we stayed like that. It was only when more lightning forked across the sky that we seemed to snap out of whatever the hell had just happened.
Travis wrapped his hand gently around my throat, tilting my head upwards.
Rain bounced off me, making eye contact impossible, so I let my lids flutter closed while his grip tightened. “I need you to get up, Jas. We need to get inside. This isn’t safe.” I wondered if he meant the storm or my position on my knees in front of him.
I nodded, and he released his hold on me, helping me stand just as another wave hit, but this time we were both ready for it.
“I’ll tie off this one, you check the others,” he instructed, and I appreciated him taking charge. Minutes later, we were back in front of the office while I struggled to unlock the door as the rain lashed my face.
“Got it,” I cried as I pushed down the handle and we stumbled inside. Travis hit the lights, and I went for towels. “Well, at least we have these,” I said as I handed him one. He pushed it to his face, wiping it dry before towelling off his hair. I held my towel by my side and watched him peel off his t-shirt.
“Have we got any dry clothes here?” he asked, and we both looked around.
“Erm, that would be a no.”
Travis wrapped the towel around his waist before turning his back on me and taking off his sweats, followed by his underwear, which all formed a soggy pile on the floor. He turned to look at me, shaking his head and going for another towel before coming to stand in front of me.
“Maybe you do need a wife to take care of you.” He pointed to my t-shirt. “Off.”
I took it off, shivering as the cool air hit my skin, making my nipples harden. Stepping closer, he reached around me, gently tugging the elastic band from my hair before bringing the towel to my head and drying it for me. My scalp tingled, a shiver rippling down my spine.
His eyes stayed locked on mine as he moved the towel down, drying my neck and then my shoulders. “Take your bottoms off,” he instructed, “before you freeze.”
“You want me to strip right here?”
He looked surprised. “I see you in your swimmers all the time.”
“But I’ll be naked.” God, I sounded like a child.
“You have a towel, and I promise not to jump you. I didn’t take you as a prude, Professor. I mean, the whole world seems obsessed with seeing you strip out of a wetsuit, so I didn’t think you’d be body-conscious.”
“I’m not,” I barked, and he recoiled. “Sorry. That was uncalled for.”
Travis stepped back and moved to the cupboards at the back of the room while I wrapped a towel around me and took off my clothes. When I looked up, he was standing there with two glasses and what looked like a bottle of rum.
“You’re making it so easy to make pirate jokes,” I murmured.
“Shush or I’ll make you walk the plank.”
“Why do you have rum stashed in the cupboard?”
He looked at me like I’d lost my mind. “In case there’s ever a storm, and we get stuck in here.” I rolled my eyes. “So, you don’t want any?”
Checking my towel to make sure it wasn’t going anywhere, I moved closer and took the now full glass. “To finding your happy place, Jas,” he toasted, but he sounded sad. I forced a smile, clinking mine off his, all the while wondering if I was leaving the only place I’d ever felt happy.