Page 129 of Tides That Bind

Riley asks and I comply. Over and over until he smashes his mouth to mine. Our kisses grow messy, our touches more urgent.

The harder I buck my hips, the faster Riley breathes.

The more I say his name, the tighter he holds me.

We’re racing but carrying each other to the finish.

Creases appear across Riley’s forehead as he strains himself to hold back, to wait for me to join him and I hear another one of his echoes sound in my mind.

“We do this together or not at all.”

I smile as I come, grabbing onto Riley and sink my nails into his skin, wondering how crazy the world must be for us to be this way right here and now.

Life is crazy.

And sometimes sad.

But also beautiful.

Especially the middle.

For the firsttime since the accident, I sleep soundly.

Granted, I didn’t sleep all that much. I wake and it’s still dark, but through the sheer curtain I see light beginning to infiltrate the sky.

Harper lays on her side beside me, her face relaxed, breathing deep and even. I reach out, brushing her hair back from her face, which has grown tanner after spending so much time at the beach, even in the Spring.

“Are you awake?”

Harper takes a deep breath. “No.”

Smirking, I scoot down on the bed, placing the smallest of kisses against her stomach, just above the scar that brought Lucas into the world. I trail them up her side.

“Let me keep dreaming.”

I slide back to my pillow.

Harper huffs and finally opens one, looking at the window beyond me. “It’s still dark outside,” she mumbles, turning on her stomach.

“Not for long.” I scoot closer so I’m flush against her, making it easy to leave a kiss on her lips. “It’s about to be thebest time of day.”

She yelps when I reach over, giving her bare ass a playful smack. I can’t help myself through. I sweep my hand over the smooth skin to soothe it before dropping a kiss there and climbing out of bed.

Harper pulls the tangled sheet to her waist and pushes up onto her elbows. “What are you talking about?”

“Go grab a swimsuit,” I tell her, heading into the bathroom. “And I’ll show you.”

Soon later, we’ve climbed into my jeep and Harper falls asleep again one minute into the eight-minute drive. But I don’t mind because she’s got her hand on top of mine that rests on her bare thigh.

“Come on, come on.” I tug gently on the bottom of her jean shorts. “We only have a few minutes.”

Harper raises her head, her blonde hair wrapped into a large knot on her head. “It’s too early for practice.” She yawns. “The sun isn’t even up yet.”

“Exactly.” I hop out of my Jeep and race onto the boardwalk, taking the path that winds around the side of the shop.

When I hear her shuffling footsteps, my keys are in the lock. I don’t bother turning on a light. I head into my office, grabbing our dry wetsuits that hang on the back of the door. I toss Harper hers. “Strip. Put this on.”

She raises an eyebrow. “After last night I didn’t expect you to ever tell mestripand then follow it up by telling me to put on something else.”

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