“You plan on publishing those?”
“Thought about putting them on Facebook.” She looked only half serious, but he could tell she was giving them a try. Honestly, he liked this side of her as much as he liked the take-no-prisoners attitude she had back home. “Unless you object.”
“Nope.” He put his wallet in his pocket. “It’s settled. We’re going snorkeling.”
She kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet.” He glanced at his watch. “We have just enough time to grab our things and run to the pier.”
“I’m ready if you are.” After letting go of his hand, she took off. Her ran after her. Her laughter trailed behind her, warming his heart. They’d only been here together for one full day and she was already relaxed.
She flung open their door. “I’ll pack up our things while you grab the towels. We’ll meet back here in less than a minute.”
He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her to him, kissing her. “Don’t worry, we’ll get there on time.”
“Only if I make you stick to the deadline.” But he noticed she didn’t pull away. “I’m really, really good at doing that.”
“I find women who are on time to be very sexy.”
“Then I’m the sexiest woman in the universe.”
“No argument from me.” He lowered his head to kiss her again, but she wriggled out of his embrace.
“No time for kissing. We have fish fears to conquer.” She ran around the room like a mini-tornado, collecting everything they needed and shoving it all into a bag. “Towels, please.”
“Right.” He dashed to the closet and grabbed two of the beach towels on the shelf. “Here you go.”
With another one of her gorgeous smiles, she took them from him and stuffed them inside her bag. They left the room and ran the rest of the way to pier four, arriving just as everyone was starting to board the small yacht.
After thirty minutes of drinking and eating fruit while listening to reggae, everyone finished putting on their gear while the boat dropped anchor and the tour guides gave final instructions.
“I’ll go in first and wait for you,” Preston said.
Apple took a deep breath. “Promise you won’t leave me?”
“Swear it.” He checked the straps on her life vest and adjusted her mask. “Follow my lead and when you’re ready, jump in.”
He dove off the side of the boat, plunging down into the cool water and popping back up rather quickly. As soon as he locked eyes with Apple, she gave him a tremulous smile and began to descend the ladder on the side of the boat instead of jumping in.
“I’m right here, sweetheart. The water feels great,” he called out to her. “Not a fish in sight.”
The tour guide pulled out a bag of bread. “Don’t worry, there will be soon.”
Oh shit. “C’mon, baby. I’m waiting,” he called out in an encouraging voice.
Apple finally stepped into the water and swam to him, her snorkel gear bobbing above the waves. As she fully surfaced, she spit out the air tube. “It’s so pretty down there.”
“Glad you think so. Listen, our guide is putting bread in the water to attract fish.”
Her eyes grew huge behind her mask. “Right now?”
He nodded and grabbed hold of her straps, pulling her close to him. “See him bobbing over there?”
“Yes.”
Their guide emptied the entire bag of bread into the ocean and shoved it into a waterproof bag with a zipper. “Get ready. They’re on their way.”
While everyone else swam to get closer, Apple all but climbed on top of him, managing to push his head under. “I can’t do this.
He coughed up a lung full of water. “Yes, you can.”
She shook her head so hard that her breathing tube almost fell in the water. “I can’t. I want to go back to the boat.”
“I’m scared of heights,” he blurted. “That’s the real reason I didn’t chose to do something more adventurous.”
“You’re scared of heights?”
He gave her a lopsided grin. “Put a dent in my dream of one day being a superhero. Also, capes get caught on everything.”
She bit the side of her lip, not even noticing as a school of fish swam closer. “You wanted to be a superhero?”
“My mom couldn’t get me out of my costume. Slept in it, even tried to take a shower in it. Heck, I would have worn it to school if she hadn’t pointed out that superheroes obey the rules and the rules at school said I couldn’t wear a costume. Plus, then everyone would have known my secret identity.” He smiled at the memory. “But as soon as the bus dropped me off, I was in that costume faster than you could say there’s a school of fish swimming around me.”
“Oh, that’s so—there are?” She glanced around her, squeaking as the fish gave them a wide berth. “Do you think a bigger fish will follow?”
“Nope. Coral reef protects us from that.” A white lie, but he was okay with it. God only knew what her opinions on sharks were.
“I think I’m going to take a look at them underwater.” She put the breathing tube back in her mouth and let go of him.
He made sure she was okay before he put his gear back on and did the same. When he swam up beside her, she gave him a thumbs-up, even as the fish grew closer. She cringed a few times, but only once did she try to crawl on his shoulders. That was when one of the couples in their group attempted to chase a school of slender fish with tube-like noses their way.
After that, she seemed to get the hang of things, swimming around like a mermaid while she pointed at everything she saw and he gave her so many thumbs-up that his fingers were sore.
By the time they made it back to the boat, Apple’s shoulders were pink and there were marks on her face from wearing the mask for so long. But her smile was big and her eyes sparkled with pride.
“You did it.” He kissed her salty lips.
She searched his face. “Only because you were there to help me.”
“Can I take your picture?” one of their guides asked.
“Oh my gosh. I know I have to look a mess,” she said, pushing her wet hair back from her forehead.
“We can wait until dinner.”
“No, I want one right now, no matter how bad I look. I want to remember this moment forever.” She scooted to him, throwing her arm over his shoulders and grinning widely. “Smile, Preston, because tomorrow is your turn.”
And damn if he didn’t do exactly as she said.
Chapter Ten
Preston didn’t get to conquer his fear due to a storm that rolled in and decided to park itself right over the island for the remainder of their vacation.
So they spent the week in their room, playing card games with a deck Preston had purchased from the gift shop, ordering room service, watching movies while lying in bed... and making love.
They’d had sex all over her hotel room and his too, until he’d had to move into hers. They decided to see if the hammock on her private balcony would hold their combined weight... it had. Then he wanted to see if they could have sex standing up, without him having to lift her... and, so far...
“I love how tall you are,” he said as he thrust into her. Her back slammed into the cold wall, but she didn’t care one bit. “I can drive my cock right into you, over and over.”
She moaned, grabbing his shoulders and lifting her leg to wrap it around one of his hips. “That’s... even better,” she said.
“Hell yes it is.” He grabbed a butt cheek and pounded into her, and she loved every second of it. Loved how hot and sweaty they got. Loved how he made her lose her mind and scream his name.
His forehead fell to hers as his hand slipped between them, working her clit. “Come for me, sweetheart.”
A couple of minutes later, she did, squeezing him tight, moaning his name, and making him punch his hand into the wall while he thrust deeply into her, his breath heavy. He moved his head, kissing her jaw and then licking a path down her neck.
He whispered something against her skin that she couldn’t hear, then picked up his head. “You are so damn beautiful.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.”
“I’m serious. I know you’ve heard it your entire life, but when we’re like this and your hair is messy and you don’t have on any makeup or a designer dress... you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”
She turned shy, unsure of what to say, except... “This is how I like you best. Sweaty and manly and naked. Inside of me.”
“Keep talking like that and I’ll be forced to get another condom.” His eyes had a teasing light in them.
“Promises, promises.” In Apple’s opinion, this had turned out to be the best vacation she’d ever had.
Lifting her easily, he carried her to bed, then dashed to the bathroom to clean up. In no time at all, he was at her side again.
“We are going to be so worthless when we get back to Jessamine,” she said, then groaned. “I’m going to have to sit through another ridiculous McCoy luncheon when we get back.”
“What’s so special about it?” He positioned her to sit between his legs and began to knead her shoulders.
“You have magic hands.”
“You are avoiding the question.”
She sighed. “It’s where we eat and gossip... and decide who we’re going to help match up in town.”
“Match up?”
“McCoy women are exceptionally good at matchmaking. Although you’ve accused me of having a bias against your cousin, Lucas... I was actually responsible for him and Bailey getting together.”
“You were?” He pulled her back to look at her face. “You couldn’t even get Bailey’s son’s name right.
She’d driven Bailey crazy by channeling her inner Dory and coming up with all sorts of names that rhymed with Leo. “Have you ever known me to forget a name?”
“Can’t say I have.” He gave her a lopsided grin. “But weren’t you also the one to attempt to set her up with some doctor another town over?”
“Smoke and mirrors, sugar. Smoke and mirrors. I inserted myself into Bailey’s life, worked my contrary magic, and voilà, I sat on the front row at the wedding. I believe you were the one to seat me there.”
“I believe I would have seated you anywhere you wanted.” He kissed her neck, making her shiver. “Too bad it wasn’t in my lap.”
“I’m in your lap now.” And it was such an amazing feeling.
“Yes, you are.” He nuzzled the back of her neck, his lips tickling her skin. “Right where you belong.”
She closed her eyes, allowing herself to simply enjoy the moment... their fleeting time together. They only had one day left. A boulder formed in her throat and her stomach twisted.
“Anyway, the bride wore the most beautiful diamond-and-sapphire earrings.”
“Those were from you?” he asked, kissing his way across her back.
“Every bride should have something blue to wear at her wedding.”
He let out a low whistle. “My momma talked about them for weeks. Sam bought her a similar pair for her birthday and put my name on the card, too. I felt a bit guilty about it, since I didn’t contribute to her gift, but Sam wouldn’t take my name off because he said he’d been doing it that way since I was a kid and there was no reason for him stop the tradition now. That’s the only reason I remember the earrings.”
“What a lovely tradition.”
“I had no idea he still did it, though.” He leaned back again, taking her with him so she could lean against his hard chest. “When I was a kid, sure, I can see including me, but I’m an adult now and I have money, so it’s not as if I couldn’t have helped out with the cost.”
“I can’t tell if you’re upset or not,” she said, turning a little to look at him.
“It’s slightly annoying more than anything else, but if that’s the only thing I can complain about when it comes to my stepdad, I’ll take it.”
“That’s a good outlook.” She drew her legs up to her chest and put her chin on her knees. “It’s McCoy tradition to go to the McCoy luncheon until you marry, then you go again when your daughter graduates from high school. Like a rite of passage. On one hand, I like helping couples, but on the other, I feel like we’re meddling.”
“You can’t force people to fall in love, Apple. They do that all on their own, naturally.”
“But we’re the ones who nudge them in the right direction. If we didn’t, who knows what would have happened...” She frowned. “Not that it matters because tradition is tradition.”
“Does that mean we’re supposed to fall in love?”
“What?”
“Your sisters were the ones to nudge you to make your move. Stands to reason then that we’re supposed to be together.”
He was serious, she realized. Completely serious. There was no laughter in his eyes, and his lips, usually perpetually smiling, weren’t even remotely curved at the corners.
“That’s not the same thing. My sisters and I... we’ve been on the outs. I think that was their way of mending fences.”
“I’m not following.”
“My sisters didn’t tell me to make my move so we’d fall in love. They told me to make my move because they think it’s ridiculous to worry about what anyone else thinks about my dating life.”
His mouth twisted. “That’s bullshit.”
“You agree with them. You told me I should do what I want, too.”
“You are conveniently leaving out the part where I said I wanted more than a fling. Who the hell flies to a foreign country for a one-night stand, Apple? Women aren’t a problem for me. I don’t need your family’s matchmaking skills to find the right one. I’ve found the one, remember?”
Yes, she remembered... and she was equal parts terrified and joyous.
“You’re my one, in case I wasn’t clear,” he added a beat later. “Stop thinking about what’s going to happen when we get home. Concentrate on right here, right now, sweetheart. Let yourself fall for me.”
She closed her eyes. “You make it sound so easy, but I’m not the girl who falls.”
“Then be the woman who does.” He scooped her into his arms and turned her so that she sat across his lap. “Promise I’ll be there to catch you.”
“Easy to say when we’re thousands of miles away from home.”
“Stop being pessimistic, sweetheart.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Have I told you how much I like this side of you? The take-charge, going-to-solve-every-problem side of you is hot, but this... you lying in my arms, looking up at me with those big blue eyes... it’s amazing. This week has been incredible. I haven’t had this much fun in a long time.”
“We’re both workaholics,” she agreed.
“Which is why we should go on another vacation in a couple of months.”
Anxiety streaked through her, making her stiff. “I don’t know. I have to close on the sale of the paper, make an offer on Evergreen, and Lord knows what else.”
“You know what you need?” Preston leaned over, grabbing her phone. “A reminder.”
“Of what?”
He held out the camera, pressed his lips to her temple, and took a picture. “Of us.”
She looked up at him, staring right into his sexy eyes. “Why?” She knew he was still taking pictures and she mostly knew what he would say next, but she wanted to be sure.
“Because every time you start doubting yourself... or me, I want you to scroll through your pictures and look at us. Really look at us. Look at every picture that was taken this week.”
“You think that’s going to help?”
“It always helps to know that you are loved, Apple McCoy, and I love you.”
Her mouth dropped open, but nothing came out. She literally couldn’t speak, could barely breathe or function.
He dipped his head. “Kiss me, sweetheart.”
Now that she could do. Framing his face in her hands, she kissed him with ev
ery bit of passion and desire she had for him. It wasn’t love, or at least she wouldn’t let it be love... Men could say such wonderful things in the heat of the moment.
“Promise me,” he said between kisses. “Promise me that when things get tough or if you get scared—”
“I’m not afraid.”
“You are very afraid of what people will think. When you feel that way, I want you to take out your phone and look at our memories. That’s where you’ll find the strength to bless the heart of everyone who tries to take that away from us.”
“I’m really good at saying that.”
“Bless your heart, Apple.”
Her brows rose. “You said it in the nice way.”
“The nicest,” he agreed.
“I should reward you for that.” The physical aspect of their relationship, even with all the emotions that twined with it, was much, much easier for her to handle. She could show him how she felt... how much he meant to her.
But love... love was the scariest emotion of all.
And she was terrified that she was already full of it for Preston.
“Me first.” He captured her mouth, and they spent the rest of the night making new memories.
Chapter Eleven
By the next morning, the storm had moved completely out and the sun was shining... and the parasailing tour operator had texted Preston to let him know he had an opening this afternoon.
Right now, however, Preston was more concerned about what he’d said to Apple last night. He didn’t regret telling her he loved her. He’d never had a problem expressing emotions. It seemed counterproductive not to. Maybe he had his stepdad to thank for that. The man was always telling Preston’s momma how much he loved her. How pretty she was and how he was the luckiest man alive.
No, he wouldn’t take back anything he said to her last night. However, he would have liked a verbal confirmation that she cared about him. Based on what they’d shared over the week, and even before that really, he knew she did. And not just because she shared her “problem” of sex and love going hand in hand.
Love So Right (The Lawson Brothers #7) Page 8