Sea Legs

by Nina Hatch

  Jake doesn’t say a word.

  His hands move to my shoulders, gentle and warm, and then his fingers weave through my hair, sweeping it to the side, exposing the back of my neck to his lips. He places a soft kiss at the base of my neck and I shudder as he breathes in my scent.

  My scalp, my skin, everything is so sensitive to his touch, like a live wire, and I’m overcome with wanting.

  I want to stop analyzing.

  I want to let go.

  And I want him to take me there.

  I can feel Jake’s erection against my ass, but I don’t shy away. Instead, I start to move slowly against him, swaying my hips, running my body over what seems to be a rather intimidating bulge. I’m rewarded with a moan, deep in his throat, and the sound turns my bones to jelly. I love how needy he sounds, like he’s been waiting for this moment forever.

  Carefully, as if I’m a sandcastle that might crumble with one stray wind gust, Jake finds the zipper at the back of my sapphire blue dress and slides it down, slipping the straps off my shoulders. His lips move over my bare neck, kissing me softly at first but then shifting, nipping at my skin deeper, hungrier as he goes.

  “You’re so beautiful, I can’t wait to taste all of you,” he whispers, burying his nose in my hair.

  I start to turn around, but Jake places a firm hand on my hip to hold me in place, sliding the other slowly over my back, down my thigh, and trailing to dip under the hem of my dress. His warm palm rises up the inside of my leg, his touch so electric on my bare skin that I have to remind myself to breathe. When his fingers trace between my thighs, I feel like I’m going to collapse, and when he slides my panties aside, I nearly do. I stumble forward into the bookshelf, catching myself.

  “Sorry,” I whisper, my body trembling.

  “Don’t worry, I built them strong,” Jake whispers gruffly, taking both my wrists in his firm grasp and raising them above my head to let me grip the top shelf of the bookcase. “Now, hold on.”

  Jake drops to his knees behind me, lifting my dress so I can feel his hot breath on me. His hands slip under the light silk fabric, squeezing my ass, teasing, before he hooks his thumbs on my panties and drags them down. Every nerve in my body is rigid, tingling with anticipation.

  “Relax,” he whispers. He steadies me with one large hand on my hip just as his fingers slide between my legs.

  I stumble as he spreads my lips, slowly massaging my clit. “Fuck, you’re so wet,” he murmurs, his voice both raw and reverent. “So perfect.” Pressing his finger against my clit, he makes a slow, slick circle. Then another.

  Slow again.

  Then fast.

  Harder.

  Then just a breath.

  My body is shaking, screaming out for release, the tension coiling deep within. That’s when I feel the scruff of Jake’s chin on the back of my thighs, the tip of his nose on my skin as he adjusts his position behind me. He nudges my feet further apart, lifting my ass to open me deeper to him.

  That one still moment stretches on for what feels like an eternity, until I feel his tongue, wet and powerful, slide between my legs, the tip tracing a seam right up my center. I’m so beyond want right now. Now, I need.

  Jake keeps teasing me though, taunting me with his flickering tongue, swirling around my clit until I feel almost numb with pleasure. Finally, he takes me into his mouth and sucks, spreading my thighs wide with his powerful grip.

  “Fuck, you taste so good,” he says, giving us both a split second to take a breath before diving in even deeper.

  With Jake behind me on his knees like this, it all feels so deliciously dirty.

  I’ve had guys go down on me before, but never like this. It always felt like they were just going through the motions, doing me a favor or just whatever was expected of them. I would pretend at a moderate amount of pleasure, never actually getting off or even coming close, but at least we could get on with it and just finish up.

  But Jake is licking me like I’m gelato melting on a hot summer day, flattening the entire surface of his tongue against my thrumming bundle of nerves.

  “You don’t have to hold back here,” he says, his lips vibrating right on my clit. “In fact, I’ll be insulted if you do.”

  Even without his permission, I don’t know if I could have kept quiet if my life depended on it. A loud moan is already building in my throat, climbing to the surface as Jake swirls the the tip of his tongue around my clit before taking it back into his mouth.

  “Oh my God, Jake, that feels fucking incredible,” I can barely recognize my voice, husky and ragged.

  It’s all too much, too good, and I rock my hips further back to meet his mouth, eliciting an animalistic growl from Jake. He wraps his hand roughly around my thighs, pulling me back hard as he starts stroking my clit with those skilled fingers, his hot tongue slipping into me.

  I can feel how wet I am, and it turns me on even more, my thighs shaking as I raise myself onto my tiptoes, pressing back, opening deeper, every sinew and nerve in my body tangling, cinching into a tight knot and then…

  Unravelling.

  All at once.

  I don’t know how I keep hold of the bookshelf, but I clutch it for dear life, throbbing and moaning and riding out the longest, most intense orgasm I’ve ever experienced.

  My eyes pop open as though I’m waking up for the first time, my lids heavy. I pull my panties back on with a smile when I see Jake’s eyes, still wild with lust, latched on to my body.

  Under the black night sky, the world feels smaller somehow, and I like it this way. For tonight, it’s just me and Jake bobbing on the sea, blanketed under the curve of galaxies. I’m nowhere close to ready for this to end, and from the feral look on Jake’s face and the prominent bulge in his pants, neither is he.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jake

  Olivia makes her way over to the edge of my bed, still flushed and staring at me with her big green eyes, her lower lip caught between her teeth.

  “You have no idea what you do to me,” I murmur, bringing her in close so I can finally pull her dress over her head, golden hair tumbling out across her shoulder blades.

  I let the silk dress fall to the floor and step back for a moment, reminding myself we have time, even though my cock is straining for release.

  “Goddamn, you’re beautiful.”

  Olivia blushes deeper, her hands going to cover her body self-consciously, but I pull them away. “Don’t you dare. I want to see all of you.”

  I think she’s going to hide herself again, but she deftly unhooks her bra, letting it drop, meeting my gaze. Braver now, she caresses her hips and ass in fluttery, nervous strokes, stepping out of her lacy blue panties and tossing them toward the dresser. I catch them in my hand instead — they’re soaked — and hold them up to my nose, breathing in deep, my eyes rolling back at the scent.

  Fuck.

  “You’re not getting these back, I hope you know that.”

  She laughs, but I’m not joking. I want to bury my mouth between her thighs again. Earlier, I thought I might come just from the taste of her, like salted grapefruit, but my dick would have been too jealous of my selfish tongue.

  I can’t get my shirt off fast enough — this is why I don’t do buttons — and I rip off the final third, sending them skittering across the floor.

  Sitting on the bed now, Olivia pulls me toward her, fingers fumbling at my jeans, soft and warm against my bare skin. I’m not wearing anything underneath, and when she removes the final barrier between us, I hear her sharp inhale.

  I’m not gonna lie, it’s a pretty nice stroke to my ego to watch her pupils dilate — she can’t hide the fact that she’s a little intimidated at the size of my cock. I didn’t think it was possible for me to be any more turned on, but the way she looks at me makes me even harder.

  “Lie back, we’ll go slow,” I tell her, not sure if I can keep my word on that.

  As she does, I have to pause for a moment just to take her in.
r />   Olivia is the only woman I’ve ever had here in my bed, and the moonlight streaming through the window illuminates her every arch and angle. The cut of her collarbone, the curve of her hips, the swell of her breasts, all seem to glow in the silvery light. She’s far from my first, but still, I feel a little nervous somehow, like this is the first time that actually matters.

  I crawl toward her on the bed, hovering inches above her body, my thick cock bobbing between us.

  She looks so fucking beautiful like this, her hair the color of sunshine spilling across the pillowcase, kissed by moonlight. Her lips are parted, she’s so vulnerable and open and just for me. I can’t resist, I press my thumb to her lips to touch their pillowy softness and she shocks me when she takes it in her mouth — deep — sucking wickedly, her lidded, sultry eyes fastened on mine.

  Yeah, I don’t think I’m going to be able to take it slow with her.

  In an instant, I pull one of her pale pink nipples into my mouth, biting gently and then blowing cool air across her skin, watching it prickle, her nipples hardening. Olivia arches her body at once, throwing her head back with a breathy moan as I continue to tease her, running the tip of my tongue over and over and over her pert nipples.

  I spread her legs apart with my knees, pressing the tip of my cock against her slit for a single tantalizing moment before I reach over to my nightstand, fumbling in the drawer for a condom.

  Ripping open the foil packet, I sheathe the thin latex over my cock with one hand, using the other to dip back between her legs. She’s still slick from earlier, wet and silky and just like paradise.

  “You’re so perfect,” I whisper, stroking her before pushing a finger inside where she’s warm and tight. I slide in another, repositioning myself to come back and hover over her, biting along her neck. Olivia wraps her arms around me, her fingers clenching into my shoulders and I pull her earlobe into my mouth, tugging on the delicate skin.

  “Jake,” she moans, pulsing once around my fingers, “please.” I close my eyes at the sound of her soft voice, begging me for more. My cock is swollen to the point of aching, but still, I have to stop to take it in. This is the moment I’ve been desperate for since I first saw Olivia back in that hotel lobby, and now here she is, naked and perfect below me.

  It feels more real, more significant than I ever thought it could.

  She’s writhing now, starting to circle her hips and buck against my hand, and it’s more than I can take. I position the head of my rigid cock at her entrance and slowly rub it against her clit, teasing us both before I start to push in. She lets out a sharp gasp, then closes her eyes in concentration, slowly letting me stretch and fill her. Going slow lets us both feel every inch, and I savor the sensation of her tightness giving way for me.

  Both of us are panting now, trying to maintain control, and once I’m in deep, I pull out just as slowly, spellbound by the sight of my cock glistening with her arousal.

  Perfection.

  Olivia opens her legs wider and we both moan when she’s able to take me in even deeper, hooking her legs around my ass. I quicken my thrusts, just slightly, easing her into my rhythm as I reach back down between her legs to find her silky clit with my thumb. She gasps, her fingernails biting into my back, pulling me closer to her, begging for more.

  I groan loudly, the need to come so sharp, so overdue, and I can see it on Olivia’s face too, her climax building, her muscles pulsating, milking my dick. “Come for me,” I growl, tossing her ankles around my shoulders so I can drive into her harder, faster now, the boat rocking beneath us, tipping us further into each other.

  “Oh my God!” she cries out, her nails scratching down my back, her fingers kneading my ass.

  She presses me in deeper with every thrust, my muscles coiling tighter and tighter, her body shaking beneath me. Biting down on her shoulder, I bury myself in one last time, all the way to the hilt.

  I let out a deep primal moan as my orgasm shoots through me, ripping down every vein.

  Nothing has ever felt this good before — Olivia and I are one with the night sky and the entire wide ocean.

  Floating.

  Fucking.

  Free.

  I lean my weight on my elbow — careful not to crush her as I roll over — and pull her body against my warmth, our pulses slowing and coming together in harmony.

  I hold her for a long time, but with every fiber of my being, I want it to be longer.

  Inhaling deep, I take in her scent like she’s a tonic, and it’s as though I have access to a new chamber in my lungs — like I’ve never truly breathed until this moment.

  Eventually, Olivia rolls out from under my arm, tiptoeing to the bathroom. When she comes out, I can see her illuminated in the warm light, her chest still flush with pleasure, but now she’s holding a tissue up to her nose.

  I push myself up in bed, still naked, but still so warm. Olivia doesn’t notice me at first, and she bends down to pick up her sandals by the straps.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” I ask. My voice startles her, making her drop everything.

  “Oh, zorry, I diddn’t bean to wagke you,”

  “What’s wrong with your voice?” I can’t help but laugh at her, trying to hold up her crumpled tissue to hide her exposed nipples.

  “Ugh, I thig I cot Claire’s cold. This is derrible. I’b goig to go back to the Vedus so you dod’t catch this.”

  “Oh no you’re not. Come here, Princess. Get under these covers, I’m taking care of you tonight.”

  The look on her face is uncertain, but I can tell she doesn’t really want to go. Barefoot, she pads back over and as soon as I can reach her I tumble her back onto the bed, wrapping the down comforter around her like a burrito, leaving only her stunning, swollen face peeking out.

  I find a full box of tissues and the Gregory Peck collection Ernesto loaned me, hurrying around the kitchen so I can get back to her as soon as possible. “Do you like tea?” I call out from near the stove.

  “Yuck, no. I’m not that sick. Coffee. It has to be coffee.”

  I get a French press ready for her and a Maker’s Mule for me, bringing everything in on an old metal tray. Bacon wakes up just enough to decide he could use a change of scenery, and he hops up on the bed to curl up at our feet.

  After a few minutes, I steal a glance over at Olivia. Seeing her all bundled up, laughing at Audrey Hepburn in the Bocca della Verità scene in Roman Holiday, sipping her coffee, it all makes me feel something in my chest that I don’t have a word for. She’s comfortable here, and that makes me feel comfortable here too, safe even — a sensation I’ve never had before.

  Two movies later, Olivia drifts back to sleep, her nose a little red but a smile on her lips. I lay down beside her, tucking her into my side. It feels good, taking care of her, like something I could get used to.

  With her breathing steady and deep, I let myself say the words I wouldn’t dare if she were awake. “Olivia, I was a coward to leave you,” I whisper, stroking her hair back from her face. “I didn’t want to admit that losing you would hurt me, so I didn’t even give you a chance. I know our time together has to come to an end — I’m afraid it’ll kill me when it does, but I’m in it until the end. I’m not walking away again until you tell me to. I’m giving you all I have.”

  That night, I fall into the deepest dreamless sleep, my aching body finally at ease.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Olivia

  I’m still sinfully sore when Jake walks me back to the Venus the next day. Even though most of the time in Jake’s bed was spent sipping coffee and watching movies on the oldest television known to man as my tissue mountain grew steadily around us, it was the best date I’d ever been on, no contest.

  I’ve never had more than one orgasm in a single day, and Jake just gave me three, easy, only slowing down because of this damn cold. And the crazy part is, I’m starving for more. Last night was the fullest I’ve ever felt — in every possible sense of the word — an
d the thought of leaving him already leaves me wrecked and empty.

  But I have to get back to work on the Venus. Our next charter leaves this afternoon, and Claire is already covering to let me come back onboard as late as possible.

  Jake takes my hand as he walks me down the cobblestone path that curves around the cathedral and back up to the main pier, a gesture that comes easy to him, asking nothing in return. Throngs of tourists crowd the main square of Schiaro, the Med season is in full effect now and the weather could not be more beautiful. Every patio is bursting with customers sipping Peroni and rosé, picking through olives and tomatoes between pulling souvenirs out of shopping bags to show them off. Every one of the tourists seems to have bought the same exact ceramic bowl with painted lemons dancing around the rim.

  When our feet touch the worn wood of the pier, my legs turn to lead, my body desperate to stop our progress toward the boarding plank and toward our goodbye.

  “When will you be back?” Jake asks, stroking his fingers through the waves in my hair.

  “I don’t know. We aren’t scheduled to come back through Schiaro for another couple weeks. We have a couple days off between this charter and the next, but we’ll be in Mykonos.”

  “Then I’ll be waiting for you here when you come back, counting the hours.”

  “You don’t have to wait —”

  “Liv, you’re it for me. For as long as we have, I’ll be waiting only for you.”

  The smile that erupts on my face warms me even more than the Mediterranean sun. “I guess they do say that absence makes the heart grow fonder…” I muse.

  “Maybe the heart, but I don’t think my cock will be too happy about it,” he says, pulling me tight against his chest.

  When I finally have to pry myself away from Jake, I’m rushed into a flurry of activity onboard. Mel shoves my trusty cleaning caddy into my hands as soon as I step (bare!)foot in the interior, and Claire tosses a just-pressed dress shirt over my shoulder, instructing me to adjust the epaulets before the guests board.