Page 63 of The Rising Tide
“Wow,” he breathed after a moment. Scout turned to him, stretching one arm up over his head and placing the other hand on Lucky’s chest.
“Wow?”
Lucky managed to turn his head enough to see Scout’s eyes dancing as his own breathing subsided.
“Yeah.” Lucky captured the hand on his chest with his own and tugged it until it was over his left nipple—and his heart. “Wow.”
“Holy wow,” Scout said, completely serious. He scooted a little as the air cooled the sweat off their bodies and got close enough to kiss Scout’s shoulder. “Definitely,” he said. “Holy wow.”
Lucky’s eyes burned, but he couldn’t look away from the amazing guy who had taken him to bed and done something “serious,” as he’d said.
This was serious. Lucky had never been more serious. Was this why he’d run so hard? Had taken one look at Scout and done an about-face and tried not to engage? Because if he’d seen this coming, running from it hadn’t worked. Surrendering to it and making light of it hadn’t worked.
The only thing he thought might work was this, embracing it and begging for it and giving thanks every minute that this person had pretty much roped Lucky into his life.
“Holy wow,” he repeated, smiling a little. His eyes spilled over, but Scout was curling into his body, pulling up the covers, cocooning them and protecting them and keeping them safe, so Scout didn’t see.
Lucky closed his eyes, already drifting off, naked and messy and replete, when Scout murmured, “What were you going to say? Right when things got really intense? I-I was worried there that I’d done something wrong.”
Lucky let out a chuckle. “I was gonna say I always thought I’d top.” He chuckled some more, weakly. “Didn’t realize I’d fallen in love with a hurricane.”
“Mm….” Scout pushed up against him, snuggling aggressively, and Lucky raised his arm so Scout could put his head on Lucky’s shoulder.
“You can top tomorrow,” Scout mumbled. “Or later. Or in an hour. Or….”
He drifted off, and Lucky’s shoulders shook with another chuckle that didn’t touch his voice. Or never. He had the feeling it didn’t matter who penetrated whom, Lucky was always going to be along for the ride.
Holy wow.
SOMETIME INthe night, Scout woke him up again, slowly, languorously, rubbing his stomach first, then his chest, then his thighs. By the time Scout’s elegant, long-fingered hand had reached Lucky’s cock, Lucky had rolled over and pulled his knees up to his chest, begging.
“Again. God, yes, again.”
This time had been slower, dreamier, and when it was over, Scout’s warmth disappeared for a moment as Lucky shuddered the last of his orgasm into the sheets. When Scout returned, he had a washcloth and a towel, and Lucky felt himself being gently cleaned off as though from a great distance. When he came back to himself, Scout had made him stand up so he could spread the towel down on the bed and neither of them had to sleep on the wet spot.
Shortly after, they were settled again, and Scout was spooning Lucky from behind, and Lucky heard his own voice from far away.
“This is nice. This is happy.”
“You know, I think you’re right.”
Scout nuzzled the nape of his neck, and Lucky settled more securely into his arms.
He slept deep and dreamlessly, trusting that Scout would be there in the morning.
Far Side of the World
“SCOUT,” LUCKYsaid, frowning at him from their lean over the island counter in the kitchenette. “Are you sure that’s what you want to do?”
“Well, yes,” Scout said, smiling prettily. “Don’tyouwant to get off the island?”
“Yes and no. I mean, yeah, ’cause it’s an island, but no too. I haven’t left since I got here in July. Why would I? The coin led me here—the island kept me safe. Why doyouwant to get off the island?”
Scout fidgeted. “Because Kayleigh and I drove straight through,” he said apologetically. “When those two goons came at me, I couldn’t think of one place to send them besides near the family compound. I mean, think of how much more poetic it would have been if I could have sent them to, I don’t know, a police station in Charleston? And besides that,” he said, biting his lip in thought, “I want to see what happened to Tom. Kayleigh said he died of cholera, and he worked for the Morgensterns, and I’m wondering if we could find his grave. I-I think it may be a key to easing some of the misery of the spirit trap.”
Lucky blew out a frustrated breath. “But I thought this was going to be our day!” he said, and Scout grinned at him.
“Itis.And we get to get off the island, and we get to see a city we don’t know. I mean, looking for Tom is only part of it. I want to see the waterfront park and the old French quarter. And I understand there’s a ghost tour we can take this evening. I already made reservations just in case you wanted to go!”
