“Have you ever gone jet skiing?” At that question, which seems to come out of nowhere, I turn to look at him.
“What?”
“Jet skiing. Have you ever gone?”
“No, I can barely swim.”
“Go get your swimsuit on.”
“What swimsuit? I didn’t know we were coming to your family’s lake house. I thought I was helping you with work.”
“I’m sure my mom has something you can borrow.” He stands, then pulls me up with him, leaving me without a choice but to go with him.
Chapter 10
Lady Bits
Bright floral prints are not for everyone, and even if you’re short, that doesn’t mean you’ll necessarily fit petite-sized clothing. I find this out as I look at myself in the mirror.
Tugging at the top of the suit Janelle was kind enough to let me have, I try to cover my cleavage that is spilling over the top of the heart-shaped bust, but that does nothing but drag the bottom half of the suit up my ass crack.
Turning to the side, I bite my bottom lip and wonder if I should have chosen one of the other bathing suits she tossed at me as soon as Jace asked her if I could borrow something. Now, it’s too late. This one, which was new with tags still attached has now been up close and personal with my lady bits. And even if she wouldn’t care about taking it back, I would definitely feel awkward.
“Penny.” Janelle knocks, sounding concerned. “Is everything okay. How does it fit?”
“It’s…. Well….” I give myself one more glance in the mirror. “It’s covering the most important parts.”
“Pardon?” she calls out, and I sigh before opening the door so she can see for herself.
“Oh.” Her eyes widen as they take me in, then she steps toward me and hovers her hands over my D chest before letting them fall awkwardly to her sides. “You’re a little more… well-endowed than I am.”
“I should tell Jace we’ll go tomorrow,” I whisper, trying to adjust the top that will not adjust unless I suddenly gain magical powers that can enlarge random objects or produce more fabric.
“No, no.” She starts to shake her head frantically. “It looks lovely on you, and Jace is waiting for you down at the dock. Tomorrow, I can run you into town to get something else, but this will work for now.”
“I don’t know.” I shift on my feet and watch her grab a towel off the bed before handing it to me.
“Just wrap yourself up in this, then when you get to the dock, you’ll be putting on a life jacket anyway. It will be fine.”
“Okay,” I give in and wrap the bright-pink towel around my body while she watches.
“Much better.” She smiles proudly, then spins for the door, only to stop and turn to face me once more.
“I also need to say thank you.”
“Thank you? For what?”
“For being kind to Haylee.” She fiddles with her fingers, a sign that lets me know she’s nervous. “I know it’s probably strange having the ex-girlfriend of the man you’re going to marry here, but she really is a sweetheart, and I do hope that with time you two can become friends.”
“I hope so too,” I say quietly, because I know that’s what she needs to hear, and it’s also what I would say if this thing between Jace and me were real.
I learned early on in life how quickly people can be taken away from you, and with my mom’s illness, I learned how precious life truly is. There is no time for a grudge that you might end up regretting when it’s too late to make things right. And even if I do believe Jace has a right to still be angry about what happened between his brother and Haylee, that situation has nothing to do with me. They’re all adults who need to sit down and have a conversation that has most likely never taken place.
“I really like you, Penny.” She pats my arm, then turns around and heads out of the room, calling over her shoulder for me to have fun.
With no choice, my towel wrapped tight around me, I head to the boathouse and find Jace waiting, just like Janelle said he would be. Only she didn’t tell me that he would be shirtless and that I should prepare myself mentally for seeing him half-naked. As he’s distracted by whatever it is he’s doing on one of the large jet skis inside the small building, I take in his well-defined abs, the V that disappears into his black swim trunks, along with the tattoos that cover his torso and muscular arms. No guy who’s made millions off playing video games should look like him. Heck, no guy should have a right to look as good as he does, period.
“Are you okay?”
Jumping at that question, I come out of my perusal and meet his gaze, knowing my cheeks are probably red from being caught checking him out. “Yep, great.”
“Nervous?”
“No, why would I be nervous?”
“You mentioned not being the best swimmer.” He bends to pick up a bright-red life vest before he walks toward me.
“Oh, I’m not, but I know the basics that should keep me alive if I end up in the water,” I say as he stops in front of me, so close I can see the swirls of blue mixed with green that make up the color of his eyes.
“All right, drop the towel, and let’s get this on you.”
“I can do it.” I hold the towel a little tighter with one hand, and he raises a brow but hands the vest over.
Making sure the towel is tucked tight, I slip on life jacket, then attempt to latch the clips, but the towel keeps getting caught, making it difficult. Well, that and whoever designed the stupid thing did not think about women who have breasts wearing it.
“Stupid thing,” I groan, getting aggravated.
“Let me help.” He moves my hands out of the way, then in one quick move, the towel is falling to my feet and his eyes are locked on my chest. “Jesus.”
“They’re boobs. I’m sure you’ve seen a million of them.” I slap my hand against my cleavage in an attempt to cover up—not that it does much to hide anything.
“Well.” He clears his throat. “They’re nice.”
“Oh my God,” I whisper, and he lifts his eyes to mine. “You did not just say that.”
“I’m a dude. It would be wrong if I didn’t notice and appreciate that you have a nice rack.”
“Don’t be a douche,” I grumble, then gasp when he pulls me forward by the straps of the life jacket, clicking the first buckle into place.
“Tomorrow, I’ll take you into town to get you a different suit.” He hooks the second. “I don’t need anyone else checking out my fiancée’s tits.”
“Don’t say that.”
“Why not? If they were mine, I wouldn’t want to share them.”
“Can we just go? This is getting weird.” I sigh, and he grins a grin that has me second-guessing my decision to be alone with him. Then again, my reaction to him on a physical level has me second-guessing a whole lot of things.
“All done.” He lets me go and grabs his life jacket, quickly putting it on, then with the ease of a man who has ridden a jet ski a few times in his life, he climbs onto the machine and straddles the seat. “Let’s go, cupcake.” He starts the engine.