Wet and Wilde (7 page)

Her heart thumped in her chest, and she looked down at her hands, white knuckling her towel and wringing the poor thing. Her stomach boiled, bubbling and jumping.

This wasn’t good. How sexy could she look in this condition?

She went to her locker and stood there, tempted to leave, but also wanting like hell to see Josh. Why hadn’t he called? If he had, she wouldn’t be…

Oh… He knew. If he called or saw her, she wouldn’t come to the lesson. She wouldn’t conquer her fear. Had someone told him to force her to attend the swim lessons? Diana?

Damn it! She’d have to go in there and make it through the class or she would look like a fool. Still feeling sick, she walked through the locker room and entered the pool area.

He was there, standing by the side of the pool, a whistle caught between his perfect, white teeth. He smiled, and she smiled back, feeling like the most important person on earth. Every nerve ending honed in on him, and everything else in the room dropped away. She walked toward him, so eager to hear his voice…

…she fell, catching a glimpse of his wide eyes and gaped mouth before the water crashed in around her.

Sitting on the bottom of the pool already? Damn!

She pushed off the concrete, her lungs burning. Her arms thrashed, her legs kicked. She surfaced, gasped and felt herself sinking again.

Then he was there. He touched her, and her panic ceased, like magic. She looked him in the eye and heard his voice in her head.

You could’ve waited for a kickboard, beautiful, but I’m impressed with your optimism.

This is no time for teasing, buck-o!

He smiled, and a bubble slipped through his lips.
It’s okay. I’m here. When I’m with you, nothing can happen.

How’re you doing this? The first time I heard your voice in my head, I thought I was hallucinating. But again?

I can’t explain it right now. Just trust me.
He palmed her face, and she almost felt safe. For some reason, it didn’t matter that she wasn’t breathing. That was one hell of a miracle.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and swam upward. As she broke through the shimmering surface overhead, she almost regretted leaving the secret blue world they shared under the water.

“What happened?” she asked. Dazed, not sure if she wanted to believe what she had just seen and heard, she reached for the pool’s side.

“You fell into the pool.” With hands cupping her ass—a convenient excuse to cop a feel, for sure—he gently helped her out of the pool, supporting her as she tried to convince her legs to bear her weight.

“I know that. But there was something else.” She was going crazy! Didn’t schizophrenics hear voices? Diana had a friend who was a shrink…

“You aren’t going crazy.” He looked across the pool at the other swimmers in the class and blew his whistle. “Okay, everyone back in the pool. I want two laps with the kickboard before session is over.”

The menagerie of swimmers, mostly middle-aged women wearing those tacky rubber flowered swim caps, started across the pool toward them.

“How do you do that? You’re reading my mind, aren’t you?” A whole lot of curiosity and an almost equal dose of fear settled over her like a London fog. He was reading her mind? Egad! She had no secrets!

“I’m not reading your mind. I’m guessing what you’re thinking. And based on your reaction, I’d say I’m doing a damn good job of it.”

“Too good.” She didn’t know whether to be relieved and laugh off her suspicions or be worried. She decided she’d play it safe and take things slow. Of course, no sooner did she make that decision than her body made its own determination, thanks to a seemingly innocent touch on the arm.

A current of electricity charged through her body, and she hopped away from him.
What the hell was that?
“Did you just shock me?”

He looked at her with a puzzled expression, his eyebrows knitted tightly together. “No. Shock? How?”

“I felt something.” Her body heated, as though that buzz had ignited a flame. The warmth traveled down, over her stomach, and between her legs. She caught his gaze and felt her pussy get wetter.

There was that fuck-me look again.
Anytime, handsome.

Her knees turned to mush, and she needed to sit. She dropped to the poolside and dangled her feet in the water.
Ah, cool. Now, if only there was an iceberg I could stretch out on.

He sat beside her. “After class, would you like to go out? Maybe get something to eat?”

Her heart did a little jig. “Sure, and maybe some dancing? Do you like to dance?”

He smiled—oh what a gorgeous face!—and blew his whistle. “Time’s up. Everyone out of the pool.” Then he turned to her. “I’m a terrible dancer, I warned you. I’m game if you are. I’ll meet you outside.” He stood and helped her up, leaving buzzing tingles on her skin where he touched her. “By the way…” His gaze traveled up and down her body. “…very nice swimsuit.”

Chapter 7

Anticipation is both a pleasure and a torture, joy and misery.

Palming a face that couldn’t get any hotter, Jane went to the locker room, shed her “very nice” bathing suit, and jumped in the shower. The locker room was quiet, and the warm water felt wonderful running down her body. As memories of that crazy moment at the bottom of the pool buzzed through her mind, she couldn’t help touching herself. Her eyes closed, she soaped up her hands and lathered her breasts, teasing her nipples. His voice bounced around inside her, vibrating like her favorite sex toy between her legs. She slipped a finger inside her pussy, and her knees gave way.

Struggling to stand, she forced herself to turn off the water and get out. She’d be nuts to make Josh wait long. He was traffic-stopping gorgeous. Returning to her locker wrapped in a towel, she pulled out the snug jeans and sexy top she’d packed, just in case. She dressed in a changing room. With the help of a blow dryer and a little make-up, she was looking pretty damn good in two snaps. The whole time, she couldn’t shake a giddy sense of expectation.

Tonight would be memorable—like first fuck memorable.

She slid on her shoes, gathered her things, and headed out the door, thrilled by his heated gaze as he saw her emerge from the building.

“You look fantastic.” He reached for her hand and held it high. “Spin around.”

She did a little pirouette, or at least the closest thing she could manage to one, giving him a little extra time to enjoy the rear view.

He took her duffel bag and growled. That had to be a good growl.

She didn’t have to wait long to confirm it. After tossing her bag in his back seat, he opened her door and helped her into the passenger seat. Then he bent low and whispered, “I could fuck you right here and now.”

In a car? I’ve never fucked in a car! To hell with dinner.
Boy, if that collection of words didn’t tempt her to can the dinner and dancing and accept his invitation, the sight of his gaze as it traveled over every inch of her barely-clad body did!

“Food first. And dancing,” he said, his strong hand running up and down the car door.
If only you were stroking my body like that…
“Then we’ll get to the good stuff.” He winked, closed the car door, and came around the other side and started the car. “Let me have your hand.”

She reached across and he caught her fingertips in his, tickling her palm with his thumb. It seemed as though the nerve endings in her hand connected directly to her pussy. She swore he was stroking her clit in that slow, teasing motion. Her eyelids grew heavy, her pussy wet, her head swimmy.

Then her hand rested on something hard and her eyelids lifted.
Oh yeah
!

Only the stick shift. Rats!

She glanced over at Josh, and his playful eyebrow waggle made her chuckle. “What do you want me to do with this?”

“Stroke it?”

She laughed. “Okay.” Trying hard to make it look sexy, and donning what she hoped was a porn film starlet’s best pout, she slid her hand up and down the stick. She moaned for good effect.

He laughed. “You’re too much fun.” The next thing she knew they were rocketing up the street. The car was such a smooth ride, she wondered if they weren’t flying, hovering just above the road. Moments later, Josh parked the car in front of a seafood restaurant.

Seafood? Again? Ugh.

“I hope you don’t mind coming here. I love seafood.”

“Well, it would be nice to go to a steakhouse or something.”

He shuddered.

The man was repulsed by the mention of a steakhouse? That was a strange reaction. She’d never seen anyone grossed out by dead cow before—unless they were vegetarian. “Why the beef about beef?”

“Can’t stand it.”

“I’ve yet to meet someone who hates beef. How about chicken?”

He made a funny face, his mouth twisted into a comical scowl. “Yuck!”

“Wow, okay.” She had to admit, she’d once thought herself a little funny about food, since she tended to eat the same things all the time, but this guy took the cake—or rather, didn’t take any cake from what she could see. “So, you like seafood. Anything else?”

“Nope. That’s about it. A few vegetables.”

“Fruit? Bread? Sweets? Everyone loves sweets.”

“Nope. Nope and nope.” He got out of the car and went around to open her door.

I guess I’d better get used to seafood restaurants.
Of course, most restaurants offered some variety on their menu.

They walked hand-in-hand into the restaurant and were ushered to a quiet table in the corner of an empty dining room as soon as they stepped inside.

“Special treatment?” she asked after the hostess left them. “I’m impressed. How’d you manage that?”

He waited for her to sit before he took his seat next to her on a cozy L-shaped bench. “Well, considering I own this place, they should give me a little respect.”

“Oh, really?” Now things were starting to make sense! He was a business owner. In that case, why did he teach swimming lessons? Considering what he drove, she doubted he needed to moonlight at the Community Center. “Do you like owning a restaurant?”

“I had a lot to learn when I opened my first one, but I quickly learned the value of a good manager.”

“First one?”

“Yes. I own seven. All seafood.”

“Wow, that’s a lot of seafood. And a lot of work.” She took another look around. The restaurant was impressive. Luxurious was the best word she could come up with. Tastefully decorated, not loud or garish as some places could be. Decorated completely in shades of blue, from a deep navy to the softest aqua, it reminded her of the sea. “How do you find the time to teach swimming? I mean, I always thought restaurant tycoons were busy all the time, didn’t have time for things like that.”

“I make time.” He stopped speaking as the waiter delivered drinks and some kind of deep fried, batter-coated squiggles. He nodded a silent thank you and continued. “I like to give back to the community, and I love swimming. It made sense to teach.”

This guy was a lot more than a stud—not that the stud part was all bad. Could she get any luckier! Wealthy, respectable, caring. She had the feeling she could easily fall in love with him.

There had to be a hitch. He was too good to be true, and she knew what that meant.

He was.

She had to find a fault, any fault, or she’d forever be waiting for the reality bomb to strike. She watched him down a few of the batter-coated thingies.

“Aren’t you going to try some?” He offered her a morsel.

“No, thanks. My religion strictly forbids anything coated in batter and fried.”

“I think you’d like it if you tried it.” He waved it in front of her nose. It smelled safe enough, a little fishy but not too bad.

“Okay, a small taste.” She opened her mouth and he dunked the piece in cocktail cocsauce then slipped it inside, licking his lips as he traced her mouth with his fingertip.

And already, before the main dish had been served, the words “fuck me hard” trailed through her mind. What would he do to her tonight? His mercury-blasting look promised plenty.

She bit down, remembering he’d placed something edible in her mouth. Not bad. A little chewy, but also crunchy and salty, with just a taste of tomato.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s better than I expected.”

“Would you like more?”

That question could be taken any number of ways.
Sure! Give me more of those electrified touches and pussy heating kisses. Fuck me
. “No, I’m fine. I’ll wait for my salad. What is that stuff, anyway?”

As the last word emerged from her mouth, the waiter stepped forward with more plates. He set several dishes before Josh.

Who ordered all this?
She took in the spread on the table. That was one hell of a lot of food! Crab legs, little white round things, fish of some kind. A lobster. On her plate, a mouth-watering hunk of steak and a lobster tail. “We didn’t order. How’d the waiter know what to bring?”

“I hope you don’t mind, I took the liberty of arranging everything ahead of time.”