by Banks, R. R.
“Hey, shower’s free.”
Knox’s voice startles me. I slam my computer shut, turning around quickly. He looks at me evenly for a moment before he starts to laugh.
“Did I catch you watching porn?” he asks.
“No!” I gasp in horror.
I’m so flustered, it takes me a second to realize he’s got nothing, but a towel wrapped around his waist – which only flusters me even more. He smiles wide and nods at my computer.
“What were you doing?” he presses.
“Nothing,” I stammer. “I’m going to take a shower now.”
He’s still chuckling as I brush past him, setting my computer on the table and snatching up my bag. His rolling laughter chases me all the way down the hall. Not even slamming the door behind me shuts it out entirely.
I let out a long breath, still trying to process all of the information I’ve just absorbed. Still not quite sure what to make of it all. I strip out of my clothes and toss them on the bed, then walk into the bathroom, feeling my eyes pop out of my skull. One wall is made up entirely of frosted glass blocks, flooding the room with natural light. The shower is an open stall and has a nozzle mounted in the ceiling, allowing the water to rain down over you, and a hand-held sprayer as well.
I turn the water on. It heats up quickly, clouds of steam billowing out of the stall. I look around and see that Knox has set a towel out for me, and on top of the towel is a toothbrush – still in the packaging – and a tube of toothpaste. His thoughtfulness is surprising to me. It reveals yet another layer to the man.
A small smile touches my lips as I squeeze some of the toothpaste onto the brush and take it into the shower with me. I step beneath the gentle cascade of water, tipping my head back and letting it rain down on my face and through my hair.
I sigh contentedly, relishing the warmth of the water as it soothes my sore muscles. I brush my teeth and set the brush on a small ledge when I’m finished, then turn my attention to washing up. By the time I’m finished, I feel human again.
I take my time getting dressed, giving myself a few minutes to think about how to address what I found out about Knox. Or more specifically, whether I should address it at all. His financial situation isn’t my business. And yet, given what happened last night and the connection I feel is forming between us, it’s kind of a glaring omission.
I put on a sundress and a pair of strappy sandals and fix my hair as best as I can. I apply a touch of makeup and stare at myself in the mirror for a long moment. I let out a long breath and steel myself before leaving the safety of the bedroom, still unsure how I’m going to handle this situation.
When I step into the main room, I find Knox sitting on the couch staring at his TV. He’s watching a video of a football game – I’m assuming his team. He’s in the middle of backing the tape up when I walk in, staring at the screen intently.
“That shower is heavenly,” I announce.
Knox immediately turns off the television and turns around to look at me, looking for all the world like I caught him in the middle of something. The role reversal makes me laugh.
I arch an eyebrow at him. “Did I catch you watching porn?”
“As a matter of fact, you did,” he quips. “Some hot girl-on-girl action if you’re interested.”
I look at him for a moment, still trying to decide whether to mention what I learned or not. He smiles and gets to his feet.
“All fresh and clean?” he asks.
“Very,” I say. “That shower is amazing.”
“Good. Glad to hear it,” he replies. “Now let’s go. I have a little something planned for the day.”
“What did you do?”
He shrugs. “You’ll find out. But it’s a beautiful day, and we should not be spending it indoors.”
Knox
I steer the boat through the lake, pointing out some of the natural features of this little slice of my world. Felicity soaks it all in, absorbing the beauty of the place with a smile. I look back from the driver’s seat and absorb the beauty of the woman behind me in the aft portion of the boat.
She’s wearing a floral-print sundress that hugs her hips and full breasts, displaying a tantalizing bit of cleavage. She leans her head back, letting the sunshine rain down on her. The light makes her strawberry blonde hair and alabaster skin shine with an inner light. Stretched out languidly on the long bench seating in the aft portion of the boat, she’s simply breathtaking.
I’ve got an electric boat I sometimes take out here on the lake when I want to get even further away from the world. On those days, I’ll drive out to the middle of the enormous body of water, cut the engines, retract the electric roof, and sit back with a book and some beer.
The houses along the lake shore are few and far between, and we’re surrounded by the towering trees of the forest. It’s so silent and still, it’s easy to imagine that you’re the only person in the world. Just the way I like it sometimes.
I steer us into a large, sheltered cover and stop the engines, then throw the small anchor to moor us to the spot. High cliffs enclose the cover on three sides with soaring pines growing right to the edge. It’s a quiet and private place. I step out of the cockpit and take a seat on the well-padded bench across from Felicity, the long table between us.
“Welcome to Moonlight Cove,” I announce.
“It’s gorgeous in here.”
I simply look at her for a long moment. She’s pulled her dress up a bit to get some sun on a pair of shapely and surprisingly long legs. I’m enticed by the swell of her hips and breasts and imagine myself running my fingers and tongue along her smooth, creamy flesh. Thoughts of everything we did last night drift through my mind and make me crave even more.
I lean back and throw my arms over the back of the seat, doing my best to look casual as Felicity sits up and pulls her sunglasses down the bridge of her nose, a small, flirty smile pulling her plump lips upward.
“What are you looking at?” she purrs.
“Quite possibly the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
Her cheeks flare with color. She hurriedly pushes her sunglasses back up, looking entirely flustered. I flash her a roguish grin and point to the cooler sitting on the end of the table.
“All the fixings to make the best hero sandwiches in the world.”
She laughs hysterically and gives me the finger. “You’re such an asshole.”
“You’ve met me, right?” I grin at her. “And don’t worry, you’re a very close second to these heroes.”
“Shut up and feed me,” she says, still laughing and shaking her head.
I open up the cooler and pull out all of the different containers I’d loaded it with this morning, setting them all out on the table.
“Roast beef, smoked turkey, honey ham,” I announce as I put each container down. “Mayo, cheese, and a couple of different kinds of mustard.”
“Wow, you really went all out.”
“I always do,” I tip her a wink as I pull out another container and a bag. “And here are the best rolls in the state of Washington and some potato salad to go along with it.”
I hand her a plate and some utensils, then open up the mini-fridge that’s set in the rear wall of the boat and pull out a couple bottles of beer.
“A hidden fridge,” she nods approvingly. “Nice.”
“It’s a party boat,” I tell her. “And what kind of a party is it without beer?”
“The kind of party I usually go to?”
“Yeah, I had you pegged as something of a teetotaler,” I crack.
“Shut up,” she laughs.
I chuckle as she fixes a couple of sandwiches for us, then open up the bottle and pour out a couple of glasses. I set one down as Felicity hands me a plate.
“Wow, normally it’s considered poor form to ask a woman to make me a sandwich,” I quip.
She throws a wadded-up napkin at me and laughs. “Are you ever not a pig?”
“I do sleep sometimes.”
Scooping up the remote, I turn on the stereo and let it play. Pink Floyd’s song Time echoes around the cove. Sitting back with my plate in my lap, a bottle of beer in my hand, and a gorgeous woman sitting across from me, I’m feeling pretty damn good.
Our conversation is light and easy over lunch, but I hear something in her voice that gives me pause. There’s a hesitance and uncertainty that wasn’t there yesterday. It seems like there’s something on her mind, and she’s trying to work up the nerve to say it. Which, of course, makes me wonder if there’s something about what happened between us last night that’s changed something within her.
Personally, I feel like we grew closer. I feel like a lot of our walls came crashing down and some of the pretenses we keep up in public have been stripped away. There’s something between us – something powerful. I feel it. I know she does too. Last night the connection between us was palpable. Tangible. I have no idea what it is, or what to make of it right now, but it’s there all the same.
Except today, there’s something on her mind. It’s as plain to see as the nose on her face. But I don’t want to press her. I’m just going to wait her out and let her come to it on her own time and in her own way.
We finish eating and I clean everything up, tossing the trash into a small can and stacking the containers back into the cooler. That done, I wipe down the table with a damp rag before sitting back on my seat and taking a long pull of my beer. Felicity sits there staring at me, a look of utter bemusement on her face.
“What?” I shrug.
“Nothing,” she giggles. “You really are as type-A as you seem. Behind closed doors, anyway.”
“Oh, that’s crap.”
Felicity grins at me. “Don’t even bother denying it. Your place is spotless. I can practically eat off your floors –”
“I can certainly arrange that.”
“Bite me.”
I laugh. “I can certainly arrange that as well.”
“You’re like two different people,” she observes. “The person you show the world, and the person you really are.”
“I think we all do that,” I note. “We all have a public face and a face we show only to those we care about.”
She looks at me for a long moment as she processes what I just said. It’s only then that I realize the double meaning of my words. Or at least, how she might have taken it. I’m pretty sure she’s wondering whether or not I include her in that latter group. But then, I find myself wondering if that’s what I really meant, too.
“So, are you a big football fan?” she asks after a long silence.
I shake my head and hold my neck theatrically. “Careful, abrupt changes in conversation like that tend to give me whiplash. I’m but a simple man and have a hard time keeping up,” I chide. “And yeah, I like football as much as the next guy, I guess. Why do you ask?”
She shrugs. “The next guy can’t usually buy a football team.”
Careful to keep my expression neutral, I hold Felicity’s gaze. I have no idea how she found out, or how long she’s known. More importantly, I don’t know what she thinks about it.
“Why?” she prods. “Why did you hide who you really are?”
“Do I need to advertise my net worth everywhere I go? I didn’t know that was part of the social contract.”
“Of course not,” she states. “Don’t be stupid.”
“Then why is it anybody’s business?”
She takes a sip of her beer, her sunglasses hiding her eyes from me. “It’s not. I just find it interesting. You’re like Clark Kent – making us all think you’re one thing when you’re something completely different.”
“Did you really just call me Superman?”
She laughs. “You wish. You’re definitely not goody-two-shoes enough for that.”
“Very true. I like to think of myself more like Bruce Wayne,” I tell her. “Darker. Broodier. Not as much spandex. That’s definitely more my style.”
She looks at me for a long moment, as if trying to peer into my very soul. I know she’s trying to figure it out – why I let people think I’m something I’m not. But then, that would be giving the game away. Not that it’s much of a game, really. I just enjoy having people underestimate me.
“Stop looking at me like some science experiment or psych case,” I chuckle. “You’re really overthinking it again. It’s really not all that interesting.”
“I disagree. It’s very interesting,” she chirps. “And judging by what I’ve seen – like your damn football team – I’m assuming you’re worth –”
“A lot. Let’s just leave it at that, okay?” I chastise her.
She sits back and grins. “I figured that much,” she comments. “But you let everybody – even me – think you’re just a bodyguard. Why?”
I let out a long breath and take a long pull of my beer, giving myself a moment to think. Felicity is sitting there, staring at me, content to wait me out. There really is only one reason I don’t want to tell her, and it’s because it makes me feel stupid. I’m not the emotionally vulnerable type, and the fact that Felicity stirs up this cloud of shit inside of me is something I’m not really equipped to deal with.
“Be honest with me, Knox,” she continues. “And don’t make a joke out of it. I really want to know why you’d let me believe something about you that isn’t true. I’m literally trusting you with my life, here. I don’t think it’s unfair to ask.”
I drain the last of my bottle and set it down on the table. I can’t believe I’m going to do this. I can’t believe she has the power to make me do this. I can honestly say this is a first for me.
“It’s because when people find out that I’m rich, they change. They start to treat me differently. Hell, they start looking at me differently,” I start. “And I liked the way you looked at me when you thought I was just a normal, everyday kind of guy. I didn’t want that to change. I don’t want anything between us to change.”
She arches her eyebrow at me. “Don’t worry, rich or not, you’re still the same sarcastic and obnoxious asshole to me you were when I thought you were just a meathead.”
I laugh and feel the tension of the moment dissipate quickly. Felicity’s smile is warm and genuine, and when she pulls her sunglasses off, I see the sincerity in her eyes.
“Knox, I’m not impressed by money. What somebody’s worth doesn’t matter to me,” she says. “And it doesn’t change what I think or feel whether or not you have money. I take a person as I find them.”
I’ve heard the same thing from people before and inevitably, things change. Whether they realize it or not, they start to treat me differently. Yet, when I hear Felicity speak, I can’t stop myself from believing her. I can hear how sincere and genuine she is. While I can write it off with most people, with Felicity, I can’t.
There’s that small piece inside of me that wants to kick my own ass. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been burned in the past because I wanted to believe in somebody’s good nature. That cynical voice inside my head is telling me I’m just setting myself up for another fall.
And yet, I believe her. With everything in me, I believe her. God help me.
There are a million different thoughts and emotions churning around inside of me. I can’t make sense of any of them. Felicity has turned my world upside down, and the real bitch is that she didn’t even have to try. There is just something about her that’s unlocked something within me and has unleashed a monster – one I’m having a hell of a hard time controlling.
I want to open up and share what I’m feeling with Felicity, but I’m having a hard time finding the words. I’ve never been great at expressing myself in an honest way – sarcasm and snark come much easier to me. Always have. But I know she wants something from me – needs something. I can see it in her face. Hear it in her words. She needs to know that this isn’t some empty conquest for me.
I know that Felicity isn’t the kind of woman who gives herself to just anybody. Sex m
eans something to her. She’s not the type who screws for sport. Which means the fact that she slept with me last night means something. It reveals her feelings for me. And it’s the only way I know of to communicate my feelings for her.
Standing up, I walk around the table and sit next to her on the bench. She cocks her head and looks at me, a playful smile upon her lips. As the air between us grows charged with a sultry warmth, I pull her to me and kiss her. Felicity’s full lips part, and she allows my tongue into her mouth. I run my hands along her skin that’s warm from the sun, then through her long hair as we kiss, her intensity getting me hard almost instantly.
She pulls back and looks me in the eye, holding my gaze. “I just need to know – is this just meaningless sex for you?”
The directness of the question takes me off guard, but I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised – Felicity can be nothing if not blunt sometimes. She’s a woman who’s not afraid to speak her truth and go after what she wants. She’s also a woman who will not settle for less than what she feels she deserves. And that’s something I respect about her.
“I’m not sure what this is, Felicity,” I admit. “But believe me when I tell you it’s not meaningless.”
There’s uncertainty in her face for just a moment before her eyes light up. They sparkle dazzlingly in the sunlight. Her smile is sultry and seductive. She leans forward, kissing me hard as she flattens her hands on my chest, kneading the skin beneath my shirt.
I slide my hands down, cupping her breasts and drawing a soft moan from her as I gently pinch her hard nipples. Planting a line of kisses down her neck to her collarbone, I slip the straps of her sundress off her shoulders and run the tip of my tongue along her cleavage. She’s pulling at the hair on the back of my head and pressing my face harder into her breasts.
As I push the dress down further, her full breasts spill out into my hands. I cup and knead them, teasing her nipples with the tip of my tongue. Her breathing grows heavier and she grabs hold of my hand, roughly sliding it up her skirt.