Page 10 of Reluctant Chemistry
“Twenty-six. Twenty-seven in April.”
“Perfect.” She flashed him a flirty smile. “So, are you coming or not? Because if you are, you’d better ditch that skirt and put on some shorts.”
“It’s a lavalava, not a skirt. Guys wear them all the time in Samoa.”
“Do they? Funny, I was in Samoa last year, and I don’t remember seeing any.”
“Well, I thought itmightbe better than answering the door naked.”
A blush crept up her neck and landed on her cheeks. She had one of those captivatingfaces: touched by the brush of beauty and a sunny disposition. And as they stood in each other’s space, Luka had the strangest feeling that if he got into her VW and they drove away, he was done for.
Eighteen?
CeCe didn’t miss a beat. “Come on, go grab your stuff, Chopper Guy. I’ll wait in the van.”
Still stunned by her invitation, he hesitated before awhy not?flashed across his mind. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
Luka waited for her to leave before tugging on his jeans and a fresh T-shirt.If it matters, I could lie and say I’m twenty.Did it matter? Maybe it would tomorrow, or in a few days’ time, or perhaps months from now when summer’s fervor had faded, but right at that moment, he couldn’t care less.
Outside, he climbed into her van and clicked his seat belt into place. “Where did you get the Kombi? What is it, a sixty-six?”
She turned the key in the ignition, and the engine sputtered twice before kicking into life. “Yeah, I think so. It was Mum’s back in the day, but now I’m the only one who drives it. Has that whole ‘summer road trip’ vibe about it, don’t you think?”
“It does.” Luka glanced over his shoulder at the mattress in the back. “I looked at buying a split-window model recently, but I missed out on the auction. They’re worth a fortune.”
CeCe pulled out onto the street, and as Calvin Harris sung about summer on the radio and the scent of lavender from a small bunch hanging off the rearview mirror filled the air, he relaxed. She swayed in her seat in time to the music, and he did the same.
“Yeah, Dad jokes that whoever I marry can have the Kombi as a dowry, so they can sleep in it when the going gets tough.”
Luka stared out the side window, thinking how lucky some guy would be to get both the girl and the van. “Something to keep in mind.”
This made her chuckle, and he looked her way. She’d pulled her hair back in a loose ponytail, but with the window down, dancing tendrils brushed her face and neck. He loved a woman with curls. Loved running his hands through the coils and lathering them with shampoo in the shower. “Where are we going?”
“Sandwater Bay, on the other side of the point. Have you been there before?”
“Not to swim, but I’ve flown over the area a few times, though. Do you surf?”
“I try. You?”
“Every chance I get.”
CeCe hung a left and drove a short distance along a gravel road before parking the van behind a bank of sand dunes and cutting the engine.
When they walked the track to the beach, the place was almost deserted.
“Is this where you normally swim?”
“Sometimes. I wouldn’t swim here alone but thought you might like it.”
He looked across the surf to the horizon, and when he turned to reply, she was already shimmying out of her shorts, her T-shirt lying discarded beside her bag on the sand. Luka took his fill of her through his sunglasses. Nude-colored string bikini, long legs, and flowing dark curls with highlights of copper visible in the sunlight—she was stunning.
“Coming in?”
They waded into the surf, which waswarmer than he’d expected. He dived through the breakers and resurfaced to find her watching him as she trod water, rising and falling with the swell.
His heart beating faster than usual, he wanted to swim over and lift her onto his hips. Feel her legs wrap around his waist and her arms around his neck. But instead, he swam toward the horizon, the smooth, even strokes helping to settle his nerves. Luka hadn’t felt this way about a woman in ages.
By the time he made it back to shore, CeCe was face down on her towel, her bikini straps undone. He settled beside her on his back and closed his eyes for a moment. As a sudden chill made his skin bump, he turned to look at her. Wild curls framed her face, and a dusting of sand peppered her cheek.
