Rhees felt no fear and hoped she’d shown him she didn’t mind anymore. She must have, because he grinned, looking very satisfied, before he leaned in to do it again.
Chapter 13
Rhees stepped into her shower, yanked the curtain closed, stepped as far to the side as possible, and turned on the water so she wouldn’t get wet right away. Routinely, she took a deep breath, taking a second to brace herself before stepping into the shocking coldness. She was just about to take the plunge.
“Rhees!” Paul said.
A chill ran down her spine, colder than the shower water she hated so much. Paul stood right there, in her bathroom, nothing but a thin shower curtain between her naked body and him.
“You know the rules!” she yelled. “You’re not even supposed to be in the bedroom while I’m in the bathroom.”
“I know. I’m only here to tell you about your birthday present.”
“My birthday isn’t for two days. Get out!”
“Rhees.” His tone sounded stern, and it surprised her. She mentally ran through her day, wondering what she’d done. They’d been getting along so well, very well.
She poked her head around the curtain, careful not to expose herself to him. She gave him a bug-eyed look to get across how much she disapproved. He wore a brilliant smile, which confused her even more.
“Before you step into the water and groan miserably because of the cold, I wanted to tell you that for your birthday, I’m giving you a warm shower.”
“How are you going to do that?” Her mind ran through possibilities, but she couldn’t come up with a logical plan that wasn’t a little creepy.
“Well, if I tell you that, it’ll ruin the surprise. Duh.”
“You just told me what my present is. How is it a surprise?”
“You’ll have to wait and see.” He beamed as he leaned toward her and stole a quick kiss.
She yelped at the closeness. She felt so naked and exposed. She was naked!
oOo
“You’ll find the arrangements have been made, Sir,” the bellboy said as he opened the door to the hotel room
“Fine,” Paul said. “Thank you. We’ll manage without the orientation.” Paul slipped the man a generous tip and ushered Rhees inside the room. They had no luggage, only their backpacks, so the bellboy nodded and winked as Paul closed the door. He thinks I’m in a hurry to get her into bed. Paul almost laughed.
His body verged on calling a truce with abstinence, finally! It had been hard in the beginning, damn hard, but he’d made a decision, a promise to Rhees—a promise to himself. He wanted—needed—to change, and after almost six weeks, the fight had become easier—easier, not easy. He couldn’t afford to fool himself. She couldn’t afford for him to fool himself.
Sure, he liked teasing her, licking her because she hated it, sneaking in a kiss now and then, pushing her beyond her comfort zone, the way she pushed him. But he respected her, admired her goodness. There was more to it than just virtue, everything about her, her entire being screamed decency and innocence. He’d never known anyone like her.
Her temperament fascinated him. Her big heart forgave any offense. He’d witnessed her in situations where anyone else would walk away permanently offended—and justly so—but not Rhees. She held no grudges toward the other students at the shop who’d shunned her and treated her so harshly in the beginning. She’d forgiven him, the worst offender.
He didn’t think she even noticed their efforts to hurt her most of the time. He could only guess it had to do with the fact that her mind didn’t work that way, so she didn’t comprehend how theirs could.
On the other hand, he knew, even she had limits. Rhees was no pushover. She saw herself as one, but he knew better. She had teeth. Push her far enough and she knew how to bite.
The room looked like no hotel room Rhees had ever stayed in, all three times. A four-foot long counter with a sink took up the corner to the left of the entrance with a small fridge and a microwave. A round table sat nearby with a silver cloche on top. The sitting area spread straight ahead, with two red couches placed at an angle to each other, a red armchair in the right corner, with a black leather ottoman in the middle of the red furniture.
A large desk sat in front of two windows, set at an angle to each other and looking out over the city. To the right, French doors lay open, showing off the bed with a dark wooden headboard and a white comforter.
“This is not the average hotel room.” She looked accusingly at Paul.
“Looks pretty average to me.” He feigned sudden enlightenment. “Are you trying to tell me they have rooms more average than this?”
She didn’t dignify his response with an answer.
“What’s the point of staying at a luxury hotel if we just wanted the same room we could get at any budget motel, a bed, maybe two, and a dinky bathroom?”
He added as an afterthought, “I’d go crazy in a room like that.”
She didn’t stop glaring and he pretended to be affronted. “Hey, I’m already slumming it for you here. This hotel is missing a star. I grew up believing anything less than five meant you’d go home with cockroaches, lice or bedbugs.”
“Seriously?” She believed it could be true.
“Almost.” He grinned and kissed the top of her head. “I have issues with confinement—I need room to breathe. Come on. Let’s explore the other rooms.”
The bed she’d seen through the door turned out to be king-sized. To the right of the bedroom lay a large closet that lighted when the doors opened, and a bathroom.
“Darn. I’d hoped for a little nicer shower than this.” Paul opened the frosted door and looked inside.
“If the water heater works, this is the most luxurious shower I’ve seen in months.”
“You’re so easy to please.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head again.
The walls were done in creamy colors while rich dark wood and red accents decorated the entire suite, giving it a clean, sleek and refined look, but the comforter looked irresistible. As they strolled from the bathroom, at the end of their expedition, Rhees couldn’t help herself. She kicked her shoes off and took a flying leap onto the bed.
“Yep,” she said with a happy giggle. “Sumptuously soft and squishy.” Paul beamed at her delight. He followed her to the bed and offered his hand to help her up.
“You can sink into the downy quicksand later. I have a birthday present for you in the kitchen.”
“The kitchen?” she sounded confused. “I thought we were here so I could have a warm shower for my birthday?”
“That too, but I have something else for you.” He pulled her back on her feet and toward the kitchen.
“Something else? Besides the shower and the plane tickets, and the hotel room that is average for you, but not for people like me?”
“You promised.” He exaggerated an annoyed glance.
“Don’t look at me like that. I’m trying to be grateful and appreciative here. I really am, but since I can’t say you’ve spent way too much money on me for my birthday, because you made me promise not to say that again . . .” Her lips pressed together to hide her grin at sneaking in a way to say it again without saying it, but her curiosity got the better of her when he moved to the large silver cloche and pulled out an ice bucket with a bottle of something chilling from behind. She only then realized the cloche didn’t come standard with the rooms.
“You know how you always say you wish you could order dessert first, because you’re always too full after dinner to enjoy it as much as you want to?” He lifted the cloche, revealing a plate full of desserts. “We have crème brulee, tiramisu, chocolate covered strawberries, and an incredibly, ooey, gooey, caramelly goodness, turtle cheesecake.” He pointed to each one in order, repeating her own words from an earlier conversat
ion when he described the cheesecake. He often quoted her, word for word.
Rhees stood speechless, but he waited.
“This is sooo . . .” She stared at the plate, forever. Her eyes rose to meet his with awe. “Romantic!”
Paul practically staggered, taken aback. In all his planning, he’d never once thought of it that way.
“Word of advice to my pretend boyfriend.” She gave him a sideways glance with a smirkish, but understanding, smile. “If you ever have a real girlfriend, and she tells you you’ve done something romantic, just roll with it, or at least, pretend to. You’ll score points.” She giggled.
He tried to smile, but his discomfort ruled. He didn’t know what to say. He’d only wanted to make her birthday special. He dodged his unease by rounding up plates, spoons, and wine glasses from the cupboards. He held the bottle up.
“Champagne.” He opened it and poured.
They ended up eating on one of the couches, each with their own plates. Rhees sat next to him, close, facing him, her legs draped over his lap, as her side leaned against the back of the sofa. He sat, turned slightly, facing her. She took a bite of a strawberry and swooned with delight.
“If this really was romantic . . .” He glanced at her to make sure she knew it was her word, not his. “I’d be feeding you the strawberries, but I know you wouldn’t really enjoy that—after I touched it.” He raised a mocking eyebrow at her.
“Ah.” She groaned, accepting her faults. “I know. I’m sorry. You’re really great at putting up with all my quirks. But, actually, I’ve kind of gotten used to your germs.” She lowered her eyes, embarrassed. “I might even like them now, maybe.”
He didn’t believe her. He smiled skeptically as he looked at his plate to scoop up another bite. She set her plate down on the ottoman and took his face in her hands, gazing at him. He’d just filled his mouth, and he looked comical as he tried to keep his lips from gaping open and revealing the food inside while being completely caught off guard.
She kissed him, which surprised him even more. He couldn’t tell her to stop as he struggled to keep his mouth closed and the dessert inside. He tried to swallow and get rid of it, afraid he’d gross her out. He wondered how she didn’t understand that was about to happen if she kept up what she was doing.
Her tongue pushed past his lips and he almost gasped as she heartily explored the inside of his entire mouth. She pulled back and licked her lips with pleasure.
“Mmmm . . . delicious. You taste just like crème brulee.” She looked funny, as if holding a straight face for as long as she could. “You should see the look on your face,” she said, and then her head fell back in a burst of laughter.
He sat stunned, just staring, trying to understand what just happened. She finally recovered from her laughing fit. Her brow furrowed with concern.
“Are you mad at me?”
“No.” He glanced off toward the windows.
“Then, what’s wrong?”
He shook his head, staring just off to the side of her, still not giving anything away. She’d confused him. He choked the next words out, barely. “Have you . . . changed your mind?”
“Yes.” Her smile lit her face.
His eyes grew wide, and he gulped in a breath, realizing he’d missed a few. He pursed his lips and nodded slightly, still thinking it over.
“I just showed you. Your germs don’t bother me anymore.”
He closed his eyes, kneading his lips against each other. “Okay,” he said slowly, understanding that she had no idea what he meant or what he thought she’d meant. A few seconds and a few more labored breaths later, he said, “Why don’t you go take your first hot shower? The goal is to try and squeeze in as many as you can before we have to go back.”
“What are you going to do while I’m in heaven?” she asked, smiling.
“Oh . . .” It came out breathy. He pursed his lips again and ran through a few more distortions. “I’ll find something to do. Take your time.”
She watched him for a few seconds.
“Paul?”
He took a deep breath. “Hmm?”
“Are you trying to get rid of me?”
“Rhees, I brought you all the way to Utah because I promised I’d arrange for you to go shopping, and I thought you’d appreciate taking warm showers while we’re here.”
“I thought we were here because you need fresh gear for the shop so you can rotate out some of the worn-out stuff.”
“That too.” He smiled. “I originally thought if I ever met the person who sold you your gear, I’d give him an earful about upselling to newbies, taking advantage of their excitement about the sport, but after seeing how you swim, I want to thank him for making sure you have, possibly, the best fins ever made. And since your overly expensive gear may have saved your life, I’ve decided to reward him by spending a fortune on his merchandise and taking it back to the island.”
“You used my birthday as an excuse. You really just needed me to help you pack all that gear back home.”
Paul did a double take at her calling the island home. He watched her pretending to pout, and chuckled. He’d already explained the dual purpose for the trip. It would have been easier to buy everything in Texas, but Paul wanted an excuse to see where Rhees came from.
“We’re here for your birthday—number one reason. I swear.” He motioned a cross over his heart. “So go take advantage of my gift of a warm shower.”
“It is the sweetest birthday present anyone’s ever given me.” She looked up at him and sighed. “But Paul?”
She paused, staring at him with those warm brown eyes. “Remember when you said there were things we could do . . . that wouldn’t disrupt my relationship with my hymen?”
He closed his eyes tightly, wondering how they’d wound up going down this road. It made him uncomfortable. He needed time to think, change the topic. He reached for his glass and took a long drink.
“Would any of those things . . . help you? Right now? Because I can feel you against my leg. You’re always doing things for me. I—I want to do something for you.”
He had his glass to his mouth, but he suddenly shot forward. Champagne spurted from his mouth and nose. He choked on the portion that went down the wrong tube. Reflexively, he reached for his napkin and started wiping the wasted champagne off his face and clothes as best as he could, still coughing and gasping for air.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“Rhees!” He almost knocked her to the floor when he jumped up off the couch. He darted to the kitchen to get more napkins—and to put some distance between them. “You can’t say things like that to me! It’s bad enough you just shared my crème brulee—from my mouth. Gawd! Dani Girl, you have no idea what you’re doing to me.”
“I’m a slow learner, I know, but I’ve picked up on a few things.” She bit her lower lip and watched him. “I’m just trying to say, I’m willing to help you with . . . that. I feel it’s the least I can do after everything you do for me.”
“Shit! Rhees. Stawp it!”
She flopped back down on the couch and stared at the ceiling. He took his shirt off and grabbed a clean one from the other room. When he came back into the living room, Rhees still lay on her back. She looked sad and it broke his heart.
“Hey,” he said lightly. “Don’t worry about me. This is all my choice.” She wouldn’t look at him. He moved to the couch and kneeled so he could lean over her. She turned her head away, but he pulled her back and got in her face with a silly grin. She had no choice but to finally look at him.
“You don’t fight fair.” She smiled, a little.
He nuzzled her nose with his. “I told you, I fight to win.” He sighed and stroked the side of her cheek as the seriousness of the moment returned. “Don’t worry about me, Dani Girl.
I would give up all the sex in the world to be right here, with you.”
She closed her eyes and turned her face into his touch, wondering how she wound up the luckiest girl in the world to be his friend. She opened her eyes to tell him, but a playful, mischievous grin played on his face, his eyes sparkled magnificently. He leaned in closer.
“You know what? I did give up all the sex in the world and here I am, right here, with you.” His grin broke into a dazzling smile, and she couldn’t help herself. She put her hands on both sides of his face, pulled him down to her, and kissed him, but not for long. Paul was the one to pull away.
“You really should go have your shower,” he said quietly, with another heavy puff of air.
“Okay.” She gazed a second longer, thinking what a beautiful man he was, her friend, and then she got up and headed for the bathroom.
“Rhees,” he called after her. She turned back, expectantly. The look on his face worried her a little. “Lock the door.”
oOo
“I meant to ask, how was your swim?” Rhees climbed into bed with a knowing smirk on her face. Paul rested against the headboard, propped with pillows, reading.
“Hm?” The book must have been interesting. He didn’t seem to hear what she’d said.
“Just curious how you’re holding up in the desert.”
“It’s cold,” he said without looking up, but after a beat, he did. “Desert? We’re right below the most majestic mountains I’ve ever seen.”
Wet: Part 2 Page 14