Page 40 of Sunny Skies Ahead
“Who said anything about a bikini?” Kameron said, and I swore under my breath, knowing he had me.
Damn him.
“Do I at least get to know where we’re going?”
“Swimming,” Kameron said, as if it was obvious. “We’re going to the lake.”
I leaned back on my hands, turning my face to the afternoon sun. The thick clouds provided enough cover that I didn’t need to shield my eyes from the rays. I could breathe deeply and focus on the comforting feeling of the warm sun on my face. My legs dangled off the side of the dock, and the dress over my bathing suit rippled gently in the late spring wind. Kameron had cannonball’d off the end of the dock as soon as we’d arrived, and I’d painstakingly slathered myself in sunscreen so I could enjoy my time beneath the warm rays.
“Come on in, the water’s fine,” Kameron said when he resurfaced, playfully splashing water in my direction.
“I’m not getting in there,” I replied with a laugh, dangling my legs in the water. “I just washed my hair.”
And I was not keen on repeating the tedious process all over again, regardless of how much Kameron flashed me those baby blues.
Kameron was floating face up in the water, eyes closed as he soaked up the rays. He looked at peace, without the usual tension in his shoulders.
Not that I paid attention to how much tension he carried in his shoulders, because that would be well outside of what was allowed.
I closed my eyes, as if it would quiet the butterflies in my stomach.
It was getting harder to decide what was and was not allowed.
“You’re beautiful.”
I opened my eyes to find Kameron hovering in the water just a few feet in front of me. The unfamiliar words struck something in methat had long since laid dormant.
“I’m sorry,” Kameron said sheepishly. “That slipped out.”
I laughed, tossing some of my curls over one shoulder and looking over my shoulder in a teasingly suggestive gesture.
“Thank you. This is my favorite dress,” I said, smoothing my hands down the green and white floral dress that barely hit my knees.
“It is a nice dress, but I’ve always thought that,” Kameron said, shaking his head. “Your beauty isn’t new to me.”
I pressed my lips together, the teasing confidence of earlier vanishing instantly when I looked at Kameron for the first time since he’d jumped in to swim. Kameron Miller had a wayof unnerving me when I least expected it, and the sight of him, shirtless and wet and very,veryclose, had my throat closing up.
Kameron swam up to me, pressing both of his palms on either side of my hips. My heart pounded in my chest, my pulse a dull roar in my ears.
“I want to kiss you so fucking bad,” he murmured, and I felt like I might pass out. “I tried not to. I’ve tried for months. But I can’t look away from you. I’m always looking for you. Even when I know you’re not there, I still hope that you will be.”
His blue eyes were fixed on me, and instead of breaking out in a cold sweat, I found myself leaning in. I straightened my dress, and Kameron tracked the movement. A small noise escaped him.
“You with thesefreakingdresses.”
My laugh was breathy and somewhat choked, as if all the air between us was quickly disappearing.
This was the line. I’d spent so many nights at Winding Road the last few weeks wrestling with the war in my mind over where the line was. I knew, as Kameron’s pupils dilated, that this was the line. If we crossed it, things would get messy.
But Kameron was staring at me with that intensity I craved, and suddenly, I’d never wanted to cross a line more in my life.
“Do it,” I whispered as my heart thundered in my chest. “Kiss me.”
What I meant to be a dare turned out to be a moment of truth as Kameron surged up, leaning all of his weight into his hands as he kissed me. I moaned into his mouth, shocked by how quickly my body responded to the kiss—tohim.
The kiss was searing in the most delicious way. Because he was using his hands to balance himself on the dock, I expected an awkward clashing of teeth and tongue, when this was anything but. Kameron slanted his lips against mine at the perfect angle, tasting the strawberry lemonade we’d shared earlier.
I reached my hands out to grab his shirt to have something to steady myself, gasping when my hands met only damp, heated skin. His muscles flexed underneath my touch and warmth blossomed in my stomach, new and exciting and all-consuming.
