Page 19 of Far From Center
But Gabe was different. He seemed so much stronger, both physically and in personality, than Nils. If he were to ask, if he were to show the slightest interest, she’d say ‘yes’.
Foolish girl. You’re just going to get hurt again. But then Nyalla remembered his erection when they’d tussled in her hotel room, and when she’d duct taped him to the bed. Even if he broke her heart, she’d still have sex with this angel, and do a lot more with him. It wasn’t just sex. She wanted to dance with him, show him what it was like to be human, to share her love of the ocean with a kindred spirit.
“Maybe tomorrow morning we can surf, or paddleboard, or rent some sea kayaks. I so want to scuba dive with you, but you’d need to take one of those tourist classes before we head out and I don’t think we’d have time tomorrow to do that and get a dive in. Maybe we can snorkel instead.”
He put his hand on top of hers, pressing her palm firmly against his chest. “For as long as I am human, I’m in your hands. Show me your world, Nyalla. Tell me about those activities. Which one is your favorite?”
Nyalla stepped closer, putting her other hand on his waist and looking up into his beautiful eyes. “Surfing is standing on a flat board as the waves push it to shore, so it’s like walking on water — or standing on water. Paddleboarding is similar, although you’re paddling around on top of the ocean instead of riding the waves in. Kayaking is a small boat you sit in and paddle around. Snorkeling is where you have a tube to breathe through and you swim through shallows, looking at the plants and fish underwater. But my favorite is scuba diving. You have a tank of oxygen to breathe while you can swim down deep in the ocean. I’ve seen shipwrecks, fish, coral. It’s the closest I can come to being part of the ocean. I went on a dive when I first got to Aruba, and I hope to have time to do a few more before I leave.”
He was silent a moment, then spoke in hushed tones. “It grieves me that you can’t experience the ocean the way I have. This Scooby-diving is nowhere near the experience of actually becoming the ocean.”
“Someday Iwillbecome the ocean,” Nyalla told him. “I want my body to be given to the ocean when I pass. Although, I hope that’s a long time in the future. There’s a whole lot of things I’d like to do, to experience, before I die.”
There was a moment that passed between them, some spark. She leaned against him and his arms came around her, his mouth brushing the top of her head.
“You don’t want to talk about your life with the elves? Well, I don’t want to talk about your death or what you want done with your remains,” he said. “Let’s swim and enjoy today, not thinking about yesterday or tomorrow.”
He was so very right. Nyalla nodded against his chest. Gabriel looped his arm around her waist and walked beside her down to the edge of the surf. Nyalla watched the waves come in over his toes, wetting his jeans up to mid-calf.
“Aren’t you going to take your clothes off?” She pulled away from him to yank her dress over her head and wade in with bra and panties.
That’s when she saw his face, saw the perplexed and somewhat sad expression.
“I guess I should. They’re the only clothes I have, and I just realized I can’t just create more, or instantly dry these ones.”
Her heart twisted. “There’s a washer and dryer right down the hall from our room. I’ll do laundry when we get back, then tomorrow we’ll buy you a few extra sets of clothes, including a pair of swim trunks.”
He nodded and backed out of the water, shedding his pants and pulling off his shirt. Then he folded each one carefully before placing them on the sand. With a sigh, he picked up her dress and did the same while Nyalla laughed at his crazy need to have everything neat and tidy. When he was done, he turned and strode into the ocean.
And at that moment, she could do nothing besides stare. Holy guacamole, this angel made one incredible human. Nils had been hot, but Gabe was downright smoking. Every muscle was defined and tanned. She’d seen a lot of guys naked. She’d seen a Fallen angel naked. But Gabriel set the standard for which all men would be judged going forward. And it was going to be a nearly impossible standard to meet.
He walked toward her through the water, adjusting his red plaid boxer shorts as the water hit above his knees. Nyalla couldn’t help her gaze from shifting downward, noting that he was quite obviously anatomically correct. And just as impressive there, from what she could tell.
“By all that’s holy.” Gabriel grimaced. “I think some of my appendages just retreated nearly a foot into my abdomen.”
She laughed. “Wimp. It’s not that cold. You should try swimming up north. The water there is at least twenty degrees cooler.”
“I’m assuming I’ll get used to it and those dangly things will descend into the proper place once more?”
He adjusted his boxers again and Nyalla stared, anticipating how they’d look wet and clinging to him when he exited the water.
Wait, boxers?
“Why are you wearing plaid boxers?” She asked. “I would have figured you angels would be commando, or briefs. Or maybe even a thong.” Okay, maybe not a thong, but a girl could dream.
He looked down at the article of clothing in question then tilted his head. “Rafi told me they were appropriate garments to wear under pants. He said these in particular were well suited to my personality.”
Ah. Raphael was almost as much of a trickster as Sam. Although he was right, the boxers did suit Gabe. They had an old-fashioned, modest quality to them that made a girl wonder what was underneath. Sometimes it was what was hidden that enticed the most.
“Well, I like them. I’ll need to pick up some more, so I don’t need to do laundry every day.” She waded out farther. “Are you coming? Are we going to swim or just float around in the surf? The waves here are gentle, not like the crazy pounding stuff on the Atlantic side of the island.”
He smiled fondly. “I remember. That’s where I was when I first spied you. And I’m not sure how much farther I should wade out. I don’t know if I can swim or not. Isn’t that silly? An angel who has an affinity for water, who can become the sea, and I don’t know if I can swim.”
Nyalla hesitated then moved back in closer to shore. As much as she was confident that Gabriel would have retained his abilities in the water, she wasn’t skilled in lifesaving. And the idea of trying to pull a guy of Gabe’s size from the water, was frightening. “We’ll try the pool tomorrow and see how you do. If you can swim, I’ll sign you up for that day class in scuba diving and we can go together before we leave Aruba. There’s a cool fishing boat wreck on the Atlantic side I want to see.
He eyes stayed on her as she waded along, her hand skimming the tops of the waves as they rolled in toward the sand. “In the water, you’re like a goddess.”
She couldn’t help but smile. As hokey as his words sounded, she could tell the feeling behind them was genuine. But it would still be fun to flirt a bit with him. “Is that your pick-up line? Because it’s working.”
