“Paisley.” His touch slides over my jaw, halting at my chin. He leans in, his lips tickling my lobe, his words a low hum against the shell of my ear. “When we get back here tonight, I am going to fuck you so well, sogood, I’ll have toclamp my hand over your mouth to keep everybody from hearing your screams.”
The air in my lungs thickens, becoming sticky. A shallow breath drags through my nose, and I whisper, “If you don’t, I will. That face washing device is a vibrator.”
He grins, slow and sexy. “I know.”
“Um. Hey.” My sister’s face pops into my field of vision. “Not to burst your bubble, but there are other people in this room right now, and it’s super awkward that you guys are standing here whispering.”
“Sorry,” I say, but I don’t mean it. Not even a little.
“I’m not sorry,” Klein says, eyes on me even though his words are meant for Sienna. “When your sister is in the room with me, she might as well be the only one. That’s something I’ll never be sorry for.”
I smile at Klein, then look at my sister. I wish I could say she looks happy for me, and I guess she does, but she looks other things, too. Envious. Resentful.
Why? She’s the one getting married in a handful of days. She’s the one who should be glowing.
“Very sweet,” she clips. “It’s obvious you are a great writer.”
“Anyway,” I break in before Sienna gets any more acerbic. “We better get going. At this point, you will be fashionably late, but anything past that is considered rude.”
Sienna pivots and walks away. What the hell? Her behavior is giving me whiplash.
I wave at Grandma, and wish her a nice night. She wears a knowing smirk, offering me a saucy wink. Did she hear my conversation with Klein over the crooning ofThe Beach Boys? Probably not. Maybe it was our body language she was reading.
Grandma shoos us out. “Your brother and cousins should be up from the beach soon. We’re going to make dinner and watch a movie. You kids have fun. I won’t wait up for you.”
Klein grabs me by the waist, turning and gently pushing me so I can follow Sienna. Swiftly, in a move that startles me at first, he brushes aside my hair and plants a soft kiss on the dip of skin where my shoulder meets my neck.
Shivers tumble down my skin. I hope tonight goes by quickly so we can get back here. My thigh muscles are already aching, clenching in anticipation.
Klein drivesus in the golf cart. Sienna is quiet, and when Klein sends me a concerned look, I make an attempt with her.
“Is everything okay?”
“Everything is fine,” she replies, but she sounds tired. Of what?
I look back to Klein and shrug. I could push the issue, but I don’t think it’s likely she’ll open up in front of Klein. Or, maybe, to me.
Shane has rented a house further down the island, closer to Cape Fear. Judging by the number of golf carts parked out front, we are the last to arrive.
Sienna says not a word as we park and weave throughthe other carts. She walks ahead of us on the stairs, footfalls light and quick.
“Maybe she’s nervous about tonight,” Klein suggests, reaching for my hand as we climb the stairs together.
“That’s probably what it is.”
We reach the top of the stairs, and I pause. “Cecily texted me while I was getting ready for tonight. She said the response to your account is better than she hoped it would be. Did you know that already?”
Klein shakes his head. “I’ve been doing what I was told to do. I take a lot of pictures and add them to a shared album.” Klein rubs at the back of his neck. “I’ve been preoccupied.”
“By the jellyfish sting?”
“Hah. No.” He runs a hand over my bare arm. “By a beautiful woman. And her sassy little mouth. And her playful nature. And the way she loves the ocean, and the grains of sand that gets stuck in her hair.” He waves a hand back and forth above my head, like he could keep going. “And on and on and on.”
“I’m surprised you’ve overlooked that, considering it’s half of the reason you’re here.”
He steps closer, taking up space, stealing my breath. “Is it?”
“Well, that, and the secondary deal we made.”
