Because she isn’t out and about. The notion sends a chill down my spine for a reason I don’t understand. I shudder, send the email into the ether, and continue on to Mom’s email—school’s the same, yada yada yada, how is my new job and so on. I send her a reply, which can basically be translated into ocean waves and smiley face emojis.
Next, Evan’s email.How’s life? How’s the job? Is Tristan behaving?
Short and to the point, but to end withthatquestion?
I reply:Life’s great. Job will be better now that the old management team has bowed out—feel like I can finally breathe. As for Tristan…
I lean back to think. Evan said Tristan was the only guy he’d trust with me in this outpost of outposts. What did he mean by that?
I end my email withDefine behaving?and send it off with a smirk.
Chapter Nineteen
TRISTAN
“That was a crazy sighting,” says one of the guests as we make our way back to the dive center.
“I know, right?” I smile. This one should do something for the hotel’s ratings. “I can’t believe we saw whale sharks at night.” And not just one, at least ten of them together. So close to our drop-in dive too. The photos are going to be extraordinary—probably mostly just swaths of black with white spots and stripes, but then those gaping mouths… It was a close encounter, and in the dark. “I’m glad everybody kept their cool.”
Chuckles break out, and soon everybody is talking at once. I laugh. This is what I live for. I realize Roger is hauling equipment from the dinghy alone, and I want to help, but a guest corners me when we reach the freshwater tanks to rinse the gear.
“I was wondering if we can focus tomorrow’s night dive on eels? They make the best photos,” he says.
“Sure. What else would you like to see?” The guest talks on, and when I next spot Roger, he’s bringing in the last of the tanks. “Hold that thought. Just give me a second.” I rush over. “You can go home. It’s late, and I’ve got this.”
Roger looks around and shrugs. “Fine.”
I hope he has time to spend with his girlfriend, because at least for me, things have been nuts. Ever since Don and Miriam left, it’s been nonstop. The hotel is at capacity, and I’ve hardly seen Lexi. Between getting a grip on the work, getting comfortable with the different dive sites, and being the friendly face of Beaumont Ne’emba’s dive center, I’m treading water with a boat boy who’s giving me lip.
It’s almost ten thirty when I set the security alarm and lock up the dive center. Everybody was on a high after that dive, and we chatted for over an hour about everything from conservation to other world-renowned dive sites. After that rush, the main guest area seems almost unnaturally quiet as I walk past the lodge.
When I get to our cottage, Lexi is already asleep as usual. But this evening, something’s different. She’s put a pillow barrier between us. I’m not sure why that’s suddenly necessary, since we’ve barely managed a decent conversation the last two weeks…
If she thinks this Great Wall of Goose Down is going to stop an invasion, I have news for her. We might be busy and exhausted, but nothing’s going to stop the desire pulsing through my veins every time I see her like this. I curse under my breath as a fantasy where she clambers over that wall and lowers herself onto my rock-hard cock zaps through my brain.
And my body reacts right on cue.Fuck me.
Work is my only solace. I eat my dinner in my closet office while checking out what I managed to film today.Wow. The daytime footage is fantastic, but tonight’s whale shark photos are unbelievable. These are once-in-a-lifetime shots, and I’ll have to share them with the guests who were on the dive. It’s the perfect memento.
Eventually I call it a day and ready myself for the bed of torment. I need sleep, but I’ve been holding off getting in bed with Lexi.Fuck. I could also pound out some of the tension, but with her right there it feels…I don’t know,weird. Lexi getting into my headspace like this is a catalyst for blue balls. I’m tired and could go another night without, but…I suck in a breath. I’m pushing my limits here.
I weave my way inside the mosquito net and get on top of the covers. Babes is right there, this time in the blue silk cami set from that first day. It seems like years ago now. She wearsthisand expects me to be unaffected? Little cocktease.
It’s too hot to sleep underneath even a flat sheet, and for a minute I stare at the fan, trying to still my mind and cock, which doesn’t get the message. Lexi turns in her sleep and shifts one leg up as she settles onto her stomach. The movement adjusts her pillow, and something dark rolls out and disappears between the mattress and the headboard. I want to reach for it, but it’s gone. I sit up and listen as it drops, as if in slow motion, sliding down and landing with a soft thud on the thick hem of the mosquito net.
Lexi gives a soft moan. Yep, she’s a minx. If women only knew what that sound does to the average male brain. Then she’s moving again, getting comfy in her sleep. When she’s been still for a couple of minutes, I slip off the bed and peer under it to see what dropped to the floor. The bed is a high four-poster, with crawl space underneath. Gives off all the luxury vibes without having much to it. I reach for my dive watch on the nightstand and throw a beam of light along the back of the bed.
Right there. I dip underneath on all fours to reach for it, and as I curl my fingers around the shape, I freeze.Fuck. The girth is kind of familiar. I’d like to think of myself as above average, but?—
Here I am with my hands on my biggest competition.
I might go so far as to call it the enemy.
Enemies now…might turn into frenemies…might turn into friends. I can roll with that. Careful not to start Lexi’s magic wand, I crawl out from under the bed and through the gap in the mosquito net. I stand, slink over to the closet, close the door, switch on the light, and give the purple monster-cock a quick inspection.
Nice. So this is what she gets up to when alone in this bed. I should have known.Not fair. I’m literally itching to feel what vibration she likes, but that would be taking things too far.
Instead I shove it into my laptop bag, ignoring the tingle of guilt.
