"You're addicted, aren't you?" she teased.

  "Absolutely." Remey answered, looking up as the bells over the door jangled. His smile widened as Aleks stepped into the café. Mona glanced over to the door and waved at Aleks, then headed behind the counter to get Remey's cider. Remey closed his laptop and set it aside as Aleks approached his booth, flashing him a quick grin.

  "Well, hello, what're you doing here? I wasn't expecting to see you today."

  Remey had been thinking about Aleks, though, pretty much all the time, ever since those electric kisses a few nights ago at Stevan's. He hadn't obsessed as much over a few kisses since he was a teenager. Aleks's smile held a touch of mischief, his cheeks were flushed from the cold, and his eyes were sparkling.

  It's a good look on him, Remey thought, a tingle going through him as Aleks hung his coat on the peg at the end of the booth seat, sitting down across from him.

  "It's Willow's best friend Mackenzie's birthday today, so she's at her house for the afternoon at a party, and I have a few hours free." Aleks broke off as Mona brought over Remey's cider, along with a cup of coffee for him. "Thanks, Mona."

  Remey smiled, slipping his laptop into his messenger bag. "I bet she's going to have a blast and come home on a total sugar high."

  Aleks chuckled. "That's a sucker bet. So... tell me you don't have plans this afternoon. Because I'm a single father, Remey, and spending a rare childless day sitting around the house would be pathetic."

  A slow smile spread across Remey's face. "I'm not busy, no. What did you have in mind?"

  Aleks grinned. "Have you ever been on a pontoon boat?"

  Remey laughed aloud. "Aleks, I was born and raised in Louisiana. I all but lived on pontoon boats in the summer."

  Aleks made a face, like he was embarrassed he hadn't considered that, then shrugged. "Well, good then. Come on, pay the lady and let's get out of here. I've got a boat rented and waiting for us out on Lake Powell."

  Remey beamed. "Really? How far is it?"

  "Maybe fifteen minutes, over on the outskirts of town."

  Remey gestured Mona back over and asked for the check, slipping his coat on and winding his scarf around his neck.

  "You can follow me if you want," Aleks began when they got outside, and Remey shook his head.

  "I can leave my car here, if you don't mind dropping me off back here."

  Aleks flashed him a grin. "I don't mind at all. Come on. I'm parked down the street a little ways." Remey was so tempted to slip his free hand into Aleks's as they walked, but he restrained himself. They weren't dating yet... Unless Aleks was thinking of this outing as a date. And even if he was, it would only be their first date and... Why was he even obsessing about this? Remey shook his head and pushed the thoughts away, grinning up at Aleks.

  "Thank goodness for toddler birthday parties."

  Aleks's smile was slow and warm as he opened the passenger side door of his SUV for Remey and gestured for him to climb in. "You read my mind."

  Remey shivered. He was almost a hundred percent sure there'd be more kissing today, and maybe more. It sounded like the perfect way to keep warm on an open pontoon boat.

  Aleks climbed behind the wheel, looking Remey over. "It's colder out on the water, so we'll bring a couple of blankets I have in back."

  Remey glanced over at him as Aleks pulled away from the curb, smiling. "You and me and a couple of blankets, all alone out on the lake? I'm liking this plan more and more every minute, Aleksander."

  Aleks chuckled. "You know, no one calls me that."

  "Does it bother you?"

  "Not at all. I kind of like how it sounds." Aleks flashed him a sexy grin. "I figure you could read the telephone book and it'd be sexy with your accent."

  "Good." Remey glanced out the window, then back at Aleks. "I didn't know anyone went boating when it was this cold."

  Aleks laughed. "This? Oh, city boy, this is nothing. People here are out on the water all year round. When it freezes over sometime in January, you should come with us. I'll be bringing Willow out with my brother and me this year to ice fish. She's big enough now."

  "Ice fishing, huh? Well, there's a first time for everything, I guess. I think maybe I'll leave the fishing to you and Stevan, though. Me and fishing equipment don't get along."

  Aleks laughed, glancing over at Remey. "How so? There's got to be a story behind this."

  Remey smiled. "Oh, there is. My daddy took Dan and I fishing once, when I was about thirteen, I think. Anyway, I was trying to be a hotshot and flick the hook out into the water all fancy-like from over my shoulder. Well, what I didn't know was the hook had caught on the pocket of my shorts, so I'm tugging and tugging. Of course, I didn't want to tell my dad I was stuck, so I kept pulling at it. And then I knocked myself off balance and fell on my ass. So, needless to say, I have a two-inch long scar on my ass from the fish hook and got tormented mercilessly by my brother for the rest of the freaking summer."

  Aleks laughed, shaking his head. "Seriously?"

  "Oh yeah. I'll show it to you sometime," Remey teased, shooting Aleks a warm, sexy smile.

  Aleks eyed him back, and Remey swore the temperature in the car went up twenty degrees. He didn't think he'd gotten this tied in knots over a guy since he'd crushed hard on the student teacher in his English class senior year in high school. The combination of curiosity and teenage hormones had made him completely unable to focus in class. Remey had more experience now than he had back then, but when Aleks was around, he felt like a teenager all over again, nervous and sweaty-palmed and dying for even the slightest indication his interest was returned.

  Thankfully, before Remey could do something embarrassing like suggest they forget the lake and head straight for a motel, Aleks pointed up ahead.

  "Here we go."

  Remey leaned forward. It wasn't very big, but then nothing in Haven was. But, like everything else, the little marina was quaint and made him imagine the place bustling with activity and families in the summer time. As they pulled into the small parking lot, a man with a weathered face approached, a friendly smile creasing his cheeks.

  "Aleks!"

  Aleks grinned as he parked and climbed out of the SUV, waving. "Hey, George, how's Mirial?"

  The other man, probably the owner, Remey guessed, came around and clasped Aleks's hand. "Good, good. She wants to know when we're going to see your sweet girl again?"

  Aleks chuckled. "What, our visit on Halloween when she cleaned you out of every last Snickers bar you had wasn't enough to last you 'til next year?" He grinned and turned, gesturing as Remey came around the vehicle. "George, this is Remey Dufresne. Remey, this is George Wallace."

  Remey smiled and offered his hand. "Nice to meet you."

  George peered at him over a pair of bifocals, his eyes amused. "Heard you moved out to Haven all the way from California. You don't sound like some slicked-up Hollywood fancy-pants boy."

  Remey laughed. "I'm not. I was born and raised in Louisiana."

  "Well, you might be alright, then," George joked, pulling a set of keys out of the pocket of the down vest he wore over a flannel shirt. "There's the keys, Aleks. The pontoon's all gassed and ready to go. You radio me if you run into any trouble."

  "Will do, George. Thanks." Aleks pocketed the keys and gestured to Remey. "Hold on a second. I'm going to get those blankets."

  Remey waited while Aleks retrieved the blankets from the back of the SUV, unable to help ogling a little. He didn't figure anyone could blame him because Aleks's ass and mile-long legs in a pair of jeans that looked like they'd been made for him was one of the sexiest sights he'd ever seen. Aleks emerged and closed the back hatch of the SUV, tucking the blankets under his arm and pointing toward the pier along the shore of the lake.

  "This way. I hope you like it. This was the best way I could think of to spend an afternoon."

  Remey smiled, glancing up at Aleks as they stepped onto the pier, turning toward the end where the pontoon was tied to its own short dock. "I think it's pretty perfect myself. I always loved going out on the water as a kid, and I haven't been in years and years. Plus, I get to be alone with you."

  Aleks climbed down onto the boat when they reached the dock, ducking under the bright red canopy and taking Remey's hand to help him hop down. "Grab a seat. I'm going to get it started up and get us out on the water. You can wrap up in one of the blankets if you're cold."

  Remey did, grabbing one of the blankets Aleks had brought and wrapping it around himself, feet propped up on the edge of the boat. "So I can trust you not to capsize us in frigid water, right?" His voice was teasing.

  Aleks snorted. "Hey, I'd think you'd be thrilled for an excuse to strip us both down," he teased back, glancing over his shoulder at Remey. He started the boat and then pointed to the edge of the dock. "Untie us?"

  Remey forgot his blushing in order to hurry to help, dropping the quilt, then wrapping back up in it once the boat was untied and he sat back down. "So you planned this, right? Like... a date."

  Aleks glanced back at him again. "Yes. Like a date. Does it bother you?"

  Remey grinned so wide it hurt and shook his head. "Not at all." Then he snuggled down into his quilt a little more. This was totally unexpected and even better because of it. He shivered at how the breeze picked up as Aleks guided the boat out onto the water, but the cold was so not diminishing his happiness right then. In fact, Remey was pretty sure nothing could bother him at the moment. They were on a date. Best day ever already.

  Aleks nodded to the seat beside him under the canopy. "Come on up here. It's a little warmer." The cockpit was settled in a little alcove, which looked like it provided some protection from the chill breeze.

  Remey clutched the blanket around himself as he moved to the seat beside Aleks's, huddling in its folds and eyeing Aleks suspiciously. "How are you not cold?"

  Aleks laughed as he steered the boat out onto the lake. "I'm more used to it, I'm dressed for it, and I'm not a little wisp of a thing, either."

  Remey made a face at him over the blanket. "Mental note to get some more long-sleeved T-shirts and stuff. I thought I was prepared for the winters, but I don't think I am now." He tilted his head at a bunch of plants, which seemed to be floating out on the water by themselves, nudging Aleks's shoulder and pointing to them. "What in the world..."

  Aleks looked where he was pointing and laughed. "That? It's a sort of floating island, except not. Sometimes the vegetation around the shoreline breaks off in clumps and the plant leaves act as sails. It's pretty cool actually to watch them drift around the lake. Willow thinks they're awesome, of course, but she's also not entirely convinced they aren't actual islands and that she can't live on one."

  Remey laughed, shaking his head. "I probably would have thought the same thing as a kid. And I'd have loved the idea of an island all my own."

  Aleks glanced over at him with a teasing smile. "No plans to buy your own private island someday?"

  Remey shook his head, smiling. "Not at all. I'm not that successful."

  Aleks guided the boat around the island. "There are other lakes in the area that have the same sort of thing except in ring form, like atolls. It's pretty cool."

  Remey nodded. "It definitely is." Then shivered, hard.

  Aleks pointed. "There's a thermos under your seat." He slowed the boat and then shut off the motor to let them slowly drift a bit.

  Remey straightened in his seat, glancing down, then back up as Aleks sat beside him. "There is?"

  Aleks laughed and nodded, bending to reach under and grab it. "And I swear, if what's inside doesn't earn me a kiss, I don't know what will."

  Remey grinned. "Don't tell me... Mona's cider?"

  Aleks twisted off the top and let the aroma waft toward Remey, who let out a soft moan. "Bingo."

  "Oh man, forget a kiss. I think I may love you." Remey did lean over and brush a kiss to Aleks's lips, though, peering up at Aleks through his lashes. "Thank you. I was regretting not getting a whole jug of it before we left."

  "Way ahead of you. Here." He poured some into the lid/cup and handed it to Remey, then screwed the top back on and grabbed the second blanket to toss over his legs as he leaned back. "So what do you think?"

  "Of the lake? Or of Haven in general?"

  "Both. And maybe other things, too."

  Remey smiled as he sipped the cider, propping his heels on the edge of the seat so he could wrap the blanket around his legs, too. "It's beautiful out here, all quiet and peaceful... I bet it's even more so in the summer or in the early fall, when all the leaves are still on the trees."

  Aleks nodded. "It is. This is one of my favorite places in Haven, actually. I used to come out here a lot when I was a teenager. Even when I was feeling stifled by the small-ness of the town, I could always breathe out here. I don't get to come as much now, but I still love it."

  "I can see why," Remey murmured, taking another sip of cider and offering the cup to Aleks. "And as for Haven... it's been what the name implies. Especially since the paparazzi left. It's exactly what I wanted and needed. I never could've gotten Theo to come to a place like this, not even for a long weekend. He's a true city boy and thinks vacations are best spent at fancy resorts, or in big cities at even fancier hotels." Remey shrugged and met Aleks's eyes. "Not that I don't like fancy hotels every once in a while, but..."

  "Not all the time." Aleks finished for him, and Remey smiled.

  "Exactly." He let out a soft sigh, more content than he could recall being in a long time. He glanced over at Aleks. "This might be the best first date I've ever been on, frigid breeze included." It was hard to mind the cold when Aleks kept sending him looks that spread heat through Remey's body. He didn't even think Aleks meant to do it but his smile was so damn appealing.

  Aleks grinned. "Now I know you're full of shit."

  Remey laughed, hands cupping the warm cider. His nose was no doubt red and his cheeks felt a little numb, but he was ridiculously happy. "I am not. I swear, best first date." Remey's smile went soft as he met Aleks's gaze. "It might have more to do with the company than with the actual locale of said date, I admit."

  Aleks laughed. And then he leaned in and brushed his lips against Remey's, one hand cupping his cold cheek. Remey hummed in pleasure against his lips.

  "Your hand is warm," he murmured. Then giggled a little. "So's your mouth."

  Aleks slid his hand into Remey's hair. "You might want to put your cider down, Remey. I'm going to see that you really warm up now."

  Remey shivered, not from the cold, and stretched his hand out to set the cup on the control panel of the boat, sliding his hands inside Aleks's open coat and smiling up at him "There. All yours."

  He wondered if Aleks knew how true it was.

  Remey's heart felt as though it might beat out of his chest as Aleks drew him closer, right up to the edge of his seat, their eyes locked. His stomach was jumping with anticipation. He hadn't been able to stop thinking about kissing Aleks in days. When their lips touched, Remey fisted his hands on Aleks's sweater and deepened the kiss, desire tugging in the pit of his stomach as Aleks's tongue swept across his bottom lip and into his mouth.

  Remey gave back as good as he got, his body heating. The kiss went on and on, until Remey couldn't even feel the cold, only aware of Aleks's mouth on his and the way he tasted and smelled and how good his hands felt, one tangled in his hair, the other curved around the back of his neck. He panted when Aleks broke the kiss.

  "Now I'm wishing this was a bigger boat," he murmured, so tempted to skim his hands down and get them underneath Aleks's clothes and on bare skin. Still, it was barely thirty degrees out, so he resisted. "Big enough for a bunk would be nice."

  Aleks grinned at him. "We'll make do, Remey. C'mon over here."

  Remey took the invitation, sliding into Aleks's lap, straddling those long, muscular thighs with a soft groan, the quilt still clutched around him as Aleks wrapped him up in his arms, and Remey let out a soft sound of pleasure. "Mmm, this is nice."

  "It can be nicer," Aleks whispered, leaned in to kiss Remey again, slower this time, hotter, one hand sliding down Remey's back to cup his ass through the layers of fabric. Remey whined into the kiss, tipping his hips back slightly. He wanted Aleks's hands on his skin, wanted the intimate contact so much he ached for it.

  * * * *

  Aleks groaned, one hand slipping into Remey's hair, while the other got up close and personal with one of the sweetest asses he'd ever had the pleasure to touch. It occurred to him they weren't alone out on the lake and someone was going to see if they didn't stop soon, but with the media gone for now, Aleks didn't much care. It'd been almost a week and he'd seen no sign of a single paparazzo or journalist. It was like whatever had happened back in L.A. had caused a mass exodus, and Aleks had never been so glad for the media's fickle nature. So a few people from town saw him kissing Remey... let them see. He was kissing the prettiest boy he'd ever met and he wasn't ashamed.

  His hand on Remey's ass shifted as the kiss deepened. Hesitantly, giving Remey a chance to stop him if he wanted to, Aleks inched his fingers up and under the hem of Remey's jacket and shirt, fingertips brushing bare skin. You'd think he'd gotten to third base or something, with the way his cock reacted to the faintest of touches, the slightest hint of velvety smooth, warm skin under his fingers.

  Remey wasn't any better, though, his whole body tensing and then melting against Aleks's with an encouraging moan into the kiss. Fuck, he was driving Aleks crazy with how responsive and sensual he was. It was like he'd given himself permission to stop putting on a show for the cameras and this was Remey Dufresne... unplugged, so to speak. Stripped down and laid bare, all his secrets Aleks's for the taking.

  And oh, Aleks wanted to take.

  What he'd intended to be a simple, romantic first date was veering into the territory of anything but innocent. Aleks wanted more. It was very clear Remey did as well... why the hell were they on this boat necking like teenagers, as fun as it was? He broke the kiss, panting softly and meeting Remey's darkened blue eyes.

 

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