I throw my arm over my face as if I can hide from the idiots that are Sam's friends.
"You two are fucking morons," Sam mutters, blowing them both off.
"Seriously," Carl agrees. "Do you want some tanning oil, Rory?"
I remove my arm from my eyes and shake my head. "No thanks. It's hot. Anyone wanna go down to the ocean?" I ask. I've always preferred the ocean to a pool. Something about the salt water and the infinite vastness of the sea makes me feel like my issues aren't as devastating as they seem. Like I'm just one ephemeral piece of a boundless world - a part of something far greater than just myself and my troubles.
"I'm in," Sam murmurs, and I bite my lip to stifle my grin.
I tug my tank top over my head and stand to shimmy out of my shorts. I picture Sam kissing my neck in the elevator to distract me from my nerves at our friends seeing me in a bikini. Carl and Lily are wearing barely more than a few scraps of material connected by thin strings, so I don't feel too self-conscious.
Sam has removed his shirt, but seems to be making no move to join me. "You comin'?" I ask.
"Yeah, Rory. You go ahead, I'll be right behind you," he murmurs.
I frown in confusion, but grab my towel and start across the pool deck anyway. Sam is still seated when I glance back, and despite the fact that he's slipped on his sunglasses, I'm fully aware that he's staring at me walking away.
It strikes me that Sam just had me go ahead of him so he could stare at my ass. Is it normal that I'm flattered instead of outraged?
I roll my eyes and continue onto the boardwalk that connects the resort to the beach, and wait on Sam there, where our friends can't see us.
"Boo!" I shout when he reaches me, pleased when he jumps in surprise. Sam recovers quickly, though, sliding his arms around my waist to pull me against him. He kisses me hard and fast before pulling away far too quickly to lead me down the steps to the beach.
"You're a sneaky little thing, aren't you," he muses.
I laugh. "Me?I'm not the one who told you to walk ahead of me so I could stare at your ass," I tease.
Sam smirks. "I didn't realize I was quite so obvious, Ror. I'll try and be more subtle next time."
"Next time... just ask," I reply as seductively as I can, completely out of character, and then drop my towel in the sand and race toward the waves. But Sam is faster than me and he catches me before I reach the surf. I giggle as he wraps me in a hug, his hands wandering up and down my back, and vaguely I think he's going to feel my ass rather than just look at it this time. I'm also quite certain I have no intention of stopping him. Iwanthis hands on me. But they land on the back of my thighs instead, and he lifts me without warning, tossing me over his shoulder with minimal effort.
I yelp and swat at his behind, but he just chuckles and walks languidly into the water. I realize he's going to throw me into the water and my pulse accelerates. I'm a get-used-to-it-gradually kind of girl, definitely not one to take the shock all at once. But I do want to be a good sport for Sam, especially after that elevator stranger pissed him off because of me.
I brace myself to be tossed, but Sam slides me down the front of his body instead, torturously slowly, and I feel every inch of it - every warm, firm ridge - against mine.
Holy shit.
I don't even register the frigid water, even though we're waist deep. I feel anything but cold.
Sam gazes down at me. "Hi," he says softly.
"Hi," I reply, smiling timidly up at him even though I was teasing him about looking at my ass mere minutes ago.
He takes my hand and leads me deeper into the water until it's up to my chest and his waist. His hands roam over my hips, my back, and my stomach, lingering on the half inch of scar that peeks out above my swimsuit bottoms. I shiver, and it has nothing to do with the cold. My breaths come a little more quickly, and I just stand here, staring up at him from beneath my lashes, waiting. For what, I haven’t a clue. I don't know what I expect him to dohere.
Sam gently cups my jaw like he's holding a treasured possession, his midnight blue gaze making silent promises I can't begin to understand. His fingers thread through my hair as he bends, achingly slowly, his eyes darting around to ensure our friends aren't in sight before -finally- his mouth captures mine. His kiss is teasing and sensual, his lips caressing mine in an equal exchange of affection and hunger. I find myself smiling even through our kiss, and I can feel it against my mouth when he returns it. He sucks my bottom lip into his mouth and I moan, but he pulls away and presses his forehead to mine.
"God, Ror, no more of those sexy little sounds. Not in public. You'rekillingme," he says gruffly.
"So let's go back inside," I whisper.
Sam pulls away to look down at me with narrowed eyes, like he's sizing me up. "You're trouble, you," he decides, and then suddenly dives under the water, surfacing no fewer than five feet away.
I grumble to myself, but when I catch Tuck and Carl splashing in the shallows with Tina and Andrew following from the beach, I understand.
"Fine, you win. Let's go join them." With no other choice, I concede, and start making my way to our friends.
"I, uh- need a minute," Sam says, still with that husky tone that affects me in a decidedly physical way, his gaze accusatory as he nods for me to go ahead.
