by Jillian Dodd
"And going to get tattoos," Peyton adds.
"Tattoos, really?" Aiden says excitedly. I want a tattoo."
"Really? What do you want?"
He grins at me. "I want a four leaf clover, right here." He flips my hand over and shows me a spot on his wrist.
"That's cool. What about you, Damian?"
"I'm getting the tribal tattoo I've always wanted around my bicep. So grab some food and let's get out there. Did you see the waves this morning, Keats? They're the best since we've been here."
"Awesome," I say, happy for something to keep my mind off the inevitable.
We surf and build a sand village, but decided to skip yoga and go snorkeling instead.
"Be sure to put lots of sunblock on before we leave," I tell everyone when we're in the toy shed getting flippers and snorkel masks.
Aiden grabs a can of sunblock and sprays our backs.
We swim out a ways and enjoy all the cool marine life for a couple hours.
Then we head back in for lunch.
In the kitchen, I notice Aiden's back. "Oh, your back is pretty sunburned."
"Yeah, it feels hot. I sprayed everyone else's but forgot to do my own."
"I'm sorry," I tell him, giving him gentle hug.
He wraps me up tighter. "It doesn't hurt that bad."
We all sit down, eat, and talk.
"The fish were so amazing!" Peyton says excitedly. "So many cool colors!"
"I loved the turtles we saw."
"They were pretty cool, but I think those blue fish with the little yellow spots were my favorite," Aiden says.
"I saw a shark," Damian says coolly, "but I didn't wanna freak you all out."
We all laugh, knowing that Damian is teasing us.
"I'm thinking about getting shark tattoo, as a matter of fact."
"No, you're not," I say. "You've never wanted a shark tattoo until just now. If you're going to get a tattoo, it should mean something to you."
"Yeah, like the band I'm getting means I'm a badass."
"And my clover will bring me even more luck. You should get one too."
"I already have a tattoo. What are you getting, Peyton?"
"I'm getting a butterfly. They symbolize transformation and this last week has sort of changed my life. You know, all that went on at school, what I've realized, and then coming here. I feel new and happy."
"That's amazing," I tell her as Damian snuggles with her.
After lunch, Damian says, "Okay, everyone get cleaned up and then we'll head into town for tattoos!"
"I'm gonna go take a shower," Aiden tells me.
"Okay, I'm gonna help Inga clean up and then I'll be over to get ready too."
Everyone leaves and Inga says, "I saw that boy's back." She drops a bag in my lap. "Here, this is aloe vera soap and some lotion. I want you to go over there while he's in the shower and very carefully wash his back with this soap. Then gently pat the area dry and put a thin layer of lotion on it."
I'm thinking about Aiden being naked in the shower and how I'm supposed to accomplish all this when she says, "Shoo."
His official title.
2pm
I get to my room and peek around the corner at the shower.
The glass is starting to fog over, but I can still see Aiden's naked outline.
I look at the soap in my hand and imagine sudsing up his entire body.
All of it.
I wonder if I should get naked?
Stop it. This is not about seduction. The poor man is probably in pain, and I'm here in a purely professional capacity.
I leave my swimsuit on, grab a washcloth off the towel rack, and open the shower door.
His back is turned to me.
And what a back it is.
His body looks like it is carved out of stone. The study of the perfect male form.
And his ass.
Oh my god. His naked, beautiful ass.
I'm reaching out to touch it when he turns around.
"Boots!" he says startled, automatically covering his private parts, but pulling me under the water with him and close enough to him so that I can't see what I was hoping to see. "I'm glad you decided to join me."
"I didn't. Um, I brought you aloe soap for your back. Inga gave it to me. Told me it would help with your burn."
"So you didn't just want to see me naked?"
I squint my eyes at him. "This is my bathroom. You shouldn't be taking a shower in here if you didn't want to be seen naked. You were totally hoping I'd come in and catch a glimpse." I hand him the washcloth. "Here, I even brought this so you can cover yourself up."
He takes the washcloth, looks at it, and laughs. "It's not big enough," he says, but he still covers up with it. Then he looks down my bikini top and shakes his head. "That's what I was afraid of."
"What?"
"You have a severe case of reverse sunburn. See this part under your top? It didn't get enough sun, so it needs this soap rubbed on it," he says as he unties the strings of my bikini top, allowing it to fall to the tile.
He takes the soap out of my hand and washes my chest very slowly.
After a whole lot of sudsing, he rinses me off and then replaces the soap with his lips.
I'm trying to be good. I'm trying not to reach down and grab the washcloth. Rip it off of him.
But it's like the Titan is calling out to me.
And it's like I now have two Keatyns sitting on my shoulders. Good angel Keatyn is telling me not to do it, but the horned and horny bad Keatyn is telling me that I need to do a whole lot more than touch it.
Good Keatyn screams, No! You can't sleep with a boy you're going to say goodbye to.
Bad Keatyn says, And that's exactly why we should sleep with him. We may never get another chance.
Aiden drops the soap, so I bend down to pick it up.
As I start to stand back up, I see it.
The Titan is fully erect and mostly hidden under the washcloth. But the washcloth is wet, molding itself around it and allowing me to see its full outline.
My insides throb.
I also realize that I was very stupid to give him one of the Moran's thick white washcloths. I totally should have given him a tissue.
But, still, something about the white cloth covering it looks very godlike. I halfway wish I had a little mini gold wreath to crown it with.
Lord Titan, God of the underworld.
God of Hammering, Nailing, and Screwing.
Yes. This is his official title.
I imagine my body as a Homecoming float. Aiden using his godly tool on me.
I drop the soap, wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him hard.
We kiss wildly. Passionately. Like people starved for each other.
"Do you want me to take these off?" he asks, tugging on my bottoms.
I shake my head no while running my hand across my chest. I think that was good Keatyn's way of reminding me about my heart.
Aiden watches me intently, then backs away slightly. "God, that's hot."
"What's hot?"
"What you just did. Rubbing yourself. Do it again."
I tilt my head back, close my eyes, and run the tips of my fingers from the base of my neck slowly down toward my cleavage and then down my stomach. Aiden moves so that he is standing behind me. He kisses my neck, then lays his hand on top of mine and guides it where he wants it to go.
Up to my boob, then slowly running circles around my nipple.
Up the side of my neck to where his lips are, our hands moving together from my neck to his stubbled cheek.
Then he guides my hand in a slow decent straight down to the throbbing spot between my legs. He pushes our fingers against the fabric of my bikini bottoms while he sucks on my neck.
The feel of his mouth on my neck, the water drizzling down my skin, and his hand between my legs makes me feel perfectly out of control.
He keeps kissing me and rubbing our hands with more intensity.
Wanting to m
aintain some level of attractiveness, I try to make cute, sweet little noises. They start out that way, until I don't give a shit what I sound like.
I move my hips in rhythm with our hands until I can't hold it in any longer. A deep oh leaves my lips as my body trembles and throbs and my legs start to feel weak.
Aiden growls something unintelligible in my ear, picks me up, and sets me on a tiled ledge that I thought was for shampoo, but now realize is the perfect height for this.
I wrap my legs around his waist as his lips land hard on mine, his tongue delving deeply in my mouth.
"I'm not telling you no again," he says.
I so want him to rip my bottoms to shreds and plunge that beast inside of me, but that will just make tomorrow even harder.
Speaking of hard.
He pushes the Titan forcefully against my bottoms, which are straining to keep it out.
I kiss down his neck and then find his hungry lips again.
I can tell that he's struggling not to lose control, but I want him to.
I want to be the one who makes him feel out of control.
Plus, I'm on the edge again. Wanting the release, but not wanting it to be over.
I lean my back against the wall, grab his butt tightly, and push back against him.
Then, eventually, we both lose control.
He leans against me, keeping me pinned against the wall, and breathes deeply.
"See, we can have lots of fun without actually doing it," I say as he sets me down on wobbly legs.
He doesn't really reply, just pulls my bikini bottoms slowly off me, rinses them out, lays them on the ledge to dry, and wraps a towel around me while he kisses me.
"You continue to surprise me," he says, while we're drying off.
"Why?"
"All you had to do was slide your bottoms over a fraction of an inch."
"I know. I just . . . I mean . . . Maybe we can just play in the backyard for awhile."
He cocks an eyebrow at me. "You like it in the backyard?"
"I'm talking the backyard not the back door."
"I'm confused," he says.
"You know, like playing in the backyard as opposed to playing inside the house."
He gives me a naughty grin. "So eventually you will want me to play in the interior portion of your house?"
"Aiden, I've wanted to have sex with you since I met you. But when you got mad at me for trying to unzip your pants, I wasn't going to invite you in. I just wanted to have some fun playing outside."
"So I was at least right about you wanting to wait?"
"Yes. I do want to wait."
"Until when?"
"Until I know we have a chance," I say softly, meaning not until I get my life back.
The green flash.
4:30pm
After going to town, getting tattoos, and coming back home, I tell Aiden I want to get ready in my room alone, but ask him to meet me at my door at 5:20.
"Five-twenty?" he says, kissing my nose. "That's very specific."
"There's a reason why it's very specific, but it's a surprise."
He leans on my doorframe, looking like he has no intention of letting me get ready by myself. "I'm glad you got the tattoo," he says, flipping my wrist over and looking at the four-leaf clover on it.
He says it in a dreamy way that makes me feel guilty. I'm afraid he thinks I got it just because of him. What he doesn't know is that it's about so much more.
"I like it too. I'm glad you talked me into it. Now you have to go."
"I want to watch you get ready," he says. And the way he says it touches my heart. It's like somehow he instinctively knows this is our last night together.
"Please, Aiden. I haven't really fixed my hair or done my makeup all week and I want to look nice on our last night here."
He kisses me and says, "Your wish is my command."
I get ready, doing my hair up in big curls, teasing the crown a little, and applying more eye makeup than normal. I even added a glittery gold powder across the tops of my lids that I hope will glimmer in the moonlight.
At 5:20 on the dot, Aiden knocks on my door.
As soon as I open the door, he takes in my dramatic shimmering orange silk ruffled dress and says, "Wow. You look gorgeous."
"Thanks, but come on. We have to hurry," I say, dragging him down to the beach.
I watch his face as he sees the table set up for two in the sand, tiki torches blazing around it.
"Is all this for us?"
"Yes, we're going to have some wine, watch the sunset, and then have dinner here in the moonlight."
"We are supposed to watch a million sunsets together," he says adorably.
I look at the sun moving down the horizon and listen to the waves crash.
I have to tell him tonight.
Just not now.
I pour us each a glass of wine and ask, "Have you ever seen the green flash?"
"Like the super hero?"
"No, like, just as the sun goes down, right before you can't see it anymore, sometimes, if you watch carefully, you can see a green flash. Some people say it's a myth, but I think it's magical."
"So have you seen it before?"
"Yeah, but not everyone sees it."
"We'll both see it tonight."
"You're always so sure of everything."
"Only the things that have to do with us."
We toast to sunsets and sit and watch the sun move closer and closer to the ocean.
Look," he says, pointing toward the horizon, "I think it's almost time."
He grabs my hand. And when he squeezes it, all of a sudden, I see it.
The green flash.
"Oh my gosh!" I yell.
"Did you see it too?" Aiden asks excitedly. "Was that it? I've never seen anything like that before. The sun literally turned green for a second. How did it do that?"
"Yes, I saw it! But I've never seen it do that before! It was amazing!"
"But you just said that you've seen it before."
"I think I lied."
He cocks his eyebrow at me.
"Not on purpose. I think I wanted to see it so bad that I convinced myself I did. But I didn't know I hadn't really seen it until I just saw the real thing."
Aiden reaches out and touches my cheek. "Kinda like the difference between loves."
"The sunset was like loves?"
"Yeah, like, everyone falls in love at different times in their lives. And when you're in it, you think you know what it's like to be in love. Until you meet your true love and feel the real thing."
I nod in understanding.
He grabs his phone out of his pocket, presses a few buttons, and reads, "It's an optical phenomenon caused by the refraction of light . . ."
I take the phone out of his hand. "Don't read that, Aiden. I don't want to know if there's a scientific reason for it," I say as I walk over to a fake rock just above the sand line, pop it open, and connect his phone to the beach's speaker system, turning on our twenty-nine song playlist.
"May I have this dance?"
"Yes."
He pulls me into his arms and sways with me.
"You were pretty hot in the shower," I tell him.
"And you wore the skimpiest bikini known to man today. No wonder I can barely control myself."
"I did not. It's not like I had on a thong. No one needs to see my naked ass."
"I do," he says with a grin as he twirls and then dips me.
"Dinner is served," Sven tells us, setting our dinner on the table.
This one's for you.
10:30pm
We're all in the hot tub, being careful to keep our tattoos out of the water and listening to Damian entertain us with stories from his recent tour of Japan. About how he couldn't fit his knees under the table at a fast food restaurant because the table was so small. About the ongoing pranks the band plays on each other. And even what's up next for him.
Peyton talks about school and the things she's lo
oking forward to. How she's thinking about graduating early. About how she's not ready to go back.
Aiden tells us a few funny family stories and I tell a couple about my crazy little sisters.
Damian says, "I think we need some champagne," just as Sven walks out onto the pool deck.
"There's a call for you on the house line, Mr. Damian," he says, handing him a phone.
Damian puts it up to his ear, gets a huge grin on his face, puts the phone on speaker, and says, "Holy shit, Keats! You've gotta hear this."
I squint my eyes, like it will help me hear better, and lean toward the phone.
There's all sorts of noise. Almost like it's a concert. Is this Twisted Dreams playing at the Undertow without him?
But then I hear B's voice yell, "You guys are never gonna believe this. Hell, I can barely believe it!"
My eyes get big and I sit up straight.
There's a crowd that's cheering and going crazy.
Then a booming voice announces, "And in his first ever pro tour victory, BRRRROOOKLYYYYN WRIGHT!"
There's more cheering and then the announcer voice says, "Brooklyn, tell us how you're feeling!"
B's voice gets even louder, like he's using a microphone now. "I'd like to thank my dad, my sponsors, and the great fans here in Oahu that came out to support us, but I wouldn't even be here if it weren't for one special girl." His voice gets quieter, almost like he's speaking just to me. "Keats, you told me to follow my dreams wherever they took me and even though you're not here with me, know I wouldn't be here without you. I love you, Keats." Then he yells, "Here's to causing a little chaos!"
The crowd goes crazy and the call disconnects.
Oh my gosh. He did it!
He won!
Happy tears stream down my face.
Then it suddenly dawns on me that I'm not the only one who just heard what B said.
Seeing the hurt look on Aiden's face causes me to quickly jump out of the hot tub, saying, "Uh, I need a minute."
Then I run down to the beach and cry.
I cry for everything I'm missing out on.
And because Aiden just heard B say he loves me.
I cry for all the hurt I'm causing everyone.
Maybe I should just walk out into the ocean and never come back.
Damian plops down in the sand next to me. "I'm an idiot. I got excited and put it on speaker, not even thinking about Aiden. I hope I didn't screw things up for you."
