by Sydney Logan
“I’m sorry about the bikini.”
“Don’t be,” he murmured drawing me tighter against him. “Trust me. This is so much better.”
I laced my fingers in his hair as he kissed me hard. Lucas lifted me into the air, holding me against his body and kissing me fervently. I whimpered when I felt his hips press into mine.
“Do you know how much I want you?” he whispered against my lips.
Without giving me the chance to answer, his mouth molded to mine. The freezing temperature of the river was forgotten as his hungry kisses warmed every inch of me. Whenever his lips weren’t on mine, they were never far from my skin. He especially loved my neck, and when I felt his tongue lick the water droplets along my skin, I nearly came undone. My teeth found his earlobe, and I gently bit him, causing him to growl low in his chest.
“We have to stop,” he whispered breathlessly.
My tongue licked the shell of his ear, and he trembled in my arms. Stopping was the very last thing on my mind.
“Sarah,” he groaned softly. “Sweetheart, you’re killing me.”
“I’m sorry.” Panting and shaking, I loosened my legs from around his waist. “I’m sorry . . .”
“Shh . . .” His voice was soft as I buried my face against his neck.
Very gently, he lifted me into his arms and carried me out of the water. Placing me on the sand, he reached for my bag and quickly pulled out a towel. I accepted it gratefully and began drying my shivering body. Finding a blanket in the bag, Lucas spread it out across the sand.
“I’m going to change out of my shorts,” Lucas said softly. “Yours are still in the bag.”
“Okay.” Not daring to turn around, I just grabbed the bag and found my shorts. Was he watching? Did it really matter now? I slipped the wet shorts down my legs and quickly stepped into the dry ones.
“All done?”
“Yes.”
As we settled ourselves on the blanket, Lucas placed his legs on each side me and pulled me against his chest. Taking another towel from the bag, he gently started to dry my hair.
“Lucas, I can do that.”
“I want to.”
After a few minutes, I heard him rustling in the bag once again. Very carefully, he pulled a dry shirt over my head, and I slipped my arms inside, letting the towel fall away. Holding me close, his nose drifted into my hair.
“I smell like the river.”
“You smell like you,” Lucas murmured sweetly. “It’s my favorite smell in the world.”
Sighing softly, I relaxed against him as he held me close. The sun was beginning to set, and an orange hue reflected against the water. It was so tranquil and such a stark contrast to my emotions.
“I’m sorry, Lucas.”
Gently, he brushed my damp hair aside and pressed a soft kiss against my neck.
“Do you hear me apologizing?”
“No.”
“Do you know why?”
“Because you have nothing to apologize for.”
“Neither do you.”
“That was about two seconds away from becoming wildly out of hand. We’ve only been together a couple of months, and we’re not ready. I know this, and yet, I made it worse by taking off my top.”
I felt his quiet chuckle against my skin.
“Why are you laughing?”
Didn’t he realize how embarrassed I was? I was never forward with men. Ever.
“You’re apologizing for letting me see your—”
“Yes!”
He brushed another kiss against the side of my neck while trying to hide his laughter.
“You’re a jerk,” I muttered, but it wasn’t long before I was laughing, too.
“Look at me,” Lucas whispered. With a heavy sigh, I twisted around in his arms. Pulling me close to his chest, he nuzzled my nose. “I meant what I said in the water. I want you, Sarah. Very much.”
“I want you, too, but—”
“It’s too soon, I know.” His eyes were warm and soft as he smiled at me. “I’m a man, and I am absolutely crazy about you, so there is this constant battle between my body and my brain when it comes to taking things slow with you.”
Sighing softly, he gently kissed the tip of my nose. “But I’m also a patient man, and I am more than willing to wait.”
“Really? You won’t be disappointed?”
“I won’t be disappointed,” he said. “Just—and it pains me to say this—no more topless swims, okay? There’s only so much temptation a man can take.”
I laughed. “No more topless swims.”
His gaze flickered to the dimming sky. “We should probably go before it’s too dark to find the trail.”
Taking my hand, he helped me to my feet and grabbed our bag.
“It’s really too bad about the rope swing,” he said as we climbed the hill back toward the trail. “Maybe we can hang another before next summer.”
Next summer.
“I’d like that,” I whispered.
“Me too.”
Kissing my forehead, Lucas took me by the hand and led me out of the woods.
Chapter 15
On Monday morning, the faculty lounge was buzzing with excitement as everyone gossiped in hushed tones about the brawl between Matt and Patrick. It was also the last week of school before Fall Break, and the few teachers who weren’t talking about the fight were happily discussing their plans for the weeklong vacation. In a profession where the perks were few and the pay was inadequate, we teachers had to find joy in the simplest ways.
Fall Break was one of them.
I was just checking my mailbox when I heard my name.
“Hank said he caught them making out in the backseat of Lucas’s car,” the female voice whispered far too loudly. I recognized her as Mrs. Benson, one of the math teachers.
“You’re kidding!” Another female voice—a little high pitched and nasal, which I knew immediately was Shellie Stevens.
Squaring my shoulders, I continued leafing through my mail—tossing the unimportant and keeping the rest—until I felt someone’s eyes on me. Looking up, I found Shellie smiling brightly in my direction.
“Good morning, Shellie. Volunteering in the office today?”
“Yes, I am. How was your weekend?”
I forced a smile. “My weekend was fine, thanks. How’s cheerleading?”
“Well, we’ve had some drama,” she whispered—glancing behind her shoulder. Now she tries to be discreet? “My head cheerleader has just been traumatized by all of this.”
“Well, Carrie’s a bright girl. I’m sure she’ll survive and come out stronger than ever.”
“Yes, but she’s my leader. The head cheerleader is supposed to appear strong and in control at all times. It affects the entire squad if she shows any sign of weakness. Those girls are like dominoes . . .”
It was difficult, but I somehow resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
“You have to remember Carrie is also a teenager.” Honestly, I felt a little sorry for the young girl. As if being a high school senior wasn’t tough enough, the last thing Carrie needed was an overbearing cheer coach pressuring her to stay strong for her squad. “She just needs some time. Don’t you remember how it felt to be dumped in high school?”
Her face was a blank page.
“Of course you don’t,” I muttered under my breath.
“Anyway,” Shellie grinned mischievously, and I knew what was coming. “Rumor has it you and Mr. Miller are spending an awful lot of time with each other.”
I simply smiled and tossed a catalog into the nearby wastebasket.
“I bet the two of you have plans for Fall Break.”
Suddenly, every female’s head swiveled in Lucas’s direction as he walked into the faculty lounge.
“Good morning, ladies.” He smiled at the two of us and reached into his mailbox, pulling out a mound of mail. His arm brushed mine, and I felt the blood rush to my face.
“Speak of the devil!” Shellie gushe
d excitedly. “We were just talking about you.”
“Oh?” Lucas’s eyes twinkled as he looked at me.
“Did you have a good weekend?”
“I had a fantastic weekend,” he told her with a megawatt grin. “As a matter of fact, it was quite possibly the best weekend of my life.”
Of course it was. Less than twenty-four hours ago, my naked chest had been pressed against his and my legs had been wrapped around his waist.
Shellie’s eyes were wide and eager for information. “Really? What did you do?”
“I went swimming in the river.”
Mortified and needing an escape, I turned my back toward them and poured myself a cup of coffee.
I hated coffee.
“Swimming? Isn’t it a little cold for swimming?”
“I didn’t notice the cold at all. The scenery was far too beautiful.”
Call it intuition, but I had a feeling he wasn’t talking about the trees.
“Well, that sounds . . . fun,” Shellie muttered just as the first bell rang. “I’m volunteering today, so let me know if you need anything copied or stapled or . . .”
Is she flirting?
Pivoting on my heel, I narrowed my eyes in her direction.
“Thank you very much,” Lucas said kindly.
Shellie tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder and flashed him a pearly-white smile before sashaying out of the faculty lounge.
Completely irritated and more than a little jealous, I abruptly dumped my coffee into the sink and tossed the cup into the trash.
“Hey,” Lucas whispered, his hand brushing against mine. It was just a slight touch and wouldn’t be noticed by anyone, but it still sent a shiver up my spine.
I lifted my eyes to his, and he winked.
And just like that, my jealousy disappeared.
English class was tense.
I tried my best to get the students to focus on Macbeth’s descent into madness, but honestly, it was like talking to brick walls. Every eye in the room was fixed on either Patrick or Matt—just waiting for one of them to pounce. Now that both young men had been kicked off the football team, they weren’t sitting in their regular seats in the first two rows. Today, Matt was in the third row while Patrick was occupying a desk in the back corner of the classroom.
Howie volunteered to read aloud from Act 5, and when my eyes scanned the page, I immediately regretted opening the textbooks today.
“Out, out brief candle. Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard of no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
“What does that mean?” Howie asked after he finished the passage.
“What do you think it means?”
“I don’t know.” Howie glanced around the room, looking for help. “Life sucks?”
There were a few chuckles, and I smiled at his effort.
“Sometimes it does. Anything else?”
“Maybe it means he’s playing a part,” a deep voice echoed from the back.
Twenty pairs of eyes turned toward Patrick.
I glanced at Matt, whose eyes were glued to his English textbook.
Nineteen pairs of eyes.
“He’s faking it,” Patrick continued, his voice hard and cold. “Going through the motions. Pretending to be something he isn’t in order to get ahead.”
Every head swiveled back to me.
“That could certainly be one interpretation.”
Suddenly, Patrick rose to his feet.
“It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury . . .” he said with conviction as he slammed his textbook shut. His eyes swept the room and settled on the back of Matt’s head. “. . . signifying nothing.”
Thankfully, the bell rang, and Patrick grabbed his jacket and stalked out of the room. The textbook remained on his desk.
The room was deathly quiet, and I took a steadying breath before dismissing the rest of the class.
I could not wait to be finished with this play.
“Are you all right, Miss Bray?”
Matt was still sitting in his chair. His cast was prominently displayed with a few signatures in black marker along the plaster.
“I’m fine. How are you?”
He shrugged. “This is just day one. How many days are left in the school year?”
“Too many.”
Matt nodded. “I can do this, Miss Bray.”
He sounded so determined and optimistic, so I offered him a supportive smile.
“Hey, do you want to sign my cast? You’ll be the only teacher . . .”
He pulled a marker out of his hoodie pocket, and I laughed while I proudly added my signature to his cast.
“Don’t worry, Miss Bray. I can handle anything he dishes out. I’m not crazy. I know it’s going to get rough.”
A knot of fear formed in the pit of my stomach.
“Matt, if it gets too rough—”
Smiling, he stood and grabbed his textbook with his good arm.
“You’ll be the first to know,” he promised.
“Monica, I’d love for you to visit over Fall Break!”
Lucas glanced up from his pile of tests and grinned at me. My kitchen table was covered with exams that desperately needed to be graded before Friday. Lucas, at least, was being productive. I, on the other hand, had been on the phone with Monica for over an hour.
“Are you sure? You don’t have plans?”
“I do now,” I replied happily while checking the chicken baking in the oven. “Besides, there’s someone I want you to meet.”
“Oh?” Her voice was bright and curious. “An important someone?”
“He’s pretty important, yeah.”
Lucas didn’t look up from his grading, but I could see his smile.
“You’ve met someone,” she breathed softly.
Dropping my oven mitt onto the counter, I walked over to the kitchen table and climbed into his lap. He smiled up at me and immediately dropped his pen as he wrapped his arm around my waist. Lowering my head, I kissed him softly.
“Are you kissing?” Monica screeched in my ear, her voice a mixture of wild disbelief and extreme glee. Lucas chuckled and buried his face against my neck. “Put him on the phone right this instant.”
Laughing, I offered him my cell.
“Hi, Monica,” he said with the biggest grin on his face. “I’m Lucas Miller . . .” Unfortunately, she’d stopped screaming so I could only hear his side of the conversation. With his eyes never leaving mine, he trailed his fingers along my spine. “Yes, I was just kissing your best friend . . . yes, I have a job . . .” We both laughed, and then his face turned solemn as he pulled me closer to his chest. “Yes, I know she has. I will take care of her, I promise.”
I smiled. Moni had always been protective of me.
“I look forward to meeting you, too,” Lucas said softly before handing the phone back to me.
Leaning down, I kissed him once more before climbing off his lap and turning my attention back to the stove. Monica promised to call once she’d made arrangements, and we hung up just as the oven timer chimed.
“Should we eat at the island?” Lucas asked, pointing toward the stools. The kitchen table was still cluttered, although his pile of grading was now significantly shorter than mine.
“That sounds good.”
We worked around each other—him finding plates and silverware while I finished heating the rolls—and it amazed me how easy it was to be all-domestic with someone I’d only known for a short period of time. So far, everything with Lucas had been effortless.
We ate in a comfortable silence as I tried to find trouble where there really was none, and even that was troubling to me.
“What are you thinking?”
Surprised, I looked up into his sweet eyes. “What makes you think I’m thinking about anything?”
“Because you haven’t taken two bites of your dinner. You�
�re not worried about Monica’s visit, are you?”
“No, although the town didn’t exactly welcome her with open arms the last time she was here.”
“Why?”
“She’s African American.”
Lucas nodded in understanding.
“But you’ll love her, and she’ll love you,” I assured him.
“So, what’s wrong?”
I sighed softly and continued playing with my food.
“Nothing’s wrong. Absolutely nothing is wrong, and it scares me to death.”
His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Nothing is wrong, and that frightens you?”
“I’m not sane, Lucas. You’ll figure this out soon enough, and then you’ll run screaming.”
He laughed quietly and dropped his fork against his plate.
“I seriously doubt that, Sarah.” Taking my hand in his, he gently pressed a kiss to my wrist. “Aren’t you happy?”
I trembled slightly as his lips ghosted along my skin.
“I’m happier than I’ve ever been.” It was true. Being with Lucas had brought me a sense of peace I hadn’t felt since I was a little girl.
“You know, it’s okay to be happy.”
“Is it?” I honestly had no idea.
Lucas stabbed a piece of chicken with his fork and lifted it to my lips. “It is. For example, you made me very happy this morning.”
I took the bite and swallowed quickly. “What did I do this morning?”
“You were jealous of Shellie.”
Frowning, I grabbed my own fork and forcefully gouged my food.
“She was gossiping about the two of us before you walked in. Apparently, Deputy Hank has a big mouth. The entire faculty knows about our little escapade in the back seat of your car, and she still flirted with you right in front of me.”
“And that bothered you?”
“Of course it bothered me!”
Lucas was trying very hard to hide his laughter while I continued to massacre my dinner.
“I think we’re done,” Lucas said with a grin.
Pulling me by the hand, he led me into the living room and over toward the couch. Once he was seated, he promptly pulled me sideways onto his lap and nuzzled my neck. I sighed contently and trailed my fingers through his hair.