Page 24 of Kiss Me, Darling

“Yeah. Of course. Especially after you helped with my hair. I kind of owe you.” And also kind of hoped the touching and closeness ended in another kiss.

I spread the cool liquid over her skin, more than aware of the electricity bouncing between us, the smell of her body wash and shampoo. Lucy loved coconut milk. If that scent was available she always picked it. She even had a coconut milk candle next to the bathtub that she said made her feel like she was always on a tropical vacation.

And now that those smells were hitting me like a sledgehammer after a day on the water, it was as if we really were on a tropical getaway.

She swayed a little. “Sorry. My brain knows we’re back on solid ground, but my body doesn’t seem to understand. I feel like I’m still rocking.”

“That’s normal.” My voice had somehow dropped an octave. It sounded rougher too, so I cleared my throat. “Is, uh, burgers okay for dinner? Esther was picking up food and I told her to go ahead and grab us some too.”

“That sounds amazing. I’m starving.”

I covered all the sunburn, but I kept applying more aloe because I didn’t want to stop touching her. “Do you want the security update?”

She froze for a moment. “Yeah. Sure.”

“The camera at Chris’s house caught our intruder leaving, but there was still nothing useful to go by. They have an approximate height and build to add to anything else we can discover. Unfortunately it’s another dead end.”

She took a long, deep breath. “Well that sucks.”

“But the good news is we’ve been cleared to go visit Grandma Kaine.” She didn’t know it, but she had a bodyguard as well. The team coordinated and now all Lucy and I had to do was get in a rental car and go.

“When?” She turned, her hair over one shoulder held in her hand.

“Almost done.” I blew lightly on the damp aloe, my hand still on her back. “I was thinking day after tomorrow. I volunteered to help Chris with some interviews tomorrow.”

“That’s perfect.”

I slowly zipped her dress up, already missing the feel of her skin. “I can reapply in the morning if you like.”

She fully turned, releasing her hair. “I had a really good time today. Even if it did end with a runaway boat and a sunburn.”

“I’m sorry I exaggerated my boating skills.”

Her smile lit up her whole face. “Ah, Scott. When will you learn that I know when you’re stretching things?”

“So today wasn’t a surprise?”

She blushed. At least I think she did. It was a little harder to tell with the pink cheeks. “I was surprised by how much fun we had.” Then she went up on her toes and kissed me lightly on the lips.

It sent a jolt through me. And not a little one. A big one. Like jumpstarting a car. My hands immediately went to her hips and held on tight. “I’m getting the impression you like Scott 2.0.”

She pulled back, her eyes darting between mine. “If I shook my Magic 8 Ball it would say ‘signs point to yes’.”

6

Alone with my smokin’ hot thoughts and nowhere to release them

Lucy

When I was a kid I loved painting. I got in trouble for painting a mural on my bedroom wall. I was seven and it wasn’t a mural so much as it was a color explosion on top of my mother’s carefully hung blue and white floral wallpaper.

Oops.

But getting in trouble didn’t stop my love of the art form. Art class was always one of my favorites and over the years I used paint as a stress reliever. I knew full well I wasn’t a great artist, but I didn’t paint to be great. I painted to have fun. So now I was having a great deal of fun painting my feelings on my bedroom wall.

I’m not entirely sure why I felt like this room wasmine.But there was something about the energy that spoke to me. I felt ownership over this space. And while I’d chosen a somewhat feminine color, it wasn’t about making this room a room for a girl. It was simply what the room dictated. Besides, the pink was as soft as the blue downstairs. A tint to the white that cast the other colors in a special light.

That’s part of what drew me to painting though. The colors didn’t change the room, they only brought out different aspects of it.

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