“Oh.” She cast her mind around, mortified not to come up with anything thrilling. Maybe she should invent something—skydiving or hiking Mount Everest. But when she looked into Derek’s serious brown eyes she couldn’t tell him a lie. Even a little one. She wanted this to be real for the short time they had. “I’m pretty contented, actually.”
“Hey, a lot of people can’t do that, either. So you’re just as remarkable.”
Addie rolled her eyes. “Nice try.”
He laughed and kissed her everywhere he could reach, teasing playful kisses that made her squeal and giggle like a silly schoolgirl.
Except she didn’t feel silly. She felt...fabulous.
“What do you say we go rinse off, Addie?”
Addie pretended to shudder. “In that water?”
“In our private pool.” He stood and held out his hand. “Which happens to be filled with that water, yeah.”
“Tell you what.” Addie was already getting to her feet. “You go, I’m outta here.”
She took off toward the path. He caught up to her in about three strides and snagged her around the waist. “Oops. Ocean’s the other way.”
“Help, help! Torture!” The word ended in a squeal as he picked her up and ran with her to the water. “So help me, Derek, if you dump me into that freezing—”
Of course he did. She found her feet, and lunged up, flung her arms around his neck and knocked him off balance so he fell in, too.
There. They were even. With a shout, he rocketed up out of the water as fast as she had, grabbed her hand and pulled her back out onto the shore and back to his towel where they sat absorbing the sun’s warmth, bodies glowing from the cold, lungs working to overcome the shock.
Addie had never had this much fun with a lover. Her first serious boyfriend, Todd, had been intense and bookish, a lovely sweet guy. Her second, Leo, had been a little sunnier maybe, but neither were the type who liked to play like this.
Addie apparently liked men who played. As long as they respected her in the morning.
“I suppose we should think about going back?” The minute she spoke, she regretted it. Practical, sensible Addie. Had she always been such a spoilsport?
“Yes, we should.” He frowned hard then his face cleared. “There, we thought about it.”
Addie burst into giggles. She was enjoying herself a ridiculous amount. And if he wanted to stay, then he must be feeling the same. “That’s settled, then?”
“At least until we get hungry.”
“Gosh. Now that you mention it...” She blinked at him sweetly, reclined onto her elbows and let her knees open slowly all the way to flat. “I’m getting hungry right now.”
“Addie Sewell. Beautiful, funny and a nymphomaniac.” He waggled his eyebrows and adopted a lounge lizard accent. “Now how much would you pay?”
“Oh, that is just nasty.” She pretended to struggle away from him, letting herself be overpowered of course. He grinned wickedly, then turned one-eighty and positioned himself with his hands on either side of her hips, his knees to one side of her head, his face...lowering.
Addie lay back blissfully, desire responding to his skill, noticing deeper intimacy with him this time, not only from their already having explored each other’s bodies, but from the joy of letting loose and being silly and childlike together. Two different kinds of vulnerability, both bringing them closer together.
She could fall for this guy.
Yes, yes, she knew it was too soon, way too soon. But everything about being with him felt so different from any relationship she’d—
Ooh. His fingers had joined his tongue. He was spoiling her. She reached over and pulled at his leg, wanting him to feel this good, too.
Derek understood, moving to kneel astride her head. Addie guided his penis into her mouth; he tasted clean and salty from the sea. She tried to vary the speed and pressure of her lips, listening to his breath hissing when she hit a rhythm or spot he really liked, but what he was doing to her at the same time made it very hard to focus on anything but her gathering frenzy for him.
Just when she was about to cry uncle, Derek pulled back, flicking gently with his tongue, then lowered his mouth and sucked firmly, pushing two fingers deep inside her.