Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 71396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 286(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 286(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
“What are you waiting for?” she teases. “Afraid you’ve forgotten how to get up?”
“Never afraid of that,” I promise her. “But I was thinking… why don’t you come home to Monaco with me?”
Lara blinks a few times, her gaze casting out to the ocean and then back to me. Her gray eyes look almost blue in the sunlight. “And do what… just hang?”
“Well, your work is remote. You could work there, and yeah… we’d hang. I’d show you around. You could then come along to Zurich where I’ll need to do some stuff at headquarters before the Suzuka race.”
Lara’s teeth press down into her lower lip as she considers the offer. It’s sexy as hell and I want to kiss her. “What would our parents say?” she asks.
I shoot her a censuring look. “In case you didn’t realize, we’re both adults. And friends. And you’re sort of hiding from your crazy ex-fiancé. I’d imagine they’d think it was a cool idea.”
“Or they’d think something was going on between us and be disapproving because it’s way too soon.”
“You’re looking for problems before they arise,” I say. “Come on, Lara. Have some adventure. Besides… I don’t want to leave you behind.”
Not ever again.
Her face softens and I see her hesitation melt away. “Okay… I’ll do it.” Our eyes lock onto each other from across the boards. “You’re kind of perfect, you know that?”
“Nah,” I say. “I’m just finally getting it right.”
CHAPTER 14
Lara
The screen door creaks as it shuts behind Reid and he brings the last of the dishes into the kitchen. After a long day on the water, we hit the grocer and grabbed a few steaks and some veggies. Reid grilled everything up to perfection and we sipped Point Break Pale Ales. We’ve had a nonstop running conversation and I don’t know that I’ve ever enjoyed talking to someone as much as I have today.
I mean, he’s the same old Reid, and we’ve got thousands upon thousands of words between us, but we’ve both changed over the years. Things are different now, and it’s opened a floodgate of deeper topics to discuss. I imagine the fact that we’ve been intimate, that he’s asked me to go to Monaco and then Zurich with him, and that he’s protecting me from Lance has changed the dynamics in a way that bonds us differently from what we’ve ever known before as just friends.
But right now, it’s a companionable silence as we clean up the dinner dishes. He scrapes the remaining food into the bin and slides them into the soapy water. I wash and he takes up beside me, rinsing and drying. Reid puts stuff away into the cabinets and I wipe down the counters. When the kitchen is spotless, I fold the towel over a hook beside the sink and turn to him.
And I inhale sharply.
The look on his face is almost feral and my heart gallops away from me. He’s not said a word, hasn’t touched me, but those eyes tell a story that he wants me beyond reason, causing my skin to prickle.
It’s not like earlier—on the water, laughter bubbling between us as we paddled out past the break. The air is charged and dangerous, humming in my chest.
Reid’s watching me like he’s trying to find the right words. It looks a bit painful, to be honest.
“You don’t have to overthink this,” I say, my lips twitching to fight back a smile.
“I’m not overthinking,” he replies, voice low. “I’m just trying to figure out how many orgasms I can give you tonight.”
My breath catches and I’m pretty sure my panties are now soaked. I’ve never felt so desired before. He makes it seem like I’m a dream that he never wants to end.
I take a step forward, closing the space between us. “Then let me help.”
Emboldened, I kiss him before he can kiss me. Soft at first, just a brush, but then I lean in, and he deepens it, hands rising to cup my jaw. His mouth is warm and familiar, and something in me releases.
He tastes like beer and ocean salt, and I lose myself in it—his mouth, his hands, the way he walks me backward toward the hallway that leads to my bedroom.
We don’t speak as he peels off his T-shirt, his fingers grazing mine as I reach for the hem of my tank. His eyes roam slowly over my bare skin, not with urgency, but reverence. “I’ve always thought you were beautiful,” he murmurs thoughtfully. “But I never knew quite how to tell you that. It was never… appropriate.”
“You make me feel beautiful,” I say as his hand comes to the center of my chest.
I lie back on the bed, the same bed I’ve had since I was a teenager, but nothing about this is adolescent. This isn’t fumbling or fast or uncertain. This is deliberate.