Vacation Crush, page 6
The captain had already pulled away from the harbor and they were now cruising the Gulf. She could see Galveston Island in the distance, but all around them was the ocean.
She found Jonathan lounging on deck bare-chested, wearing swim shorts and sunglasses. His body was breathtaking and Natalie was glad her shades hid her reaction to the electrifying stimulus of seeing him half-naked. He watched her as she approached. Even with his sunglasses she could see his gleaming eyes raking over every inch of her figure until she crossed to the lounger beside his. Suddenly self-conscious, Natalie hesitated to take off the cover-up.
When she glanced at Jonathan he was waiting expectantly. “C’mon, don’t be a tease,” he murmured. “Take it off.”
Sucking in a deep breath, Natalie lifted the cover-up over her head. The hiss that escaped Jonathan’s throat made her breath catch, especially when he jerked upright and turned to fully face her.
“You’re sexy as hell!”
“You don’t have to keep saying that, Jonathan.” Especially when she knew it wasn’t true. She’d struggled with her weight her whole life and although she was comfortable now in the skin she was in, it was a constant battle.
“Why do you always do that?” Jonathan frowned.
“Do what?”
“Put yourself down. It’s not the first time you’ve done it.”
“C’mon, Jonathan.” Natalie’s sharp burst of laughter surprised Jonathan. “I’m not blind. I know how everyone else sees me.”
“And how’s that?”
“As the big girl?” Natalie answered. “And I know the in thing right now is about loving yourself no matter your body type, but I’ve lived with this my whole life. You have no idea what it’s like to walk in my shoes and have people snicker behind your back or have boys or men want to date you because they think you’re easy.”
“Is that what happened to you?”
Natalie shook her head and rose to her feet. She walked over to the rail and looked out over the water. “I don’t want to talk about this.”
Seconds later, she felt Jonathan behind her. He wrapped his arms around her middle and Natalie leaned back against him, allowing herself a second to imagine that they were more than just lovers and that they were two people in love enjoying a romantic day cruise, but in her gut, she knew it wasn’t true. She was on borrowed time.
“I’m sorry you were made to feel that way, Natalie.” Jonathan slid his palm around her neck and turned her to face him. “But that doesn’t mean that I don’t find you attractive. You’re sexy. Can’t you tell? If you leave here with nothing from our fling, know this—you’re a beautiful and desirable woman.”
“Thank you.”
“I didn’t say it to you for the accolades. I want you to believe it.”
“That’s easier said than done, Jonathan.”
“Then before I leave, I have to some convincing to do and show you exactly what I mean.”
That’s what Natalie was afraid of: that Jonathan would burrow so deep inside her heart, she would never be able to look at another man, let alone fall in love—and she was already halfway there.
Six
From his chair on the lounge deck, Jonathan watched Natalie on her phone searching Pinterest for ideas on how to modernize the two mid-century modern furniture pieces she found in the antique stores earlier that week. He didn’t understand how Natalie couldn’t see what he saw. A gorgeous woman who loved seafood, had a penchant for making old things new again and was passionate in bed. He was still trying to figure out how he ended up on a yacht in the middle of the Gulf with a woman he’d tried to steer clear of for years.
But he’d been unable let her leave the bar without him. He’d been eager to test out those full, sensuous lips of hers. She was everything he hadn’t known he wanted. He thought the occasional hookup was good enough, but he’d been dead wrong. Natalie awakened his libido like no other woman. He was already thinking of all the places on the yacht where he wanted to make love to her today.
When he told the captain they would need complete privacy, Jeff understood, no questions asked. Maybe he would finally satiate the incorrigible hunger he had for Natalie, because once they got back to Royal, things would change. They had to.
Jonathan refused to have the entire town gossiping about them, especially when he had no intention of putting a ring on her finger. And that’s exactly what everyone would expect for a fantastic lady like Natalie. It’s what Jonathan wished he could give her, but he’d deadened that side of himself long ago. Marriage, family, children—those were goals and aspirations other people could look forward to, but not him.
He considered his divorce one of his greatest failures. He should never have married so young. He hadn’t really known Anne. They’d had a great physical relationship, she came from a good family and he’d thought he was in love, but it had been infatuation. They’d married without his parents’ blessing. They’d been sidelined when he and Anne showed up married by a justice of the peace. His mother felt slighted because she hadn’t been able to give him a big fat Texas-sized wedding and reception. At least she would get her opportunity with Caitlyn and Alexa, because Jonathan never intended to walk down anyone’s aisle. He was done with marriage and relationships altogether, so he couldn’t offer Natalie any more than this week. A fling was all he was willing to give.
“Captain Jeff has stopped. Ready for that dip in the ocean?” Jonathan asked, eager to take his mind off the end of their affair and his divorce.
Natalie looked up her phone. “Sure.” As she rose to her feet, Jonathan couldn’t keep his eyes off her. She was alluring and although she may not like flaunting her curves, she drove him mad. Once they got back to Royal, she would cover her curves in elegant loose-fitting suits.
“Don’t you need more sunscreen?” he inquired. He would love to run his hands all over her body.
“Oh yeah.” Natalie reached inside the beach bag she had brought upstairs and handed him the bottle. He poured a small amount in his palms and Natalie spun around and pushed her braids forward. The first glide of his hands onto Natalie’s silky skin had Jonathan rethinking this scenario, but he couldn’t stop now. He applied sunscreen on her shoulders, back and lower until he came to her butt. A peek of her cheeks could be seen in the audacious bikini and Jonathan allowed his hands to roam over them.
“Jonathan...” Natalie damn near purred out his name.
“Hmm...?”
“Are you putting on lotion? Or are you doing something else?”
His body wanted something else, but Jonathan lifted his hands up in surrender. “I was merely making sure you were properly protected.”
“Why don’t I finish?” Natalie asked and took the bottle from him to apply lotion to her legs. When she was done, she stepped closer to him and slid her hands up his chest. Her eyes flickered up to his. They were both silent. He reached down and traced his finger over her lower lip. She breathed in sharply as he continued moving his finger. She parted her lips and began sucking it into her mouth.
The woman was bewitching him. Suddenly, he pulled away his finger and Natalie had a bereft look on her face, but she didn’t say anything. She spun on her heel and to his immense surprise dived off the back of the boat and into the ocean.
He glanced over in time to see her surface in the water. “How is it?”
“Refreshing. You should get in.”
Jonathan did because it was exactly what he needed. Otherwise, he would start making love to Natalie and never stop. She made him lose control and it made his head spin. If he wasn’t careful, she could strip away all his defenses and make him want to reconsider and extend this fling once they returned to Royal.
* * *
As she lay on one of the floats the captain threw out to them, Natalie wished Jonathan could give her his heart as much as he gave her his body. Sometimes she wondered if he was still hung up on his ex-wife. Was that why he refused to commit to another woman? She wanted to find a love like that someday. Find a man who would love her and no other. She supposed that’s why it hurt knowing Jonathan would never feel the same way about her.
Natalie wouldn’t beg him to reconsider. She had more pride and self-respect than that. So she had to ride this wave until it ended. Once they tired of the ocean, they returned to the boat for the light lunch the captain had catered in for them. Sandwiches, pasta salad and fresh fruit were laid out on the back deck.
“Looks great,” Natalie said, patting herself dry with one of the fluffy towels that came with the yacht. Then she sat down and began making a plate. Jonathan did the same and sat across from her. They tucked into the food and crisp white wine in silence. Natalie liked that neither of them felt the need to fill up the quiet moments. With other men, she would be trying to think of something witty to say to keep the conversation going, but with Jonathan she didn’t.
Once their bellies were full, Natalie resumed her location on one of the lounge chairs, but not before putting on her large brimmed hat. She was prepared to get deep into a book on her tablet, but Jonathan must have had other ideas because before she could protest, he was pulling her onto his lounger.
“Jonathan, what is—” Those were all the words she got out because he was the aggressor, reaching out to run both his hands through her braids and pull her head down to meet his hungry mouth. He licked and tasted her. Vaguely, she heard herself moan as he put his hands on her hips and pulled her firmly against him. Their lips, teeth and tongues swirled in a delicious mating dance and Natalie barely recognized he’d flipped them over so he was on top.
He reached behind her and untied the knot at the base of her neck, freeing her breasts from their confinement. His hands sought them out, stroking and caressing the tight nipples. Then he lowered his head and feasted on the nearest bud. He alternated between licks, flicks and suction; Natalie closed her eyes as the most exquisite sensations took over her.
His fingers trailed down her leg until he hit the top of her thigh. When he removed her bikini bottom, she parted her legs, allowing his hand into the warm cocoon. “Please...” Natalie would beg for this and only this because that’s all Jonathan would give her.
He obeyed her order and slowly began stroking her. Her gasps became louder, so Jonathan accelerated the pace, rotating his thumb around her sensitive nub. She stirred against him, and he increased the pressure until all Natalie could hear was her soft moans and all she could feel was the moisture between her legs.
“That’s right, baby. Come for me,” he muttered.
Natalie’s hips began to buck, and she rotated her pelvis as his fingers drove her wild.
“Jonathan!” When the shudder ripped through her, her inner muscles clamped around his fingers. Her mind blanked completely as sensation after sensation catapulted her into ecstasy. She was still in a haze when she felt the weight of his body settle onto her. He’d already protected them, and her excitement skyrocketed because he thrust inside her in one fell swoop.
When Jonathan began moving in slow, sure strokes, Natalie knew then he would break through any barrier she had put up to prevent herself from falling for him. With each movement, he filled her, becoming one with her, becoming a part of her. “Oh yes...”
She arched to meet him, running her nails down the taut muscles of his back. She kissed his neck, lightly nipping as he liked to do to her, but he still kept the pace. The intensity of his movements as he began pounding into her made Natalie’s mind blank. Spasms rocked through her very core, sending her hurtling over the edge, and Jonathan roared as his release crashed around him.
Sometime later, they left the deck to head downstairs to shower together only for Jonathan to wrap her naked body around him once again and press her against the cold tile of the bathroom shower. He departed long enough to roll on a condom before returning so Natalie could tighten her legs around his rock-hard buttocks as he pushed inside her. A groan escaped him as he thrust into her again and again, causing her breasts to push upward. He nipped at their fullness. She screamed, but Jonathan was right there with her exploding all around him.
She fell forward against him like a limp noodle, and he lifted her into his arms and carried her back to the bed. She heard him quietly murmuring her name as she drifted off to sleep.
* * *
It took Natalie several minutes to open her eyes and realize she was alone in the bedroom downstairs. She was spent. Natalie knew she should be concerned where this intense lovemaking was leading, but the compulsion to feel everything with Jonathan went beyond sexual gratification. When they were together, they were making love and Natalie had to remind herself not to imbue the moment with feelings because Jonathan would never return them.
How could she not when he knew her intimately as no other man had? She was in danger of being seriously in love with this man. She knew he didn’t want to hear her feelings and refused to have any of his own. So she kept them to herself, buried along with all the other words she wanted to say, but knew would go unsaid.
Jonathan emerged at the doorway several moments later. “Hello, sleepyhead.” His dark eyes were fierce as they regarded her.
“I’m exhausted.”
“Too tired for a sunset and dinner?” Jonathan asked. “Captain Jeff called down to tell me the sun is about to set in another fifteen minutes so if we want to catch it, we’d better head up.”
“Oh yes, that would be lovely.” Naked, Natalie threw back the duvet and rose from the bed. With other lovers, she would have reached for the nearest sheet because she wanted to hide her body, but Jonathan loved every inch of her.
As she walked past him to the bathroom, he smacked her on the rear. “Jonathan!” She spun around.
“What?” He shrugged. “I couldn’t resist.”
Natalie dressed quickly in a paisley maxi dress with a lightly smocked waist that accentuated her bust. Minutes later, they were climbing upstairs to the balcony where the captain was already looking out over the horizon. He glanced behind him when he heard their footsteps. “C’mon up. You don’t want to miss this.”
Natalie scurried forward to the railing just as the sun was setting. Jonathan came up behind her, planting his arms on either side of her, cocooning her in his embrace. Closing her eyes, Natalie wished she could stay here forever with Jonathan.
“Do you always watch the sunset with your eyes closed?” Jonathan asked, glancing down at her closed lids.
Natalie’s eyes popped open, and she looked straight ahead, embarrassed at having been caught daydreaming. “Not usually. I was just soaking it all in.”
A rumble of laughter escaped from behind her. “It’s all right, Natalie,” he whispered in her ear. “I’m enjoying the moment, too.”
“Do you think Captain Jeff heard us earlier when we were...” Her voice trailed off.
“Making love?” Jonathan offered. “I hope not, but even if he did, I’m sure he knows how to be discreet.”
As the minutes ticked by, the vibrant yellow and orange hues of the sun turned to dusky pink and purple. But just as quickly, it was over, as their relationship soon would be.
“I guess that’s it, folks,” Jeff said. “I’ve got the makings of your dinner and will go set up, so give me a few minutes and enjoy the view.”
“Sounds good, Captain,” Jonathan replied as the older man left the balcony. “You’re quiet.”
“Merely introspective,” Natalie responded when she finally hazarded a glance behind her.
“Stay in the moment with me,” Jonathan said, sweeping her braids behind her back. “Can you do that?”
“I can try.”
“Good.” They stayed together like that until the sky turned purple; only then did Jonathan grab her hand. “Let’s go eat.”
Natalie took his proffered hand, but knew she’d lied to him, because she wouldn’t be able to keep her word. She was already thinking about tomorrow and all that it would bring.
Seven
Jonathan awoke the following morning later than normal and instantly knew something was different. Rolling to his side, he glanced to the empty spot where Natalie had lain with him the night before. All that remained was her indentation as well as a note.
He bolted upright as he picked up the slip of paper folded in half. Opening it up, he read:
Jonathan, You have no idea how much I’ve enjoyed the time we’ve spent in Galveston. Unfortunately, work beckons. Take care, Natalie.
Take care.
That’s it? That’s how she was going to leave what could only be described as the best six days of his life? Did she not feel the same? Why hadn’t she woken him up so he could have properly told her goodbye? They’d shared an amazing day on the yacht yesterday. Because if she had, he most certainly would have tried to talk her out of going home. Work be damned! She’d done the right thing, but he had to admit he felt an odd sensation—something like regret because he wouldn’t get to enjoy the last day of his trip with her.
Perhaps it was for the best. They had been joined at the hip since they arrived. In and out of each other’s beds. And if he had his way, it would have continued until they were due to leave the island. But oh, how he would miss her sweet demeanor, and that gorgeous, sexy of body of hers. They fit together so perfectly. It was like she was made for him!
Jonathan had never had a partner who was compatible with him in the bedroom. Natalie left him satisfied and fulfilled each and every time. Whenever they were together, he felt like he couldn’t get enough of her. After dinner on the yacht last night, he’d pushed away the plates and had her as his dessert.
