No Denying You (Danvers #5)(27)
Emma untangled herself from Brant’s lap when her mother left. “I don’t know about you, but that was the equivalent of a cold shower.” Taking his hand, she pulled him up behind her. “Let’s go change and grab a paddleboard.”
She smiled when she heard Brant ask warily, “Paddleboard?”
Chapter Ten
Brant’s breath caught in his throat as Emma made her way down the stairs. She was wearing a white, above-the-knee dress that made her legs look a mile long. The dress hugged her figure and showed off her tanned skin to perfection. Her brown hair cascaded down her back in a jumble of loose curls. He wanted to bury his hands in the soft mass and devour her. He wanted to take her somewhere and just lose himself in her until he could no longer remember all of the reasons that getting involved with her was wrong.
But he had been down this road before and he knew where it led.
Emma was even more of a risk than Alexia. Standing before her in his black suit, he had never felt more unworthy of someone. She was beautiful, sexy, a free spirit . . . and he didn’t have the first clue as to what to do with her. If he wasn’t enough for his first love, there was no way Emma would ever be seriously interested in him. She would be back to hating him as soon as their play-cation was over. The person he had been pretending to be while they were here wasn’t who he really was. In reality, he was the tightass that she had so often accused him of being. The surprising thing about this trip was how much he had enjoyed acting like someone who didn’t take everything so seriously. He hadn’t even bothered to check his company e-mail this morning, which was a first for him.
He knew their time was coming to a close soon and he wanted to enjoy every moment of being the man that she seemed to want. He took her hand when she reached the last step and pulled her against him. “You’re stunning.” When he picked up a box from the table beside him, she gave him a questioning look. “I know you said this wasn’t the prom, but I decided to cover my bases.” In truth, he had called a local florist earlier and bribed the owner to make a late Saturday delivery.
Emma smiled when he opened the box to show a delicate orchid corsage. “Oh, Brant, it’s beautiful.” She reached up and pressed her lips against his softly. “I love it.”
His hands shook slightly as he pinned the flower against the shoulder of her dress. This was unfamiliar territory for him and he was afraid he was going to stick the pin through her delicate skin. God, he could barely remember a time when his life was carefree enough to just be in the moment. Even with Alexia, he had always held a part of himself back. He had loved her but was very aware that bad things could happen to people you loved. In his experience, there was less pain if you kept your heart better insulated. After all, something bad was bound to happen sooner or later. He had thought that Alexia was fine with that until she walked away.
Emma, he knew, would never be content with half of anyone. A relationship with her would mean he’d have to be all in. She didn’t do anything in life halfway. She would love hard and completely. He had no clue how to approach something like that. Once she figured out that he was not capable of being more than he was, she would be gone. He could live out the fantasy for the weekend, but things between them had to end when the plane touched down at home. No party could last forever.
The reunion was in full swing when they arrived. Brant had insisted on hiring a car and driver for the evening and, from the looks of the well-stocked bar, Emma thought that was probably a good idea. She figured it was largely due to the fact that he didn’t want to take her old car, rather than worrying about alcohol, but she had decided to let it go. She’d already sent Brant off to get her first drink of the evening, needing some time to compose herself. She had been floored when he had produced a corsage earlier. Such thoughtful gestures were something she would have never thought Brant was capable of. Heck, she would have never imagined him capable of all that he had been for the last few days—Mr. December was also Mr. Multi-Orgasm, Mr. Sensitive, Mr. Gentle and Mr. Personality, just to name a few.
On top of that, her parents were completely in love with him and, if she didn’t take control of her traitorous heart, she would be right there with them. Her pretend boyfriend was turning out to be the best man she had ever had in her life. She had even taken to chanting under her breath, “It’s not real, it’s not real.” He had actually caught her doing it earlier and she had brushed it away explaining that she was saying, “I need a meal.” Yeah, she wasn’t a fast thinker on her feet, but he seemed satisfied and had promptly ushered her in for lunch.
They had spent the day on the beach. She had discovered that Brant was possibly part fish because there was nothing he couldn’t do in the water. Some of those things would have probably gotten them arrested. He was a natural at paddleboarding although he claimed to have never tried it before. He was also well above average in the surfing department. She, on the other hand, had been so distracted by his gorgeous body in his Nike board shorts that she had tumbled into the waves times and again. She was sure that he knew the effect he was having on her. He never missed an opportunity to touch her whenever he was close. If not for her sister dropping by for a few moments to chat as they were making their way upstairs, she would have surely attacked him in the shower again. Unfortunately, now she was horny and in for a long evening before she could do anything about it.
Yeah, bring on the alcohol; maybe it could cool the flames roaring inside her. She had never felt the need to masturbate in public, but she hadn’t ruled it out this evening. Brant had her completely on edge.