I take her face in my hands and look into her eyes. “Yes,” is all I tell her. “Yes, Cassie.” And then I kiss her right there on the porch where anyone can see.
31
Cassie
Have you ever had the feeling someone’s watching you? Where you can feel their eyes boring into you, exposing whatever weakness you have? Welcome to my morning because when my eyes snap open, they catch Graham’s blue eyes fixated on me.
“Holy shit, Graham!” I startle.
Graham laughs, propped up on one elbow.
“What are you doing? Watching me sleep?” I can’t decide if it’s creepy or endearing, but Graham shows no signs of self-consciousness.
“I was waiting for you to wake up so I could do this.” He leans in and kisses the bridge of my nose. “I needed to taste those freckles right there.”
“Oh, those particular freckles were the ones you wanted,” I tease and stretch my arms up over my head. Graham watches the movement, his eyes scanning over my nearly naked body. The sheet we’re tangled up in does little to cover either of us up.
“I also like these over here,” he murmurs as he moves to my shoulder, planting his lips there. “And these over here.” He trails lower, moving across my collarbone and over to my breast. “There are a lot of freckles that I haven’t gotten to sample yet.”
I let Graham slide over me, enjoying the way his mouth feels on my skin, the slight tickle of his teeth when he nips at me, the feel of his tongue as he explores my body. “Don’t get too carried away. We’ve got a brunch to get to.”
Graham groans. “This wedding crap is seriously affecting my plans for this morning.” His mouth’s still pressed to my nipple.
I shift slightly to look at my phone. “We’ve got forty-five minutes to get up, get rid of our sex hair, and get to breakfast before we run the risk of having one of Zach’s sisters come banging on the door.” Or someone else. Julia. Her father.
“I don’t have sex hair,” Graham tells me as he continues to kiss every inch of my chest. “And I like you with sex hair.”
I look down at his blond head. Even all mussed up he looks gorgeous. “It takes you five minutes to get ready. I’m going to need a little more time than that to tame what I’ve got going on over here.” Even if that’s the last thing I want to do. Even if I’d rather stay here in this bed with him all day.
“We don’t have time to do this the way I would like, but I think I can finish what I have planned and still give you enough time to get ready. What do you say? Willing to see how well I work under a time constraint?” Graham lifts his head and gives me one of his dazzling smiles. I’m pretty sure no one says no to that.
I close my eyes and surrender to the feel of his body over mine, his hand sliding lower. It’s thrilling and terrifying to discover how well he knows my body. His fingers drag down my belly and settle between my legs.
“I actually have an idea,” he says.
“Mmhm,” I manage because whatever he’s going to suggest I’m going to agree to right now.
“What if we don’t leave this afternoon?”
I open one eye and look at him. “What do you mean ‘don’t leave’?”
“What if we stay for a few more days? Just you and me?” He’s serious.
“Here? In Mexico?”
“I can move our flights if you can organize your shifts. I’ll check with the front desk and see if we can keep the villa. If not, I’ll find another place for us to stay.”
I imagine staying longer, staying with Graham like we’re a real couple, and I feel that terrible little flutter in my belly. “I don’t think I can answer that question with your hand where it is,” I tell him, but his fingers don’t stop and the idea of taking a few extra days starts to get all mixed up with the physical feeling of Graham and how he’s working my body.
“I’m hoping to distract you into saying yes,” he whispers, his mouth moving to my other breast.
“Could we actually do that?”
“Sure. And we could do all the things we can’t do at home. We can go out in public, we can stay in bed all day, I can kiss you in front of whoever I want whenever I want.” I feel him smile against my skin and I want to feel that over and over again. I want to be able to say yes and see him smile because I’ve been able to give him what he wants. Just this once.
My orgasm surprises me, scattering any thought of telling Graham no. I fist the sheets and writhe against his hand, addicted to the way he makes me feel, the way he takes care of me. As I come down, his mouth meets mine and I open to him, letting his tongue slide against mine. When we break apart he gives me another peck on the nose.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
I start to have doubts as soon as we walk onto the patio. Graham insisted on holding my hand on the walk over even as I pointed out the obvious questions we’d have to deal with if anyone saw us. I could feel the bliss from this morning seeping out with every step we took. The closer we got to the pavilion with its heaping trays of food and the sound of chatter from the other guests, the less secure I felt in the decision to try this Mexican vacation idea with Graham.
When he finally gave in and dropped my hand, I was surprised by the wave of regret that almost knocked me over. Would it have been so terrible to walk in together and just face everyone? Would Graham have done it if I had a little more confidence in us? In him? I’ve been avoiding relationships so I can keep from feeling this confusion so why am I even entertaining the idea of being with him?
Zach’s sisters look a little worse for wear along with the rest of the under forty set. Everyone must have been hitting the bar pretty hard last night. Some of the older guests could have used a few extra hours of sleep as well. Tell me again why there are all these events scheduled that no one really gives a flip about? We should all still be in bed, myself included, especially if I could get back to this morning again with Graham’s arms wrapped tightly around me.
Julia runs up to hug me still buzzing from yesterday’s adrenaline. “Good morning!” she yells. “Thanks for making it to this. Zach and I had bets on whether you’d be able to get out of bed. I had faith in you, of course.” She pauses and zeroes in on the skin near my collarbone. “Is that a hickey?”
My hand flies to the spot where her eyes are resting and I pull my hair forward to cover the offending section of skin. How did I not notice that this morning? Oh yeah, maybe I missed it because I was rushing to get ready after prolonging my morning activities with Graham. It’s hard to take a really fast shower when someone keeps convincing you to help them soap up just one more time.
“It’s sunburn,” I lie, not very convincingly.
“Sure it is.” Julia smirks. “I’d love to tell you I had a bet on that too, but I don’t think anyone would have taken me up on that one.”
I scowl at her.
“So…”
“So what?” I ask, still trying to keep my alleged hickey covered.
“You aren’t going to give me any details?” Julia waits patiently.
Luckily, or unluckily I suppose, Graham chooses this moment to come back from wherever he’s been hiding. “Details about what?” he asks, shoving his big hands in his pockets.
“Cassie has a hickey,” Julia announces with a little too much enthusiasm.
I have to give Graham a little credit; he doesn’t flinch. “A hickey? Let me see.” He meets my eyes and gives me that look that begs me to trust him and even though I’m still getting used to it, I do. I pull my hair back to expose the skin, giving both Graham and Julia the chance to look the spot over. Graham reaches a hand forward and rubs his thumb over my collarbone. Our eyes lock and I forget that Julia’s even there, forget that we’re in public as the rough skin of his hand skates over the place his mouth had been less than an hour ago.
“Looks like sunburn to me,” he tells Julia, pulling his hand back before looking at me again. “We should find you some aloe and make sure you keep some sunscreen on. We don’t want m
ore of that, do we?” And then he cocks one horribly suggestive eyebrow at me.
I feel my entire body heat from the suggestion of having more of that. Every inch of me screeches please, please even as I keep my hands clenched by my sides, my breathing becoming a little ragged.
“Can I steal Cassie for a minute?” Graham asks Julia like it’s the most innocent thing in the world. “We’ve got last minute wedding party stuff to iron out.” He gives her a wink and she gives his upper arm a punch.
“Whatever. If you want to rescue Cassie, I’ll let you. Maybe she’ll tell you who she spent last night cuddled up with. I’ve got to get back to hitting all these tables anyway. I’ll try to catch you guys before Zach and I leave.” And then Julia’s off again, fluttering between the tables like a butterfly, catching Zach’s hand as he comes over to land a kiss on her neck.
“Should I have told her there wasn’t much cuddling?” Graham asks, moving in a bit too close to keep up our just friends charade. Not that we’ll be able to keep that up much longer if Graham keeps telling everyone who gets too close to me that he has some sort of claim. I see Travis from across the room and wonder if he’s told anyone about last night.
“Earth to Cassie. Focus, baby.”
“I’m listening.”
“But you’re looking at Travis. Now I’m regretting not breaking his nose last night.” Graham’s voice is teasing, but there’s an edge there. He’s still not over it.
“Well, now you’ve got my full attention.” I bat my eyelashes up at him. I’m no good at acting sweet and attentive. Graham’s mouth twists into a smirk.
“I checked on the villa and we can keep it if we want to stay,” he tells me with just a hint of trepidation. “And I looked at changing the flights. All doable. Are you in?”
I’ve got two choices here: I can give into the fear or I can ignore it. As Graham waits for my answer, I can feel the part of me that wants to keep my heart safe try to claw its way out of my throat. Saying no should be easy. Watching Graham’s disappointment should be something I’m used to by now. I’ve done it over and over since he made the mistake of hooking up with me.
I surprise us both when I give Graham an enthusiastic nod.
Graham looks like I’ve given him the best present ever and manages to restrict his celebratory moves to one small fist pump. “You won’t regret this, Cassie. I promise.”
That’s what I’m afraid of.
32
Graham
“Where are we going?” The slight hesitation in Cassie’s voice has me tugging a little harder on her hand.
“If I tell you it’ll ruin the surprise.”
“I hate surprises.” Cassie stops walking so I stop too, looking at her scowling face.
“But I like surprising people and I think you’ll like this one.” I give her hand a yank and pull her up against me. “As much as I’d like to drag you back to bed, we should at least leave the room once or twice, don’t you think?” Cassie melts against me and tips her face up, sticking her bottom lip out. I lean down and take her pouting lip between my teeth and give it a nip. “Better put that back where it belongs.”
Cassie sighs and rubs her nose against my chest. “Fine. Let’s get this over with,” she says into the cotton of my T-shirt before untangling herself from my arms.
I lead her down the wooden dock in front of us, scanning the back ends of the first few boats we pass. When I find the one I’m looking for I pull Cassie along behind me until we’re flush with the side. “Here we go,” I announce and make a move to lift Cassie to deposit her on the boat’s deck.
Cassie squirms in my arms. “You can’t just climb on someone else’s boat, Graham,” she protests, twisting to keep me from taking her off the dock.
“This isn’t someone else’s boat. This is our boat. Well, for today.” A tall man chooses this moment to appear from inside the boat. I wave and he waves back, coming toward us.
“Mr. Stevens?” He extends a hand for me to shake. I take it and give it a few firm pumps.
“You can call me Graham,” I say as I position Cassie in front of me. “And this is Cassie. You must be our captain.”
“Yes, you can call me Diego. Come aboard and I’ll introduce you to the rest of the crew. We’ll get started in a few minutes.”
As he turns, Cassie shoots me a look. “A sailboat?”
“Sure.” I shrug. “You don’t want to go on a sailboat?”
“I’ve never been on one.”
“Then this’ll be a first.” I can barely keep from puffing up my chest a little at the idea of showing Cassie something new. When I had the idea to rent a boat, I thought it might be something she’d like, but with Cassie you can never tell. She’s a little hesitant, but if the flush on her cheeks tells me anything, she’s also a little excited. “Let me help you climb aboard.” I extend my hand and she takes it willingly. Once I have her safely on the deck I follow right behind.
“When did you arrange this?” Cassie asks as she looks the sailboat over.
“You’re not exactly a light sleeper.” This earns me a punch in the arm. “And I had a little time this morning when I let you sleep in.” In truth it was the only way to keep myself from waking her up. I was desperate to run my hands all over sleeping Cassie. She’d been tangled in the sheets, her hair fanned out over the pillow and if I hadn’t come up with something else to do, I would have woken her in a more creative way.
“It’s beautiful,” Cassie whispers.
“It is,” I agree although I’m less concerned with looking at the boat and more interested in focusing on Cassie’s face. The boat’s too big for just two people, but now that we’re here I’m glad I decided on this one. It’s a catamaran with teak decks and shiny blue paint. Everything’s polished to gleaming. “Let’s go find Diego and we can get a tour.”
It turns out Cassie loves sailing. Once we’re out on the water she’s full of questions. I’d be jealous of Diego and all the attention he’s getting if it wasn’t so fun to watch her animated reactions to everything he’s telling her. And the most amazing thing of all? Cassie speaks Spanish.
When she busted out her perfect pronunciation with the crew, my eyes nearly bulged out of my head. Her reaction was one I could have anticipated. After a quick eye roll and a shrug, she played it off like nothing. “What? I’m a nurse.”
She’s gorgeous and smart and those two attributes combined with her sassy mouth are going to be the death of me. As I watch her move along the deck, salt water spraying her as the boat cuts through the waves, I feel a sudden rush of pride. She’s here with me—really here with me—and there’s no reason to hide it. I want to hold onto this feeling for as long as I can.
I follow her to the front of the boat where she’s stretching herself out like a cat in the sun. She’s stripped down to the bikini I suggested she wear and she smiles when she sees me picking my way along the side of the boat toward her. I’m way less agile on a boat than dry land. I keep waiting for the inevitable moment when I’ll end up bobbing alongside it.
“Come sit with me,” Cassie calls and even if I wasn’t planning on it, I would be doing whatever she asked. She pats the space next to her. “Guess what this part’s called?” I try to settle myself down on the net strung over the front of the boat. She doesn’t wait for me to answer; she knows I have no idea. “The trampoline. Isn’t that funny? It isn’t a real trampoline, but this is the most amazing place to sit.”
I couldn’t care less what the parts of this boat are called, but I do agree that this is an amazing place to sit because as soon as my ass hits the net, Cassie’s curled up against me, her head on my bare chest. I breathe in the smell of her hair and the suntan lotion she’s been slathering all over herself. Redheads need to constantly reapply, I’ve been told, and that’s given me plenty of opportunities to suggest that she let me help her. I’ve taken more time than is strictly necessary getting underneath the straps of her bathing suit.
Cassie relaxes against
me and I let my hand wander up her arm, my thumb stroking over her skin. “Don’t let me fall asleep out here,” she murmurs as she closes her eyes. Her breath tickles my nipple as she dozes. I tell myself I’m letting her sleep because I’ve kept her up for the past few nights, but I know why I’m really doing it. This is the only way she’ll let me hold her, the only way I can whisper how I feel without her freaking out. I spend the next few minutes feeling her body pressed against mine, telling her I love her. When Diego pops his head up front to tell us lunch is ready, I’m sad to have to wake her.
When we stop in a cove, Diego hauls out the snorkeling equipment. Expecting Cassie to be less than enthusiastic, I’m surprised to hear her jump into the water the second the boat stops moving. She paddles around, diving back under several times before wiping the water from her face. “Come in here!” she shouts to me as she treads water.
“Do you want a snorkel?” I shout back. Cassie’s exaggerated nod has me laughing, scrambling to launch myself off the deck of the boat to join her. I cannonball off the back and hope I manage to splash her.
The water’s warmer than I expect and when I come back up to the surface, I’m face-to-face with Cassie’s exuberant grin. She leans in to give me a kiss before taking one of the masks and snorkels I’ve brought along with me. She slides the mask over her face and positions the snorkel in her mouth like Diego demonstrated to her earlier. She’s never done this before, but you’d never know it. She’s fearless.
Cassie squeals through her snorkel as a school of fish swim underneath her. She chases after them and I follow along, caring more about watching Cassie’s body slice through the water than looking at any fish. Her pink toenails flash in front of me as she kicks her feet, the curve of her ass bobbing just above the water line. I resist the urge to put my hand out and pull her back toward me by one of her ankles. I dive down deeper, holding my breath, and turn to look back up at Cassie floating above me. She gives me a wave as she keeps exploring, looking for more fish. There’s plenty to look at even just in this little cove—fan coral and all sorts of other plants sway in the water—but nothing catches my eye like this girl. I resurface and blow the water back out of my snorkel just in time to see a large sea turtle cruise near Cassie’s arm. I wait to see her reaction, hoping she doesn’t die of excitement. She sputters and flails, causing the turtle to rush off in the opposite direction.
Forget About It Page 21
