Page 20 of The Catch

Josh hugged her to his chest, collapsing back onto the sand. He let her rest on top of him for a fleeting moment before he rolled her onto her back and hovered above her. “Still good?” he asked.

It was sweet of him to keep checking, and she appreciated his vigilance, but at the moment, she didn’t want to be reminded that she was doing something out of character and maybe a little dangerous.

“Josh.” She slipped her hand between them, tugging the drawstring on his bathing suit. “I’m good.”

He made a low growling noise as the knot gave way and kissed his way to the valley of her breasts. His tongue stroked and dipped into the crease there in a display of talent that had her mind racing at the implications. Still lower, he bounced around her stomach and sides, marking her with a trail of hot breath. He was almost to her hip when the sand started to feel cooler around her, and new moisture mixed with the wet marks he was leaving on her skin. She pushed it out of her mind when his fingers began toying with the waistband of her suit.

He pushed past the fabric, traveling the line of her hip bone with his thumb, and she drew in a hopeful breath, waiting for what came next, but Josh froze as if startled by something. She almost whined at the interruption until she felt it too: big wet splashes on her shoulders, then her forehead.

Both his hands stopped what they were doing, and he lifted his face to the sky. “Shit,” he cursed, looking utterly torn.

There was another flash, this time shedding unwanted light on their hidden corner of the beach. Josh looked back at her with palpable exasperation, his lips swollen, his neck flushed. The rain pelted his back now, the drops coming quick and hard, and he sat back on his knees, pulling her up with him.

He used the hand he’d just been about to pleasure her with to wipe a drop from her forehead. “Looks like the storm caught up with us,” he said as the thunder returned, sharper than a rumble.

She looked upward too, praying it was a passing sprinkle, but the sky had opened, dropping tiny wet bombs of disappointment onto them.

Cat’s heart was still racing as Josh tucked her head under his chin and held his hands over her hair in a futile attempt at shielding her from the rain. “Let’s go to your room,” she whispered against his neck.

He tilted his head in response, searching her eyes. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’m getting soaked.” She kissed him again, feeling the precipitation pool on his swollen upper lip.

He pulled back, still looking for any sign that he shouldn’t take her up on the offer. She’d already crossed this line in her mind, though; she didn’t want to bail now.

“Josh. Take me to your room.”

He didn’t need any more convincing. He found his sweatshirt, left crumpled in a pile on the sand, and draped it over her shoulders, then quickly gathered the rest of their things. “Come on, then.”

Six

The elevator ride was puretorture. Cat was smooshed up against him to accommodate a group of drunken guests who, despite the late hour, were traveling between floors and trying to make conversation. Luckily, her position was hiding the outward signs of how turned on he was, but being pressed into her ass made it all the more difficult to contain.

They finally made it to his floor, and Cat barely waited for the elevator door to close before wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him into another heated kiss. He hadn’t had any expectations when she’d asked him to take her swimming instead of going back to the group. He’d really just intended on kissing her on the beach, and hopefully charming her enough that she’d agree to a date when they got back home. This took him by surprise. A good surprise, like winning the lottery or finding out you were the only heir to a rich uncle that you didn’t know you had.

He forced his feet to move, stumbling down the deserted hallway, their mouths glued together, and their hands roaming each other greedily. When they reached his door, after bouncing off of the wall a few times, he pressed her against it, pinning her there with one hand above her head. He reached blindly into the pocket of the sweatshirt he’d lent her to find his wallet. Finally thumbing the key card, he broke away briefly, letting his eyes travel the length of her as he envisioned what he wanted to do when he got her out of that wet bathing suit. The thought brought to mind his earlier conversation with Dylan, and he paused for a moment, contemplating if he should slow things down. He liked Cat. A lot. The last thing he wanted was to treat her like some vacation hookup, but the amount of strength it took to turn down a girl like her was quite possibly more than he possessed.

“I don’t do this,” he said, running the card through the slot until he heard the quick little beep and click of it unlocking. He kept his eyes on hers while he pushed the door open. “I mean, this isn’t a habit for me.”

“That’s for damn sure.”

Josh jumped at the sound of Dylan’s voice, grabbing Cat’s arm and pulling her behind him.

Dylan appeared from behind the door, holding a freshly poured drink. His face split into a shit-eating grin, and his eyes danced with pure, unadulterated amusement.

“Do you two know what time it is?” Shawn called from the living room, shaking his head like a disapproving dad.

“Not last call yet,” Josh ground out. He was trying to mask his irritation at his friends’ unexpected appearance, but he was failing miserably. “Not like you guys to call it an early night.”

“Sorry, bro.” Dylan chuckled. “The girls wanted to go home, and Shawn offered us up as escorts. It was closer to just come back here and drink our booze.” He gestured to the bottle of scotch on the coffee table, surrounded by rows of cards that looked like they belonged to a game.

“You want us to deal you two in?” Shawn asked behind a poorly hidden laugh.

Josh ground his teeth, running a hand over his mouth to contain the words that were bubbling on his tongue.Of all the times for these two to be responsible.

Cat pulled away from his grip, tossing him a look that said,it’s okayandbe nice,and ran a soothing hand along his stomach as she passed to enter the room.

“What are you playing?” she asked. She took a seat across from Shawn, her polite smile in direct opposition to the scowl Josh was aiming at Dylan, who shrugged an apology. It might have felt more sincere without the smirk on his face.

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