Island Nights

by P. J. Mellor

Her tongue darted out to lick a trickle of sweat from Rick’s cheek.

  He groaned. Gripping her hip bones, he ground into her, causing an ache to swell deep within her.

  He drew a shuddering breath. “Damn, I love to fuck you on the porch.” He bent to bite her nipple through the knit of her shirt.” ‘Course, I love to fuck you anywhere.” Thrust. “Anytime.

  “Yes-s-s.” She arched her back, taking him deeper. “I just wish we didn’t have guests. Then we could be naked out here.”

  She gasped at the fierceness of his thrust. “Easy. We don’t want anyone to know what we’re doing.”

  “I want you naked,” he said with a growl. “Like we were during Hurricane Ike.”

  Just the thought of their sexual marathon during the last big hurricane had her slipping and sliding on his lap.

  “I want that too,” she finally managed to say, “but we can’t right now.”

  “Then at least show me some pussy.” Rick shoved at her skirt.

  After a quick glance around, she pulled the edge of her skirt up around her abdomen.

  He groaned and stroked the smoothness of her recently waxed skin, then stretched her labia open to get a better view of his penis plunging in and out.

  “Lord, I’m going to come all over you! Look at what we’re doing.” His thumbs massaged her swollen clitoris, spreading her juices around.

  It was more than she could bear. Spreading her legs a little wider, she plunged down on him, raised a few centimeters and came down forcefully again.

  The wind and rain picked up, slamming across the plank flooring to douse them.

  The storm had nothing on the force of their passion.

  Bucking up into his wife, faster and faster, as he felt her orgasm begin to crest, Rick tore her shirt from her and bit down on one erect nipple as his climax roared through him.

  The force of the storm’s resurgence drowned out the scream of Rita’s pleasure.

  Thunder shook the floor of the porch, a fitting ending to their stormy interlude.

  Gasping, she clung to him while he petted her back and continued to suck and lick her nipples.

  When she could bear to speak again, she held his head tight to her chest, willing her words to be heard through her body. “I’m beginning to worry about Ben and his lady friend. They should have been back by now.”

  “The Mills fishing group isn’t back either,” Rick said against her breast.

  “Do you think they’re all safe and together?” She idly plumped her breast with one hand and traced her husband’s mouth with the tip of her nipple.

  “Hope not.” He licked the tip and blew on it. “I know Ben. And I saw the way he looked at Reese Parker.” He sucked her breast deep into his mouth, silent for a few seconds.

  “W-what do you mean?” she asked as her heartbeat accelerated again.

  “I mean Ben wouldn’t welcome company. About now, I think he’s probably doing the same thing we’re doing.” To demonstrate, he ground his hips into hers.

  “Really?” She did some grinding of her own.

  Rick nodded and stood, gently lowering her to stand on the plank floor and then finally severing their intimate contact.

  “Stormy weather makes stormy passion, sweetheart,” he said, leading her to the porch railing, then gently pushing until her upper torso was wet with rain. He sluiced the drops from her breasts, holding her ponytail aside to lick and kiss the back of her neck until she was writhing against the rail.

  The wind caressed her buttocks when he pulled her skirt up around her waist and she widened her stance.

  “If they’re not back by tomorrow morning or we haven’t heard from them, I’ll see what I can do about a search party,” he said over the roar of the storm.

  Rain stung as it pelted her face and bare breasts. Behind her, Rick stroked the fires of her passion higher with his fingers. He played with her slick folds, then plunged his finger in and out in a rapid succession that had her gasping. Her heart slammed against her ribs, making breathing difficult.

  “But first,” Rick’s voice rose above the storm as he gripped her hips, “I need to do this.”

  He impaled her, banging her hips against the porch rail. She’d never felt so alive. Exhilarated.

  Before bliss claimed her again, Ben flashed through her mind.

  Wherever he and Reese were, Rita hoped they were having as passionate an experience.

  “Oh-oh-oh!” Hands gripping the brass headboard, Reese reveled in the sound of the old bed bumping the wall with each of Ben’s powerful thrusts. Who could have known she’d experience wall-banging sex? Even better, it was on a business trip. The thought made her smile.

  If she could draw a deep breath, she’d marvel at her sexual activity. She’d had more varied and orgasmic sex since she’d met Ben than she’d had in her entire life.

  “I don’t know where you’re at, but come back to me, darlin’,” Ben said, gripping her ankles and placing them on his shoulders.

  The slap of skin against skin played a duet with the banging of the headboard.

  The new angle of penetration caused a twinge deep within her abdomen that caught her breath and ratcheted up her passion.

  All thoughts except ones of immediate sexual gratification left her mind.

  Her fourth orgasm slammed into her, drowning her in decadent pleasure.

  Ben gave a roar of completion, his spine stiffening into an arch as he plunged into her one more time, then collapsed, his breathing harsh in her ear.

  “Kiss me,” he finally managed to gasp. “The way I feel right now, I may just die of pleasure. I need one more kiss.”

  Laughing, she planted a smacking kiss on his puckered lips. “You’re such a drama queen.”

  Ben went limp, his weight pressing her into the mattress.

  “Ben? Ben, are you okay? If this is a joke, it’s not funny!” Just as she began to really worry, he growled and rolled with her until she lay stretched along his body.

  She screamed, then punched his shoulder. “That was so not funny! You shouldn’t fake stuff like that.”

  In response, he rubbed noses with her. “Who said I was faking? You’re wearing this old boy plumb out, having your way with me.”

  “Right.” She rolled to his side and snuggled close. The feeling of utter contentment was just from having another world-class orgasm, wasn’t it? Of course. It was just a manifestation of having been sexually satisfied. Four times.

  She couldn’t keep the smile from her face at the thought of how many times she’d come in one afternoon.

  “Are you ever going to tell me why you followed me clear to the other side of the island today?”

  She pinched his nipple.

  “Ow! Cut it out. Since you’re not saying, I have to assume it’s because you missed me so much you had to find me.” He leaned closer and whispered, “And have your way with me.”

  “Yeah, right. I was so horny, I braved the elements to hunt you down.”

  “That sounds about right.”

  “Don’t be smug. It’s unattractive. Actually,” she said, snuggling closer and yawning, “I couldn’t wait to tell you what I saw.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “Remember that hole I fell into? The one with the orange plastic? Well, when I was up here, making the bed—”

  “Ah-hah! I knew it! You had sexual designs on me.”

  “Will you shut up and listen! I looked out the window when

  I was making the bed, and, okay, maybe I did think about us using it later. Maybe. Anyway, I noticed the orange again. Then I saw more. So I went into the bathroom and climbed up to look out that window, and that’s when it hit me. Ben, it’s some kind of grid! If you look at it from up here, it’s plainly not a random pattern.”

  “What kind of grid?”

  She sighed. “That’s the problem. I have no idea. I thought maybe if the rain lets up, we could go see if we can figure it out.”

  “We can do that,” he said, snugglin
g her closer. “Let’s rest a spell and see how the rain is doing after we take a little nap.”

  Ben awoke to the rain continuing to pound on the roof. Beside him, Reese slept.

  He eased away from her, relieved when she accommodated him by rolling over, her back to him.

  With slow, deliberate movements, he got out of bed. Reese didn’t move.

  Guilt ate at him. Reese had told him why she was here. It had been the perfect opportunity to clear the air and tell her who he was and why he didn’t want her to bid on his island.

  Yet, for some reason, he’d remained stubbornly silent.

  But what if Reese Parker wasn’t even her real name? What if she had other reasons for buying his island? Had the soil sample guys taken samples of more than soil? Maybe that was the real reason Reese had come running after him. Maybe she and the sample guys were working together. Or maybe they worked for her and were doing some sort of soil analysis for her so she could decide if she wanted the island.

  He had to find out.

  Another glance told him she was still asleep.

  Inching his way around the bed, he kept glancing at the naked woman, wishing he could just crawl back into bed with her and make love until he couldn’t think of anything but her and the way they felt together.

  But he had to know.

  Bending, he picked up her mammoth bag, praying it wouldn’t rattle and alert her.

  It only took a second to locate her wallet. It weighed a ton. What did the woman carry in her wallet, gold?

  A quick look confirmed she was exactly who she said she was and her corporate ID badge backed it up.

  Curiosity kept him rummaging. How many lip glosses did one person need? Maybe she had chronic chapped lips or something.

  Antinausea medication. He gave a silent snort. Yeah, like that worked. Antidiarrheal medication. Laxatives. Sinus medication. VapoRub. Antibiotic ointment. Several kinds of bandages. The woman was nothing if not prepared.

  He paused, her cell phone in his hand. If she didn’t have it locked, he might be able to scroll through her phone and find out if she’d been talking to anyone he knew.

  “Ben? What are you doing? Are you going through my bag?” With each word, Reese’s sleepy voice grew more awake and louder.

  Oh, shit.

  33

  “Huh?” Think, Adams, think. “Ah, no! I mean, of course not!” Dropping the bag, he held up her phone. “I woke up. I thought I heard something. I thought maybe it was your phone, so I came over to check.”

  Her smile was breathtaking and made him feel lower than a snake’s armpits.

  Unmindful of her nudity, she ran to him and grabbed the phone. Her smile fell when she saw she still had no service.

  “I don’t know what you thought you heard, but it wasn’t my phone.” To be sure, she walked to the window and held it up. Nothing.

  “Um, maybe it’s running out of its charge and beeped?”

  “Nope. The battery still has almost a full charge. Without use, it should last for at least a week.”

  Back in bed, he held up the edge of the sheet. “Well, I must have heard something else. Why don’t you come back to bed? It’s still raining. There’s nothing else to do, so we may as well—”

  “Make whoopee?”

  “Well, I was going to suggest another nap, but I’m willing if you are.”

  “Sorry.” She climbed in beside him and snuggled up. “I didn’t mean to accuse you of anything. Either time.”

  “No problem.”

  “Ben?” Her voice pulled him back from the edge of sleep a few minutes later. “Are you awake?”

  “I am now.”

  “I was just thinking. I mean, well, we’ve been pretty hot and heavy. Intimate, even …”

  “Spit it out, Blondie. What do you want to know?”

  “You’re not married, are you? I mean, obviously, if you are, you’re not happily married. But I just, I mean, I need to know—”

  His hand covered her mouth. “Hush. No. Not only no, but hell no! I’m not married. Shit, woman, do you really have such a low opinion of me that you think I’d do the things we’d done if I had a wife?”

  “Sorry.” She snuggled back down, only to break her silence in less than a minute. “Ben?”

  “What?”

  “Have you ever been married?”

  “Have you?” he countered.

  “No. Have you?” Silence. “Ben?”

  “Yeah, I was married. Once. A long time ago.” He wished she’d forget it, change the subject, go to sleep. Anything but continue along her current conversational path.

  “What happened?”

  “We made a mistake and corrected it.”

  “Was she from around here?” she persisted.

  “Yep.”

  “Has she remarried?” For some reason, she needed to know. Ben’s clipped answers weren’t helping.

  “Yep.”

  “Does she still live in Sand Dollar?”

  He took a deep breath. Just as she thought he wasn’t going to answer, he said in a low voice, “You could say that.”

  “Do you ever run into her?” Why did she keep probing? Maybe she was looking for a reason to back off.

  “Just about every day.” Crap. She didn’t need to hear that. But, then again, she had asked.

  Swallowing her reluctance and what felt suspiciously like jealousy, she forced the next words from her mouth.

  “Really? Maybe I’ve met her—”

  “Oh, yeah, you’ve met her, all right.” He looked her in the eye. “It’s Rita.”

  Her heart seized along with her breath. To say she was shocked was an understatement. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but it sure as heck hadn’t been that.

  On second thought, maybe she shouldn’t have been too surprised. After all, Sand Dollar wasn’t a big town. The dating pool was probably limited. But still, Rita and Ben?

  Ben arched one eyebrow and said, “Surprise.”

  “I—I don’t understand.” His eyes widened and she hurried on. “I mean, obviously, I understood what you said. I just don’t understand how someone who had been married could continue to be such good friends. You are friends with her, right?”

  He nodded. “Rita and Rick are my two best friends. Always have been.”

  “But how … ?”

  “The usual way.” He grinned. “I’d be happy to give you a demonstration,” he said, and bumped against her with his semierect penis.

  “Stop joking around.” Tucking the sheet around her, Reese scooted toward the other side of the bed. “I’m serious. I really want to know why you married and divorced Rita.”

  He scrubbed his face with his hands and heaved a sigh. “Of course, you do.” Propping his head up on one fist, he turned to look at her. “I don’t suppose you’d be satisfied with the condensed version that we made a mistake and corrected it?”

  She shook her head, wondering if she should accept the short explanation and try to get past the fact she may very well be falling in love with someone who was best friends with his ex-wife. Did she really want to be involved in something that had potential for heartbreak written all over it?

  “We were young and stupid?”

  She bit back a smile at the hopeful look on his face and shook her head again.

  “Okay. Rick and Rita were hot and heavy all through high school and college. We all went to UT,” he said as an aside. “Toward the end of our junior year, they broke up. Rick dropped out the next week. I—”

  “Started dating Rita?”

  He gave her a hard look. “Will you let me tell it?”

  “Sorry. Go on.”

  “Come on back over here and let me hold you while I tell you. It would be easier without you looking at me.”

  He had a point. A bonus would be she also wouldn’t have to look at his face while he told her the details about marrying another woman. A woman he still obviously had feelings for and had no plans to stop seeing socially. She scooted b
ack across the mattress, stifling a sigh when he tucked her close to his side.

  “That’s better,” he said, his voice rumbling through his chest against her ear. After taking a deep breath, he began talking. “Since we’d all been friends, Rita naturally began spending a lot of time with me, with Rick gone and all.”

  “Naturally.” It was very hard to keep her body in a relaxed pose. Especially when she had to fight the urge to pinch him. Hard.

  Oblivious to her misery, he continued.

  “One night, we’d been to a party. Rita had a lot to drink. We both did. My apartment was closer than hers, so I told her she could stay there. I didn’t want her driving in that condition.”

  “Of course, you didn’t.” Despite his surly attitude when they’d first met, she’d always known, or at least suspected, that deep down he was a good guy. Darn it.

  “Are you sure you want to hear this?”

  “I’m sure,” she lied. “Go on.”

  “Rick picked that night to beg her to take him back. When she didn’t answer her phone, he drove in to see her in person.”

  “And she wasn’t home,” she guessed, hoping she wasn’t correctly guessing what happened next.

  “That’s right.” She felt him nod against the top of her head. “So, naturally, he came to my place to see if I knew where she was—”

  “Naturally.”

  “Hey, are you going to let me tell this?”

  “Sorry.” She traced the edge of his nipple with her fingertip. Maybe if she distracted him, he’d shut up.

  No such luck.

  Ben took a deep breath and exhaled. “I mentioned I’d had a lot to drink too, didn’t I?” She nodded. “Well, I didn’t hear the phone. He figured I was out too. Since he knew where the spare key was, he let himself in. He found us …”

  “Found you? Were you lost? Oh, no, tell me he didn’t …”

  He nodded. “Oh, yeah, he did. We were together. Naked. In my bed.”

  Reese truly thought she may lose her lunch. At their age, it wasn’t like either of them would be inexperienced. It was just that she preferred not knowing exactly who and what that experience was, or when it had happened.

  “That’s okay. You don’t have to tell me any more. I get the idea.” Not to mention a disturbing mental picture.