Page 101 of Along Came Amor
God, was there anything sexier than flirty Ava? Roman didn’t think so.
He sat up, and she laughed when he immediately tossed a towel over his lap.
“You feeling okay over there?” she asked. “You seem a little... flustered.”
“Just fine,” he grumbled.
They still had a lot to talk about—he wasn’t letting her off the hook for the way she’d snapped at him after they’d made love in the shower—but this wasn’t the time or place, and if she wanted to break some of her rules, he was game. He took the sunscreen from her, rubbed it between his hands, and began to smooth it onto her back. It was a pleasure just to touch her, and as he worked it over her shoulders, she let out a satisfied hum.
“You like that?” His voice came out gravelly with desire.
“Mmm. It’s nice. I never splurge on massages.”
Roman made a mental note to book spa services for them the next day.
He ran his hands all over her back, then down her legs, sliding the sunscreen over her thighs. When he got to the bikini bottoms, he dipped his fingers underneath, massaging her gorgeous butt. When her thighs parted, he was tempted to go further, to stroke her and see if she was as turned on as he was, but he stuck to the uncovered skin.
“You’re very thorough,” she murmured.
“You’re not getting burned on my watch.”
“I appreciate it.” Then she sat up, drained her glass, and jumped to her feet. “See you in the water!”
She took off, jogging down to the beach and leaving Roman staring after her with a raging boner.
He laughed. Damn, she was fun.
Since he wasn’t going anywhere for a few minutes, he sipped his drink and watched her stride into the water, her long, strong legs cutting through the breaking waves. And when she raised her arms over her head and dove in, he waited with bated breath until she resurfaced.
Roman was glad they’d left their phones behind but he wished he could take a picture of her as she was now, diving in and out of the water in her pink bikini, a smile on her face, as carefree as a frolicking seal. Since he couldn’t take a picture, he committed every detail to memory, determined not to miss a thing.
Ava bobbed back up and wiped the water from her eyes. Her head turned, like she was scanning the shore, and when she spotted him, her face lit up and she waved. Roman could see her huge grin all the way from where he sat, and warmth suffused his chest. He waved back, and when she relaxed into the water to float, his pulse sped up and his skin prickled like he’d caught a chill. But how? It had to be almost a hundred degrees out.
Then it hit him. It wasn’t a chill, it wasshock. Shock, because his body had realized something before his brain could interpret the feeling. The goosebump-inducing warmth was... Fuck. It waslove. Helovedher.
He fucking loved Ava.
With something akin to terror, his mind raced to catalog the feelings she brought out in him. Excitement whenever her name appeared on his phone. Longing when she went months without contacting him. Fear when he thought she was in trouble. Delight at doing something nice for her. And determination to treat her like a queen.
There were more emotions to sort through, but this was a starting point, and when he factored in additional data—like how he dropped everything to see her, something he’d done for literallyno onewho wasn’t a blood relation—all signs pointed to love.
He loved her hesitation because it made the moments when she was bold all the more electrifying. He loved her kindness, but he loved her sass and spark even more. He loved her generosity, even when she gave too much, and he especially loved when she let him swoop to her rescue like a knight in a fairytale. He loved the way she curled against him when she needed comfort, the way she read every item on a menu before making her decision, the way she crafted the most polite booty call texts ever. He loved her neat cursive, her perfect curls, and how magnificent she was when she finally let her hair get wet. He loved the way she wrapped her long legs around his hips like a snare he never wanted to escape from, the way her plush mouth sucked on his bottom lip when they kissed, the way her eyes revealed everything she was feeling, even whenshe thought she was hiding it. A blend of colors—brown and green, yellow and red, and deep enough to drown in—her eyes held galaxies and reflected his entire universe back to him. Everything he was and ever would be was tangled up with her.
He’d never been in love before, but he knew with soul-deep certainty that this was worlds beyond desire, and far different than what he felt for his family. When he thought of Ava, the unparalleled sense of connection stretched out far into the future, eternal and boundless. He wanted to be part of her life, and for her to be part of his, forever.
It wasn’t whatshewanted. He knew that. But feelings changed, didn’t they? His had. When they’d met, he’d been content with one night of fun. And now here he was, head over fucking heels in love with her.
Wasn’t it possible her feelings could change too?
From the water, Ava beckoned to him, and Roman rose to his feet. God, this woman had total control over him, and she didn’t even realize it. More, he wanted to give her that control. He wanted to give hereverything.
Setting down his glass, he walked toward the water as if there were an invisible cord pulling him to her. He didn’t fight it, just let the feeling tug him forward, across the sand and into the breaking waves splashing over his feet. He charged into the surf as it battered his knees and threatened to knock him over. When he reached her, the water was calmer. The wordsI love youwere on the tip of his tongue, but he resisted the urge to tell her what he’d discovered. He knew her well enough by now to know it would scare her. Roman wasn’t used to holding back—when he had an idea, heacted. But Ava wasn’t like that. She’dneed time to think, to process. So he would wait, even though the feeling swelled inside him like a balloon until he thought he would burst with it.
“We have to stop meeting like this,” she murmured when he approached.
“Like what?”
“In the water.” With a saucy grin, she splashed him right in the face.
