Out Of Line (6 page)

The next morning, I struggled to get to the surface, my lungs bursting with the need to breathe. The need for air. I kicked wildly but seemed to be getting nowhere fast. I knew time was running out. Knew I needed to breathe sooner rather than later. If I died in this ocean, Dad would kill me.

Finn had given me a ten-minute lecture about the dangers of surfing. Telling me to never leave his side, never take a wave that wasn’t the right size for me, never take chances, and above all—never disobey him out in the ocean. Out there, he was my boss and I would “fucking listen.” Well, I had followed all those rules. I had fucking listened.

But I was
still
drowning.

Just as I was certain I would never see the light of day again, a strong hand closed around my wrist and tugged me to the surface. As I gulped in a deep breath, the air stinging my oxygen-deprived lungs, I opened my eyes and saw Finn looking down at me with a tight jaw. Little droplets of water spiked on his long lashes, and his hair was soaking wet.

“Got you,” he said, his voice rough.

“Thanks,” I sputtered, struggling to catch my breath. I shivered, and he frowned down at me even more. “It’s c-cold under there.”

“Yeah. I noticed,” he said. A muscle ticked in his jaw again. What was his deal? “You almost drowned. You know that, right?”

“I was fine.” And I was also a big fat liar. I hadn’t been fine. Far from it. And truth be told? I’d been terrified. But that was all the more reason for me to keep going. To try again until I got better. I refused to back down. “Ready to go again?”

“Hell no. You’re done for today, no matter what you say,” he said, paddling toward the shore and towing me behind him like an errant child. “If I have to save your life one more time today, you’ll owe me your first born son.”

I could fight his hold and insist on continuing, but the truth was I was worn out. I could feel my exhaustion all the way to my bones. We’d been in the water for three hours. I was tired, achy, and freezing. California water might look inviting, but it was freaking frigid. “F-Fine. We’ll do it again next weekend.”

He shot me an incredulous look. “You want to go back out?”

“Of course,” I said through numb lips. “I want to learn.”

“You’re something else,” he muttered, shaking his head.

“W-What’s that supposed to mean?”

He lifted a shoulder. “I would’ve thought one time would be enough for you.”

“I don’t give up easily.” As soon as my feet hit sand, I pulled free of his grip. His assumptions about me were getting awfully annoying. “I get my steely determination from my father and my need to succeed from my mother. So don’t
assume
I’ll quit so easily.”

“Relax. I didn’t mean to insult you.”

“You did.”

I waited for him to apologize. To say he was wrong about me. Good thing I didn’t hold my breath, because I’d have died waiting. Instead, he shot me an amused look and slung his board under his arm. When he reached for mine, I shook my head and mimicked his hold with my own.

“Refusing help now?” he asked, his eyes lighting up with amusement.

I had to know how to do this myself. He wouldn’t always be with me. “I don’t need you doting all over me, thank you very much.”

“Doting?” he spluttered, his face turning red. “I’m not
doting
on you. Christ.”

“I’m perfectly capable of carrying my own board.”

“Unbelievable,” he muttered under his breath. He shook his head and walked toward our towels. “Take off the wetsuit.”

I looked down at the only thing keeping me warm right now. “Why? That doesn’t make any sense.”

“Can you
not
argue for one time in your life?”

“Excuse me for speaking my mind, master.” I stiffened. “I’d say it’ll never happen again, but it would be a lie.”

He laughed. “Just trust me, okay? You’ll warm up quicker without the suit.” He held out my towel. “And put this on once you’re out of it.”

Why did I have to wear a towel? Maybe he couldn’t stand the sight of me. “Right here?”

He cocked a brow. “Yeah. What’s wrong? You naked under there?”

“No, of course not.” I looked around. A bunch of surfers were stripping out of their suits without a shred of modesty a few feet over, chatting about the waves that would be coming from the storm tonight. Apparently undressing in public was normal. “I just didn’t realize…”

I drifted off, feeling stupid. It’s not like my bikini I wore underneath was something I never showed anyone. It was meant to be worn out in public, for Pete’s sake. I might be undressing in public in front of a bunch of men, but it was a bikini. No big deal.

After taking a deep breath to calm my stupidly racing heart, I peeled the wetsuit off my body. For a brief second, I thought my bikini top had gone off with the suit, but a quick glance showed it was still in place—but slightly skewed. As I adjusted the top, I lifted my head and found Finn watching me with dark eyes. As our gazes collided, he turned away.

I had caught him watching me, and the look in his eyes had sent a fist of something crashing through me. Desire? Need? Both.

God, he didn’t make any sense. He watched me as if he couldn’t get his mind off me, and yet he kept insisting he couldn’t have me. Heaven forbid another man looked my way though. He’d be all over the guy in two seconds flat, just like a jealous boyfriend. All the cons without the pros.

I tugged the wetsuit past my hips, but stopped when I realized the wetsuit wasn’t the only thing I was removing. “Oops. My bikini bottom almost came off.”

“Please make sure it doesn’t,” he said over his shoulder. “Unless you want to put on a show for a bunch of older men.”

Were they all older? I scanned the men surrounding us. A guy was about my age leaned against a tree, his eyes on me. “They’re not all old. The guy watching me over there is my age. Actually, he’s kind of cute…”

Finn spun around so fast he should have gotten whiplash. Within seconds, he was in front of me, his hands on my hips and his back pressed to my front. “Who? Where?”

Yep. Jealous boyfriend, only without the perks. No way I was letting him go all alpha male on the poor guy for daring to look at me. “I think he might have left.”

I pretended to look around his wide shoulders, leaning against his back for support. When my breasts brushed against his damp skin, my already hard nipples pebbled into even harder beads, seeming to beg for his touch. Could he tell? Did he know? When he tensed up and drew in a deep breath, I got my answer. “Fuck, Carrie. What are you doing?”

“Just looking around for that guy,” I breathed, finding boldness in his obvious reaction to me. “Why? Is something wrong?”

“You aren’t ready for what you’re starting, Ginger.”

Yeah, I was.
He
was the one who wasn’t ready. Not me.

I didn’t know what struck me, what made me think that I could seduce him. I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. He’d probably been with countless women, while I was nothing but a nineteen-year-old virgin who read too many romance books. One who didn’t know what to do with a man like Finn.

But I tried anyway. I trailed my fingers over his shoulders, then leaned in and pressed a kiss to the back of his shoulder. Reaching around him, I let my hands slide down his hard pecs, toward his abs. He tensed and hissed through his teeth. I bit down on his shoulder and tried to get up the nerve to go even lower.

He shuddered and leaned back into me, his hands reaching around to grab my butt. His fingers fanned out over the top of my thighs, so close to touching me where I needed him most, yet not close enough. “Carrie…” he said, his voice strained. “You need to…I need to…back away. Now. Or you’ll be mine in more ways than you can handle. Right here. Right now. In front of everyone.”

After a second of hesitation, I backed off, the intensity in his voice almost too much for me to handle. I didn’t doubt that he meant it. That he would kiss me in front of everyone. But surely not…not what he said. He acted as if he was about to bend me over the bench and have his way with me.

“You wouldn’t.” I pressed my hands to my cheeks, which suddenly felt way too hot.

“I would.” He spun to face me, his face red. “What game are you playing?”

My gaze fell to his erection, which strained against his swim trunks. He wanted me, just like I wanted him. I swallowed past the Sahara Desert that was now my throat and forced my eyes northward. “I’m not playing any games. I just wanted—”

“I know what you wanted.” He flexed his jaw and stepped back from me. His gaze dipped below my face for a second, but then he turned around again. My stomach coiled, as if he’d touched me instead of simply looking my way. “Put the towel on.”

I scowled at his back. If he wanted to ignore the desire between us, I would let him, but I didn’t have to make it
easy
on him. After drying my hair, I flung the towel across the bench before I sat down and reclined against the seat. Covering a yawn with my hand, I dropped my head back against the wood.

“You got something against a towel?” he asked.

“Yeah. I want to feel the sun.”

“Feel it through a towel,” he said.

“Nah. I’m good.” I bit my lower lip to keep it from lifting into a smile. I kind of liked the fact that he couldn’t bear seeing me. At least, now that I knew
why
. “That was fun but exhausting.”

I heard him move closer, but didn’t open my eyes. “Maybe you’re tired because of the partying and not the surfing,” he said.

“I doubt it.” I cracked one eye open to look at him. He was watching me, but he wasn’t staring at my face. “Though, I did meet a nice guy.”

His fists went even tighter. “Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. His name’s Cory.” I shrugged. “He gave me his number. We’re in a bunch of classes together, and we even have the same major.”

He was exactly the kind of man Dad would pick for me. The kind of guy he would want to call his son-in-law. If they ever met, Dad would probably start drawing up wedding invitations within minutes of meeting Cory. I, however, preferred my men with tattoos and attitude and perpetually disheveled hair.

Men like Finn.

“How perfect,” he said, his voice tight. “I’m sure Daddy would approve of him.”

My eyes flew open. His thoughts mirrored my own way too well. “Excuse me?”

“I-I mean, he sounds like the kind of guy a father would like.” He sat down beside me, hanging his hands in between his knees. “From what little I know of fathers, anyway.”

I relaxed again. For a second, I thought he knew something more about me than he should have. “Did any of your girlfriends’ fathers like you?”

He shrugged. “I haven’t really had any. I’ve been married to my work for the past five years. Not much free time.”

“Oh.” I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. “I can’t imagine you being single. I figured a guy like you would have numerous women in his life.”

“Now who’s making assumptions?” he asked, giving me a pointed look.

“I’m sorry,” I quickly said. I hated when he did it to me, and I’d gone and done it to him. “I didn’t mean to be rude.”

“Apology accepted, but it just so happens you might be right.”

My jaw dropped open. He didn’t make any sense. “You said you’ve been single.”

“I’ve been single.” He grinned at me. “Not celibate. Two different things.”

I rolled my eyes, disappointed by his honesty. I’d been hoping…what, exactly? That he’d spent his whole life waiting for the right girl to come along? As if.

He shifted on the bench and stole a glance at me. “Are you going to see this guy again?”

“I’m sure I will. We do have classes together.”

He sighed. “I meant outside of school.”

“I don’t know.” I looked up, watching the clouds move lazily across the blue sky. One of the clouds looked like the Washington Monument, and it made me miss home and my mom. Heck, even my dad.

“What’s his last name?”

I eyed him. “Why?”

“Just curious if I knew him.”

“Oh. Pinkerton.” I watched the monument cloud until in merged with another, making it unrecognizable. “I’ll probably see him again. He seems nice.”

“Nice,” he muttered. “That’s a word for a puppy, not a man. Nice won’t make you scream out in bed.”

I choked on a laugh, but something inside of me responded differently. Finn would probably be able to make me scream his name. Too bad he didn’t want to. “I can’t believe you said that.”

He lifted a shoulder. “If the shoe fits…”

“Well, I like puppies and nice guys like Cory,” I added. Even though I was lying. I much preferred Finn.

“You’re a dog person?” he asked.

“Some dogs.” I smiled and pictured Mom’s dog running through the yard with a pink bow around its neck. “I like the little terrier my mom has. She’s cute.”

“Do you miss home?”

“Yeah.” I nodded and swallowed hard. “I mean, it’s been less than a week, but I definitely miss certain things. Although it’s nice being on my own. Making friends. Surfing. Riding a motorcycle.” I hesitated. I wanted to tell him more about myself. Wanted to trust him. “I couldn’t do that stuff at home. There were too many eyes on me all the time.”

“Too many eyes,” he said softly. “That doesn’t sound fun.”

“It kind of sucked,” I admitted. “My dad is kind of…important in his company. He’s in politics, and with politics…people are always watching.”

He cleared his throat. “You didn’t mention that before.”

“I didn’t trust you before.” I met his eyes and bit down on my lip. “I do now. I’m hoping it’s not a mistake.”

“It’s not,” he said, but his eyes looked shaded with something I couldn’t name. “I won’t tell anyone.”

“Yeah, I’m trying to keep a low profile. I look a lot different than I used to, and I was lucky enough to be out of the media for the last year. Hopefully it stays that way.”

“So, you’re like a Kennedy?”

I laughed. I wasn’t nearly so high up on the political food chain, nor did I want to be. “Hardly so glamorous.”