Wet (The Water's Edge #1) (20 page)

The score was tied six to six. A big hand settled on the small of my back. Startled, I twisted to the side and heard the distinctive
thunk
as the puck slid into my goal. Damn it! I glared at Theo and got the puck out of the tray. “Sorry, sweetheart,” Theo said, stepping close. “She showed up a few minutes ago.”

Closing my eyes and praying for patience, I counted to ten. When I opened them, Chelsea was standing next to Theo wearing what might generously be described as a dress. It looked more like a partially buttoned long shirt she forgot to wear pants with. Noticing West eyeing the newcomer, I took the opportunity to power the puck straight down the table, right into his goal. West looked surprised at the noise.

“I think I just scored,” I mocked, batting my eyes at him.

Chelsea looked from me to West and then back again. “I thought you were with Theo.”

“I am,” I said. “West is… an ex. I get a kick out of taunting him.”

“Oh.” Chelsea looked West over. “So, Theo’s taken, but he’s available?”

“Yeah, Sadie, am I available?” West stood up straight, pausing our game.

I scowled at Theo, shooting daggers at him with my eyes. “He’s not with me.”

Chelsea scooted closer to West.

“But he’s gay,” I added. “I ruined him for women. Now he’s only into dicks. I don’t take it personally, though.”

I bit my lip to keep from smiling as West shot me a look of pure disbelief.

I pointed across the room. “See that big guy playing pool over there? The one covered in tats? That’s his boyfriend. What’s it been now, West, two years?”

West looked down and shook his head before grinning at me. “Yup. And I thank my stars every day that the good Lord brought him into my life. I am so, so blessed.”

I could barely hold back my giggle at the disappointment on Chelsea’s face.

“Oh, and Sadie? You better believe the stakes just went higher.” West’s face was pure innocence.

Chelsea looked at him. “What are y’all playing for?”

Theo cleared his throat. “Who has to pay for the next round. Me or him. I guess the next two rounds, now.”

West didn’t take his eyes off me. “Because someone will have to pay for this, you know.”

I tried to hide my laugh, and turned into Theo’s side to compose myself, wrapping my arm around his waist. “Honey, I could use another rum and coke. Would you mind…?”

Grateful to escape, Theo started for the bar. West called after him, “Sweet cheeks, I’ll take another beer!”

After he made sure Chelsea wasn’t watching, Theo flipped West off as he walked away.

West turned back to me. “Seven to seven. You ready for this?”

“I’ve been taking it easy on you,” I scoffed.

“That’s nice and all, but I’m
gay
. Don’t you know I like it hard and rough?”

Dampness pooled in my core. I shifted my weight to rub my thighs together, trying to find some relief. West noticed the movement and smiled broadly.

Ten minutes later, it was match point in his favor, and West was running the table, the puck flying so fast I couldn’t connect with it at all. I settled for blocking my goal, trying to keep my puck centered over the opening to protect as much of it as I could. The puck ricocheted so quick it was hard to keep up with it, until suddenly it disappeared. Confused, I looked at the table and then at my goal. He had scored.

West had won.

CHAPTER 12

I
took a deep breath, my head still tipped down at my goal.

A twinge of excitement battled with annoyance. I’d lost at
my
game. Again.

I peeked up at West from under my lashes. “Double or nothing?” I offered.

West shook his head, keeping eye contact. “I don’t think you can afford those stakes.”

Chelsea cocked her head. “Yeah, ’cause, like, lifeguards don’t make that much, do they?”

“I make enough to afford a whole outfit.” My voice was like syrup.

Chelsea looked confused, and Theo choked on his beer.

Trevor and Dylan were walking by to the pool tables and West snagged Dylan’s arm as he passed. “Chelsea, have you met our
single
friends Dylan and Trevor?”

Chelsea put her palms against the air hockey table, straightened her arms, and leaned forward, pressing her breasts up between her stiffened elbows. Right on cue, both boys looked down and changed directions. “Nice to meet you,” she cooed.

Dylan sauntered around to her side. “I believe the pleasure will be all mine.” Trevor chuckled behind him. Hooking his arm around her waist, Dylan tugged her in his direction. “Why don’t you come with me and be my lucky charm while I beat this asswipe at pool? I bet you’re magically delicious.”

“What?” I heard her ask as they moved off. I rolled my eyes. The line was wasted on her. I wondered if that one had come off a dollar bill too or if he’d thought it up on his own.

“That one’s above the bar,” West said, reading my mind and moving closer. “Come on, sweetheart, dance with your ex, for old time’s sake.” He took my hand and pulled me toward the dance floor. “I’ll bring her back soon, Theo.”

As I followed him, I gazed down at our hands. He’d laced our individual fingers together and seeing those digits all tangled up suddenly brought back some very intimate memories. I swallowed hard and tried to channel Rue’s casual love-’em-and-leave-’em attitude.

Once we were swallowed up by the crowd in the middle of the dance floor, West spun back toward me, yanking me into his arms. The unexpected move had me tripping over my flip flop and threw me right up against his chest. He tightened his arms, keeping me there. The song was a fast one, but only our lower bodies were moving to the beat. My arms slid hesitantly up his and settled into a loose loop around his neck. Our hips moved together, rubbing, and through the friction, I felt him grow and lengthen. He glanced down between us and then back up at me.

“So, this weekend—”

“Will be a date, not a hook up,” I interrupted, before he got the wrong idea about me. Hell, the wrong idea? I’d slept with him
before
our first date. I couldn’t get much easier than that.

“I was thinking a picnic. Close to the water. We’re going to get you over this fear of yours.” He continued like I hadn’t interrupted him, and heat invaded my face. Okay, so maybe I was the only one already thinking about sleeping together again. “Wear a swimsuit under your clothes.”

“Why?”

He shrugged, and his eyes dropped down to our hips again. “In case we decide to get wet.” One side of his mouth quirked.

Heat flared in my core, and I dipped my hips a little lower, coming back up against him. He made a rough sound of pleasure in the back of his throat and tugged my head closer. Leaning down to my ear, he said, “I like you like this. Not all done up like last time. Your shirt falling off you shoulder.” He tugged my sagging sleeve. “Makes me want to finish the job.” He pressed his lips under my ear, letting his tongue touch the side of my neck.

The song changed, and I made myself pull away before I made an utter fool of myself by dissolving into Jell-O right there on the dance floor. “Saturday? Noon?”

He nodded and let me make my escape, his eyes watching me as I backed away. He had a crooked grin on his face, like he knew exactly what I was doing and why.

Later that night, I lay in my bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. Unable to stop thinking about West. His hands holding my hips on the dance floor. His eyes laughing at me across the air hockey table. His ab muscles contracting against my stomach. And his tongue barely touching my neck but promising to do so much more.

I groaned and flipped over onto my back, staring at the ceiling. It was going to be a long night. Biting my lower lip, I slid my hand down my stomach, my fingertips toying with the lace trim of my panties. Maybe this would help me get to sleep. Raising my knees up to get more comfortable, I traced a line down my center, reveling in the silky whisper of my panties pressing against my folds. I lifted my hips to slip my underwear off when I heard a soft tapping sound.

I froze and turned toward the window, straining my ears, my hips still raised in the air. The hum of the air conditioner kicking in startled me, and I rolled my eyes at my own paranoia, my body relaxing back against the bed. I hooked my thumb under the material at my hip and tugged. The tapping sounded again, louder this time.

Definitely coming from my window.

Easing from under my covers, I grabbed the metal baseball bat I kept under the bed and moved closer to the window. Carefully lifting one of the slats of the wooden blinds up, I peered out onto the front porch, squinting into the faint light emitted from the streetlight. A large, shadowy shape was just visible, and I jumped back, shoving my fist into my mouth to smother my shriek.

“I know you’re awake in there. Might as well come out and talk to me.” West’s voice floated to me from the other side of the window.

I sagged in relief and twisted the blinds so I could see out. West lounged against the wall, one leg bent at the knee with his foot against the house. I opened my window a couple of inches.

“What are you doing here?” I hissed.

He shrugged, the muscles in his arm contracting with the movement. “Couldn’t sleep. Thought you might want to go for a walk.”

I looked back at my clock. “At midnight-thirty?”

“Midnight-thirty?” he repeated, amused.

“Twelve-thirty. Whatever. It’s late!”

“So?”

“So…” I sputtered, unable to come up with a good response.

“The beach is deserted and beautiful this time of night. Come walk with me.”

“I thought we had a date for Saturday?”

He laughed. “Does that mean you’re off-limits until then?”

I opened my mouth and then closed it again.
Well, no, not exactly
. I let the silence drag out for a long minute before a grin teased the corner of my mouth. “Give me a minute to change.”

Closing the blinds again, I quickly added gym shorts, a bra, and a lightweight, long sleeved Vanderbilt shirt to the tank and panties ensemble I had been sleeping in. Stepping into a pair of flip flops, I slipped out the front door and closed it behind me.

West was still dressed in the same clothes he wore earlier — jeans and a tee. I walked over to him, hands on my hips. “How’d you know I would still be awake?” I cocked my head to one side and regarded him.

He smiled. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I hoped the feeling would be mutual.”

“I
was
asleep until you knocked and woke me up,” I lied, unwilling to feed his ego.

“No, you weren’t. I could hear you moving around from out here.” He raised his eyebrows, daring me to lie again.

I was glad the streetlight didn’t provide much illumination so he couldn’t see the blush staining my cheeks. Dear God, he could hear me getting ready to get myself off? Thank goodness I hadn’t been five minutes further into it.

Ignoring his comment, I started down the steps. “Where are we going?”

He followed me and pointed to his beat-up truck parked on the street. I hadn’t even heard his engine when he’d pulled up. “Back by my house. The beach is perfect right now.”

“I didn’t hear your truck,” I said as I hopped in the passenger side.

He climbed in and looked at me, the dome light between us lighting up his face. He held the steering wheel with his hand but made no move to start the car. His thumb tapped against the steering wheel and turned back toward the windshield. “I’ve been out here awhile,” he admitted.

“Creeper, much?”

His cheeks reddened, and seeing him embarrassed made my lips stretch into a huge smile. He faced me again and pinned me with a more serious look than I was expecting. My smile faded. He reached his hand out and captured a lock of my hair, running his fingers down it until his hand dropped back to his lap. “There’s just something about you,” he said. His lips lifted and then he started the truck, and the moment was broken.

We didn’t speak on the ride back to his place. Once he parked between the stilts holding his and Wyatt’s house up, he came around to my side and opened my door, taking my hand and helping me down.

Without releasing my hand, he tugged me around the house and stopped by the stairs leading to the small deck off his room. I narrowed my eyes at him. “I didn’t come over here to—”

Squatting, he tugged my flip flops off before kicking off his own shoes and continuing to walk down to the beach. “To what?” he called back over his shoulder.

Biting back a sharp retort, I shook my head and trailed after him. When I started walking along the hard, packed sand midway between the foamy licks of the ocean and the soft, sinking sand near the dunes, he snagged my hand again, redirecting me closer to the water. I resisted, trying to maintain my current path. He was undeterred, his grip solid, and I had no choice but to follow him, losing our silent battle of wills.

“Where are you taking me?”

“I told you, we’re going to get you over this fear of yours. Starting with a walk in ankle-deep water. Ankle deep, Sadie. You can handle it.”

I tried to free my hand from his grasp. It didn’t work. “I can’t see though. It’s dark. What if there’s something there?”