Page 155 of The Perfect Spiral
I mouth, Do it! to him, and he takes a deep breath.
“Hey, Hannah? Can I talk to you real quick outside?” His question makes her snap her eyes up to him. She nods and glances at me.
They open the door and head out back, closing it firmly behind them. Damn! I wanted to eavesdrop. They know me too well, and I hate it.
“That poor boy looks like he’s going to have a heart attack. Did you see his hands? They’re shaking like an earthquake,” my mom jokes, eliciting giggles from the crowd.
“He’s just nervous, Mom. He really likes her. It’s cute, don’t you see the way he looks at her?”
“That I do, sweetie. She’s the only one he sees when she’s around. What a great guy!”
“Hey! I’m the best!” Knox grins down at me, still standing beside me. I roll my eyes and walk away from him.
I guide Adam into the living room and settle him down on the sofa with Eden and Noah, who are glued to the TV. When I return, I see that Ben and Hannah have come back inside.
I look for any indication of how it went, and Ben gives me two thumbs up.
“Yes! Yes! Yes! I’m so happy for you both!” I jump up and down, screaming. I rush over to them and pull them into a hug, kissing both of their cheeks.
Hannah smiles at me while Ben gives me a look that says, Shut up, it’s only a date. “Sorry, I’m just so excited for you two. Sorry,” I say, feeling a bit embarrassed.
Chapter 51
After a while, everyone heads down to the beach. I run up to grab more sunscreen for surfing and tanning later on.
I step out onto the deck and start applying sunscreen to my arms when I hear the sound of a camera clicking beside me. I turn to see Knox sprawled out on one of the chairs, snapping pictures of me.
“What are you doing? I thought you were some random guy taking pictures of me!” I hiss, but he continues to take photos. “Stop!” I storm over to him, trying to snatch the camera away.
How does he know how to use a professional camera like this? It looks expensive, too. He holds it high out of my reach, but I climb on top of him, trying to get at it.
I want those hideous photos deleted. My leg swings over to the other side of him to steady myself, and I realize I’m basically straddling him. Get off him, Alex!
Suddenly aware of our position, I start to stand up, but he grabs my waist and pulls me back down onto his thighs. I can feel my heart pounding as arousal floods through me.
His face inches closer to mine and he whispers, “I’m keeping the pictures. I like them.”
“Delete them, Knox. I look disgusting. Please,” I whisper back, acutely aware of his proximity. He’s sitting there shirtless, his black swimming shorts riding dangerously low on his hips.
He knows what he’s doing, priming all the single ladies in this country to drop their panties for him in a heartbeat.
“You could never look disgusting, baby doll,” he says, his eyes searching my face. He reaches up to gently tuck a strand of hairbehind my ear.
I feel a jolt of electricity as his skin comes into contact with mine. He leans back, adjusting himself so he’s comfortable, and snaps another picture of me sitting there in shock on his lap.
“Knox,” I groan, covering my face to prevent him from taking another shot. His hand pulls on my thighs, sliding me closer to his body.
His hands reach up to remove mine from my face, his touch surprisingly soft. Seeing his eyes squint in concentration is sexy. He touches my waist again, his thumb gently rubbing across my hip bone on my bare skin.
He takes a picture of his hand gripping my waist, then goes back to capturing my face and body. I just stare at him, forgetting he’s even taking pictures. My heart is racing so fast I don’t know what I’m doing anymore.
I start to smile at him while he’s still leaning back. His eye snaps open, and he lowers the camera a bit so I can see both of his eyes focused on me.
A grin spreads across his tanned face, and he lifts the camera back up to his eye, snapping a few more pictures.
He sets the camera down on his bare stomach and takes my thighs in his hands, stroking them up and down. All the while, we’re just staring at each other in silence. This feels so good.
I clear my throat and stand up, moving away from him. He lifts the lens back up to his face. He’s still taking pictures of me.
