For a few blissful moments his caress sent waves of pleasure and need coursing through her body. Then he pulled her top back into place. “We can’t,” he mumbled, his voice thick and clumsy. “People are watching.”
“I don’t care,” Juanita whispered fiercely. But she tore her attention away from him long enough for a quick glance around. No one seemed to be looking directly at them, but there was a family laughing and throwing a frisbee back and forth only a few dozen feet away. An older couple was quietly conversing at about the same distance on their other side, with more people beyond them. A little farther, back at the beach, children were splashing in the shallows and digging in the sand.
“I do,” Ryan said. He ran his eyes down her body, making no effort to hide his desire, but his voice was rueful. “Water this clear doesn’t hide anything.”
Juanita wanted to protest, but she couldn’t. Both of their bodies were visible all the way down to where their feet were lost in a swirl of sand their movement had disturbed. Including the way Ryan’s loose swim trunks draped awkwardly at the front. Juanita bit her lip and looked around again. The glittering sun reflecting off the surface probably hid them from any casual glances. But even through her aching arousal, the thought of being observed made her face hot and her stomach tighten.
She grimaced. “Damn.”
Ryan’s chuckle sounded almost as frustrated as she felt. “I got you to swear.”
“Yeah, well, congratulations.” Juanita didn’t feel like joking. She felt like tearing Ryan’s suit off. But now that he’d drawn her attention to how exposed they were, she couldn’t put the knowledge aside. Why couldn’t he have stayed quiet a minute or two longer?
He cupped her chin and drew her gaze to his. “I’m sorry.”
She blinked hard to clear her blurring vision. “Don’t be. You’re right. I’d be mortified if I thought people had seen us, even if they were polite enough to pretend they hadn’t.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “I just want you so much.”
His grip on her jaw tightened. “I want you, too.”
She swallowed. “You said you didn’t.”
“I lied. I wanted you last night, and I want you even more now. I just don’t want you to get hurt, or embarrassed, or to have any reason to regret anything we do together.”
“I won’t. Ever.” She dashed the tears from her eyes and glared at him. “Will you?”
“That’s what I’ve been asking myself all day.” Ryan slid his hand up to cradle the back of her head. “And I keep coming up with the same answer. The only thing I’d regret is letting you get away.”
“Then don’t.” Juanita raised her hands to cup his face. The blond stubble on his cheeks prickled against her palms.
Ryan nodded slowly. He drew her in, and Juanita pulled him toward her. His lips were soft on hers, gentle and tender. She pressed her lips into them, her body melting against his. They swayed together in the lightly moving water. If they’d been alone Juanita would have wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. But since she couldn’t quite shake the awareness of the others in the water with them, she broke away after a minute, breathing heavily.
Ryan stroked her cheek and neck and upper arm. His firm, strong hands gently turned her until she was facing away and settled on her shoulders. They massaged her muscles, at first lightly, then with deeper strokes. He spoke softly into her ear. “Do you want to go back to the ship now, to our room? Or do you want to swim for a while longer first?”
A big part of Juanita wanted nothing more than to get him behind a closed door as quickly as possible. But she hadn’t forgotten that she would never get to come back to this lovely place. After this it would be muddy Galveston water for the rest of her life. And anticipation was good, as long as she could be sure her reward waited at the end of it. “That depends.” She twisted to face him. “You’re not going to change your mind again, are you? Do you promise to join me in bed tonight?”
“I promise.” His voice was serious and his eyes met hers without faltering.
A delicious shiver went through Juanita’s body. “Then let’s enjoy the time we have here.” She pointed down the beach to where a long narrow pier stretched into the water, marking the far boundary of the swimming area. “Race you!”
She pushed off from the bottom and stretched her arms into powerful strokes. Her legs kicked with a steady rhythm, propelling her through the water smoothly. The first time she turned her head to catch a breath, she peeked back. Taking him by surprise had given her a few lengths lead, but he was swimming strongly and starting to make up the distance.
Juanita threw all her strength into speed, cutting through the waves with only a bare minimum of glances ahead to make sure she remained on course. Sun-dappled sand flowed beneath her. A school of brightly colored tropical fish scattered from her path. Ryan drew up beside her, and Juanita redoubled her efforts. They swam side by side for a few hundred yards, but then his pace flagged. Juanita was pulling ahead when they reached the pier. Her hand touched the wooden ladder a full two seconds before his.
He clutched the ladder, chest heaving. Juanita clung beside him, panting just as hard. When his breathing finally slowed, he said, “You didn’t tell me you were training for the Olympics.”
Juanita shrugged, but she couldn’t suppress a smug grin. “Hardly. But I was on the swim team for a couple of years in high school, before I decided it ate up way too much time. I picked up a few seconds and thirds at meets, but I was never a star.”
“Then I’m surprised I was able to give you as much of a challenge as I did. I quit taking swimming lessons after I got promoted from Advanced Beginner to Intermediate.”
“I’m way out of shape. I haven’t been in a pool for months, and I haven’t swum more than a few laps at a time for years.”
“Maybe after you’re home you can join the Y or a gym with a pool and get back into it. You’ve certainly still got the form.”
She shrugged and kept her voice light. “Maybe I will. You could join too, and we could work out together.”
His breath stuttered, then smoothed out again. “Maybe.”
Juanita stared at him as he grabbed the ladder and heaved himself up. Did that mean he was willing to consider staying in touch after they got back? Or was it a dismissal of the possibility? He’d always talked as if their connection would end along with the cruise. But he lived in Houston just like she did, so there was no reason it had to. Not if they both wanted more.
Juanita put the thought firmly out of her head and focused on enjoying the sight of water streaming down his broad, muscled back and his tight butt flexing beneath his clinging suit as his legs propelled him up the ladder. Against all hope she’d won his promise to come to her bed. She wasn’t going to spoil the time they had together with further demands. She would relish every minute he gave her, no matter how many or few of them there were, and let him go with no regrets when it was over.
She climbed the ladder after him, shaking water from her body and squeezing it out of her ponytail when she reached the top. The warm sun and soft breeze combined into a pleasant temperature, so the fact that her towel was far back along the beach didn’t bother her. She reached for Ryan’s hand. “Let’s walk back. I think I’m ready to dry off.”
“Me, too. As well as being ready for a drink. I think we can find a daiquiri or piña colada up there if we try.”
“That sounds great.” If he wanted to spend money on her, she wasn’t going to argue any more. And a cool, tart tropical drink really did sound wonderful. Her mouth watered just thinking about it.
They strolled hand in hand along the pier, pointing out glimpses of sea life in the water. Juanita spotted an octopus among some coral, and they stood watching it for several minutes before it vanished into an impossibly narrow crack. Ryan called her attention to the spiky waving fins of a lion fish. He’d read that they were an invasive species in this part of the world, and that the locals caught and ate as many as they co
uld.
Back on shore, they picked an inviting-looking cantina and ordered a couple of frozen daiquiris. Ryan paid with the credit card he’d tucked into a zippered pocket in his swim trunks. They sipped them while meandering back to the lounge chairs where they’d left their belongings, under the spreading fronds of a palm tree. By wordless agreement they settled into the seats.
Juanita sipped the sweet, tangy slush and closed her eyes. The sun warmed her icy lips and lit the back of her eyelids with a soft red glow. The light breeze caressed her skin and carried the salty, slightly fishy scent of the ocean to her nostrils. Latin music floated from the cantina behind her, along with the aroma of roasting meat and frying tortillas. Palm fronds rustled, the ocean lapped and murmured, birds called in sweet or squawking voices. Close beside her, Ryan’s breath sighed in and out. His fingers twined between hers, his fingertips occasionally rubbing lightly across her palm.
Juanita nursed her daiquiri as long as she possibly could. She never wanted this moment to end. Even after her cup was empty and she set it in the sand beside her chair, she lay still for a long time, drifting in and out of a light doze, floating in a dreamy haze between sleeping and waking.
Ryan’s touch stole into her dream. His fingers ran along her arm and stroked her belly. His lips nibbled her collarbone and his tongue lapped the tops of her breasts. She moaned and pressed into the sensation. Please, let his fingers drift a little lower, his mouth travel a little farther…
His voice whispered in her ear. “It’s getting late. We need to start heading back to the ship.”
Reluctantly Juanita dragged her eyes open. If not for his promise of what was to come, his teasing touches would have been maddening. With it, they were a delicious foretaste of awaiting delights. She reached for his face where it hovered over her and stroked his cheek, then pulled his mouth to hers. A trace of tart sweetness lingered on his lips. She licked it up until only his own flavor was left, rich and masculine and delicious.
Energized, she pulled away and dug in her tote bag. She emerged with her clothes and jumped to her feet to pull them on over her nearly-dry suit. Ryan watched as she stepped into her shorts and buttoned them at her waist. She took it slowly and tantalizingly for his benefit, enjoying the way his eyes devoured every movement.
When she reached for her shirt, his soft sigh made her pause. “Would you rather I leave it off?”
“It’s up to you.” He swallowed. “But, yes, I would.”
“Okay.” She didn’t care who else looked at her, as long as Ryan did. The touch of his gaze felt almost as good as the touch of his fingers. She stuffed the shirt back into her bag. “Let’s go.”
He looked away for a moment, breathing deeply, then climbed to his feet. Juanita took his hand and they headed back the way they’d come to the beach.
A chairlift connected the beach to the port, but Ryan and Juanita had opted to walk instead of riding it. The broad paved path was less than a mile long. They strolled hand in hand across a bridge over an inlet. On the far side, where the paved walk continued straight, a dirt path led to the left. A sign read “Nature Trail.”
“Let’s go this way,” Juanita said, tugging Ryan in that direction.
He consulted his watch. “All right. We’ve got plenty of time left.”
The trail climbed steeply up a forested slope. Soon all evidence of human habitation vanished behind the thick foliage. A hush settled over them, broken only by their footsteps and occasional bird calls.
Juanita was starting to regret choosing the hilly route over the flatter one when the path leveled out and widened enough for Ryan to walk beside her instead of following behind. He slung his arm around her waist, and she wrapped hers around his. The shade was deep enough that his warmth against her side felt good. She nestled against him and stretched her strides as he shortened his until their lengths matched.
They reached the point where the trail bent back to the right and descended to rejoin the main path. A short side trail led to a clearing where a bench swing hung from a wooden framework, looking out over a spectacular view of the port buildings and the ship beyond.
Ryan led Juanita to the swing and took a seat. She settled beside him and rested her head on his chest as his arm wrapped her shoulders. He laid his other hand palm up on his thigh, and she reached to clasp it. Their feet pushed the swing into a gentle rocking sway.
Juanita looked down at the tall white side of the ship with its grid of balconies. For the first time the sight didn’t give her even a slight sense of dread. She’d breeze across the gangway and display her card for the scanner without a qualm. What waited on the far side was much too enticing to allow anything as trivial as the minuscule chance her deception might be discovered to slow her down.
Ryan stroked her arm. His voice rumbled under her ear. “Juanita…”
“Hmm?” She looked up expectantly.
Instead of bending to kiss her, he cleared his throat and stared out at the view. “I was thinking.”
“Oh?” She straightened a little, her stomach going hollow. She tried to make her voice light and teasing, but she feared anxiety crept in. “Not about reneging on your promise, I hope.”
“No.” But his tone was so grave she couldn’t take any reassurance from the denial. “About what’s going to happen after we get home.”
She swallowed hard. “I don’t expect anything from you, if that’s what you’re worried about. You’ve already done far more for me than I have any right to ask. Once I’m past customs, I’m on my own. Sleeping together won’t change that.”
“What if I want it to?” He kept his gaze firmly fixed on the ship.
Juanita’s heart stuttered. “What do you mean?”
“I mean I don’t want to have sex with you and then walk away as if it meant nothing to me. I don’t want to act like this is just a casual hookup. You know it’s not.”
She tightened her grip on his hand. “I don’t see how it can be anything else. You don’t want to get tangled up in my troubles any more than you already are. And I don’t want you to feel like you owe me anything. Like I said, you’ve already done far more than I can ever repay.”
“I like doing things for you. I like being with you. I don’t want to stop just because we’re back in the US.” His hand moved compulsively up and down her arm. “I’m serious about this, Juanita. I know it’s too soon to be talking about long term, but I can’t help how I feel. I can see our relationship turning into something permanent. I mean, we’d have to research the legalities. You might have to go back to Mexico for a while to be able to file all the right papers. But think what it could mean for you. You could be a legal resident, for good this time. You’d be eligible to go through the steps to become a naturalized citizen. You’d never have to worry about being deported again, no matter who’s in charge or how they change the laws. I would love to be able to give you that. Please, at least think about it.”
Juanita grew colder the whole time he was talking, until her blood felt like ice and her stomach like a lump of stone. When he finally shut up, she jerked away and stumbled to her feet, trying to escape his pleading, expectant gaze. She forced words through her frozen lips. “Is that what you think? That I’m trying to trap you into a green card marriage? That all of this has been nothing but a ploy to use you to get citizenship?”
He jumped up, setting the swing wildly rocking. It banged into his legs, but he ignored it. “Of course not! I know you’d never do that. I want to help you.”
“Of course you do.” Juanita scrubbed her face, then clenched her fists. “You’re a goddamn fucking Boy Scout. You saw a damsel in distress, and you came charging to her rescue on a goddamn white horse.”
His eyes widened at her language, and he started to smile, but it fell from his lips as she plowed on. “Well, fuck you, Ryan Hertz. I don’t need your pity, and I don’t need your help. I most certainly don’t need you to marry me so you can feel smug about doing your good deed for the year.” Tears b
lurred her vision no matter how hard she tried to blink them away. “You fooled me. I thought you wanted me for me. Because you liked my body. Because you thought sex with me would feel good. Because you expected to enjoy it. All the reasons I wanted you. But I was never anything but another badge for you to earn, was I? Someone to grace with the great favor of your attention, because she certainly couldn’t earn it for herself. To sleep with out of charity, because doing nice things for needy people makes you feel good, and she wasn’t going to get any any other way!”
Finally the anger she was trying desperately to provoke kindled in his eyes. He took a step toward her, and she shrank back. “Damn it, Juanita, that’s a load of crap. Of course I want you! You’re lucky I am a Boy Scout, or I’d show you exactly how much right here and now.”
Fear and desire flamed together in her belly. “Do it,” she taunted, her pulse thundering in her ears. “If I’m wrong, grab me and take me right here. I won’t fight you.”
He stared at her, panting, fists clenched. She stared back, not knowing whether she wanted him to accept her dare or not.
He wrenched himself around to stare down at the port. “That’s not what you really want.”
Relief and disappointment washed over her, so mixed she didn’t know which was stronger. “So you admit I’m right.”
“No, but I don’t know any way to convince you that won’t hurt you. And I’m not going to do that. It’s not who I am.” He buried his face in his hands. “I don’t know. Maybe you’re right. Maybe that’s the way it started, at least. I do want to help you. I always have. But please believe me, that’s not all there is to it. Not anymore. I want you for entirely selfish reasons. That’s why I agreed to sleep with you, despite believing it was my duty to protect you and it would be wrong to take advantage of you. That’s why I still will, if you ask me for real and not to try to prove something. And believe it or not, that’s why I started thinking about how we could have a future together. Because I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anyone or anything in my life, and I can’t bear the thought of ever not having you.”
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