With appreciative eyes, Lina watched Rashad strip away his clothes, one item at a time. First his sport coat hit the floor, then his tie. His big hands unfastened the buttons running down the front of his shirt, and his eyes met hers as he tossed the shirt and the tank beneath it away.
Lina sucked in a breath through clenched teeth as she was met with the sight of the rippling muscles of his upper body. His hands went to the front of his slacks, and he unbuttoned them, letting them slide down his powerful thighs.
At this point she realized she’d slid to the edge of the bed. She started undoing the buttons of her blouse, only to have him gesture for her to stop.
“No, baby. I’ll handle that.”
Obediently she dropped her hands to her sides.
Wearing nothing but his blue silk boxers, he strode over to the bed. Weaving his hands into her hair, he leaned down to kiss her lips. Then his magical mouth moved to her neck, his tongue darting out of his mouth to graze over the sensitive skin. His hands undid her buttons and slipped the blouse down her arms and off her body. He backed off a bit, smiling at the sight of her black lace bra.
Her head fell back as he planted a kiss above the tiny bow centering the cups of the bra, and reached around her to undo the clasp. Several heated moments passed as he undressed her, pausing to kiss and caress each area of flesh he unveiled. Her body obeyed his every unspoken command. Though she was barely aware of it as her hips rose from the bed so he could do away with her skirt and panties.
He stood before her as if admiring her nudity. “You’re so, so beautiful.”
“So are you...” The words slipped from her lips as her hand trailed up his hard thigh. She found the slit in the front of his boxers, and eased her hand inside.
“Lina.” He breathily husked out her name as she freed his hardness from between the open halves of the fabric.
She said nothing, leaning forward to capture him in her mouth.
His hands first landed on her shoulders, then moved up when he threaded his fingers through her hair. She could feel the subtle movement of his hips as she loved him the same way he’d loved her, attentively and with ardor. To increase his pleasure, she hummed along with the familiar track playing in the background, while he was still in her mouth.
“Ah.” He groaned, drew her away.
Looking up at him, she winked.
“Woman, you are wicked.”
She offered him a bedroom-eyed smile. “Only for you.”
With a growl, he leaned down to kiss her again. As the kiss deepened, they moved in tandem toward the center of the mattress. Fluidly, she moved so that he was on his back, and before he could take over again, she straddled him.
He reached beneath the pillow, extracting a condom, and handed it to her.
“You must have been pretty sure I’d forgive you.”
He gave her bottom a firm smack. “What can I say, I’m an optimistic man.”
Shaking her head, she unwrapped the condom. They maneuvered a bit so he could remove his boxers, and she covered his hardness. She tossed the pack away, then centered her body over his.
His open palms caressing her hips, she lowered herself onto him. Both of them sighed as their bodies joined, and she could feel the hot liquid desire he’d built in her enveloping him. Once she’d taken him in as deeply as she could, she shuddered and, lifting her hips, she began to ride.
She watched his face, and saw his eyes roll up into his head as she fell into a rhythm that matched the slow, sexy beat of the music. His big hands palmed her ass, and she could hear his low growl mixing with the sounds of her own moans. He filled her so well, touching places inside her that set her very soul aflame. Before she knew it, she could feel the opening notes of orgasm building within.
He grasped her hips firmly, halting her motion. “I’m taking over, baby.”
She could do nothing more than grab his shoulders and hold on as his hips began to piston upward, driving his hardness in and out of her body. She felt the blissful friction increasing in tandem with his powerful upward thrusts as he drove her closer and closer to madness. She moaned, sighed and finally cried out as the building pleasure reached its peak. She flung her head back and sang his name on the wings of ecstasy and, soon after, heard him roar as he found his own release.
She came back to herself then, moving around until she lay flat on top of him, her head resting against his chest. The cadence of his beating heart was just as rapid as her own. He draped his strong arms around her, and she relished the feel of being held by the man she loved.
She gave his sweat-dampened chest an affectionate stroke. “Are you awake?”
His husky reply filled the silence. “Yeah.”
“I know I told you I forgive you, and I do.”
He kissed the top of her head. “Thank you for forgiving me, baby.”
Tucking one arm beneath him, she cuddled closer to the warm lines of his hard body. “I’m just glad you finally opened up to me. That was all I ever really wanted, to know you fully.” She had to admit she was curious about the details of his trust fund, but she didn’t ask. When he felt comfortable enough, she was sure he’d tell her.
“From now on, there will be no more secrets between us. I promise.”
She could feel the smile lifting the corners of her mouth, because deep down, she trusted him to keep his word. “There is something else that I need to say, and it’s important.”
He tensed a bit beneath her. “What is it?”
She sighed. “I love you, Rashad. And you may as well know, since there’s no way I can deny it now.”
He shifted, used his hand to cup her chin. Tilting her face up, he gazed into her eyes. “I love you, Lina.”
She touched her lips to his, and as the kiss deepened she realized that she’d never felt safer or more at peace than she did lying in his arms.
* * *
Balancing an aluminum pan filled with grilled meat, Rashad maneuvered around the gaggle of folks standing on the patio and set the pan down on the table. The Emerald Isle beach house, owned by Darius and Eve, was crawling with people who’d come together for a nontraditional baby shower of sorts for the couple. Eve, now in her second trimester, had insisted on having a cookout and inviting all their good friends, instead of the traditional female-only affair.
The house was located on a wide band of private beach, accessed by a flight of stairs descending from the glazed oak patio. Down there, a volleyball net had been anchored in the white sand, and several people were participating in a match. Opened beach umbrellas dotted the landscape, and beyond the strip of sand lay the endless, rippling blue-gray waters of the Atlantic.
As Rashad moved back to his post by the grill, he elbowed Darius, who was busy brushing sauce onto several racks of baby back ribs. “Dude, I thought I was an invited guest here. Why do you have me working the grill with you?”
Darius grinned. “C’mon, Rashad. You’re no guest. You’re family.”
“And that means putting me to work?”
“Damn skippy.” Darius gave him a playful punch in the shoulder.
He rolled his eyes. It had been a good hour or more since he’d seen Lina, and he was starting to get antsy. Generally he didn’t mind helping out with something like this, but he knew he’d enjoy the task all the more if he had his sweetheart nearby.
As if on cue, Lina walked up the patio stairs.
Again, Rashad took in the sight of her. She was wearing a white halter top and a bright orange maxi skirt dotted with white flowers. Her hair was held back from her face by a glittery elastic band, and as she lifted her skirt and stepped onto the patio, he could see that she’d kicked off her sandals.
When their eyes met, she smiled, and he felt the fluttering in his heart. He wanted to spend the rest of his days bringing her the same joy she brought him. She made her way through the people hanging out on the patio and entered his personal space.
She inhaled deeply. “Smells good up here, boys. Any idea when the food will be ready?”
“Twenty minutes or so, then we can eat,” Darius answered.
She nodded, but never tore her eyes away from him. “Rashad, are you gonna be released from grill duty anytime soon?”
He looped his arms around her waist, pulled her body close to his. “Why? Do you miss me, baby?”
A wicked smile crossed her face. She leaned up to kiss him on the cheek, then whispered in his ear. “You know I do, after the way you had me screaming your name last night.”
He dropped one of his hands lower to give her ass a firm squeeze.
Darius cleared his throat. “Y’all cut that out before you burn my chicken, man.”
With a chuckle, Rashad acquiesced. Giving his beautiful queen a quick peck on the lips and a smack on the bottom, he sent her back down to the beach.
“It’s good to see you and Lina back on good terms.” Darius grabbed a pair of tongs and adjusted the position of his ribs on the grate.
“We’re on fantastic terms.” His eyes followed Lina as she walked down the beach toward Eve and some of the other women gathered around a small fire pit. The seductive sway of her hips made him want to eschew his duties and the gathering so he could spirit her away to someplace private. When he turned back toward the grill, he felt his friend’s eyes on him. “What?”
Darius folded his arms over his chest. “I know the feeling, and I know that look in your eyes. When are you going to pop the big question, man?”
Rashad shrugged, closing the grill lid so the last few chicken wings could finish cooking through. “Soon, I guess. I’m waiting for just the right moment.”
“Whatever. If you know like I know, you’d better make it official ASAP. Don’t give her any reason to doubt your commitment.”
He could tell Darius was looking past him, probably at Eve. “I guess you’re the expert now, since you’re married, and about to be a father.”
“I’m no expert, but I know what I know. The love of a good woman is the best thing that can happen to a man.” Swiping his hands on a towel hanging from the grill handle, he smiled. “Do you think I’ll do all right at this fatherhood thing?”
Rashad made a show of thinking about it. “I guess so. I mean, you’ve done a good job of ordering us around in the past, so why not?”
Darius responded with a fake punch to his gut.
Soon, everyone was filing onto the patio from either inside the house, or down on the beach to fix their plates. Rashad and Darius had prepared massive amounts of grilled chicken, steaks, burgers and ribs, while the women had contributed tossed salad, baked beans, macaroni salad and a bevy of other sides. Lina was among the people in line, and she threw him a sexy wink as she descended the stairs with her food. Once Rashad was finally released from his grill duty, he fixed himself a plate, grabbed a soda from one of the three ice-filled coolers and went off in search of Lina.
He found her on the beach, sitting on the big blanket she’d brought. Her spot was somewhat secluded, away from the house but still in the shadow cast by the structure. Mere feet away from where she reclined with her plate, the water lapped against the shore.
He set his plate on the blanket, then sat down next to her. “Enjoying the baby shower?”
“It’s the most fun I’ve ever had at a baby shower. They should all be like this.” She lifted her can of grape soda to her mouth and took a sip.
They ate in congenial silence. While she watched the tide rolling in and out, he watched her. He thought back on Darius’s words on the patio, about not waiting too long to make things official with her. The breeze wafting over the water played through her hair, lifting her curls away from her face. God help him, even her chewing mesmerized him. In that moment, he knew his best friend was right. What would be the purpose of waiting to start a life with her when he knew he didn’t want to imagine a life without her?
As if she’d just noticed him staring at her, she put down her fork and turned to face him. “Rashad? What is it?”
“You know I don’t ever want to spend another day of my life without you, right?”
Her face lit up with a sweet smile, and she lay a soft hand against his jaw. “Don’t worry. You won’t have to.”
He rewarded her with a series of brief kisses on the lips. Pulling away before his desire for her superseded his sense of propriety, he looked into her sparkling brown eyes. “I want to make this thing official with you, baby.”
A blush crept into her cheeks. “I know what you’re getting at, and you know I’m down, but...”
“But?” He felt his eyebrow hitch, wondering what could be making her hesitant after all they’d been through to reach this point.
“There is something that needs to happen first, before I can make this commitment to you. Because once I do, I’m in this thing with you for life.”
He drew her into his arms, with her back resting against his chest. “That’s just the way I want it. And if you mean you want me to ask your mother’s permission, I had already planned to do that.”
“That’s not what I meant, but I definitely approve.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “I mean, there’s something I need to handle on my own. Once I do, I’ll be ready to do this the right way.”
He wasn’t sure what she meant, but he trusted her. “Whatever you need.”
“Thank you.” She settled back into his embrace, and as dusk came on, the two of them enjoyed the sight and sounds of the ocean together.