Page 111 of Maneater
“Are you telling me this is a nude beach, Rowan?” I ask, my eyes wide. “I’m super cool and like to think I’m pretty progressive, but sand in my bare crotch is not for me. Sorry to break it to you.”
He lets out a deep belly laugh, tugging me into him and pressing his lips to mine. When he pulls back, his smile is wide and carefree, and suddenly, I can’t find it in me to feel bad about taking some time for myself while on a mission.
“I would absolutely have warned you ahead of time if that was something I expected, but just for the record, sandy crotches don’t do anything for me, either.”
“Phew,” I say in exaggerated relief as I toe my sneakers off and step into the warm, soft sand. I expected it to be filled with rocks or twigs, but it’s not; it’s perfect and luxurious and pulls a soft sigh from me.
Rowan grabs my hand and walks me to the center of the beach before dropping his own large bag he brought with him. I dig through mine, setting things aside on the beach blanket he’s laid out to find the sunscreen I already know I’ll need a second layer of.
“Uh, is that a taser in your beach bag?” he asks, and when I turn, I see my sparkly pink taser is sitting on the blanket. His look of utter concern makes me smile.
“Oh, Betty?” I reach and grab it, pressing the button once, thentwice to spark it to life. Rowan sits back further, and I laugh at him. “Yeah.”
He opens and closes his mouth a few times before asking, “How did you get that on a plane?”
“Don’t question my methods, Fisher,” I say. He glares, and I giggle. “I put it in my big luggage, my god. Did you think I was bringing a taser in a carry-on?”
“If anyone could manage it, it would be you.”
I pat his cheek and smile. “I love the confidence you have in me. “
“I have all the confidence in the world in you, Josie.”
“As you should,” I say, standing up and stretching. The sun feels glorious on my skin after we walked through the shaded trees, but the water looks even more inviting as we stand beneath the beating sun. I shrug off my shorts and start making steps toward the water, looking over my shoulder to see Rowan staring at my ass. I smile wide and wink before speaking again. “Come on. I want to go for a swim.”
“I never want to leave here,” I say on a sigh later, after Rowan fed me the most amazing sandwiches and fresh, homemade chips that he had the kitchen make. We’re lying on our backs side by side on the beach blanket, letting the sun dry us off, and it feels like absolute heaven.
But the reason I never want to leave has so much less to do with the sun and sand and more with the man lying next to me.
We’ve spent the last few hourstalkingnonstop. I’ve learned that, like me, he has no pets because he’s not home enough, but he would like one eventually. He learned to ski as a kid but hasn’t gone in years, though he might find a few chances with the new Aspen location opening soon. He always knew he wanted to be in business, although luxury hotels were something he fell into during his undergraduate studies when he secured an internship with Daydream. His favorite food is Japanese, his favorite color is navy blue, and while he doesn’t watch much television or movies, when he does, it’s mostly eighties action films.
In turn, I told him I desperately want a cat, though not until I can make sure I’ll be home often enough to care for one. I’ve never beenoutside of the Americas, nor have I ever skied; however, while on an assignment, I learned to surf while investigating a man who owned a surf shop.
It’s been…easy. Shockingly so. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, for him to drop some kind of lore that makes me get the ick, but everything he tells me fits him so well and just…fits.
We fit.
“Yeah, me neither,” he says, reaching for my hand and squeezing it. I give him a smile, but it’s tinged in worry despite trying to fight it back. Inevitably, the incredibly attentive man notices it.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, brow furrowing as he sits up to look down at me. He leaves a hand on the beach blanket beneath us before using one hand to brush back some stray strands of hair. I let out a deep sigh before confessing.
“It’s just…right now, like this, it’s perfect. We’re stuck together, with minimal distractions, because our work is kind of the same. But it won’t be like this in a week. And we both have admitted we work a ton, much of it traveling around. I just…” I feel so silly spilling this out right now, during this perfect afternoon, especially since everything is so new with us. However, I also know that bottling things up never ends well for me. When he gives me a soft, reassuring smile, some of my nerves ease.
“We’ll figure it out, Josie,” he tells me, not a hint of doubt in the words.
“Will we?” I ask, and I can even hear the nerves in my voice. Nerves because the reality is, IlikeRowan. I like him, and I like what we have right now, right here. As we draw closer to solving the case and nearing the end of our stay, the reality that this bubble will burst soon feels suffocating.
“Of course we will. You get vacation time?”
“I never use it,” I admit.
“Well, it sounds like we’re a perfect pair because I’ve been told if I don’t start using mine, my boss is going to lock me out of the system.”
I let out a laugh, this one a bit easier, and he smiles downat me before his face goes serious. “Vacations together every other month, at least four days. Besides that, I work in Hudson City a lot, and that’s where I live.” I smile before telling him something I already know.
“A lot of my assignments are near home.”
“So when we’re both home, we spend the night in one of our beds.” I squint at him.
