Her mouth dropped open in surprise, and then she laughed. “Any time.”
The wooden steps from the deck to the ground were wide enough for two, but they had to separate as they scrambled over a weedy sand dune to get to the beach on the other side. A balmy breeze tossed her hair into a tangled mass and coated her bare skin with a light mist of briny water. The beach was mostly empty along this particular stretch of high-end homes, but in the distance people were flying colorful kites and relaxing in the sand. Kellen lifted Dawn over the icky row of black seaweed on the edge of the surf and set her down in ankle-deep waves. She found the action incredibly gallant.
When she smiled up at him, he said, “I guess I should have asked if you like to walk the beach with the waves washing over your feet or—”
She touched his lips with her fingertips to cut him off. “I like to walk the beach with you.”
The where, the when, even the why didn’t matter. Just the who.
This time when his mouth claimed hers, there was no turmoil behind the brush of his lips, only passion. He drew away much too quickly, took her hand, and started up the beach, the bath-warm waves lapping against their ankles and calves.
They’d gone all of five steps when he turned to her, cupped her face in both hands, and kissed her. Her eyes drifted shut as his lips lingered, and then he drew away, tugging her into motion again. She’d scarcely gotten her legs to move properly when he stopped once more and kissed her again. Thinking this was the best beach walk she’d ever been on, she allowed her hands to drift to his bare back, curling into the hard muscle she found there to draw him closer. Before she’d had her fill, he drew away and resumed strolling. She opened her mouth to question what he was doing, but he kissed her again, and she decided they weren’t going to get much talking done on their walk and that was fine by her.
“Every five steps,” he whispered against her lips before starting up the beach again. True to his word, after five steps she was in his arms again, being kissed into a mindless oblivion of sensation and connection.
“At this rate, this is going to be a very long walk,” she said when he tugged her forward another five paces and kissed her again.
She deepened this kiss, her tongue caressing his lip, and he groaned. His hand slid down to cup her ass and drew her against him. The unmistakable hard ridge in his shorts sent curls of desire twisting inside her.
“Or a very short one,” he said, nipping her lip, her jaw, the tender spot beneath her ear.
He squeezed her ass, and she whimpered, so glad that he’d slipped out of his earlier funk over Sara. She wasn’t going to ask what had changed. She sure as hell didn’t want to bring up the subject again and ruin their enchanting moments in the surf.
“Let’s go back to your place,” he said, “before we scandalize that group of elderly ladies.”
Dawn shifted her gaze to the beach walkers passing them as they followed the curving ridge of collected seaweed. The women didn’t look scandalized at all. Every one shared a knowing smile with her when their eyes briefly met. Dawn was more concerned about their influence on the preteen boys gawking at them from beneath a shady fabric gazebo near the dunes. Had it been a weekday, they’d have likely had the beach all to themselves and been able to make out without an audience. Perhaps tonight, after the sun set, they would do just that.
“Let’s walk a bit farther,” she said. “It’s such a nice day.” And she was enjoying the foreplay.
“If we continue, I’m not sure I’ll make it back.”
He shifted his hips slightly, rubbing his arousal against her. She was equally aroused, but she had the advantage of being able to hide that fact.
“You don’t have to kiss me every five steps,” she said, doubling down on this little stop by stealing another kiss from his gorgeous lips. When she drew away, she opened her eyes and met his stare.
Those dark eyes of his made her heart thud with excitement. He was looking at her now the way he looked at her when she was naked and bound and begging him to take her.
“Yes, I do,” he said, his voice low and husky. It caressed her deep inside where she ached for his hardness.
“I know you have an issue with breaking promises—”
“That’s not why I have to kiss you,” he interrupted. “I thought you couldn’t be any more gorgeous than you are by candlelight, but the sunshine makes your hair glow like fire, the green in your eyes brighten, and those sexy as fuck freckles of yours pepper your skin.”
Damn, she hated her freckles, but she liked that he referred to them as sexy as fuck.
He leaned close to her ear and whispered, “I can’t wait to get you naked, to rediscover every freckle on your body.”
Yes, please. She’d like some of that.
“Every wave that washes over my feet reminds me of the slow, sensual rhythm that drives us both and demands I take you to its steady cadence.”
And she’d really like some of that.
“Oh wow.” She blew out a weary sigh and reached her arms high over her head in an exaggerated stretch. “I’m beat from all this walking. I should probably head home for an afternoon nap.”
He chuckled. “You read my mind.”
“Darn.” She pouted at him. “I hoped you had something a bit more invigorating on your mind than a nap.”
He laughed again. “You have no idea how invigorating my naptime can be.”
“Please tell me I’m about to find out.”
She squealed in surprise when he scooped her up into his arms and headed back the short distance to the beach house. As promised, he paused every three steps on the return trip to kiss her, but these weren’t the toe-curling, leisurely smooches of before. These were hurried pecks so that his kisses wouldn’t hinder their progress.
She couldn’t wait to be alone, without beach-goers or even the ghost of Sara between them.
He didn’t glance at Sara’s house as they passed the large, sunny yellow structure. His attention was on Dawn and getting to the blue rental next door as quickly as he could traverse the powdery sand of the dune. It tugged mercilessly at his bare feet, slowing him down.
“Damned sand.”
“I can walk,” she said, drawing her fingers through the long silky strands of his hair, though she rather enjoyed how feminine he made her feel. She was tall for a woman and had never been as light as air. Not many men could lift her, much less carry her.