Sink or Swim

by Lissa Kasey

  I blinked at him again, positive the drugs kept me from understanding what he said. “Huh?”

  “Fuzzy, eh? Let me be blunt. Will you go out with me, Abram?”

  Yeah, the angel had asked me out. It’d taken me a couple days to get out of the hospital, and even then I had to rest for another week until the pain subsided. He’d given me his number, but I hadn’t called. Not until I felt normal. And even then I was sure I seemed like an idiot calling him up and saying, “Hey, it’s Abram.” I expected him to be “who?”

  “Hey, babe! How are you feeling? Ready for that date yet?”

  And now more than a year later, here we were, on a plane bound for paradise. Hoping that the rest of our lives together could be just as amazing as the first year had been. Curled up against him, that thought was all that mattered when sleep took me away.

  ####

  Beau’s chin scraped against my head, and I opened my eyes. I noticed everyone was looking out the windows and talking quietly. I turned up into a blinding smile, complete with the dimples that still knocked me out. Beau leaned over to kiss my forehead. “Morning, babe.”

  I rubbed my eyes with one hand and stretched. Stifling a yawn, I glanced out the window and saw some islands in the faint morning light. “Where are we?”

  “About an hour out. I thought you might want to shake some of the sleep off before we had to get moving. I know how you are when you first wake up.”

  “Hey, I’m not that bad,” I said, playfully punching his arm.

  He reached over and rubbed the back of my neck. I moaned and bent my head forward. Closing my eyes, I rested my forehead on the tray table. Beau’s warm hands ran down my neck and across my shoulders. I moaned again and relaxed into it. I may be the professional, but I loved Beau’s hands on me. By the time he worked the kinks out of my neck and shoulders, I felt like that chocolate bar in the bottom of my backpack. All melted and gooey.

  The flight attendant gave us a look when she came by offering hot towels, but Beau gave her that smile and Southern charm, and she was smiling back when she left. I looked around, and most of other passengers avoided my gaze, but a couple smiled back. I leaned back and covered my face with the towel and breathed in the faint eucalyptus scent.

  “You worry too much,” Beau said, patting my leg.

  “I know,” I sighed. I put my hand over his and squeezed. He turned his over to lace our fingers together.

  Beau lifted my hand to brush a kiss on the back of it. I tensed up and started to pull away, but he held fast. “You don’t have to worry anymore. No one is watching, and fuck them if they are.”

  “Easy for you to say.” I looked into his handsome face, his dark eyes shining. Everybody loved him. He radiated confidence and charisma. Smiling like he knew what I was thinking, he leaned over to kiss me.

  “I love you Abram McGregor, and I can’t wait for the next step in our lives to begin.” He looked around, meeting the looks from the other passengers. “I don’t care who knows it, because you make it all worthwhile.”

  I was blushing, but I pulled him in for another kiss. “I love you, too.”

  I looked up to see a couple of businessmen turn away, but one woman looked at me and nodded in their direction. “Fuck them,” she said before smiling and returning to her Kindle.

  Beau laughed and draped his arm around my shoulders. I couldn’t help but chuckle with him. The pilot turned on the fasten seat belts sign and began our descent. Beau leaned over to stare at the city.

  “We’re going to have to come back here sometime. We’ll get Medina to give us a few days.”

  “That sounds great.” And it did, although I couldn’t imagine how visiting any city could top the idea of living in paradise with Beau.

  After we landed, Beau stood up and got his bag down, but he didn’t back off to let me out. Instead, he crowded in, putting one palm on my hip. He pulled me close and ground his groin against my ass. I could feel his erection through his board shorts.

  “I can’t wait to get you alone,” he whispered against my temple.

  “We should have flown in yesterday. Gotten a room here in Sydney for the night.” His response was a slow grind against me. I closed my eyes and leaned into it. “Beau…”

  He pulled back and pushed me forward. “Come on. You only have to deal with it for five more hours.”

  “Five hours!” I knew I was whining, but the travel was already getting to me, and five more hours before I could be alone with him seemed daunting.

  “Yep. We have a couple of hours to kill here, then a three-hour flight to Cairns before we get to the boat. Then a relaxing overnight cruise to paradise for the rest of our lives.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “Now, get moving. You’re holding up the line.”

  “Fine,” I said, pretending I wasn’t getting excited about the idea.

  ####

  Getting through Customs was a lot easier than I expected, and we made it to the domestic gates with plenty of time to grab some lunch. My stomach was rumbling, and I realized I’d been too upset to eat last night while Beau slept. His little joke about options, and about Medina, had taken away my appetite.

  My stomach let out a monstrous growl, and Beau laughed. “I guess we’re feeding you now.”

  “Sorry,” I said, feeling like an idiot and cursing my noisy stomach.

  “I’m starved too. We’ve got time. There’s got to be a decent restaurant here.” He led us through the maze of terminals until we broke into the main retail area of the airport. There were a half dozen restaurants. Beau stopped to read the menu posted outside one before moving on to the next. I didn’t care where we ate, as long as I had something soon. Finally he stopped at a place with a wide-open terrace area for seating. It overlooked the inside of the terminal, but had a soft romantic feel with dark tablecloths and lit candles. “This will work.”

  I followed him inside.

  A bouncy young waiter showed us to a table at the edge of the terrace. “G’Day. I’m Midnight. I’ll be your waiter today. Let me grab you some water while you look over the menu.” The kid was cute with shaggy dark hair, a pierced nose and brow and big smile. His Aussie accent was light and sweet. But just like everyone else, his eyes were all over Beau.

  “Water would be great,” Beau told him dismissively. The kid stood there a minute longer before disappearing.

  I sucked in a deep breath and opened my menu. When had I gotten so jealous that I couldn’t even tolerate a waiter flirting? I knew Beau wanted me. He’d already kicked off a shoe and was rubbing my bare lower leg with his toes. Maybe I could convince him to find a dark corner somewhere so I could blow him properly and relieve the hard-on he’d been pressing against me all day.

  “I think I’m just going to have the fish and chips. What about you?” Beau brought my mind back to the menu. I finally looked through it and realized it was all either seafood or vegetarian fair. Once again he’d thought of me first, finding a place that catered to my avoidance of red meat.

  “The avocado shrimp salad looks great.”

  Beau flagged the water down and ordered. I added a glass of white wine to mine hoping it would ease my nerves. The waiter stood really close to Beau, his body language solidly screaming ‘fuck me!’

  Glaring into my glass of water didn’t help. And I didn’t realize a growl had escaped my throat until Beau’s caressing foot stopped. “What’s wrong, baby?”

  “Nothing,” I told him.

  “Do I have to take you to the bathroom again?”

  Heat burned up into my face, and my cock got hard so fast the tingling nearly hurt. “I just think that since we’re doing this whole move thing, maybe we should make it official. You know, like make it forever. Get married or something.” The words spilled from my mouth before I even knew what I was saying.

  Beau’s smile widened. “Why Abram, did you just propose to me?”

  “I meant–ah–you know-”

  He leaned over and kissed me soundly before drop
ping to his knees at my feet. My heart pounded like a conga drum on steroids. This couldn’t be happening could it? Did he really want to marry me? Forever bound with laws and papers and vows?

  His hands wrapped around mine. The look in his eyes made me want to throw myself at him and make love to him until the world stopped. Everyone watched us. The terrace only had a handful of patrons, but even from the open area below people stared. “Yes, I will marry you, Abram McGregor.”

  There was a scattered applause. Beau sat back down, the angel grin on his face. My heart was in my throat. The whole room seemed to spin a little. I glanced around until I found the bathroom. “I’ll be right back.” I got up and glanced at him again, the glint in his eye meant he was planning something. I held up a finger to stop him from getting up. “I just need a minute.”

  “Anything you want, babe.”

  In the bathroom, I did my business and spent a few extra minutes washing my face. Beau wanted to marry me. Sure I loved him more than life, but was he really willing to give up everyone else for me? But what had I expected? I just threw it out there at him. We were traveling across the world to live in a new place where neither of us knew anyone but each other. Was he saying yes just because he knew my heart would have broken if he said no? Or even ‘yes, but not now?’

  This whole trip made me feel so horribly insecure. What was paradise really? A place? A state of mind? I thought about that for a minute. For me it was Beau. I didn’t need some stupid island or piece of paper. I just needed him. And if he wanted us to just say the vows to each other, I would tell him just that.

  Finally I pulled myself together and left the bathroom. As I got to the table Beau was hanging up his cell phone. He gave me that beautiful smile again and motioned to our food, which had arrived. “Come eat, baby.”

  And I did, watching him watch me the whole time. Midnight came to our table a lot. Even offered us a bottle of free champagne to congratulate us on our engagement, but Beau turned it down.

  “You guys going to Isla Enamorada? It’s a place for people just like us,” he said it quietly and the hushed tones of his voice spoke of excitement. “I hope to get a job there. I’ve heard there are going to be a few restaurants opening.”

  “It would be a long commute for you,” Beau pointed out. The kid couldn’t have been older than eighteen.

  Midnight smiled showing dimples that made me smile. He was infectious. “Not as far as you, Yanks. Maybe I’ll find my own-” he thumped his fists over his heart, “will you marry me?”

  “You’d be surprised when something like that hits you. Sometimes it’s like a surfboard to the back of the skull.” Beau pulled out a stack of Australian bills and left a large wad of cash on the table. “Thanks for the great service.” He got up and held out his hand to me. I let myself be pulled into his embrace again, and his lips skimmed by my ear where I still had a scar from the surfboard incident.

  “Look us up if you ever get there,” I told the kid, feeling generous with Beau so close to me, his erection burning into my thigh. “We’re going to be staying.”

  Midnight grinned and nodded gratefully to us. We waved him off and made our way to the next flight. As long as Beau was next to me I could travel for days, weeks even. I wondered then about the phone.

  “Did someone call while I was in the bathroom?” I asked.

  “Nope. I just called and checked in with Medina about our travel plans. Want to make sure we’re on time for the boat.” Beau’s palm rubbed a warm circle around my back. “Let’s get this short flight over so we can get to the good part.”

  ####

  The three hours in the air passed quickly, and we even landed ten minutes early. We made our way to the baggage claim area, and we were met by a very handsome older gentleman. His white suit offset his deep tan, and his white hair and beard gave him an air of sophistication. A bright blue shirt brought out his eyes. He looked us both over and smiled.

  Beau walked up to him and pulled him into one of his bear hugs. “Thanks for the tickets, Mr. Medina. Don’t know how we’re going to pay you back for them.”

  “Call me Havi,” Mr. Medina said when he pulled back from Beau’s hug. His eyes flicked over me, and he smiled. He looked more rugged, lived, than he had in my imagination. “Do not worry about that. We will think of something, I am sure.”

  I broke out in goose bumps. Maybe he did expect me to put out. His rich Spanish accent made his words soothing, even as they terrified me. He offered his hand, and I took it, not knowing what else to do. His fingers were rough and not at all what I expected from a billionaire businessman. I thought about Beau’s, rough from all the work he did outside, and how they felt on my skin. I imagined Mr. Medina’s would feel the same. I’m sure I blushed, but luckily, Beau stepped in to rescue me again.

  “Havi, I’d like you to meet my fiancé Abram. Abe, this is Havi.”

  “Hello, sir,” I managed to croak out. My cheeks burned again, and I cleared my throat and tried to speak again. “We spoke on the phone. Thank you for this opportunity.”

  “Well, I know about Beau’s work from a trip I took to California, and he could not recommend you highly enough.” I looked at Beau, who was practically beaming. Mr. Medina still held my hand, and he covered our hands with the other one. “I cannot wait to have your hands on me, Abram. I believe our guests will love your touch as well.”

  My hands on him? I pulled back and moved my backpack in front of my crotch, holding it protectively with both fists. His eyes followed the movement, and I shifted my weight nervously between my feet.

  “Come, boys.” He turned to lead the way out. I grabbed Beau’s arm to pull him back.

  “Beau, I don’t know if I can….”

  “Can what, babe?”

  I glanced at Medina as he walked ahead of me. “You know. Pay for the flight.”

  Beau laughed and pulled me close. “Don’t worry. I’ll talk to him, all right?”

  I was dubious, but I let it drop. Medina led us out to what looked like an old VW convertible. It had six doors, a bikini-style top, and was painted bright blue. The vinyl seats were blue and white. The Summer’s Pointe logo was painted on the front hood, and the driver wore a bright blue polo shirt with white shorts. I guessed blue was the resort’s signature color.

  “Cool!” Beau said as he plopped down in the back row. He patted the seat next to him, and I sat like a good boy.

  “We like our guests to feel like they are already starting their vacation. We have a van that takes the luggage to a plane, so they don’t have to worry about anything but immersing themselves in the experience,” Mr. Medina said, getting into the car.

  He pointed out sights along the drive and gave a brief history on the way, but I couldn’t keep track of what he was saying. His words from the airport kept replaying in my mind. Do not worry. We will think of something. Get your hands on me. A hand on my knee made me jump.

  “Relax, babe. We’re here.”

  I looked up to see a huge yacht docked at the pier. There were a few crew members moving around on the deck, all dressed in the same blue and white that I assumed would be our uniforms. “On A Lark” was painted in blue along the bow.

  “Wow, Havi,” Beau said next to me.

  “We’re going on that?” I was nervous. Since the accident when Beau and I met, I’d had a healthy respect of the water. I didn’t go too far into it, and it didn’t try to kill me again. Going out on a boat gave me the chills. Add being trapped on it with a man who may be expecting sexual favors from me, and I was feeling lightheaded. Beau held me steady when I tripped on a crack in the asphalt.

  “We have room for ten couples at a time. We use the Lark for ferrying guests to the island, and we hope to charter it out for some overnight dive trips, with our new dive master.” He smiled at Beau. “We can also use the plane for guests who want to arrive quicker, or who get seasick. The view of the island from the air is spectacular.”