Page 20 of Beauty
Topics that require studying before I can understand them. Sometimes even a good book.
But never a person.
Yet here Sienna is, an exception to that rule.
Spending hours going from spot to spot, taking in one incredible view after another, leaves my mind empty of everything but her. My entire focus is fixed on her, the rainbow-colored fish swimming below us, the coral, and the salt water that drips from her lips when we surface so we can board the catamaran. The track it takes down her chin, onto her neck, and between her breasts is a line I’d like to trace with my tongue.
The second the thought crosses my mind, I blow out a breath and look away from her. If I don’t get myself under control, I’mliable to pull her flush to my body and kiss the ever-loving shit out of her.
It’s insane that I’m more attracted to her right now, with a set of goggles covering her face and a snorkel dangling beside her cheek, than I’ve ever been to another person.
“You are a man of mixed signals,” she says, her tone flat as we tread water to stay afloat while we wait for our turn near the ladder.
Aggravated with myself, I turn my eyes to the cloudless sky and consider how deep my explanation should go.
She slides the goggles off and dips beneath the water, coming up with her head tipped back so her wet hair cascades down and clings to her shoulders. “Forget it. You were very clear when you moved rooms. Thanks for swimming with me.”
Fuck.
She turns, but before she can slip away, I grab her hand. “It’s not what you think.”
With one brow arched, she peers at me over her shoulder, silently sayingYeah, buddy, really?
“I had fun last night. I did, really. I just—” I tug on her hand until she turns back, then I pull the goggles off my head, feeling like an idiot for having this conversation through the glass.
She frowns, her green eyes not nearly as bright as they should be when surrounded by tropical waters.
I rough a hand through my hair, then drag it down my face. “But then I heard something I shouldn’t have last night, and I had all these thoughts—” I snap my mouth shut and swallow past the lump that’s formed in my throat.
I know she knows exactly what I’m talking about, though her expression gives nothing away. She doesn’t even blush.
After several silent heartbeats, her mouth kicks up on one side and she nibbles ever so slightly on her bottom lip. “Did youconsider that maybe I left my doors open on purpose? That Iwantedyou to hear?”
Without waiting for a response, she dips beneath the water and swims back to the boat.
I stay where I am, every kick that keeps me from sinking below the water painful as I wait for the boner that’s just sprung to dissipate.
Even long after we’ve gotten out of the water, she holds my attention, and I don’t know what to do about that.
The ride back on the catamaran is rough. The wind has picked up, and the waves force us to the back of the boat. I’m irrationally annoyed because I hoped I could have a few minutes up front with Sienna to talk about what she said. Figure out what she meant.
My attitude is absurd. We’re not in a relationship. I barely know the woman. We shouldn’t need to talk anything out. Yet I crave her words. Crave her nearness.
Instead, Eddy hovers at her side, chatting away. Entertaining her.
“Tell Eddy you need a drink,” I mumble to Ernie.
“So you can talk to the girl?” He cocks a brow. “Nah, I’d rather you let your balls drop and go interrupt them yourself.”
I’m used to crude comments and locker room talk. I just don’t normally engage. Today is no different. Rather than argue with him, I lean back, hoping someone, anyone, will need something from Eddy and do the interrupting for me.
Though as I sit and wait and scan the group, it seems like they all have full drinks and are happy to flirt among themselves. So before long, I find myself watching, once again, as Eddy chats up Sienna, making her eyes dance and pulling genuine laughs from her. She’s holding the straw of her drink to her mouth, biting down on it every few seconds and smiling.
Thank fuck she pulled a sweatshirt on when the wind picked up. If I had to watch him flirt with her while she was nearly naked, I might actually lose it.
As we get close to port, Eddy gets up. But before I can collect myself and move closer, the two women in their forties approach Sienna and fall into conversation.
I’m hanging back until I can get a moment alone when Eddy calls out to the group. “Ride is over. You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here!” Around me, laughs ring out, and one by one, the other snorkelers step off the boat, all smiles. As we shuffle closer to the exit point, I make sure I slide in behind Sienna. Once we’re on the dock, I’ll apologize and explain. But before I can, Eddy grabs her arm and pulls her to the side. “There’s a dance party tonight on the beach. I’m working it. Will you come?”
