AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She was wearing a dress that could be worn to any dinner or church on Sunday, leaving her pearls at home where they were safe. Her beautiful ring had yet to leave her finger, and if someone was going to rob her – they could take the whole digit because there was no way she was removing it.
A part of her assumed that as soon as they got to their room, Max would be all over her, wanting to fool around – yet he kept pulling back. Even now, he’d gone to change in the bathroom to preserve one of their modesties. She hadn’t lied when she admitted she packed light.
She had.
In her suitcase were two bikinis, a one-piece swimsuit, a sarong for a coverup, undergarments, three tank tops, three pairs of shorts, a maxi dress, and a little something pretty to sleep in. In fact, everything fit neatly in one drawer of the dresser, she realized, dumping it all in there. Grabbing her bikini, she closed her eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to gather her inner strength to put on the items.
“All righty…” Max said happily, coming around the corner and hesitating, angling his head to the side nervously. “Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
“The bathroom is free if you want to change. I packed sunblock, so I’ll have it out here if you need it. I thought maybe we could relax for a while and…”
He was repeating himself, she realized and smiled.
“That sounds wonderful.”
“Very,” he agreed, stumbling over the single word. “I’m just gonna get the champagne flutes and the bottle.”
“I’ll get changed,” she replied and disappeared into the bathroom, listening. She could hear him moving around in the distance, softly whistling, and heard the sliding door open.
The resort was breathtakingly beautiful. Everywhere she looked, there was stone or marble. The floors were a cool stone with beams that ran along the ceiling over the bed to accentuate the fact that the bungalow was round. The bathroom was covered in tiny stone squares grouted in a grid pattern with a massive bathtub for two. Even the shower had two shower heads. This place was made for lovers and here they were – but distinctly not that.
It was almost like the place was flaunting the fact that they hadn’t been intimate, making her wonder if that was why Max had chosen this location, so he could finally ‘score’ with her… and she sighed heavily.
That just wasn’t him deep down.
It might have been at one time, but it was like they’d both changed and grown. She was coming out of her shell because of his love – and he was holding back for her. No, they were meeting in the middle and he wouldn’t have picked something so beautiful, so romantic, just for the sake of that.
Donning her swimsuit, she refused to look in the mirror and ignored her hands shaking. She felt good in the swimsuit and loved the way that it had an underwire built in to help hold things in place. If she looked in the mirror, that bitter, critical voice was going to be unleashed, and there was no place for it here in paradise.
No, here she was, determined to be happy and spend time with the man she loved more than anything, and she wanted to feel good in her own skin. Her ‘mirror’ would be the look in his eyes, and that would be telling enough to let her know if this was acceptable or if she should use her coverup she’d packed just in case.
Opening the bathroom door, she rolled back her shoulders and steeled herself, determined to enjoy her escape with Max no matter what, and she slid open the sliding glass door, seeing him look up as his mouth dropped open.
“WHHHHOAAAMYYYYGOSH…”
Max yelped loud enough to rustle the birds in the trees and she nearly bolted for the bathroom – except something stopped her. He was wiping at his mouth almost in a panicked motion as he stumbled over his words that escaped him in a rush.
“H-Holy cow and hallelujah! You can have everything, I swear. You want the liver, you can have it. I don’t really need one – do I? Oh my gosh, I think I’m drooling… am I drooling? Oh yeah, I am. Does ‘dain-bramage’ hurt ‘cause I think something short-circuited in my head – and my pants,” he blurted out and let out a panicked giggle.
“Oh man, is there something in the liquor 'cause I’m hallucinating… all of that glory was not hiding under your normal stuffy lawyer suits, was it? How did I not know this?” Max paused, rubbing his hands over his face as if to wake himself up – and then slapped his cheek… hard - before grinning at her. “I think I might actually cry because I’m so stinking happy right now.”
“Hi,” she said shyly, trying to cover her swimsuit nervously… only to see him wave his hands, urging her to get in the pool with him.
“Come in, don’t hide from m-me… my goodness, y-you are glorious,” he stammered, waving her forward. “Come have a glass of champagne, and let’s celebrate.”
Nodding, Elana stepped hesitantly into the shallow end of the pool until it was about waist high, and Max was there quickly, coming to her side. He was holding the two champagne flutes, and his eyes kept roving over her.
“Wow,” he breathed before repeating it. “Wow… wow… wow.”
“Yeah?” she smiled, and he nodded mutely. “I wanted something pretty to wear for you on our trip.”
“Nailed her,” he blurted out crassly, looking completely flustered and distracted – and then made a noise, correcting himself. “I meant ‘nailed it’. That swimsuit is perfect for you.”
And then, to her shock, he downed one flute of champagne, followed by the other, still staring at her, and Elana laughed, realizing that he really did like the way she looked. He was completely beside himself and couldn’t stop gawking at her in the bikini.
“See?” she flaunted, teasing him softly as she remembered that he’d asked to see them and where they were located on her body. “I told you I had tattoos. Here,” and she pointed at her shoulder.
