There was the shadow that came over my body as I lay there with my eyes closed. I peeked over at the chair next to me to find Daniel getting comfortable.
“It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?” He lay back and adjusted the umbrella so that the sun wasn’t in his eyes. He was wearing just his swim shorts and a pair of flip flops that he had kicked to the side. Daniel wasn’t quite as muscular as the twins, but instead he was lean and tall. He still had muscles, that was for certain, but he looked more like a runner than a weightlifter. Everything about him was slender and strong. His arms, his legs, his fingers. Maybe even his... Parvati, get your mind out of the gutter!
I looked straight forward and blinked the mental image of Daniel lying there next to me naked from my mind. “Yes.” I didn’t mean to sound so abrupt, but my mind was still reeling from the possibilities. Daniel was definitely my type of guy. He was the kind I could see myself coming home to after a long day at the restaurant, and he’d give me a back rub and run me a bubble bath. And there I was, just like before, fighting the mental images out of my mind.
“It sure is hot too. If you don’t mind me saying, you have very beautiful skin.”
“Oh.” I giggled at his words like I’d never received a compliment before in my life. “Honestly, I don’t get much sun. I’m indoors a lot of the time.”
“Pretty strong for being inside so much.”
Strong? “Well, I guess it could be from me being a chef. Cooking can be a little hard on the body sometimes.”
His eyes scanned me up and down. “Oh, but it’s done you well.” He was certainly sweet, but in a dark and brooding way. He was a lot like his brothers in the way he tried to charm me, and just like them, he was damn good at it.
“Well, thank you.”
“You know, I brought along some sunscreen, just in case I needed to use it again.” His eyes lifted to mine as he smiled briefly. It was one of those knowing smiles that told me exactly what he was about to ask. “I can put some on you if you like.”
I let out a heavy breath, but I tried really hard not to make it noticeable. Mixing alcohol early in the morning with the bright Hawaiian sun was starting to be a bad idea. Not only was I a bit anxious because I was in a new place with new people, but I was also getting quite jittery. I reached up and pulled the umbrella over my body and locked it into place.
“See, there,” I said as I glanced up to the umbrella and then back to his awaiting eyes. “No need for sunscreen.”
Daniel sat forward as he kept that smile plastered on his face, and he pulled the bottle of sunscreen from his bag. “I just want to be on the safe side.” He came over and sat at my side on my chair, and then he popped open the bottle and squirted a little onto his hand. “You understand.”
What was I supposed to say to that? I suppose I could have kicked him off my chair, but if I was being honest with myself, I didn’t want to. I wanted those slender, soft hands all over my body. I wanted him to touch me in places I shouldn’t be touched in the middle of a public pool. So, instead of kicking him, I nodded, and I allowed him to rub some of the sunscreen onto my arms and legs.
“Now turn over,” he insisted. That gaze was ever persistent, and the tone of his voice made it clear that I did not have a choice.
I got onto my stomach and rested my head on my hands, and he gently lowered the chair down a couple of notches. I closed my eyes as I listened to him squirt out some more of the sunscreen, and then his hands began to move around my back. It was a bit cool at first, but in that heat it was a nice surprise. Then Daniel unhooked my top. I opened my eyes and looked up at him, but before I could say anything, he was telling me not to worry.
“You can trust me. I just want to be sure that we get it everywhere.”
I closed my eyes again, and Daniel continued to apply the sunscreen. His fingertips ran down the length of my spine and along the edge of my bottoms. Then he came around my hips and up by my ribs, and he teased there for a moment as he just barely grazed the edge of my breast. I let out a moan without even having a moment to process what I was doing, and I could hear Daniel laugh to himself in response.