Page 43 of On The Beach

He tipped my face up with a finger on my chin. "What did you say?"

"Was I too easy for you? Is that why you?—"

"Shut up," he snapped. "Don't talk about yourself like that. Sex is fun and nothing to be ashamed about. How come you don't ask if I was too easy?"

I licked my lips. "I…I don't usually do this."

"I do. Does that make me a bad person?"

“Of course not.” I sat up then and put a hand on his chest. "I…I'm being silly."

"No, you're conforming to the societal bullshit that glorifies men who fuck around but shames women for doing the same. I don't believe in judging either side. We're adults, having mutually consenting, fabulous sex. Why should anyone be judged for that?"

I'd never met a man like him.Never.He had a solid moral code. He believed in living life to the fullest.

"You're unique," I whispered.And I think I've fallen in love with you.

Fucking fuckity diddly doo!

"So are you, Babycakes." He smiled at me. "You're full of sunshine, positive, and…so passionate both in and out of bed. I feel like you feel everything a hundred times more than anyone else I know does."

"I've been told I'm too emotional."

"There you go again, judging yourself and saying it like it's a bad thing to be emotional. It's not. It means you're human." He tugged me down, and this time, I sprawled over him, his half-erect cock nestled between my legs.

I'd never had sex without a condom, but I was doing it with this man, this veritable stranger who I'd gone ahead andfallen hard for. I was a scientist. I didn't believe in love at first sight and all that bullshit. But now I had proof that it could happen because it happened to me. This man had turned me inside out.

"Will you think of me after I leave?" I asked, wanting at least that. I wanted to be special enough to be more than a notch on his bedpost…or hammock post.

"Why do you want to think about the future when the present is so delectable?" He pushed his hips against mine. "Ride me, Babycakes, let the rest go. We're here to live our lives, not constantly question the past or the future."

So, I did as he asked and took him inside me, letting the doubts and the fears fall away.

CHAPTER 13

other bottoms

MICK

It was a perfect, lazy Reef Harbor morning. Belle was sprawled on my couch, her laptop propped against her knees, brow furrowed as she complained about theinexcusableWi-Fi situation. I was leaning against the doorframe, just enjoying the sight of her, when I heard a too-familiar voice behind me.

"Mick, darling."

"Fuck," I muttered when I saw Poppy, in a slinky bikini and a Christian Dior tote bag, strolled onto the porch like she owned the place. Poppy was a runway model and walkedeverywherelike she was the boss.

She sauntered up the steps and into the hut, a dazzling smile lighting up her face as she leaned in to air-kiss my cheek. "So good to see you, too, darling."

We'd spent a week together, not in my hut, but in her five-star hotel on the other side, the posher side of the island. And, yeah, I'd taken her to La Mer Lunaire. She was the type. And even though I was fine with having conch shell whatever, once in a while, I didn't mind food that was Michelin-quality andplated by a snobbish chef who paired his dishes with an excellent wine from one of the finest vineyards in France.

Belle looked up from her computer. She was wearing a pair of denim cutoffs, a tank top, and flip-flops. Her hair was piled up. She looked adorable.

Poppy looked…well, like a runway model in her itty-bitty red bikini, a flowing red and yellow chiffon cover-up that left nothing to the imagination, and sandals that showed off her red-painted toenails. She raised her sunglasses and settled them on her head.

"Darling, can you ask your guest to leave?" She didn't bother with Belle and came up to me, slid her arms around me, and lifted her face up for a kiss.

I was all kinds of an asshole, but as a rule, I didn't fuck two women at the same time until they both were in bed with me. When you lived in Reef Harbor and indulged in alcohol, sometimes you ended up in a ménage à trois. No harm, no foul as long as everyone was game.

Belle raised her eyebrows. "Huh?"

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