The moment I walked into the room, Drake let out a low whistle.
“Shut up,” Rio told him.
“What? She’s not my sister,” he replied.
I glanced at Rio and he shook his head. “Ignore him.”
That made me laugh. It was exactly what Saul had said.
“Guess the pool is off-limits this evening,” Drake said and fell back onto the sofa. “Saul won’t share. He’s the selfish sort.”
I walked down the three stairs and went to the opposite side of the sofa to sit down. “I saw your text,” Rio told me. “Just haven’t had time to respond. Work has been brutal.”
“It’s okay. It can wait,” I replied.
“Yeah, she’s a bit busy herself,” Drake said with a wicked grin.
Rio glared at him then rolled his eyes.
I took a drink of my water, torn between wanting Saul to hurry up and wanting him to take a while longer so I could get my courage up about this swimming suit thing.
“I told her he’s been playing the guitar again,” Drake said in a low voice.
Rio glanced at him then me. “That’s a good thing,” he told me. “It’s been awhile since he’s done that.”
I hoped I would get to hear him play the guitar and sing. I wasn’t sure if it was something he only did alone in his room or in front of people. However, asking him would mean I had to tell him how I knew about it and I didn’t know if that was an issue.
“We got a volleyball game out on the sand tomorrow. Want to join? You can be on my team,” Drake said then and I turned to look at him.
“She’s got plans,” Saul said and my attention quickly shifted to the doorway he had just walked through. My breathing also became difficult. He only had on a pair of dark blue swim trunks and there was not one flaw on his body. It was unfair and beautiful at the same time.
Drake chuckled then and propped his feet up on the large round ottoman. “I’m sure she does,” he replied.
Saul’s gaze found me and I felt my entire body flush. I put the top back on my water and stood up. A crooked grin curled his lips. “Come on,” he said.
We left the other two inside as we made our way out to the pool. The sun still had an hour before it set and the light on the gulf was beautiful. Standing on the pool deck, I looked out over the fading day glistening on the water. The hard things in life seemed easier when you saw things such as this.
“It’s my favorite time of day to be out here,” Saul said, standing behind me and placing a hand on my hip.
“I can see why,” I replied softly.
Neither of us said anything more for several moments.
When Saul finally moved from behind me, I turned toward him. He gave me a wicked grin and then his eyes surveyed the towel I was clutching at my chest. “You gonna take that off?” he asked then walked over to the edge of the pool and, as if it was a choreographed move, dove smoothly into the water barely breaking the surface.
I stood there watching him glide under the surface, knowing I was going to have to take the towel off and get in too. It was either that or I could stand here like an uptight dork all evening. I did have the setting sunlight to help aid in my pale skin. When the sun was bright, I always feared my skin glowed from its lack of a golden tan.
Easing my hold on the towel, I let go of it and laid it over the edge of a lounge chair then walked to the edge of the zero-entry side of the pool and made my way down the small slant into the deeper water. I knew Saul was watching me but making eye contact seemed impossible right now. I was sure my cheeks were red and I hated that about myself. I wanted to be as cool and as tropical vacation commercial worthy as he was but that wasn’t happening.
Once the water was below my breasts, I felt brave enough to meet his gaze. He had a crooked grin and I could see the twinkle of amusement in his eyes. This wasn’t something I was used to seeing from Saul. The guy I knew wasn’t playful at all but dark, broody, and withdrawn. The one looking at me now was different. More approachable. Less intimidating.
“Am I amusing you?” I asked.
He nodded slowly.
“And what am I doing that has you amused?” I shot back with my own playful smile. I didn’t want broody Saul back just yet. I liked this version.
He gave me a full sexy as hell smirk then and I felt tingly all over. “You’re shy about being in your bikini in front of me. It’s fucking adorable.”
I glanced down at my body under the water. My two-piece would qualify as a bikini but not by the standards of most girls I had seen at his house. When I lifted my eyes back to meet his I shrugged, acting as casual as I could about this. I didn’t know what to say to his accusation since it was entirely true.
Saul moved toward me and I had to remind myself to keep breathing. His bare muscular chest looked even more amazing with water droplets running down his sun-kissed skin. He didn’t stop until he was barely an inch from me. I watched as he lifted his hands from the water and cupped my face.
Knowing what was coming next, I closed my eyes just as his lips met mine. Once I had kissed Will in the rain but never had I been kissed in a pool. There was a sexiness to it that felt more intimate. The fact we had very little covering our bodies, our cold wet bodies touching, the sun setting just over our shoulders. This would be one of those kisses I remembered. Long after I left this town, this would come back to me. How it felt to have this beautiful boy touch me, how he tasted of whiskey and sunshine, and the warmth our bodies created from their nearness.
Wanting to feel his skin under my fingertips, I ran my hands up his chest. He shivered under my touch and the power that came from such a simple reaction was what I would guess a high felt like. I wanted more of that, more of him being made weak by me. This was new to me and so very different from what I had known before. Leaning closer to him, I ran my hands up to his shoulders.
His hands left my face and grabbed my waist firmly then jerked me flush against him. My breasts were pressed against his warm damp skin and this time, it was me who shivered. Our kiss changed then too. Something more desperate or needy began to take over and I had never felt this inability to control my reactions as I did now.
The moment Saul’s hand slid from my waist to the fabric of my swimsuit bottoms to the sensation of his fingertips touching the bare skin of my bottom, I realized I no longer cared about my insecurities. Those had fled and had been replaced by desire.
Saul’s mouth left mine and moved to the spot behind my ear and then to my neck. The hand cupping my bottom slid down to my thigh and he grabbed it to pull my leg up onto his hip. The pressure from his obvious arousal against the very thin barrier between my legs made all other thoughts fade away. My body was focused on nothing else but the sensations being with him this way were causing. I tipped my head back as he began kissing down my collarbone and the tops of my breasts.