by Anna Hard
“You’re cold. It’s rude of me to keep you standing here in your— your paper outfit. I’ll let you go. Thanks again for helping Crystal. If I’m lucky, she’ll be fast asleep by the time I get up there.”
“Wait.” I held the paper towels against me with one hand as I reached into the cabinet with the free one. My fingers touched his palm as I handed him a few more pills. It was just the simple act of putting pills on his hand, but when my fingers made contact with him another shiver went through me. Just like I’d briefly wondered what it would be like to be in his arms, I had a fleeting thought about what it would be like to have his hands on me. Stop, Dani. This is Tommy. This is the guy who used to pull your hair when he walked by in the hallway or kitchen just to annoy you. This is the guy who would purposely chug down the last of the milk straight from the carton as he watched you pour cereal into a bowl. This is the guy who used to come into your room and hang out and toss your stuffed animals around like volleyballs whenever he was pissed at his dad or brother. . . And there it was, the epiphany, that strange moment when something hits you over the head that you didn’t see coming. Tommy and me had been far more connected than I’d let myself believe. I was just a flighty teen with so much going on and so much instability in my life, it hadn’t even occurred to me that Tommy and I had grown close in those few years. Whenever Tommy was in trouble or pissed or upset, he’d plod into my room and flop back onto my bed. He never wanted to talk about his problems, but in a weird way I was his confidante, his go to person.
“Well, good night, Twig— I mean Dani.”
“Good night. And I’ll keep my fingers crossed that you don’t wake up in the same stuff that just ruined my t-shirt.”
“Damn. Maybe I’ll sleep up on deck.” He gazed at me, and for a second, I caught that rebellious but charming twinkling eye of the teenage Tommy. He closed the door, and I went in to take a shower.
Chapter 8
Tommy
After a night of angry seas and cold fog, the sky over the calm water glowed clear and blue. Everyone, it seemed, had had a bad night. Even Max had told me to fuck off when I knocked on his door. It would be just fine if Crystal stayed in the cabin the rest of the day, and even the rest of the trip, for that matter. I’d regretted inviting her along almost as soon as she stepped onto the gangplank in her high heels. And that regret had grown as the day progressed. The night before, when a little seasickness had turned into a traumatic event, I’d decided the less time spent with her, the better. This time off-again was really going to mean off.
I finished reading my emails and put down my phone.
Dani walked out on deck holding a plate of fruit. She was wearing a tissue thin swimsuit cover-up. It was transparent enough to make the pink bikini underneath that much more intriguing. I’d gone to bed with that vision of her standing half naked, wrapped in paper towels, in my head and had woken up with a stiff cock. She was Twiggy, the bratty, albeit, very cute, stepsister. Having my cock stand at attention at the mere thought of her was messing with my head. But then, I reminded myself, it was not really all that scandalous. Dani and I were both adults now, and we weren’t relatives in the biological sense. Watching her as she sashayed toward me in an itsy bitsy bikini, my dick once again agreed with my reasoning.
Dani pointed to the empty lounge next to me.
“Go ahead. It’s just me and the seagulls, although they took off once I finished my breakfast muffin.”
Dani kicked off her sandals. “They are a mercenary bunch, those gulls.” She untied the tiny ribbons that held together the sheer panels of the cover-up. She lowered the light material from her shoulders but stopped and waved her hand. “Look that way. You’re making me feel self-conscious.”
I laughed. “May I remind you that you were standing in front of me draped in two paper towels just last night.”
“That was different. I was a professional in the throes of combat. And, besides, those paper towels were far less revealing than this bikini, a purchase that I am now seriously rethinking.”
I looked toward the water for just a second but then turned back to her before she had a chance to sit. “Nice. Curves really work on you. And I’m glad you didn’t rethink the bikini.”
She threw the gossamer thin cover-up at me. Practiced cad that I was, I pressed it to my face. “Hmm, nice fragrance. Perfume?”
“Yes, it Eau de Coppertone.” She pulled her suntan lotion out of her straw bag.
I held up the garment. “A piece of cellophane wrap would be just as effective as this cover-up.” I placed it on her bag. “Not that I’m complaining.”
“Speaking of complaining, how’s your little cabin mate? Did she make it through the night?”
“I assume she’s still alive. I slept out on the deck lounge. I saw what she did to your shirt and that was all the warning I needed.”
I pulled the sunglasses off my head and over my eyes so I could take full advantage of watching Dani put suntan lotion on her legs. I leaned my head back but kept my eyes pointed her direction. She filled her palm with lotion and spread it along her shins and up along her creamy thighs. The vision of paper towel wrapped breasts was now being replaced with the image of Dani’s long, slender thighs wrapped around me as I jammed my cock into her. I grabbed the hat I’d worn outside and put it on my lap to conceal the raging erection her little lotion application had caused.
But I forgot that the woman next to me was not just some lightheaded beauty sitting there. This was Dani, smart, intuitive and altogether way too savvy for her own good.
“That erection would have been far less noticeable if you hadn’t used your hat to point it out like a damn X on a pirate’s treasure map. Guess you’re thinking about that helpless, little lollipop you left in your bed, huh?”
Without turning my head, I stared at her through my black shades as she innocently continued to slather lotion on. She was still the same, completely clueless about the effect she had on the opposite sex. Even as a lanky, flat teen, she would walk through the mall and I’d see every male’s head turn. But Dani would flounce innocently past them not noticing the stir she’d caused. “Nope not thinking about the lollipop, and that name sounds way too good for her. At the moment, Crystal’s like one of those itches that you just can’t reach to scratch.”
Dani tried, but failed, to suppress a smile. She yanked the ponytail out of her hair. It fell around her glossy shoulders like gold silk. She pulled her sunglasses out of her bag and leaned back against the lounge. I took a few seconds to gaze at her profile and the tiny nose that turned up just at the tip to give her that impish quality I’d always loved.
She reached up to adjust her glasses, and I noticed a tiny sparkle on her finger. I thought back through some conversations I’d had with Nana, which could have been about anything from the pathetic state of things in the country to a new recipe she’d found for her favorite dessert, hash brownies. But I definitely recalled her mention of Dani’s engagement. It was a topic that I’d brushed off but not because it didn’t interest me. It had. I remember thinking that some lucky guy, who probably didn’t deserve her, was going to walk beautiful, fun Dani down the aisle.
“Nana mentioned you were engaged,” I blurted clumsily, since it seemed sort of out of the blue, even though I’d been thinking about it. “A musician, right?”
She turned her face without lifting her head from the lounge. “Yep, landed myself a damn rock star. He’s lead guitarist and singer for a band called Steel Wire.”
My head popped up. “Really? They’re getting pretty famous, aren’t they? I like their stuff.” For some reason, as I was complimenting their music, I was writing myself a mental note to erase them from my playlist. I’d seen the lead singer, and he looked like an asshole. Definitely not good enough for Dani.
“Yeah, they’re moving up in the music world,” she said unenth
usiastically. She fished into her bag and pulled out a crossword puzzle book.
“You don’t sound too happy about it.”
“Nope, I’m just over the fucking moon about it.” She pulled out a pencil and stuck it behind her ear as she searched through the puzzle book. As much as she’d changed physically, everything about her was the same— cute, quirky, hard to look away from.
“Well, if you’re over the fucking moon, then I don’t need to pursue the topic any further. I mean the fucking moon sounds more definite than just the plain old moon.”
Her soft lips jutted out in an angry pout. How’d she make a pout look so fucking hot? Holy shit, I was having one erotic thought after another about my stepsister.
“Well, you’re tough, Dani. You’ll be able to tolerate all those groupies hanging around with that unbreakable confidence.”
She tossed the book on her lap and stuck her feet on the ground, straddling the lounge as she sat up and looked over me. “See, that’s the kind of male ego bullshit I can’t stand. Why is that acceptable? Why should I just have to accept the fact that girls will be handing Axel permanent markers to sign their fucking boobs and belly buttons? I guess that’s just some inane, unwritten male rock star law—” She lifted her finger as if she was pointing to and reading a big sign. “Me rock star, me get to fuck all women, whenever me want to.”
“I’m guessing that that particular law was written for the rock stars who are also cavemen.”
She sat back with a huff. “You’re all Neanderthals, let’s face it.”
I looked over at her. She fidgeted with her puzzle book, well aware that I was staring at her. “Frankly, rock star or not, I’ve seen that dude, Axel, singing and being interviewed on Youtube. He’s not good enough for you, Twiggy. You need someone who makes you the center of the fucking universe. That’s what any guy who’s lucky enough to land you should do.”
She didn’t answer, but the tiny twitch on her lip told me the topic had really upset her. I decided to drop it.
The sliding door opened, and Crystal walked out with Olivia and Max. I was pissed that my alone time with Dani was over. She sat up.
“You don’t have to go,” I told her. “Nana would have expected you to be enjoying yourself like the rest of the guests.”
“I was knocking and pounding on the nurse’s station door,” Crystal said with her hands on her hips as she skewered Dani with a glare. “No one answered.”
“No, that’s because I’m out here,” Dani said sharply. “What is it you need?” She got up from the lounge and stuffed her things in her bag.
“I need something for this godawful headache. I think it was those damn pills you gave me last night.”
“Those pills were what helped you sleep off the seasickness. But, next time, you could just ‘weather the storm’, both figuratively and literally,” Dani said.
It was obvious Crystal didn’t have a fucking clue what Dani was talking about.
Dani walked toward them. Crystal and Olivia sneered at her bikini, but Max had a decidedly different reaction. He whistled loud enough to scare off a few pigeons from the railing. “Twiggy in a bikini, and I must say, pink is your color.”
Dani ignored his comment. She seemed to still be upset by our earlier conversation, and horrible asshole that I was, I was taking some comfort in thinking that maybe her engagement wasn’t going so great. Why that gave me comfort, I didn’t know. I should have been happy that she’d found someone who would provide her with an awesome life. But thinking of her with that guy just wasn’t sitting right with me. It was probably just because the guy seemed like a douche. I mean, it couldn’t have been anything else, no matter what tricks Nana was trying to pull.
Chapter 9
Dani
I finished logging the first aid for the day. It was almost shocking how many entries there were considering we’d only been out to sea for three days. Aside from a deep one inch cut on the deckhand’s palm and a second degree burn on the forearm of the cook’s assistant, most of the entries were for Crystal. She was certainly a delicate and somewhat clumsy little thing. One thing was obvious, Tommy was wishing that he’d perused his list of potential yacht companions a little longer.
There was a knock at the infirmary door. I walked through to the door, expecting to see a distraught Crystal on the other side with a curling iron burn or stubbed toe because those were still on the list of possible injuries she hadn’t incurred yet. But Max’s smiling and rather sunburned face met me.
“Max, you need to put on sun block.” I stepped closer to get a better look at his nose. “You’ve got a little blister forming. I’ll get you some salve.”
“Later, Twiggy. They lowered the diving board. I can’t get Olivia or Crystal to go swimming. That’s when it occurred to me— Twiggy. She’s always up for anything. Shit, you were the only girl I knew who used jump off the rocks at the river. Let’s go. The water is clear as glass.”
“Where’s Tommy?”
“He’s doing some work in his cabin. Come on, Dani. I don’t want to go in alone. What if there’s a shark?”
I laughed. “I see. So, I’m invited in case you need first aid for a shark bite.” I glanced back into the room. “Not sure if my bandage supply will be enough for a shark bite.”
“Actually, I just wanted you out there to fight the damn thing off.”
“I’m not making promises about that, but I think I will join you. The water does look tempting. I’ll be right out.”
Crystal was safely tucked on a lounge for the time being. I considered pulling all the cotton from the infirmary to pack around her, but she’d probably have some major allergic reaction to it. Max was sitting at the edge of the diving board, a springy piece of fiberglass that, with the push of a button, jutted out over the turquoise water.
“Is that the plank the crew has to walk if we shirk our duties?” I asked.
Max looked back at me and smiled. “It’s about time. I was waiting for you.”
“Damn, Max, were you always such a chicken shit?”
“Pretty much.” He stood at the tip of the board. His shoulders were the same blistering red as his nose.
“When you get out, I’m slathering you in sun block, Mr. Lobster. I don’t need you collapsing from third degree burns.” I glanced back toward the women. They seemed to be sleeping beneath their sunglasses. “We’ll leave the collapsing to Crystal,” I said in a lower voice.
Max laughed. “Good one, Twiggy.” He turned around and cannon balled into the water. He surfaced and flipped his hair back. “It’s pretty warm. Come on in.”
I walked out to the end of the board. I gazed at the water and then made a show of squinting out past him. “What was that?” I asked, putting just enough alarm in my voice to make Max start swimming for the ladder.
“Psych!” I yelled and jumped out over him. I popped up next to him.
He was just recovering from my practical joke. “Still the comedian. Tommy always used to say if she weren’t so damn cute, she’d be really annoying.”
I moved my arms to tread water. “There’s no way Tommy ever said that about me. Well, maybe the annoying part.”
“You’re right, I didn’t say it,” a deep voice drifted down from deck. Tommy had his forearms resting against the railing as he gazed down at us. “I said ‘the really annoying thing about Dani is that she’s so damn cute, it’s hard not to like her’.”
I stared up at him, and there was a long, intense moment when it was just the two of us gazing at each other. There was no one else. Just Tommy and me, looking at each other, trying to figure out what the hell was happening between us.
“Are you done working? Come on in. Dani has promised to fight off any sharks,” Max said.
I turned to Max. “That’s what you think? If I see a dorsal fin, I
’ll be swimming right past you to that ladder.”
I tried not to pay attention to what Tommy was doing on deck, but my gaze was always drawn to him when he was nearby. He walked over and talked to Olivia and Crystal for a few minutes. Then he stripped down to his swim trunks. He walked to the end of the diving board and dove in. He disappeared under the surface, camouflaged at first by the splash. But when the water cleared, I saw him swimming underwater and straight toward me. I screamed and splashed water at him, ignoring the silly logic of trying to splash someone who was already underwater. I was sure he would grab me, but instead, he popped up directly in front of me, looking just as spectacular wet as he did dry. I was shocked at how disappointed I was that he hadn’t grabbed me.
Our gazes locked again. Like magnets. His dark lashes were clumped together in long spikes, and something about it reminded me of the teenage Tommy, heartbreakingly handsome, ridiculously confident and still not quite hardened to the world. It was happening more often, these odd moments where suddenly, we were alone, as if no one else was on the boat except the two of us, two people with a short history that had been more significant than either of us had realized.
Max swam over and splashed both of us out of the short trance we’d found ourselves in. “Why don’t you two stop making googly eyes at each other like two teenagers in heat.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Tommy asked. He floated onto his back. His hard muscular body coasted up and down with the mild current.
“Oh, come on,” Max said, “you can cut the sexual tension between you with a fucking hacksaw.”
“What the hell do you know about sexual tension, Max? You spend so much time with your hand on your cock, it never has time to build up tension,” Tommy said.
I was sufficiently embarrassed. “Well, I must have just entered a time machine because suddenly I’m back with eighteen-year-old Max and Tommy. I think this recreational swim has come to its natural end.” I swam back toward the boat.