Sincerely, The Puck Bunny (Totally Pucked #2)(16)

“So, what’s on the agenda for today?” her grandmother asks her.

I’m still shoveling food in my face like I haven’t eaten in a week, and suddenly, I’m fucking starving. I can’t tell you the last time I had a home-cooked meal that wasn’t made by my housekeeper who took pity on me. Dinner at my parents wasn’t a thing anymore, so it’s just been me and all of the takeout menus in my junk drawer.

“I have an idea, are the keys on the rack?”

Her grandmother nods. “Sure are. Just be careful, darling, there looks like there might be another storm rolling through this evening. Keep the radio on, and your eye on the weather.”

My interest is piqued, so I look at Maddison with my eyebrows raised in question. She just grins and plops another grape in her mouth. Who knew eating fruit could be sexy?

Somehow, she makes it erotic, and I stifle a groan. Even after my extra shower time, I’m still semi-hard for her. That says a lot, since her grandmother is sitting three feet from us.

I’m going to hell. Signed and sealed.

The rest of breakfast passes, torturously slow, and finally the guests start to disperse. Margaret begins to pick up the empty plates and trash, and I stand to help her.

“Oh no, honey, you’re a guest. Please, go enjoy the lake.”

“Are you sure?”

She nods, smiling warmly. “Of course I am. Go on, have a good day.” Walking toward the kitchen, she says over her shoulder, “You two stay out of trouble, you hear?”

Maddison appears back in the dining room, wearing a pair of short, cut-off shorts that are frayed around the legs, and a tank top with a bright bikini peeking out from under it and a mischievous grin on her glossy lips. She’s got a bright pink floppy hat on her head, with her blonde curls cascading down her back, and what looks like a beach bag stuffed to the brim on her shoulder.

“Going somewhere?” I ask.

She shrugs. “Trust me?”

Using my lines on me, I see.

“Yes. Am I insane to?” I grin.

“Go upstairs, grab some swim trunks and a toothbrush. Meet me on the dock in ten.”

Before I can even respond, she turns on her heel and leaves me standing in the dining room, wondering what she has planned.

I jog up the stairs, brush my teeth, change into a pair of swim trunks, then empty the duffle bag I brought and shove my toothbrush, a pair of clean underwear and a change of clothes inside then lock the door behind me.

When I get outside, Maddison is standing next to a boat with the name Lucille written on the side. It’s older, but obviously still in impeccable shape. The paint still gleams as the sunlight casts down on it.

“Wow,” I say, walking over to the side where she's standing. She’s got her aviators on and beams up at me when she sees me.

“How about an adventure?”

I shrug. “I’m told I’m an adventurous kinda guy.”

She smiles wider, before grabbing my hand and yanking me on to the boat. She leans into my arms the second I’m safely on board, and I pull her to me, sealing my lips over hers.

We’re like two lovesick teenagers, and right now, I can’t even find the fuck to care.

"Hi,” I say.

“Hi.”

I drop the duffle bag on the bench at the back of the boat and look around us.

“Nice boat. Yours?”

She pulls back out of my arms and walks over to the cockpit and does a twirl that makes my heart pound in my chest.

“My grandpa’s. I think the first time I got to drive her, I was five years old. By the time I was a teenager, I was able to take her out on my own, because I had practically been behind the wheel since I could walk. It’s my favorite thing to do when I come and visit my grandparents.”

I step closer to her, placing my hand on top of hers on the wheel. “So, what you’re telling me is that I’m putting my life in your hands on this thing, right?”

She smirks. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. What, you don’t think a girl is capable of handling this massive thing?”

Pretty sure she didn’t mean it the way that it came out, but I laugh anyway, and shake my head at the innuendo behind her words. “I have no doubt that you can handle massive things, Mads.”

Her cheeks immediately tint pink. “Oh god, I didn’t mean it like that I just mean-”

I silence her with my lips, dipping my tongue inside her mouth and kissing her until her hands reach up to fist in my t-shirt. “I know, babe. Just kidding.”

The level of comfort between us… it shocks me. A girl I’ve known for just over twenty-four hours makes me feel more at home than I have with any of the people in my life for the past year. When she looks at me, it doesn’t feel like she’s looking right through me to all of the fucked-up things I’ve been doing, but she sees me. The real me.

The man I really am.

The man who’s loyal and compassionate and honest.

“Ready?” she asks.

I nod. “When you are. Just remember, you’ve got precious cargo on here.”

Her eyes roll as she stands behind the wheel that seems to be twice the size of her. She presses a few buttons, then walks to the back of the boat, untying it from the dock, and hops back in.

I stand close by and watch as she seemingly goes through a mental checklist to get us ready to push off.