Page 74 of Holiday Home 5

She batted her eyelashes innocently, though that was the last word he’d ever use to describe her. He was swimming in unfamiliar depths, hoping he might intrigue her with the choice he’d made. He also knew he should get moving, as he’d start doubting if he’d made the best choice if he stayed still for too long.

“Yes,” he grunted. “Come with me.”

Her curiosity expanded as he led her back outside. Into the night, the fresh air, and the possibility of discovery. A subtle smile curved the corners of her mouth.

“Interesting.”

Well, that was what he was going for, so he continued advancing. Where to? To the nearly identical sibling of an object that he hadn’t yet used at his bure. And what he had in mind with this one definitely wasn’t its intended purpose.

“Very interesting,” Avril said, realizing where they were headed after only a few steps.

Toward the deck’s hammock, where it hung still and asleep, propped up by two thin palm trees. Near the end of the deck, where it had been hung, there was an intentional lack of plants blocking the view. Anyone who used it could sway peacefully as they stared out toward beautiful white sand and a calm ocean lapping inward. That meant that anyoneonthose sands or in that ocean would be able to stare right back.

“You okay with this?” Liam asked, partially because he needed to absorb some of her courage to go through with this.

“Fuck yes,” Avril said, grinning. “I’m impressed, Liam. Seriously impressed.”

Gladdened by her response, he led her toward the front end of the hammock. Next, he nodded above her. Her eyes went up, and she finally understood his full intentions.

“Fuck,” Avril whispered, biting her lip. “Are you going to hold me up?”

“For some of it,” he promised.

Excitement burbled like a geyser about to erupt within Avril’s eyes. Without a moment’s hesitation, she raised her arms. Each ended up slightly above and beside the thin palm tree directly above her head.

Liam did the rest, moving the chain and unused restraint over it, then tightening the latter around Avril’s left wrist. Once everything was secure, Liam took a step back. Avril Knight, his “prisoner,” though she looked anything but unwillingly incarcerated, glanced up to admire her current state. She grinned at the cuffs, then at him.

“Well fucking done,” she purred. “This is going to be so much fun.”

Liam hoped so. Drawing in a deep breath, aware that he wouldn’t be capable of seeing if anyone ever walked into viewbehind him, he reapproached the captive redhead. She still had her clothes on, but that was also by design. He didn’t rush to take them off, either. Nor his.

He kissed her passionately, hands on her hips. The palm tree he’d selected bent at maybe a forty-degree angle, tip extending toward the ocean, but more importantly, had a small area where the wood bowed downward, making it nearly parallel to the ground. Without that minor imperfection, this probably wouldn’t have worked. Even with it, Liam worried about relying too heavily on the tree’s sturdiness.

For now, however, it did its job. It kept Avril Knight relatively imprisoned. And so, Liam took charge.

As their kiss deepened, Avril’s excitement felt supercharged. That was enough for him to relax his worries. Moving things ahead, he delivered his fingertips to her shorts. He undid the button, lowered the zipper. But that was all he did there. Anticipation was the weapon he needed to wield if he was going to meet Avril’s hopes. Which meantheneeded to stay patient.

Avril’s shapely hips were more than enough to keep her shorts up. He left them to their task, then slipped a hand under her shirt. His warm hand met her warm stomach, slightly more taut than usual because of the core strength involved in keeping her arms up in the air. He ran his hand over her skin, tracing the curve of her side like a sled heading downhill, then somehow having enough momentum to climb up the next hill.

After that indulgence, he lifted her shirt. As it went up, he pulled his mouth back. Avril stared hotly at him, eager to see what he’d do with it.

Obviously, it wouldn't be coming fully off with the order of operations he’d selected. There was a palm tree in the way. But he could lift it above her head, revealing so much of her gorgeous body that he couldn’t help but delay himself with a long, hungrystare, and twist it into a second restraint just above her elbows. As he did so, Avril climbed onto her toes so she could look over his shoulder. Suddenly, her eyes widened.

Panic lanced through Liam as if a sharpened piece of glass had just shoved its way into his back, and he hurled his attention in the same direction. Where he found literally no one standing on the beach.

“That’s not fucking funny,” he growled at Avril, who couldn’t keep her laughter away.

“It’s a little funny.”

“I will leave you like this,” he said.

“That’d be kind of hot, too, I suppose,” Avril said.

He grunted, realizing how futile it was to try and make Avril self-conscious, and finished tying up her shirt.Then,he made her pay a bit.

She had plenty of weak spots. Her neck was her weakest point, and he gave it plenty of attention. Her laughter soon transitioned into breathy moans, especially with his hands roaming across her voluptuous body in their practiced way. With this body, in particular, he’d had a lot of practice. He touched, kissed, and whispered sordid thoughts against soft skin, causing numerous shivers. More.

Avril unfurled like an awning being raised, trembling in anticipation when he finally pushed her shorts down. Stepping out of them, she kicked them away, then leaned into his hands as they squeezed her butt. As a small act of vengeance, he acted as if he planned to pick her up, only to release her once she began returning to her toes.

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