There. She’d gotten the memory out. It was one she’d never shared with any of her friends because they had already been upset about Grace’s mother insisting Grace shouldn’t wear shorts. Grace loved her family and yes, some of their opinions about body image were out of control, but Grace was an adult and she was mostly fine with what she looked like. Mostly.
She was about to undress in front of Bryan and the lights were on and she got the impression he was the kind of partner who took his time. That was something she wasn’t sure she could manage without her insecurities crashing through all her mental defenses.
Bryan held out his hand, palm up. After a moment, Grace placed her hand in his. He turned her hand over slowly and brushed his lips over her knuckles. Just like that, she was trembling and needy for him. “You are beautiful and it’s fun to pick you up, in every sense of the phrase. I’ll do it a lot more if you give me the chance this week.”
She huffed out a laugh. “I’m already on the bed and I’d like to stay here a while.”
That could be interpreted in a couple of different ways. She clamped her mouth shut. It was one thing to be here to sleep with him and a totally different thing to invite herself to stay the night.
But he only kissed the back of her hand again. “And here I was making nefarious plans to please you and order room service to tempt you into staying long enough for me to try pleasing you again.”
She bit her lip. “Well, if you’re ordering room service.”
He laughed and the sound of it rolled over her, deeper than he’d sounded in the light of day, more sinful. “Can I make you more comfortable, Grace?”
Every time he said her name, it felt like a caress. She took a leap of faith, because she believed he really could make her feel more comfortable inside her own skin. “Yes.”
He removed her shoes, one at a time. His hands coasted up the backs of her calves as he rose and kissed her into laying back on the bed. Bracing his hands on either side of her, he covered her with his body. The weight of him felt glorious and she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck as he continued to kiss her, unhurried and wonderful. When he slid his knee between her legs, she clenched her thighs, and a whimper escaped her. He dipped his head, kissing the side of her throat in answer, then trailed more kisses over her collar bone until his breath was hot over the curve of her breast.
“Grace.” His voice had gone rough. “Can I see?”
“Yes.”
It took every ounce of self control he had not to rip her clothes off her body. Need raged through him and his erection was almost painful, but he sure as hell was going to make sure Grace was with him every step of the way here. He did his best to be gentle as he unzipped her skirt and pulled it down her legs. She sat up as he did, and he had to rush to take her silky top off before she did it herself. “Let me. Okay?”
“Okay.” Her acquiescence was so sweet, so trusting.
He kissed her again, couldn’t get enough of the taste of her. When both of them were breathing hard, he tasted her neck again as he undid her bra. Or tried.
She giggled as he muffled a curse into her shoulder.
Damn bra hooks never came undone without a fight.
He kissed away her laughter. “I don’t know how you can do this all the time.”
“Practice.” She almost sang the word. “Makes perfect.”
He planned to get a lot more practice with Grace’s clothing, specifically.
Finally, he got the hooks undone without hurting her, and he tossed her bra off the side of the bed. He paused then, taking in the sight of her laying on the bed under him. Her hair was spread around her face and her smooth skin was almost glowing in the faint light from the sitting room. Her breasts were exposed and she was still laughing. She was gorgeous.
Before she could get self conscious, he cupped her breasts in his hands, and he was gratified when she gasped and arched into his palms. He caressed first, then squeezed until she clutched at his arms. Chuckling, he bent and flicked the tip of one nipple with the tip of his tongue. She almost bucked underneath him. “So sensitive.”
She whimpered.
He groaned. He had intended to take his time, but he wanted her so bad. He closed his mouth over her tight nipple and sucked, then he did the same to her other nipple. She was writhing by the time he lifted his head, her pink nipples wet and shiny from his attention.
“Bryan,” she whispered. “You need to take off those clothes. Please?”
He pushed back, standing at the edge of the bed, and stripped. She watched with hunger in her gaze and he wondered if he ever felt so appreciated. Her gaze took him in from head to toe, then came back up to linger on his erection. Her lips parted and he thought he’d lose it right there. No. That was going to have to wait. Grace needed to come first. Literally.
He leaned forward, sliding his hands along her calves until he had the backs of her knees, then he tugged until she slid closer to him with a squeak, her hips almost over the edge of the bed. Then he knelt and pressed her knees wide enough apart for his shoulders to fit between them. “I think you’re wet for me, Grace. Are you?”
He didn’t wait for an answer, instead meeting her gaze and reaching up to run a fingertip over the satin of her panties. Her cheeks darkened to a hot pink as he touched damp fabric.
“Hot.” He pressed a kiss over the fabric of her panties. “So hot.”
He slipped his thumb along the edge of the bit of fabric separating him from her and pulled the satin aside. He leaned in close and blew hot air over her delectable flesh. She made a sound and lay back, a wordless yes, he thought.
“Tell me if I do anything you don’t like.”
It was all he could get out before he tasted her. She bucked again and he slipped his hands under her bottom to support her. He licked first, taking his time and learning exactly what sounds she could make as he did. Then he sucked and decided he liked her hands in his hair, urging him to keep going. He released her just enough to change his grip, holding one hip steady as he traced the lines of her sweet flesh with a fingertip. He slid one finger inside her as he circled her clit with the tip of his tongue. She was tight, so hot and tight.
She called out. No words, just pleasure.
He sealed his mouth over her clit and sucked as he pumped his finger inside her and she came with an unrestrained cry. Holding her, he stroked and petted her though her orgasm, easing her. Then he rose up, grabbed a condom from where he’d dropped several on the bedspread, and unwrapped one. He quickly rolled the protection over the length of his cock and climbed over her on the bed.
“Grace.”
She lifted her lashes, her eyes slowly focusing on him.
“Can I?”
Her arms came around his neck and she gave him the sweetest smile as she pulled him down to her. “Yes.”
He groaned and reached down, guiding himself into her. She took him, stretching to accommodate him, and he gritted his teeth to go slow. “You feel so good.”
She kissed him in response. He moved inside her then, pulling out and thrusting back into her slow to give her time to get used to him. Her hands gripped him, fingers digging into his shoulders. Her inner muscles clenched around him and he picked up the pace. Every time he slid into her, pleasure exploded, and his thoughts fractured until there was nothing but the feel of her. She wrapped her legs around him, lifting her hips to meet him, and he lost his ever-loving mind.
When he came, it was with her calling out his name.
10
There was definitely some benefit to the concept of wild and crazy vacation time. Grace sat at one of the beach side bars and reflected on her morning. She’d spent a glorious night with Bryan and the two of them had gone through the whole handful of condoms. He’d been true to his word about room service, and catching a few hours of sleep tucked against his side had been really nice. More than nice. He’d even woken up to walk her to her cabin before dawn with only a teasing grumble.
She’d popp
ed into her room for a quick shower and change, then caught up with Kendall. It was good to check in with at least one of her friends. Kendall looked happy, more relaxed than she had in a long time, and the glowy effect she had going on had amped up significantly when Alex had arrived on the beach.
Was Grace really looking glowy too? Kendall had said so this morning. The thought of it tickled Grace. Maybe this whole break from the responsibilities of the real world was doing them both a world of good. Or maybe it was the sex. Could be both.
Kendall was definitely about to get some. Grace wasn’t actually sure what, out here on the beach with people everywhere, but Grace sincerely hoped Kendall continued to enjoy herself. Every woman deserved to have a man look at her the way Alex was looking at Kendall before they’d wandered off together. In the meantime, Grace could remain at the beach side bar until she finished her own drink. There was still some time until she was supposed to meet up with Bryan and she wasn’t sure if she was too eager to go find him. They’d spent the whole night together, after all. She ached for him already. It hadn’t been as strong a feeling while she’d been focusing on Kendall, but out here alone? She was missing Bryan.
Bad. She had it real bad.
“They have the pineapples filled with frozen magic, if you want one.”
Grace hid a smile as she sipped from the glass of completely non-alcoholic pineapple juice she had in hand. She’d figured she might be drinking later, so she’d gone for hydration instead of pre-gaming with Kendall. Besides, she liked having control of all her faculties in public, at least until Bryan was there. It was a relief to know she wasn’t the only one eager to meet up again. She liked that way more than made any kind of sense.
“You found me.” She slipped off the bar stool and stepped into his arms.
He wrapped her in a hug and tucked her head under his chin. “I thought you and your friends might be enjoying the beach. I can disappear for a while longer if you need more time.”
It felt so right standing there like that. She’d known him for what? Three days? She wanted this for a lot longer than just a few more days beyond today.
“Kendall and I were on the beach for a bit. Everyone is doing their own thing now.” She pulled back so she could look up at him. “What’s the app challenge for today?”
His eyes sparkled with mischief as he produced his smartphone. “Let’s take a look. Since we’re ashore, I connected for mobile data. Users of the app don’t have to but if they do, the app should load activities specific to location based on GPS.”
She leaned in to get a look at the updated interface. “You could add links out to the user’s preferred map application too. If they’re anything like me, having a map to get you from point A to point B would save a lot of time and confusion.”
“Good point.” He briefly swiped out of his game app to capture notes on her feedback, then returned to his app. “So we’ve got a couple of choices. What do you think?”
There were some ambiguous one off challenges but they felt like things anyone could do as easily on the ship as at port. Grace pointed to a combo challenge. “Let’s try this land and sea double point challenge.”
“Look at you getting ambitious.” He tapped the challenge with his thumb and the details of the challenge came up.
The challenge required them to ride the waves without a boat, then hide from the sun on land.
“Hmm.” She considered the possibilities. “Without a boat seems to leave a lot of choices still. There’s water skiing and parasailing, but I’ll be honest, I’ve never been particularly interested in either. Plus, they sort of require a boat even if we’re not riding waves directly in a boat.”
“Following rules to the letter, I see. How about jet skis. Ever try those?” Bryan jerked his head in the direction of several at the edge of the beach, just a short walk away.
“I haven’t.” She wasn’t sure it’d be a good idea. “I”m going to confess, I was never good at riding a bicycle, much less anything like that. I spend too much time looking around and tend to run into whatever is right in front of me.”
Bryan laughed and tightened his arms around her for a second before loosening his hold again. “We’ll get one together and I’ll drive until we get farther out. Then we can switch once we’re far enough out not to worry about running up on a sandbar, and you can give it a try. How’s that sound?”
“I’m game.” She was excited to try, actually, and surprised by her own feelings. She’d never been interested before but he made doing things sound fun, rather than exhausting. “But it’s expensive, isn’t it?”
She could afford it, but it seemed like a lot for less than a half hour of activity.
“I’m happy to pay for the jet skis. We’re testing my app, after all.” He hesitated. “Or we can choose something else in the app if you feel more comfortable. I made sure the app had choices to accommodate different price ranges. Every day has challenges that can be accomplished at no cost for the activity, if people get creative.”
“That’s a good consideration.” She looked over at the jet skis. “I never did them before, even growing up in New Jersey, where a lot of my friends went down the shore all the time. It just seemed like a big expenditure for just a short time out on the water and nothing to show for it after.”
“Is something tangible necessary?” Bryan traced a fingertip in a line down her shoulder to her elbow and back up again. His touch left a line of warmth on her skin in its wake.
“I always thought a tee shirt was a good investment because I could wear it again.” She decided to try copying him, drawing her own line along his arm. He made a sound deep in the back of his throat, low enough for only her to hear. She would take that as a good sound. “I could get several tees for the price my friends paid for a jet ski ride out on the water for just a couple of minutes of fun. Then their fun was over and I had my tees to remember the day by.”
“That’s very solid reasoning, but how many of those tees do you still have now? And how clearly do you still remember your friends out on the water, experiencing something you opted not to try?” Bryan traced a line over her collar bone this time, raising his eyebrow.
She copied his move again, and let her fingertips wander up the strong column of his neck to play with the tips of his hair just behind one ear. “None. I didn’t keep any of those tees past high school. And I do still remember the happy expressions on my friends’ faces while they were out there. Their smiles didn’t fade for hours after.”
Bryan nodded, catching her hand in his and kissing her fingertips. “If it’s not a question of whether you can afford it or not—and I do acknowledge that should be a consideration first—then it’s about whether the experience is worth it. Sometimes the act of doing a thing, experiencing it first hand and seeing it, touching it, tasting it, hearing it, smelling it, is priceless. The memories will come back randomly when you least expect it and you’ll at least know you lived. I’m willing to argue that experiences are far more valuable than a practical item that’ll sit in your drawer or gather dust on a shelf.”
He was larger than life, standing out here with her, bathed in tropical sunlight. His words were compelling and everything about his expression, even the way he was leaning slightly forward, added to his impact. At the moment, he could talk her into anything.
Besides, those tees had ended up in a donation box the minute she’d moved on to the next major stage in her life. She didn’t want this moment, or any more she spent with Bryan, to disappear when she moved on to whatever came next.
She didn’t want to regret any second of this. “Let’s go.”
“Mission accomplished! Woo!”
Bryan concentrated on bringing the jet ski up beside the small dock as Grace celebrated behind him. Her jubilant announcement brought on a round of applause from the men on the dock, her bright happiness contagious no matter how hot it was or how intense the sun was overhead. Speaking of which, they’d been out on the water for an hour and n
o sunscreen in the world was good enough to protect Grace’s delicate skin from the harsh salt and UV rays this far south.
Growing up in Thailand, he’d seen far too many Korean and Japanese visitors burn in less time on the beaches of Phuket and Pattaya. There’d been Americans and Europeans too, but Grace’s skin tone was a closer match to her East Asian heritage despite her growing up in the US.
One of the dock workers held out a hand to help Grace step off the jet ski and back onto the dock. Bryan wasn’t usually a jealous man, but he suddenly found himself wrestling with the urge to shove the other man away from her in a surge of testosterone. He made sure he got himself onto the dock without tripping or otherwise making a fool of himself and was rewarded for his restraint with an armful of Grace as she hugged him. He glanced over her shoulder at the other man standing with his hand still out, holding empty air, and got a nod of rueful acknowledgment from the guy.
One interesting aspect about Grace was that she had no idea how much of a delight she was or, apparently, how many bruised egos and broken hearts she left blithely in her wake. Bryan shook his head and decided she’d worry too much if he brought it to her attention. Instead, he shrugged out of his life preserver and helped her with hers, then handed both to the manager of the jet skis.
“So much fun!” she laughed and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.”
Her skin was cool to the touch, not a surprise since they’d been out on the water. But it was a reminder that she’d warm up soon and he definitely didn’t want her to suffer sunburn.
“What do you say we head back up the beach?” He had a surprise planned for her and now was a great time to spring it.
“Is there food involved?” The tone of her voice was so wistful, her eyes opened wide and hopeful.
He laughed. “Absolutely.”
Her face lit up and she tucked her hand in the crook of his arm. He led the way and decided arranging surprises for her made this working vacation above and beyond the best he’d ever had. His was a life of privilege, of that, he was completely aware. Either Grace wasn’t fazed by it or it hadn’t quite sunk in with her yet. But he’d gone on plenty of luxe vacations throughout his childhood and into adulthood. As commercialized as this cruise destination was, there wasn’t a lot he hadn’t seen before, multiple times. If he was being honest, he’d been spoiled both as a child and as a young adult.
Gaming Grace Page 9
