“Yeah.” Lauren kissed Grey again as the sound of more retching and Will’s half-frantic instructions to the boys filtered down to them. “Should we go see if they need some help?”
“Probably should. Unless you want to be mopping floors later,” Grey replied dryly. She sighed and stole one last quick kiss. “Wewillcontinue this later.”
“Bet your ass we will,” Lauren breathed. She instantly missed the warmth of Grey’s body and she sighed as she turned and started up the stairs to see what she could do to help.
CHAPTER TWENTY
“SO, WHAT’S THE plan?” Lauren asked as she sat down in the barstool beside Grey and handed her a steaming cup of coffee. The dark circles under Grey’s eyes matched her own, and she shuddered at the memory of the last twelve hours. She would have never imagined that little kids could throw up that much. But they were sleeping now, and the sun was already well above the eastern horizon, which meant that it was time to begin another day—whether they were ready to face it or not.
Grey shrugged and sipped gratefully at the coffee. “The plan was to jump up to The Baths on Virgin Gorda for a day of exploring and stuff, but I think it’s safe to say that the boys won’t be up for that.”
“Can we just stay here?”
“I only reserved this spot for the one night. We need to be out of here by ten.” Grey ran a hand through her hair and sighed. “I guess we can always just head up to the North Sound. We are supposed to tie up there tonight anyways, and there are usually more than enough mooring balls at Bitter End. It’s a longer sail than I would normally try and fit into one go, just because clients like to stop and do things, but if going ashore isn’t really an option anyway…”
“May as well try and stick to the original itinerary as much as possible?”
“Exactly.” Grey glanced around the empty salon and smiled as she leaned in to press a quick kiss to Lauren’s lips. The easy comfort she felt when she was with Lauren was exhilarating, and she smiled as she pulled back to look at her. “Good morning.”
Lauren reached up to lightly drag the fingers of her left hand down Grey’s jaw. “Good morning to you.” She chuckled at the feeling of Grey’s hand sliding slowly up her leg, long fingers dipping beneath the edge of her shorts to tickle her inner thigh. “Whoa there, tiger.” She covered Grey’s wandering hand with her own. “For as much as it seems like it at the moment, we are not alone.”
“But I want to touch you,” Grey murmured, squeezing Lauren’s leg. Her smile grew wider at the shiver she felt roll through Lauren’s body, and she wiggled her fingers playfully under Lauren’s hand. “Do you want me to touch you?”
“God yes,” Lauren whispered, her hold on Grey’s hand unconsciously relaxing, giving her enough slack to slide her fingers high enough that they brushed against her panties. “But…” Her argument died in her throat at the feeling of Grey’s fingers lightly stroking the length of her.
Grey smiled as she focused her attention on Lauren’s clit, rubbing slow, soft circles on the hidden bud. “Hmm?” she teased as she watched Lauren’s eyes flutter and her mouth fall open.
Really, Grey knew that she was pushing it. If anything, last night had proven exactly how careful they needed to be, but the soft pants falling from Lauren’s lips made it all but impossible for her to exercise caution. She pressed harder, her stomach clenching at the low moan that rumbled in Lauren’s throat, and she swore softly as the sound of a cabin door opening and closing interrupted them.
Her own disappointment was nothing compared to Lauren’s, though, judging by the annoyed ire flashing in the redhead’s eyes when they snapped open, and she chuckled at the death glare Lauren shot her as she quickly pulled her hand from her shorts. “Sorry?”
“You’re a tease,” Lauren grumbled, doing her best to not shift in her seat.
Grey smirked and gave Lauren’s leg a gentle squeeze. “You like it.”
Lauren laughed in spite of herself and nodded. “I do. But beware what you ask for, Captain Wells…”
“Mmm, is that a challenge?” Grey whispered huskily in Lauren’s ear as she slid out of her chair, purposefully rubbing her chest against Lauren’s arm.
“If you would like it to be,” Lauren retorted with far more confidence than she actually possessed. Her pulse jumped under Grey's knowing gaze, and she held her breath as she refused to look away. The stare was a challenge, plain and simple, and she was determined that she would not lose. Seconds seemed to last for hours, and Lauren finally let the breath she had been holding go when the sound of a third person entering the salon reached their ears, drawing Grey’s attention away from her.
Lauren followed Grey’s gaze, and a sympathetic smile pulled at her lips when she spied Kim shuffling across the salon in a pair of black running shorts and a t-shirt emblazoned with the 2012 Miami Marathon logo. The woman looked like she was dead on her feet, and Lauren could not help but wonder why in the world she was even awake since the boys were all asleep.
“Good morning,” Grey greeted their guest.
“Morning,” Kim mumbled. “I was just going to grab a cup of coffee before I showered.”
“You want me to get it for you?” Lauren offered.
“It’s okay, I got it,” Kim said, waving the offer off with a sleepy hand.
Once Kim was distracted with the coffee machine, Grey leaned down and flicked her tongue over the shell of Lauren’s ear. Her eyes fluttered closed for the briefest of moments at the quiet sound of Lauren's breath hitching,and she hummed softly as she nipped at her earlobe. She chuckled at the low growl that rumbled in Lauren’s throat, and gave her side a discreet squeeze.
Kim looked up from the coffee machine, too sleep-deprived to notice what was happening in front of her. “I know the plan was to head over to those caves to go exploring today, but the boys aren’t going to be up for much more than watching movies.”
“We figured as much,” Grey said, nodding. “Instead of stopping at The Baths, we’ll just make the jump up to Bitter End, since the plan was to moor there tonight anyways. Hopefully they’ll be back to themselves tomorrow, and you guys will be able to do all the water-sports you had planned. The itinerary has us spending tomorrow night there too, so we’ll just jockey down and hit The Baths on Thursday,” she said, doing some quick mental calculations as she adjusted their agreed-upon itinerary. “I figure we can tie up at Jost Thursday night and clear customs there. Friday we can head on over to Saint John, and then we’ll head back to Charlotte Amalie on Saturday.” She shrugged. “Not a big deal at all.”
Kim smiled. “Okay. Good. I am sorry about all this.”
