by Ari Thatcher
She sighed. “Yeah.” Unfolding her legs from beneath her, she stretched out to rest at his side.
~*~
Jen and Matt waited outside the hotel entrance for Ben and Adam to join them for a trip into Lahaina. Jen lifted her face to the sun, closing her eyes and letting the rays worship her. “I can see why people become addicted to tanning,” she commented.
“There is something elevating in the sunlight and fresh air,” Matt agreed. “But I wouldn’t recommend long doses with your complexion.”
She turned and kissed his cheek. “No, being close to you is all I need to add a bit of color to my cheeks.” Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed his lips, letting the moment go almost too far for a parking lot.
His hands rubbed up her arms and captured her shoulders. “Mmm, maybe we should call off the day trip.”
“No. Being together in a place where we can’t touch each other, can’t follow through on our urges should make tonight that much better.”
“Could it get any better than last night?” He bent and nipped the sensitive spot where her neck joined her shoulder. “Or this morning?”
“Better, no, but definitely equal to. And you can’t deny the pleasure of seeing how much you can get away with in public.”
Lowering his sunglasses, he peered over them. “In public? You’ve changed over the years, Miss Jen Mine.”
She bit the corner of her lip as his use of his old nickname for her, and gazed off in the distance. “Yes, I did, but not the way you’re thinking. You’re bringing back the old me.”
“And that’s a good thing?”
With a bright giggle she ran her fingertips along his jaw. “It’s exactly what I needed.”
Jen heard Ben’s voice behind her and pulled away, however disappointed her body might have been, to face her new friends. “Ben, Adam.”
Ben introduced his partner to Matt and they climbed into Matt’s small car. On the drive into Lahaina they discussed the different spots they wanted to see. Jen tried to focus on the conversation and not the muscled thigh bared by Matt’s shorts as he drove. When had men’s shorts become so sexy?
Letting her gaze travel up his tropical print shirt, wishing he’d worn a tight t-shirt instead, she realized shorts had always been sexy on that man. She turned her gaze back toward the highway in front of them and tugged at her own shorts. She couldn’t call herself fat, but she hadn’t worked at maintaining her shape, any shape, after she’d married.
Way to put a damper on the flirting, she chided. I am perfect as I am. Sexy is as sexy does. Okay, that’s too corny, but it was true, Matt was attracted to what was inside, not her curves.
She realized he’d spoken to her. “I’m sorry, what?”
“Where’d you go? Not enough sleep last night?”
Her cheeks warmed in spite of her intention to play the vixen. Baby steps, girl, baby steps. “I can honestly say my mind was on today.”
The corner of his mouth twitched and if he weren't driving, she would lean across the divide and kiss it. Instead she turned toward the back seat. “So, what's our first stop?”
Adam answered. “I thought we should start at the beginning, the harbor. Keawaiki. Then follow the mapped walk.”
Matt glanced in the rear-view mirror. “Sounds good. I can take you to a few off the path sites while we’re in that area.”
They’d started early enough in the day the crowds hadn’t gathered yet. A guided tour had just begun, the docent reciting the standard script about the harbor and the ships that commonly docked outside the reef. Jen and her friends hung back, letting the group move on a ways before starting off.
“We’ll probably want to walk slowly to not catch up with the group,” Matt suggested. He paused outside an art gallery and examined the window display. “A lot of the historical walk describes buildings that are no longer standing, but a few have been restored, and there are a few museums you might enjoy.”
Adam pointed at another shop and walked down the street. Ben caught up with him while Jen and Matt moved more slowly.
“Do you want to get in some shopping while we’re here?” Matt asked her.
“I do need to get some souvenirs. The hotel has some nice postcards, but I’d love to find some dresses and shirts for my sister’s family. And a muumuu for Mom.”
“You have a sister?”
She glanced up at him, her hair swinging over her shoulder. It startled her, still, how much she needed to look up to meet his eye. “Yeah, didn’t I ever talk about her?”
“I don’t think either of us talked about family. About where we came from, who we were. We were too busy focusing on the moment.”
Laughing, she added, “Who’d hooked up with whom. Which actors were having an affair. And what musician had a new release.”
“That’s all that mattered when we were twenty. And yet I felt like I knew you inside out.”
A delicate teacup and saucer in the store window caught her attention and she paused. “You did. You knew the important stuff. That I liked to dip my French-fries in chocolate shakes, not catsup. I preferred sweet tea to soda pop.”
“That you even called it soda pop. I always thought you were something out of a sitcom, too pure to be real.” He pulled at a lock of her hair, drawing her attention back to him. Standing on the sidewalk in the shade of a tree, he held her in place with his gaze. “You definitely weren’t like the girls I was used to.”
Shrugging, she wrinkled her nose. “I guess I was pretty innocent. I never realized the reason everyone went to Ricky’s room was to buy cocaine. And when I found out that Kimmy, the waitress, was sleeping with three different guys, sometimes at the same time, I was speechless.”
“They don’t have foursomes in Missouri?”
“The only time I heard the term was when Daddy was golfing on Saturday morning. And I don’t think they dropped their drawers to do it!”
Matt pushed his shades up on his head and studied her. “Do you think if I hadn’t lost your phone number, we’d have been able to have a relationship?”
The need to remove any barriers hit her as it must have him. She took off her sunglasses, holding them by one earpiece. “I’d planned on it. I was sure that’s what you wanted, and I held onto hope until the end of winter break.”
“I never felt so frustrated over anything. I searched the phone listings online, searched for your name.”
“Yeah, you said. Look, it’s in the past. We can’t change how life ended up. Let’s just enjoy what we have now.”
Stroking his hand over her cheek, he looked deep into her eyes before leaning down and claiming her mouth. The kiss started so tender, so familiar, and build into a passionate, private moment.
Ben’s voice reached them from down the street. “Hey, you guys, are we taking a tour or what?”
Matt pulled back, grinning at Jen. “Yeah,” he called out, “We’re coming.”
She fitted herself to his side, tucked under his protective, possessive arm. It was a good place to be. When they caught up with the other couple, their group moved on, following Adam’s map.
Their comfortable friendship was another thing she’d missed over the years. Her ex had control over whom they associated with. Her only girlfriends were the wives of his partners. Women who filled a role just as she had. While the women themselves weren’t shallow, the only thing they had in common was their husbands.
Past. Over. Done. She desperately needed to learn to enjoy the present without comparing it to her old life. Feeling a nudge at her shoulder, she smiled up at Matt.
“Hey,” he said. “Where do you keep going? Is there something else you’d rather be doing?”
She shook her head. “I can’t think of anything better we could be doing.” At the flaring of his eyelids, she amended, “Well, there is that. But walking in Lahaina with you and our new friends is exactly what I want to be doing now.”
The old courthouse building was open and they stepped inside to view the
museum. Locals displayed their artwork, in addition to the original furnishings. Jen stopped in front of a landscape and Matt stood behind her, crossing his arms in front of her and planting a kiss on the top of her head.
Adam whispered, “Are you sure you two aren’t a couple? I mean, you don’t act like people who’ve only been together a few days.”
Matt’s voice rumbled against her back. “How many days does it take to be a couple?”
Ben smiled. “Exactly. Some things are timeless. And fate seems to have known what she was doing bringing the two of you back together.”
Adam moved down to another group of paintings. Ben followed shortly. When Jen tried to step away, Matt held her in place. He spoke into her ear. “I guess it’s obvious to everyone else. I really screwed up not finding you sooner.”
She turned to face him. “You tried. What more could you have done?”
He glanced at the other visitors around the room and ran his hand over his short hair. “I don’t know. There must have been something.”
“Water under the bridge. I believe our lives went the way they were supposed to. Let’s enjoy what we have now, remember?”
A wicked gleam lit his eyes. “That reminds me. We’re going to take a little walk after dinner tonight.”
How could a flicker in his gaze send tingles through all the right places in her body? She shivered. “Are we? Anywhere in particular?”
“You’ll have to see.”
Chapter Five
That evening Matt held Jen’s hand as he led her down to the beach near the resort. “I know you’ll remember this place.”
She kicked off her flip-flops and wiggled her toes in the sand. “It is a rather infamous spot. So many wild nights, so much alcohol consumed.”
The sun hung low over the water, turning the sky and the waves a vibrant scarlet. They were alone on the beach, the rhythm of the waves the only sound. Matt laid his arm across her shoulders and stood beside her watching the light fade. “This is where I first noticed you.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. The first Saturday night I was here.” He pointed at the edge of the small clearing. “You were sitting on a log there, just watching everyone dance.”
With a laugh, she explained, “I hated to dance in front of people. It took three weeks before I got brave enough, and then only because Sarah dragged me out in the middle of the crowd where no one could see me move.”
“I thought you danced great.” Stepping back, he took her hands and tugged her so she rode his thigh, her skirt riding up. “Especially that one move you had.”
He cupped her hips and ground her pelvis against him, swaying to a tune in his head and taking her along. As his hands stroked up and down her back, he led her in the dirtiest dance, so much like the way she’d seduced him in this same spot on their last night that August.
“I was imitating what the other girls did. I know they danced like that with you, too. As I recall, the waitress with the big boobs was gyrating on your other leg while I humped you like an obnoxious dog.”
Matt burst out laughing and pulled Jen into a tight hug. “That’s what I love about you, woman. Your conceit is so overwhelming.”
She slapped at his shoulder. “And you’ll say anything to get me in bed.”
Toying with her hair, he watched the curl spring back when he tugged it straight. “Yeah, I was such a horn-dog. Got you drunk and hauled you out behind the barn the first night I saw you.”
“Ha! I had to throw myself at your feet to get you to see me as anything more than a friend.” She bit her lower lip in an obvious attempt to keep from smiling.
“See you? No way. The way you looked next to all the other girls—”
“If you say anything about my glow-in-the-dark complexion, I’m heading back to my room now.” She planted a finger on his lips. “Alone.”
Puckering, he kissed her finger, then ran his tongue along it and sucked the tip into his mouth. Her hiss of arousal made his groin tighten. The look of her, the taste of her, and the sounds she made, any one little thing could set him off. It amazed him he was capable of going through a day without making love to Jen every hour.
In the fading light, he stroked his thumb across her cheek, the twilight emphasizing the contrasts in their complexion. “My porcelain doll.”
“You called me that just before we made love the first time.”
“So smooth and perfect.”
She turned away, ducking her head, but he reached up and kept her hair from providing her shield. He spoke gently, stroking her hair behind her ear. “Look at me, honey.”
When she met his gaze, he continued. “You are perfect to me. I don’t care what ideas you’ve taken in your head. I know you’re not twenty anymore, but neither am I. I’m thirty-one. I’m not looking for a twenty-year-old. Any character that is on your face now tells me you’ve lived, you’ve experienced.”
“Some days I look a lot more experienced than others.”
“Every day you are that much more beautiful to me.”
She studied him for a moment, nibbling her lower lip, then rose on her toes and kissed him. Her skin was cool against his, her breath hot on his face. Even as she initiated the contact, he felt she was holding back. Uncertain. When she tried to pull away he hugged her, then smoothed his palm down the back of her dress. He drew in a deep breath. “What did he do to you?”
With a jerk, she stepped back. “Who? What are you talking about?”
“I don’t know, but I’m guessing your husband. You were never the conceited type, but you had confidence.” He smiled in an effort to get her to relax. “Or did you forget to pack it for your trip?”
Her wry grin answered him. “Maybe it got lost in the airport.”
Turning away, she took a few steps toward the trees. “It dried up and blew away over the years. As he took over the decision making, scheduled all our activities, I guess I didn’t even notice I was losing my ability to decide.”
Believing there was more to the story, he waited.
“It really wasn’t awful. He wasn’t abusive. He provided for me. All that was required of me was to be present when he said to. You follow instructions long enough and you lose the ability to think for yourself.”
She spun on her heels and returned to Matt. “But it’s coming back. I went back to school without asking permission, before I left him. I chose a job based on my needs, no one else’s. I bought a house. In another year or so I figure I’ll be fully back to the old me.”
“A year. It’s a crime to think anyone can destroy another person like that. Anything I can do to help you, let me know. I tend to take the reins, it’s just who I am. I should ask what you want to do, instead of dragging you around.”
Her eyes reflected the sunset as she gazed up at him, making it hard to tell what she was thinking. He had to wait, something he was not really good at. Somehow he needed to lead her toward admitting what she desired.
Jen stepped closer. “What do I want to do? What’s the point of asking, when it’s the same thing you want?”
Still, he waited.
“You do want it, don’t you?” Uncertainty tainted her voice.
“Want what, honey? Tell me.”
“Make love to me, Matt. Please.”
Heat shot through him at her words, and flared again when her lip trembled. He closed the last few inches between them but restrained himself from doing more than smile down at her.
Her fingertips stroked the bare skin of his lower arms, and continued up over his sleeves, across his shoulder and down his chest. With one hand she toyed with the top button on his shirt, working it free and slipping her fingers inside. “You’re so warm.”
Rising on her toes, she planted a kiss on the spot she’d bared. Matt grasped her arms, helping her balance, then dropped his hands to her waist.
Pushing her away, he said, “Not here. Come with me.”
He realized as he stepped off the main path that he’d meant th
is to be her plan, but since her plan seemed to be making love in the open, he was reverting to his own. Leading the way, ducking under branches and holding others aside for Jen, he led her to the clearing he hoped was still there.
Shadows lengthened around them as the forest shut out the rest of the world. If they were quiet, no one would notice them. Soon darkness would have deepened enough to completely hide them.
“Is this…?” She glanced at the small space between the ferns and trees.
“You recognize it?”
“How could I forget the place we first made love? I’m more surprised you remember.”
He tugged on her hand, pulling her hard against him. “Did I really come across as that shallow?”
Her palms softened from bracing against his chest, and she rubbed her thumbs across his nipples through his shirt. “Not at all. I just thought it was a girl-thing to remember that kind of stuff. I didn’t know guys cared.”
Stroking her hair, he inhaled the sweet floral scent of her hair. “You’ve been with the wrong guys.”
Even before she stiffened, he knew he’d said the wrong thing. “Damn. Baby, I’m sorry. I’m not going to bring him up again. As of this moment, our pasts are locked away. We have today, tomorrow…”
“Let’s focus on right now.”
Holding her face between his hands, he kissed the corner of her mouth, then ran his tongue along the edge of her upper lip before planting a kiss on the other side. He felt her smile, heard her purr.
She shifted against him, opening her legs to straddle one of his. With a whimper, she sought his mouth, kissing him back, fucking his mouth with her tongue. He grasped her ass, lifting her slightly and she rocked against his thigh.
Tugging at his shirt, she bared his chest and licked her way across it. He groaned, loving her taking control. It took all his willpower not to rip off her clothes and lay her down in the grass.