Page 251 of Filthy Elites

“Bottled water?”

He rolls his eyes, but grabs me a cold bottle of water out of the mini fridge.

Once he has the alcohol shoved in my purse, he grabs my hand and takes me through his backyard. He keeps going until we get to the edge of the cliff, then he hauls me to the steep stairs that lead down to the beach.

Uncertain, I fall back a step. “Wait, we’re going down these?”

“That is the way to the beach,” he says dryly.

“Is there another way?”

“Sure. I can push you. You’ll get there a hell of a lot faster, but I make no promises about the condition you’ll be in.”

I roll my eyes, muttering as I walk closer to the steps, “Some spoiled rich boy you are. You don’t even have anelevatordown to the beach?”

“I am an endless disappointment,” he says solemnly.

I crack a smile, but it fades quickly as I place my hand on the railing.

Thankfully, there is at least a railing to hold onto, but I’m not comfortable walking down this staircase. I wouldn’t love it completely sober, but with a little alcohol in my veins, it’s a big fat no.

I go anyway.

We make it down safely, but as soon as my sandals sink into the sand, I begin to question my footwear choices. I grab onto Dare’s shoulder to keep myself upright as I wobble on one leg, reaching down to pull off my sandal.

He glances at my hand on his shoulder, then back at me as I gracelessly tip over. I laugh, my nails biting into his shoulder, but I still lose my balance and fall on my ass in the sand.

“My god, have you never imbibed alcohol in your whole life?” he asks, amused, as he turns to look at me sprawled on the beach.

It doesn’t occur to me until his gaze travels up my legs that they’re spread and he can probably see my panties.

I shift my weight and move my legs to block his view, then climb to my knees. He offers a hand, I expect to help me up, but rather than help me stand, he plants that hand on his hip, then grabs my other hand and plants it on his other hip.

I look up at him, on my knees in the sand at his feet. I don’t know how he looks even more handsome from down here, but all the amusement in my body dissipates, replaced with a strangely sensual heat.

A faint smirk tugs at his lips, hinting at the thoughts playing through his mind. “You look good down there,” he murmurs. “Maybe you should stay for a while.”

Heat travels through my belly as I think about what he means.

I drop my hands and break his gaze, pushing myself up off the beach without help.

Strangely, I feel a little more sober as I stand up.

I don’t look at him. I look at the ocean, at the powerful waves folding in on themselves and riding in to crash against the shore.

“I love the beach,” I say softly as I slide my purse strap back over my shoulder.

Dare places a hand on my hip and pulls me in closer to him. “Me too.”

We walk down the beach until we come to a cluster of rocks. There’s beach in front of it, but the water keeps crashing against the rocks and flooding the small area of sand.

Dare lets go of my hip and grabs my hand. He leads the way, but we don’t make it all the way across before the water comes rushing back at the shore. I let out a shriek as the cold water hits my legs, startling me as I’m now standing knee-deep in the ocean.

He looks back, a smile that feels genuine on his handsome face. “You okay?”

I don’t realize until he asks that I’m squeezing his hand in a death grip. I make a point to ease up, but I can’t deny being in the water again sparks a bit of panic that tightens in my chest and raises the hair on my arms.

I want to get out of the water, so I nod quickly. He must see the discomfort on my face, because he hauls me forward and we make it past before another wave comes.

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