Admittedly, she adored the grounds with all the greenery and flowers. It seemed so strange to see an oasis built between the mountains and the house, but it was wonderfully enterprising construction by the person who designed it. Between the landscape, the arbor, the home as well as the large fences, it was completely shut off from the world. Their contact with society was the television, internet or delivery driver’s arrival.
* * *
Today, they were going out on the pond, once again. Alex enjoyed fishing at heart. And she, surprisingly, found herself at a new level of contentment as she sat in the canoe and watched the landscape around her. The serene environment was conducive to relaxation and it amazed her how different it seemed to be from the busy city she lived in. There were no car horns in the background, no footsteps from the neighbor upstairs. The silence was amazing and only broken by conversation between the two that flowed readily now.
* * *
Following him down to the small landing that bordered the small pond (well, it was small according to Alex but was quite a large lake to her!), she carefully entered the canoe and tucked their lunch underneath her seat. They would be spending the morning on the water and enjoying the beautiful California weather. Slapping a borrowed baseball cap on her head, she stuck out her tongue playfully at Alex who also sported a hat.
* * *
“I’m not burning today. The last time I burnt, my nose was pink for quite a while,” she said with a grin. It was actually only pink for the next day but the exaggeration was for his benefit as she laid on a guilt trip in order to tease him.
“Sounds good. That pink nose made you look like you had a bit too much wine,” Alex teased. Actually, it was adorable. Now, she had little freckles that dotted her skin that he itched to kiss.
She threw back her head and laughed. Katherine couldn’t help but stare as Alex settled himself in the canoe, pushing off from the dock with the oar. Smiling, she looked around and watched water gently wave past the sides of the craft as they glided along the surface.
Pond, my ass, she thought. This is the biggest pond she had seen in quite some time and she was surprised his property included it. If she was anywhere else, it would be a lake in her book. There was still a bit of mist clinging to the top of the water that had yet to burn off from the sun and made the water look almost magical.
“You know, you are lucky you have moments like this,” she said wistfully, breaking the silence. Katherine dipped her fingers into the water. “It’s so heavenly to see this. It’s like the Lady of the Lake could rise up any moment. Sounds silly, but it’s true.”
* * *
“It’s a helluva sight,” Alex agreed. “Part of the reason I like coming out here. Sometimes I will fish just to relax my mind and body. Other times, it’s almost like a meditation.” The peace of the idyllic setting soaked into her body and made the world slip away.
“You need to relax? Do I stress you out?” she teased quietly. She stared off at the mist, now hiding the shoreline and dock from her sight. They were so very alone. While the nervousness was gone, she felt something she wasn’t ready to analyze yet.
“Far from it, but I confess I enjoy the company,” Alex said quietly as he focused on baiting the hook and casting his line. “You don’t mind accompanying me out here? I know it’s not your thing.”
* * *
“No, not at all. I love the water.” Katherine sighed happily. Kicking off her sandals, she rolled up her cargo pants and hung her legs over one side of the canoe feeling the cool water on her flushed skin. Honestly, she would have accompanied him regardless just to feel the comfort of being with him. He had gotten under her skin almost as fast as Leslie had when she had needed a friend so badly after her family’s passing and didn’t realize it until they had met. Now she couldn’t picture not having Leslie in her life.
Thinking of her, Katherine realized it had been some time since she had texted her friend or sent a photo. Katherine had tried to be private yet including Leslie since she had been so instrumental in introducing the two of them. Raising her phone, she took a selfie in the canoe with the water and trees behind her in the distance. Wishing she had the nerve to get Alex in the photo, she hesitated and wondered if he would mind. As if he read her mind, she jumped at hearing his voice.
* * *
“Is that for Leslie?” he asked lightly. “Take one of the both of us,” Alex volunteered as he watched Katherine take a photo of herself on her phone. She seemed to be so relaxed and carefree, rolling up her pants leg and putting her feet into the water. He knew from their talks how deep of a friendship Katherine had with Leslie and wanted to be a part of it.
Alex wanted her to see him, them, in a different light. He was enjoying the friendship they were developing, but he also wanted her to know he was interested physically as well. Seeing her shy smile, he knew he had made the right decision to offer up the photo of the two of them. He had guessed right; Katherine was as worried about crossing a line with him as he was with her. Seeing her hold her phone aloft once again, he set his fishing rod down along the canoe seats beside the two of them and leaned towards her to get in the photo. Seeing her click the phone quickly, he protested.
“Hang on a second, I was barely in that one! Are you ashamed to be in a pic with me?” he teased. Alex was honestly surprised how fast she had taken the photo and how much he wanted the memory of this visit to be something he could keep. If she could text the photo to Leslie, she could certainly text it to him as well.
* * *
“No! Of course not!” she said, blushing. She was embarrassed that he would suggest such a thing. Katherine knew he was a very private person and would have never even asked if he hadn’t suggested it.
“Let’s try this again, Katherine,” he offered as she turned back to look at the phone for another snapshot of the two of them.
“Oh!” Katherine gasped as she felt Alex’s arms pull her backwards on the canoe seat and she felt him carefully scoot forward. Looking at the phone, she saw that he had put himself directly behind her, almost in an embrace, once again. Catching her breath, she stared at the phone’s screen and neither of them looked away.
* * *
“That’s a bit better,” he said softly as he looked at her in the camera and waited for her to take the photo. He pulled her hair aside and rested his chin on her shoulder that he had so delicately kissed not long ago and had haunted his memory.
“That’s much better,” he whispered and held her gently with an arm around her waist to keep her from falling off the seat. He made sure that she rested against his chest as he leaned forward.
“Katherine, you look gorgeous, but nervous. Relax, my little princess,” he whispered in her ear softly as his eyes watched her reflection. He could feel her heart pounding against his chest.
“Take the picture, Sweetheart,” he said, smiling at the image of the two of them on her phone screen. They looked like a couple, like lovers. It was damned near perfect.
* * *
Taking the photo, her heart was ready to explode in her chest at the pet name he had called her. She found her hand shook and needed to take it again. “Darn it! I’m sorry,” she apologized. Her hand was trembling as much as the rest of her body was at his touch.
* * *
“Shhh, it’s no problem. This time, try to relax,” he chided gently with a tender smile. “You look alarmed. Am I too close?” He breathed, closing his eyes for a second. He had wanted to hold her again all week and she was finally in his arms.
“Let’s take a few pictures. Memories,” he suggested not ready to let her go just yet or break the moment. It felt so right having Katherine in his arms, against his body.
Nodding, she was unsure if she could speak with him so close and holding her. Katherine looked at the phone, once again, to put them back into the frame. Lining it up, both smiled and she pressed the button.
Surprised, she felt him tug her baseball cap to the side. He laughed, breaking the
tension as he turned his sideways. He made a silly face, crossing his eyes. The phone screen cut off the bill of both hats due to the width. However, clicking the button a few times captured a candid moment of them laughing together. “That’s a good one for Leslie,” she heard him say.
* * *
“One more, just for me?” Alex asked gently, removing her hat and turning his own hat around to put the baseball cap bill behind him. Taking the phone from Katherine, he held it up and looked at it to put them in the sights of the lens.
* * *
Seeing him hesitate, Katherine looked at him questioningly as he held her phone above the canoe. Seeing him in the tiny screen with an intense look on his face, she turned to him. Alex took that moment to duck his head and captured her lips in a kiss. His mouth was so warm and tender, silently coaxing her into a bewitching kiss. She felt him taste her and thought she would melt into the water cradling the boat as his hand stole up to cup her face gently.
“Holy smokes,” she said as he finally broke the tender moment they shared. He leaned down and gave her another quick kiss as she saw his beguiling, satisfied smile.
“I was thinking the same thing,” he said, a bit dazed. He was surprised at the strength it took to pull back from her and hoped his hand hadn’t moved the phone too much. “Send the one photo to Leslie, but let’s keep that one between us,” he offered, smoothing her hair back and putting the baseball cap back upon her head to protect the fair skin and freckles that tempted him.
* * *
Katherine nodded and moved back into her seat carefully as to not upset the small canoe. She watched as he sat back and laughed in surprise, staring off at the water in the distance.
“I think I got a bite,” he said with a wide grin and pointed at the rod that floated several feet away from them. “Must have pulled it right out without me noticing since I was distracted so sweetly,” he said with a wink and grabbed the oars, sliding them into the water and moving the canoe towards the fishing rod in order to retrieve it.
The two sat silent for a bit, while Alex checked the hook and put more bait on it. Casting it once again, he noticed she was studying her phone.
* * *
“How do they look?” he prompted. She had a flushed look on her face and he was pretty sure that it had nothing to do with the temperature. The sun was warm, but his body burned from a fire she had started when they kissed.
* * *
“They look … well they look like a pair of lovers,” she said breathlessly. “They are intense honestly.” Steamy! Sexy! I want to do it again and I’m nervous to! she thought wildly. Her heartbeat thudded against her chest at the thought of being pulled into his arms once more.
* * *
“Great,” he said with a wide satisfied grin. “Can I see or are you holding out on me?” he taunted playfully.
* * *
“I’m not sure. The last time I gave you my phone you kissed me,” she teased in order to break some of the sexual tension she was picking up between them… otherwise, she’d have to invite him to do it again. She was playing a dangerous game with this gorgeous man.
* * *
Alex laughed. “Just think! If it takes getting your phone away from you to kiss me – what is it going to take to get you to do it again?” he said, wagging his eyebrows suggestively and then he winked at her.
Katherine didn’t answer and blushed wildly. Probably wouldn’t take much if you wanted to kiss me, she thought and looked away from his smiling face.
* * *
Grinning because he knew she liked it as much as he did, he watched her expressive face turn pink and let the matter drop for now. He still wanted to see the photos and would ask later on. He didn’t want to push too hard and figured he had done enough already and was glad of it.
Whistling happily, he cast his line in the water once again and held the wet fishing rod in his lap. He reached for a Coke from the small cooler under her bench. He hoped the wet fishing rod would maybe cool his own rod that was straining against his jeans. Alex handed her a cold can of Coke without a word and took one for himself, quite satisfied with the morning’s events. He’d kissed her and her response had been quite telling! He would win her over and their game had just begun.
* * *
The morning gave way to afternoon, and Alex noticed it took a little bit to get Katherine to open up again. Maybe she was shy or didn’t know how to handle the attention? He ended up teasing her and telling a few corny jokes until she laughed. “That’s my girl,” he said happily. “Relax, Katherine, you seem uptight,” he said giving her a quick tap onto the bill of her hat.
Reaching up, she barely caught the hat and rolled her eyes. “You know, it could have fallen in the water?”
“And I would have given you mine. I’m not going to let you burn but I am determined to get you to be free with me and unwind. You seem really tense since I kissed you,” he said, picking back up the oars, ready to head back towards the house. They had caught several fish this morning and it had been a perfect day with her. He wanted to sweep Katherine off her feet and had plans to make it happen.
“Are you upset I kissed you?” he asked, almost concerned she would say yes and that he had misread the signs from her.
* * *
Katherine looked away from his handsome face and intense eyes. “No,” she said, embarrassed at the pointed question.
“Good, because I plan on doing it again,” Alex admitted bluntly and helped her out of the canoe, mincing no words between them. When she didn’t respond, he simply gathered up their cooler and the fish. He waved her forward and followed her back up to the house, watching the sway of her backside as she walked.
* * *
Katherine wasn’t sure how to respond. Would it have been appropriate for to yell “do it” and kiss him again? While he fascinated her and attracted her, the last thing she wanted to be was another notch on a bedpost. Facing the facts, the man was incredibly sexy and had women throwing themselves at him all the time. What on earth would he want her for? Shaking her head at the lack of confidence in herself, she sighed and stepped away. She returned to her private room to clean up…and think.
13
She found herself walking the grounds for quite some time when she could not unwind. Lying in her room, she had let her mind wander and it drifted off to wild scenes that involved their kiss going much further than she would have ever thought. Her body aching for something to relieve the tension, she slid out her bedroom door and exited the house down a side staircase for some privacy.
While she had adored their week together, she had two more with him if she chose and the days were full of unspoken promise. He had already told her that there would be another kiss between them and that he wanted a relationship, but how far would it go? Would she be hurt in the end? Katherine felt incredibly naïve because she had never really dealt with situations like this and had avoided relationships entirely for some time.
Now, she had one blossoming in front of her very own eyes.
* * *
The warm, late afternoon sun beat down on Katherine as she walked along the garden pathway. She was leisurely looking at the flowers but not really seeing them. She found herself back towards the wooden platform that served as a dock for the canoe. The same dock that they had just used that morning. Staring at the water, she felt his lips again on hers and closed her eyes, feeling the breeze blow over her.
The peaceful surroundings did not match the chaos in her mind and body. The wind caressed her and made Katherine wonder what Alex’s hand would feel like doing the same. The sun warmed her skin and she thought of his body hot against hers.
Katherine felt intense desire wrack her body as she pictured the two of them intimately entwined and imagined the feelings that would create. She felt a hot, electric rush in her loins and wanted to relieve that tension in some way. Feeling a bead of sweat run down her chest, she pinched the fabric of her shirt and waved it. Anything in order to create
a breeze and space between her aching body, fabric and the hot air.
Incredibly heated, she turned to walk back towards the house to swim in the pool and stopped suddenly. She was perfectly alone, why not take advantage of the cool water in front of her? Looking around, she saw that house in the distance, the fences and trees blocking the road’s view. You couldn’t even see a car through the tight foliage! Why should she be concerned? Throwing caution to the wind, Katherine practically laughed at herself and hesitation, or lack of it.
Who would see you?
No one? Alex?
Would that even be so terrible?
No…
* * *
Decision made, Katherine bravely peeled the cargo pants from her body and dropped them on the wooden dock. She felt decadent stripping off her clothing outside in the late afternoon. She shrugged out of her blouse and slipped into the water eagerly. The cool water was both a shock and an intense rush to her throbbing body. Her nipples ached from how tight they were and strained against the fabric of her bra, but she refused to remove it. The wild child in her got her in the water, but the modest part of her would not do so nude.
Swimming for a bit, Katherine heard her phone chime and jumped. Having no idea if it was Leslie or Alex, she decided she would prefer not to be caught in her skivvies out in the pond. Feeling a bit better and the thought of upcoming company, she moved to exit the pond. As she began to climb onto the dock, she stopped suddenly as she spied him. Alex stood between her and the house, watching her, his phone in his hand.
Romancing the Fangirl Page 9
