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Gabby
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There were times when you knew an idea was just plain bad. Busting into a bottle of what appeared to be very old, expensive scotch was a bad idea. We both knew it, yet here we were contemplating doing it anyway. In the pro column, he was leaving tomorrow. That was about it.
“Okay,” I heard myself say. The against column had been completely ignored on purpose. I didn’t want to talk myself out of this bad decision. “But can I use a glass?”
He grinned. “If you insist.”
I gestured for him to come inside and grabbed two glasses. He poured us each half a glass before lifting his. “To my last night on the island,” he said.
I smiled and lifted mine. “To my first night being alone on the island.”
He laughed and took a drink. I took my first drink and had to close my eyes. It burned all the way down, but it wasn’t terrible. “Well?” he asked.
“It’s good,” I lied.
“Are you a drinker?” he asked. “Beyond the wine.”
“Not really.”
“Then you better not try to keep up with me,” he teased. “I’d hate for you to get wasted.”
“It’s not like either of us has to drive home,” I laughed.
“True, but drunk girls tend to get a little frisky around me,” he said and flashed that panty-dropping grin.
I rolled my eyes. “I think it might take a little more than that to get me to fall for your charms.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
We moved to sit out on the porch. “Seriously, have you ever seen anything so beautiful?” he asked as the sky faded to bright oranges and pinks.
“No,” I answered. “Obviously, being on the west coast, we have some pretty spectacular sunsets, but this is different. I am in love with the rawness of this place.”
“Me too,” he said.
“Are you going to come back next month?” I asked him.
He took a drink and appeared thoughtful. “I don’t think so.”
“What? Why not?”
“I think the novelty has worn off,” he answered.
“Because of me?” I questioned.
“Nah, not really,” he said without really convincing me. “I just think the bloom has faded.”
“Are you going to take the rest of the vacation you said you needed?”
“I think so,” he nodded.
“But you’re not sure.”
“I’m not sure if I truly need it,” he said. “I thought I did, but running from my life isn’t going to resolve anything.”
“And you were running?”
“No,” he said. “I don’t know. I needed to get my head together and the last week has helped me do that. I think I might stick with what I know and love and rent a cabin in the woods.”
I felt a little guilty for ruining his vacation. “Do you feel like you’ve resolved the issues that were bothering you?”
He smirked. “We’re adults. Are any of our issues every fully resolved?”
“Good point,” I laughed. “You mentioned you spent time with your father, does that mean you had a decent childhood?”
“I had a great childhood,” he said. “My baggage has nothing to do with my folks. They are good, hard-working people.”
“They’re still around?”
“Yes,” he nodded again. “My dad is a carpenter and still takes orders for custom pieces. My mom was a stay-at-home mom aka, my chauffer. She drove me all over the place.”
“Ah, you were one of those kids that played sports,” I said. “That makes sense.”
“I was.”
He was holding something back. I turned my head and looked at him. “Football?”
“I played a little football in junior high, but I couldn’t keep up with football practice in high school and my track practice.”
I couldn’t help it. My lip curled. “Track? You ran track?”
His deep laughter made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. It was rich and powerful and felt like I was being caressed. “Yes and no. I did the javelin throw.”
“Isn’t that the really big stick?” I asked.
He laughed again. “Something like that.”
“I just don’t see it,” I said. “I pegged you for football or maybe baseball.”
“I did like those sports, but I excelled at the javelin,” he said. “I liked it being a solo activity. I had no one to blame for myself if I failed. When I succeeded, I knew that was all me as well.”
“You sound like you’ve been a loner for a while,” I said.
“I guess I have.” He shrugged. “I like personal responsibility.”
“So, were you any good at the javelin?”
He offered a cocky smirk. “You could say that.”
“Is there like a Superbowl or something to decide who’s the best?”
He laughed again. “Yeah, there’s a little something we like to call the Olympic games.”
I rolled my eyes. “Well, all sports have the Olympics. Once you’re out of high school, it’s over, right?”
He cleared his throat. “For some, sure. Some go on to college on track scholarships and compete at that level.”
“Did you do that?”
He slowly shook his head. “No. I did go but I didn’t run track at school. I was on a team.”
“A team?”
“The US team,” he said.
I didn’t get it. “Oh. That’s cool. Did you guys compete against other countries? I’m sorry, I know so little about this stuff. I know football and basketball.”
“We did compete against other countries,” he said with that cocky grin again. “At the Olympics.”
My mouth dropped. “Wait, you’re telling me you went to the Olympics?”
“I did.”
“Holy shit. Did you win anything?”
“A bronze,” he said nonchalantly.
“You won an Olympic bronze?” I repeated.
“I did,” he said.
I was shocked to learn I was sitting next to a world-class athlete. “Wow. That’s impressive.”
“Thanks.”
“Do you still compete?” I asked.
“Nope,” he said and there was a hint of disgust in his voice. “I messed up my arm, and that was that. I realized my heart wasn’t in it anymore either. I called it a day and moved on. I had a few sponsorships that afforded me the startup money I needed for my company. It doesn’t take long for people to forget who you are. I would say my Olympic buzz faded about two years after I won the medal. It was nice to fade back into obscurity. I went back to my life. I should say, I actually started my life.”
“I imagine there’s a lot of training involved to prepare for something like that,” I said.
He nodded again. “Pretty much a fulltime job. You have to eat right, work out all the time, and avoid alcohol. My teenage years were consumed by training. I’m just glad I rose hot and fast and fizzled by the age of twenty. I still had time to get on with my life.”
“That is very cool,” I said.
“What’s your claim to fame?” he asked.
I scoffed. “My dad was the doctor for a bunch of Hollywood elites,” I said.
“Did you meet any of the famous people that live in LA?” he asked.
I shrugged. “A few. I used to hang out at his office when I was younger. I met a few people, but they weren’t anyone to me. Just another of Dad’s patients.”
“And your mom was a doctor?” he questioned.
“Yep. Dad was a cardiologist and Mom was a general practitioner.”
“You were destined to be a doctor,” he said.
“I guess you could say that.”
“That’s the second time you’ve made me think you are second guessing the doctor track,” he said and refilled his glass.
“It isn’t that I don’t want to be a doctor,” I said. “I do. I just sometimes wonder if I jumped into it too fast. I just always knew I was going to be a doctor and never considered anything else.”
“Ah, the what if scenario,” he said knowingly.
“Exactly. I’m out here fixing it. I’m going to go back, and my head will be straight. I’m going to tackle my work and go after the head of the department position.”
He burst into laughter. “You just told me you were working too hard. Now you’re going to go back home and work even harder?”
He was making a very valid point. I didn’t want to talk about work anymore. I was supposed to be escaping all of that. “You know, when I came here, I planned on spending the bulk of my time naked,” I laughed. “I was committed to living the life of a nudist.”
“Yeah, I remember,” he laughed. “You seemed to be off to a good start. Do you plan on stripping the moment I’m gone?”
“Maybe,” I teased.
“Don’t let me hold you back,” he said with a wink. “Technically, I’ve already seen it.”
“No way!” I laughed. “Not happening, buddy.”
“Suit yourself, but I certainly haven’t been holding back.”
“I know,” I blurted out before I could even think about what I was saying.
His eyes twinkled with mischief. “I know you know.”
“You were doing it on purpose!”
“Nah, but if you were going to look, I wasn’t going to stop you,” he said nonchalantly. “I’m not ashamed. You’re a doctor. Nudity shouldn’t be a thing for you.”
“It isn’t but this is different,” I argued.
“Is it?”
“Do you sleep naked?” I asked him.
“Yep,” he nodded. “Most of the time. Why are you asking? Planning to unzip my bag in the middle of the night?”
“No,” I said. “Maybe I’ll sleep on the beach tonight and you can have the bed on your last night.”
“And why would you do that?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “It seems very freeing.”
“You mean you want to sleep naked on the beach?” he teased.
“Not directly on the beach,” I retorted. “I don’t need sand in places sand should not be.”
“There’s a shower,” he replied easily.
I held out my empty glass for him to refill. “I think I want to take a dip.”
“A dip?”
I felt warm and knew it was the alcohol coursing through my system. “Yes, I want to go swimming. Look how calm the water is. It’s so pretty.”
“Do it,” he encouraged.
“Are you going in?” I asked.
“Maybe.”
I took a long, healthy drink from my glass. I wouldn’t have been able to do that before the first glass to loosen things up. It didn’t even burn anymore. I stood up and put my empty glass on the porch floor and stepped off the porch. I started my walk to the water and paused once to see if he was following. He was still sitting on the chair.
“Coming?” I asked in a sultry voice. I was playing with fire, and I didn’t care.
I watched him finish his drink and stand up. He took off his shirt and dropped it on the chair before following me down the path. I stripped out of my tank and dropped it on the path before undoing the button of my little jean shorts. I stepped out of them and kept going. Then I lost the bra, tossing it onto the sand before walking towards the water. Next, it was my panties. I walked straight into the water without looking back.
I walked out to my knees and then dove under. The water was cool, but not cold as it washed over me. I had never felt more alive in my life than I did in that moment. There was nothing but me, the moonlight and a huge ocean. Oh, and the hot guy who was probably standing on the beach watching me. I didn’t even care that he’d seen me naked again.
I came up for air just in time to see him dive under. When he resurfaced, he was smiling like an idiot. Hell, his smile was probably a mirror image of my own. “Feel better?” he asked as he slowly cut through the water towards me.
The waves rocked me, gently lifting and dropping me down once again. “I feel a million percent better,” I told him.
“Me too,” he grinned. “But I’ve been doing this every night.”
“I know.”
“You’re missing out if you don’t do this after I’m gone,” he said. “Don’t be shy. You’re one with the earth out here. You can be naked, and no one is going to know.”
“You’ll know,” I reminded him.
“And I’ll be praising the heavens for putting such a beautiful creature on this planet,” he said in a husky voice.
I stared at him for half a beat before diving back into the water. I swam out a little deeper. I was comfortable swimming in the ocean. I’d been doing it all my life. I knew the power of the sea and respected it. Right now, we were safe, and I wasn’t going to worry about anything except feeling the moment.
I felt his hand brush over my calf and knew he was following me into the deeper water. I laughed and spun around only to find myself spinning directly into his arms. I stared into his eyes. Then he was kissing me. My arms wrapped around him as he deepened the kiss. The water threatened to knock me over. His arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me against his hard chest. I felt him moving me through the water. He stopped when we were about thigh-deep in the water.
He stopped kissing me and looked down into my eyes. “Was that okay?” he whispered.
I answered by kissing him back. Then I was wrapping my legs around his waist. He kissed me to the point I was dizzy. I couldn’t let go of the man. My hands snaked up his back and into that thick, black hair before running both hands down his cheeks. The man was solid muscle. Everywhere I touched him it was nothing but strength and power. I had never dated a man like him. I thought I preferred my men to be lean. Boy, had I been missing out.
He pulled his mouth from mine. His chest was heaving up and down, my nipples scraping over his hard pectoral muscles. “I have to stop,” he breathed.
I was disappointed, but it was probably the right thing to do. “Okay.”
“I don’t want to,” he quickly added. “That’s why I have to.”
“You don’t want to?” I murmured.
His hand reached up and pushed my hair back from my face. “Definitely not. I have to stop now, or I won’t be able to.”
I smiled at him and appreciated the compliment. “I don’t want you to stop.”
“You’re sure?” he asked with his muscles tense against me. I could feel his erection just as strong and powerful as the rest of him. I moved my hips a few inches and pulled a groan from him.
“I’m very sure.”
“I don’t have a condom,” he said. “I thought I was coming out to a deserted island.”
He was making a very good point and the rational side of me should have followed his lead. “I’m on the pill and I can assure you I’m very clean and healthy.”
He grinned and kissed the tip of my nose. “I’m going to tell you a secret, but you cannot use this against me later.”
“What’s that?”
“I’ve been celibate for so long I can’t even remember how long it’s been,” he said in a low voice. “You’re not catching anything from me.”
I stared at him and ran through a list of reasons why I should stop this right where it was. None of the reasons held any water. I didn’t give a shit. I wanted the man, and this was my last chance to have him. I had never had a one-night stand and it felt about damn time that I did.
“Why don’t we go back to the cottage?” I whispered.
He kissed me in response. His tongue swept inside my mouth. His arms tightened around me, and we started to move. I wrapped my legs around his waist and tried to get closer to him. I was on fire. Now that I’d given myself permission, I couldn’t seem to shut it down. I was crazy with need. My body was liquid fire as I rubbed my pussy against his erection.
“Fuck this,” he growled, and the next thing I knew, I was being lowered to the beach.
As it turned out, we weren’t making it to the cottage, which was perfectly okay with me.
