Sultry Summer Nights

by Té Russ

  "It's time."

  He went to the bridal suite and the door opened and the bridesmaid's filed out in line. He stepped in the room and was taken aback by how beautiful his sister looked. She was standing, gazing out a window in her wedding dress, veil covering her face and she was holding her bouquet.

  "Di," he whispered. "You look amazing."

  She turned to him and smiled and for the first time ever, she seemed to be at a loss for words.

  He walked over to her and held his arm out. She hooked her arm around his and he began to lead her out of the room, but she seemed frozen. He looked over at her and for the first time, sensed the nervousness radiating over her body.

  "Di?"

  "I'm getting married today."

  "Yes, you are."

  "James must be a fool to marry someone like me."

  "You mean loud, opinionated, bossy and always right in your mind?"

  She looked up at him, with a pinched look on her face.

  "You are all of those things. I've known it since birth and still love you. James has known it...probably since the day he met you, and he still loves you. But here's what else we know. You're loving, caring and you give with all of your heart and soul. Those are the qualities he fell in love with. So much so in fact, that he wants to spend the rest of his life with you."

  They heard The Wedding March begin to play and he squeezed her hand.

  "Everything is going to be fine," he assured her. "Now let's go."

  She smiled again, nodded and they began the walk down the aisle.

  Chapter 16

  Dylan stood as several people around him began clinking their knives against their glasses to get the attention of the crowd in the reception hall.

  "I know the best man and maid of honor have already given their toasts to the bride and groom, but I just wanted to say a few words." He looked over at his sister and smiled. "Today I had the honor of filling in for a roll that, no matter how old I get, I will never be big enough to truly fill his shoes. I got to walk the best older sister, by twelve minutes, down the aisle and give her away to be married."

  After pausing briefly to allow the soft laughter to die down, he held his hand out to Diana and when she placed hers in his, he helped her up and led her to the center of the ballroom. "It is a joyous day, without a doubt. But it is also bittersweet, because sadly our father is only here with us in spirit. But my mother and I, and James as well," he turned and acknowledged his new brother-in-law, "wanted to make sure his presence was felt. So we put together a little something for you."

  The music began to play, along with a slideshow filled with photos of Diana and their father, starting from when she was a baby, until some of the last pictures they'd taken together.

  "You did this Dyl?" she asked, her voice thick with emotion.

  Dylan nodded and swallowed, his own throat clogging up. He cleared his throat and said, "This is usually where they have the father/daughter first dance. I figured since I've already walked you down the aisle, my job wouldn't be complete without a dance."

  Diana smiled through her tears, and Dylan pulled his sister into his arms and they began to waltz around the dance floor. Julie had made up a perfect dance that would be easy enough for Diana to catch on to, since she'd been taking lessons of her own.

  Once the dance was over, everyone stood and clapped. There didn't seem to be a dry eye in the house.

  Diana wrapped her arms around Dylan in a tight hug.

  "You've made this the absolute, most perfect wedding day a girl could ask for. Thank you, Dylan."

  –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

  Julie took a sip of wine and wiped yet another tear from her eye. She couldn't seem to stop crying ever since the touching video and dance Dylan had put together for his sister.

  She was surprised to suddenly see a pocket napkin in her face.

  "You are much too beautiful to be shedding tears."

  She looked up to see Dylan standing over her.

  She took the napkin from him and dried her eyes.

  "It's a wedding," she excused. "Everyone cries at weddings."

  "Be that as it may, I still hate to see you cry."

  "Your tribute was beautiful."

  "I had a lot of help. Thank you by the way."

  "No thanks needed. I was happy to help. Besides, they were basic steps, you really didn't need my help."

  "Any excuse to have you in my arms will do," he said with a grin. "Speaking of which, will you dance with me?"

  "I would love to."

  They made their way over to the dance floor and he pulled her close to him. He kissed the side of her face as they danced slowly and she closed her eyes, placing her cheek on his shoulder.

  "I want you to come away with me next weekend."

  Her eyes flew open, shocked by his words.

  "Go away with you?"

  "Yes, on my boat."

  "You have a boat?"

  "I do. Actually I have two. One here, the other in Martha's Vineyard. That one was my dad's."

  "Oh...so you want to go out sailing, on your boat?"

  "I want to take you somewhere by boat," he clarified.

  "Where?" she asked.

  "It's a surprise."

  "And you want to spend the entire weekend on the boat?"

  "Not exactly," he chuckled. "But we will do a little fishing, cook up what we catch. Make love on the boat in the middle of the ocean."

  He kissed her below the ear after his last suggestion, and she blew out an aroused breath.

  "You sure do know how to tempt a girl."

  "Is it working?" he asked, huskily.

  She peered into his eyes and knew she couldn't say no.

  "What should I bring?"

  "Just your gorgeous self. And a swimsuit."

  ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

  "Good evening, and welcome to the first salsa night."

  Julie stood on the raised stage in front of a few couples on the dance floor at the cantina she'd eaten dinner with Dylan at awhile ago. The dance floor was tucked off in a corner where they wouldn't bother diners.

  "Tonight I'm going to teach a few basic steps and we're just going to have some fun tonight. If you decide afterward that you're interested in taking more in-depth lessons, there is a sign up sheet for our dance studio, Dottie's, which is right within walking distance from here."

  She looked around surprised, but pleased at the eager faces awaiting her instructions.

  "Now, in order for me to properly show you all the steps, I'm going to need a partner. You sir! Sitting over there."

  Dylan looked up with wide eyes.

  "Yes, you. Would you mind being my partner tonight?"

  He stood slowly and undid the button on his jacket before removing it from his broad shoulders. He sauntered over to stand in front of her, then wrapped his strong arm around her waist and pulled her close to him. He leaned down and her body responded instantly to the feel of his breath fanning against her cheek.

  "I wouldn't mind being your partner every single night...and day..."

  Her heart began to race, feeling like he meant more than just dance partners.

  "Let's start with the proper frame," she called out trying to keep the tremble out of her voice.

  They spent the next hour going over dance moves, and practicing them. She was excited when all of the couples signed up for more lessons.

  "And please join us at our grand reopening next weekend. It's going to be lots of fun, and we are also holding a raffle for a free month of lessons."

  "Can you show us what the dance will look like? Like an actual routine," a woman called out.

  "Oh," Julie said, caught off guard by the request. She looked at Dylan. "We...uh, we don't have a routine, but–"

  "We can freestyle it, like we did with the other dances," Dylan said confidentl
y. "I still remember enough."

  "Okay then." Julie smiled and hit play on the remote.

  The music began and Julie and Dylan began to perform for the crowd. Their feet shuffled back and forth and side to side, as the congas and trumpets blasted through the speakers. He even spun her around several times and dipped her body sensuously before pulling up against his body to do a few more salsa moves.

  As always, when they danced together it was fun and easy. She laughed heartily through the entire routine, but she also felt aroused. The music ended, but they didn't release each other, until the sound of applause caught their attention. He winked at her then spun her out of his arms, where she took a bow. When she stood she noticed that quite a few more patrons had made their way over to the dance floor to watch the two of them.

  "Looks like you may have attracted a few more interests in the studio," Dylan said, with a smile.

  "Yeah...looks that way."

  He'd been right, they hadn't even had the grand reopening yet, but things were already turning around.

  And it was all thanks to this man, that she was undeniably and unequivocally in love with.

  Chapter 17

  Early Saturday morning Julie found herself with Dylan, as they sped down the freeway toward the marina. After he parked, he grabbed their bags out of the truck. She was eager and also nervous as they walked hand in hand.

  "This is it," Dylan said, stopping in front of a massive boat.

  "This is your boat?" she asked in awe.

  "Yep, this is it."

  "It's...bigger than I would have thought."

  "Too pretentious?" he asked, with a grin.

  She remembered him asking her that the first time she'd ridden with him in his car.

  She smiled as she said, "Again, maybe for anyone else, but not for you."

  She'd figured out why. Dylan was successful, and he enjoyed the finer things. But he was humble and he didn't flaunt or boast about all of his money or the things he bought with it. He was caring and giving and was a natural born fixer, he wanted to see people happy and living life in the best way they could. And if he could help do so, then that was even better.

  That was one of the many things she loved about him.

  "If you think this boat is big, you'll be floored when you see my dad's in Martha's Vineyard."

  She found the way he'd worded his sentence interesting. There was no 'maybe' about it. There was a definitiveness about it. He had every intention on taking her sailing on his father's boat in Massachusetts. And she was completely looking forward to it.

  "Come on, let's go aboard."

  They walked up the small ramp onto the boat.

  "It's beautiful Dylan."

  "Wait until you see her out on the water."

  "Does she have a name?" Julie asked.

  "Actually, no. I haven't gotten around to naming her yet."

  "Why not?"

  "I guess, I just haven't found a name that is quite right for her."

  "I'm sure you'll figure it out someday."

  "Yeah, I think you're right."

  "Does you father's old boat have a name?"

  "Marina," he said, quietly.

  "He named his boat after your mother?"

  Dylan nodded, with a fond smile.

  "That's very sweet."

  "Some people believe it's bad luck. My dad was never superstitious, but swore he never caught more fish than he did after he named his boat after our mom. He used to say if there really was such a thing as superstitions, then the right woman in your life would always bring you good luck."

  He motioned for her to follow him. "I want to give you a tour of the boat before we set sail. And I want to take the bags to the bedroom."

  He slid a door open to reveal an open floor living area, complete with television, that flowed into a full kitchen decked out with stainless steel appliances. There was also a dining area off to the side. Another set of doors led out to a small outdoor patio with another place to sit and eat.

  The inside was surrounded by windows, so you could still see the ocean from every room.

  "This is amazing," Julie extolled, as she took in the extravagance of it all.

  "The master stateroom is this way," Dylan said. She followed him past a small cockpit area.

  "Is this where you steer the boat from?" she asked.

  "It's one of them," he replied. "The main cockpit is upstairs. But we'll have it mostly on autopilot."

  They went up a small set of steps and he opened the door. When she walked in, she was once again blown away. There was a full queen size bed in the center of the room with nightstand drawers on both sides. Just like in the living room and kitchen area, there were windows all the way around the room, so you could always see the ocean.

  "The bathroom is in there," he informed her, pointing at the french doors.

  She walked over to the doors, pushed them open and her breath was taken away by the sight.

  "This is better than my bathroom at my apartment," she exhaled.

  "It is pretty nice."

  She looked over at him with a raised eyebrow then back at the luxurious looking bathroom, with its double sinks, large walk in shower and tub with spa jets.

  "'Pretty nice'. You are too modest for your own good, Dylan Baxter."

  "Are you ready to set sail?"

  "Yes," she said eagerly.

  "We'll go up top, so we can get a good view of the water as we take off."

  They climbed up the stairs, to the top deck of the yacht, where the main cockpit was, along with another small dining area.

  "Come here, you're going to help me start the boat."

  Julie looked at Dylan and shook her head. "I don't want to mess anything up."

  "You won't, there's nothing to it."

  She went and stood in front of him, and he pushed her large sun hat out of the way to kiss her cheek.

  He pointed at several buttons, telling her which ones to push. She laughed when the boat roared to life. The screens turned on in front of them and he gave her a combination of letters and numbers to type in.

  "What was that?" she asked.

  "Coordinates," he answered as he took the wheel to steer them out of the marina and into the ocean.

  "To where?" He still hadn't told her where they were going.

  "Right now, we are headed for the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, we've got some lunch to catch."

  "And later?" she prodded.

  He chuckled and shook his head.

  "You just can't help yourself can you? Just relax and enjoy the ride."

  Once they were safely away from the port, Dylan turned on the autopilot.

  "Come on, let's go back down to the bow of the boat."

  They went to the front of the boat and Julie watched over her shoulder as the Miami skyline began to fade away in the distance. Then she looked ahead and marveled at how there was nothing in front of them but water.

  "I can't say it enough, Dylan," she said, as she turned in his arms. "This is so amazing."

  "I'm glad you like it." He lowered his head and placed a kiss on her lips. She wrapped one hand around his neck and placed her other hand on her head to keep her hat from blowing off in the wind into the ocean.

  "It's still early, and we won't reach our destination for a few hours," he murmured, as his hands found the hem of her sundress.

  "What do you suggest we do to fill the time?" she asked, provocatively.

  "I think we should make our way back to the bedroom."

  "Great idea."

  –––––––––––––––––––––––––

  Dylan watched as they cruised through the ocean waves, then looked over to the gorgeous woman stretched out on the front of his boat, reading a book. She was still wearing those shades and the big floppy sun hat she'd had on when they first got on the boat; but now, instead of the sexy little sundress, the only thing she was wearing was an alluring swimsuit, that had him tempted to take her r
ight there on the bow.

  Instead, he was on the side of the boat, preparing rods so they could fish for their lunch.

  "Jules, come here, baby."

  Julie sat up and leisurely strolled over and sat down next to Dylan.

  "We're almost there," he said, handing her a fishing pole. He'd already put bait on the end, so all they had to do was throw the fishing line in the water.

  The boat slowly came to a halt and Dylan stood and looked around.

  "You ready?" he asked.

  "I think so, but I've never done any deep sea fishing," she said.

  "It's really simple." He helped her up, stood behind her and wrapped his hands around hers on the fishing rod.

  "Make sure you've got a good grip on the rod."

  "I don't think I have any trouble with that."

  He smiled and playfully swatted her on the bottom. "Focus," he said, chuckling. "Press this release button, and turn your body slightly." He shifted their bodies, enjoying the feel of her pressed against him.

  "Pull the rod back, and..."

  They watched the line sail through the air and land into the water.

  "Now what?" she asked.

  He quickly cast his own line into the water and sat down, kicking his feet up.

  "Now...we wait."

  They sat their rods in the holders built onto the side of the boat, and sat back. Julie pulled her book out and began to read again.

  "What are you reading?" he asked, leaning closer to her.

  The side of her lip tilted up as she answered.

  "A steamy romance novel."

  "Is it good?"

  "Oh yeah," she said in a sultry voice.

  He ran his finger down her arm. "Anything in there we can try?"

  She let out a throaty laugh as she looked at him over her shades. "I'm pretty sure we could write our own book, Mr. Baxter."

  "Is that right?" he asked, intrigued by her sexy comment. "I think we wrote a whole new chapter earlier."

  "I've never made love on a boat before."

  He began kissing the sensitive spot under her ear as he said, "Just wait, we only just started."

  They were interrupted by the sound of the tugging of one of the fishing lines.