* * *
"Where are we going?" Ria asked.
"You'll see," Drew replied as he drove past the marina, the yacht club, and eventually over the Golden Gate Bridge. He couldn't wait to see her reaction when she realized what they were going to do.
"Are we going far?" she asked.
"That depends on your definition of far."
"And that's not an answer."
"Now, you know how I feel when you won't answer any of my questions," he retorted.
"Funny."
"Relax, we're almost there. You're going to love it."
"You're awfully confident considering you don't really know what I love."
"I have a good idea about some things," he said pointedly. "Although, I might need a refresher course later on."
"We'll see how well the first part of this evening goes."
A moment later, he took the first exit into Sausalito and drove down a winding road to the bay. At the end of the road stood a small building and a helicopter pad. A bright red four-seater helicopter awaited, along with his friend, Randy Cruz.
"Oh, my God, we're taking a helicopter ride, aren't we?" she said.
"You're riding. I'm flying."
"That's your helicopter?"
"No, it belongs to my friend. He flies helicopter tours over the bay, and he was happy to let me use his helo for our date." He paused. "You're not scared, are you?"
"I've never been up in one, but I'm game."
He'd known she would be. Ria wasn't one to shrink from a challenge.
They got out of the car and headed over to the helicopter. Randy had it gassed up and ready to go. After introducing Ria to Randy, his friend handed her a two-way headset and helped her into the right front seat while Drew got in on the left. He adjusted his headset and said, "Everything okay?"
"I'm trusting you to let me know if it's not okay."
"You don't have anything to worry about. You showed me your world. I want to show you mine, and there's nothing like flying over the city when the night lights start coming on."
"What are we waiting for?" she asked.
And on that note, he took off. Ria gasped as the helo left the pad, and she seemed to have a good grip on her armrests for a minute or two, but as they gained altitude, she started to relax.
"What do you think of the city from up here?" he asked her.
"Beautiful," she said, her gaze on the lighted skyline.
He flew her around the city, past the skyscrapers and the Bay Bridge, around by the new Giants' Ballpark and McCovey Cove, and then he reversed the route, flying past the various islands in the bay, Treasure Island, Angel Island and Alcatraz.
"I thought it would be louder," Ria said. "But it's quiet. It's like we're alone in the sky. Just you and me."
"Just you and me," he echoed, a warm feeling rushing through him as the words left his mouth. "And now for the grand finale."
"It's over already?" Ria asked with disappointment.
"Unfortunately, Randy could only give me thirty minutes," he said. "But no trip over the bay is complete without a fly under the Golden Gate Bridge."
"Fly under?" she echoed.
He took the helicopter down, hearing her catch her breath again, and then flew her under the magnificent bridge, out towards the ocean. The skyline was a dark purple as twilight fell over the city, the fog bank miles off shore.
He wanted to keep going. He wanted to stay in the air forever with Ria at his side, but reality forced him to turn back toward Sausalito.
A few minutes later they were back on the ground.
They got out of the helicopter, and handed their headsets to Randy who asked Ria how she'd enjoyed the ride.
"It was awesome," she said, her face lit up with pleasure. "I only wish it was longer."
"We'll do it again," Drew said. "Thanks Randy."
"Any time," Randy said.
When they reached the car, Drew moved to open the door for Ria, but she caught him by the arm. He gave her a questioning look. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," she said with a smile. "Everything is perfect. The ride was perfect. And this is going to be perfect."
She kissed him, her mouth warm in the cool evening breeze. He wanted to deepen the kiss, but she was already moving away.
"Thank you," she said. "That was an amazing experience. I can see why you love flying."
"That was just a taste. Next time we'll do it in the daytime. We can fly up to the Napa Valley or over to Lake Tahoe, really see the landscape."
"I'd like that." She paused, a question in her eyes. "So back to my place, or…"
"Not yet. The evening is just beginning."
"Really?" she asked with an arch of her eyebrow. "What's next?"
"You'll see."
"You're enjoying being the man of mystery, aren't you?"
"Every second," he said. "But mostly I'm enjoying being with you."
She met his gaze and gave a nod. "Me, too."
* * *
Ria had been in sole control of her and Megan's life for the last year and a half, so it was refreshing to let Drew take the lead. After the breathtaking helicopter ride, she was already prepared to call the date a success. Anything more would just be icing on the cake. As they drove back over the bridge to the city, they were quiet, and it was the kind of quiet that felt right. They didn’t need words to fill the space. They could just breathe and be, and Ria let everything else go.
After getting off the bridge, Drew drove them back to the marina, parking by the yacht club. "Your turn," he said.
"I can't take the boat out now," she said, hating to disappoint him. But she could only use the sailboat when the yacht club was open.
"We don't need your boat. I have one."
"That's right, you do," she said, following him down the docks to the Eleanor.
The large boat was beautiful, older, but well taken care of, and having met the original Eleanor, Ria could imagine all the wonderful times she and Patrick had had on this boat. She checked out the boat, the galley and sleeping berth, and thought Drew and his brothers were going to have a lot of fun in the upcoming years.
"What do you think?" Drew asked.
"It looks to be in pretty good shape."
"How do you feel about a moonlit sail?"
"Pretty good," she said with a smile. "Do you want to do the honors?"
"I'm happy to put you in charge."
"Okay."
It was a nice change to be at the helm of a bigger boat, and Ria enjoyed sailing the Eleanor out into the bay. "How far do you want to go?" she asked Drew as they passed Alcatraz.
"This is good for me," he said. "I think it's time for dinner."
"Out here?"
"Can you think of a more romantic restaurant?"
She really couldn't. "You put some thought into tonight."
"I put thought into everything I do."
That didn't surprise her. Drew might like to fly into the wind, but he wasn't the kind of man to take off without some sort of plan.
He held up two wine bottles. "White or red?"
"White. What's for dinner?"
"Crab salad, fresh rolls, and strawberries."
"Impressive."
"Since you love the sea, I was hoping you liked seafood."
"How could I not? My grandfather was a fisherman."
"What about your dad?" he asked, as he handed her a glass of wine. "You've never really told me about him, except to say that he died, and that your parents didn't get along. What was your relationship like?"
"I adored my dad when I was little. But he didn't turn out to be the hero I imagined that he was."
Drew gave her an understanding look. "Most people don't. What did he do?"
"He cheated on my mom. It went on for over a year. He worked in sales and traveled a lot for his job. The affair was with his assistant, a lovely woman named Gwen. I really liked her until I found out she was screwing my Dad." She sipped her wine. "My father said that my moth
er froze him out, that after she had me she didn't want to have sex anymore. That he'd spent ten years watching her roll over to her side of the bed, and he couldn't stand looking at her back anymore. So they divorced. I went to live with my mom."
"Why did your sister stay with your father? It sounds like he was the one to blame for the divorce."
"I thought it was pretty clear cut, and I was only eleven. But Kate adored my father, and she was six years older than me. She said I didn't understand, that she'd heard the way my mother spoke to my father, and she didn't blame him. She put it all on my mom. She said my mother broke up the family because she wasn't willing to try." Ria paused. "My mom pretty much said exactly the opposite. Anyway, Kate was almost done with high school, and she didn't want to move, so that was part of why she stayed with my father.. I went to San Diego with my mother and then we eventually moved to the East Coast. I didn't see my father or sister again for a very long time."
"Why?" he asked.
"There was always a reason. Kate got pregnant young and had a baby, so her life totally changed. And my father just couldn't seem to work out any kind of visitation plan with my mother."
"Doesn't sound like he tried that hard." He stopped abruptly. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."
"No, it's true. He didn't try that hard, and my mom didn't, either. I think they both wanted to move on, and I was the person who dragged them back to that time in their lives they wanted to forget. My mother told me once that she got pregnant with me to try to save the marriage."
"Why would she tell you that?"
"It just came out one night when she had too much wine. It actually made sense to me. But I'm making her sound worse than she is. She does love me, and we did have a relationship, just not the greatest one. It was a long time ago."
"I'm beginning to understand why you took to the sea."
"I wasn't just running away from family, I've always had wanderlust, always wanted to travel, and so I did."
"I always wanted to travel, too, one of the reasons I joined the Navy. I just didn't expect to see so much hot desert."
"I can't imagine living in a landlocked country or state. I'd go crazy in the middle of the country."
He smiled. "I think you would."
"So where's that salad you were bragging about?"
"It's in the galley. Do you want to eat down there or up here?"
"Up here. It's a beautiful night. And the stars are just coming out." Besides that, close proximity to the sleeping berth below was only going to put ideas in her head that she didn't want to think about right now.
While Drew pulled dinner together, she gazed out at the water, thinking of a different sea on the other side of the world, of how many miles she'd traveled, how many lies she'd told, how lonely and scared she'd felt. But tonight, back in the city where she was born, and with a man who had freed her soul once before, she felt like she'd finally come all the way home again.
Drew came up the stairs, juggling a couple of plates. While she set up a picnic on the bench, he went back down for the rest of the items.
The crab salad was delicious and flavorful, and the freshly baked bread made a nice accompaniment to the meal. They ate quickly and quietly and finished off with a fresh fruit medley of berries, melon and orange slices.
"That was perfect," she said, wiping her mouth with a napkin.
"I picked it up at Giancomo's on Fisherman's Wharf."
"Then I guess you weren't bragging when you said you do good take-out."
"I know what I'm good at." He gave her at thoughtful look. "There's something I've been wanting to ask you."
"What's that?" she asked, feeling wary about his tone.
"Where are your friends, Ria?"
"What do you mean?"
"It's not a difficult question. You must have had friends in your life."
"I've lost track of most people, but sure, I have friends. They're around."
"Not around here that I've seen."
"No, most of them are still working on boats at various ports around the world. And now I don't have time for friends, and even if I did what would I have in common with other twenty-eight-year-olds when I'm raising a teenager? They're hitting up clubs on the weekends, and I'm helping Megan get ready for the prom."
"You're sacrificing a lot for her."
"It's not a sacrifice. I love her. She's my family. And I'd give up on a lot more than friends for her."
He nodded. "I know you would." He looked up at the stars. "It's a clear night."
"And this is a great view," she said. "Although, we'd see more stars if we were further away from the city."
"Did you ever get scared out in the middle of the ocean?"
"I've been through some bad storms, and I have a healthy respect for Mother Nature, but I never came close to being in real trouble."
"I guess you're not counting the boat that blew up."
She stared back at him. "Do you want to talk about that now?"
"No. Not tonight." He took a breath. "I don't want to talk anymore at all."
"Neither do I."
"I want to kiss you, Ria. And I don't want to stop there."
"Neither do I," she repeated, smiling.
He smiled back at her. "You're beautiful."
"Thank you. But I thought we weren't going to talk." She'd barely gotten words out when he bridged the space between them and crushed his mouth against hers.
Chapter Fifteen
The remnants of their dinner fell to the floor as Drew pushed her back against the cushioned bench. She went willingly, wanting everything he had to give. His tongue tangled with hers as he angled his head, making the kiss deeper, hotter, and hungrier. His passion set off the sparks that had been smoldering for weeks, months, more than a year. Every one of her nerve endings was on fire, each one calling out for a touch, a kiss, a caress. The time apart faded away. There was no yesterday, no tomorrow, just now. And now was all she needed.
She thought she could kiss him for hours and still want more, so when Drew raised his head to look at her, she uttered a small protest.
"Downstairs. Bed."
"Up here. Stars," she countered. She liked looking at him in the moonlight, the beams throwing shadows on his strong and handsome face, the desire sparking like gold in his brown eyes. "There's no one else around. Just you and me and the night sky."
She put a hand on the back of his neck and pulled him back to her. She took the initiative this time, sliding her tongue across the seam of his lips, nipping at the corners of his mouth until he groaned with pleasure and urged her inside. He tasted like wine and strawberries, a delicious mix of heat and sweet.
"You're killing me," he said, with a gasp for air.
"Are you complaining?" she teased.
"Not for a second. But let's get more comfortable."
He grabbed the cushions off the opposite seat and laid them on the deck of the boat, making a soft bed between the benches. Then he pulled her down next to him. She fell on to her knees, facing him. The look he gave her was dark, intense, filled with need, and it was all for her. She'd never felt so wanted.
She took off her jacket and tossed it aside, then pulled her shirt over her head and placed it over the jacket.
Drew's gaze moved to her breasts and the lacy black bra that barely covered them. Her nipples hardened, calling out for a touch, a stroke, and Drew answered that call, cupping both of her breasts with his hands, as he kissed her neck and slid his mouth down along her collarbone and the valley of her breasts. It seemed to take forever for his fingers to flick aside the scrap of lace. And then his tongue touched her nipple, and a shot of desire ran through her body. He lifted his head and looked into her eyes.
She answered his silent question by unhooking her bra and taking it off. There might be secrets between them, but at least some of the barriers were coming down. She might not be able to give him the truth of her life, but she could give her body and maybe what was left of her heart.
>
"Beautiful Ria," he murmured. "I've dreamed about this moment for a long time."
"You don't have to dream anymore." She reached for the hem of his shirt and helped him pull it over his head. His chest was broad with a smattering of dark hair that tapered down his muscled abs. She caught her breath at the male perfection. "Now, I'm the one who's dreaming."
He laughed. "I like your chest better."
She smiled as they fell onto the cushions of their makeshift bed. It wasn't long before they stripped off the rest of their clothes and there, under a starry sky, they kissed and caressed and drove each other into a frenzy of need that could only be satisfied by the other. Drew filled the empty spaces in her heart and her soul, making her whole again, and when the climax came, she felt like she'd finally found what she'd searched the globe for, the place that was home. It wasn't a city or a country or a house. It wasn't even the sea. It was Drew. And she was going to hang on to him as long as she could.
* * *
An hour later, the breeze kicked up a notch and Drew went downstairs to grab some blankets. When he came back, he stretched out next to Ria and pulled her into his arms, wrapping the blankets around both of them.
Ria put her head on his chest, and he could smell the shampoo in her hair, the scent that had haunted him for over a year. "Orange blossoms," he said.
"What?" she asked lazily, tracing circles on his chest with her finger.
"Your hair smells like orange blossoms. When I woke up on the island, I could smell it on my pillow.
She lifted her head. "I didn't know it was that strong. Sorry."
"Don't apologize. It's enticing—seductive. It suits you."
"I like enticing and seductive."
"So do I," he replied with a smile.
"You look happy right now, Drew."
"Well, that's because I am happy. How about you?"
"Deliciously exhausted."
"It was better than the last time," he said. "Better than all the memories."
"Was it? It seems good every time to me." She paused. "When I'm with you, I'm myself. I felt like that on the island, and I feel like that tonight. Somehow you strip away all my barriers, all my fears. In your arms, I'm young, fun, and free. It's like you release something inside of me."
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