“How is knowing what you want to do complicated?” I’d kill to be in her position. Then at least I’d be getting somewhere.
“It just is.” Her voice came out clipped, almost annoyed. “I thought we were here to talk about you, not analyze me.”
I let it go. Apparently her future was an off-limits topic. Fucking insane she’d drop that much money on a degree she didn’t even want.
We rode in silence for another twenty minutes. When all the stations turned to commercials, I said, “Have you been fishing before?”
“When I was younger. I used to fish every summer with my grandpa. He passed away five years ago. Haven’t been fishing since.”
Great. I was trying to strike up a conversation—leave it up to me to remind her of her dead grandfather. Good going, Ry. The creators of that stupid Cosmo article would be laughing their asses off if they could see me botching every one of their steps. Not that I needed it anymore. I genuinely wanted to know more about her, how she took her coffee in the morning, if she liked scary movies, if she liked me. And those thoughts scared the ever-living shit out of me.
She quickly added, “I’ve wanted to go since then, but no one really seemed interested in coming with.”
Who was this girl? My mind couldn’t compute. Every stereotype that I’d labeled her when we first met was completely wrong. Worked on cars, loved fishing, smart, and had the mouth of a sailor. She was the most kickass girl I’d ever met.
After we stopped at the local bait shop to buy Jules a fishing license, rent a couple rods, and buy worms, we pulled in to the reservoir. We rented a boat at the marina, throwing all our stuff on the tiny dingy, and cast away from the dock. The bay was fairly empty because it was a weekday, and the only people who’d be out here were tourists or college students who wouldn’t arrive until later to party.
Jules sat in the bow of the boat, her hair flowing in the wind. The sun was high in the sky at this point, forming a glow around her features. She was a Goddamn angel and, for today, I had her all to myself. I maneuvered the boat to the middle of the bay and cut the engine.
I handed her a fishing rod and opened the container of bait. This was always where I lost girls. Usually their upper lip curled and they shoved the rod in my face, unwilling to even try to bait the hook. Lex wouldn’t ever go fishing with me. Period. I should have known better when she scoffed at my idea the first few weeks we dated.
Jules cleared her throat. “You need me to bait your hook or something? You’re looking a little pale.”
I couldn’t help but crack a smile. “You can do anything you want with my hook.”
She pressed her lips together, trying to smother a grin, and shook her head. “How about you put your hook where your mouth is. Whoever gets the biggest fish today buys dinner.”
“You’re on.”
I hadn’t touched her since the other night, and my body physically ached with an intense need to wrap her in my arms. I’d never felt this way about a girl before, one that blew all my preconceived judgments to pieces.
She grabbed a worm without flinching and deftly baited it on the hook. My heart about jumped ship, and that was when I knew I was in too deep. My heart was fucking pounding. Over a girl baiting a hook. Not just any girl, this girl who was the most Goddamn beautiful, infuriating, sexy thing I’d ever met. She pushed back. She never put up with bullshit. And she deserved someone so much better than me, but my inner selfish bastard wanted to hang on to her brightness for as long as I could.
“Earth to Ryan.” She waved her hand in front of my face. I snapped out of my messed up thought process. “Already getting cold feet? A little performance anxiety?”
“You wish. I’m fully able to perform. Especially with baiting hooks.”
I put the worm on the hook and we both cast out into the water. We sat in the back of the boat, Jules leaning against my shoulder, both holding on to our fishing rods. I inhaled deeply, the scent of her vanilla lotion enticing me to explore every inch of skin. If this wasn’t heaven, I wasn’t sure I wanted to go there.
“So, Granny, besides fishing, what else do you like to do?”
She smacked my chest again, her not-so-subtle way of flirting, kind of like how I used to draw on Payton’s hand in Sharpie in middle school. “I used to play softball. Had to quit for college. Ever since then, it’s been nonstop studying.”
“Any siblings?”
She stiffened. Okay, guess I’d hit on another sore subject. “I have a brother, Eric. I’m not really close with him.”
“I would kill for a brother. The closest thing I have to one is Blake. That’s why we were so close. We met in Boy Scouts. We were the only two without siblings. Guess the scoutmaster thought we could use one.” Why was I sharing this with her? I’d never told anyone this.
“Must be nice. All my friends, except Payton, are still in Seattle. Maybe I’ll go back after I graduate med school.”
I stared at the rod in my hand and chewed a hangnail on my thumb. Five years away, and I was already sweating her leaving. I wasn’t even going to be here, why did I want her to? I shook my head. I didn’t need to be thinking that far in the future when I couldn’t even see where I wanted to be next week.
“Any bites?”
“Not even a nibble. You?”
I bumped her with my elbow. “Just some love bites.”
She giggled, the glorious sound echoing over the quiet bay. “Hopefully those love bites don’t leave marks. Wouldn’t want the worms to have hickeys.”
“They leave marks in places no one else will see.”
A blush filled her cheeks and her breathing sped up. Getting her worked up was better than any foreplay. I’d love to trail my fingers along the path of her flushed skin, below the neckline of her jacket.
I placed the fishing rod on the side of the boat in the holder and did the same with Jules’s. I guided her down until she was lying flat on the bench, her hair fanned out across the seat.
My hand smoothed down the side of her cheek, and she leaned in to my touch. I threaded my fingers through her hair and bent down, grazing my teeth along her throat. “You drive me insane.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Jules
His teeth raking across my neck sent shivers coursing through my body. I needed to stay one step ahead of him, though. He was getting all sentimental, like he was saying good-bye to this town, and I wanted to give him a reason to stay. Even if only for a few more weeks. Why? A self-centered part of me wanted to hold on to what we’d started, not letting the pending future plans suck away the happiness of our current arrangement. The other part? There was a slight possibility I was falling for this guy, even though every neuron in my messed up brain screamed No, girl. Don’t you dare do that! The same thing I always shouted when I watched horror flicks where the girl stupidly went down in the basement alone, right to the ax murderer. Hopefully my dating life wouldn’t end up like those girls—slashed and gutted. “Is all this fishing finally getting to you? A little rusty?”
“My fishing skills are far from rusty.”
“Caught a bigger fish than your rod can handle?”
“As you’ve already seen, my rod is more than capable.” To emphasize, he grinded his erection into my hip. Between the demonstration the other night and the massive bulge in his black athletic shorts, he wasn’t bluffing. The space between my thighs ached for him to show me exactly what he planned to do.
He unzipped my jacket, placing kisses along the skin exposed around my tank top. Goose bumps cascaded over my body, and I shuddered from his featherlight touch. His warm hands slid underneath my top, smoothing over my stomach, brushing my belly button ring. He stopped there and lifted my tank top to look at it.
“Cherries. How fitting.”
I shifted and fingered the piercing. “Yeah? How so?”
“Sweet and delicious. Just like you.” He ran his tongue along the perimeter of my belly button and a shudder wracked through me.
He cli
mbed off me and fished something out of his pocket. I took full advantage of his cute butt as he bent over. I stretched my leg and used my toes to pull down his board shorts. Something multicolored peeked out the top of his shorts, and he quickly moved away and pulled up the fabric.
“What is that?”
“Nothing. A bruise,” he muttered
I lifted my brow. “Last time I checked, a bruise isn’t green and pink.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Then let me see.”
He let out a loud sigh and turned around, pulling the material down and exposing his left ass cheek. In all its glory was a baseball sized tattoo of a unicorn puking a rainbow. A unicorn. Fricken puking a rainbow.
“What the hell is that?” I couldn’t help the hysterical giggle that bubbled up.
He pulled his shorts back up and sat down on the padded bench. “Everyone on the soccer team has it. It’s part of our initiation.”
The whole soccer team had pukey rainbow unicorn tattoos? It made it even more hysterical to think a bunch of muscular dudes had something so ridiculous on their asses. How had I not seen Ryan’s before, in the shower?
He sighed. “Go on, get it out of your system.”
I tried to tamp down the fit of giggles that threatened to explode. Obviously this was something he wasn’t proud of. I needed to be nice. “I’m speechless.”
“That’s a first.”
I kicked his calf. “Hey now.”
“I don’t think I like this side of you.” He slid beside me in the seat and cupped my face.
“Yeah? What side do you like?”
“I like it when you scream. Preferably my name.”
He slid my jacket off, and I raised my arms up as he pulled my shirt over my head. I looked around, no one on the bay yet. Our boat had drifted near the shore, effectively hidden by a tree if anyone happened to pass by. He guided me down until my back was against the seat and pushed aside my bikini top. My nipples hardened as they were exposed to the cool morning air. His crystal blue gaze set my veins on fire.
His lips glided down my side and stopped just above my hipbone. He sucked on my skin, nipping at the flesh hard enough to know I’d have a mark. “This is a reminder for later.”
His tongue ran along the lining of my shorts and he looked up, his eyes silently asking permission. I raised my hips, and he slid off my shorts and bikini bottom. My butt pressed into the cool vinyl as his fingers skimmed the inside of my thighs, teasing, each time stopping before he brushed against my spot. His mouth moved inches from me, and he blew a cool breath over my center. My hips bucked, begging for contact. Shit, if I was this close without him touching me, I was in trouble. I looked at him, an appreciative smile on his lips. He ran his tongue across his bottom lip. “You sure you want this? We could just go back to fishing.”
“I will snap that rod in half if you don’t continue.”
“Bossy.”
I raked my hands through his hair, tugging at the ends. “You just wait. Payback’s a bitch.”
“My rod looks forward to it.”
A retort died on my lips, replaced with a moan, as Ryan ran his tongue across my center. His arms were on the inner sides of my legs, pushing, spreading me wider. My back arched as heat built between my legs. My thighs shook as he placed a finger inside me, curving up, hitting my spot like I’d given him a map leading straight to my O-zone.
He slipped his finger out and moved to hover above me. Our gazes connected, the skin around his eyes creasing in the corner as he smiled, sending goose bumps cascading down my arms. For a split second, I was convinced we could make this work, that everyone else around us, his pending move, didn’t matter. That he felt so much more than we both agreed on. I’d give anything to ask him do you feel it, too? Please, tell me it’s not just me. Instead, I worked his shorts off his body. He grabbed a condom off the seat, ripped it open, and slid it over his erection. Moving back to his position above me, he stared into my eyes as he slowly entered my center. Something about this time was different. His pace slowed down. A complete one-eighty from the fevered fuck session in the bathroom. He smoothed his hand down my cheek and his intense gaze liquefied my insides.
“I’m a lucky bastard.” He leaned down and planted tender kisses along my jaw, eventually making his way to my lips.
Being with him left me breathless, like I had been underwater for minutes and broke past the surface, taking the first gulp of fresh air. The way his fingers lightly skimmed down my neck and the way his eyes softened as regarded me—it took me higher, a lightness I’d never felt before.
I wrapped my legs around his back, and he closed his eyes, shuddering underneath my touch. I worked my fingers down his neck to his back, running over every hardened muscle that flexed as he thrust into me. We found our releases together, my name exhaled on his breath, floating across the breeze on the bay.
We lay on the seat, his arm curled around me, pulling me into his body. The summer sun bathed my skin in delicious warmth. If I could put my life on pause, I’d keep it on this moment, the soft rocking of the boat, the smooth muscles of his arms and chest, the tiny kisses he pressed into my forehead.
“I don’t want to go back to the house.”
“You can stay at my apartment if you want.”
“Thanks for the offer, but I can’t put you out like that. I’ll crash with Blake for a few days. If I have to witness another pissing match between Gary and my dad, I don’t think I’ll survive.”
I examined my reddened skin, cursing myself for not applying sunscreen before I left. “Well, we’d better head back sometime soon or else I’m going to turn crispy.” I pulled the rods into the boat as Ryan got up from the seat and started the ignition. He turned the wheel, steering us toward the docks.
Ryan behind the wheel of a boat was utterly sexy. Something about his tanned skin, sun-bleached hair, and swim trunks slung low on his hips had my insides bungled up, tangled in one massive ball of goo. He seemed more at ease in nature, his muscles relaxed, smiling more often. The same expression he had when we took that midnight beach trip. At Office Jax, he wore the same look I did when I had to endure rehab. Complete agony. It would be such a waste if he looked that unhappy all the time.
He motored up to the dock, and an attendant helped us tie up the boat. As we walked with our gear along the shoreline toward the parking lot, a group of teens, probably around sixteen or so, were smoking and flicked a cigarette butt on the ground, not bothering to stomp it out as they made their way to the docks.
Ryan tensed and let go of my hand. “Hey, pick up your garbage.”
One of the girls arched her brow, a look that rivaled Payton’s death glare.
He pointed to the smoldering cigarette. “You know how many wildfires start that way? Don’t be irresponsible. Pick up your shit.”
“Fine, dude.” A guy in Hawaiian board shorts picked up the butt, tamped it out, and threw it into a nearby garbage can.
“Look at you, Smokey.” I gave him a playful shove once the teens walked off in the other direction.
“It pisses me off when people don’t take care of our earth. We only get one.”
Wow. Ryan was a hot Captain Planet. “Have you ever thought about a job outdoors?”
“Like what? A river guide or something?”
“No, like fish and wildlife protection. One of my friends is in the program at Drexler, and he loves the outdoors.”
He shook his head, still staring at the teens as they made their way along the docks. “It never really crossed my mind.”
“You could wear those little brown shorts. Maybe flash the unicorn to unsuspecting victims.”
“Yeah.” He nudged my shoulder. “I could stun them into submission.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ryan
“Can I use your computer?”
“Sure, what’s up?” Blake handed me his laptop and sat down on his daybed.
“Wanted to check out something before I forge
t.” I’d done some research on my phone after I’d dropped Jules off at her apartment. She was right—fish and wildlife protection sounded like a great fit. If I could have a career in the outdoors, space where I could breathe, the future didn’t seem as daunting. I pulled up the Humboldt Bay Fish and Wildlife Services website and clicked through the tabs until I found what I was looking for. Internships. It said they took on interns year-round; all I had to do was fill out an application and submit.
“You doing okay lately?”
I swiveled in the office chair to face him. “Not really.”
“Sorry, dude. I’ve been so busy and—”
“I understand.” I did. If I had someone I loved as much as Blake loved Payton, I’d want to spend every waking moment with her, too. In fact, there was someone who streamed through my thoughts more than any girl had in a long time. One who gave me a little more faith that dating wasn’t a fucked up WWE match.
I stared back at the application. “Do you think I’d be any good at fish and wildlife protection?”
Blake nodded his head, his eyes zoning out. “It’d make sense. You always loved being on the water. Why?”
“Just thought it might be a good option.”
“Better than the academy.” He shook his head. When I’d brought up my plan with him at the beginning of the summer, he told me I was an idiot, that I shouldn’t throw my life away to the police force. He didn’t get it, though. Mr. Pediatrician had a life plan, I didn’t. So I was forging my own path, even if it was something I didn’t entirely want.
But this idea of fish and wildlife protection sparked something in me—it made me excited for the first time about my future. Something I knew I could do, without wanting to run my car off a cliff.
“You go boating today? Is that what made you think of wildlife protection?”
“Yeah, with Jules.”
“How did that go?”
I shrugged. “Good.” Better than good. “Did you know she fishes?”
“No.” He flipped through a men’s fitness magazine. “Did she freak out when she had to bait a hook?”
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