by Lucy Smoke
“We’re leaving tomorrow,” I reminded him. “We need to get it done now.”
“I know,” he said, kissing me where my neck met my shoulder. I froze and shuddered as his mouth opened and he licked the salt from my skin. “And I told you that I can do it,” he finished.
“Well, I’m doing it anyway,” I replied.
“But—” he starts.
“No buts,” I cut in as I folded a pair of shorts and stowed it away.
“I think I know a way to distract you,” Darren replied, pushing the straining erection in his pants against my rear end.
I tsked at him. “I’m almost done,” I said. “We’re leaving tomorrow. You’re the last one.”
“Jam-ie,” he said, a low masculine whine to his tone.
“Dar-ren,” I replied mockingly.
With a grunt, Darren pushed me towards the open bedroom door and slapped my ass, urging me to move. “Go spend some time with Cody. I’m sure he’d like your help packing.”
“You think so?” I turned down the hall.
“Yeah. Go, go,” he said. “I’ll be fine.” With that, he closed the door and I was left staring at plain white wood, feeling like I had been manipulated. I glared at the door before sighing and heading towards Cody’s room.
His door hung open as he strode around the room in his boxers. I leaned against the door jam and watched him folding laundry. What was it about a domesticated man that got my engine going?
Soft 90s rock music played from the corner iPod station. “Whatcha doing?” I asked, alerting Cody to my presence. His head jerked up, and he turned.
“Hey, Jamie.” He waved me over and I pushed off the door frame and moved towards him. He slid an arm around my waist, causing me to sigh as I snuggled into his side. “Not much,” he said, “just putting up some laundry and packing.”
“Do you need help?” I felt my eyes sliding closed despite my question.
“Nah, I’m good—you okay?” I rested my head on his chest and breathed in his fresh and clean scent.
“Mmhmmm,” I answered.
His chuckle reverberated through his chest, making me grumble as it vibrated against my cheek. “You sure?” he asked.
I cracked open my eyes and squinted up at him before looking to his bed. I could have thanked God. He was practically done with laundry and I was just then realizing how tired I was. My last exam had been that morning at 8 am. Worst. Exam. Time. Ever.
I gathered up the remaining clothes on his bed as Cody stood by and watched silently. I moved them off the bed by dumping them in the small, rounded laundry hamper to the side, and crawled onto the navy blue comforter. Once my head hovered over the pillows, I let my arms collapse and my face plummet into their cushy softness.
Cody chuckled behind me. “Someone’s tired,” he commented.
“Nap with me.” I grumbled my demand into the pillow. With Darren or Dex, I might not have gotten away with my tone of voice. But Cody took it well.
The bottom of the bed dipped as Cody climbed onto the mattress with me. His arm found its way back around my waist, snaking me closer to him. The heat of his naked chest rubbed my arm and as much as I wanted to curl into it, I forced myself to turn away so that I could back up and let him spoon me. I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer. It was like weights had been attached to my lashes and they were being weighed down.
“Wake me up for dinner, okay?” I mumbled.
“Sure,” Cody breathed against my neck.
I settled back more firmly against him, giving in to sleep in the safe arms of my red-haired prince as I dreamed of sun and ocean and four incredibly amazing guys showing me exactly what a vacation should be about.
Chapter 4
Welcome to Lady Maria!” someone called.
Everywhere I turned, there was someone in a navy blue polo and white shorts handing out whatever you could have needed. Seriously, I could think of it and there it was. Brochures. Drinks. Candies. The ship wasn’t all that big, considering that there were luxury cruise ships with dozens of tiers that towered about the Lady Maria, but that just meant there were fewer people. You wouldn’t have guessed it by looking at the boarding area, though. It seemed that all of the employees had been pulled out for this one.
“What are we going to do first?” Cody asked, coming up behind me and slinging an arm over my shoulder.
“Swimming?” Taylor suggested.
“How about we head to our rooms first and drop off our extra luggage?” Dex said.
I nodded. That sounded like a good idea. I looked down at my floral sundress. I’d probably need to get changed as well. Dex grabbed a boat map from one of the employees milling about and led the way, the rest of us trailing along behind him. The scent of salty ocean air infiltrated my nostrils, making me smile as I tipped my head up towards the sun. All too soon, though, we were heading inside.
We passed rounded bars, a customer services desk, and more than our fair share of cleaning carts as we headed towards the elevators. We found them and thankfully, no one else was waiting to board. It might have been a little bit more crowded than I was comfortable with if we had tried to squeeze four athletes and me and then more people onto an elevator. I shuddered at the thought as the bell dinged and the doors opened.
“What floor are we on?” Taylor asked.
Dex glanced up from the map as Cody leaned forward, his hand hovering over the button. “Top floor,” he said.
I narrowed my gaze on him from the corner of my eye. “Isn’t that the fancy floor?” I asked.
He shrugged. “It’s just the top floor.”
Darren’s shoulders stiffened but he didn’t say anything. Cody frowned but pressed the correct button. A tense silence settled over us as we slowly ascended. Dex sighed and put the map down.
“I don’t want you getting the wrong idea,” he started. “This was a gift.”
“Did you pay for it?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No. Like I told you before, my family owns stock with this company.”
“How much stock?” I asked.
Dex leveled his eyes on me, but true to Dex’s character, he didn’t blush or flinch away as he finally admitted it. “All of it,” he said.
I groaned.
The elevator doors opened and the five of us exited. Dex led us down the hall. No one said anything more until we found the door to our room and Dex slid a keycard in and unlocked it.
Before I could utter a singular angry word, I froze, my mouth hanging open. I didn’t know what I had been expecting. A hotel on the ocean maybe. I mean…it was like that, but it was also so much more. It was a veritable luxury suite with a living room, a kitchen, and rooms on either side.
“There are only two bedrooms,” Dex explained. “One with a king and the other has double beds, the couch pulls out into a sleeper.”
“Huh,” Taylor said, moving further in with his arms crossed behind his head as he examined the area. “For a rich guy, I’m surprised you didn’t ask for the president suite. Those would have had more rooms.”
“Taylor!” I snapped.
He glanced back at me with blinking owlish eyes. “What?”
I shook my head at him.
“The president suite was already taken,” Dex admitted. “This is the Duchess suite.”
Taylor whistled. “Whoa. Outbid on your own ship, huh?”
“It’s not my—” Dex stopped himself and huffed. “It’s not my ship,” he finished. “And I wasn’t… exactly…” He gritted his teeth in irritation and then cast me a look of apology. “I meant it when I said we got the suite for free. I didn’t pay a damn cent.”
I caught the meaning though in his gaze. I grimaced. “Okay,” I said, “what’s the catch then?”
He sucked in a breath, closing his eyes and scrubbing a hand down his face. “My family is on the ship.”
“What?” Shock and horror and fear ricocheted through me. In the past two years, I hadn’t even seen a picture of Dex’s family
. He didn’t seem overly fond of them, and now, we were expected to spend a week with them—trapped on a boat?
I turned around and picked up two of the bags the guys had dumped just inside the entryway. “Come on,” I said quickly, “let’s get off this ship before it’s too late.”
“Uh…” Darren said, “I think it’s too late.” He raised his hand and pointed out towards the balcony where the buildings behind the docks were slowly moving by. No. The buildings weren’t moving. We were!
“Dex!” I half shrieked, dropping the bags and whirling on him. “This was a bad idea. Make the ship stop!”
He shook his head. “I can’t do that. Once we’ve left the docks, the ship has to stay on schedule.”
“Forget the schedule,” I said, panic clear in my tone. “I’m not ready to meet your mother yet. I’m not ready to meet your father. I didn’t bring any fancy clothes! Also, what are we going to tell them? Do they know about…” I trailed off, but gestured around to the others, knowing he would understand my meaning.
Dex sighed once more and then approached me slowly. “Jamie,” he said, “baby, you’re worrying over nothing. It’s going to be okay.”
His hands slid up my bare arms as I stifled the urge to hyperventilate. As if sensing my impending meltdown, Darren and Cody grabbed bags and booked it into one of the rooms, mumbling something about unpacking. Taylor strode out onto the balcony and let the sliding glass door close behind him.
Cowards, I thought.
“You should have told me,” I stated, glaring up at Dex. It wasn’t like him to not tell me.
“I know,” he said. “But I didn’t find out until last night that they were coming.”
I frowned up at him. “How—?”
“I was informed that we’d been moved to a new suite and when I demanded to know why… well, I had to call my mother. She’s not happy that I didn’t go home for the last break.”
“And your dad?” I asked, curious.
He shook his head. “It’s just mother…and Stephan.”
“Stephan?”
“My brother,” he clarified.
I stepped away from him then. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a brother?” I asked. I stared at Dex, reeling. I didn’t know that his family owned a cruise ship or that he had a brother. What else didn’t I know about him?
“I’m not…close with my family,” Dex said. His eyes settled on a spot behind me and stayed there as if he couldn’t bring himself to look me in the eyes. I’d be a little uncomfortable looking my girlfriend in the eyes too, if she found out that I had deceived her.
“I’m closer with you and the guys,” Dex continued. “I just wanted us to have a good spring break. We’re graduating early next December. It’ll be our last one.”
“I just feel really stupid,” I admitted.
Dex’s eyes finally found mine, his mouth dropping open. His hands gripped my arms and pulled me into his chest. “No, baby, you’re not stupid.” His breath tickled the top of my hairline. “I’m just...a fucking idiot. I should have told you, but I was scared if I did then you wouldn’t have wanted to come.”
That was a logical fear, I realized. I wouldn’t have wanted to come. But now we were here and we were stuck. There was no running away. I couldn’t exactly jump ship and swim back to shore. Even I wasn’t that good of a swimmer.
“Dex.” I stressed his name.
“It will be fine. It’s a decent sized ship, you don’t have to meet them if you don’t want to.”
“Do you want me to?” I asked.
“Do I want you to meet my mom?” he clarified.
I nodded.
He inhaled and then breathed out. “Only if you want to,” he finally answered. Which meant he did. I bit my lip.
It wasn’t like I hadn’t already met Taylor’s parents. And Cody’s. Darren’s… were… well, there was a reason he didn’t go home much. But Dex’s… I just didn’t know if they would like me. I wasn’t from a rich family. I wasn’t the most fashionable. I wasn’t…a lot of things. Dex, on the other hand—I glanced back up at him as he watched me, curious. If he thought the world of me then I should at least give it a shot, right?
“Okay,” I said, forcing the tension from my shoulders as I blew out a breath.
“Okay?” he repeated.
I nodded. “I’ll meet her.”
Dex’s mouth stretched into a smile and he leaned down, pressing a quick kiss to my lips. “Thank you, Baby.”
“You’re lucky I love you,” I muttered.
“That I am,” he said, opening his mouth to lick my lower lip. “That I am.”
My brain fuzzed over as he slanted his lips over mine and devoured me. I shuddered in his arms, and Dex reached down, lifting me up high on his chest. I wrapped my legs around his waist and held on for dear life as he turned and carried me to the only empty bedroom. The door closed behind us, but I didn’t get a chance to tear myself away from him and take in the suite style room before Dex dropped me on the bed.
I bounced once, my chest heaving as I watched him reach back with one hand and rip his shirt off. I licked my lips as his roped stomach was revealed.
“Clothes,” he said. “Off. Now.”
I let my fingers play at the hem of my sundress. “Don’t we have—”
Dex didn’t let me finish. He leaned down and grabbed the small two-inch slit in the side of the dress and ripped it clear up to my waist. I gaped down at the torn fabric.
“Dex!” I hissed.
“When I say take off your clothes,” he growled, crawling onto the bed over me, “I mean it.”
“Dex, shouldn’t we be—”
Dex’s hands found the back zipper of my dress, and he yanked it down. “Get it off, or I will completely ruin it,” he said.
“You kind of already did that,” I muttered as I wiggled and struggled out of the torn garment.
“Turn over,” Dex ordered. The way his voice dipped low sent shivers down my spine, and I was weak. We probably should have been unpacking, making reservations, and plans… but when he dropped his voice like that, I was helpless to resist. I turned over, sliding to my hands and knees in only my bra and underwear.
“That’s it, Baby,” he said. “God, you’re beautiful.”
A sharp spank came down on my left asscheek and I gasped. The sting settled in, turning to heat. I arched my back, letting my eyes slide closed. Dex’s hand snaked up my spine, pausing over the back clip of my bra. He released it and the straps slid down my arms. I shoved them away and over the side of the bed quickly as Dex’s hand returned to my skin.
I loved the way he touched me. I loved the way he loved me.
“I want you, Baby,” he whispered in my ear as he bent over me, the rough denim of his jeans rubbing against the tender skin of the back of my thighs.
I shivered.
The sound of his zipper ricocheted around the room. His hands slid into my underwear and lowered them to my knees. My breath caught in my throat as goosebumps rose along my arms. His fingers rubbed circles against the skin just under my asscheeks. Dex’s body moved away, but a moment later, I felt his breath against my core.
“Fuck!” I half-screamed as his mouth descended. His lips touched my pussy, his tongue flicked out and slid up my opening. I groaned, loud, low, and long as he ravaged me. Shaking and shuddering in his arms as his hands gripped my ass. I cursed as he sucked my clit between his lips. The closer I got, the more my vision wavered. My fingers clutched the bedsheets. My mouth dropped open. He—
Stopped.
He fucking stopped.
I growled as Dex backed away. But before I could voice my outrage, his hands grasped me around my waist—fingers digging into my skin. Dex reared back and slammed home. I choked as he settled in deep.
“God, each time, Baby. You’re so fucking sexy, so fucking tight. Each and every time.”
I groaned in relief as he began to move. Dex moved fast, stroking deep inside me. In and out. In and out. I start
ed to move against him, relishing in his skin against mine. Dex pounded me into the mattress, his hands coming up and pulling the strands of my hair back into a self-made ponytail which he then used to ride. He held my hair, yanking my head back with each thrust. The sharp pulls had my eyes rolling to the back of my head.
Dex used his hold on my hair to shove my upper body down, closer to the bed. I went without complaint, picking up on his request easily as I shoved my ass out. Dex released my hair and reached around my waist to my clit. He flicked it, causing me to jump and moan before he began to rub his thumb in smooth circles.
“That’s right, come on, Jamie. Come on, let go for me.”
I couldn’t stop myself. Heated embarrassment rose to my cheeks. I should’ve been used to how fast he could get me off since we’d been doing it for a few years now, but I wasn’t. I groaned and shuddered as my orgasm slid over me. It echoed in my bones, rising from my core and flowed through my body.
Dex’s grip on my hips tightened, and he pulled back, pounding inside a few more times before his entire body stiffened up and he released a slow breath.
We laid there for several minutes afterwards, panting. Dex’s chest brushed my back and he sighed, curling against me. Somewhere in the room, a cell phone was going off. Dex tensed before cursing under his breath as he vaulted off the bed. I turned over as he pulled his phone out and held up a finger.
“Yeah?” he barked into the phone as he disappeared into the adjoining bathroom. I blinked after him, but before I could feel any sort of irritation start to crop up, he was back with a damp washcloth.
I took the cloth and froze when he spoke next. “No, we just got on the boat, Mother.”
I darted my eyes to him but he was already turning away, staring at the wall as his face hardened. “No, I don’t think—” I could hear a woman’s stern voice on the other line as she interrupted him. I cleaned up and reached for my underwear. Pulling my panties back up my legs I found my bra and did the same. The sundress, however, was useless.
Dex turned and saw that I was sitting on the bed. He nodded towards the door and mouthed, 'Get dressed.'
I sighed and nodded, getting up and heading for the living room where our bags were still stored. Taylor—now back in the living room, propped up on the couch with both arms spread along the back of it—whistled as he watched me search through our bags to find a new sundress.