“I might be older than you, and lonely, but I’m not falling for this romantic nonsense. You’ll seduce me so I’ll do what you want, then you’ll fuck me over at work.”
“Bridget, please.” I sank to my knees in the foamy water. Until the moment she’d rejected me, I didn’t know how serious I was. “I meant every word I said. I have no ulterior motive. If I didn’t care about you, would I be here right now?”
Slowly, she shook her head. “You should be home with your daughter.”
I held out my hands. “But I’m not.”
“This can’t be real,” she muttered.
I waited, palms up.
Finally, finally, she laid her small hands in mine. Her usually perfect nail polish was chipped from our adventures this week. I rubbed the backs with my thumbs and gazed up into eyes the color of the ocean.
“Get up,” she said, tugging my hands.
I sprang to my feet and leaned over her. The wind whipped her ponytail around us, and I captured it in my hand and pressed it to her nape. “Can I kiss you, Bridget?”
Her eyes darted left and right, but I brought my other hand to her cheek to focus her attention on me. “No one we know is here,” I said. “No one but us will know it happened. Will you give us a chance?”
Her gaze was pinned to mine. The roar of the waves, the lash of the wind, the screaming of the seagulls faded. She placed her hand on my chest, not pushing me away, but anchoring ustogether. Her lips parted, and her tongue darted out to wet the lower one.
“Kiss me, Bridget,” I muttered.
Her fingers curled into my T-shirt, and she tugged on it. I let her pull me down until our lips hovered a breath apart. I didn’t want to have to ask again, but I would. I’d beg her if I had to. I opened my mouth to plead with her.
She rose onto her toes and pressed her lips to mine. Her lips were soft and plush like I’d imagined. But the rest was so much more. Exactly as she’d done in our office, she staked her claim. She pressed and invaded with her lips and tongue. And as she’d done with this trip, she curled her palm around my neck and captured me, holding me to her.
I was a willing captive, taking what she gave me and giving it right back. I groaned into her mouth as I welcomed her tongue with a caress of my own. Spots danced behind my eyelids. I needed to breathe, but I didn’t want to change anything about this mind-blowing kiss. If Bridget didn’t need to stop, neither did I.
Ignoring the taps on my head and shoulders, I delved in for more, releasing my hold on her hair to run my hand down her back. Her dress clung to her, and I traced the shape of her bikini top. Let the seagulls peck me to death. I was going to figure out how the ruffled thing was put together and what it might reveal.
Bridget wrenched her lips off mine, her chest heaving. “I think…” She tipped her face up. “It’s raining.”
“Is it?” I murmured into her wet cheek, where I laid a row of kisses down to her neck.
“It is. Pretty hard too.”
“No, that’s me.” I pressed my hips into hers so she could feel how I wanted her.
“Cole.” Gently, she pushed on my chest until I stepped back. It was only then that I noticed the rain-soaked strands of herhair sticking to her face, and her thin dress plastered to her skin. She shivered, and I wished I had one dry article of clothing to shelter her, but I was drenched too. “Let’s go back.”
I’d have paid every dollar in my bank account to sink back into the minute before we’d sensed the rain, but that moment was gone. I clutched her hand. “Come on.”
19
REAPPROPRIATED UNDERGARMENTS
Something you’d change about the world if you could?
Bridget:I’d make it easier for women to advance in management. I’d make flexible work hours and limited travel the norm for anyone who needs them.
Cole:Same. What? I have a daughter.
BRIDGET
After a shower, I was finally sand-free, warm, and dry again. As I reached for the hairdryer, I heard a knock at my hotel room door.Ugh.With my brain fried from that earth-shattering kiss on the beach, I’d forgotten to hang the sign on the door to wave off housekeeping. Snugging the hotel’s fluffy robe around myself, I padded to the door and opened it,no, graciasalready forming on my lips. I wished I could remember the nicer phrase Cole used that made waitresses and tour guides swoon.
But it wasn’t housekeeping at the door. It was him.
