by Julie Cannon
“Mm-huh,” Bert said flatly. Was it that bad? She didn’t sound too enthusiastic.
We lay there silently in the dark. I could see the stars from the porthole, my view of the world around me. And what a perfect view. It was quiet—the only sound the low hum of the engines.
What was I supposed to say? This wasn’t like any other hookup or casual, no-strings fling. I knew what to do in those situations, with those women. After Ariel, my relationships had been superficial and certainly didn’t consist of pillow talk or morning-after, intimate chatter. I had no clue what to do about this. I found a safe topic.
“When we get back, I need to take you out on my boat.”
“You don’t have a boat, remember?”
“My new boat.”
“Oh, that boat,” Bert said. I sensed the smile on her face. “Have you thought about what you’ll get?”
“I don’t know. The one I had was a good size for me. It’s just enough of a challenge to keep me interested and not too much to handle by myself.”
“Do you take friends or a girlfriend out?”
“Yes, no,” I said quickly.
Bert chuckled. “No to what? Friends or a girlfriend?”
“Yes to friends, no to girlfriends,” I said, knowing this would open a can of worms I might not want to share.
“Did your girlfriends not sail? Get seasick?” Bert asked innocently. She was asking, not prying.
“My last girlfriend stole one million, four hundred eighty-two thousand, one hundred forty-nine dollars from my firm. That was four years ago. I’ve been a little gun-shy since.”
“I can see why,” Bert said, not hesitating. “Is she in jail?”
That was an interesting question. Most people didn’t ask. I guess they thought embezzlement was a victimless crime and if it was paid back it was then okay.
“Prison. Four to ten years.”
“Good. I’m sorry that happened to you.”
“I appreciate that,” I said, shifting to lie on top of her. I didn’t want to talk about Ariel. Too many memories, too many questions, too many answers. I touched Bert’s hair, remembering what it’d felt like when I ran my hands through it, when I grabbed to keep her close. It was soft and curly.
Bert adjusted the sheet to cover us both, her body warm beneath me. “Am I too heavy for you?”
“No, not at all,” Bert replied. “You feel good.”
I traced the outline of her jaw, her nose, eyes, and lips with my fingers. Her skin was soft, tanned by the sun. Laugh lines around her eyes were lighter than the rest of her face from her sunglasses, and her teeth were perfectly straight. She let me explore without interruption.
In a very short time Bert had affected me more than I expected. Sure, when we were having coffee I’d thought she was cute and someone I could have a fling with, but nothing more than that. I didn’t do more than that. But these past weeks had shown me a side of her I never would have imagined and, to be quite honest, probably never would have hung around long enough to see. And here, in the night, in the afterglow, I wanted to know more.
The thought scared the ever-living crap out of me. I wasn’t ready for this. I didn’t want this. I couldn’t risk this. I had to keep this light, and pillow talk was not included.
“How long do we have till we need to get up?”
Bert craned her neck to look at her clock, her body moving under me. My pulse beat a little faster.
“About three hours,” she said.
I lowered my head to kiss her. “That’ll be a good start,” I said just before our lips met.
*
Alissa
Slow down! Slow down! Unfortunately my body wasn’t listening to my brain. The taste, the scent, the feel of Bert’s body responding drove me crazy. I wanted to gobble her up like a piece of chewy candy, not savor her like an all-day sucker. My hands couldn’t touch her everywhere fast enough. My mouth was even more impatient. My hunger for her was insatiable. I wanted her fast, hard, and right now. I drove into her time and time again, my need to possess overwhelming. Bert gripped my arm so tight I knew I’d sport a bruise in the morning. Her nails scraped my back so hard it stung, and her tongue was battling mine for control. She liked it this way. The more she gave the more I took, until finally she gave all and came hard. Bert stifled her screams in my neck as she trembled. She shuddered over and over, and on the third time I couldn’t hold back any longer, and I followed her.
Wave after wave of bliss rolled through me. It was like a dam of molten lava exploding, mixed with sunshine. It felt so damn good. Nothing could describe it and absolutely nothing could compare.
We were drenched with sweat and gasping for air. I started to move off her, but Bert held me in place with one word.
“Stay.”
She guided my head to her shoulder, pulled the covers up, and held me tight. Our hearts pounded, at times matching beats like our bodies were made to be together. I chuckled lightly.
“What?” Bert asked, smoothing my hair away from my face.
“It amazes me how something as simple as sex can feel so damn good.”
“You think sex is simple?” Bert asked, her heart rate slowing.
“Sure. It’s just a physical act. Touching the right place at the right time causes a reaction. If you’re lucky, you have someone else doing the touching.”
“Amen to that,” Bert said, playfully slapping me on the butt.
“I bet you think I’m just a wham-bam kind of girl,” I asked lightly.
“What do you mean?” Bert asked, clearly confused.
“It’s been nothing but fast and furious for us.”
“I’m not complaining.” Bert pinched my butt.
“I can do slow and sensuous, you know.”
“I’m sure you can.”
“No, really, I can.” I moved so I was now looking at Bert. Why was I saying this? It was like I needed her to know I was capable of more than how we’d just done it. What the hell? I never thought like this with other women. Why was I worried about this now? It’s not like this was going anywhere. Since Ariel I never did slow and sensuous. That was too much like making love.
Bert pulled me up and cupped my face in her hands. “Alissa, what’s this all about?”
What was this all about? Did I just say all that out loud? Not only had that last orgasm blown my mind, but I’d lost it as well. I needed to regroup, get my head back on straight. This was no different than what had happened with the other women I’d been with since Ariel, and I’d never told them much more than thanks.
“Alissa?” Bert asked again.
“I feel your heart beating.”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“I’m not. I’m just making an observation.” I silenced her rebuttal with a searing kiss.
I didn’t want to think about this, and I certainly didn’t want to answer any more questions. I had no idea why I opened that emotional door, and I slammed it shut before something scary could slip out.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Bert
“God damn it.” I was frustrated and tired, and my eyes hurt from scanning the waves and sonar all day. Nothing but a big fat empty sea. I knew they were out there somewhere. We had a huge school yesterday but lost them during the commotion of Alissa going overboard. What a mess that turned out to be.
Why did I think that? Alissa wasn’t hurt and had ended up in my bed. Heat tore through me as images of last night flashed through my head. Alissa kissing my breasts, biting my nipples, looking up at me, her face between my legs, her back arched, grabbing my hair, holding me close, keeping me exactly where she needed me to be.
“Jesus,” I said, shuffling and stomping my feet to get that image out of my mind. I needed to concentrate. I had work to do. Earlier I had Alissa go to the crow’s nest with Hook. I had to get her out of my line of sight because every time I saw her smile or move an errant piece of her hair out of her face, it took me back to when she hovered over me.
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br /> “You all right, Captain?”
Crap. I’d forgotten Blow was on the bridge with me. “Yes, just frustrated we haven’t seen any fish today,” I said, the excuse convenient.
“Why don’t you go downstairs and take a break. I’ve got this.”
Maybe I did need a change of scenery or a cup of coffee. Or a stiff drink. Or another orgasm at the hands of Alissa Cooper. I couldn’t focus. Jesus, I was really fucked.
Lefty was in the galley stirring a pot of something that smelled delicious. I was suddenly ravenous, realizing I hadn’t had any lunch. I glanced at my watch. Ninety minutes till dinner.
“Can I get you something, Captain?”
“I need a quick snack, just something to hold me till dinner.”
“Tough day today?” Lefty asked in his non-threatening way.
“Yep, nothing,” I answered, taking a Sprite out of the fridge.
“Tomorrow is another day,” he said, always the optimist. That and his cooking was why I enjoyed his company.
“How’s Alissa doing?” he asked, his head in the freezer.
“Fine,” I answered succinctly.
“She recover from her spill?”
“Yeah, she was a little shook up, but she’s all right. I have her up in the nest with Hook.”
“Can’t get into much trouble up there.”
“That’s the whole point,” I replied. I couldn’t get into any trouble either if she was up there.
Lefty handed me three power bars and two cans of Coke. “Take these up to them. I’m sure they need a little something about now. Dinner’s in an hour unless we’re catching,” he said, turning his back to me.
I whistled up to Hook and waved when he looked over the edge of the nest. I signaled him to drop the basket, and his head disappeared right before the line in front of me started moving. To save time and climbing up and down the ladder, I’d rigged up a basket attached to a rope and pulley. Whatever needed to go up to the nest could be placed in the basket and pulled up. Same for anything coming down. This also added an extra level of safety because nobody had to have anything in their hands while climbing.
I started to turn away when I heard someone coming down the stairs. I expected to see Alissa, but it was Hook.
“Need the head,” he said.
“Take a break while you’re at it.” I tossed him the soda and snack. “I’ll babysit,” I said, winking at him.
“Yes ma’am,” he replied, hurrying across the deck.
“Ahoy down there,” Alissa called from thirty feet above my head.
I looked up and saw Alissa waving at me. “How’re you doing?”
She put her hand to her ear, signaling she didn’t hear me. I repeated my question. She still didn’t hear it. The wind out here in the middle of the ocean was pretty strong and, up in the nest, even stronger. I put my boot on the first rung and started to climb.
It was tight quarters in the nest and even tighter with two. There was a stool to sit on, room for a small cooler with drink or snacks and not much else. Alissa had her back to me as I came up through the trap door in the floor. My eyes took the natural path up her legs, past her butt, and across her back. I stumbled when I pictured myself riding her bare ass last night.
“You okay?” Alissa asked when she turned around. She stepped back so I could close the hatch.
I had to lean over to close it, which put my ass in direct contact with her crotch. A jolt of something shot through me. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea, I thought. “Yeah. How you doing up here?” I stepped as far away as I could in the suddenly very small space.
“Staying out of trouble.” Alissa quirked her mouth.
“Mission accomplished,” I replied, returning her smile. Alissa was relaxed so I decided I should be as well. I took a step and stood beside her, looking at the dying sunset.
“At least something went right today,” I said flatly.
“You didn’t have to rescue me.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “There is that, too.”
It was comfortable standing here with Alissa. Our forearms were on the top of the railing, our skin touching. Everywhere I looked I saw water. Different shades, different patterns. It was calm now, but in an instant the ocean could turn into a powerful force of nature, destroying everything in its path. The wind caressed my hair and brushed over my cheek like a lover’s touch. Good God. Where did that come from? Alissa’s fingers traced a faded four-inch scar on my forearm. My skin heated under her touch.
“What happened here?”
“It’s not a pretty story.”
“I have a strong stomach.”
“A jellyfish stung me a few years ago. My arm swelled and I bumped it on the door handle going into my cabin and it just kind of busted open.”
“Ouch.” Alissa traced it again.
“I’ll spare you the gory details, but afterward it felt one hundred percent better.”
“Did you see a doctor?”
“No.”
“No? Bert, you could have died.”
“We were in the middle of a trip,” I said, as that was my excuse. “If it had gotten bad I would have called the coast guard.”
“And you could have died before they got to you,” she said adamantly.
“But I didn’t. I was fine. I am fine—well, other than that.” I nodded to the scar. “Lefty sewed it up, and I put butterfly bandages on it and wrapped it in gauze. It hurt like a S.O.B. for a few days, but I got through it.”
Alissa turned to me an expression on her face I couldn’t read. “Bert, I…”
Before she had a chance to finish her statement, the Dream hit a wave that knocked Alissa off her feet and into my arms. I instinctively put my hands around her waist, our bodies touching from breasts to knees. She gripped my arms.
We swayed together as the boat rocked in the swells. A spark I recognized flashed in Alissa’s eyes, and my knees almost buckled. It had been almost ten hours since I’d touched her, and I immediately responded. My breathing became shallow and my mouth dry.
“Can they see us up here?” Alissa asked, her eyes on my lips.
“No.”
“Good, because I really want to kiss you,” she said, sliding her hands up my arms and into my hair. It didn’t take much pulling on her part for me to close the gap between us.
Alissa’s lips were soft and demanding, and soon the kiss was no longer a simple kiss. Alissa wrapped her arms around my neck and practically sucked me in. Our bodies were so close I could feel her erect nipples press against my chest. She surged against me when I slid a leg between hers. I moved one hand to her back, the other behind her thigh as she lifted it to press harder. I could feel the heat from between her legs and the wetness between mine. Almost frantically we rode each other until we came silently in each other’s arms.
*
Alissa
“Oh, my God,” I breathed into Bert’s neck. She tasted like sweat, passion, and sea air. “I didn’t plan that.” My hands were still shaking as I pulled them from around Bert’s neck and slid them down her chest. Bert’s heart was pounding. I couldn’t meet her eyes. “I have no idea where that came from,” I said, embarrassed.
I’d never done anything like that before. Never even been tempted, but for some reason I found myself at thirty-seven humping another woman in a crow’s nest sixty feet from the ocean on a tuna boat. Wait until Rachel heard about this. Maybe I’d think about telling her. Or even though BFFs tell each other everything, maybe I’d just keep this to myself. I felt Bert’s eyes on me as I tried to disengage myself from her arms and legs. Bert held me tight.
“Hey,” she said softly
I still couldn’t look at her. I was mortified. I was a grown woman. Never had I thrown myself at someone like I just had with Bert. I’d killed a whole bunch of nevers since I met her, and I didn’t like it. Not at all.
“Alissa.” Bert’s voice sounded firmer. She put her finger under my chin and lifted it. I looked everywhere exce
pt her eyes.
“Alissa, look at me.”
I lifted my eyes from my hands on Bert’s arms, up her chest, past her neck and the pounding vein in her neck, past the lips I’d simply intended to just have a quick taste of, and into large green eyes.
“That was fucking awesome,” she said, a grin spreading over her magic mouth. I started to relax. “I didn’t come up here for that, but I sure am glad I did.” The smile on her face was warm and inviting. “Okay?” She dipped her head a bit so she could look directly into my eyes. “Okay?” she repeated.
“Okay,” I said, wanting to believe her. Why shouldn’t I? I mean, she hadn’t pushed me away. On the contrary, she’d pulled me in and come right after me. I guess she couldn’t have hated it. She loosened her hold on me and let me step back.
We adjusted ourselves, and I found my hat that had fallen off during our romp, or whatever you’d call it. I squared it on my head and pulled my ponytail through the back. My clit was still throbbing. A whistle from the deck below drew Bert’s attention from me. Thank God.
“Hook’s back,” she said. She waved at him and moved toward me. She took my face in her hands.
“For the record, you can jump me like that anytime.”
Bert kissed me quickly, opened the hatch, and disappeared down the stairs.
*
Dinner wasn’t nearly as awkward as the remaining hour I spent in the nest with Hook. He’d innocently asked me about Bert’s visit. I mumbled something and steered the conversation to a different topic.
Bert sat across from me and didn’t say much. Thankfully the other guys kept the conversation going. I felt her eyes on me more than once, and my skin heated at the memory of that we’d done to each other.
“You okay, Alissa?” Hook asked, startling me.
I had no idea what he was talking about.
“You look a little flushed.”
Oh my God. I forced myself to not look at Bert, the cause of my overheating. I hoped my voice sounded steadier than I felt.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just bit into one of Lefty’s jalapeno seeds in this salsa,” I said, thinking of the first excuse that sounded even remotely plausible. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Bert shift in her chair.