He braced his arms, leveraging his body out of the pool, then took off at a run as she went up the rocky incline like quicksilver.
“Wait for me. I’ll help you back down!” he yelled, reaching the bottom of the incline, then hesitating when she slipped from his eyesight. “Ginny!”
She came into view at the edge of waterfall.
His heart stopped midbeat as Ginny jumped off the high waterfall, plunging down at a breakneck speed. He watched her fall as if in slow motion as she hit the water in the basin below. He took a halting step forward, his heart still unable to beat in terrorizing fear she was hurt… until her head popped up and her laughter filled the air.
“Evangeline …,” Uncaring his voice sounded as though it went through a cheese grater, he continued, “come here.”
“Uh … no. I don’t like the way you’re looking at me.” Ginny started backstroking farther away from where he was standing.
“How many of your brothers did Freddy have to make watch you to keep you from getting your ass killed?”
“I’m not gonna tell you.” Ginny quit swimming long enough to stick her tongue out at him, then went back to swimming. “I don’t like your tone of voice,” she said haughtily.
Reaper went to the pool, diving into the water to swim under the surface. Ginny swam like a fucking seal to the other side to get away from him.
Doing a sidestroke, Reaper tried to block her escape by getting in front of her, only to feel the strong kick of her foot when she did a fucking flip, turning to go in the other direction. He cursed at finding another little detail that Shade and Rider had neglected to tell him—Ginny was an expert swimmer.
She darted underneath him, and it was only because he had grown up on a beach and had been a diver in the Navy that she wasn’t completely able to smoke him.
Going through the motions at pretending to catch Ginny, he gradually saw the glow come back in her expression. Angry as he was at her jumping off the waterfall, he was glad this part of the island hadn’t been tarnished by Allerton’s actions. Reaper switched tactics, letting her expel her strength by merely lagging behind and letting her wear herself out. When she saw he wasn’t following her as closely, she slowed her speed, gauging the distance between them.
Reaper did a fish kick, propelling himself, cutting the distance between them in half. When Ginny looked again, he was almost on her. With a squeal, she tried to flip again, but he beat her, going underwater to come up under her. Grabbing her waist, he propelled her upward, holding her securely so she couldn’t slip away from him. Then he opened his mouth to give her blazing hell for jumping off the waterfall, only to go still when, instead of trying to get away, she pressed her body harder against his and dove her tongue into his mouth.
Desire burst into a kaleidoscope of colors, making him forget why he’d been angry. She silkily twined her arms around his neck and brought her thighs around his waist as she hung limply to him, kissing him senseless. The flames of his temper resurfaced in his cock, driving away any plan to punish her for the reckless jump.
His mind jumped backward to their first meeting when he listened to her sing at T.A.’s wedding. This was what he had seen when he stared down into the watery depths of the pool—them embracing in a watery waltz with the glow of the sun playing matchmaker, holding the shadows of their pasts at bay.
The pain of his past and the future he could have converged together, lifting him out of the mire he had been bogged down in.
Possessively holding Ginny, he kicked his feet to float them toward the side of the pool. Using one arm on the bank, he managed to lift both of them out of the water. Laying Ginny down on the ground, he then leaned over her without breaking their kiss.
Pulling the straps of her swimsuit down, he peeled the suit off her body. Then, shifting himself over her, he entered her body in one smooth stroke, easily sliding inside of her warm cavern.
Their bodies clung together damply, moving together as one. Any time he touched Ginny, she gave over herself with her whole heart. It was a heady thing, having that type of devotion centered on him. Despite being with too many women to count, he had never felt this before.
Thrusting harder inside of her, Reaper trembled over her, fighting the urge to fuck even harder until she splintered into a thousand pieces, giving him the submissive surrender he needed from her. Nine years he’d been Slate’s sex slave, and in less than a month Ginny gave back what had been stolen from him—control over his body.