Finn stared at Macy standing in her sheer, nude-colored bra and jeans in the middle of her kitchen. Her brown tipped nipples had pebbled and were in full view. His mouth went dry. He ached for her so badly it hurt.
But he couldn’t do this. Couldn’t take advantage of her without first telling her the truth. That they hadn’t had sex that night. Yet if he told her the cold hard facts she was liable to slap him silly and throw him out. And how could he blame her?
Her husband had walked out on her when she’d told him she’d had a one-night stand with a stranger. Talk about some heavy shit weighing on his conscience right now.
“I thought you were hungry,” he said, trying to distract her.
“I am. For you.” She licked those lips again then reached for the snap at the waistband of her jeans. Pop.
“Macy. Hold on, baby. Why don’t we think about this some more? I hate the thought of rushing things.”
Her mouth dropped open and she scrunched her brows together. “I thought you said you wanted me.”
He ran a hand over his head. “I do. But I just think we should wait until we’re sure. Until you’re sure.”
“I’m sure.”
She’d answered so quickly, surely she hadn’t thought about it. “I don’t think you are. At least you didn’t sound like you were a few minutes ago.”
“I don’t know why I was acting like such a fool. I knew from the minute you kissed me on that Ferris wheel today that I wanted you too.” Down went the zipper with a little raspy sound. She wiggled her hips as she dragged the jeans down over her thighs. The denim bunched around her knees. Her silk panties were sheer and revealed dark hair that covered her sex.
Holy fuck! “Pull those jeans up!” He turned toward the cooktop so he didn’t have to look at that sexy body.
“I . . . I don’t understand.”
“I’m really hungry, and I don’t perform well when I’m hungry. I’m tired too.”
“Oh.”
He heard the sound of the zipper again, hopefully going up this time. He glanced over his shoulder and breathed a sigh of relief as he saw her bend over and retrieve her shirt from the tile floor.
A moment later she was dressed again, wearing a confused look on her face. Finn filled two bowls with the delicious smelling chowder and carried them to the kitchen table.
He held out a chair for her, and she slowly moved toward the table and sat down. He went to find some spoons then took a seat across from her. “This smells great.”
She smiled. It was a forced smile, he could tell, but a smile just the same.
“Dig in,” he said.
What a prick he was!
The next morning Jerome picked up Finn at nine just like he’d said he would. Finn hadn’t seen Macy yet, but had heard her in her room. Apparently she was avoiding him. He’d probably embarrassed her last night, maybe even hurt her feelings. The poor woman had practically stripped naked in front of him and he’d turned her down flat.
Yep, he was a prick all right.
Especially after all the begging and teasing he’d done beforehand. It had never dawned on him she would give in so easily.
Jerome tapped him on the shoulder, holding up an ugly Hawaiian print shirt with pineapples on it. “You like this one? It’s on sale.”
“Sure.”
Jerome grinned, showing off his gold capped tooth and took the shirt to the counter. He set it atop the other items Finn had selected. Swim trunks, shorts, flip flops and two pairs of linen pants. Finn busied himself with finding a few more camp shirts and then took them to the register. Jerome’s friend rang him out and they were soon on their way.
As they pulled out of the parking lot, Finn turned to Jerome. “Is there a drugstore nearby?”
“If you need sunscreen there is plenty at the villa.”
“I don’t need any sunscreen.”
“Oh. What you need?”
Seriously? Did the guy have to be so nosy? “I just wanted to browse a little, see if there were some things I might have forgotten to pack.”
“Susheena and I took care of all that. Everything you need should be in the villa. Shampoo. Soap. Toothpaste. You’ll see.”
“I need condoms.” There. Are you happy, Jerome? Did you happen to put any condoms in the villa?
“Condoms?” Jerome laughed. “You are married. You should be making lots of babies with that pretty wife of yours.”
Finn was going to kill this guy. “Can you just stop at a drugstore, please?”
There was a good chance Finn wouldn’t be needing any condoms. Because as he had decided the night before; once he told Macy about the lie he’d made up she was going to kick his ass out and he’d probably never see her again. But if there was the slightest chance they would end up in bed together he wanted to be prepared. And the lone condom wasting away in his wallet wasn’t going to be enough.
Jerome frowned as he pulled up in front of a convenience store. Finn hopped out and went inside. He browsed the shelves and grabbed two boxes. Why not be optimistic?
Ten minutes later Jerome dropped him off at the villa. Finn let himself inside with the key he’d found on the countertop that morning. He smelled bacon, but didn’t see any cooking in the kitchen. He headed down the hallway and deposited his purchases inside his room. The bedroom had been done in navy and white, not too masculine, but not feminine either. The bed was comfortable enough although he’d had a hard time sleeping last night. Thoughts of Macy in her sheer bra and panties had tormented him for hours.
He’d finally gotten out of bed and gone to her bookcase in the living room. Finding a copy of her book Man Disease he’d taken it to his room and done some reading. He’d never known guys were so damn inadequate, or at least women thought so, until reading up on the subject.
He peeked down the hall and saw that the door to Macy’s room was open. He went to check it out. The night before Macy had ducked inside her room as soon as they had finished eating and had left his duffle bag in the hall.
The master suite was done in yellow and white. Softness was all he could think of as he snooped around. The space smelled like Macy. Clove. The bathroom was enormous with a huge soaking tub big enough to hold two and a mammoth shower with no door. With the multiple shower heads several people could shower at once. He supposed that was in case you wanted to have an orgy.
He fingered a few beauty products lying on the counter. Picking up her perfume, he read the label, sniffed at it.
“What are you doing?” Macy said from behind him at the doorway.
Finn set the bottle down, turned around. “Nothing. Just checking out your room. As your bodyguard I should know where everything is.”
She cocked her head to the side as if she didn’t believe him. “How was your shopping trip?” She was wearing a white lacy thing over what appeared to be a red, one-piece suit. Red strappy sandals were on her feet. Her hair was slicked back into a ponytail and her designer shades were propped atop her head.
“Great.”
“What did you buy?”
Two dozen condoms because I’m hopeful. “Some shirts, slacks, shorts. And a pair of swim trunks so I can try out that pool of yours.”
“Oh, good. Why don’t you get changed and I’ll wait for you outside. I have a delicious breakfast waiting for you and I need you to sunscreen my back.”
Oh shit. He couldn’t touch her without getting hard again. This vacation was going to be pure torture. And it was all his fault. If he hadn’t lied to her from day one he could be in her bed right now. Buried deep inside her. Fucking her brains out without a care in the world. You, dick weed, you.
Macy sat in her lounge chair on the patio and stared out at the ocean. There was a nice breeze. The warm air tickled her skin and kept her senses alert.
She still wanted Finn. But he had turned her down cold last night. Funny, after he was the one to stoke the fire in her with all his dirty talk. Then when she’d finally given in he’d backed off, saying he was hungry and tired. What a crock of shit!
So if that wasn’t the truth then what had changed his mind? He’d left the kitchen and disappeared for about two minutes tops and then came back to apologize. Something happened during that time that made him reconsider sleeping with her. Unless he got his kicks from teasing women and then walking away when they said yes.
She’d played back the scene over and over in her mind and she just couldn’t figure it out. Well, whatever his reason was for changing his mind, it was embarrassing. She’d been miserable trying to sleep last night. This vacation was supposed to relaxing, and last night was anything but.
She’d had visions of Finn licking his way up her naked body, of her pleasing him with her mouth like he’d said she had done that night. She’d lain there thinking about him pushing inside her, fucking her like he couldn’t get enough until they both climaxed.
She needed to stop having sexual thoughts about him, but that was easier said than done. She waved a hand in front of her face, fanning herself, hoping the throbbing between her legs would subside.
She had specifically chosen the red swimsuit with the plunging neckline and high rise leg openings to seduce him this morning. It was her most flattering suit. Of course, most men liked bikinis. But this one was sure to do the trick. If Finn didn’t take her up on her offer after seeing her in it then there was something wrong with him for sure.
And what was taking him so long?
Finn opened the slider and stepped out onto the patio. There was a small table and a foil covered plate at one of the seats.
Macy stood to greet him. “Nice trunks. Although I wouldn’t think you were the pineapple type.”
Finn gave her a half grin. “Jerome picked them out. I think he has a thing for pineapples.”
She nodded to the table. “Bacon, sausage, bagels and fruit. I know how you like to keep up your strength. Oh, and I made a pitcher of Bloody Marys too. Let me pour you one.” She got up and went behind the portable bar.
“Thanks.” He wondered what he had done to deserve such special treatment. He sat down at the table and lifted the foil off the plate. “Did Susheena stop by this morning?”
“No. I made breakfast. I didn’t think the eggs would keep so I dumped them, but I’m happy to make you some fresh ones if you’d like.”
“No, this is plenty.” He didn’t bother to tell her he and Jerome had stopped for some breakfast sandwiches and coffee before their shopping expedition. “I didn’t think you knew how to cook.”
“Just because I don’t have time to cook most days doesn’t mean I don’t know how.”
Good point.
She set the Bloody Mary in front of him. “Let me know if you want me to add a little more spice.”
She’d drawn out the word spice as if she was flirting with him. Was she flirting? He took a mouthful of food and looked up at her. She ran a hand over the slit in her cover-up that rode high on her thighs. Yep.
“Don’t forget I need you to sunscreen my back once you’re done eating. I’ll just wait over here.” She walked over to the teakwood lounge chair, where she had been sitting when he’d come outside, and lifted the lace cover-up over her head. Holy shit! The leg openings on that suit went up so high he was surprised it didn’t expose her sex. And the plunging neckline went down almost to her navel.
Finn held his fork in mid-air.
“Is something wrong?”
He cleared his throat. “No. Nothing’s wrong.”
“Good. Hurry now.”
Finn started shoveling food into his mouth and rinsed it down with his Bloody Mary. His cock was already at attention beneath his trunks.
He had to think of something to get his mind off Macy. And sex. He concentrated on the food in front of him, wondering how many calories he’d just consumed. After a moment he mumbled to himself. “Who the fuck cares?” That wasn’t working anyway.
He glanced around at their surroundings. The huge patio held a pool and hot tub. It faced the ocean and was surrounded by stone walls which added privacy. Unless someone was on the beach, directly below them, they could not be seen.
And why did it matter if they could be seen or not? Was he actually thinking about fucking her out here?
No. Not going to happen. Even he had scruples once in a while.
“Are you finished eating?” she asked, gazing at him over her shoulder.
“Yep.”
“Bring your drink over and lay by me.” She patted the lounge chair next to hers.
Finn scooted back his chair, picked up his Bloody Mary and went to join her. He sat down on the padded lounge, and tried to keep his condition a secret.
Macy handed him a tube of sunscreen. “Can you do my back?” She sat up, pivoted around so her back was to him and untied her suit at her nape. “This should give you better access.”
His heart was beating out of control and he hadn’t even touched her yet. He turned in his chair, threw his legs over the side and set his drink on the patio floor. After squirting a generous amount of cream into his palm he began to spread it over her back and shoulders. Her skin was warm, soft and pliant.
“Oh, Finn,” she breathed on a sigh. “That feels really nice.”
If he didn’t know any better he would think she was trying to seduce him again. Was she? Of course she was. Only an idiot could ignore those signs. He couldn’t keep this lie from her anymore. “Macy?”
“Hmmm?”
“I just wanted to say that . . . sometimes guys are pigs.”
“But not you, right?”
Yeah, right. He shook his head while she continued to sit inches away from him, her back still facing him.
He had to try again. “Sometimes guys say things they don’t mean.”
“You mean they lie.” She re-tied her bathing suit and then swiveled around to face him.
“Yes. Exactly. Not because they intend to be mean or anything. It’s just that, well, we can’t help ourselves. It’s like you said in your book. We have man disease.”
“You read my book?”
“Some of it. I couldn’t sleep last night and there was a copy on your bookshelf.”
“Oh. So go on.”
“What?”
“You were explaining that you have man disease and you were about to tell me why you lied to me.”
“I was? I mean, yes, I was.” But the words wouldn’t surface.
“Finn, you don’t have to say anything. I know you were lying about being hungry and tired last night just so you wouldn’t be tempted to have sex with me. You were trying to make good on your promise about keeping your hands off me. And while I really appreciate that, I just want to say that I still want you. And it’s okay if you want to touch me.”
Oh, fuck!
“Is something wrong?”
“Nope, nothing’s wrong.”
“Well, you have this funny look on your face like you feel guilty or something.”
“Nope. No guilt.” He sucked in a breath, avoiding her gaze. “You know I think I’m going to go for a swim. Out in the ocean. I’ll be back in an hour or so.”
Her smile faded. “Do you want me to come with you?”
He jumped to his feet. “No, you stay here and relax.” And then he trotted down the concrete steps and planted his feet in the white sand. It was hot. Damn. He should have worn his flip-flops. He hurried into the water and went out as far as he could go before submerging himself into the salty ocean. He surfaced and wiped his face then floated on his back.
Macy thought he was a good guy. A gentleman who was trying to make good on his promise not to touch her.
But she was wrong. He was a prick. An asshole. A fucking pariah. So why hadn’t he told her the truth?
Because he wasn’t ready to lose her yet. And what did that say about him? He actually wanted to fuck her first before he told her the truth. Was that what he intended to do? And if so, that made him worse than a prick, an asshole and a fucking pariah. Was there anything worse than those things?
He flipped over, stuck his face in the water and started swimming. He picked up speed and kept at it until his lungs, arms and legs were exhausted. Then he turned and headed back to shore.
When he went up the patio steps, Macy wasn’t there. He saw a spigot and rinsed the sand from his feet and ankles. He finished off his Bloody Mary and then went inside the house in search of a towel.
After drying off he was going to tell her the truth. No more excuses.
As he headed down the hall and was just about to turn into his room, Macy came out of her own room. Naked.
“Aw, fuck it!”