by Renee, Holly
I couldn’t help but laugh at the concern on his face. “It’s fine.”
We made our way onto the dock, and three sets of eyes turned in our direction.
“Guys, this is Maddison. Maddison, this is Ben, Oliver, and my brother, Luke.” He pointed to each one as he spoke, and I took them in as I nodded my head hello.
Ben was taller than the rest and looked like he worked out at least twenty times a week if the row after row of abs were anything to show for it. He was watching me with a tight smile, and I had a feeling he was more than a little skeptical of me.
Oliver’s large smile was the exact opposite though. His smile lit up his face in a way that made me know instantly that I would like him. He was thicker than the others, still muscular, but it was the kind of muscle that came from hard work rather than a gym. I imagined that his hands would be callused and his hugs would be the best you ever had.
Luke felt harder to read. He looked so much like Easton except younger. His hair was the same golden shade of brown and his skin held the same deep tan that could only have been blessed to them by genetics.
“It’s nice to meet you.” Luke held his hand out in my direction, and I tried to read his face as I slid my hand in his.
“You too.”
He was searching my face just as I was searching his. I don’t know what he saw there, but he smiled, a smile so like his brother’s, before letting go of my hand.
Easton’s hand pressed against the small of my back. “You ready?”
“To ride on the boat?” I looked up at his face. “Absolutely.”
His eyes tightened as dimples popped out on his cheeks. “I was going to let you go first. Get a feel for it.”
“Not happening.” I patted his chest over his t-shirt and headed in the direction of the boat the others were already climbing in.
Easton moved onto the boat before me and reached his hands out in my direction to help me in. I gripped his shoulders in my hands and his came down on my hips. It was effortless the way he lifted me off the dock and into the boat, but his fingers were demanding as they dug into my skin. I made the mistake of inhaling as my body pressed against his, taking a lungful of that heady scent that was uniquely him.
I wasn’t sure if it was due to the water or my attraction to Easton that left me feeling unsteady on my feet as they finally touched the boat. But my head didn’t feel any less swimmy as he pinched my tank top between his fingers before tugging on it slightly.
“You going to take this off?” His smirk was so handsome and playful, and I found myself forgetting why I ever thought the two of us would be a bad idea.
“Tit for tat, Mr. Cole.” I took a long lazy look over his t-shirt just as he gripped it in his fingers and lifted it over his head.
A spark of heat lit up my spine as I studied him. He was wickedly handsome, his body only adding to his allure, and I knew that whatever those girls in our class had been betting on paled in comparison to the real thing.
“What did you say?” He threw his t-shirt down on the chair. “Tit for tat?” He nodded his head toward me and I tugged my bag closer to me as I moved to the front of the boat.
I pulled my towel out of my bag and laid it against the white seat. Easton took a seat behind the steering wheel, but I could still feel him watching me. I took my time pulling out my water bottle, sunscreen, snacks, and anything else I could find hiding in the bottom of my bag, and I startled when the loud engine of the boat roared to life.
Easton pushed his fingers through his hair before sliding a hat on backward to keep it out of his face, and I took the opportunity to unbutton my shorts as he began backing the boat away from the dock.
He shifted gears and the boat started forward, and I lifted, just an inch, off the seat and pulled my shorts down my legs. His head visibly dropped with the movement of the fabric against my skin, and I wondered what it would be like to be completely bare in front of him. To have him track my movements with that same intensity when I couldn’t hide.
I made quick work of folding my shorts before I slipped my shirt over my head, and I was thankful that my red bikini covered enough to be considered modest. Because every set of eyes on the boat was watching me, but there was only one that mattered.
One hand was gripping the steering wheel as he led us out into the main channel of the lake and the other was running over his mouth as he tried to hide his smile.
“What?” I tried to call over the sound of the wind whipping past me, but I wasn’t sure if he heard me.
“Nothing.” He shook his head before letting his eyes roam over me freely. It was intoxicating, the way he looked at me, the way he didn’t care that I knew how much he was appreciating me.
There were no false pretenses. No wondering what he was thinking. It was written all over his face.
I turned toward the front of the boat and let the wind kiss my face in rapid succession as I watched the water zip past us. There were a few other boats out on the water, a couple parked with fishing poles dropped in the water, and one that was pulling a tube behind it. There were several houses tucked along the banks of the lake, but they were surrounded by so many trees that they did little to take away from the natural beauty.
I took a deep breath, the indescribable scent of the water mixed with the clean fresh air filled my lungs, and I felt like it was the first deep breath I had taken in days. Years maybe.
The boat curved around a small island, and I held on to the railing as it tilted on its side as it glided through the water.
The rumble of the engine quieted as the boat slowed, and the quiet cove we pulled into looked peaceful as we came to a stop.
“Who’s first?” Luke asked as Oliver started unraveling some sort of ski rope.
“I’ll go.” Easton stood from his chair, but he was making his way toward me. His body was so large that he practically blocked the back of the boat from view, but I knew that his friends were still back there. I knew they were probably listening.
“You going to be okay while I’m in the water?” Easton was talking to me, but his eyes were roaming up my arms and to my shoulders.
“I think I’ll survive.” I adjusted my sunglasses on my face, and he finally met my gaze. “Surely one of them can put sunscreen on me if I start to burn.”
He smiled so wide that I could practically see all of his teeth, and my stomach flipped as he moved toward me.
“I don’t think so, freshman.” He pulled his hat from his head and placed it on mine. His fingers were gentle as he tucked stray pieces of hair that had been whipping in the wind behind my ears. “That’s my job.”
“What if I’m burning?” I cocked an eyebrow at him.
“Then put on that extra muumuu you brought.” He flicked the bill of my hat before moving toward the back of the boat and grabbing a black life jacket his brother was holding out to him.
I got on my knees so I could watch him as he sat at the back of the boat and strapped the wakeboard onto his feet. The sun was beaming down against my skin, and I let it warm me in a way that nothing else could as Easton stood on the back of the boat with the ski rope in his hands.
His eyes moved to the front of the boat, searching for me, and he winked at me before he twisted to the side and dropped into the water with a loud splash.
“You can move to the back of the boat if you want to watch him?” Ben said as he settled behind the steering wheel.
“Okay.” I nodded as I tucked my towel in the floor so it wouldn’t blow away.
Oliver took the seat next to Ben, but Luke was already at the back of the boat, watching his brother. I took the seat opposite him and curled up in the seat as I watched Easton bob in the water.
“You ready?” Luke yelled out to his brother which was met with a thumbs-up before the boat soared forward with so much speed that I was worried they had just taken Easton’s arms off.
But I had no reason to fear. Easton was lifted to the top of the water, and he shook his head to get wa
ter out of his eyes as he adjusted his stance.
He was good. Better than good actually.
I had seen plenty of people wakeboard or ski in my lifetime, but Easton made it look completely effortless. He jumped from wake to wake, moving from one side of the boat to the other, and my fingers dug into the soft white vinyl of my seat as he jumped a wake with enough force to completely flip himself in the air.
I laughed as he landed with complete ease, and Luke looked over at me with a big smile on his face. He was watching his brother as intently as I was. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was as impressed as I was or because he was making sure he didn’t fall. Either way, the smile didn’t fall from his lips as he watched him.
He did a few more jumps and flips before he hit a large wake and flipped backward in the air. He managed to spin around completely, but his board clipped the hard edge of the wake and he jerked forward. I was instantly on my knees as he disappeared under the water.
Ben turned the boat on a hard curve, and I spun around to face the front as we pulled back in Easton’s direction.
He was floating on his back with a large smile on his face, and I absently wondered if he was ever unhappy. He always seemed so at ease. So carefree and laid-back.
“What’d you think?” he asked from the water as the boat came to a stop beside him.
“You.” I pointed my finger at him. “You scared the shit out of me.”
He threw his head back in laughter, and for the first time in my entire life, I was insanely attracted to the simple sound of a man’s laughter.
“You getting in?” He ran his fingers over the water, but I was already shaking my head. “Live a little, freshman.”
I smiled as I flipped him the bird and his friends laughed as I moved back to the front of the boat. Oliver started strapping on a life jacket as Easton climbed back into the boat. He was dripping with water, every inch of his skin glistening, and I had to wipe the corner of my mouth to make sure I wasn’t drooling as he pulled the life jacket away from his skin.
Ben and Luke were helping Oliver with his board, but Easton’s attention was solely on me. He tracked forward like he was on a mission, and I held out my hands to stop him when I read his intentions across his face.
“Don’t.” I laughed as he pushed against my hands and buried his soaking wet head into my neck.
“Aren’t you hot?” He wrapped me in his arms, and the cold wetness of his skin did nothing to cool me off.
“I am.” I squirmed against him, and I felt a small shudder rack through his body.
He slid into the seat next to me, his swim trunks wet against my skin, and ran his fingers through his wet hair. My fingers itched to do the same.
“You’re next. After Oliver.” He nodded his head to the water where Oliver was already getting ready.
Before I could fully shake my head, he chuckled and dipped down to speak beside my ear. “I’ll be right there with you. I won’t let anything hurt you.”
I turned just slightly to look up at him and his lips were only inches away from mine. “I don’t know what I’m doing.” Not in wakeboarding, and not with him.
“We’ll figure it out together.” His voice was soft and luring me into him.
My lashes fluttered against my cheeks and a drop of water slid down my chest as it fell from his skin to mine.
“You ready?” Luke’s loud voice called out to Oliver, and I blinked my eyes open and searched Easton’s.
He looked like he wanted to say something, maybe to tell me how bad of an idea this was, but he didn’t get a chance as the boat surged forward and the loud wind drowned out every word that was on the tip of his tongue. His eyes bounced from the back of the boat to me, and I took a deep breath against the deep vibration of my humming body.
He rested his arm behind me, and I let myself settle against him as I turned my head toward where Oliver was currently matching Easton’s earlier tricks. I tried to not think about Easton’s body pressed against mine. I tried to not let him see how much it affected me. Just that simple press of skin and the way his breath whispered against my neck.
All I could think about was my lips crashing against his, our bodies pressing together, our heavy breaths getting lost in one another.
And the tenseness of Easton’s body against mine told me that he was probably thinking about it too.
“Ohh.” Ben’s voice whipped over the impossible volume of the wind, and I searched the water for Oliver since I had absolutely no idea what just happened to him.
The boat slowed next to him, and Easton shifted in his seat so he could look at me. “You wanna do this?” He nodded his head toward the water, and I didn’t regret the decision to nod my head as Easton’s face lit up. He stood reaching for my hand, and I placed it in his before he pulled me toward the back of the boat.
He pulled another life jacket out from under one of the boat seats and held it out for me to slip my arms into. I could have done it myself. I could have fastened each of the snaps, but there was something about watching his fingers move so close to my skin as he pressed the two ends together. His eyes dragged over my breasts like a physical touch as he closed the life jacket over them.
He took a step back, looking up at my face as he pulled on his own life jacket, then he helped me onto the back of the boat as Luke put the wakeboard in place for me. Easton sat beside me and helped me slide each of my feet into place before tightening them around my ankles.
“You think you can jump or should I push you?” He arched a brow.
I bumped my shoulder into his. “Help me up.”
He grinned and did as I said, his hand holding mine as I wobbled with both of my feet attached to the board.
“Okay. I’m not sure.” I giggled and looked over at him. “Push me.”
Instead, he lifted me against him, my chest pressed against his, the wakeboard hitting against his shins, and he jumped, the two of us hitting the water at the exact same time.
I pushed up to the surface of the water, my feet feeling impossibly heavy in the water, and Easton pushed my hair out of my face before throwing his hat back on the boat. His hand gripped the ski rope as he treaded water, and I floated as his feet found mine and he helped me bring the wakeboard forward.
“We’re going to take this slow.” He pressed the rope in my hand and I gripped it so tightly my knuckles started turning white.
“Okay.” I nodded my head even though I was scared to death.
He swam, the lap of water from his movements splashing against me before he settled directly behind me and gripped the rope with me. His feet pushed against the board and I felt him angle it where it should be.
“I’m going to have him go very slowly and drag us just a bit so you can get a feel for this. Keep your arms out in front of you. Bend your knees.” The force of his own knees behind mine pushed them where he wanted them. “Try to keep the board at this angle. We don’t want the front of the board to dip under the water.”
We were plastered together from calves to chest, and his words felt like a caress as he spoke over my shoulder. Suddenly, I was thankful to be in the green water that hid the goose bumps on my skin, but they couldn’t hide the way I forced my thighs together to attempt to stop the deep pulse in my sex that felt like it was echoing around us.
His thighs pressed against mine in the same movement, and I shifted, my ass pressing against him. He let out a low groan just as I felt how badly he wanted me as well, and the loud roar of the engine did nothing to deter the way he crept over my skin like a caress.
“You good?” Luke leaned over the back of the boat and called out to us.
“Yeah.” Easton’s voice was rough and made me crave the sound like a junkie. I pressed against him again, the only thing between us was my small bathing suit bottoms and his trunks, and he whispered, “Shit,” just as tension pulled on my arms and we started moving forward.
I was surprised by the force of the water pushing against me as the boat pulled
us forward, but Easton helped straighten my wobbling board with his feet.
“Try to keep it steady.” His left hand came down on my thigh. “Bend your knees a bit more. It will give you more balance.”
“Okay.” I nodded and did as he said.
“When they give it more gas, let the boat pull you forward. Don’t try to force yourself up.”
I nodded my head even though I had no idea what he was talking about.
“Once you’re up, let the boat do the work. Your board should be to the side like I was. Relax and go with it.”
“That’s easy for you to say.” I tightened my hands and he chuckled against my neck.
“Keep your weight balanced on your feet and have fun.”
“Okay.” I nodded, more to myself than him. “I can do this.”
I could practically feel him smiling behind me. “You ready?”
“No.” The words slipped past my lips as I nodded my head.
Easton’s left hand left the rope again, and he lifted his thumb in the air for Luke to see. It was only a moment later when I felt Easton’s lips, like a phantom whisper, against my neck then the tension I felt earlier increased tenfold and Easton dropped the rope.
I started to search for him, but my body was lifting out of the water and I could only focus on not dying as my board wobbled against the water.
Getting lifted out of the water wasn’t as hard as I had expected, but once I was up, everything that Easton had instructed me went out the window and I stiffened up like my life depended on it. My board hit the rough water and I tugged on the rope to try to balance myself, but it was a mistake. I hit the water face-first, the board coming off my feet due to the force, and I surfaced coughing up water.
My arms ached from trying to hold on to the rope, but I couldn’t stop laughing as I lay on my back and let the rays of the sun touch my face.
“Are you okay?” I looked to the left to search for the sound of Easton’s voice and smiled as he swam toward me.
“I think so.” I said the words around laughter as I tried to come down from the adrenaline high.
He tugged on one of the straps of my life jacket, pulling me closer to him, and his gaze ran over me, searching every inch.
