A short distance from the trailhead, Roman parks the car, and when we exit the vehicle, he doesn’t hesitate to peel off his shirt and shove it into his backpack, along with our supplies.
My God, he looks like a god among men.“If you’re going to hike shirtless,” I say, trying not to ogle him, “let me spray you with bug spray and sunscreen.”
Roman snickers. “Are you a preschool teacher, by any chance?”
“Safety first,” I chirp with my index finger raised, and Roman hoots with laughter.
I spray him down carefully, admiring my canvas as I do, and Roman returns the favor. But as he rubs everything into my skin, he leans into my ear and murmurs, “I hope you’re happy, you sadist. I’ll be starting the hike with a big ol’ boner, thanks to you.”
I giggle. “You won’t be alone. I’ve got my own version of a boner.”
Roman walks me two steps backward and gently pushes me against his car before pressing his hard-on into me. With a wicked grin, he says, “What can I say? I’m hot for teacher.” With that, he leans in and kisses me, and we make out against the car for several delightful minutes. When it’s obvious he’s gotten me extremely hot and bothered, Roman slides his hand into my shorts and fingers me so deliciously, I wind up having an orgasm against the car, just as a random vehicle zips past us on the highway.
“Shoot,” I blurt, as the car disappears down the road. “We need to be more careful. What if they recognized me?”
Roman laughs. “They were going fifty miles per hour, at least. If they saw anything, it was the blur of a horny couple kissing on the side of the road.”
I exhale. “Still, I can’t risk going viral again. Never again. I need to stay out of the limelight, no matter what.”
Roman’s smile fades. He touches my hair. “I’m sorry. I’ll be much more careful from now on.”
“Thank you.” I bite my lip. “Also, thank you for that orgasm. That was a first for me—an orgasm in the wild.” I point to the huge bulge straining behind the fabric of Roman’s shorts. “What about that bad boy? Do you want to crawl into the back seat and let me take care of that for you?” I waggle my eyebrows to entice him.
Roman’s dark eyes blaze as he drags his teeth over his lower lip. “It pains me to say this, but no. You’re right. We should be more careful than that.” He waggles his eyebrows the way I did a moment ago. “But this is a rain check, okay? I’ll gladly let you ‘take care of this bad boy’ in the privacy of the bungalow tonight.”
Chapter 16
Iris
“This hike isincredible.” I have to raise my voice to be heard above the crashing of the nearby waterfall. Also, talking is hard when you’re out of breath from hiking.
“I didn’t overpromise?”
“Not at all.” I can’t believe Roman’s not out of breath in the slightest. Is he even human?
Roman stops walking, so I do, too. Thank God.
“I think I remember the best viewpoint being somewhere up there,” he says, gesturing toward a nearby grouping of boulders—a configuration that looks awfully steep and slippery to me.
“That looks kind of treacherous,” I say warily. “I’m wearing gym shoes, not top-of-the-line hiking boots with thick tread like you.” Not to mention, I’m not superhuman like him.
“I’ll carry you on my back,” Roman says breezily, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “You’ve gotta see this view.” Before I reply, he slides off his backpack, squats down, and offers his broad back to me. “Hop aboard.”
With a ridiculous little giggle, I slide Roman’s pack onto my shoulders and hop aboard, at which point my own personal Superman for the day grips my thighs and begins scaling the rock formation like it’s an anthill.
Swoon.
I hate thinking about Brandon again, especially at a romantic moment like this, but I can’t help it. I never minded Brandon being on the short side, and I’ve never found classic gym-bro-athlete-beefcakes all that attractive. But I can’t deny Roman’s height, brawn, and strength are insanely attractive to me. Hismuscles aren’t for show. He didn’t sculpt them in a gym simply to impress his gym-rat friends and get chicks. This man’s a true athlete—that much is clear. One who plainly revels in putting his gorgeous body, and his own limits, to the test.
Roman easily reaches the peak of the large rock formation. And all of a sudden, we’re treated to an unimpeded panoramic view that knocks my socks off: rainforest, waterfall, and blue skies that stretch into and blend with the aquamarine ocean beyond it all.
“It truly is paradise,” I breathe out, as Roman crouches down and lets me stand on my own two feet. “Did I die, Roman? Is this heaven?”
“Heaven couldn’t improve on this, that’s for sure.”
Mere yards away, that spectacular waterfall is thundering at full force, with so much power, it’s spraying us with a gentle, cool mist—a barrage of tiny, rainbow-hued orbs that float around us and land on our skin like a gentle, ethereal embrace.
“Thank you for taking me here,” I whisper, still looking around in awe. “I’ll never forget it.”
