Gaming Grace

by Piper J. Drake

  “Thanks.” He made a few selections based on location and weather. “Our mission is... to get wet.”

  His voice was enough to accomplish that for her. Heat flashed across her face. She glanced at him to make sure she hadn’t said that particular thought out loud. It hadn’t even been in Aubrey’s voice.

  He met her glance, showing no signs of being aware of her very uncharacteristic thought process. “Water slides or surfing. Your choice.”

  “We could just jump in the pool or one of the hot tubs.” Those were calm, easy options.

  He grinned at her. “Maybe later. We’re going to kick this off with something a little zany. Okay?”

  “I guess? I’ve never tried either of those.” She hadn’t even realized this ship had those activities.

  He pushed away from the door jamb and held out his hand to her. “Come have fun with me, Grace. Please?”

  Any lingering resistance she had to going outside her comfort zone melted, right there. Also, they should just tap the mission complete button because her bikini bottoms were definitely wet.

  Bryan scored two lounge chairs within view of the water slides just as he was coming back from getting towels for himself and Grace. He turned, scanning the ship deck for Grace, so he could wave her over and when he caught sight of her, the towels fell from his nerveless grasp.

  She stood in the outdoor shower next to the pool, rinsing. Water droplets sparkled in the sunlight and ran over her smooth skin. He wondered what it’d be like to do the same, run his hands over her and tease her until ... Damn, he was jealous of water.

  He wasn’t sure what color her swimsuit had been dry, but wet, it was the crystal blue green of the Caribbean waters they were sailing toward. It was nice against the light sand shade of her skin and he hoped she had sunblock to protect herself until she had a chance to acclimate to the sun. He should offer to apply some for her. For her protection. Absolutely.

  She stepped out of the shower then, and a crew member offered her a fresh towel, the dazzled look on his face getting even dopier when she gave him her sweet smile.

  Bryan scowled. He’d seen the same crew member ogling a couple of other women not five minutes ago. He hadn’t thought much of it considering how much the women were putting themselves out there for everyone to see. Nothing wrong with a little mutual appreciation. All’s fair when everyone is playing the game.

  But Grace wasn’t out to tease or tempt anyone deliberately. Fine, and he’d be honest with himself at least. She was with him.

  He pulled off his shirt and left it on the lounge chairs with the towels to indicate they were taken, then strode toward the shower. Sure he was giving in to the tiny caveman part of his brain, but he was also giving Grace choices. She deserved to have her pick.

  She caught sight of him as he approached and the blush he liked so much stained her cheeks again. Grace blushed a lot around him. He grinned.

  “Mind if I join you?” He waited, and hoped. This might be coming on a little too strong for her, but she had instigated their kiss last night and he’d been on his best behavior this morning.

  Grace didn’t speak, but she stepped a little further into the shower stall, making room for him.

  He reached out for the towel she was holding and took it from her, hanging it on a hook on the outside of the stall, next to her dress. Then he eased into the shower stall and braced his hands on the glass walls to either side of her, leaning in until his head was under the shower. He closed his eyes and gave Grace a second or two to get used to his proximity, then he stepped in closer and straightened, running a hand over his face to wipe the water from his eyes.

  Grace wasn’t plastered against the wall of the shower, so that was a good sign. She was wide-eyed and watching him, not looking down or away. She had a shy smile for him when she met his gaze directly and heat spread through his chest in a way he’d never experienced before. He liked that she wasn’t trying to hide her interest, but she was also giving him all of the spray from the shower.

  “Would you help me rinse my back?” As he turned away from her, he stepped forward so she’d have to come under the shower to reach him. A second later, her fingertips traced heat across his skin as she brushed water over his back. He closed his eyes and decided to enjoy just the simplicity of her touch. “A lot of people seem to use these to rinse the pool chemicals off but I’m used to rinsing before too. It’s too bad there’s no soap in these showers to get really clean before people get into the pools.”

  “I try not to think about it too hard.” Grace’s voice floated over his shoulder, cheerful and practical despite her lingering shyness. “I personally like the idea of washing away all the sweat and oils before getting into pools or hot tubs.”

  Timing it so her hands were still on him as he turned, he faced her. “It might be just as well that there’s no soap though.”

  She froze, but didn’t take her hands off his chest. “Really?”

  He gave her a slow smile, wanting her to be completely aware of how attracted to her he was now that she’d had a chance to settle into being near him. “The idea of soaping you up is way too tempting and I wouldn’t care about how many people could see.”

  If she’d been softly blushing this whole time, now her cheeks burned deep rose pink. Her lips parted and she stuttered before she got out her reply, “I’m not into public displays of affection.”

  But she hadn’t nixed the idea of him lathering soap all over her. Delighted, he stepped back out of the shower. “Noted. Let’s hit the slides before I forget why we’re here.”

  She turned off the water. “Okay.”

  Maybe she sounded disappointed, or a little lost. He wasn’t sure. But her smile had faded and he didn’t like that.

  “I was honest about needing to test the app.” He grabbed the towel off the hook and draped it over her shoulders. “And I wouldn’t want to mislead you, however unintentionally. So let’s enjoy the slides and go with whatever happens next.”

  He thought she mouthed the last words he’d said but he didn’t hear her. Instead she gathered the towel around her and nodded.

  “I’ve got a couple more towels for us over there.”

  He reached up and plucked her very pretty sun dress from the hook on the outside of the shower, then flipped the dress over his shoulder. “Wouldn’t want this to get too wet.”

  She smiled up at him, shyer. “Thanks.”

  Crew guy? What crew guy?

  Bryan steered her toward the lounge chairs. “Want a drink first or are you ready for a first go at the slides?”

  She glanced toward the slides just as two people shot out the end of the slide, screaming and laughing as their tube skimmed over the top of the water for a few seconds before they bailed out with a huge splash.

  “Umm.” She hesitated.

  “There’s no rush.” He waved at a different crew member, this one carrying a tray full of pineapples topped with pink paper umbrellas. “Try one of these.”

  “What’s in it?” It took her both hands to hold the thing.

  He marveled at how she managed to be incredibly cute and sexy at the same time. Then she took a deep breath and nommed the straw, taking a big sip and his cock literally jumped.

  He laughed. “Take it easy. I don’t know exactly but I’m absolutely sure there’s booze in there and they mix the drinks strong on this ship.”

  She released the straw. “I love pineapple. Whatever it is, they managed the flavors in the mix just right. This is delicious.”

  “And dangerous.” Which he usually didn’t mind because there was nothing wrong with uninhibited fun. He’d tumbled into bed with plenty of inebriated partners in the past, but he got the impression Grace might not discard her inhibitions quite as often as them.

  She sighed. “True. But I’m also not going to drink from it again once I put it down, so I’ll have another sip before we go for the slide.”

  “Why?” He was surprised. She didn’t seem like the type to wast
e a drink either. Finish your plate and all that.

  It was her turn to give him a raised eyebrow. “There’s all kinds of danger. Nobody should trust a drink they didn’t have in hand the whole time. Too many instances where people are slipped something in their drink. If you think you aren’t at risk, you’d be wrong.”

  “You have a good point.” He nodded. “Actually, I’ll confess. I never thought about it for myself. It makes sense for ladies, sure, but I’ve always assumed I didn’t have anything to worry about.”

  “Unwise assumption.” Her tone was firm.

  Assertive Grace was every bit as attractive as shy Grace and he wondered how many more facets he could draw out of her this morning.

  “Okay.” She put her pineapple down on a table between their lounge chairs and kicked off her flats. “Let’s do this.”

  5

  “Grace!” Liv smiled at her and Grace was relieved to see her friend looking more ... at ease? Not quite, but something. Color was back in her face as compared to yesterday and she wasn’t as tense as she had been this morning. In fact, she had a glow about her.

  Aubrey lay in a lounge chair next to Liv and raised her drink. “What are you drinking, girl? We’ve got a dreamy crewman and he has been making sure we are never in need of a fresh glass.”

  Grace smiled, “I’ve had one already.”

  Aubrey sat up. “One. You’ve had one. How many hours ago?”

  “Not long.” Grace honestly had no idea what time it was. “Where’s Kendall?”

  They’d all promised Kendall they’d meet by the pools, hadn’t they? Grace’s morning with Bryan had gone by in a rush of water slides and laughter and she’d lost track of time. She’d had fun. She’d gone on the slides way more times than she’d have thought she would and she’d really been a little loathe to stop. But Bryan had wrapped a towel around her and stated she was starting to look a little blue around the lips so he’d recommended they lay in the sun a while to warm up.

  That’s when she’d remembered she should look for her friends. A pang of guilt hit her right in the chest. She’d come on this vacation to reconnect with all of them. So far, she hadn’t made the effort to give real time to any of them but Kendall and with Kendall, their time early this morning had been focused on finding clothes for Grace.

  Selfish.

  So she’d left Bryan on the other end of the ship and come hurrying to meet the few people she’d maintained friendships with through the years since college. Even as she got close, they caught sight of her and waved her over with smiles. Grace’s heart expanded. No fuss and no drama, just a relaxed friendly welcome. She needed to do more for her friends because they might not realize it, but each of them being themselves was doing her an entire world of good.

  Benjamin patted the lounge chair between him and Liv. “Come lay down, let the sun melt away whatever thoughts are running through your head.”

  Grace sat on the end of the lounger and slipped her sun dress over her head.

  Aubrey took a sip of her drink and nodded. “Definitely a good thing to free your thighs.”

  “Stooooop.” Grace shot Aubrey a look, but she couldn’t bring herself to be truly angry at Aubrey. If Aubrey hadn’t stolen all Grace’s pants, Bryan wouldn’t have looked at Grace the way he had today.

  And if Grace had been wearing pants, she wouldn’t have the memory of Bryan’s fingertips brushing over her hip here and there through the morning. He’d kept his touches light and not too naughty, but she’d been hungry for more.

  She just hadn’t quite gotten to the point where she was ready to extend an invitation yet. In the past, her partners had always been the ones to initiate everything. Kisses. Touches. Sex. All she’d had to do was say yes or no.

  Bryan was infuriating, in a way. He had to know she was interested. He’d made it clear he was interested too. Hard not to notice with both of them in swimsuits. But he hadn’t made a definitive move. He hadn’t asked or invited her to his room. He’d just given her that devilish grin of his with heat in his eyes and her nipples tightened just thinking about the way he made her feel when he looked at her.

  “Grace, darling,” Benjamin called to her as if she’d been far away instead of sitting right there with her sun dress a puddle of fabric in her lap. “Where is your mind right now and what have you been up to this morning?”

  Grace stared at Benjamin wide-eyed. “I checked out the water slides.”

  Liv looked at her from over her sunglasses. “Who are you and what have you done with our Grace?”

  Aubrey hiccuped into her drink, probably hiding a laugh.

  “Can I get you a drink?” A crewman bent into her line of sight, holding a tray and generally giving her his best smolder look.

  Aubrey was right, he was attractive, but he had nowhere near the presence Bryan had.

  And why was Bryan stuck in her head now?

  Grace closed her eyes, trying to think straight, then she smiled up at the crewman. “Can I have one of those amazing pineapples filled with the frozen cocktail?”

  “Sure. I’ll get one for you.” The crew member walked away, seemingly not fazed at all that she hadn’t responded more strongly to his smolder. Just another day on this singles cruise.

  “Grace.” Aubrey called her out. “There is definitely something changing you.”

  Grace stilled. “Bad?”

  “No!” All of them replied in unison, decisively.

  The crewmember came back with her pineapple, a cute blue umbrella stuck in the top next to the straw. Grace thanked him and took a long sip.

  “Okay, look.” Grace turned to her friends. “This guy caught a video of me with no pants out in the hallway...”

  It took a lot less time than she thought to explain what happened. They were all sitting forward, paying attention, and Grace wondered if she’d ever stop blushing as Aubrey prompted her to share every detail of what’d gone on between Grace and Bryan so far.

  The pineapple was empty by the time she was finishing up. “So the water slides were way more fun than I thought they’d be. We went on them over and over together and the water was a little colder than the normal pools but his hands were so warm and he stopped me from getting another pineapple after because I hadn’t had lunch but I came over here and this pineapple is magic. By the way, he kissed me goodbye and he is so amazingly hot and how is one supposed to invite a guy to hook up anyway?”

  They were all staring at her. Aubrey’s mouth was literally hanging open.

  “Do you have any condoms, Grace?” Benjamin reached over and took the pineapple from her.

  Grace would’ve protested but she was working out the question. “Why do I need condoms to hook up?”

  Aubrey didn’t even wait a beat to respond. “Sex.”

  Grace scowled. “Sex is not included in hooking up. Kissing. Maybe some heavy petting. I guess a finger counts as penetration?”

  Liv stared at her.

  Grace stared back.

  Aubrey spit out a general curse.

  Benjamin just groaned and laid back like he had a headache.

  If Kendall had been there, she’d have sided with Grace for sure. Maybe.

  “What?” Grace blew out a breath in a long stream, blowing the errant strand of hair out of her eyes. Normally, she’d be irritated with their reactions but she was in a fairly accepting mindset at the moment and fine, what she might have had stuck in her head might be terribly naive. Whatever. “Hooking up means sex, doesn’t it?”

  Aubrey snickered.

  Liv smiled, and Grace wondered when her friend had ever looked so like a cat ready to pounce. “Do you want sex?”

  “I am not a virginal innocent, however antiquated my concepts of interaction might be.” Grace sat up straight. “I simply need to update my terminology and yes, I definitely want to have sex with him. I just haven’t told him yet.”

  Bryan wasn’t looking for Grace. He wasn’t. He’d come up to the suite to rinse off and change into dry clothe
s. A comfortable pair of shorts and a button down linen shirt were the easiest to put on before he wandered into the suite lounge for a coffee and a selection of snacks.

  He was considering what he’d do for a real lunch when he glanced out the windows looking out over the sun and pool decks below. There was Grace, laying on a lounge chair among a handful of people, all of them actively chatting.

  Grace had another one of those pineapples in hand.

  She couldn’t have had time to stop anywhere to grab anything substantial to eat and still be that settled in to hang out with her friends. Any of the main eateries on the ship were on different decks and would’ve taken time to get to them, eat, and return.

  He wrestled with whether he should go down there and steal Grace away to make sure she had a solid lunch. Otherwise, those pineapple cocktails would become a problem.

  No. He shouldn’t, for a lot of reasons. He needed to brain dump notes on their experience using the app from the morning at the slides. The images had turned out great, though Grace had made a few shrewd suggestions to add filters similar to other social media apps and add functionality to share across to other apps with a watermark on the images for organic exposure. He wanted to get the user experience feedback to Charlie each day so his developer could collate the feedback and start brainstorming possibilities for functionality updates as soon as possible.

  He wondered if he could also get Charlie to download the images. Making new acquaintances was easy for Bryan, honestly. Definitely an arrogant thing to say, but also simple truth. His family was reasonably well known in Thailand. There were always social climbers trying to get to know him. When he traveled, like this, he had enough social skills to join groups if he wanted or charm a lady into giving him her exclusive attention for a bit. But this morning, with Grace, he liked these images. He kept thumbing through them in the app on his phone and it wasn’t just because he was testing the app functionality.

  After this week, he might want to look back and remember Grace. He wanted to keep enjoying the bright energy of her smile and the effervescent energy she projected when she was having fun. His favorites were the short videos, where he could see her in motion and hear her laugh.