Page 53 of Follow Your Bliss

“Come on.” He ditched his sandals by the steps and ran off toward the water.

I slipped mine off too and ran to the water’s edge where I stood beside him and let the rolling waves kiss my feet with foam. The wind blew my skirt up dangerously high and took my breath away as much as standing next to him was.

I stepped farther into the foam. He grabbed my waist, gently pulling me back higher on the beach. “Don’t go too far in. My mom always says the larger fish come out to feed at night. I don’t know if it’s true, but I don’t want you to get gobbled up.”

I laughed and put my hands on his, stepping back with him onto the beach. Without overthinking, I pulled his arms around my middle and leaned back against him with my arms over his.

My heart raced. I let my head fall back against his chest, and he nestled his face beside mine, his beard sweetly scratching my cheek. The longer I gazed into the dark sky, the more stars popped out, bright and shining from the blackness, rivaled only by the silver ribbon of moonlight dancing in the waves.

We stood in the anything-but-silent rush of the wind in our ears, sending long locks of my hair waving like flags. The ceaseless waves crashed, and as his thumb rubbed my side, my heart pounded with the unmistakable rising hope of falling. My fingertips ran soft circles on his arm.

As much as I wanted to stay in this moment forever, I wanted even more to find out what was happening between us.

I turned to him. He pulled his head back and met my gaze, his big brown eyes dark except for the moonlight sparkling in their depths. His face softened into a smile. His hand left my middle to nestle into the curls beside my face, gently pulling them back from blowing into my eyes, his thumb gently caressing my cheek and his gaze straying to my mouth.

My heart thudded as I tipped my face up to his. His lips were parted, his breath soft and sweet.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked softly.

I nodded and lifted my face closer to his. “Please,” I murmured.

He closed his eyes and the distance, laying the softest kiss on my bottom lip, then barely skimming his lips against mine. It’d been the most innocent of kisses. But when he kissed me again, hemmmfedand pulled my face closer as if my lips were the divinity he needed. His hand tangled in my hair at the back of my head as his mouth grew hungrier, and I eagerly matched his intensity, raising up on my tiptoes to get closer. I slipped my hand under his shirt, catching smooth, bare skin across a mountain range of muscle.

I pressed the aching between my legs against the hard line between his. He softly moaned against my mouth, his hand slipping to my bottom and pulling me closer.

Soft laughter and a dog bark broke us apart. An older couple with a German Shepard hailed us. “Pardon us! Have a good night!”

I giggled against Jason’s chest as he smiled and waved back to them. “Night!”

He hunched over and tucked his face next to mine, kissing my cheek then my temple.

“Let’s go back to the condo,” I said, eager to get him all to myself.

The moment we got inside, Jason kicked his sandals off in the foyer and dusted the sand from his feet into the catch tray by the door. “Do you want to watch Star Wars? I still can’t believe you’ve never seen the original trilogy.”

A cloud passed over my heart. We hadn’t talked much on the way home, and I’d chalked it up to us both being nervous and excited to get back here and go back to making out. Afterthatkiss, I wanted to sprint throughallthe bases. But…he just wanted to watch a movie?

“Um, I guess.” I tucked my feet under me on the couch and adjusted my skirt over my thighs while he popped the DVD in. Every cell of my body was concentrating on figuring out what the hell was happening.

He sat close to me on the sofa, started the movie, and reached his arm around me with a smile. Okay, so at least maybe he didn’t regret it. I leaned my head against him and slipped both hands onto his thigh. An invitation.

A few minutes into the movie, he reached across and rubbed at my ankle tattoo. “Why a butterfly?”

I pulled my leg forward a little so my knee was resting on his. “To remind me that even in the dark times, I’m growing, and I’ll come out stronger on the other side.”

His brow knitted as his fingers slipped down my shoulder. “I love that. And the roses?”

I shrugged. “I just love roses.”

“Do you have any other tattoos?”

“Yes.”

A mischievous smile played about his lips. “Where?”

I shrugged again, holding his gaze. “They like to play hide and seek.” He blushedhardwhile I pulled his arm out straight, examining it. “Do you have any tattoos?”

“Not yet. I’ve thought about getting one, though.”

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