Almost Just Friends (Wildstone #4)(61)

“Aren’t we going over the speed limit?” she called out. “Maybe you should slow down.”

“We’re going five miles per hour.”

“Oh.” She didn’t realize she was gripping the bar so tightly that her knuckles were white until he reached out and covered her hand with his.

“Loosen up, Piper, or you’ll have sore muscles from clenching so tight.”

He hadn’t meant it as a command, she knew this, but it still made her laugh. “Aye, aye, Captain, my Captain. Whatever you say.”

His gaze swiveled briefly to hers. “Feel free to repeat that for the rest of the day.”

She couldn’t help herself—she laughed. How could a man be so kind and gentle, and yet utterly commanding and impossibly confident at the same time? “Sure,” she said. “But then tomorrow’s my turn.”

Never one to back down from a challenge, he flashed her a sexy grin. “You’re on.”

Oh, boy . . .

They had the lake to themselves. Water sprayed up and hit the windshield in front of them. The wind went over the windshield and brushed her face, blew back her hair, and she braced to hate it, but . . . hold up. She didn’t hate it. In fact, it was kind of a thrill. So much so that she found herself grinning from ear to ear.

Cam caught sight of it, and she expected him to grin right back at her. Instead he went quite serious, reaching out to touch her jaw, his thumb rasping over her bottom lip. “Making you smile like that is the highlight of my day. Hell, my year.”

Her stomach clenched. Or maybe that was her heart. “Same,” she said, so softly she was certain he couldn’t have heard it over the roar of the engine or the wind.

But he smiled as if he’d read her lips, and it made her forget herself for a moment. The wind was in his hair too, and he wore mirrored sunglasses that were sexy as hell. So was his stubble, as was the way the gusts had his clothes plastered to him, showing off that leanly muscled physique to mouthwatering perfection.

When he caught her staring, his smile turned a little hot and a whole lot wicked.

A few minutes later, he turned into a deserted cove on the unpopulated north shore and slowed way down.

“I love it here,” she said. “I don’t often walk this far out to see it, though.” She looked at him. “Thanks for doing this, for taking me out of my own head. I had no idea what I needed. How do you always just know?”

He laughed. “I don’t. When it comes to you, I’m always off balance and guessing, hedging my bets.” Coming close, he ducked his head to see right into her eyes. “But I like doing things for you. You always get this sort of surprised expression, like you never expect anyone to go out of their way for you, or make you feel special.”

She’d never let her thoughts go down that path, but that he had was incredibly . . . well, incredible.

By the time he shut the engine down and moored them, she was ready to jump him. When he took her hand, she stepped eagerly into him. Had she said she wasn’t in the mood? She’d been wrong. “Yes.”

He smiled. He knew. “Hold that thought.” He led her to the front of the boat, but instead of jumping down to the beach, he settled them on the top deck, lying back to stare up at a serene blue sky that stretched as far as the eye could see.

“What do you think that cloud looks like?” he asked, with a jut of his chin toward the sky, hands cradling his head, his long legs stretched out, boots crossed. “I think it looks like a pizza.”

When she didn’t answer, he turned his head and looked at her. “You okay? Do you need to get off the boat?”

“No, I’m okay.” A surprise all on its own. “I’m just”—she had to let out a low laugh—“still processing the fact that I was going to make a move on you and you shut me down.”

He came up on his side and curled an arm around her, tugging her into him. “I didn’t shut you down. For the record, I’d never shut you down.”

“Because you’re a guy?”

He smiled. “Because I’m never going to not want you.”

At that declaration, she felt herself still.

“Okay, don’t read too much into that,” he said, his smile fading at whatever he saw on her face. “I just mean that you’ve got to know I’m extremely attracted to you. Emotionally attached as well. So you don’t need to ever wonder if I want you. I do.” He braced himself over her and kissed her. Soft. Sweet. And then not so sweet, before pulling back. “I just didn’t want you to think I was a sex fiend.”

“But you are, right?” she asked hopefully.

He let out a low laugh. “Well, yeah. But I thought we’d . . . talk.”

“Talk.”

“Yes. It’s a thing, you know,” he said, looking adorably uncertain for the first time ever. “Women like to talk, right?”

She laughed. “Yes, unfortunately. Are you telling me you’re the one man on the planet who actually likes to listen?”

“Well, I like to listen to you,” he said.

That flowed through her, making her feel wanted, cherished, and special. Not quite sure what to do with those emotions, she stared up at the sky. “Definitely looks like pizza,” she said. “A pepperoni pizza with peppers on it, because peppers are a veggie and that makes the pizza healthy.”