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I can’t blame her, honestly, considering how scathing Roxanne’s words had been. As much as I like Roxie, when she said those things to Elise, I felt a surge of anger surge within me. Elise’s face had gone white, and I just knew that she was shocked at having her private feelings laid bare like that. Anyone would need some time to recharge after that, so the least I can do is let her choose where she wants to relax.
“Fine, fine, but just tell me when you’re ready to join the rest of the world.”
Standing on the edge of the rippling water, she gives me a coy look. “What if I never am?”
“Then I guess we’ll both just be beach hermits for the rest of our lives. Whatever you want, El.”
My lovely companion laughs, her voice angelic. Little does she know, I mean it. Wherever she goes, I want to go, too.
Sleek and lithe, Elise dives beneath the turquoise waves, emerging with her hair slicked back and her body bathed in sunlight. I follow her as if in a trance, and when I reach her, she’s floating on her back, arms out wide at her sides, and her eyes are closed. She appears to be completely at peace, but I know there’s more beneath the surface of this little siren than what meets the eye.
Speaking of what meets the eye, though, I can’t help but take some time to appreciate her curves and glowing, tanned skin. Floating in front of me, there are just scraps of fabric separating my hands from her breasts and the apex of her thighs, and I have to clench my hands to keep myself from giving into my urges and pulling her bathing suit away.
Let the ocean have it, I want her bare to me, I think wildly, before getting myself back under control.
Elise opens her eyes as if she senses me watching her, irises sparkling. She could be a siren with the way she pulls me in, even just floating here, not touching me or saying anything at all.
Then she parts her lips and speaks, breaking the odd magic of the moment. “What are you thinking? You look very serious.”
“Nothing,” I lie, knowing that she’s not going to accept it but still trying.
She flicks water up at me, just the slightest movement of fingers. “Tell me.”
I wipe the water off my face with a scowl. “Stop being childish. I said nothing, so I mean nothing.”
Now it's her turn to frown at me, splashing me with more gusto this time to the point I’m sputtering. “You’re the most childish adult I know, for one, so don’t be a hypocrite. Two, I know you better than that, Dan. You can’t lie to me. Tell me what’s on your mind.”
“Besides drowning you?” I huff, slicking my hair back and out of my face. “I just… can’t figure out why your dad behaves the way he does. That’s all.”
Her expression sobers, the fleeting seconds of playfulness dissipating. “I thought I understood why he acts the way he does, but now I’m not so sure. When all I cared about was advancing in the company and being his heiress, I never questioned him for being so cutthroat and unwavering. I just thought it was how he had to be to get where he was in life and stay there. Preferring Andries over me all those years… well, I just chalked that up to him being from an older generation. That’s how things have always been done… the oldest son is the most cherished, or something.”
“That doesn’t make any of it fair, El. Sebastian is an intelligent man. He doesn’t change because he doesn’twantto, not because he isn’t able.”
“I know.” She sighs, closing her eyes again. “I made excuses for his behavior in my own mind forever, but now I see that it was a mistake. He’s acting ridiculous, to the detriment of the rest of the family. Speaking of my family… I spoke to Mom today.”
I brush my hands through her hair as it floats in the water. “Yeah?”
“I think I’ve convinced her to come to the wedding on her own and bring the rest of my siblings. Dad can just stay behind if he wants to so badly.” A small smile tugs at her lips. “I’d like to think that it was my talent for persuasion that made her change her mind, but I think she had already decided long before we spoke, and I was just the catalyst for her to say it out loud.”
“Is that revenge on your dad or something? Cajoling your mom into coming to the wedding?”
Elise shakes her head, making little waves when she does so. “Not revenge, per se. Just the right thing to do.”
“But what about your mission to split Andries and Roxanne up for daddy dearest?” I tease her, and she flicks water at me once more. This time I’m quick enough to dodge.
“Not happening anymore,” she declares, and I feel a surge of pride in her. I knew she would make the right call, in the end. “If Andries finds out about the cabaret, it won’t have anything to do with me. I’m not going to compromise my brother’s relationship.”
“See, it wasn’t so hard to be a good person, now was it?” I joke, and she rolls her eyes at me. “Really though, El, I’m proud of you.”
She blushes, only the tiniest bit, but I can tell she adores the praise. “Thank you, Dan. I haven’t had anyone tell me that in a long time.”
It would be so easy to scoop her up into my arms and kiss her mouth, her chest, and her neck, that my arms ache with the need to do so. It’s clear, from the softness of her gaze and the way she’s nibbling her bottom lip that she wants me to kiss her, and knowing that she’s grown so much as a person makes me want to give in and reward her with one, but I resist. Elise becoming a better woman doesn’t exactly make Johan disappear or her feelings for me change.
It’s a cowardly move, but I have to flee, turning around and wading through the water with large strides to go back to shore. Seeing her floating there makes me think of our time in the private cove, and how she had me fuck her in the surf, and I can’t take it.
I collapse on the beach towel, the hot sun drying me off but doing nothing to get rid of my arousal. Half erect, I have to reach down and adjust myself when I hear Elise stomping through the water toward me.
I close my eyes, using my ears to tell when her steps hit the sand, and then I can feel her standing over me and looking down. I can almost feel her annoyance in the air between us, and while that would have amused me before, now I’m just tired. Tired of wanting her. Tired of resisting.
