by Meg Collett
Hale’s crooked grin was smug. “That was easy.”
“It’s been a while,” Kyra breathed.
“How long?”
She wanted to tell him she’d never had sex, but her nerves got the best of her. She didn’t know what he would think if she told him she was a virgin. He seemed like the type of guy who liked experienced women, and she wasn’t by any measure—clearly, since he’d just made her come by stroking the outside of her shorts, which seemed incredibly pathetic. But Hale’s eyes were dark and hooded when he looked at her, waiting for an answer. His hand was on the inner part of her thigh.
“A while.”
Just then a crash came from inside the house. Kyra looked up as Hale swiveled around. “What was that?”
“I don’t know.” She jerked up and started toward the house with Hale right behind her. They crossed the deck quickly, and she slid open the doors leading into the dining room, looking around for signs of Stevie and Cade but saw none. Another crash came from the direction of the kitchen.
Hale swore and took off across the room. Kyra rushed behind him, worried that something bad had happened. Stevie had a lot to drink tonight, she realized. She could’ve burnt herself or passed out and hit her head.
Hale threw on the brakes, which she wasn’t expecting. She crashed into his back. His arm swung out to catch her, but it was too late. Kyra tumbled backward onto the floor, landing with a smack to her tailbone that made her bite her tongue. Blood pooled in her mouth as the pain radiated out from her ass. She groaned, but Hale didn’t help her up.
“And we were worried something was wrong,” he said with a snicker.
She peered between his legs to see what was going on. Stevie was sprawled across the kitchen counter with her legs wrapped around Cade, whose pants were down and exposing his bare ass. He jumped back and swung around to cover himself, leaving Stevie to fall back onto the counter with a screech. Her head landed right in the middle of the chocolate cake she’d actually baked for dessert.
It was a train wreck, but Kyra couldn’t look away. Stevie sat up, her hands reaching for the back of her head. When she pulled her fingers away, they were coated in sticky chocolate frosting and cake. She stuck them in her mouth. “Um…it’s good at least.”
“Oh my god, Stevie!” Kyra screamed once she’d recovered from the shock. Hale was bent over double with laughter, while Cade turned a million shades of scarlet. Stevie continued tasting the cake from the back of her tousled red hair. She shrugged.
“What?”
“Put your panties on!”
“Oh.” She reached down to where her lacy thong was hooked around her ankle. She shimmied off the counter, which thankfully blocked Kyra’s view as her best friend pulled her underwear back up. Cade caught the full view though, and his eyes fell downward as Stevie adjusted herself.
“Cade Cooper!” Kyra admonished, making Cade’s eyes fly back up. Hale was still too busy gasping for air as he laughed to help her up.
“Thanks for the ride, cowboy,” Stevie said in a purr, patting Cade’s cheek as she passed. She sashayed through the kitchen, dripping mashed cake from her hair. A glob fell on her shoulder. “I’m going to take a shower. Y’all can leave whenever.”
As soon as she left, Cade rocketed from the room, yelling at Hale that he’d be waiting in the truck. Kyra bit back her own laugh only because she knew it would hurt too much. She swatted at Hale’s leg.
“Quit laughing and help me up. I think I broke my ass.”
An hour later, everyone was gone, and Kyra had finished cleaning the kitchen and bringing in all the dishes and leftovers from outside. She checked on Stevie on her way out. Her best friend was flung sideways across her bed with a wet towel still wrapped around her body. Her breath was even and deep, her expression peaceful and soft.
Kyra slipped out of the large, quiet house, making certain to lock the doors behind her. She walked along the edge of the beach and into her back garden, which was still a mess. Tomorrow she would need to fix this too. In addition to reshooting the mud mask tutorial she’d messed up. Thinking of that made her shake her head, smiling.
“What are you smiling at?”
She gasped and jumped back from her porch steps. A figure was sitting in the chair next to the door. He stood and came into the light.
“Hale,” Kyra breathed. “You scared me.”
“Sorry,” he said, having the good grace to look apologetic.
“What are you doing here?” She climbed the steps and looked up at his face. The night cast angular shadows across his jaw and cheekbones so that only half his face showed. He was breathtaking in any light, she realized.
“I told Cade to go on home.” He closed the distance between them and ran his rough hand up her arm. He stopped as if he realized. “Your skin is so soft, so perfect. Do my hands hurt you?”
“No,” She answered quickly, reaching for his other hand. “I like it.”
“I couldn’t bring myself to leave tonight.” Hale wove his hand around to the back of her neck, setting her nerve endings on fire and pulling her closer, until their foreheads were touching. He was so tall that he had to bow over her, arching his body around her. Kyra ran her hand up his chest, marveling at the muscles that danced beneath her hand. She paused over his heart to feel the solid beat beneath the press of her palm.
“Come inside?”
He drew back slightly to look her in the eyes. Deep lines formed between his brows as he studied her face, looking for her honesty. She wondered if she’d pushed her emotions so far down that it was impossible to show them anymore. She took a shaky breath and ran her thumb across his lips. Right then she considered telling him that she was a virgin, but when her eyes flicked back to his, she saw he had already made his decision.
She turned, still holding his hand, and led him into the house. She didn’t bother turning on lights since she knew the twists and turns by heart already. Their silence stretched out as she walked up the stairs with Hale close behind. He followed her into her bedroom and closed the door.
He didn’t look at the sparse furnishings or the cluttered floor brimming with video equipment, shoes, and make-up. He watched her, his eyes shielded in the unlit room. The only light to guide their hands as they came together next to the bed was the moon shining over the ocean. Kyra kept the windows open even at night so that the sounds of the waves could comfort her as she slept, keeping away the nightmares she often had. Now the breeze fluttered the lacy curtains so that the material brushed across her bare calves.
Hale reached for her hips, skimming the exposed skin above the waistband of her shorts with his calloused fingers. One hand inched up her side, lifting her shirt, while the other trailed up her back, fingers bumping along the notches of her spine. She raised her arms so that he could pull off her shirt, which he folded neatly and laid on the bedside table behind her.
“Wait,” Kyra said as Hale reached for the hem of his shirt. She squatted next to her laptop, her finger flicking across the mouse pad. She found her favorite folk band and pushed play. The male vocalist’s voice immediately crooned through the speakers, filling the room with a haunting lilt that eased her nerves. She stood up in front of Hale and noticed his questioning stare. “Music calms me down.”
“You’re nervous?”
She looked up into his eyes as her hands went to his stomach. She eased the hem of his shirt up, making his jaw flex. “Yes,” she whispered.
He was too tall for her to take his shirt off, but he finished the task for her. She noticed he threw his shirt to the floor, unlike he’d done with hers. For the first time, she was close enough to his bare chest to see his tattoos.
Kyra traced her finger over the ink of his chest piece. Traditional roses spanned across his chest, all in black and gray. Even their leaves and stems were intricately shaded down to the smallest area. The artwork was impeccable and took her breath away. Over his heart was one word. Momma. The detail must have been excruciating, but she alread
y knew he would’ve handled it with a tight jaw and a stormy expression.
That’s who he was. Nothing else. No pretending. It’s why she liked him so much.
He eased down the zipper of her shorts and rocked the tight denim material over her hips. She shimmied out of them, letting them fall to her ankles, ready to kick them away, when he knelt down and picked them up. Like he’d done her shirt, he folded the shorts neatly and put them on top of the nightstand.
He went to unbutton his pants, but she pulled his hands away. Her fingers trembled slightly as she tugged his button undone. She was close enough to him that when she unzipped his pants, she heard the hiss of air he released. His breath tickled down the side of her neck, but still he didn’t kiss her.
He kicked off his jeans and stood before her in just his briefs. He looked etched in stone, as if he was an ancient creature with all his life’s secrets marked across his skin. Kyra blinked to keep the sheen of tears at bay. She didn’t know why she was getting emotional, other than the fact that she was about to lose her virginity. But that wasn’t it either, she knew. She was emotional because of the man standing before her. He was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen, and that was before she’d even noticed his looks.
She reached up and slipped the straps of her bra over her shoulders. Her eyes never left Hale’s. She unhooked it and let it fall to the floor before she hooked her thumbs in the delicate lace of her panties and eased them down.
She’d imagined he’d stripped her down completely before with just his words, but now she stood before him truly naked. With a steady, quiet calmness, he looked at every part of her before he picked up her underwear and folded them delicately, as if he had all the time in the world. He sat them on top of her shirt and shorts.
Finally, his hands found her hips and pushed her gently back onto the bed. Kyra lay beneath him, feeling the tiniest suggestion of his weight on top of her. Then he was kissing her, his lips and tongue gliding across her skin. Her hands wove up his flexed arms and onto his back. She opened her legs beneath him so that he fit between her. The breeze from the window whisked across her fevered skin and along her exposed sex.
Hale rose above her and tugged off his briefs. It was the first look she’d gotten of his cock, and the sight made her breath hitch. His length bowed up, rigid and ready. She began to tremble as the ache built within her. Above her, he licked the tips of his fingers before he stroked them between her folds. She arched off the bed and moaned, close already. When he pushed his fingers inside, heat pulsed through her body as she came, rocking his fingers deeper inside her.
Her orgasm was waves of heat, echoing the ocean’s waves outside. She was as useless against her climax as the beach was against the water. Only when she could breathe normally again did she open her eyes and see him watching her, his nostrils wide and his eyes narrowed.
She’d never been with someone this way. Not like this. She’d never done anything like this.
Once she was soaked enough for Hale’s taste, he leaned back over her. He hooked her leg over his hip and wrapped an arm around her neck. She felt every inch of his skin against hers. It was as though every part of her, inside and out, was laid out before him. He pulled her apart piece by piece, but she’d never felt so whole.
Then he entered her, and all Kyra felt was pain.
She gasped and jerked away, ripping him out of her. She moaned and reached down between her legs as Hale reared up above her. His mouth was a snarl as she pulled her hand back to see a tiny splotch of blood across her palm.
“You’re a fucking virgin?”
fifteen
Hale left while Kyra stayed in bed. To say he was pissed was an understatement, but she was angry too. He hadn’t exactly given her the chance to tell him that she hadn’t been with anyone before. Of course, she hadn’t made the time either. She could’ve told him earlier, at Stevie’s house. Technically, there were plenty of opportunities while they were undressing each other.
She groaned and rolled over, burying her face in her pillow. She hadn’t wanted to tell him, and that’s why he was mad. Not because she was a virgin, but because she wasn’t honest with him, even after he had insisted on it. But she didn’t like people knowing a lot about her. It wasn’t so bad that she was uncomfortable baring her soul to others.
With a huff, Kyra sat up in bed. She wasn’t going to let herself wallow or go to some dark place. She stood and scooped up the first bathing suit she found. Moments later, she was out the back door and grabbing her surfboard.
The moon was bright over the ocean. The surf was down, but just being in the water was enough for her tonight. She just needed to feel it. Her toes sank into the sand while the rough grit of her board scratched against her side.
Her hair was still down, and it twisted around her face in the salty air. Kyra licked her lips to taste the ocean’s balm on her skin. It was all comforting, but when the water splashed against her skin, she unspooled.
She lay down on her board and paddled out. There would be no surfing tonight. There wasn’t even that much of a break to fight through. Kyra dove under just to immerse herself. All the places Hale had scorched with his touch cooled instantly. He slipped farther away as she paddled out. His rejection, his anger, his judgment: All problems for the shore.
When her arms were tired, she sat up on her board, letting her legs dangle into the water. She tilted her head back and closed her eyes, letting her body bob and sway with the current. Her house and the shore were distant things, and she felt like the whole ocean was her barrier. Nothing could get to her out here.
“Kyra!”
She gasped and looked around until she realized the sound was Hale hollering from shore. He had one of her larger boards under his arm, and he’d stripped down to his briefs once again. Before she processed what he was doing, he was in the water and paddling toward her.
As he drew closer, Kyra seriously considered paddling away or splashing the water and throwing a fit, but that would be ridiculous. The ocean wasn’t hers. He could come out here if he wanted. On her board. She scowled.
“What the hell is your problem?” Hale shouted when he was close enough.
“My problem?” Kyra yelled back. She lowered her voice when his board bumped up against hers. “I don’t have a problem. You’re the one coming out here yelling.”
His glare was on a whole new level tonight. “Because you’re in the water at night!
“So?”
“It’s dangerous!”
“Look,” she said, her anger building, “I do this all the time. You’re not going to tell me what I can and can’t do.”
Hale snarled, his hand snaking out and snagging her wrist in his tight grip. “If you’re putting your life in danger on purpose, I will tell you what to do.”
She jerked her hand away, which made them both jostle around on top of their boards. “No. You. Won’t. I make my own choices around here. Why are you freaking out so much?”
“You really think that I care so little for you that I wouldn’t be upset?” His voice had the tiniest tremor of hurt in it. For Hale, that spoke volumes on its own, and Kyra finally put the pieces together.
Her anger fell away. “Did you think I was going to drown myself?” Chill bumps spread along her arms, and suddenly she was cold—too cold.
He noticed. With his expression softer, he said, “What am I supposed to think?”
Kyra looked down and shook her head. She traced the scratch along her board where she’d tanked one day in California and her board had raked across the reef just feet below the surf. It had banged up her knee pretty good too. She shook her head again, trying to focus her thoughts.
“I come out here to feel better, Hale. I wouldn’t drown myself. Is that really what you think of me?”
“I didn’t—”
“What? You didn’t know? Are you going to get mad at me for not telling you that too? Listen here.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “If I were going to drown myself,
which I’m not, it wouldn’t be because of some silly fight with a stupid boy.”
His eyebrows rose. For once, he looked speechless. She didn’t wait for an answer. Instead, she reached over and flipped his board. He tumbled into the water with a yelp and soft splash. Kyra bent back over her board and paddled to shore, letting the tiny waves pull her in. Maybe she was petty, but it felt good to hear him sputtering and spewing water behind her.
“He deserved it,” she said quietly to herself.
She reached the shore well before he did, and she carefully placed her board back in the rack before she went inside. Locking the doors behind her would probably only stop him for a minute. Rubbing her hand across her face, she thought about what Hale was going to say to her now.
She was surprised he’d even come back.
He stomped up the stairs to the porch a moment later. He didn’t take the time to put up her board, which irritated her, before he barreled inside. She turned around just in time to see him open his mouth to start yelling.
“No,” she said simply. She lifted her hand to stop him. “You don’t get to yell at me. Look, Hale, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was a virgin.” She gritted her teeth, because he didn’t look like he wanted to yell anymore. He was softening and moving closer to her. She shook her head and backed away. “I chose you,” she whispered. “And you just left me up there.”
“I came back.” Hale tried to close the distance between them again. He looked torn between his fleeting anger and his passion for her. The emotions warred across his face, his eyes wide and consuming.
“But you left.”
“And came back,” He insisted again, emphasizing each word.
“My virginity isn’t just some fake smile,” she said. For some reason, she couldn’t help but wonder if her mom had stood like this, like Kyra was now, arguing with a boyfriend.
“What is it then? You could’ve told me.”
Water rolled down her body in tiny droplets. It dripped from her hair and onto her shoulders. “I know,” she said quietly, her eyes meeting Hale’s. “But my virginity feels like a mistake. It feels like something dirty, because it’s my failure as a human being. Who can’t let themselves be touched or loved or even let someone stand that close to them? I’m a virgin because I can’t deal with the emotions of letting someone take it from me. But with you…” Kyra shrugged, “…I would have risked them.”
