Twice Cherished

by Ava Branson

  “It’s private enough that you don’t even realize you have neighbors.”

  “Yep. That’s one of the reasons I fell in love with this house.”

  I pivoted slowly, taking it all in. “I think I’ve decided you’re nuts, Devin. There’s no way in hell a normal human being could leave this for the hustle and bustle of a crowded city. A cold, rainy, damp city.”

  He surveyed what I’d just admired and shrugged casually. “There’s this thing called work, but yes, many would agree that I’m both nuts and not normal.” He added with a grin. “Part of my charm, wouldn’t you agree?”

  “You could charm the rattle off a rattlesnake and turn around and sell it back to him.”

  “I would like to think I could, but I think you exaggerate just a wee bit.” He leaned closer with a mischievous look in his eye. “Be careful, gorgeous. If I can charm the rattle off a snake, what could I charm you into?”

  He wouldn’t have to try too hard to do anything.

  Having no witty retort, I simply rolled my eyes with a smile. I looked to the near empty cove. “You know what? For some reason, I thought you had your boat here, at the house, but I don’t see a dock or anything anchored out, except that little cat boat over there.” Shielding my eyes from the sun, I scanned the rest of the cove to see if I missed a small dock or something.

  “No, it’s docked at the marina right now. I usually bring her around and anchor off here,” he pointed back towards his house on the lee side. “But only when I’m here for a good amount of time. Otherwise, I just head out of the marina when I go. But I’m kinda pissed at myself for not thinking this one through. I should’ve brought her here, before you got here.”

  “Well, I’m excited to see her whenever I can.”

  “We can go right now, if you’d like.”

  “Can we? Oh, I’d like, I’d like!”

  He smiled at my eagerness. “My singular goal is to give you what you’d like.” A curious look came over him and he stared at me for a moment longer before turning to look out over the water. He rubbed the back of his neck as he kept his eyes out to sea. “You want to know something?” he asked, still not looking back. “You couldn’t get here fast enough for me. Every hour of every day felt like a penance.” He let out a low whistle. “You can’t possibly imagine how many times I looked at the clock. My watch. My computer…anything with numbers, and counted how few minutes had passed since the last time I’d checked.” He looked at me sideways. “It made for some very long days.”

  Oh, how I could relate to that. The odd thing was, his admission made me feel vulnerable. More vulnerable than I’d been feeling. My go-to response when feeling emotionally naked was to use humor. Deflect whatever I could. And, right now, the window he was opening to his thoughts was heaping too much hope on my wary heart. And, yet…God, I wanted so much more. “So, we can sail?”

  He considered me long enough that I began to wonder what I’d done wrong. Until the corner of his mouth ticked up. “Of course.” He lifted his face into the wind and filled his lungs. “The wind’s steady and there’s plenty of time for a decent afternoon sail.”

  “I’d love nothing more.” Yes, you would. Kid yourself all you want. You’d love a whole lot more.

  “Ahh,” he rubbed his hands together with a roguish look. “How badly does the beauty want to go, hmm? And…how can this work to my advantage, I wonder?”

  I slapped his backside and was rewarded with a startled grin in return.

  “A cheeky passenger, I see.”

  I snorted inelegantly. “Yes, that was cheeky.”

  With an easy laugh, he agreed. “Okay, I’m in. Let’s go.”

  Forty-five minutes later we were skipping over the warm waters of the sound, the only noise coming from the wind slapping the canvas sail and the water against the hull as we slid out of the mouth of the bay and headed out to open water. For the second time today, I let my thoughts wander where they pleased and wasn’t at all surprised when they landed back on Devin.

  I turned to look at him at the helm of his thirty-four-foot sloop, aptly named Dream Designer. His eyes were hidden behind dark Costa sunglasses, but I saw the relaxed planes of his face as the boat picked up speed. This was his element. The water. The sun. The wind.

  It used to be mine, as well.

  “Want to take over?” he offered.

  “The helm?”

  “Yep,” he said, already scooting over to give me room to sit directly behind the wheel.

  Thrilled to put my hand on the wheel, I happily accepted. “Yesss!”

  He’d moved over just enough for me to squeeze in next to him. Our legs pressed together and the heat from his leg warmed mine and moved straight up my body. He made no effort to shift over farther and—if I were honest—I didn’t want him to. Gripping the wheel, I felt the strength of the wind filling the sails and the pull of the boat against the rudder as she danced over the swells. Exhilaration filled every cell of my body and I grinned so hard, my cheeks began to hurt.

  “She feels great to handle, Devin. God, this is so fantastic.” Excitement filled me to the point of giddy delight. I hadn’t enjoyed anything like this since we’d been together forever ago. Yet, the years dissolved as the wind kissed my skin and blew through my hair. I wanted the feeling to go on and on…to never end.

  “I’m glad you’re happy.”

  I looked to where he lounged behind me, one long muscular leg resting on the cushioned settee, his handsome face relaxed. I could’ve stared at him all day, but awareness of my task jolted me back to reality.

  I snapped my attention back to course we were sailing. I had no experience sailing in these waters but I knew it could go from a hundred feet deep to shallow, real quick. It was all in reading the bottom, and—even with Devin sitting next to me—I was nervous being in charge.

  Taking a second hasty glance sideways, I asked, “You are keeping an eye on where we’re going, right? I mean, you know I have no idea of what I’m doing here.”

  He indicated the bow of the boat with a single nod. “You sailed enough when we were together, but yes…I am aware of where we are and—” He ripped his glasses of his face and shouted, “Oh shit!”

  Panicked, I jumped up, my heart in my throat, furiously scanning the water “What???”

  “I forgot to ask if you wanted to get up and go for a run with me in the morning.”

  “You what—?” Understanding dawned and I whipped around to whack his shoulder with my hand, my heart threatening to pound itself right out of my chest. “You’re the devil! You were a beast then and you’re a beast now. You damn near scared the shit out of me,” I shrieked. Sitting down in a huff, I missed the fact he’d relaxed his leg enough so that I half sat on it, instead of the cushion. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t muster up true anger as I wiggled my backside back into place.

  He eyed the lower half of my body. “Don’t move on my account. I was perfectly comfortable.”

  It seemed like an appropriate time to change the subject. “How far are we from the house?”

  He tugged the bill of his hat lower over his eyes and scanned the coastline. “We haven’t gone that far. I’d say only about a half a mile. Maybe three-quarters, but don’t worry. We’ve got plenty more time before we need to consider putting in. Oh…” I saw the corners of his eyes crinkle up. “You don’t have to go to the bathroom, do you?”

  I glared at him as hard as I could from behind my sunglasses. Obviously, my fierce face was lacking in oomph, yet he lifted his hands as if to ward off a brutal assault.

  “A child. That’s what you are, Devin Stockton. A child.”

  He nodded in agreement. “I must admit I feel young again. Not that we’re old or anything.” He paused, looking at my hands on the wheel. Suddenly, he reached out and covered my right hand with his. When skin met skin, sparks of electricity raced up my arm. He felt it, too, because when I turned to face him, his expression shifted from lighthearted to a man heavy in thought. “I f
eel…happy,” he offered simply.

  Out there with nothing more than sun, wind, and water, the world seemed brighter. Hope took firmer root in my heart, while the rest of my body ached for more.

  “I do, too.”

  Chapter Ten

  Devin

  Reluctantly, I took my hand from Micki’s on the wheel and turned to stare out over the ocean. Dozens of scenarios ran through my head. Most, if not all, ended with getting her in my arms and in my bed.

  Dickhead, who are you kidding again? Okay, make that all scenarios led to my bed. But it wasn’t just about making love to her. That was only the start. More importantly, where would it go from there?

  Patience. I had to be patient because I was dealing with something incredibly fragile here. We had a history, which meant unless I got my shit together, history—as we’ve all had drilled into our heads—tends to repeat itself and being gifted with this chance with her? No way in hell did I want to fuck it up.

  I eased back against the settee and folded my hands across my stomach, watching the way Micki’s body swayed with the boat, the wind toying with loose ends of her dark hair. Her skin glowed in the sun as she tilted her smiling face into the wind. My cock twitched to life yet again, and I had to shift to keep the obvious tenting effect to a minimum. “We’ll grab a taxi later to go get the Jeep at the marina. Can I talk you into dinner out afterwards? We’ll already be on the outskirts of town and there’s a great little place in the harbor that I’d love to take you to.”

  She beamed in response. “That sounds wonderful, but does Edith already have something planned? I sure as hell don’t want to do anything to upset her. I just got here!”

  “No, no, it’s okay. She’s gone for the day. I told her I’d take care of dinner. For some reason, she found that fucking hysterical. She was still laughing when she left.”

  She tipped her head back and laughed, a rich, musical sound that filled me with joy. After a moment, the wind whipped the sound off into the distance, but her happy expression remained. “It’s a mutual love fest between the two of you, isn’t it?”

  “Yeah, it’s something like that. No, in all seriousness, she’s a keeper and let’s face it. She’d be lost without me to abuse the few times I manage to get here. Did I mention her husband loves me, too?”

  “Oh, now that sounds oddly kinky. How does that work?”

  “It works great for him. When I’m here, she has me to browbeat. Takes the heat off him for a while. In fact, I think he’d be happier than a pig in shit if I moved here full-time.”

  She chuckled. “Bless his heart. Could you see yourself living here permanently?”

  “I don’t know. Could you live here full-time?"

  She turned to face me, her beautiful face an unreadable mask, and a finger of dread tapped me on the shoulder. I reminded myself not to push so fast.

  “The emotional side of my brain says who wouldn’t want to live here. The pragmatic part of me argues, get real. How would I survive? You know, those pesky, trivial details in life.”

  I was smart enough to know to leave it at that. It was a start. A damn good start. “We’re going to have to tack soon. That’ll bring us in a little closer to shore. You still comfortable at the helm?”

  She frowned. “The water depth will change.”

  “Probably, yeah.”

  Reaching over, she plucked one of my hands from my chest and plopped it on the wheel with a little pat. “I can handle the lines. You read the bottom. I don’t want to ruin my image in your eyes by grounding out this beautiful sloop of yours.” She got up and slid into position.

  “Chicken?” I asked with a grin.

  She shook her head. “No. Abundantly cautious.”

  I faced into the wind. “Fair enough, sweetheart. Okay, let’s go.” Several moments passed as the boat adjusted to its new heading and we heeled slightly against the wind, steering us closer to shore. “How about we head in and anchor. It’ll give us time for a swim which, by the way, was going to happen anyway since we have to get off the boat and onto land somehow.”

  One meticulously shaped eyebrow lifted in a sardonic look. “Why, thank you Captain Chuckles. I might not have figured that out.” She crossed her arms with a shit-eating grin, looking mighty pleased with herself, and I couldn’t remember an afternoon I’d enjoyed more than the one happening right now. That, and the prospect of seeing her in a bikini.

  With that prospect in mind, my crotch tightened and there was no way to address the situation without calling complete attention to the growing erection in my shorts.

  Serves you right, man. I figured I’d better make peace with at least one cold shower in my future. Maybe two, but if there was a benevolent God, there’d only be one.

  For the next several minutes, neither of us spoke. The beauty of the ocean, the power of the wind…the elements of Mother Nature took center stage. And it was far too soon for my liking when the familiar coast came into view.

  “We’re almost there, Micki. Get ready to drop the sheets.”

  “I’m on it.” She jumped up and made her way to the bow to winch in the jib. I was so entranced watching her move, I almost forgot my role. Grabbing hold of the winch that operated the mainsail, I switched over to dropping the canvas before firing up the engine and motoring the rest of the way into the small cove. The drone of the engine, however muffled from below deck, still shattered the peace and tranquility of the private cove.

  Micki stepped gingerly back into the cockpit. “I’m not totally comfortable setting the anchor, so do you want me to take over the wheel and you handle that?”

  “Sure. Here.” I stood, letting her slide in place behind the wheel. Throttling the engine speed down to a slow crawl, I pointed to where I usually anchored. “Keep her headed straight for there, then cut the engine, here,” I pointed to the switch, “when I tell you, okay?”

  “Got it.”

  I stared at her mouth. I couldn’t help it. The urge to cup her jaw and kiss those soft lips rushed through me and my hands were halfway reaching for her when I regained control and promised myself, when the moment was right, to taste that beautiful mouth once again. But there was no doubt this self-denial shit was a miserable, son-of-a-fucking-bitch.

  Five minutes later and satisfied with the set of the anchor, we worked side by side to secure the sails.

  “We’re all set here. Let me grab a ditch bag. You didn’t bring a purse or anything, did you? I don’t remember.”

  “No, I didn’t. I was so excited about the sail I even left my cell phone behind. God, I never do that!”

  “Well, good, I’m glad you were that excited. I’ve got mine and my keys so, if you don’t want your clothes and shoes wet, you can leave them here and we’ll get them later.” I rummaged through a small cabinet in the cockpit, pulling out a waterproof bag. Dropping my cell phone and keys in the bag, I sealed it and laid it on the cushion. Peeling off my T-shirt and kicking off my deck shoes, I leaned through the open cockpit hatch and deposited both items on the counter in the galley.

  “Works for me.” She kicked off her sandals and shimmied out of her shorts. Fire orange bikini bottoms came into view and I couldn’t have torn my eyes away if someone held a gun to my head. If you could call that ridiculously small scrap of fabric a bottom. But, holy hell, if that was the bottom, I couldn’t wait to see the top.

  She was pulling her tank top up when a strong gust of wind hit the boat and it lurched, sending her stumbling off-balance. My hands shot out and clamped around her waist to steady her while she finished pulling her shirt off. When her head popped out and she got her sea legs back, I know I should’ve let her go, but damned if I could. Her smooth skin felt like the finest silk against my hands and I wanted to slide them up and down her body. To pull her to me and let her feel against her soft belly just how badly she affected me.

  Neither of us spoke. I couldn’t. Slowly and painfully, I let her go, dropping my hands to my side. The only solace was seeing that she’d
been equally as affected. Her lips remained parted. Her chest rose and fell in quick, shallow breaths. The soft curves of her breasts teasing me with hardened nipples barely covered by small triangles of nylon. My self-control was taking a hit. A huge, fucking hit.

  I took a step back before saying screw it and making love to her right there in the cockpit. But that wasn’t what I wanted for the first time.

  “That water better be cold.” Big brown eyes blinked and I realized I’d spoken out loud. Jesus, my head was screwing with me.

  Whether she was being polite or she understood my dilemma, she added, “Here’s to that.” She picked up her shorts and folded both pieces of clothing neatly before tucking her sandals under the bundle and putting them next to mine in the cabin.

  I had a momentary free pass to drink in the sight of her while she did that, which only served to make my erection even more evident. Luscious, soft curves in all the right places. Everything I’d remembered, only amplified by a thousand. Memories were one dimensional. The flesh and blood goddess that stood in front of me was not. This was the woman that affected me like no other and I wanted her back with a fire that was all consuming.

  “You okay using the steps on the stern to get in the water? I’ve got a dive ladder stowed here somewhere if you want that.”

  She moved to the back of the boat, leaning over the small expanse of deck in between to check out the steps. It gave me another tantalizing view of her backside when she did. Christ, how I wanted to grab those hips and pull them against me.

  Either the sight of her was going to fucking kill me, or I was going to implode and make headlines for it.

  “No, this is fine.” She turned with an eager look. “Ready?”

  Sweetheart, I’m this close to coming in my shorts. “Sure. Go on. I just need to lock up.”

  When I followed her over the side, I decided my god was not a benevolent one today. The water was a balmy eight-three or eight-four degrees, and I needed something along the lines of a polar ice cap.