Page 38 of Duty and Desire

Nick busied himself removing containers from the cool bag he’d brought, and it wasn’t long before the center of the towel was covered with food. I took his proffered wet wipe to clean my hands, then grabbed a mango baton. Juice trickled down my chin, and I chuckled. “My dad used to say the only way to eat a mango was to strip naked, climb into the tub, and peel and eat it in there. He said it saved on washing clothes.”

Nick laughed. “Clever man, your father.”

We ate fruit, cheese, cold chicken, and cookies, washed down with bottles of water. I don’t know whether it was the fresh air or the company, but everything seemed to give my taste buds an extra zing. Once our appetites had been dulled, we got down to the really important task of soaking up some sun.

Nick held out the bottle of sunscreen. “Can you do my back?”

“Sure.” As I took it, movement caught my eye. “Er, Nick? I think I ought to warn you. Someone’s trying to steal my mango.” I pointed to the corner of the towel, where a very large crab was attempting to lug a mango spear back to his little hidey hole.

Nick jumped to his feet. “Well, don’t just sit there—take it off him—or her.”

“Youtake it!”

His eyes widened. “Are you kidding? Those claws can deliver a healthy nip.”

By now the crab was burrowing into the sand.

“You know what? We should just let him have that piece on us.” Then I gaped as another crab appeared, making a beeline for our towel. “But let’s put all the food away, okay?”

Nick rolled his eyes. “Great. No fruit for them to steal, just our toes to nibble.”

I had visions of three or four crabs sitting in a row, making a meal of us, and the thought had me laughing my ass off. When everything had been cleared away—and I’d taken a look around to make sure there were no more invaders—I gestured to the towel. “Lie face down and I’ll apply the sunscreen.”

Nick complied, and I opened the bottle with asnick. For one brief moment I toyed with the idea of straddling his ass while I rubbed the lotion in, but I dismissed it just as quickly: the sight of him was already awakening part of my anatomy—again—and the last thing I wanted was for Nick to become aware of my arousal. I knelt beside him, squirted lotion onto his skin, and smoothed it over his shoulders, down his spine, ending at the waistband of his swim briefs.

His skin was warm and soft.

“Want me to do the back of your legs? I mean, while I’ve got this stuff on my hands.”

“Thanks,” Nick murmured, his head resting on his forearms.

I worked as fast as I could. Each glide of my slick palms over his body only heightened my arousal, and I knew as soon as I was done, I’d head back to the water for a dip. Maybe a little distance would ease the problem.

Yeah right. I had a feeling this problem was here to stay.

We walked from the beach to where we’d left our bikes, secured to the trunk of a palm tree. Another day spent with Nick, and my feelings at the end of it were the same as every previous occasion.

I didn’t want it to end.

Nick fastened the food bag to the bike, then turned to face me. “This has been a fantastic day.”

Lines from a song played on a loop in my head, something about a perfect day.

I was glad I’d spent it with him.

“Listen… I know you don’t have much time left before Claudia leaves, but…”

“What?” Nick’s eyes were bright.

“Well, I was thinking. Would you have dinner with me tomorrow night?”

That slow smile turned my insides to mush. “I’d like that. Do you want to pick a restaurant this time?”

My heartbeat raced. “Actually, I was going to suggest I cook for us. At my place.”

Dark brown eyes locked onto mine. “That sounds great.” His voice was a little husky, and he cleared his throat. “Of course, you’ll need to give me directions.”

“I’ll send you a screenshot.” He stood about two feet away from me, and it was too far away.

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