by Jess Bryant
11
“Blame it all on my roots, I showed up in boots, and ruined your black-tie affair.”
Ashtyn gaped at the gorgeous man on the stage singing Friends in Low Places shockingly well. She’d had no idea that he had a voice like whiskey and velvet but she supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised. Everything about Tyler St. James seemed specifically designed to make every feminine desire inside of her flare to life.
The man was a walking, talking, and apparently singing, sex god. Of course she’d only imagined the sex part of the package but she had a really good imagination and she’d spent three solid days in his presence now. Long days wrapped around him on the motorcycle and long nights talking to him across dark hotel rooms had only increased her attraction to him.
Damn the man for turning out to be a good guy in addition to crazy hot.
After her night of drunken shenanigans and the awkward morning after, something had changed with Tyler. She couldn’t be sure exactly what it was that had gotten through to him but he’d stopped calling her a princess, finally. He’d stopped trying to make her miserable and he’d even been true to his word and helped her start crossing items off her bucket list.
Maybe he’d just taken pity on her after seeing her so sick after one night of drinking. Maybe he’d realized she was too stubborn to be talked out of whatever crazy plan she’d concocted. Or maybe, just maybe, he’d been listening when she told him about her mother and all the reasons she had to do this. Maybe, in some small way, he understood her, but whatever the reason, she was grateful for the change in his demeanor towards her while simultaneously wanting him to treat her badly again just so she wouldn’t be quite so attracted to him.
She’d decided this was all Aaron’s fault, even if she knew that was ridiculous.
Still, it was true that Aaron was the reason she hadn’t had sex in months. Months! When they’d become engaged, he’d thought it would be sweet and old-fashioned not to have sex again until their wedding night. She’d thought it was sweet too, at first, but then somewhere along the way she’d realized that she didn’t even mind going without it and neither did Aaron and maybe that had been the first sign that they really shouldn’t get married because honestly, she should have wanted to jump her soon to be husband all the time? Shouldn’t she? But she hadn’t. Not like she wanted to jump Tyler.
It had taken all of her willpower not to jump into his arms yesterday during their rock-climbing outing in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
It was one of the things on her bucket list and he’d mentioned casually that he knew just the place because a friend of his was from the area and had told him about Climb Up OKC. She’d been awed by it. The giant silo that had been turned into a top-notch climbing facility had been so cool and really practical too considering she had no experience and couldn’t be trusted to try it in the wild.
Tyler had been by her side the entire time. He’d taken on the role of trainer and cheerleader. He’d taught her about the ropes and pulleys and everything that went into embarking on a climb. He’d taken the time to carefully position her hands and feet to give her the best grip. He’d stood below her when she’d been scared she would tumble to her death and hours later when she had finally felt comfortable braving the biggest wall and trying for the top he’d been right there beside her every step of the way and hugged her tight and spun her in a circle when they scaled the final landing, laughing with her even though they were both out of breath and exhausted.
After, they’d gone back to the motel and taken showers. Tyler had found them a cool local restaurant to try for dinner. They’d talked half the night and then gone back to the motel and gone to bed. They’d ended up spending an entire day in Oklahoma City, exploring and climbing and just enjoying themselves. She couldn’t remember a time she’d ever felt so relaxed, so free, or had so much fun.
It had been one of the best days of her life.
Now here they were, another day on the road behind them, and Tyler had gone out of his way to find them a motel with an attached bar that just happened to be hosting a karaoke night. She’d gotten up and done a horrible rendition of Blondie’s One Way or Another. She was a truly terrible singer but that was what had made it so much fun. Dancing around, singing at the top of her lungs, laughing as Tyler cringed and she tried to coax him up onto the stage. Eventually she’d succeeded and now he was up there putting her vocals to shame with his little country music number. He grinned and winked at the crowd and every woman in the place sighed with longing, including her.
He was amazing. That was all there was to it. Now that he’d decided to help her, there was nothing he wouldn’t do to check items off her list.
Except for skinny-dipping.
He’d vetoed that one as soon as she’d seen the pool on the way to the bar and grinned mischievously. How he had known exactly what she was thinking was a little scary. He had learned her expressions, her moods, and picked up on the tiniest shifts in her thoughts. It was unnerving, especially because nobody in her life had ever really paid enough attention to her to be able to discern those kinds of things.
She’d taken one look at the pool. He’d taken one look at her. Then, he’d shaken his head and said quite simply, no. Then he’d proceeded to drag her into the bar where they’d eaten horrible fried foods, had a couple of beers and sang their hearts out.
Only, she couldn’t shake the idea of checking skinny-dipping off her bucket list.
Ashtyn chewed her bottom lip as she watched Tyler up on the stage. He wasn’t watching her. His attention was on a group of four women, likely in their forties, who were shaking dollar bills at him like he was a stripper. He was grinning and clearly trying not to laugh as he kept up the words to the song. The women were fawning all over him, distracting him, and considering he’d all but threatened that he wouldn’t be letting her out of his sight during this trip, she figured this was the only chance she would get.
Slowly and quietly, she slipped out of her chair and then out the side door of the bar. The night was cool with a crisp wind that was refreshing after the heat of the bar. Ashtyn would have liked to stop and enjoy it, maybe even just go for a stroll and take in the big, starlit sky above her, but she knew time wasn’t on her side. Hurriedly now, she slipped down the small hallway that divided the bar from the back of the motel. She rounded two more corners before she was in front of the small swimming pool and she could feel her heart hammering with excitement and trepidation as she glanced around to make sure nobody was in the area.
She knew that if someone happened to be looking out the window of their room, they’d be able to see her but this wasn’t exactly that kind of motel. As far as she could see most of the rooms around the pool were dark. A few had dim yellow light leaking out past the thick drapes that covered their windows but she figured most people had no interest in anything that wasn’t happening in their own room tonight.
Before she could second-guess herself, she toed off her boots and then her socks. Next she dropped her jacket to the ground and then she unbuttoned her jeans and shimmied out of them. Her shirt joined the heap on the ground just beneath the metal overhang that shielded the pool deck. Down to only her bra and panties, she did another quick look around and took a deep breath for courage.
She could do this. She could. Nobody was even around. Nobody would see her and nobody would know.
Reaching behind her she unclasped her bra and then shoved her panties to the ground. She stepped out of them and immediately raced for the pool. Without pausing for a second she jumped in, the cold water shocking her naked skin and making her gasp as she bobbed back to the surface.
“Oh my God.” She shivered even as her body began to adjust to the temperature of the water. She kicked her feet, treading water, and grinned up at the night sky. “Oh my God.”
She’d done it. She’d really done it. She was naked in a swimming pool in the middle of nowhere all by herself.
She tipped her head back and squealed with del
ight. She kicked back a little, letting her legs slide almost to the surface, as if she was going to lay out on top of the water before remembering she wasn’t wearing a swimsuit and needed to stay beneath the water to shield whatever was left of her modesty. She was still grinning when she heard a sound that had her jerking back to attention and her eyes darting towards the shadows beneath the patio.
“You should come with a warning label.”
Her heart leapt into her throat and she nearly forgot to tread water, almost going under before she caught herself. The voice came from the darkness but she knew it was Tyler before he even stepped from the shadows. He was frowning but there was something playful in his eyes too as he shook his head, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
And oh God, what had he seen? Everything? She swallowed hard and forced her chin up.
“How long have you been lurking in the shadows like a creeper?”
He snorted, “I wasn’t lurking. I saw you sneak out of the bar and I was coming after you but then…”
When he hesitated, she raised an eyebrow, “But then you saw me undressing and decided to stay and watch the show?”
“Couldn’t help myself.” Tyler’s lips tilted into a sly smile. “It was a hell of a show.”
Despite the cool night air and the even colder water, she felt her cheeks flame red. She was embarrassed to think that he’d seen her completely naked, sure, but there was something else too. The heat flamed through her veins and pooled low in her belly, all because of that twinkle in his eyes and that smile on his face.
He’d watched her undress. He’d seen her naked. And he was teasing her.
She smirked, “What would it say?”
“Huh?”
“My warning label. You said I needed one, so what would it say?”
His grin widened and he stepped towards the edge of the pool, “You know, if you’d asked me that the first day I met you, I’d have said it was definitely handle with care.”
She must have made a face because he chuckled.
“But, now that I know you better, I don’t believe that anymore.”
“So?” She was treading water.
“Right now? At this very moment? I’d say… Caution: extremely hot.”
She grinned and he chuckled again. Her cheeks were flaming now and she knew that if she wasn’t almost submerged in water that he’d be able to see that the rest of her skin was just as red. That heat in her belly was curling into a ball of desire and she couldn’t seem to stop the words from coming out of her mouth.
“Need to cool off? Come on in. The water is perfect.”
He laughed, “I heard you squeal when you hit the water. It’s colder than a witch’s tit in a brass bra, isn’t it?”
She giggled, “It’s not that bad.
“Uh huh.”
“But speaking of tits…”
“Ashtyn…” He cut her off with a warning glare. “Don’t.”
“Oh, come on. I was just going to say, tit-for-tat. You watched me strip. I think I deserve the same opportunity.”
His eyebrows shot up and she saw the surprise register on his handsome face. She found that she liked that. She liked it a lot. Surprising him was becoming one of her favorite things. She enjoyed making him see her in a different light, a better light. She realized in that moment that he was the first man that had ever seen her, really seen her beneath the façade of the person she tried so hard to be. And she wanted him to see her tonight, like this, open and free and doing exactly what she wanted, taking what she wanted.
“You’re joking.”
“I’m not. Drop your pants, Tyler.”
“That’s a terrible idea.”
She splashed water towards him, “Get in the pool, Ty. Skinny dipping generally involves at least two people. It’s not as much fun alone.”
He narrowed his eyes, “You’re not inviting anyone else in there.”
“I might, if you don’t get naked and come skinny-dipping with me.”
He seemed to be thinking about her words and she found herself holding her breath. He wouldn’t do it. She knew he wouldn’t do it. Even with the change in how he’d been treating her, he had been very clear about where the lines were between them. She might have caught him looking at her ass a couple times but he’d never touched her anything close to inappropriately. He’d actually been very careful not to touch her at all except for when they were on the motorcycle and it was absolutely necessary.
For the first time, she thought maybe all of that careful distance he kept between them said more about his attraction to her than anything else.
“Turn around.”
Her mouth dropped into an O of surprise, “What?”
“Turn around. This isn’t a peep show.”
“Oh don’t even! You literally just peeped on me!”
He rolled his eyes as he kicked his boots off. Then, he did one of those things that men in movies do but that she’d never seen a man do in real life. He crossed his arms behind his head and pulled his t-shirt off in one smooth move. If her mouth hadn’t already been hanging open perilously, it would have been at that moment. It was one of the sexiest things she’d ever seen. Not just the move but all of the muscular, tattooed skin beneath too.
She pulled her mouth shut and sank a little lower in the pool as he began working the buttons on his jeans open. The water was just beneath her nose but the ripples were still enough to give away that she was breathing hard.
Good God he was just so freaking sexy.
He stepped out of his pants, leaving him in nothing but his boxers, and when he glanced back up at her he narrowed his eyes, “I said, turn around.”
“But…”
“Turn around, Ashtyn. I’m serious.”
She could tell from his tone that he was and she slowly spun herself in a circle until she faced the far end of the pool. She didn’t know what line he’d drawn in the sand between them now but it wasn’t going to last. He’d seen her naked. He was undressing and getting in the pool to skinny-dip with her just because she’d asked him to. The lines were blurring and once he was in the pool, she was going to do everything in her power to erase them completely.
If she’d had any doubts about what she wanted from him earlier, his admission that he thought she was hot and that he’d realized she wasn’t fragile had pushed her over the edge. She wanted him. His kiss. His touch. All of him.
It wasn’t going to be a love match and it wasn’t going to be forever, but it would be fun and adventurous and completely unlike her to seduce a man she’d only known for a few days. She didn’t have much practice with the concept. She’d only ever been with Aaron and they’d been together since she was a teenager. But she figured getting naked with Tyler was a good first step.
The sound of water splashing had her twisting back around and she grinned at what she saw. Tyler was just coming up after jumping in the water. He was on the shallower end of the pool compared to her and when he stood up the water hit him almost right at his waist. Water dripped from his hair and snaked down his chest and her eyes couldn’t help but follow their path down the hard planes of his chest until they met the ripple of water that covered his bottom half from her.
“Eyes up here, Ash.”
She smirked at the teasing tone, “Just enjoying the view.”
He chuckled, “I don’t know why I let you talk me into this.”
“To be fair, it didn’t take much talking.”
“Yeah.” He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, “That’s what worries me.”
She grinned again at the admission. Maybe this was going to be easier than she thought it would be. He was being freer with his words tonight, all but admitting that he’d wanted this. Now the only question was how she got him to admit that he wanted more than just to go swimming with her and then, maybe they could both get what they wanted.
He had no idea what he’d gotten himself into.
12
She was crazy. H
e’d thought so from the moment he met her and now he knew it was true. Clearly, she was crazy and she was driving him straight off the cliff into madness. It was the only excuse he had for being naked in a swimming pool with her when he knew full well that it was a horrible idea.
There was just something about her though, something that make him act irrationally. She issued a challenge and he couldn’t back down. She was fire and he was a moth lured to the flame. He’d begun to see the best of her over the last few days. He’d noticed her quirky sense of humor and her kindness, the genuine woman who had scars and damage but was fighting hard for what she wanted. He’d found that he respected her, liked her, and damn if his attraction to her hadn’t doubled with those realizations.
He’d seen the best of her and it sparked something inside of him that wanted to meet her on her level, to be his best too, to show her he was worth her time and attention and even her… no. No. He couldn’t go there. He wouldn’t let himself start thinking of all the ways he wanted to deserve a woman like Ashtyn when there was no way in hell that he could ever have her.
She made him crazy but not so much that he didn’t know this skinny-dipping episode was as close as the two of them should ever get to being naked together.
Naked. Good lord. She was naked and he’d seen her. He’d seen all of her, from top to bottom, in nothing but the glow of the neon light of the motel sign and it was a sight that would be burned into his retinas for the rest of his life. She’d been naked and even more gorgeous than he’d imagined, and he’d spent a lot of time imagining in the last few days.
She was naked and she was barely five feet away, treading water as she grinned at him like some sort of water nymph or sea siren. Beautiful and dangerous. That’s what she was.
He kept himself firmly on the opposite end of the pool from her, letting the water cover him up to his chest and hopefully blocking any view she might be able to get of his achingly erect cock beneath the surface.
