by Hazel Kelly
“Do you want to go back?”
She waved the suggestion away. “No. They’re not going to walk away without my feet in them.”
“True.”
She handed the bottle back to me.
“You want to sit down?” I asked, her sparkly belly button ring catching my eye.
“Up a little further,” she said. “There’s a good spot.”
I wanted to ask where exactly, but I didn’t want to blow my chances with her by asking too many questions. She was the coolest girl I’d ever met, and everything she did seemed to be intoxicating me further.
Not once had she complained that I didn’t have a chaser for the rum, and the way she’d poked fun at Christophe for trying so hard to impress Gia made me laugh so much I could still feel the stitches in my side.
“There,” she said, trudging through the soft sand towards the dunes.
I followed her, my eyes dropping to the barely there jean shorts that covered her ass as she ducked between a gap in the dunes.
For a moment, I feared my eyes were playing tricks on me and that I’d imagined her like a shipwrecked sailor imagines a mermaid. But after a few steps, I found her again in a small dip in the sand that was surrounded by tall sea oats.
“Quite the hideaway,” I said, taking another swig as I joined her, feeling encouraged that she’d led me somewhere we could be alone.
“I want to show you something,” she said.
Every cell in my body perked up.
She collapsed in the sand and leaned back. “Lay down.”
I laid next to her and looked up at the sky. “What are we-”
“Shhh,” she said. “Listen to the sea oats.”
I stared at the starry sky and listened as the breeze rustled the sea oats around us. It was so loud I was surprised I hadn’t noticed it before, and the rustling came in waves of intensity, just like the ocean crashing against the shore.
I opened my mouth to make fun of her for being drunk, but the more I listened, the more overwhelming the sound became. It was beautiful and worthwhile and nothing short of an orchestra. I’d never heard anything like it.
“What do you think?” she finally whispered.
“I’m blown away,” I said, rolling my head towards her.
She smiled and sat up. “It’s one of my favorite songs.”
“Do you have a name for it?” I asked, propping myself up on my elbows. It was darker in the pit than it had been on the moonlit beach, and if it weren’t for the starry sky, I wouldn’t have been able to make out the delicate features of her face.
She shook her head. “No. Some things are too pretty to have a name.”
I wanted to say something clever about her name meaning pretty in French, but my romantic intentions were no match for my tipsiness.
“You know what else I like about this spot?” she asked, pulling her shirt off to reveal a white string bikini.
I swallowed.
“No one will steal our rum while we’re swimming.”
I raised my eyebrows. “You want to go for a swim?”
She shrugged. “Why not?”
“I don’t have my bathing suit.”
Her lips curled into a smile. “I guess you’ll have to skinny dip.”
“I will if you will,” I said, pulling my sandy t-shirt off.
She looked down, her eyelashes casting shadows on her cheeks.
I unzipped my shorts and wiggled out of them so I was sitting in the sand in my boxers.
Her eyes traveled up my chest. Then she reached for the rum and took a swig.
“What are you thinking?” I asked.
She unzipped her shorts and wriggled out of them so she was sitting in the sand, her glowing bikini calling my attention to her most intriguing parts. “I’m thinking about whether I want to let you see me naked.”
I scooted into her personal space.
She stopped breathing as I reached around her back to where her bikini was tied.
I kept my eyes on hers as I pulled the string and leaned forward to kiss her. She tasted like spiced rum, and when the strings fell loose around my wrist, I moved my hand to her breast, letting her puckered nipple graze my palm as I laid her back in the sand.
The sound of her breathing mingled with the fluttering sea oats as I kissed my way down her delicate tan lines, stopping at her chest to take one of her nipples in my mouth.
“Adam,” she whispered.
I raised up on an elbow and looked down to admire the way her hair was splayed in the sand behind her head. “What?” I asked, sliding my hand down her stomach and into her bikini bottom.
Her parted lips were motionless as I dragged my fingers along her wet slit.
She reached down and pulled the strings on one side of her hips loose, and when her eyelids grew heavy, I spread her warm silk around her clit and pushed my fingers inside her.
Her breath hitched in her throat as she arched her back, and she stared at me through glassy eyes as I curled my fingers inside her. Then she reached up and pulled my face down so she could kiss me deeply again as I fingered her.
A moment later, she moaned in my mouth, and I got so hard my whole body ached.
I slipped my dripping fingers from her and pulled the ties on the other side of her suit. Then, without pulling my mouth from hers, I pushed my boxers down over my hips.
I had no choice but to pull back for a second as I forced them down my legs.
When I looked back at her, she was staring at my dick with a look of curious innocence on her face that made me want her more than I ever thought I’d want anyone.
“I’m a virgin,” she said, her eyes searching mine.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, dragging a thumb over her cheek.
“Do you know what you’re doing?”
I nodded. It wasn’t a complete lie. After all, I knew exactly how sex was supposed to work. I just hadn’t actually had it myself yet.
She ran a hand down my chest and bit her lip. “Okay.”
I kissed her again and shifted my body over her as I reached for my dick. Then I guided it inside her as slow as my eager hips would allow, conscious of the way she gripped my shoulders like it would all be okay if she just held on.
She was so tight I couldn’t keep my eyes open, and her moans were so soft I could only hear them in the breaks between the crashing waves, but I took it as slow as I could, my hips swaying with the sea oats as I buried myself in the most beautiful girl I’d ever known.
Naturally, the feeling of being clenched inside her warmth was better than I ever imagined it could be, but it was a different feeling that would move to the front of my mind as the years went on, a different feeling that I became obsessed with having again.
And that feeling was the way she held on to me as I moved over her, the way her hands held me so tight I thought she’d never let go, the way it felt to have her trust and her body at the same time.
It was a high I never found again.
And while we never did go skinny dipping that night, I wouldn’t have changed a thing.
Chapter 24: Adam
I would normally send a woman flowers after a date, but flowers seemed like too much and too little at the same time.
Too much because I was aware that she didn’t want to attract attention to our extracurricular relationship. Plus, getting her to agree to a second date was a big enough victory that I didn’t want to risk blowing it with unwelcome romantic gestures.
Too little because it’s what I would do for any woman, and she meant so much more to me than the other women I’d sent flowers to. She deserved something as unique as she was.
To say I was overjoyed when I thought of the perfect thing would be an understatement, and I’d just chosen the words for the gift card and clicked overnight delivery when I heard a knock on the door.
“Come in,” I said, closing the tab on my laptop as soon as I saw the confirmation that my order was complete.
“Hello,” Gia s
aid, ducking her head in. “Are you ready for me?”
I glanced between the clock and the spreadsheet on my desk. “Of course. Please have a seat.”
She teetered in on high heels, clutching a manila folder to her chest.
“Thanks so much for coming,” I said. “I’ve been looking forward to seeing what you’ve come up with.”
She smiled and sat down, scooting a chair right up to the opposite side of my desk. “When you first mentioned the assignment, I was worried that I didn’t have any other interests,” she said. “But once I started looking, it was hard to narrow down all the things I got excited about.”
“That’s great,” I said, folding my hands in front of me. “That’s the whole point of this exercise.”
She batted her dark lashes.
“I know there are a lot of ways to run a business, but I don’t want to be one of those bosses that’s so naïve as to reduce the people I work with to whatever their main job description is. I’ve found that the more you encourage people to grow and the more challenged they feel at work, the happier they are.”
“Well,” she said, shifting in her seat to cross her legs. “Everyone who’s met with you so far has been really excited so you must be doing something right.”
I nodded. “Good. Let’s get started then shall we?”
“Okay.”
“First- just so I understand your main responsibilities at the minute,” I said, flipping through a binder on my desk. “Your regular duties include managing reception, concierge services, taking orders for room service, and assisting in the interview process for the housekeeping department. Correct?”
“Yes,” she said. “And I don’t want you to think I don’t love those things when I show you how far out the other jobs I liked are.”
“Not to worry,” I said. “Lay it on me.”
“I like to work out,” she said, opening her folder and laying out a job post she printed off the internet. “I always thought I’d make a good fitness instructor.”
“Are you familiar with water aerobics?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Just regular aerobics. Why?”
“That’s a service I’d like to start offering a few days a week,” I said. “In the mornings during high season. I’ve been asking around and several of the female guests I’ve surveyed have said that’s something they would take advantage of.”
She raised her eyebrows.
“Is that something you might be interested in organizing and leading?” I asked.
“Sure,” she said. “That could be fun. Plus, it would free up time outside work that I usually have to spend at the gym.”
“Great. Let’s give it a try. Figure out what kind of schedule you think would make sense, and we’ll offer it for a limited time to see if it catches on.”
“Who would work reception if I did that?”
I smiled, pleased that her regular duties were still at the front of her mind. “There are two girls working in the restaurant who are hospitality majors, and they’ve both expressed interest in gaining some new skills to put on their resumes. I’m sure they could cover for you.”
“Cool.”
“What’s next?” I asked, nodding towards the folder.
Her other interests included bartending and being a game show host, though she hadn’t found any job postings for the latter. I said I’d talk to the head barman about her learning a few drinks.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t wave a magic wand and make her the host of her own TV show, but as a consolation prize, I asked if she’d be interested in planning and publicizing a sand castle competition for Fourth of July weekend.
At first she seemed skeptical, but when I told her she’d get a commission on every participant she enrolled, she perked right up and started selling me the idea as if it had been her own.
She was so convincing I was tempted to tell her I also wanted to run beach Olympics for the crowd that came in August before school started. But I decided to save the idea for a rainy day and see how the sand castle challenge went first.
Much to my disappointment, Gia didn’t spill anything about Jolie during our conversation, and I didn’t know whether to be discouraged or encouraged by that.
After all, I was under the impression that she told Gia everything. Then again, I hadn’t blabbed about our night out to anyone either so maybe she was just trying to get her head around the untimely but unusual connection we had.
We were wrapping things up when my phone buzzed against the desk for the third time in a row. “Sorry,” I said. “I better get that.”
“Sure thing,” she said, closing her folder and standing up.
“Hi,” I said, taking the call. “Can you hold on a second?”
Gia was backing out with a raised palm in the air.
“Great meeting with you,” I said. “Let me know by the end of the week how soon you think we can roll out the water aerobics.”
She nodded and let herself out.
I took a deep breath and lifted the phone to my ear. “Victoria, hi.”
“Hi.”
“Is everything okay?” I asked.
“I was calling to ask you the same question,” she said, her tone of voice prim and tight.
“Everything’s great,” I said. “Why?”
“You missed my sister’s twenty ninth birthday.”
I squinted. “You mean her thirty third birthday?”
“Don’t be a jerk.”
“I wasn’t,” I said. “Just wanted to make sure I had the right sister.”
“You were supposed to be there,” she said. “You promised you would make it.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I know I did, Vic, but I made that promise back when we were together and before I knew I’d be down here for the summer.”
“That’s no excuse.”
I furrowed my brow. “I think it is. I’m not your boyfriend anymore. That means I’m no longer obligated to accompany you to your tri monthly family functions.”
“Everyone was asking about you.”
I leaned back in my chair. “That’s nice.”
“Not for me it wasn’t,” she said. “I organized the whole thing and then showed up alone.”
“You didn’t even remind me about it. Surely you knew I wasn’t coming.”
“I was testing you,” she hissed. “And you failed.”
“That’s insane. I was very clear last time we spoke that we’re no longer an item.”
“You didn’t make it clear to your mother.”
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“She and I were at lunch the other day when I realized you hadn’t even told her that you tried to break up with me.”
“First of all, I’m not sure what the word ‘tried’ was doing in that sentence. Second of all, why the hell were you having lunch with my mother?”
Victoria let out a heavy sigh. “Because we have a relationship, Adam, and when I have a relationship with someone, I take it seriously.”
I dropped my head back.
“Don’t worry,” she said. “I didn’t tell her about all the unkind things you said.”
I shook my head. “What unkind things? That I didn’t want to see you anymore and that I thought you’d be happier with someone else?”
“Enough. I didn’t call to rehash all those painful comments.”
I craned my neck forward. “Why did you call exactly?”
“To let you know that you needn’t worry about her, that I’m looking after her, and that I didn’t tell her about the momentary lapse in judgement you experienced before you left.”
I scratched my head.
“And also,” she continued. “I forgive you.”
I suppressed my urge to laugh out loud. “Victoria.”
“Yes.”
“I need you to listen very carefully.”
“Listening.”
“You and I are not dating anymore, which means the last place you should expect to bump into me i
s at one of your family parties.”
“But-”
“And I didn’t realize it before, but obviously I need to spell out the fact that if we’re not seeing each other anymore, you shouldn’t be seeing my mother either.”
“We have a special bond, Adam.”
“I don’t know who you’re referring to now, but I don’t care. You need to move on.”
“Put Adam back on the phone. This is obviously not the man I fell in love with.”
“Cut the crap, Vic. It’s over. Leave me and my family alone, and find someone else to mother.”
And with that, I hung up the phone and blocked her number.
Chapter 25: Jolie
Adam wasn’t the only one under a spell. Ever since our date, I’d been a distracted mess.
I was putting away dishes in the fridge and leaving milk in the cupboard. I was humming to myself and smiling for no reason. I’d even caught myself doodling his name again like a love-struck teenager.
It was a feeling I knew all too well, a feeling I’d had before.
And I swear I was as excited about that slow burning kiss he gave me on the boat as I had been that night I let him take my virginity in the sand with only a sliver of moon to keep us company.
It hurt a little that first time, but not in a bad way. Whatever pain I felt was overwhelmed by the fact that I’d never felt closer to anyone, safer with anyone, more attracted to anyone.
And he was so gentle with me, which was more than I could say for the boys I’d fooled around with before he came along. They were clumsy and hurried and obviously only thinking about themselves.
But Adam hadn’t been like that. Not once had he made me feel faceless or used or like a means to an end. On the contrary, it was all about me, and that made the feelings I had for him penetrate far deeper than even his physical reach allowed.
I became a woman that night under the stars, and I knew it wasn’t a dream because I was sore in an awkward way that made me giddy for days afterwards.
Still, we managed to find our way back there the very next night. And the next and the next. And when we couldn’t make it as far as the secret dune, we fucked in my car after dark or the locker room after hours. We even did it in his hotel room a few times when his parents went golfing.
