by catjohnson
Eyes still on the obvious strap lines, he frowned. “Come with me. We’ll take care of it.”
“How?” Instinctively trusting him, she took his extended hand and let him help her out of the chaise. “Where are we going?”
“To the galley.”
“The galley? Why?”
“I’m betting there’s something in there that will cool that burn. Don’t worry. We’ll get that color evened out before the wedding.”
She followed him all the way down the narrow stairs to the yacht’s cooking facilities. Sadly, the galley was nicer than her kitchen at home.
Jamie opened and perused the contents of the beverage fridge before reaching in and coming out with a glass bottle. “This will do.”
She frowned at the beverage in his hand. “Iced tea? Am I supposed to drink it?”
His surprisingly sexy laugh had her staring at his lips.
“No. Black tea applied topically is good for a slight sunburn and the cold liquid will cool your skin. The heat can still do damage even after you’ve gotten out of the sun, so you have to lower the temperature of the skin as soon as possible.” He soaked a kitchen towel with the iced tea and held it clumsily in front of her chest. “Um, maybe you better apply this yourself.”
Suppressing a smile at his obvious shyness, she took the towel and laid it over her hot exposed flesh. It felt cooler immediately. “Wow. How do you know about this stuff?”
“I know a lot of things.” Jamie shrugged.
“You really are a nerd.”
He rolled his eyes. “Thanks.”
“No. I meant it as a compliment. Really.” Gillian tilted her head, sizing him up again now that they were out of the glare of the sun. His glasses had changed to clear, and she could see blue eyes a girl could get lost in. “I happen to like your geekiness. A lot.”
“Really?” He smiled. “So you have a geek fetish, do you? Where were you during my lonely youth?”
She’d been trapped in geekdom herself, the studious introvert hidden in her gorgeous and talented sister’s shadow. Gillian shrugged. “I’m here now.”
“Yes, you are.” His throat worked as he swallowed hard. He glanced nervously at the case of champagne in the glass-front refrigerator, before he looked back at her. “Ah, you know, you should also drink a lot of fluids today, and not champagne either. Water. And take some ibuprofen.”
“Maybe you should stick close by and keep reminding me about that throughout the day. Drinking the water, I mean.” She moved a step closer, took the now hot cloth off her chest and dropped it on the countertop.
“I’d be happy to remind you.” He nodded and the action brought his head down a bit until his face hovered just above hers.
Perhaps it was a combination of the sun and the glass of champagne in her empty stomach, or how she hadn’t been on a date in ages. Either way, Gillian’s libido went from deep hibernation mode to burning up. Then again, maybe it wasn’t the sun, the alcohol or her lack of a sex life at all. Maybe it was Jamie. His concern for her. The way he had no clue how cute he was. How he’d bothered to RSVP, by phone no less instead of email. The way he made her heart pound.
Desire fluttered low in her stomach. “Would you think I was a total slut if I kissed you right now?”
He drew in a sharp breath. “No. Not at all.”
“Good.” Then their lips crashed together.
Jamie’s hands were cool on her skin as he wrapped them around her waist and pulled her against him. His lips turned demanding, but no more so than her own as she feasted hungrily on his mouth.
How long had it been since she’d done this with a man? Too long. Hussy that she was, Gillian pressed closer, fully aware there was not a heck of a lot separating them. Her bathing suit, his shorts and most likely underwear. She pondered briefly what kind of underwear a hot nerd would choose. Boxers? Briefs? Plain white or colored?
Feeling his impressive hard-on against her, she stopped wondering what type of undergarments he wore, and instead, calculated how long she had to wait before she unzipped those khakis and found out for herself.
He tilted his head to one side and plunged his tongue into her mouth. A groan escaped her throat and an echoing sound rumbled through him. The tightness of need twisted deep inside her, driving her to consider things she’d never do otherwise.
Gillian pulled her mouth away from his. “Jamie. I haven’t um, been with a man in a really, really long time.”
He drew in and released a shaky breath, still so close the warm puff of air hit her lips before he pulled his head back. “I understand. We’ll stop.”
She gripped his arms tighter so he couldn’t escape.
“No, that’s not what I meant. I just didn’t want you to think badly of me,” she sighed and then let it all spill out, “because there’s a very real possibility I’m going to rip your clothes off in a minute. I wanted you to know why.”
A wide grin appeared on Jamie’s face. “Given that very real possibility, perhaps we better move this somewhere more private.”
That sounded good to her. Gillian temporarily took a step back from him since the doorways of this scaled-down love boat weren’t wide enough for them to pass through clutched together as they were. The timing turned out to be fortuitous since Brandon appeared in the entrance a moment after they separated.
He stopped and took in the scene before him with a cocky grin. His gaze landed on the iced-tea bottle still on the counter as he pressed a little too intimately against Gillian to reach for the bottles of champagne in the fridge. If he’d asked, she would have gladly moved out of the way, but of course, he hadn’t.
“Hey there, Gillian. I’m popping the cork up on deck. Why don’t you come join us?” Brandon’s double entendre wouldn’t have been lost on her, even if he hadn’t stressed the words so obviously while wedged between her and Jamie.
Drawing on her limited acting talent, she nodded enthusiastically. “Sure. You go on up and I’ll be right there.”
“Great.” The pervert glanced at Jamie, shook his head and lowered his voice conspiratorially. “James, buddy. Champagne works way better than iced tea, if you know what I mean.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Brandon brushed one more time against her and then he and his bottles were gone.
“Why are you friends with him?” She let out a very unladylike sound to express her opinion of Brandon.
“Same frat.” Jamie shrugged. Gillian sensed he’d left the word unfortunately unspoken.
He waited, watching her. Brandon’s unwelcome interruption had broken the mood. Jamie seemed uncertain about her interest in him now. The moment had passed, but it wasn’t unrecoverable. Where were they when they’d been so rudely interrupted? Oh, yeah. About to go somewhere private so she could rip his clothes off.
Gillian took a half step forward. “So, uh, you have any ibuprofen in your stateroom?”
“Yes.” Watching her intently, he didn’t move.
She smiled. Jamie was sharing a stateroom with Rob, but he was currently at the helm. They’d have plenty of time for what she had in mind. “Good. Let’s go.”
Chapter Four
Jamie knew he could be a know-it-all. That he often came across as a walking encyclopedia and that tended to turn most women off.
He could easily count on one hand with fingers left over the number of women who’d come on to him in his life. A select few females found brainy men attractive, like Suzie Smith, the advanced eighth-grader who he strongly suspected rigged the spin the bottle game so she could kiss him during her birthday party in her parents’ basement. She’d been his first kiss. Then there was June Arlington, who’d been his first something else after a party during orientation week at college.
There’d been a few others throughout his adult years, women who appreciated him for one reason or another in spite of his less than forward fashion sense and awkward people skills. Two had become serious girlfriends. A year and a half with one, n
ine months with the other. None had made his stomach turn somersaults like Gillian made it do now.
As she pushed him back against his bed and straddled him, she didn’t seem to care that he’d been a know-it-all about her sunburn. To the contrary, it seemed to have turned her on. At least that was the conclusion he came to as she unbuttoned his shorts and slowly lowered the zipper.
He drew in a shaky breath and watched her.
She smiled. “Boxer shorts.”
What did that mean? Were they in style? Passé? How the hell should he know? Gillian was too close to his throbbing hard-on for him to care.
He opened his mouth to respond when she reached beneath the boxer’s elastic waistband. Then all that came out of his mouth was a shuddering breath.
Apparently enjoying his reaction, she smiled broader and lowered her head. His heart kicked into overdrive when her hot mouth engulfed his erection. The possibility that his roommate, who was Gillian’s soon-to-be brother-in-law, could come knocking on the locked door at any moment faded from his mind.
Clutching the bedspread, he watched her every motion. He should have told her he hadn’t had sex in a while either. He definitely should have told her if she kept up what she was doing he’d be done in less than a minute. As it turned out he didn’t say anything coherent at all, then it was too late.
Throwing his head back against the pillow, he squeezed his eyes shut and came hard, deep in her mouth before he could even utter a warning. She stayed where she was, working him until he squirmed, nearly crying for mercy.
When she finally released him from the torturous pleasure of her mouth and he could open his eyes again, Gillian was watching him, her head propped up by her hands against his stomach.
She didn’t look upset, but he smothered a groan of embarrassment anyway. “I’m so sorry.”
“Why?”
“I should have…I didn’t…” Where the hell was the articulate valedictorian now? He gave up trying to explain. “I’m just sorry.”
“I’m not.” She crawled until she was level with him, pushing his shirt up as she went until it came off over his head, leaving him totally naked. They obviously weren’t done yet. Good, because he could definitely be up for more.
Jamie slid his hands over her bathing suit. “It seems you’re overdressed.”
Gillian glanced down at herself. “Yes, it does. What are you going to do about it?”
“I have a few ideas.” He flipped her over so she lay on the bottom and he took care of the clothing issue in a few seconds. Bathing suits provided easy access. Women should wear them all the time, everywhere.
He stifled the urge to hiss in a breath at the redness of her burn in comparison to her creamy pale breasts and instead slipped one taught nipple into his mouth. He tasted the salt of her skin and sought more. While his mouth worked above, his hand slipped down her thigh.
With a groan, Gillian spread her legs. He let out a groan of his own when he slid one finger inside and found her already wet. Her eyes drifted closed as his thumb connected with her clit.
She drew in a shuddering breath. “Um, Jamie. Do you have anything else in here besides ibuprofen?”
“Like what?” He frowned.
“Like…um, condoms, maybe.” Her face turned redder than her sunburn.
He drew in a deep breath before he laughed.
She blushed harder. “What?”
“Brandon presented each of us with a box of condoms when we boarded. I told him he was an idiot.”
“Yes he is, though right now I’m plenty grateful for that fact. You kept them, right? You didn’t toss them overboard or anything, did you?”
“No, I kept them.” Trembling with thoughts of sliding inside Gillian, Jamie did a mental review of his unpacking, trying to figure out which drawer he’d put the condoms in and if he could reach them from the bed.
From above came the low drone of men talking, followed by the sound of females giggling. As long they were up there, they weren’t down here, and that’s all Jamie cared about. That, and Gillian.
He slid another finger inside her while circling her clit faster. When she started to shake, her breath coming faster and more erratic, the location of both the other guests and the condoms took second place as Gillian captured all of his attention. Watching the passion on her face, he doubled his efforts. Her pelvis rose off the bed to meet his hand and he slipped one arm beneath her to support her hips.
An orgasm powered through her, and he was unable to tear his gaze away when she bit her lip to keep from crying out. Wanting those lips against his again, he waited for the pulsing inside to calm, then took possession of that beautiful mouth. He kissed Gillian hard as she struggled to regain her breath.
Their positions put his hard-on, now back and ready for action again, right at the apex of her thighs. Warm, wet heat pressed against his tip. It was all he could do not to push inside.
“Should I get the condoms?” He was breathing pretty heavily himself.
She looked up at him with eyes heavily lidded with desire. “Yes.”
The yacht began to rock violently. It might have been doing that for a while, he’d been so entranced by Gillian he wouldn’t have known. Now, however, it was rough enough it nearly tossed him off the bed. He grasped the headboard with one arm and Gillian with the other.
Her eyes opened wide as the boat listed again. “It’s getting rough.”
He nodded. “Yeah. You okay?”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to stop?”
“No.”
Her answer made him more than happy.
The weather gods seemed to be on his side. The seas calmed enough so he could get to the dresser and locate the box. He even managed to get himself covered with a condom and back onto the bed before the next wave hit and threw him on top of Gillian harder than he’d anticipated. The air rushed out of her as he crashed down onto her chest.
“Sorry. You okay?”
“I’m fine.” She spread her legs and pulled him between them, leaving no doubt in his mind about what she wanted. He didn’t ask her again. Instead, he pushed inside, shuddering with pure pleasure.
The rocking of the boat matched the rhythm of his thrusts. Gillian wrapped her legs around his back and pulled him even deeper as she clung to him. Even Poseidon couldn’t feel more powerful than he did as her body gripped his. She buried her face in his shoulder but still the sound of her cries as she came again filled the room. Her fingers dug into his ass and pulled him farther inside, and he couldn’t hold on any longer. He came hard and then collapsed weakly on top of her.
His impassioned blood rushed through his veins so loudly, it nearly blocked out the screams up on deck that followed the crash of water against the portholes. Then there was the sound of Rob shouting.
“What’s happening?” Gillian clung to him while he was still inside her.
“I’m not sure.” Another wave hit. There was more screaming and shouting above, and he knew what he had to do. “Gillian, I have to get up there and help Rob.”
She nodded, even as she looked scared to death. “Go. He needs you.”
Jamie hastily pulled out of the happiest place he’d been in a long time. “Get dressed and stay here. It sounds rough up top. I think you’ll be safer below.”
Locating his clothes scattered around the bed, he glanced back at Gillian’s frightened expression.
“Jamie. Be careful.”
He was about to leave the best thing he’d ever found. Damn right, he’d be careful.
“Everything will be okay. I promise.” Another huge wave tossed the yacht. Below, the low steady hum of the engine sputtered and then stopped. “I really have to go.”
“I know. Go.”
Out in the narrow hall, the group from above pushed past him. Going against the tide of hysterical women and shouting men, Jamie made his way to the stairs, braced his arms and pulled himself up by the railing. He located Rob at the wheel, alone and holding on tight.
/>
Jamie had to raise his voice to be heard over the crashing of the waves. “What’s happening?”
“A storm blew up on us out of nowhere. One minute it was sunny, the next, the wind kicked up and the skies turned black. Now we’re getting tossed around like a damned toy boat.” Rob shouted to him over the wind that whipped them both in the face.
Jamie wiped at the saltwater stinging his eyes and making it impossible for him to see out of his glasses. “I heard the engine cut out.”
“I know. We’re dead in the water.”
“Is that good or bad? Do we want to ride out the storm, or do we need to get the engine running and try to steer away from it?”
With an expression of sheer panic on his face, Rob shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean, you don’t know? I thought you knew how to sail?”
“I can’t think right now. Sorry. I worked at a marina every summer during high school and college. I’ve docked hundreds of boats, but I’ve never been out in a storm. What the hell? It’s not supposed to be storm season. No one predicted a freaking typhoon this week.”
“Actually, it’s a hurricane. Typhoons are storms occurring west of 180 degrees longitude.” The look Rob shot him stopped Jamie mid explanation. “Never mind. Listen, I’ll go down and see what I can do with the engine. If I can get it running, we’ll see if navigating in this shit seems better with or without the motor running. Meanwhile, someone below should look for a safety manual or something. They wouldn’t give you this boat without leaving some sort of instructions.”
“The girls are useless. They’re all hysterical, and Brandon and Reilly went below with them to calm them down.”
Jamie was sure they had. Who better to play the hero with than a hysterical, scantily clad girl? At least he knew of one woman on this boat who wouldn’t be useless. Gillian.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.” About to go below, Jamie spotted a life vest. He thrust it at Rob. “Put this on.”
Another wave hit and almost knocked them both to the deck as Rob struggled to don the vest while holding on.
Jamie grabbed at a wet railing with slippery hands. “I don’t like leaving you up here alone.”