Secrets in Sunset Beach 1
Page 5
She sighed, tilting her head up, and then to one side, giving him a smile. "Wait here," she said and went back inside. She returned a moment later with two large bottles, the label in German, the glass colored a dark brown. She opened both of them with that bottle opener that was always in her pocket and handed him one. "I never did give you that good drink."
Derick smiled at her and took a sip. It was earthy, flooded his mouth as whiskey would. There was the taste of pumpkins and cinnamon woven into the brew, a delicate aftertaste that made his tongue burn. He hummed and gave her an approving nod.
Heather's smile widened. "Come walk with me," she said, holding out her hand.
Derick took it, their fingers lacing, as she led him across the little parking lot and over the small wall separating the street from the sand. In one direction, the bright lights of Sunset Beach's elite glimmered, reflected in the gentle ocean waves. The moon was high and full, stars twinkling dimly all through the black. In the other direction was a small smoking pit from a shore party long-ended, the temporary stage dark. There was no one but the two of them.
Heather sighed happily, swinging their hands between them, and took another drink of her beer. "I always love taking walks when there's no one else around," she said warmly.
Derick couldn't blame her – after the bustle of the Hummingbird and a shore party almost every night, the silence broken only by the ocean was almost hypnotic. Like they were in a bubble all their own, sealed off from the rest of the world.
After a moment, Heather stopped and gave Derick her beer, releasing his hand so she could untie her tennis shoes and remove them, balling up her socks and stuffing them in. She set them on the sand and dug her toes into it until it covered her ankles and almost obscured the ivy tattoo.
She caught him staring and smiled, retrieving her beer with one hand, pulling her hair free with the other. "Chasity and I made a pact to get tattoos when we graduated," she said, as she rolled her hair tie up her wrist and took Derick's hand again, and they resumed their walk. "She chickened out after I got mine, the bitch." Her voice was soft with affection, though, no real heat behind the words.
"Jake has tattoos," Derick replied. "I always wanted one but could never stick with one long enough to commit."
Heather nodded. "Dad went ballistic. He hates tats, said that I'd 'ruined' my body like putting a bumper sticker on a Ferrari." She giggled, rolling her eyes. "I told him it's my body, I can do whatever the Hell I want with it."
Derick smiled. That certainly sounded like her.
"I like it," she said, sticking her leg out in an exaggerated step so that she could see it. "Reminds me that I can do whatever I want, whenever I want. Nothing in the world to hold me back."
They walked to the shoreline until the sand became damp and clumped under their feet. Heather sighed again, looking up, as they listed left and walked along the sand. "Do you like it here, Derick?"
Derick tilted his head.
"Like, do you ever want to just pack up and go?"
"Sometimes," he admitted. "But every time I consider it, I find a reason to stay."
Heather smiled softly and playfully. "What's your reason now?" she asked, punctuating the question with another drink. Derick mimicked her, his mouth suddenly dry. But the beer didn't help. It settled heavily in his chest, flooded his lungs with cinnamon and wood smoke, and her gaze made his heart race.
"I think you know," he replied.
Heather's smile widened, showing her teeth. She took his beer from him, turned and shoved the bases into the sand so they remained upright. As she straightened, Derick went to her, drawn in like a fish on a hook, and kissed her, one hand in her hair, the other dipping under her arm to flatten along her spine.
Heather shivered, lips parting as she wrapped her arms around his neck, arching to her toes, and then up completely, jumping into his arms. He stumbled, and they both fell, narrowly avoiding the beer bottles. Heather laughed, and they rolled until Derick was pinned on his back, Heather astride his hips. There was sand in her hair and on his hands. She grinned down at him, biting her lower lip.
She sighed, bracing herself on his chest, and tilted her head back and spread her knees so all her weight fell over his hips. Derick stifled a growl, hands flattening on her thighs, dragging up.
She righted herself, gazed down at him, and then fisted a hand in his hair, pulling him upright and into another kiss. Her free hand pawed at the hem of his shirt, pulling it up, and he lifted his arms to let her tug it over his head, the kiss breaking for just a moment before she lunged for him again. She moaned in encouragement as he wiped his hands on her shirt, freeing them of sand, and spread them wide below her loose shirt, shivering when he touched her smooth, warm skin. She clawed at his shoulders, kissing him passionately as he felt his way up her back until he found the clasp of her bra.
He hesitated, and she bit his lower lip. "Don't stop now," she commanded, eyes dark as the night sky, shining with stars. The ocean rushed on behind her, carrying a breeze that took up strands of her hair, blowing them forward. She was beautiful and wild, so eager in his arms.
He undid her bra, and she took her hands away from him, slipping it free from her sleeves and down her arms, tossing it behind Derick to join his shirt. Her hands went to her shorts quickly after, unbuttoning them and sliding them down her hips. She lifted to her knees, and Derick groaned at the sight of her black lacy panties, modest but pretty, framing her thighs and her hipbones.
He pulled her close and rolled them again, spreading his shirt out so she didn't chafe against the sand. She laughed as he pulled her shorts down and off her feet. "What a gentleman," she praised quietly and put her hands back in his hair, tugging him into another kiss.
Her thighs gripped him tightly, drawing him closer. Derick shuddered as he found friction between her legs, and he kicked off his shoes, drew his knees up to keep her spread open. He kissed her again, then the corner of her mouth, down her neck as she shivered and sighed in pleasure, tipping her head back. He flattened his hands on her hips, curled his fingers in the sides of her panties.
She met his eyes and nodded.
He continued on his course, pushing her shirt up to bare her breasts, nipples peaked in the crisp ocean air. He lowered his mouth to one, kissed open-mouthed and wet as she petted through his hair, moaning softly, thighs quivering around him. He tested with his teeth, and she gasped loudly, arching up for more. He tugged her panties down, baring a small patch of blond hair above where she was soft and pink and wet.
He rose up, breathing hard, taking her in; her wild-splayed hair, her heaving chest, her miles of smooth, tanned skin. She was so beautiful, way too good for the likes of him. She bit her lower lip, meeting his eyes, one of her hands sinking between her legs to touch herself.
"Don't stop," she commanded, as fiercely as every order she'd given him. Derick was helpless to resist. He unfastened his jeans and shoved them down along with his underwear, to the tops of his thighs, and eased his erection free. She sat up, pulling him into a kiss, and wrapped a sure hand around his cock, stroking with a slow, tight fist that mimicked the rhythm of the ocean waves.
He moaned into her mouth, and she swallowed it with a smile, licking behind his teeth. "I don't suppose you have a condom," she mused, arching a brow.
Derick winced and shook his head.
She laughed, nodding in acceptance. "Next time," she promised, a low purr that sent a shiver down his spine. She took his hand and wiped it on her shirt to get rid of the sand, drew it between her legs. He growled at how wet she was, how warm, eagerly parting for the first tentative press of his finger inside her. Her face went lax with pleasure, a sigh escaping as she continued to stroke him, their foreheads touching, both of them sharing each other's air.
"For now," she said, breath hitching as he twisted his hand, rubbing his thumb between her slick flesh until he felt the little bud of her clit, giving it a single, slow circle, "we can use this as a learning opportunity."
"You know what you like," he rasped, eyes closing as her fingers tightened in his hair. Every touch he gave her seemed to cause that reaction, an involuntary spasm each time her breath hitched and her lashes fluttered.
"That I do," she purred in reply. Derick gasped as, suddenly, he was on his back again, Heather straddling his thighs, grinding against his erection. "And I'll teach you. And you can teach me. We can learn together."
She brought him up for a kiss and dropped her hand to his cock as he teased at her nipple with one hand, the other sinking down to touch her until she shook. She kissed the air from his lungs as easily as she had the first time. With no one but the ocean to watch them, they didn't have to worry about being loud. Derick learned how to make her cry out with pleasure, how each touch and kiss and tease of his fingers and tongue opened her and soaked her through. He showed her how he liked to be touched and she took to that like a fish to water, until his stomach clenched and he spilled hot and thick over their joined hands.
When it was over, she gave him a winning smile and kissed him chastely.
"You should stay," she told him. It wasn't an order.
Derick smiled at her and wondered which shone brighter, the stars or her eyes. "I will."
Check out “Secrets in Sunset Beach - Book 2” in the Kindle store.
Join Ivy’s fan club newsletter to learn about new releases, freebies, sneak peeks, and more!