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Kenna laughed, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “I didn’t know how to destress, salty. I certainly didn’t have a place like this.”
“Salty?”
Kenna grinned, quite proud of herself. “Between the Salt Life shirts and how you taste…” She shrugged.
I turned to address her comment, hoping for another one of those tastes, but she gasped. I followed her outstretched arm to see two dolphins frolicking in the water just past my boat. I felt like I was seeing Florida for the first time again through her eyes. Beyond the stifling humidity, the terrible drivers, and the scary wildlife, this place also held magic.
Kenna leaned back against me, snuggling into my arms. “Thank you for bringing me here. I know you like to be alone, but…”
I tightened my arms around her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
She swiveled her head on my chest to look up at me, her eyes covered by reflective sunglasses. “You know what I mean. You’re a loner, Dec, and I like that about you.”
That was a new one. Harley gave me shit all the time for being an old man at barely forty, turning down social invites to either be floating on my boat or tucked away at home. “Really? Pretty sure you didn’t like me at first.”
Kenna snorted. “Who said I like you now?”
I poked her in the ribs and she squeaked again before laughing. “I’m kidding. You do grow on a person.”
I shook my head. “You make me sound like a fungus. Why do you like that, you little weirdo?”
Kenna was grinning and the sight made my heart feel like it was pressing against my ribs. Why did this woman make me feel like being less of a loner? Like maybe I didn’t have to hide out any longer. Like maybe I could rebuild my life too?
“Well, not that I want to bring up he-who-shall-not-be-named, but my ex was Mr. Popular.” I waited her out, letting her decide if she wanted to tell me more. “As you know, Justin was president of his fraternity in college. He loved all the attention. Thrived on it actually. I think that’s one of the reasons he was unfaithful. He needed the adoration of more than just one woman, and I’d quit adoring him years before if I’m honest with myself.”
Her explanation was like a splash of cold ocean water to the face. I vowed right then and there never to tell her about my secret. She’d hate who I used to be. Who I would be again if my secret ever got out. This thing between us was temporary and I’d do well to remember that. A flirtation to pass the time. A way to get Kenna back on her feet in the dating world. A fun distraction at best.
Eventually, Kenna’s exposed skin started turning red and I got her back on the boat where the canopy could keep her shaded. Instead of heading back to the dock, we decided it was five o’clock somewhere and cracked open the beer I brought in the cooler. The speakers on my boat were connected to my phone, so I turned on some country music and pulled Kenna to her feet, still anchored off the spoil.
“Dancing? The loner knows how to dance?” Kenna squealed, clearly happy I had her hand in mine, a suggestive wiggle of my eyebrows directed her way.
I pulled her in close, my hand cupping her hip and pressing her against me. We swayed to the music, our hips locked together as one. It took exactly one and a half songs before she pulled her cheek from my chest and tipped her head back to stare up at me. She was beautiful, the wisps of hair around her face turning curly in the humid, salty air. Gone was the stuffy office worker in blouses and skirts. In her place was a freckled, wild-haired beauty who was starting to trust herself again.
“Ever made out on a boat, salty?” she asked, soft voice just audible above the music. Her body stiffened, as if embarrassed for asking the question, but her eyes sparkled as brightly as the ocean.
It was impossible to resist her. Impossible to resist being part of her awakening.
I lifted a brow. “You really want to know?”
Kenna groaned and the vibration of it made my hips grind against her as we danced. She bit her bottom lip at the obvious feel of me. I wanted her.
“I’ve missed out on so much,” she pouted.
The grin was inevitable. “We can’t have that.”
My lips were on hers in a heartbeat, our tongues tangling together a heartbeat after that. She groaned again, and this time, I positioned my leg between hers, giving her the friction I knew she wanted with my thigh. Her little noises were intoxicating. They were little sparks of fire that threatened to burn out of control. Hands roamed and I knew the exact weight of her ass cheek in my palm. When she reached a hand between us and stroked me outside my board shorts, I knew I had to slow things down before I embarrassed myself.
I spun us, pushing her down into the captain’s chair. At her mewl of disappointment, I followed her down, kneeling between her legs and trailing my hands up her bare thighs. She gasped as I reached higher, her cheeks pink from the sun or simply excitement, I wasn’t sure.
“Tell me no right now if you want me to stop.” The raspy voice didn’t even sound like me. There was a desperation to my tone that I’d never heard before.
Kenna licked her lips and even that had me hanging by a thin thread of control. When she simply nodded, I held tight to that thread, pulling aside her swimsuit with my thumb and burying my head between her soft thighs. The first taste of her went to my head, a mix of sweet and salty and coconut sunblock. I knew in an instant I’d never forget that combination.
Her hips bucked against the leather and I had to hold her down with one hand while I flicked that neglected bundle of nerves with the tip of my tongue. I’d barely gotten started when her moans came in quick gasps. Her fingers found my hair, knocking off my hat and gripping the strands tight. The bracelet she always wore chimed by my ear. Her body trembled, and on a loud keen, she shattered on my tongue. I looked up to see her toss her head back, breasts quivering in her swimsuit top. Long whimpers of pleasure kept time with the song playing through the speakers.
I’d never heard a better song in my fucking life.
I’d never seen a more beautiful woman turn to putty on my tongue.
