Chapter Thirteen

Victor

Something brought me from sleep, a noise possibly. I couldn't be sure as I rubbed my eyes, my brain working to get back online.

Oh crapola!

My arms hung suspended in the air when a flood of reality hit me. I swallowed back a groan of mortification and carefully pushed the covers off—noting in the back of my head that there was no tenderness from the sunburn—as I rolled to look over my shoulder. With a thudding heart, I eyed the empty bed. Two things registered at once as I glanced about and strained to hear. I was alone in the room and the beautiful array and orange and pink gracing the sky I could see outside the balcony didn't tell me if it was sunset or sunrise.

I ran my tongue over my teeth and groaned at the awful taste, then moaned when there was a slight tightness to my upper back, reminding me of my stupidness.

"Who the heck gets sunburnt when they've put on sunscreen?" I muttered crossly, avoiding thinking about everything that came before and after. Because right now, that was the safest thing for me to be worrying about, with no sign of Denton.

I shut my eyes, but that didn't help when images of me in the shower—naked, I was naked with Denton in the shower—decided I needed chapter and verse on just how needy I was. How Mr. Polished had hurt my feelings with his declaration that Denton was more attracted to him, and I'd looked for reassurance.

My eyes fired open when everything Denton had done for me said that Mr. Polished couldn't have been more wrong! I jerked up to a sitting position.

"Denny likes me!" I exclaimed to the empty room. "Fuck… he like-likes me."

Back up a minute.

"He stopped the kissing."

Yes, but he was angry, and upset that I'd got sunburnt.

My eyes widened and heat flooded my cheeks at my daring at asking him to give me a shower. I couldn't blame the three cocktails I'd had, because I was more than aware of what I was doing and the snarky voice in my head would be very capable of reminding me of that. My logic was that I'd wanted some way to get him to notice that the attraction towards him was very real. Being naked in my tipsy state was the answer.

My thoughts ran into each other. Him in the shower with his shorts on.

Why had he kept his swimmers on?

The thought stayed put and nagged at me as I tried to think beyond how aroused I'd gotten and how he'd never mentioned it or touched my cock. Which I was grateful for—maybe—when I was positive it was because I hadn't asked him to. During the kiss, he'd clearly wanted to let me be in charge. Not something I enjoyed, but my past was there, sitting between us. Would he expect me to make the first move? Maybe I'd been a little more than tipsy and not noticed any signals he'd been sending out? Wasn't inviting him into the shower a first move?

Your skin was burnt. He was taking care of you.

My mind scrambled at how much that notion warmed me, along with the reminder of gentle touches as he'd washed my body. No demands. No getting cross at me for spoiling the afternoon. Just Denton taking care of me.

But my fascination with why Denton had left his shorts on wouldn't abate. Was it to hide his reaction to me? I scoffed at the idea. His cock was way too big to hide. Would it have been too much of a temptation for us both to be naked?

Possibly.

I liked that idea a lot as it meant the next time we were in the shower, there could be shower sex, something I hadn't had in years.

Whoa there, hold those damn horses.

I glanced back out the window, frowning. When did Denton leave? Where was Denton now? Hiding? With Mr. Polished?

"No! You stop that right now. He couldn't have been any clearer. He's attracted to me!" Hearing myself say it aloud helped settle the nerves wanting to take away my happiness. Full of restless energy, I hopped out of bed.

One look at the towels cast aside on the chair from the previous day got more heat coursing up my neck and flooding my cheeks, making them burn hotter than the sunburn. Glancing back at the bed didn't help either when I could see myself there, spread out after Denton had dried me. His firm, calloused hands stroked cooling lotion from my shoulders, down over my back, to the top of my ass where he'd lingered before moving to my legs. The hair on his arms and legs brushed against me.

Dropping my gaze to my twitching cock, I groaned in dismay at how I was going to struggle to keep my attraction around Denton under control.

Why do you need to? The sly voice asked, making me hotter and more bothered when it was secretly what I wanted.

In search of a distraction, my gaze swept the room, looking for my phone. Seeing it sitting on the larger set of drawers, I skipped around the end of the bed, no more than three steps away. A noise brought my head around to look at the door.

Heart pounding, I froze on the spot and watched, wide eyed, as it swung open to reveal a rather sweaty looking Denton. He was looking down at something he was holding, so didn't notice me initially. Hungrily, my gaze roamed down the sweat soaked T-shirt and gym shorts that were frayed at the edges and hung low off his hips, revealing powerful thighs. His dark hair was as sweaty as the rest of him. It stuck to his skull, framing his face.

God, he was hot!

As if he sensed my perusal of him, his head rose slowly, and our gazes clashed. His lips curved into a smile that sent a direct spiral of pleasure to my cock, which thickened further.

Gods!

Noooooo!

Not now.

He was the first to recover and before I'd blinked to register the move, he kicked the door shut with his sneakered foot and brought me from my stupor. I moved my hands to cover my cock like a damn fool when we were way past modesty after he'd seen all of me the day before.

His eyes twinkled with humor as he followed the move. "Got a problem, love?"

I hoped like hell that he would think the flush to my skin was from the sun and not because he was making my innards melt as he rocked the sexy grin.

"Yes… no… what? Maybe?" I waffled, feeling my body burn with embarrassment.

His smile widened and he stepped further into the room, dropping what he held onto the stand close to the door. I couldn't figure if I should dart for the bathroom and hide or jump his bones.

My cock was going with option two and I wanted to be brave enough for that…

"How's the sunburn this morning?" he asked, his hands grabbing the hem of his T-shirt and yanking it over his head to reveal his hairy chest. The two days on the ship and his skin had darkened to a beautiful golden color.

I was so fixated on his chest, it took more than a second to register he was now within a few feet of me and staring at my shoulders.

"Fine… the skin feels… tight… is it morning?" I gawped when that part of what he said registered.

"Yep," he said with a chuckle. He dropped the T-shirt onto the floor, coming closer. "You slept so soundly, I thought I'd grab you some food after my morning workout cause you must be starving."

He was so close now I could feel the heat radiating from his body. Food was the last thing on my mind. I couldn't look away from him as he reached out to touch my shoulder. "Much better than yesterday," he murmured huskily, gentle fingers stroking over my reddened shoulder and down my arm towards where my hands were.

His mouth was so close it was all I could focus on when I remembered how it tasted. How soft his lips were.

"How are you feeling?"

Hyperventilating from the hand getting closer to mine, my tongue ran over my drying lips, hoping wetting them would help me form a reply. I had nothing, so I nodded.

Little lines around his eyes appeared as he came closer, his hand now covering mine, and a breathy moan escaped past my parted lips.

"You don't need to be shy with me." His lips brushed the corner of mine as he continued to hold my gaze. "You're beautiful. Every inch of you is a miracle I want to touch," he licked at the same corner he kissed, "taste."

Seduced, air rushed out of my lungs at the desire he revealed. I moved a fraction so our mouths could meet and lost the battle of indecision. His damp, furry chest rubbed against mine, sending tendrils of desire to where his hand remained. Although my own hands were still covering my cock, I could feel every touch of his fingers as though he was stroking my cock.

The kiss, this time, held all the passion he evoked in me. All the passion I'd held in check, believing he'd never be interested in it. His responding groan was harsh as his hand let go of mine. There was no opportunity to complain when he bodily lifted me up.

Yes!

Not needing a second invitation, my legs wound around his waist. My hard cock met a cock that left little to the imagination as it strained under the gym shorts. Springy hair caressed my nipples, and they budded painfully. Large, callused hands squeezed my ass, encouraging me to rock against him. Gasping at all the sensations bombarding me at once, I struggled to understand what was happening when the kissing stopped and I found us in the bathroom.

"Shower… I need a shower," he panted.

"Oh…"

He lowered me down and I mourned the loss of skin contact, feeling really awkward. "With you. Fuck, you make me crazy."

He ran his hands through his hair, returning his attention to me, wearing an expression that gave me hope. "I've spent two hours in the gym this morning working off my frustration at lying next to you all night and not getting to touch." His head tilted back and his chest heaved as he rubbed at his face. "Showering you yesterday was one of the best and worst things I've ever done." As he spoke, he dropped his hands.

Worst?That can't be good. I stood there, unsure of what to say.

When I met his stare, the desire rocked me back and got my cock throbbing with a renewed vigor at the intensity in his eyes.

"I wanted to get on my knees and suck that pretty cock. Taste you. Feel you come apart for me."

Shudders ran through me. My legs grew weak whereas my cock had no such issue. It was hard enough I worried that if he touched me, I might come from the visuals he'd painted with his need. No one had ever been so explicit with what they wanted to do to me and I found I liked it a lot. My cock leaked in appreciation, speaking for its damn self.

"I want… that… please," I stuttered and begged, the shakes of desire making it impossible to do anything more.