Seaside Embrace(17)

“Fuck, pretty girl. You do want me.” He was never going to get her to say it, not if every time they were together he gave her what she wanted, and for some reason, hearing her say it suddenly mattered a hell of a lot.

She hooked one leg around his waist, opening herself up to him. It took all of his willpower, but he pulled away. The pit of his stomach clenched tight with need and a sense of loss as he withdrew his fingers from her shorts.

“Hunter—” She reached for the button on his jeans, but he gently grabbed her wrist and shook his head.

“When you’re ready to tell me you want me, you know how to find me.” He lowered her leg from around his hip, and it seemed neither one of them moved for a full minute before he turned to leave.

“Seriously?” she called after him. “You’re leaving?”

He strolled toward the front door feeling like a dick for leaving her hot and bothered, but he was just as ready, and for the first time in his life, he wanted more than a good fuck, and he wanted that with her. “Yup.”

“Hunter, what the hell?” She grabbed his arm, and he turned to face her.

He willed himself to act casual, which was torturous when there was nothing casual about what he wanted to have with her.

“We’re not even dating, Hunter. Why do you need to hear anything at all?”

She crossed her arms, and the hurt in her eyes nearly took him to his knees, but he dug deep and remained strong, somehow knowing he needed to, for both their sakes.

“I have no idea,” he said honestly, “but with you, I do.”

As he walked out the door her voice trailed after him. “Then maybe you should figure out this romance shit first!”

Maybe I just did.





Chapter Eleven


JANA AWOKE TO someone banging on her front door at five thirty in the morning. She clutched her blanket, heart pounding, and tried to coax her sleepy brain into functioning.

The banging stopped and she grabbed her phone. She’d missed three calls from DO NOT RESPOND!

Goddamn it, Hunter. What now?

Without reading the texts she went to the front door and peeked outside. Sure enough, Hunter was standing there in a pair of low-slung jeans and a sweatshirt, with the hood pulled over his head. She yanked the door open.

“What are you doing here this early, and why do you look like a gangster?”

His eyes roved over her clingy tank top and panties. “Do you always answer the door nearly naked?”

“Only to strange men who knock before sunrise. What do you want, Hunter? To drive me insane again and leave me high and dry? Because that’s not really romantic.” She turned and walked toward the kitchen.

He grabbed her arm and spun her around. “I tried to text you, but you didn’t respond.”

“Most guys wait until morning to text, so…” Jesus, he smelled like cologne again, and now that she was more awake, she realized he’d shaved, too. She reached up and touched his cheek without thinking. The muscles in his jaw tensed against her palm. “I like you clean-shaven almost as much as I like your scruffy bad-boy look.”

The edge of his mouth tipped up as he stepped in closer, backing her against the wall. He slid his hand beneath her shirt and brushed her nipple with his thumb, stealing her thoughts. “Glad you approve.”

Her heart nearly stopped. Oil and water had never felt so good.

“Go get some clothes on before I finish what we started last night.” He removed his hand from beneath her shirt and stepped back, leaving her hot and bothered...again.

Her eyes dropped to the bulge in his pants, and she was too confused to even try to comprehend what game he was playing. “Clothes?”

“Yeah, you know, the things that cover up those beautiful breasts and sexy little panties?” He took her hand and pointed her in the direction of her bedroom, then gave her bottom a pat. “Go on or we’ll miss the sunrise.”

“Sunrise?” she mumbled as she walked toward her bedroom wondering what he had up his sleeve.

They drove to the beach in silence, save for the low hum of the truck engine. Hunter looked over at her every minute or so, but he didn’t say a word, just rolled his eyes over her face like he, too, was trying to figure out what they were doing. He parked at Indian Neck Beach and came around to her side of the truck as she was getting out.

“I was going to open your door for you.” He reached for her hand and she stared at it for a beat.

“Why? What’s going on?” She let him take her hand and help her out, then watched as he pulled a cooler from behind the cab of the truck and tossed a blanket over his shoulder. Wow. You came prepared and everything.

“We’re watching the sunrise. I hear it’s romantic.” He took her hand and led her to the dunes, where they toed off their shoes and walked barefoot across the cool sand. Hunter wasn’t exactly being warm, but she could see he was trying to bridge the gap between them.

Jana liked the feel of his hands laced with hers, but this whole scenario confused the heck out of her. “Hunter, why are we watching the sunrise?”

As they crested the hill, ribbons of blues and purples spread across the horizon, reflecting off the water with slivers of light.

“Wow.” She stood for a moment, soaking it in. “It’s so beautiful.”

Hunter looked up from where he was spreading a blanket on the sand. He knelt on the blanket and opened the cooler. “Almost as beautiful as you.”

He patted the seat beside him. He sounded so sincere that she was having a hard time reconciling his efforts with the man she knew. Or rather, with the parts of the man she knew within the confines of their relationship. She knew Hunter said nice things to people all the time, but the two of them didn’t compliment each other in that way. They told each other they were hot or sexy, but only during sex.

She sank to the blanket beside him, and Hunter handed her a to-go cup of coffee that he must have had in a carrier inside the cooler, and then he handed her a napkin and a paper plate.

“What is all this?” she asked, as he set a banana-nut muffin on the plate, then set one beside it for himself. “Hunter? You brought my favorite muffin?”

He held up his to-go cup and smiled. “Here’s to romance, pretty girl.”

“You did all of this because I dared you to learn how to be romantic?” Warmth spread through her with the realization. “No one has ever done something like this for me before.”

“Maybe you didn’t challenge them in the right way.” He took a sip of his coffee and lifted it toward her, as if he were toasting.

“So, you did this because you want to hear me say that I want you.” She shook her head. “You’re unbelievable. I should be in bed, sleeping.”

He was about to take a bite of his muffin, and he stopped, mouth open, hand in midair. “Seriously?”

Her life was chaotic enough without confusing what was going on between them as something more. She still wasn’t sure exactly what all of this was supposed to mean, and she was afraid to put herself out there on this new level with Hunter. What if she gave in and told him the truth—that she wanted him more than she’d ever wanted anyone or anything in her life—but this was all a game to him? She hedged her bets and went with a middle-of-the-road response.

“You could work on your delivery.”

He shook his head, then took a bite of his muffin. His brows knitted, and he nodded as he chewed. “My delivery.”

“Yeah. You basically burst into my house and dragged me out here. A woman likes a man with finesse.”

He cocked his head. “How would you know? You’re not exactly a relationship expert.”

“I’ve had boyfriends before. Besides, a woman knows these things.”

She turned away, watching a seabird land by the water’s edge and peck at something in the sand. Hunter took her drink and plate and set them aside. He wasted no time in straddling her waist and taking her down to her back, arms pinned beneath his hands. This she understood. This was Hunter.

“Hunter.” She laughed.

“Finesse, huh?” With a wicked glint in his eyes, he lowered his mouth to her neck and nipped at the sensitive skin just above her collarbone. “Tell me about this finesse.” He dragged his tongue along her neck, then sucked her skin into his mouth, making her entire body catch fire. “First you want romance. Now you want finesse?”

“Hunter.” His name came out like a purr.

He sealed his lips over hers in a punishingly intense kiss, then abruptly pulled away, gazing intently into her eyes. “I’m not good at finesse.” He lowered his mouth to hers, brushing over her lips, a whisper of a touch, and spoke just above a whisper. “But I’m trying to get romance right.”

He was quiet for a long moment. Jana could barely process the emotions in his eyes. He wasn’t just looking at her like he wanted her. He was looking at her like he wanted only her. Her mind reeled as he eased off of her and sat back down, like he hadn’t just sent her world spinning.

They ate in silence, and when they were done, Hunter put away their plates and cups, then scooted closer to Jana. She had never been more aware of their nearness than she was right then. Their legs barely touched from hip to ankle, but it was enough to send goose bumps up her arms. Hunter leaned back on his palms, reaching one arm behind her, so she was tucked in the recess of his shoulder but hardly touching him.