“If you say so.” Lauren fell into step beside Grey and smiled at the way the brunette’s hand slipped into her own. “Can I help you with something?” she teased as she gave Grey’s hand a squeeze.
“Oh, I’m sure I’ll be able to think of something.”
“Says the woman who left me alone in bed this morning.”
“I let you sleep,” Grey pointed out. “I didn’t just abandon you to go fishing or something. I was nice and let you sleep-in while I slaved away in the kitchen making breakfast for everybody.”
Lauren chuckled and bumped Grey’s shoulder with her own. “Pancakes is hardly a ‘slaving away’ type of food.”
“Yeah, well, we can’t all be professionally-trained gourmet chefs. Some of us had to learn one burnt grilled cheese sandwich at a time.” Grey stopped at the head of a set of stairs that led from the outside trail to The Baths and waved for Lauren to go first. “Even you have to admit that those pancakes were good, though.”
“They were decent,” Lauren allowed as she started down the ladder.
“Not cool, Lauren Whatever-you-middle-name-is Murphy.”
“It’s Rose,” Lauren supplied with a smile. She hopped down to the sandy floor below, skipping the final few steps, and ran her hand through her hair as she looked up at Grey. Like herself, Grey was barefoot, wearing only a pair of shorts and a bikini to make navigating the water-filled grottos more comfortable, and Lauren licked her lips as she appreciated the subtle sway of Grey’s breasts as she descended the stairs.
Grey smirked at Lauren as she stopped in front of her. “See something you like?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know, Ms. I-left-Lauren-alone-in-bed-this-morning.”
“Oh my god!” Grey laughed, reached out to grab onto Lauren’s hips, and shook her head as she pulled Lauren into her. “It’s not like I abandoned you,” she pointed out as she brushed her lips over Lauren’s. “I made breakfast. And, I left you a note. Doesn’t the note count for something?”
Lauren sighed and nodded as she looped her arms around Grey’s neck. She would have kept up the ruse, but the warm press of Grey’s skin against her own made it hard to breathe, let alone think. The note was cute, and she would never admit that she had carefully placed it between the pages of her copy ofFodor’s U.S. and British Virgin Islandsthat was sitting in one of the cubbies above her bed, but what she had really wanted was this. The feeling of Grey’s body pressed against her own, so firm yet soft at the same time, strong fingers curling into her sides as deliciously tempting lips ghosted over her own.
A pleased smile quirked Grey’s lips and she hummed as she rolled her hips into Lauren’s. “What was your favorite part? The drawing, or what I wrote?”
“Fishing for compliments is not at all sexy,” Lauren muttered, rolling her eyes, but she was unable to keep from smiling as Grey nuzzled her cheek. “But both. Okay? I liked both.”
“I like you,” Grey murmured softly, honestly.
Lauren smiled. “I like you too.”
“Good.” Grey tightened her hold on Lauren’s hips and kissed her again, deeper, slower, every swipe of her tongue around Lauren’s an apology for not being there when she woke up.
Lauren groaned when her back came into contact with one of the cool boulders that made up the grotto, and she threaded the fingers of her right hand through Grey’s hair to hold her close. She knew that this was not the place for them to lose control, but it was impossible for her to pull away. There was so a tenderness to the kiss that made Lauren weak in the knees, and the feeling of Grey’s breath cascading over her lips in trembling waves was nearly enough to make them buckle.
“Grey…” The brunette’s name was the only word Lauren could manage, but it was enough. She whimpered softly as Grey’s mouth descended back on her own with a gentle urgency that made her toes curl.
“Eww, kissing!” little voices cried out.
Grey groaned. She recognized those voices.
“Told you,” Kim’s voice added smugly.
“Damn,” Will muttered.
“Dollar!”
Lauren’s cheeks flamed with embarrassment as Grey reluctantly pulled away from her, and she rolled her eyes as she offered the Muellers a small wave. “Hello.”
Will smiled sheepishly and waved. “Hey.”
Kim chuckled. “We’re on our way over to Devil’s Bay.”
“Sounds good.” Grey ran her hands through her hair and looked at the boys. “You guys have that map I gave you?” It was crude, just black Sharpie on a piece of parchment textured printer paper, but she had tried her best to make it look like an actual treasure map.
Thankfully, the boys were young enough that they did not question the authenticity of the map. “Yup!” Peyton answered, waving the page in the air.
