In The Dark Read online

  Too long really.

  “So was everything you just said a trick to get me in your arms?” I ask. More like on his lap. I don’t know where to put my hands so I rest them on his broad shoulders, an electrical current bouncing between us the moment I make contact with his body. He’s warm and hard, his skin smooth and damp and I run my hands along his shoulders, noting how his eyelids waver the slightest bit when I touch him like that.

  “Not a trick.” He slowly shakes his head, his hands moving, shifting across my back, resting just above the band of my bikini bottom. I bet my thighs look like fat blobs on either side of his hips. I bet my stomach has a few rolls too, what with the way I’m sitting.

  But he’s staring at my face, his gaze locked on my mouth. He’s not paying attention to my thighs or my stomach and he looks like…he looks like he wants to kiss me.

  “Then what was it?” I ask, not sure what I’m even asking about anymore. My brain’s all muddled, being this close to Mr. GQ. We haven’t really talked, I don’t really know him, and I’m already on his lap. Mama would say I’m acting totally shameless.

  Maybe she’s right, but I sort of don’t care right now.

  “You’ve been making me crazy since the moment I got here,” he admits just as he dips his head and gently presses his mouth to my neck.

  My eyes fall closed. Oh, God. He’s barely touching me with his mouth but it’s enough to send a sizzle of heat through my veins. His lips are damp, his breath hot as he rains slow, sweet kisses across my skin and I clutch his shoulders hard, my fingers digging into the firm muscles there.

  “Wh-what do you mean?” My voice is shaky, as is the rest of me. His hands run up and down my back slowly, fingers toying with the ties of my bikini and it would take nothing, absolutely nothing for him to tug on the bow and undo it.

  Not that I want him to. No way. I mean, yeah, his mouth on my throat and his hands on my body feel amazing but I don’t even know this guy. He’s moving way too fast. Waaaay too fast.

  I need to tell him to stop. Now.

  “Gabe…” My voice drifts when he lifts his head, his sleepy gaze meeting mine before he kisses me. Just leans in and rests his mouth on mine, silencing me and I have no choice but to respond. Like I could stop myself from responding. His lips are just as soft as I imagined and he tastes just as good as I thought he would. Minty, like he just had some gum, but with a bite of alcohol just beneath. Tequila, if my taste buds are on point, which I think they are.

  “Teasing me while you laid out by the pool,” he murmurs against my lips after he breaks the kiss, his breath a warm, shiver-inducing gust upon my skin. “Taunting me in this skimpy little bikini. I imagined peeling you out of it more than once.”

  “You did?” I sound breathless. I feel breathless. His words conjure up all sorts of images, things I never thought I’d want to do with a guy who’s really just a stranger. One night stands aren’t a part of my repertoire. Kissing, a little bit of groping, that’s all I’ve ever experienced. My mother scared me all through high school, insisting I didn’t want to get pregnant like she did—yes she had me at sixteen, there’s some birth control for you—and I listened. Oh, how I listened.

  And once I started community college, I worked full time and took night classes. I had no time for serious dating. Boys became a thing of my distant pass. I was so focused on getting my associates degree and getting into a good university, I couldn’t let a boy distract me.

  Mama wouldn’t let it happen either.

  But Mr. GQ—Gabe—is tempting. So beyond tempting I’m going along with his seduction, leaning into his touch, allowing him to kiss me again, his tongue teasing along the seam of my lips before darting into my mouth.

  Oh holy hell, I felt that all the way down to my toes.

  “I did,” he says when he draws away, his gaze heavy lidded as he studies my face. He looks…tired. Sleepy. I feel sleepy too. Dizzy. And I’ve forgotten what we were talking about. “I dreamed about you.”

  “Did not,” I immediately say, making him chuckle.

  “Did so.” His smile is closed lipped, full of wicked intent. “Dirty dreams, Lucy. Of all the ways I could fuck you.”

  Shock runs through me. I feel it in between my legs, a jolt that makes my thighs quiver. I should end this conversation. I should, I should, I should. I don’t talk about dirty dreams with boys and I definitely don’t do it while sitting on his lap and letting him devour me.

  Of course, I’ve never been in this sort of position before so this is all new territory for me.

  “Listen.” I slide my hands from his shoulders to his chest, my fingers drifting across his rock-hard pecs. I’m momentarily stunned at how good his skin feels beneath my palms, at the low sound that rumbles from his throat, as if he likes the way I just touched him. Damn it, I need to focus. “Um, maybe we need to slow down…”

  “I can slow down,” he immediately says, his mouth hovering over mine once more. “Just one more little kiss, Lucy. Please?”

  He sounds so sweet when he asks. And his tongue swipes across my lower lip, just before he takes it between his lips and gives it a tug. Oh, that’s it. I cave like a house of cards, tilting my head to the side when his hand comes up to cup my cheek, his fingers warm against my skin, his mouth hot as it covers mine.

  This kiss is even better than the others. Deep and hot. I’m drowning. His hand slides up, cupping the back of my head, holding me to him and I let him, revel in the feel of his fingers tightening around my hair, his tongue delving deep, his other hand squeezing my hip, fingers slipping just beneath the top of my bikini bottom and I suck in a breath. Shocked at the way he’s touching me.

  Shocked even more at the way I like it.

  I break the kiss and he lets me, his breath hot against my lips. I touch him there, tracing the plush contours of his lower lip, my gaze focused on that perfect, swollen, magical mouth and his breathing becomes heavier. As does the hand in my hair. So heavy in fact, it feels like a deadweight resting on the back of my head and I yelp when my face nearly falls into his.

  “Hey,” I mutter in protest but he doesn’t make a sound. I tilt my head to the side, his hand falling from me with a loud slap into the water and I lift away from him to find that his eyes are closed. His mouth is hanging open.

  He’s asleep.

  Fucking asleep!

  I stare at his beautiful face in utter disbelief. Really? He fell asleep while kissing me? Am I that bad? That uninteresting? I can’t even wrap my head around this. I don’t know what to do. I can’t leave him. He’ll drown if I do.

  Irritation coursing through me, I can’t deny his good looks as I continue to stare at him. Can’t deny his kissing skills either. Because the boy can kiss, and he does it well. He’s good with his hands too.

  But he fell asleep. And that’s sort of a bullshit move if I’ve ever seen one.

  Deciding to go with my gut instinct, I pull away from him, chewing on my lower lip as I raise my hand…

  And slap his cheek as hard as I can.

  What the actual fuck?

  A splash sounds and I sit up quickly, watching as Lucy tumbles off my lap and falls into the water, her head going under. I watch in complete panic as she breaks the surface with a sputter, the water running down her face as she pushes her hair away from her eyes.

  My cheek hurts like a motherfucker and I cradle it in my hand, wincing when I touch it a bit too firmly. What the hell happened? One minute I was kissing her. Touching her. Enjoying it too. She’s responsive. I like the little sounds she makes, the way her body leans into mine as if seeking more but then…

  Then I sort of, I don’t know, drifted off and now she’s glaring at me as if she hates my guts and my face feels like I just got clobbered by a two-by-four.

  “Did you just hit me?” I ask incredulously.

  The withering look she sends my way is answer enough.

  “Why?” Did I go too far? I tried to be as respectable as possible but hell, I’m still buz
zing. And I feel so tired. The warm water and excessive alcohol consumption is really doing a number on me. No offense against the hot girl sitting in my lap but I could sort of use a nap right about now…

  “You. Fell. Asleep.” She bites out the words, emphasis on each one. Oh, she’s pissed. I get why too, though I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it.

  “No way.” I sit up straighter, brushing my wet hand over my hair to push it away from my forehead. I don’t believe it. I was kissing her. Getting into it too. My hands were exploring all that exposed skin and the kiss had gotten real serious, real fast. I remember that. I remember all of it…

  Though there’s a tiny break in time where I don’t remember anything at all. Was her kiss that good that she like, literally blew my mind?

  “Yes way,” she counters as she rises from the water like some sort of goddess. Droplets slide down her skin in crisscrossing paths and I want to explore every single one of them with my tongue. “You need to leave.”

  I watch in disbelief as she climbs out of the hot tub, my gaze zeroing in on her ass and how her bottoms ride up a bit, exposing plenty of flesh that I want to rub and stroke and bite. Jesus, what is this woman doing to me?

  “Wait a minute.” I practically leap out of the tub and go after her, taken aback when she turns and shoves a towel in my hands. “There’s no way I could’ve fallen asleep while I was kissing you. I was way too into it.”

  I swear her cheeks turn bright red at my words but otherwise she doesn’t really react. Meaning, she’s really pissed. “Well, you did.” She gives her head a vigorous scrub, then slides that thick sea-blue towel down the length of her body, missing all the good spots. My hands are more than eager to rub all the good spots but I’m afraid she’ll bite one of my fingers off. “I know I’m boring but I didn’t think I was that terrible. So sorry to disappoint you.”

  “Wait a minute—I don’t think you’re boring.” I stare after her as she starts for the pool house, the towel discarded on the floor and I watch her ass, her legs, mentally shaking myself so I go after her. “You’re the farthest thing from boring.”

  She turns before she opens the door, her head tilted back so her gaze can meet mine. She’s such a little thing. But that little body is all woman and my fingers itch to touch her again. “Then why did you fall asleep?”

  “I find it really hard to believe that I did…” I stop talking. She’s looking at me like she wants to rip my tongue out of my head and I like my tongue, thank you very much. “Fine,” I breathe out, scrambling for a reason. “Too much beer, too many tequila shots, plus a hot tub, you put it all together and it wipes me out?”

  Lucy stares at me, her dark eyes narrowed, her lips pursed. Lips I really enjoyed kissing only a few minutes ago. How did I fuck this up so badly? Seriously, I can’t believe I fell asleep. Who does that?

  You do, asshole.

  “That’s the lamest answer I’ve ever heard.” She turns away from me and throws open the pool house door, striding inside. I follow right after her, watching helplessly as she slips her red T-shirt back on but doesn’t bother with the white shorts. The disappointment I feel at seeing her perfect tits covered is strong and I mourn the loss. I’m even more disappointed I didn’t get to touch them.

  “It’s the only excuse I can come up with,” I say truthfully. I must’ve been asleep for what? A minute? Two or three? She can forgive me for that, can’t she? We had it going on chemistry-wise. That kiss was like whoa and the feel of her body so close to mine, I want to soak that up some more. I want to explore this further. Not like I got anything else going on this summer.

  She’s the perfect distraction.

  “Well, it’s awful.” She tilts her chin and sniffs, looking like the haughty spoiled princess I’m sure she is. “I want you to go. I think I’ve been embarrassed enough tonight.”

  Ah, I hurt her pride. I get it. My pride would be wounded too, if a girl fell asleep while I was trying to kiss her. Though if she were drunk I’d probably just laugh it off and think she was cute.

  I don’t think Lucy believes I’m very cute though. I’m pretty certain I just blew my chance with her.

  Big time.

  “Let me make it up to you,” I toss out as a last bid. She comes closer to me, her hand shooting out to touch my chest. Hope lights me up but then—she just gives me a hard shove and I stumble out of the pool house backwards.

  Damn, the girl is strong.

  “No,” she says as she pulls the pool house door shut behind her.

  “I’ll take you out tomorrow. Dinner, a movie, whatever you want to do.” Hell, I’ll make her dinner and the only thing I know how to cook is a grilled cheese sandwich and a quesadilla, which is pretty much one and the same.

  She shakes her head—very firmly. “No thanks.”

  “Let’s go hang out at the beach tomorrow afternoon. Soak up the sun, walk in the waves.” I sound like a cheesy asshole and I’m pleading. Oh, shit. I never plead, not with chicks. I never have to.

  “I don’t think so.” Did she waver? Nah, she didn’t waver. This chick is tough as nails. Passionate as all get out with a body sexy enough to make my head spin just looking at her.

  And she hates me, because I somehow fell asleep mid-kiss.

  I’m a complete idiot. If the guys ever find out about this, I’m screwed.

  Clearing my throat, I make one more attempt. “Lucy…”

  She holds her arm out, indicating I need to get away from her pronto. “See you later Gabe.”

  Nodding once, and with my proverbial tail between my legs like a chastised puppy dog, I leave her place and head back to mine.

  “You did what?” Shep starts to laugh. Like, hysterically laugh.

  Fucker.

  I hang my head, my mouth tight, my fingers ready to hit the end button and finish this call. Why did I think telling my best friend what happened last night was a good idea again? I reminded myself when it all went down that if Shep or Tristan found out I’d never hear the end of it.

  And here I go, running straight to Shep, spilling my guts about what I did to Lucy.

  “You heard me,” I finally say grimly, feeling like an asshole. Though really Shep’s the asshole. “And you fucked up time and again with Jade so don’t give me any grief.”

  “Yeah, but I never fell asleep on her in the middle of sexing her up,” Shep stresses, his laughter still hanging on. “Man, that is just priceless. You’re lucky she only slapped you in the face. She should’ve kneed you in the balls.”

  “Thank Christ she didn’t,” I mutter, rubbing my hand along my jaw. I’m lying in bed, it’s almost noon and I haven’t even gotten up yet. What’s the point? Last night was such a major disappointment. Lucy hates me, I slept like hell and I have a lingering hangover that makes my head pound.

  Meaning, I feel like ass.

  “I’m thinking you need to move on from this one,” Shep suggests, jovial and carefree as usual. Easy for him to say. He’s banging the hottest redhead I’ve ever seen who happens to tolerate his shit, and Shep dishes out a lot of shit.

  He also happens to be madly in love with Jade and somehow she feels the same. Crazy. Never thought I’d witness Shep the player, Shep the total dog fall for a girl and pursue her relentlessly until he made her his.

  “Yeah, you’re probably right,” I say gruffly, though I don’t mean a word of it. Damn it, I’m still intrigued. Any other girl would’ve slapped my face and I’d bail. Who needs that shit?

  Jade slapped Shep’s face and he chased after her like a mad man. Maybe we’re both kinky bastards or something. Only truly interested by a woman who slaps the shit out of us.

  Now there’s a disturbing thought.

  “How’s it going anyway? Ready to come home yet?” Shep asks.

  “I was ready to come home the second I arrived down here.” Family vacations are the worst. We’re all ordered to attend, even if we don’t want to. Sydney tried to get out of it a few years ago, saying she had
cheer camp, which she did. A totally legitimate excuse.

  Guess who didn’t make the cheer team that school year? All for a shitty family vacation in Paris.

  Granted I sound like a spoiled brat complaining about vacationing in Paris but I was eighteen, Sydney was fifteen and we were miserable. Constantly under our parents’ thumbs, unable to have any fun. Though I did sneak off and let that one French girl I met in a café give me a blowjob in the restroom.

  Yeah. Fond memories. Sort of. Now I’m imagining Lucy on her knees, her hands curled around the waistband of my shorts just before she pulls them down and my hard cock springs out directly in front of her mouth...

  “Go to the beach. Check out the hotties,” Shep suggests, pulling me from my dirty thoughts. “Find a cute girl, flirt with her and get that other chick off your mind. She couldn’t have been that great, considering you fell asleep on her. Mid-kiss.”

  I wince. The thing is, Lucy is pretty. And she seems cool. I don’t know her that well but I felt like we could’ve had something. That explosive kiss we shared suggested we could’ve had something major.

  But I guess it wasn’t meant to be.

  “I’ll go to the beach,” I say, because it’s what I should say. “And check out the hotties.”

  “I’m sure you’ll find someone. I mean come on. You’re Gabe Walker, dude. Chicks quiver and get all flustered when you so much as look at them,” Shep says in encouragement.

  “I think you’re mistaking me for you.” The girls definitely used to quiver and get all flustered when Shep so much as looked at them. And they want to fix Tristan because he’s so growly and moody all the damn time.

  Me? I have no problems with women but I’m not like my friends. And now I’m seriously worried I’m losing game because I fucking fell asleep while kissing a hot girl.

  I still can hardly believe it.