by Parker, Ali
The front closing clasp was hidden by a white bow that sat against my breastbone right in the middle of my two emergency floating devices. For as revealing as the top was though, it was also exceptionally comfortable and looked surprisingly good.
A paperback book rested in my lap, and I’d dog-eared my page. The way I figured it, the book was mine. Eventually, its cover would be soft and worn and the previously dog-eared pages would betray how many times I couldn’t wait to get back to reading it.
I wasn’t one of those people who tried to keep a book in pristine condition. This one had traveled with me on my first beach vacation. I was always going to remember that. It would form part of my memories and as surely as this break with Jeremiah was sure to shape me, the book would go home in a slightly different shape too. It was only fair.
Looking out at the tropical paradise I was spending my second day in, I couldn’t believe I was really here. In freaking Fiji.
It was beautiful here. Everything I could’ve hoped for and more. The pristine beach spread out for miles in each direction, yet there wasn’t another soul in sight. The private villa Jeremiah rented came with guaranteed privacy and a discreet staff.
I wasn’t so worried about our privacy, but Jeremiah mumbled something about being in Thailand with the guys once and assured me it was better this way. I sure wasn’t complaining. It meant I could wear the bikini for Jeremiah without feeling self-conscious about it. And it also meant I could leave the bikini right here on my lounger later if I wanted to go for a dip in the nude—which I really did.
Who wouldn’t want to, given the opportunity? Of course, I would have to lather every inch of myself in sunscreen before I did. The loungers were protected by large umbrellas that provided the perfect amount of shade.
Step out from underneath them though, and the sun was brutal. I looked over at Jeremiah, who was wearing a pair of black swimming trunks he looked divine in. They hung on his hips like they were being kept there by a whim and prayer and displayed his muscular body in a way that made my mouth water.
He was lying on the lounger next to me with his hands clasped behind his head and his eyes closed. Sensing me staring at him, he opened one eye. “Something I can help you with?”
I considered asking him to ravish me right here and now, but then I remembered my original plan. “Would you like to come for a dip with me? It’s getting hot.”
He sat up, stretching. I ogled the hard planes of his body as he lifted his arms, watching as his muscles bulged and relaxed. “Sure.”
Reaching for the clasp on my bikini top, I undid it and slowly let it slide off my shoulders as Jeremiah watched. His eyes widened and darkened, his gaze dropping to my breasts. “Skinny dipping?”
I shrugged. “Why not? I’ve never skinny dipped in the ocean before, and we’re the only people here. It’s completely private, so I’m taking the opportunity.”
“I’m in,” he said, pulling on the one string that kept his trunks up before he stepped out of them. I stripped out of my bikini bottoms quickly, trying not to stumble over my own feet and drool at the sight Jeremiah made in the nude in this beautiful place.
When we were done applying sunscreen, a lesson in self-control I never wanted to have to repeat, we were ready to go. Holding out his hand to me, I took it and we walked hand in hand across the beach to the water.
When we got close to the shoreline, Jeremiah shot me a wicked grin and scooped me up in his arms, running us both right into the shallows. I laughed and sputtered when he dumped me in a swell, kicking away from me before I could get my revenge.
“Come back here, you!” I exclaimed, paddling in the lukewarm water.
Jeremiah shook his head, then dipped under the water. The next minute, I felt something close around my ankle and it took me a second to realize it was him. “You bastard.”
He smirked, appearing next to me. “Maybe, but I’m your bastard.”
Putting his arms around my waist, he lifted me against him. My legs wrapped around his hips and stared into his eyes, so happy and carefree. “Jeremiah?”
“Hmm?” He held me tighter against him, rubbing my nose with his.
The three little words I’d been holding back for a while now sat at the tip of my tongue. I couldn’t think of a more perfect time or place to say them. In my hearts of hearts, I knew now was right, and I knew he felt the same even if he hadn’t said it yet.
“I love you. You know that right?”
A brilliant smile curled the edges of his lips upward before he drew me against him for a long, passionate kiss. “And I love you, my angel.”
I felt my own lips form the biggest smile I could remember ever smiling and crashed my mouth to his. He returned my kiss with as much love and intensity as I was pouring into it. It warmed me, filled my heart with such joy it felt like I could float away if he wasn’t holding onto me.
We’d been through so much together in such a relatively short period of time, and yet it felt like the biggest storms were still coming. This time that we had together was the calm before the biggest storms, before we went back home and started building our company from the ground up in earnest.
The foundations had been laid before we left, but there was a lot of work to be done. I didn’t know if I would’ve been able to face such a massive, intimidating task with anyone but Jeremiah. With him though, there wasn’t much I wouldn’t be willing to try. I knew we could do it, sure we could do anything together.
My arms and legs acted without my say so when they wrapped tighter around him. Jeremiah responded with a low groan and deepened our kiss. My chest was pressed up against him, my nipples digging into his chest.
It felt so liberating, being naked with him in the ocean. Being together in the water like this also felt different, the element of weightlessness making me eager to see what new things we could try. I rubbed against him, feeling him hard against my center.
“Say it again,” I murmured, breaking the kiss for those words I’d been waiting to hear for so long again. I knew where this kiss would inevitably lead us, and I wanted to hear him say it before it did. This is my first time telling someone I loved him, and it felt like it would be the last first time too.
I was cherishing these moments. Jeremiah smiled against my lips. “You saved me from a psychopath, and you brought meaning back to my life. I love you, Steph.”
Wanting to match his sweet words, I spoke from the heart. “You saved me from myself and gave me purpose. I love you so much, Jeremiah. I don’t think they’ve invented the words yet for me to be able to tell you how much.”
“Ditto.” He kissed me again before taking my left hand in his right. “And maybe when the company is off the ground, I could buy you a diamond ring for this hand. Would you love me then too?”
“Very much.” I felt my heart grow wings and flutter around in my chest. Holy crap. He wants to marry me? He wants to marry me! “For the record, I prefer rose gold.”
He laughed. “The record shall reflect you’ve noted your preference.”
“Thank you.”
Looking at me with more love, more raw emotion in his eyes than I’d ever seen before, Jeremiah took my cheeks in his hands and kissed me until I was breathless and panting. “No Steph, thank you.”
The End
Want more?
Check out Always on my Mind!!
Grab your copy HERE!
Insider Group
Join Ali’s Insiders Newsletter Group for New Releases, Updates and to Connect with Ali.
As a thank you for joining her list,
you’ll receive a starter library from Ali.
Join Here
About the Author
Ali Parker is a full-time contemporary and new adult romance writer with more than a hundred and twenty books behind her. She loves coffee, watching a great movie and hanging out with her hubs. By hanging out, she means making out. Hanging out is for those little creepy elves at Christmas. No tight green stockings for her.
She’s an entrepreneur at heart and loves coming up with more ideas than any one person should be allowed to access. She lives in Texas with her hubs and three kiddos and looks forward to traveling the world in a few years. Writing under eleven pen names keeps her busy and allows her to explore all genres and types of writing.
Website ~ Insider’s Group ~ Facebook ~ Twitter
Instagram ~ Pinterest ~ Google+
The Parker’s Wicked Playground
The Billionaire Affair
Copyright © 2018 by Ali Parker
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
The novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and plot are all either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons – living or dead – is purely coincidental.
First Edition.
Editor: Diane Shirk
Proofer: Mary Wolney
Designer: Bayou Cover Designs