by L. L. Ash
He gave a shy little shrug of his shoulders and busied himself with popping the cork.
“It’s cheap, but it’ll do the job,” he murmured, pouring the wine into the mugs I’d brought from the suite.
With two cups filled with alcohol, we settled back against the big blanket I had spread out over the sand and our conversation lulled.
“You know—”
“Do you—”
We laughed, both talking at the same time.
“Do you want to eat?” I asked with a grin on my face.
“Yeah,” he agreed, leaning forward to settle his mug into the sand so it wouldn’t tip.
I did the same and dug into the grocery sack that worked as my picnic basket.
“I just got a few things from the café in the hotel,” I told him, pulling out sandwiches and some sides. “Hope that's ok.”
“That’s great,” he told me, smiling sweetly at me. “You’ll never hear me complaining about getting fed.”
I laughed again and handed him a majority of the food.
“Man, you know the way to a guy’s heart,” he said, laying on his stomach before tossing a chip in his mouth.
“Guys are easy,” I answered, which had him cracking up.
“Yeah, pretty easy,” he agreed with a flirty wink.
“That’s not what I meant!” I laughed.
“But true nonetheless.”
Nerves pricked at my chest, but it was the good kind. It felt nice to be nervous from excitement instead of the usual dread that consumed me every time Hunter and I talked. I never knew if he was being serious or sarcastic, and I never knew if he would be nice, or the asshole. Kai was all nice, and I loved that about him. I really appreciated that he didn’t seem to play games, and that he was relatively easy to read.
“Have you been to the luau that’s all popular? That big show?”
He gave a little laugh.
“Oh yeah. My big sister used to hula for it when she was in college. I tried my hand at fire dancing, too.”
“What?” I practically shrieked.
He shrugged.
“They’re easy jobs to get when you look properly ‘Hawaiian’, and it pays well. My Mom encouraged all of us to do it in high school and through college to pay the bills.”
“Can you still do it?” I asked, eyes wide in anticipation.
“A little,” he admitted, “but it’s been a while.”
“I just have to say,” I told him with a blush breaking across my face, “that’s so hot.”
“Yeah?” he questioned, moving a little closer with a smirk on his mouth.
I could see the situation for what it was. He was attracted to me, and I was attracted to him. I was free and single, so why not just be a little irresponsible for once in my life and do what I wanted to do, instead of what I should do?
I didn’t wait for the whole 90/10 rule. I dove my face forward to meet his and was engulfed in a long, satisfying kiss.
“You drive me crazy,” he breathed against my lips.
Yeah, the feeling was mutual.
Food forgotten, I crawled closer to him, straddling his hips as we macked, eating each other’s faces to fulfill our appetites.
It felt good, easy, warm, and safe. Kai was like a teddy bear on a dark, stormy night, and after everything that had happened the last couple days, I sucked it in like fresh air.
The weirdest part though? There wasn’t much humping going on, even though I was literally sitting on his crotch. He was intent on the kiss, and so was I. His fingers were sliding into my hair and fisting it as his tongue swept across mine. Hot and wet, but almost innocent, like my very first kiss.
With a lick of my lips and the faintest jerk of his hips, Kai pulled away from me and we gasped for a minute before opening our eyes.
“I gotta ask,” he said, voice hoarse with passion. “How far do you want to take this? ‘Cause my balls feel like they’re going to explode right now.”
I couldn’t help it.
I burst into laughter, dropping my head to his firm chest as we both rattled in amusement.
“Oh my God...” I groaned, rolling off of him because I didn’t think I wanted to go much further than kisses.
“Sorry,” Kai said, squirming a little and adjusting himself as his cheeks blushed to a rosy gold.
“I’m not,” I told him, which made him smile wider.
My stomach picked that moment to rumble, and we laughed all over again.
“Let’s eat,” Kai said, reaching for a sandwich, and dropping a kiss to my lips in the process because he was so close.
“Deal,” I agreed, going for my own sandwich with the taste of him on my lips.
We ate, and then the conversation flowed. Munching between comments, I learned a lot about him and what his life on the island had been like growing up. It was fascinating that we grew up so similarly, but yet so different.
“So, wait,” he said, brushing his hands together to rid himself of crumbs. “You got back for summer break and your dad just drops the re-married bomb?”
I nodded.
“To my ex’s mom, no less!”
He started nodding and making noises of understanding.
“Ahh, I get it. That makes so much more sense now,” Kai said. “That guy, Hunter, right? He was pissing a circle around you, I swear! I had a hard time believing he was your brother.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Oh yes. He’s so quick to cockblock me, then go traipse off and get his own sucked off. He’s annoying.”
And he saved my life.
Kai just laughed and settled back onto the blanket, looking up at the sort of hazy, sort of starry sky.
“That must be one uncomfortable situation, huh?” he muttered, sounding perfectly relaxed while talk of Hunter made my back go ridgid.
“It is,” I agreed. “But Dad’s in love, so I’ll tolerate him on holidays. That’s about it.”
He looked over at me with a lazy grin on his face.
“Who knows, maybe when you get back home, you’ll get back together.”
“Ew,” I tried, but he just gave me a wink.
“Unless you want to try a long distance thing,” he offered jokingly.
“Not sure when I’ll ever get back here, so that probably wouldn’t work out,” I admitted, letting him down nice and gentle, although I was pretty sure he wasn’t serious.
Like, eighty-eight percent sure.
“So, if we’re on borrowed time,” he said after taking a sip from his wine-filled mug, “does that mean I get to kiss you again? Since it’s not going anywhere?”
I smiled, but I felt a little sad, too. Kai would be the perfect boyfriend, but I had to leave him when I left Hawaii.
“Of course,” I agreed while he moved closer. “I’m never going to say no to kisses from a talented mouth.”
He seemed pleased at the half-assed complement, and kissed me again until we were panting and I was throbbing between the legs.
“When do you go home?” he asked breathlessly.
“Day after tomorrow,” I whispered, trying to get my breath back.
“Come see me again, if you can,” he said, then sat up.
That was it? He was leaving?
“We didn’t even get to dessert,” I practically wined, but he just got to his feet and grinned down at me.
“I’ve gotta get home and empty these balls or I’m-a explode all over my pants. Neither of us wants that. Let me help clean up first, though.”
I choked out a laugh, then helped scoop all my things back into the grocery bag and fold up the picnic blanket I’d stolen from the suite.
“I’m glad you called,” Kai said, landing one last, savory kiss on my lips before he backed up. “You have my number. Use it.”
Even when I went home?
Kai walked off while I went the opposite way, the sun was long sunk and the night headed toward the early hours of dawn.
- 22 -
Ivory
&
nbsp; “Have fun!” I called after Dad and Penelope as they went out the door to go lounge on the beach.
They hadn’t spent much time on the sand, and I was glad to see them somewhere outside their bedroom.
Gag.
Hunter was gone before I even woke up, and I tried not to think about that. I tried not to think about him.
I lounged around all morning, reading and snacking, but once I got a kink in my neck from laying too long on the uncomfortable sofa, I put some makeup on and went down to the lobby to get myself another massage.
When the woman told me just how much it cost, I almost had a little heart attack, but I really wanted to see Jamie, and I really wanted his magic fingers to work out the crick in my neck.
“I’d like to see Jamie,” I told her, and she gave me a knowing look.
“He’s booked up for the day, I’m afraid.”
“Are you sure?” I asked, trying not to whine.
“Positive. I can let you know if he has a cancelation, but that doesn’t happen often. I could get you set up with someone else, if you’d like.”
Frowning, I shook my head.
“No, that’s alr—”
“Ivory?”
I turned and saw Jamie coming out of the lobby bathroom.
“Hey,” I said, giving him an awkward wave. “I wanted a little more of those magic fingers, but it looks like they’re popular.”
He smirked.
“Let me see,” he said, looking at the computer behind the desk.
The girl looked at him like he was a god, and honestly, I could understand why. He was even more handsome today, even in scrubs. The rough blanket of dark hair on his chin just made him look more rugged. It even looked like he hadn’t bothered combing his hair after rolling out of bed. It was a good look on him.
“Ah, here we go,” he said, and with three click of the mouse, he looked triumphant. “I’ve got a whole two hours from ten ’til noon.”
The receptionist looked at him with a smile warping her annoyance.
“You can’t just move things around like that. Jenny will hate you.”
“Jenny’s been asking for more clients. These two haven’t asked for me specifically, so they won’t give a shit. Ivory here is a return client. I always have to make room for the regulars.”
With that, he winked at me and wandered off back to the spa.
“A full body massage?” she asked me, looking more than irritated that I’d gotten my way. “And an abhyanga oil treatment?”
What was that?
“That’s what Jamie put in,” she added with a shrug. “And a ‘family’ discount.”
She legit pouted.
“That’s right. Third cousin, twice removed,” I agreed, happy to get a discount.
She glared at me, not believing me in the slightest.
I handed over my credit card, thinking of how many groceries it could have bought next quarter, but I didn’t care.
#worthit
I was still an hour and a half away from my appointment, so I went ahead and strolled into the café for an egg white omelet that I could savor over the next half dozen chapters of my book.
Yeah, I totally showed up ten minutes early for my appointment, and the grouchy receptionist had me sit in the corner until Jamie was ready for me. It was two minutes to ten when he poked his head out of the spa door and waved me in with a grin on his face. I totally hopped and skipped over. His grin was intoxicating and sexy and it promised so many things that I couldn’t even begin to decode. Older men were an enigma to me, and he was at least five or six years older than me. I mean, he had a career.
“You actually came,” he said with a happy little smile as he led me through the endless turns around the spa until we got to another clean, warm room that looked almost identical to the first one I’d seen.
“You kidding? I woke up with a creak in my neck and all I could think of were those hands of yours.”
“Just for the sore neck?” he asked, suggesting something.
“You do anything else besides massages in here?” I asked, lifting an eyebrow that made him grin like a madman.
“No. But a guy can always dream of a happy ending.”
Oh God!
“Happy ending?” I choked, which had him winking at me before going to the counter to mess with some things.
“Go ahead and get changed back there. Wrap up in the sheet, and I’ll be back in a minute.”
He made it to the door before turning back to me.
“And no panties this time.”
I blushed from head to toe as he slipped out of the room.
It didn’t take me long to get naked, and I almost dared to go lay on the bed without the sheet, but I didn’t want to make assumptions, even though he had kind of suggested some stuff.
Some stuff that I was more than happy to receive.
Flicking the sheet over me, I covered my ass, then put my hands on the headrest and my chin on my hands so I could see when he came back in
It didn’t take long, though.
“Ready?” he asked, talking through the cracked door.
I nodded.
“Good. Now, where’s that crick?”
I pointed to the spot just between my nape and shoulder blade, and he touched it briefly, trying it out, then moved away.
“Looks like someone’s stressing out about something,” he murmured. “That’s a stress cramp.”
“Really?” I asked, poking at the sore spot again.
“Stop it.” He swatted my hand away, and I just chuckled, then settled my head down again on my hands.
“Alright, I’m going to ask this once, because I’m not going to just spring it on you.” Jamie crouched and got to my height so he could look me in the eyes. “Are you expecting a straight up, on-the-line massage, or are you looking for something a little...more?”
“More?” I asked.
“More full body.”
His face was completely even and unaffected, but my heart was thumping in anticipation.
“I would expect you to be completely...thorough,” I said, speaking in code right back.
A slow, sexy smile spread across his mouth before he went back to the counter.
“If you change your mind...” he started, but I didn’t let him finish.
“I won’t,” I promised, which got me a low, rumbly chuckle as a reward.
“But if you do,” he went on, “just say so. I know there’s a power play here, and I’m not into being the sadist.”
There was so much in that sentence for me to unpack and digest, holy shit.
“Let’s start with that knot, huh?” he said, moving toward me again until his hands were slicked and on my back.
So. Fucking. Good.
I couldn’t help the low, guttural moan that slipped past my throat the moment he started digging knuckles into the sore spot on my neck and back for a full couple of minutes.
“How’s that?” he whispered, fingers gliding down my spine now.
“So good,” I moaned again, half asleep on the table from how good it really did feel.
“Good,” he mumbled back, then went back to his countertop.
I watched his back with hooded eyes and smiled.
He had a nice ass.
And I bet he had super nice abs, too. Yum.
“You ok there?” he asked when he saw me. “You look stoned.”
I just laughed as he smiled.
“Just drunk on your touch,” I admitted.
“Mmm, give me ten minutes and you’re going to think this is just a buzz.”
Promises like that had me tingling all over my body, and he didn’t even have his hands on me.
He gathered my hair and tossed it over my shoulder before pouring something just this side of hot onto my skin.
I jerked, surprised at the temperature, but then his hands were there, leaving long, slow strokes up and down my back.
I totally had a Homer Simpson moment, drool and all.
<
br /> Jamie chuckled at the sounds of pleasure gurgling out of my mouth, but he’d earned every one of them.
Magic hands weren’t enough. His hands were better than magic. They were miracle hands.
“I’m not sure what’s hotter,” I lulled. “Your body or those Goddamn hands.”
“Why choose?” he countered.
“You getting nakey too?” I chirped.
“Want me to?”
Did I?
HELLS YES.
“Yes please,” I managed politely, but he just chuckled at me.
Stroke after long stroke, he ran palm and arm up and down my back. My body rocked back and forth, his hands ironing my muscles and sinking calm into me before he stopped to adjust the sheet.
“Need this?” he asked in no more than a faint whisper.
I shook my head, mumbling a tiny, “N-uh.”
His strong fingers dragged down my back, almost tickling in their gentleness, and caught the sheet edge in their grip. In a slow swipe, the sheet fell to the floor, and my pasty butt was on display. If it weren’t so wrong, it wouldn’t feel so right. ‘Cause, let me tell you. It felt so wrong, and so right.
Still, his touch wasn’t sexual. He just kept on with the hot oil and the long strokes, climbing the mountain of my ass on most passes, which felt amazing, but it wasn’t a happy ending like he’d basically promised.
Maybe he changed his mind?
God, I hoped not.
He spent another few minutes doing just wringing out the tension from my body until I was nothing but a puddle of loose, floppy limbs on that massage table. But then he paused and went to the door.
With a flick of his fingers, he twisted the lock there, and I only wondered for half a second why there even was a lock on the door.
It didn’t matter.
Not when his scrubs top dragged up those...perfect abs.
I knew it.
He tossed his shirt over to the counter. “These too?”
His fingers fussed with the ties of his pants, and I looked into his eyes like he was a complete idiot.
He just laughed quietly at me while dropping the cotton pants and slipping out of his white slip-on shoes.
The humor melted from his face as his eyes roamed over me. I watched him swallow hard before opening his mouth to utter two words that had me throbbing for him fucking instantly.
“Turn over.”
